No Experience? No Problem! Here’s How To Land That Job!

1. Activate Your Network

Before opportunity comes knocking, sometimes we have to hang up a “welcome” sign.

If you want opportunities from your preferred industry to start opening to you, you should start by letting your network know you’re interested!

Reach out to friends, family, and professional contacts to tell them you’re looking for any kind of leads or lead-ins to a specific type of job. Don’t be pushy, just ask them to keep you in mind if they hear about anything that might interest you.

On LinkedIn, you can also set your profile to #OpenToWork to let recruiters and employers know you’re available.

Another way to use your network is to find a mentor who can help you navigate the first steps to becoming the type of professional you want to become!

2. Upskill Yourself!

As you look into your future career, you’ll start to get a clearer picture of just what is required of someone in the industry.

Make note of the skills that recruiters mention in job postings, and what experts talk about when they discuss their work. Those are the skills that you need to focus on in yourself!

Will you need to work with a lot of people face-to-face? Maybe you can upgrade your communication skills!

Will you need to document or edit? Brush up on your writing and reading skills!

Will you need to communicate in technical terms? Increase your vocabulary and jargon!

Lots of jobs require specific degrees, but every job requires certain soft skills that take time to turn into part of your personality. Start working on your skills today!

3. Show Up So You Can Blow Up!

Participating in social events, like workshops or expos, related to your field does more than just help expose the industry to you.

It also helps to expose you to the people in the industry!

By showing up to social situations like these, you can help people place you as a serious member of the community.

Nowadays, you can also find many of these events online. No need to travel, or go out of your way! Apps like Meetup even have local groups that meet to discuss shared interests in their creative or technical fields.

Just think of who you could meet, AND who could meet you!

4. Get Certified

Sometimes soft skills just aren’t enough. You have to pick up an actual degree or other certification to qualify for your dream job.

A lot of people hesitate when they think about going back to school, or taking online courses. But if you’re serious about making the change to a new career, what is a couple months or a couple years compared to a couple decades of your career?

Plus, you can find tonnes of free resources online to help bolster your resume.

Before taking a paid course, you can also talk to some graduates and find out how worth it it is.

And if you do need schooling for an extended period of time, there’s no reason you can’t start immersing yourself in your industry by taking an entry-level job that keeps you on track!

ACCESSIBILITY