Ways to Look for a Job

As we know job-hunting can be extremely difficult.  There are just times that we will face when we realize our job hunt is just not working.  What are we to do?  First, never give up.  Three words that should be inserted directly into the brain and never forgotten: never give up. Take a breath and try a different approach.  Even when you are feeling as low as the ground and feel as if you have tried everything... chances are you haven't.  Time to think outside the box.  Don't just work hard to find a job, work harder at a different strategy.  Do some deep thinking, use your brain, and attempt to solve the problem.

With that said, provided are some of the best and worst ways to look for a job.  Hopefully this will help in avoiding, or perhaps using some of these methods... 

1. Looking for job postings on the Internet.  Many will argue that this method is in fact the best way to look for a job.  Surprisingly this works on average only 4% of the time (according to information provided by the Dictionary of Occupational Titles)
2. Mailing out your resume to employers.  Only works about 7% of the time...
3. Answering local newspaper ads.  As times are changing, so are the ways of employers.  This method works anywhere between 5% and 24% at best.
4. Seeking help from private employment agencies or search firms.  This method works somewhere between 5% and 28% of the time.
5. Responding to ads in professional or trade journals, relating to your field.  This method only works about 7% of the time. 
6. Job clubs.  What is a job club?  I didn't even know... Apparently they are clubs that job hunt together.  Apparently the success rate is around 10%... I sure didn't know these "clubs" existed. 
7. Seeking help from the state or federal employment office.  Only works about 14% of the time.
8. Going to places where employers pick up workers.  This is for union members - assuming you have access to a union hiring hall, this will find you work up to 22% of the time. 
9. Asking for job leads.  Knowing someone is always a plus.  Knowing someone who knows someone is also good.  This method works around 33% of the time.
10. Going directly to the employer/office and knocking on the door.  This works best with smaller employers and is known to work 47% of the time.
11. Using Yellow Pages.  I was shocked to see this percentage.  Apparently this method works 65% of the time.  What you do is go through the Yellow Pages of your local phone book and identify what interests you.  Old fashioned, but apparently it works!  

When it comes to job-hunting, I prefer using the internet to search job postings.  I think that with today's technology, it is the most efficient way of seeing what is out there and I can contact employers with just a click of a button.  I argue that this method works a small percentage of the time.  I have had great luck with finding job postings on the Internet and even landed a job within a few weeks of searching.  But we all have different ways of doing things and that's what makes us different!