Three reasons it’s hard to find a job out of college

If you’re having a hard time finding a job out of college, you’ve come to the right place.

So you’ve graduated from college and are currently looking for a job. Maybe you’ve decided to spend more time apply for more jobs. Or maybe you’ve decided to spend time changing up your resume and/or cover letter. But you still aren’t having any luck with finding a job. I get it. I’ve been there.

Here are three reasons why it’s hard for you to find a job out of college:

1. You haven’t taken the time to figure out what you want your life to look like

It’s hard to aim for something if you don’t know exactly what you are aiming for. The way I approached job hunting was like shooting as many arrows as I could blindly. When really I should have spent time deciding what my target looked like.

What you can do:

Write down your dream job. What job do you need to get that job? Now keep working backward until you get to a job that you qualified for. For example, let’s say you want to be a CMO:

1. The job you may need before that might be VP of Marketing.
   • Since a fresh out of college student may not qualify for a VP of Marketing position, you will ask yourself again, “what job do I need to get the VP position?”
2. After researching, you may find that you need to be a Director of one department of marketing.
3. Then, repeat this process until you reach a position you qualify for.

How do you know what you qualify for? Well, that brings me to the next point…

2. You haven’t taken the time to get to know who you are and what you like/dislike

In the previous section, I talked about setting the target. This section is about figuring out where you’re standing in relation to the target. This is important because it’s easy to set a goal. But if you don’t know where you’re starting from, it’s hard to figure out what your next step looks like, how to take it, and in what direction to take the next step.

What you can do:

• Explore your interests and hobbies every week. Then find a way to connect what you like and dislike to jobs you can apply for.
• Download this FREE Career Roadmap to be sure you aren’t going in circles.

3. You haven’t taken the time to figure out what value you can provide

Section one was about what the target looks like. Section two was about where you are standing in relation to the target. This section is about what tools you have to aim for the target.

What you can do:

Create a reverse bucket list (a list of your accomplishments). Then write down what it took for you to accomplish those things. You’ll start to see a pattern of your strengths.

All of this to say that it’s hard to find a job out of college. But now, you’re on the right track because you know:

• what your target looks like
• where you are standing in relation to it
• what tools you have to reach that target with

It’s time to start your job search.

What’s next?

Download this FREE Career Roadmap to be sure you are applying for the right jobs.