My Top Job Search Tip

If I could only give you one more piece of career advice ever again, it would be to build your social capital and network on an ongoing basis in your career.

Particularly after you finish job searching, keep building your network.

Pro tip: You don't need to look very far, start by networking with your co-workers inside your company.

It's the single biggest thing you can do to further your career in the long term.

Social capital = the network effect you get from having positive relationships with people who know that you are a badass.

The more intention and consistency you put into building your professional network in the long term, the easier it will be to get new jobs in the future.

In fact, if you do it well enough you will reach a point when you won't need to job search ever again, jobs will come to you. That's facts.

The reason your social capital and network are so helpful is because many jobs get filled by referrals before they ever get posted for the public.

Hiring teams simply tap their network and get introductions to people from their networks and fill roles.

It's called the hidden job market because it occurs amongst people's networks.

In order to tap into this hidden job market, you need to get into more networks and communities!

Sidenote: The Wall Street Journal interviewed me this week on this exact topic regarding the hidden job market and online communities. 👏🏾

Here are a few online communities worth joining if you are job searching:

Elpha - access daily convos with experts, job opportunities, and women talking candidly about work and life

Ladies Get Paid - browse jobs, find advice, build your network with other women professionals

Techqueria - join the largest global community of Latinx professionals in tech

Blacks in Technology - join the largest community and media org focused on Black people in tech

RemotePOC - find the best remote jobs for professionals of color

HIREBLACK - a supportive community for Black women on their professional journey

People are sharing jobs, resources, events, gigs, and tons of other opportunities daily in these channels.

This list represents some of my favorite communities, but there are many more affinity and niche communities you can join.

Keep looking and get in there to connect with people!

Besides joining communities, your goal should also be to become more visible to your network. 

Here are a few tips on how to get more visible and build social capital:

— Engage and join more conversations on social media
— Ask people to virtual coffee chats
— Send connections requests on LinkedIn more often 
— Be aware of your professional reputation both online and offline 
— Go to conferences in your field
— Help others without expecting anything in return

All of these small actions have a compounding effect over the long term, if you do them consistently.

There's no magic formula, just consistent action and investing in yourself.

One day you'll look back and realize those jobs and opportunities are coming to you and your consistency is paying off. 😃