We only have one life, and we spend an average of 99,117 hours at work, the equivalent of 11.5 years. It would be a shame if this time was wasted doing something we don’t like, which bores us. Of course, we always look for ways to earn a better living. But often, we are looking for more – a job to enjoy, to have fun in what we do, and above all, to have a good day.
You may be looking for your first experience as a developer. Or are you tired of where you are and want to change companies? Or you’re just looking for an internship?
In this article, you’ll find essential points to apply to put the maximum chance on your side to find the company that suits you. And you’ll see that some crucial facts must be addressed to achieve this.
The IT sector: a great opportunity
There are sectors of activity where the job market is completely blocked. Hiring requests can be counted on the fingers of one hand, and often there are about 40 of you on the job. This is, for example, the case in the retail sector. Future employees are fighting to get a job with their prospective employers.
We are fortunate not to be in this situation. The trend is totally reversed. It is the employer who is fighting to find the right profile. There are currently more positions available than people applying for them.
Set up your visibility strategy
You need to know one thing: companies are no longer looking for code writers. They are looking for people who know how to respond to business problems. It would be an advantage if you could analyze an idea or a request, propose reflections and an architecture, question and challenge the issues, know how to answer the client, “no, it’s not a good idea,” and accompany him on a better-added value.
The best way to put this forward is to have a portfolio explaining the different projects you have carried out or participated in and your involvement. As we are in the IT business, it is essential to be visible on the web and to take care of it. You can have a personal website that will act as your online CV. You can put all the interesting information about yourself and the means to contact you directly. Put forward your experiences and your pieces of training (you may even tell how you failed but continued coding, received help with programming assignments, helped others – anything that shows your competence and intelligence). Be brave and deliver some projects in which you participated with your degree of involvement. Companies will be delighted to see your code. They will better understand your technical level.
As the last point, register on different online job search sites and naturally take care of your description. If you don’t already have one, create a LinkedIn profile for yourself, which is a professional social network in addition to being very serious. They have a “Jobs” section, and it is common to see job offers on this network.
Decide what exactly you are looking for
Before starting your search, asking yourself a few questions first is very important. What are you looking for in your future job? And here I’m not talking about salary, but about what the ideal position represents for you. Taking some time to think about it at the beginning will save you time later on, especially not to be disappointed.
Encourage yourself
Have you made an inventory of what you are looking for? You have done a great deal of the work because few people do.
By registering on several job sites, you will quickly notice that you will be contacted and solicited quite often, even if you are not explicitly looking for something.
Even if it’s encouraging and flattering, it’s a sausage fest! You will receive everything and anything. And it will sometimes be challenging to find your way around. But that’s a good thing, and you should take advantage of that. You can start a conversation with these recruiters and meet them in an interview out of pure curiosity, even if you are not particularly interested. Practice these interviews to prepare well for the ones that will interest you.
You can work on your seduction strategy with the recruiter and gauge what you will or will not say. This is an invaluable advantage, so don’t hesitate to abuse it.
Of course, you will understand that you must hunt for job offers that correspond to you. Even if many recruiters approach you, you will have a better chance of finding the perfect job yourself. So feel free to consult the offers on the sites where you are registered but not only. Google is your friend, and by typing the right keywords, you can find companies proposing job offers on their website.
Don’t limit yourself
Another thing to consider and which you should avoid making the mistake of is limiting yourself geographically in your job search. Especially if you want to work in a “fully remote” position or if you want to join a large structure. Regional offices are standard in large organizations, and you can find a job offer 1000 km away from home and end up working from your home or the regional office next to you.
Conclusion
Finally, it is essential to add that everything depends on us. Looking for the best option for ourselves is entirely normal. But remember that you must also meet the company’s standards as an employee. The best thing, of course, is to work on yourself and your abilities constantly, and when moving up the career ladder, do not think about the limits in any way. Everything is in our heads, and everything is in our power.