Assemble Your Job Search Avengers

What’s the most common misconception about job searching? Maybe it’s the idea that you have to do it on your own. Sure: Eventually, you’re going to land a job, and at that point it’s going to be up to you to perform your duties satisfactorily. While you’re out there hitting the pavement and distributing your resume, though, you shouldn’t assume that you have to do it alone. Actually, you’re better off if you’ve got a full support system in place—your own personal job search dream team.

But who should you enlist for your job search team? We recommend filling the following positions:

1. First, you need a cheerleader. This is someone you can have in your corner who will offer you pure, straight encouragement—no matter what. Searching for a job is hard on many levels, but the toughest part of it may be dealing with the emotional fallout, which might lead you to beat yourself up or to start doubting yourself. Self-doubt can kill your job search. Protect against it with a parent, sibling, or close friend—someone who will tell you that they’re proud of you, no matter what.


2. Working in tandem with the cheerleader, you also need a realist. This is someone whose job is almost the opposite—not someone to discourage you, by any means, but someone whose encouragement comes in the form of practical critiques and guidance. Your cheerleader should always applaud your efforts, but your realist needs to be someone who will point out mistakes in your job search process. The realist will tell you when your resume is rusty, when you’re not getting out there and networking enough, when you’re succumbing to self-pity, or when you simply need to keep pushing forward.


3. You also need a networker. This will ideally be someone who works in your industry, or a related one, but really it could be anyone with a huge number of LinkedIn connections and a ton of phone contacts. Have you ever met someone who heard that you were seeking a job, and immediately said, “Do you know who you should call? My friend so-and-so. He just might have an opening for you!” That’s the kind of person to seek out, and to stay in contact with—working those contacts as best you can.


4. Finally, you need a writer—someone who can put your brand into words and tell your story as effectively as possible. To get a job, you need a compelling resume, and that requires more than just listing your achievements. It takes a real sense of narrative, of structure, and of formatting. It requires a skilled resume writer.

Assemble Your Job Search Avengers