Dear Job Hunter,
I’m sure you are excruciatingly aware that reading job postings all day can be mind-numbing, verging on mind-altering. What should you hone in on as you seek for—and scour—these job postings?
Key words. Bam! They should pop out at you…but do they?
You kind of need to know what you’re looking for.
Scene 1:
Imagine heading to the Farmers Market without a goal. Could be a lot of fun! If you have a limitless amount of time—picture an open, blue-sky, carefree sort of Saturday morning—you might just have a taste for strolling about and catching fresh whiffs of wonder. Charismatic vendors will offer you samples, and suddenly you’ll feel like putting your nose up to some homemade bar soaps. A guitar plucks sweet nothings across the gentle breeze. You turn a corner and a craving begins to rumble inside of you, concocting notions of magical ingredients to bring home for your weekend brunch. You might just hang out all day long!
With the luxury of time, you are free to wander and muse upon the most random inklings. .
Here’s the stickler.
Scene 2:
What if you only have 15 minutes to move through the Farmers Market and you desperately need tomatoes, onions, and celery of the finest quality and for the best price? You will want to know the vendor stands layout (a map would be nice), and you’ll probably wish for a list of vendor produce grades and cost comparisons. You will want to know: Who sells the veggies? Who sells organic? Who has the most affordable, yet most gorgeous produce?
Under a time crunch, you can’t spare even a few moments for meandering and pondering.
The job hunt is a less pungent kind of browsing session, but probably mirrors the second Farmers Market Scene rather than the first. The job hunt might be intriguing, even rewarding, but rarely a luxurious pleasure if it sucks away your time and energy. You need direction. You’re probably under pressure and need to acquire something (preferably employment) as soon as possible. You’ll need to shop for key words, which really do serve as a job market map.
While not edible, key words are meant to be savored on-the-go.
They depict what an employer is looking for and what you have to offer. You should be making connections between what hirers expect and what you bring to the table.
Key words are vital clues across all phases of the job hunt.
- Initial Search.
As you venture forth into the land of job boards, you will want to input key words that bring you where you want to go. Are you looking to be hired as a Technician? Doctor? Writer? Wilderness Guide? Cheese Queen?
Do you want to oversee other people? Perhaps you’d prefer searching key phrases, such as Managing Technician. Lead Doctor. Chief Writer. Director of Wilderness Guides. Cheese Queen needs no additional title.
It may be that you wish for a supportive, more behind-the-scenes kind of role. You will probably want to search for Assistant or Associate titles. Customer Service Representative is another typical support title, across the board.
- Job Posting.
Once you have landed upon a job posting that piques your interest, read to seek key words that answer your curiosity about Skills, Tasks, Requirements, and so forth.
Keep in mind that throughout the various types of work cultures, there are specific words and phrases that describe the same kinds of skills in different ways. For example, one post for a management role on a corporate company site might require a potential hire to be prepared to strategize and to facilitate conversations, while another post for a management role on a non-profit mental health company site might ask that a potential hire be prepared to brainstorm and to hold space for group conversations. These are essentially the same kinds of actions explained in different ways, based upon the unique lingo—or jargon—of the professional genre.
I beckon you to have a dictionary open, whether it be virtually on your browser or rather, a paperback copy at your fingertips. Each and every time you question the meaning of a word, look it up. After you discover the initial key word definition, browse through the company website and look at comparable company websites to better understand the word’s context, according to the communication style of the culture.
- Cover Letter and Resume creation.
You will want to extract key words from the posted job description and evenly sprinkle them throughout your cover letter and resume. This will reveal to employers your outstanding relevance to the featured role, and will help them understand your value in their own terms. Always do be honest. Make sure you understand the meaning of words and ensure that they are relevant to your skill set. You are defined by how you express yourself to potential employers. Credibility and transparency feed longterm trust.
Note that extracting key words can cause some really stormy brain weather. Clear your mind by completing the wise and wondrous mindfulness practices as laid forth by my esteemed Job Hunters AI colleague, Cathy Goerz. Her most recent article “Staying Healthy and Resilient During a Job Search” walks a job hunter through ways to settle the psyche, restore the body, and validate oneself with positively inspiring mantras (2024).
After clearing your mind of the muddle and restoring your physical and emotional wellbeing, face every new job hunt expedition with laser-eyes, ready to scan for fantastical key words. Remember that key words can build into a short key phrase, and as a concise collection, these embody the main idea of a paragraph. Within any piece of writing, you should highlight the key words and phrases, and upon diagonalizing your gaze down the page (speed-reading), you will be able to tell someone a brief summary of what the paragraph is “about”. These are your keys to grasp as you unlock the unknown.
When words and sentences blur together and it all just begins to feel the same, anchor yourself securely to steady key words, so you don’t drift out to sea.
After all, this job hunt is your magnificent quest. Your calling. Your very destiny.
May you hunt with whole-hearted direction.
Warmly,
Jenny
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