Tag: Job Search

Why routine is important to job seekers

Paul Wagenaar

The feeling of loss of purpose is one of the hardest obstacles to overcome for some people when they search for a new job. It can be difficult to find motivation. The fear of not finding what you need to live is ever-present. As well, the frustration of frequent rejection can all combine to make your job search so much more difficult.

Rediscovering your purpose can be helped by creating and using the “tool” of a daily routine. A routine to mirror your working day, a routine with blocks of time for job searching, performing useful task, getting out of your home, engaging with people, exercising, and engaging with your community. An evolving routine can help you build yourself back up and restore your purpose.

Why isn’t my job search working?

Paul Wagenaar

Job searching is harder than it used to be … it seems. How long should a job search take? It depends … mostly it depends on you. It depends on the decisions you make, the effort you put into it, and how determined you are in the face of disappointment and frustration. Here are 22 steps you can take, the more you do, the more likely you are to succeed. See what you think.

Illuminating frustrating places

Paul Wagenaar

We all have good intentions when it comes to most things, including looking for a first job, a replacement job, or any job. It sounds simple enough but for some and for people who live with barriers to employment it can be easier said than done. I have found the best way to eliminate an obstacle or navigate a path through a frustrating situation is illumination. Illumination and the breaking down of the obstacle until I can work with the pieces.

This is a brief guide for people who find the process difficult, frustrating, and even a dark, scary place to be.

Helping a friend

Paul Wagenaar

I think my best posts are those that I write with a specific person in mind. I believe this is especially true when helping someone with a resume. A resume is a one or two page representation of a three dimensional person with skills, experiences, and attitudes that has to capture all of those things along with the nuances that makes that person unique and this is hard to do. This post is a start on that process, and what I wrote for one person might help you or someone you know as well. Please use it, share it, and add to it, I hope it is tool my friend will use as well as you.

A job seeking Multiplier

Paul Wagenaar

How to do you multiply the impact of a career advisor? You need a tool. A tool that can help a job seeker help themselves, a tool that builds the confidence of a job seeker, and a tool that helps the job seeker identify they things they don’t know how to do well. That is what the “Job Seeker’s Playbook” is about.

This latest iteration is the result of more than a dozen job seeker’s comments, suggestions, and requests; and it will continue to evolve. I would like to thank every one of them. If you are looking for a new job or you know someone who is looking for a new job, please use and share this tool. We all would welcome your feedback as well.

An Insider’s guide to being a good Career Advisor

Paul Wagenaar

There is a special group of people who are making a difference to help people help themselves. I would like to dedicate this post to them, what they have taught me, to the people they help, and to the employers who work with them.

Teaching People How to Fish

Paul Wagenaar

s a volunteer, I have presented workshops and seminars to people of all ages on “how to find a job” and “how to keep a job,” for more than twenty years.

Eight months ago I was fortunate enough to be hired by an Employment Agency that specializes in assisting job seekers who experience barriers to employment. The time has been a revelation, the people I work for and with have taught me so much that I did not know about resilience, perseverance, and the resources that are available to help, often with no cost. I invite you to read and to share this very brief introduction to things many of us do not know about employment agencies.