Four Halloween Songs to “Boo”st Your Job Search

October 31, 2014 — Leave a comment

Job search can be unnerving and frightening. No need to be alarmed.

You can be scary good at job search!

Within these 4 Halloween songs lie tips that’ll help you take the veil off the darkness of your job hunt. Have a listen while I decrypt these for you, and when you give these tips a try, you’ll no longer feel that job search is like a gravedigger digging into unyielding, frozen ground.

1. “Monster Mash” by Bobby Pickett

For you, the living, this mash was meant too
When you get to my door, tell them Boris sent you.

Then you can mash, you can monster mash
The monster mash and do my graveyard smash
Then you can mash, you’ll catch on in a flash
Then you can mash, you can monster mash …

Yup, you gotta do the Monster Mash (i.e. Networking).

Just sending your resume to Monster.com and answering job ads won’t bring your job search to life like meeting up with Boris, Igor or Drac (a.k.a. the employees and managers who work where you’d like to work). Imagine if you got to know Boris and they/your targeted employer invite you in because Boris sent/recommended you, just like in the Monster Mash song?

Your mind swirls as murkily as the nasty brew stirred in the witch’s cauldron because you’re not sure how to find the hiring manager (or employees) of your targeted employer. No worries because Donna Svei (@AvidCareerist) walks you through a very practical (and successful) process in her post: “Hiring Manager Inactive on LinkedIn? Four Terrific Options!”

As weird as it may sound, the Halloween party you’ll be attending (whether it is an adults costume cocktail party or kids trick-or-treating alternative) is a Monster Mash opportunity. Strange place to make a connection, you say? Not as strange as you may think. What if I told you that I had gotten a teacher apprenticeship at a entrepreneurship graduate school through the airport massage guy?! Read more by clicking here.

2. “Somebody’s Watching Me” by Rockwell

I always feel like somebody’s watching me
And I have no privacy
I always feel like somebody’s watching me
Tell me it is just a trick …

Creepy as it may feel, this is exactly what you want when you are in job search.

You want recruiters, human resource managers and hiring managers (even colleagues and acquaintances) crawling over your social media profiles.

Hannah Morgan (@careersherpa) writes that “Companies are checking you out online, so why not use these tools to enhance your qualifications?” (Bold letters and underline are mine for emphasis.)  Hannah gives you 10 solid reasons why you should be engaged in social media in her post: “Social Media Can Help Your Job Search”.

Let me add that you’ll have ghost-like presence without social media. Employers may wonder if you have something to hide or if you’re not able or willing to grasp the new and are chained to the past. Get onto LinkedIn as a first step and as you raise your confidence, maybe you’ll even do as Hannah suggests and converse with your targeted employer via social media!

3. “Spooky” by Atlanta Rhythm Section and by Dusty Springfield

Love is kind of crazy
with a spooky little girl like you

(or little boy, per Dusty Springfield)

Spooky

Spooky. spooky

Spooky. spooky…

We’re all spooky, I mean “unique”, and finding the love means researching to find the best-fit position and employer for you.

You know that you should be checking the employer’s websites and social media accounts, getting onto sites like Glassdoor.com and networking.  If you can, extend your research reach (think Edward Scissorhands or Wolverine). Research extension can prevent a huge mistake.

A client called me, more excited than a kid emptying his/her Halloween candy bag after the night’s haul, about a possible target employer. Initial research gave a thumbs-up to this consumer goods company. Taking research further by becoming a customer of the company revealed an unwieldly online purchase process and an end product not quite meeting my client’s requirements. My client’s work values of “getting it right the first time” vs. this company’s values of “fail forward quickly” aren’t a mesh. This company was taken off the target list.

4. “Ghostbusters” – Ray Parker, Jr.

Who you gonna call?
(Ghostbusters)
Who can you call?
(Ghostbusters)

You want “Your Name” inserted for “Ghostbusters”…

when it’s time for the Hiring Manager or Human Resources to make that call and you want to be sure that you can be eerily easily contacted.

Everyone does a witch cackle when the career coach says “Be sure to double check your resume to ensure your contact information is correct.” Truthfully, incorrect contact info happens more frequently than bats flying to you know where. We can all get zombie-like after pouring over our resumes. Consider these scenarios:

  • Have you recently customized your LinkedIn URL?
  • Have you recently decided to use your cell phone number instead of your land line?
  • Have you recently changed your email id to separate your job search inquiries from your personal email or to have a more professional sounding handle?

Most everyone will check the first page of his/her resume, but have you checked the second page and any addendum pages? Ask a friend, who is as detailed-oriented as Dr. Frankenstein to give your resume the once over and specifically ask him/her to peer closely at your contact information.

Don’t forget to check your email signature, social media profiles (LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, etc.) and personal business cards. If you are using a header template for your cover letter, please check that as well.

Ready to Be Scary Good in Your Job Search?

Do let me know If you’ve managed to winningly wrestle the job search wraith by wielding these job search tips. And please do share your favorite Halloween song or job search suggestion.

If the job search wraith is still escaping you, no need to wail or scream, I’m here to assist! Know that while I’ve had a bit of fun with this Halloween themed post, I understand that job search is difficult.

#TakeThisMoment to push away fear and doubts with positive action! ~ Jackie Yun

Here’s to Halloween and to your job search success!

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