How To Compete In The Current Job Market

If you were to believe everything that you read, you could be forgiven for thinking that the UK is in the midst of a significant economic recovery. While Britain may well be benefitting from improving business sentiment and job market, rising consumer confidence and a diminishing rate of unemployment.

However, there are negative undertones that continue to restrict the potential for long-term growth. So even as international trade and foreign exchange activity continues to boom, not everything is rosy in the British economic garden.

The same principle applies to the national unemployment rate, which fell to a respectable 7.2% during March. Alongside a rise in the national earnings average, this has triggered widespread optimism among job-seekers and those who are looking to change careers.

There remain concerns that many newly-created job opportunities are either temporary or short-term in their nature, however, as developed economies in the west continue to struggle with under-employment.

Competitive and Technologically Driven Job Market: How to Succeed

This is why Chancellor George Osborne is so keen to create full employment in Britain so that citizens can develop their future careers while also achieving long-term financial security. This will take considerable time and patience, however, and in the meantime job-seekers must adapt accordingly to the demands of a deceptively competitive job market if they are to make money. Consider the following steps towards finding a job in this job market.

Capitalize on the Changing Nature of the Workplace

While many would say that the lack of stability in the job market is a result of the Great Recession, the global financial crisis also created opportunities for job-seekers. More specifically, it created flexibility in the international workspace, as many individuals were forced to abandon their search for traditional employment and instead establish themselves as independent contractors and entrepreneurs.

Aided by increasingly affordable technology and the advancement of real-time communication tools such as smartphones and tablets, many of today’s freelancers have forged a successful career out of necessity and opportunism rather than a deep desire for independence. This is something that you may wish to consider as a job-seeker, especially if you have a marketable skill that is in-demand and financially viable for potential clients to invest in.

Create a Personal Website and Promote Yourself

One of the key trends to transform the online space in recent times is personalization, as we all have an opportunity to customize an entirely unique presence on the Internet. Resources such as Strikingly have made it easier than ever to create a detailed and visually impressive personal website, for example, which can showcase everything from your academic qualifications to your interests and unique characteristics.

This is a particularly interesting development for job-seekers, who can essentially establish a personal website that markets their skills and provides a showcase for their suitability as a candidate. This would put you in a small group of job-seekers who have been proactive enough to market themselves in such a way, while adopting a professional approach towards building your website can also improve your visibility among online recruiters.

Think Like an Entrepreneur and Market Skills Online

The idea of marketing your core skills is an interesting one, as that is essentially what you are doing every time you complete a job application. Approaching your job search in this manner can reap huge dividends, as it enables you to think like an entrepreneur and consider yourself as a product that needs to be successfully marketed in order to maximize earning potential.

Such an outlook is particularly useful when you reach out and interact through social media, as the development of a professional and integrated online profile can help to create a favorable impression among potential employers. If you consider yourself to be an experienced candidate or particularly knowledgeable about your industry of choice, you should also consider establishing yourself as a blogger and publishing informative content that will engage relevant firms and recruiters.

This only requires time and effort rather than an investment of capital, while it can help you to develop considerable standing and visibility among employers.