The job search can be frustrating, especially if you are going through it alone. How do you know if you are doing the most you can to find a great job? There are so many questions that you might have! But, if you rely solely on Google, you might be overwhelmed, misled, or even more confused. Maybe you should check out career coaching.
Working with a career coach or mentor can help you if you are in a slump in your job search or if you have pressing questions. Coaches are typically former recruiters, career services team members, resume writers, or some combination of those backgrounds. These experiences mean they know what hiring teams want in candidates. And, they know how to help you get to that point.
Career coaching usually includes working on resumes, online profiles (like LinkedIn and portfolios), behavioral interviewing, and negotiation. Some career coaches, like our mentors here at Pathrise, also share important information about reverse recruiting and cold emailing. Fellows in our program work with their mentors to determine team members at target companies. Then, they compose compelling cold emails that have been proven to 3x the number of application responses. Learn how to write a cold email that actually works in our article.
A lot of people who work with career coaches or mentors find that the relationship is successful because it is like having an expert in your back pocket. When you have questions or if you need help, you know you have someone who knows the answer and can support you. Candidates can go through multiple resume rewrites, work through strategies to get more application responses, practice for behavioral interviews, get guidance on negotiation, and so much more.
Here are some ways you can know if career coaching is right for you:
- Maybe you feel like you have hit a wall with your job search and you want to try something new. Or, perhaps you are kicking off your search and you want to get started on the right foot.
- You are looking for support, but not necessarily a quick fix (you are willing to put in the work).
- You have a growth mindset and you want to learn lifelong skills that will help you with future job searches.
Some people approach career coaches thinking that they are a one-stop-shop for referrals to companies. That is not a good way to go about this relationship. Referrals are definitely helpful, but they are not enough to get you a job. In reality, a referral is usually the most beneficial when it comes to getting your foot in the door. It will help you resume move from the unread pile to the phone screen pile. After that, it is up to you to show your skills and let the team know why you are a good fit.
Working with a career coach or mentor can help you optimize your resume so that it impresses recruiters, find the right people to cold email so they can make sure you move forward, ace your behavioral interviews by working through common questions and answer frameworks, and negotiate your salary so that you don’t leave any money on the table.
At Pathrise, we work with job-seekers every day on each of those components and much more. If you are interested in working with one of our career mentors so that you can land a great job in tech faster than you would on your own, become a Pathrise fellow.
Apply today.
