So, the countdown to Christmas is on. Typically, a busy time of year socially and in the work place where suddenly deadlines need to be met before people take holiday leave. For job seekers it can be a time to get applications in before the quiet period starts. Here’s a tip – hopefully other job seekers are taking a break, thereby reducing the competition.
I won’t deny that I’m a list person and lately things have got a little out of hand. We’re talking back of envelopes, whiteboard, post-it notes, notebook (Spirax, not Mac) and my iFriends ~ iPhone and iPad. Earlier this week I even created an Excel spreadsheet thinking a weekly schedule will keep me moving forward with my business. Unfortunately my multitude of lists has lead to a scattergun approach and some procrastination. I was due to write this blog post two days ago!!
This is how I cleared up my clutter:
- I downloaded a free app called Wunderlist and keyed all my items into categories and set due dates and reminders. Loving it!
- Scrap paper lists are now in the recycle bin.
- My Excel schedule is now my screen saver for daily reference PLUS I’ve saved it to this handy file storage app called Evernote. When I find interesting information like documents, photos and website links, I can save these to one place and access files remotely. I use this for saving career and job seeking resources. Similar cloud based file storage tools include Dropbox and Google Drive. I’m still new to Evernote and found that there’s a free workshop coming up in Melbourne.
- My whiteboard stays. I’m a visual learner.
How does this help job seekers get organised?
Keeping track of your activity can help keep you motivated in your search. Set some goals and a task list and find the right tool to store these for easy reference. Trello is a beaut scheduling tool available as web, IOS and Android app. If Excel is your thing try recording your job search pursuits in a table or spreadsheet like this:
I refer to these ideas in my blog post on keeping positive and finding that balance between daily job search endeavours and taking care of your health. Setting up a home office and applying structure to your search can give you a sense of a working day – and yes, schedule your tea breaks…oh look at the time!
