The Five Worst & Best Ways to Find a Job
From What Color is Your Parachute? (2007) Bolles, Richard N. Berkeley: Ten Speed Press. Note that this information includes a large and wide variety of occupations to include legal positions.
Five Worst Ways to Find a Job: (in order from very worst to somewhat worst!)
1) Using the Internet – success rate 4.1% out of 100% who search on Internet find jobs there.
2) Mailing out resumes to employers at random – 7% success rate. Otherwise known as the 'shotgun' approach.
3) Answering ads in professional or trade journals – 7% success rate.
4) Answering local newspaper ads – 5-24% success rate.
5) Using private employment agencies or search firms – 5-28% success rate.
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Five Best Ways to Find a Job: (in order from lowest success rate to best)
1) Asking for job-leads from: family members, friends, people in the community, staff at career centers – 33% success rate.
2) Knocking on the door of any employer, factory, or office that interests you, whether they are known to have a vacancy or not - 47% success rate.
3) By yourself, using the phone book’s Yellow Pages [or other applicable directory such as the NALP Directory, PSLawnet.org, and/or Martindale.com, etc.] to identify subjects of fields of interest to you in the town or city where you are, and then calling up the employers listed in that field, to ask if they are hiring for the type of position you can do, and do well. - 69% success rate.
4) In a group with other job hunters, using the phone book’s Yellow Pages [or other applicable directory such as the NALP Directory, PSLawnet.org, and/or Martindale.com, etc.] to identify subjects of fields of interest to you in the town or city where you are, and then calling up the employers listed in that field, to ask if they are hiring for the type of position you can do, and do well. 84% success rate.
5) Doing a life-changing job hunt - 86% success rate (i.e., spending time assessing what you really want to do and finding people who are doing it and spending time looking for what you really want to do and will be happy doing.
Bottom Line: Create and implement a plan that includes as many job search strategies listed above as possible.