TopResume on SkimmThis: Job Search During a Pandemic

Our career expert, Amanda Augustine, was featured on an episode of SkimmThis, theSkimm's weekly news podcast, to discuss what you should do if you lose, or lost, your job as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Listen to Amanda on SkimmThis

Podcast highlights

It's okay to take a moment to grieve a job loss, but then you have to make a plan

• It's time to decide if you are looking for a short-term solution or have the luxury of pursuing a long-term solution.

• It's okay to temporarily shelve your five-year plan and start thinking about a three-to-six month plan instead.

Take an inventory of your skills to help plot your next career move

• Make a list of your hard skills and soft skills, and think about how they can be applied to jobs that are currently hiring.

• Employers will be looking for adaptability, communication skills, and the ability to manage a team while remote, so make sure you highlight those skills during your search.

• Digital software and programming skills are in-demand, so consider learning these skills while job hunting.

Informational interviews are a great networking tool

• Amanda's favorite networking tool is the informational interview, which is when you as the job seeker line up conversations with people in desirable positions and industries to collect information about the landscape of a particular company or field.

• When you're setting up an informational interview with someone, be specific about what you need and how much time you'll need from the other person.

Practice makes perfect with a virtual interview

• Before your interview, give the technology that you're using for your interview a test run to make sure that you know what you're doing and everything runs smoothly.

• Make sure that you wear appropriate attire — this is a job interview, after all! Also, find a well-lit environment with an appropriate background to have your interview in.

• You can keep a cheat sheet nearby to refer to.

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. Have your resume ready to go and know who you'd be ready to tap as a reference. Keep an eye on job boards and have a sense for which roles you'd want to go for.

Get your resume ready to go

• Remember: Resumes are a marketing document, not a transcript of your career history and education. Your resume should reflect the career goals you are pursuing.

• You should always target your resume to the job description you're interested in.

• Always have your resume ready to go. You need to hope for the best andprepare for the worst; it's easier to update your resume proactively while you're still employed.

Ready to start a new job search? It's time to make sure your resume is ready to help you. Submit for a free resume review now.

Recommended Reading:

• 7 Free Certification Courses to Enhance Your Resume

• What Should I Do If I Lost My Job Because of the Coronavirus?

• COVID-19 Jobs Outlook: What the Coronavirus Means for Your Job Search