Find your perfect job in 3 easy steps
While finding your perfect job may be easier said than done, having a strong commitment and determination to see things through to the end will pay dividends. With any luck, your new job and the opportunity it affords you will far outweigh the effort you put into finding it!
What would you give to have the perfect job?
What defines ‘perfection’ is different for us all and this is never truer when searching for a new job or career. For some, it is the daily challenge their job provides. For others it is the people they work with or the environment they find themselves in.
What is true for all is that perfection is achievable for anyone willing to take the appropriate time to define what they want, search for what they want and apply for what they want. It’s that simple!
A former company executive I recently met now spends her days teaching flower arranging skills to amateurs of all ages. Her earnings are now a fraction of what they were, but she is finally happy at work and believes she has found her perfect job. For her, perfection is contentment and enjoyment, not money.
So what represents perfection for you? How can you find it and what will you do when you do?
Below are three easy steps to help you answer these questions and set you on your way to finding your perfect job.
Define perfection
The first step is to define what perfection looks like for you. You need to consider what you are passionate about or enjoy doing most. What excites you or what are you best at. To help you do this, consider the following questions and try to be as honest with yourself as possible.
- What gets me out of bed in the morning?
- What do I think I am good at?
- What do I think I am not so good at?
- What have I enjoyed doing most in my current/previous jobs?
- What have I enjoyed least in my current/previous jobs?
- What did I want to do when I was a child?
- If I could choose any job in the world, what would it be and why?
Write down your first thoughts on each question and then review them an hour or two later. Do they still seem reasonable? Is there a pattern in your answers? Can you see an outline of what job seems to make you happy?
Search for perfection
Once you have defined perfection, you need to search for it. If you are lucky, your definition of perfection may end up being a specific job or career. If so then you can move on to your job search straight away. If not, you will probably have a list of points that your perfect job should contain. All you need to do now is figure out which jobs meet your ‘perfection’ criteria.
For example, you may have realised that you have a real love for working with people (customers?), coupled with a strong passion for technology. A role such as a Technical Support Engineer in a modern technology company could well be precisely what you are looking for.
If you are still not sure what jobs to search for, why not try the exercise listed below. Hopefully, it will help you to see the ‘wood for the trees’ and allow you to define your perfect job.
- List all your previous jobs – and give them a score out of ten, with ten being perfect. Now put them in order of best to worst. Try to list down any relevant points on why a job was good (or bad).
- List all the jobs you have always wanted to try – and give them a score out of ten. Place them in ranking order as above. Think about why you have never applied for these jobs and what has held you back.
- Compare the two lists – and look for any distinct patterns. For some, it may be that the two lists are very similar, and it is just tweaking your current job to make it more perfect. In other cases, the lists might be very different, and the jobs you have always wanted to try are a complete change in career direction.
Apply for perfection
Hopefully, by now you will have a much better idea of what your perfect job would be. The next step is to get out there and start applying. However, before doing so, you need to consider one or two things.
The first point is money, i.e., can you earn a decent living out of your perfect job? While money may not be the motivating factor in your ideal job, most of us still need to be able to put food on the table and keep a roof over our head. So, if your perfect job happens to be so poorly paid that this isn’t possible, you really need to consider this. While the job might be perfect for you, what will this mean for your home life?
The reality is that most jobs in Cambridge will pay enough money to keep you safe and warm. Thus, just make sure you do some research on this before going any further.
The second point to consider is: ‘Is the grass really greener?’
Having told you that perfection is out there, it would seem rather cruel to now say ‘actually, it isn’t!’ So, to be clear, this is NOT what I am saying. I am simply suggesting that, before you throw yourself headlong into a new job search, you should make sure that what you ‘think’ you want is what you really do want.
Assuming this is the case, it’s now time to roll up your sleeves and get stuck in. Unfortunately, there is no substitute for effort and hard work when it comes to a job search. Try to apply directly to employers (where you can) rather than through agencies and don’t give up.
Chances are it will take you a little while to find ‘perfection,’ but when you do it will all be worthwhile.