At the time of this publication, there are 151,000 (7X more than last year!) LinkedIn members who call themselves “career coaches.” Over 119,000 identify as “employment coaches,” and 1.6 MILLION who describe themselves as “resume writers.”
All claim to be able to help you with your job search.
Between the “experts” sharing advice and the anecdotal suggestions delivered by well-meaning friends, family, and colleagues, it’s no wonder job seekers can feel confused. There’s a lot of misinformation that gets circulated daily.
As one of those 1.6M, I’ve spent decades creating career marketing collateral, including resumes, LinkedIn profiles and more, to help job seekers land interviews and secure jobs. My approach to job search is shaped by my communications with colleagues in HR, recruiting and those who tirelessly study LinkedIn’s back-end features.
These people, like me, make it their mission to keep up with the latest in job search trends— and this experience is why I can shed some light on 4 common misunderstandings.
Dispelling 4 Harmful Job Search Myths
1. Job hopping is bad.
When I first began writing resumes in the 1990s, I would agree that companies frowned upon candidates who left their job every 2 to 3 years. In my experience, jobseekers and decision-makers made a 180-degree reversal around the time the recession ended.
Today, repeated job-hopping (1X a year) still sets off red flags. But in many environments, including sales, operations, consulting and startups, it’s acceptable for employees to begin looking for a new job once they finish a major assignment.
Moreover, staying with the same employer for too long can actually hurt your long-term earning potential. According to a 2023 Zippia article:
- Wage growth for job switchers was 47% higher than those who stayed in their current job.
- Wage growth for those who switched jobs was 5.8%, while that number for those who stayed in their current job was only 3.1%.
- Wage growth for job switchers rose 0.68% between 2020 and 2023 while wage growth for those who stayed in their current position shrunk by 1.01%.
It’s important to note there are more reasons to stay or leave an employer besides the salary. Share on X When it’s positioned properly on your resume and LinkedIn, you can even frame a departure as a positive asset to an employer. Hiring managers respect a candidate who will do what it takes to seek out new opportunities with more responsibility and growth potential.
2. You must wear a suit and tie to a job interview.
“Business casual” first appeared in corporate America about 20 years ago. Fast-forward to today, when even Goldman Sachs issues a firm-wide flexible dress code. Now, acceptable dress attire ranges from a shirt and sports coat on Wall Street to jeans and a T-shirt in Silicon Valley—and it all depends on the company culture.
If you show up to a job interview in a t-shirt, you might not make a great first impression if everyone else at the office wears a collared shirt. But at the same time, you don’t want to look overdressed and out of place if you interview at a startup, for example, that has a more relaxed setting.
To hit the right balance, you need to do a little homework. If you know someone who already works their, ask them for wardrobe advice. If you don’t know anyone yet, it’s perfectly acceptable to ask someone from HR or a recruiter for their input. You can also do a little digging online by checking the company’s website and social media pages to get a glimpse.
3. If you don’t want to limit your job opportunities, keep your resume generic. A hiring manager can connect the dots to see how your experience relates to their role.
Job applications aren’t leisure reading. People rush to read through a staggering number of applications for every job listing that’s posted. On average, most recruiters spend less than a minute at most reviewing a resume during the first round of applicant screening.
To capture their attention, your resume needs to address the following key areas as quickly as possible:
- The role you’re targeting in your job search.
- How your skill set aligns closely with the job requirements.
- Your accomplishments that prove you’re qualified for the role.
The key takeaway? Don’t expect the reader to read between the lines. You need to tailor your resume to the role you’re targeting.
4. You don’t need to pay much attention to your social media presence if you have a strong resume.
According to another Zippia article:
- 67% of employers use social media sites to research potential job candidates.
- 70% of managers have had success hiring through social media.
- 94% of recruiters use social media.
This means even a top-notch resume won’t necessarily lead to an interview—and it won’t help with employer outreach, either, when your online presence is lackluster.
Why does your online presence matter when you’re looking for a job? Because employers don’t want to take unnecessary risks. If you use social media professionally and cultivate online connections, an employer will view you as a known entity. Furthermore, this information provides context to your personality, expertise and work ethic.
But having an online presence comes with a few tradeoffs. You need to avoid online rants, discriminatory comments and provocative or inappropriate pictures.
Here’s the advice I share with my clients: if the content isn’t suitable for your grandmother to read, don’t post it on social media.
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VAFrancoResumes@gmail.com | www.virginiafrancoresumes.com | Call/text 704-771-8572