When a professional is job seeking (whether they are working full time, part time, or not at all), their most critical initial decision is how to allocate their time amongst the various activities they could be doing to pursue their next opportunity. Today, we’ll dig into how to strategically allocate your time during your job search.
The below shows you a suggested time allocation for you to strategically plan your job search efforts throughout any given week.
- 5% – Exploration, Reflection, Iteration – It is important to reflect daily or at least weekly during your job search. How are things going? How are you feeling? Are you feeling aligned and intrigued by the roles and industries you are considering or applying to? How can you gain additional clarity into which next role and industry is right for you? (Hint: Clarity in your direction makes your job search more efficient and effective!) What can you adjust in either your target roles and companies or your daily process to become more effective? This element may also involve time spent with a mentor or coach if you can gain additional support to help strengthen your reflections and processes. Ensure you turn any reflection into a practical next step to improve.
- 2 hours per week if 40 hours spent in job search – Roughly 30 mins per day
- .5 hours per week if 10 hours spent in job search
- 10% – Learning via Research – Online research is a great way to learn more about the roles, companies and industries you are interested in and also to learn about new products and services (and companies) that may be of interest to you. It will ensure you stay relevant and informed about innovations, trends, and changes in your sectors of interest. You also may learn about companies you were not previously aware of that you may be interested in working at. This type of learning also helps you gain insight into the potential roles and industries you are considering so you can assess what the best next step is for you.
- 4 hours per week if 40 hours spent in job search – Roughly 1 hour per weekday
- 1 hour per week if 10 hours spent in job search
- 50% – Networking – Networking has been proven as one of the best tactics to use to understand what openings are available and land interviews. The more you land informational calls, the faster you will learn about open roles available. Spend time reaching out to your personal and professional network to attain introductions to relevant contacts in your target roles or companies, or see who you may know directly that could help you. Leverage your prior university as well as any other group or hobby where you can land connections and informational interviews. These calls will enable you to learn more about the roles, companies and industries you are considering, figure out what is best for you, build meaningful connections to serve as mentorship in your job search and overall career, and of course, learn about open opportunities.
- 20 hours per week if 40 hours spent in job search – Roughly 4 hours per day
- 5 hours per week if 10 hours spent in job search per week
- 10% – Online job search engines – There are several job search engines available to you! Search for functional skills you want to leverage to find relevant openings. Search for role titles, companies and industries of interest to you and apply to openings that you think may be a great fit for you.
- 4 hours if 40 hours spent in job search per week – One application per weekday
- 1 hour if 10 hours spent in job search per week – One application per week
- 5% – Personal Branding – This involves updating your resume, cover letter, LinkedIn and even creating your own content or thought leadership (a website, a blog, etc). Spend time upfront before you begin your job search to strengthen your materials. By doing this, you can then stay focused on finding new opportunities and spending a little bit of time tailoring your materials as you find relevant openings. Remember that your materials should reflect your overall brand including your skillset, strengths, background, and the direction you want to go in.
- 2 hours per week if 40 hours spent in job search – Roughly 30 mins per day
- .5 hours per week if 10 hours spent in job search
Learn how to brand yourself with a video introduction with your resume here.
- 10% – Learning by Doing – Experiential learning can involve a variety of potential activities: attending webinars, conferences, presentations, signing up for a skill development course, program, or certification, shadowing a professional, volunteering, diving into an independent project, or even doing freelance or consulting work. Especially if you are job searching full time, diving into a project will help keep your skills and knowledge fresh, provide you with something current to talk about during your interviews, and most importantly, keep your mindset in a positive, productive state.
- 4 hours if 40 hours spent in job search per week – Roughly 1 hour per weekday
- 1 hour if 10 hours spent in job search per week – One application per week
- 10% Self Care – It is critical to work in self care to your daily routine to ensure you are feeling positive, confident, productive, focused, and accountable throughout your time job searching. For example, it is important to include additional breaks for meditation, journaling, exercise, hydrating consistently, doing work at a standing desk, and more. What’s more, don’t forget to set up a work environment and desk setup that also feels clear and energizing to you. During job search, you will inevitably face challenges and this experience will test your resilience, patience, and perseverance, so give yourself some opportunity to breathe, find gratitude and pride in the progress you have made, and find motivation and drive in what is yet to come!
- 4 hours if 40 hours spent in job search per week – Roughly 1 hour per weekday
- 1 hour if 10 hours spent in job search per week – One application per week
How does this translate into a daily schedule?
Let’s translate this into an example daily schedule, below. The below does not need to be followed exactly, but is an example to show you how you can proactively plan your time to spend time wisely and strategically during your job search. This type of schedule will naturally vary if you have part time or full time work, but the above percentages and best practice guidance can still be applied. Also, the order of each task may vary, so consider what times of day you are most focused and productive and choose the “harder” work to do during those times.
Your Example Daily Job Search Schedule:
*The below schedule does not include additional breaks and self-care activities mentioned above as you should fill these into your schedule however, whenever they best fit and suit you.
9AM-10AM – Networking research, reach outs and follow ups
10AM-12PM – Networking/informational calls
12PM-1PM – Break
1PM-2PM – Exploration/Reflection & Personal Branding
2PM-3PM – Online Research
3PM-4PM – Learning by Doing
4PM-5PM – Online Application(s)
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