Career Tips - Issue # 21 (Aug. 2005)

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The Invisible Job Market

I had read about it in books and newspapers. I had observed it from a distance. But recently, I had an opportunity to experience it first hand--the invisible job market. This is what happened:

10 Aug. 2005 (Wed.): A friend of mine, Mr. Helpful, asked me if I could help a friend of his, Mr. Lucky, by forwarding his resume to some of my friends. I said, "Okay, please send Mr. Lucky's resume to me."

11 Aug. (Thursday): Mr. Helpful sent Mr. Lucky's resume to me, which I straightaway forwarded to two of my friends--Mr. Hire and Mr. Fire.

12 Aug. 2005 (Friday): Mr. Hire, who works for a US multinational, called Mr. Lucky and invited him to come for an interview on Monday, 15 Aug.

13 & 14 Aug. (weekend): No action!

15 Aug. (Monday): Mr. Lucky appeared at the interview and got the job!

This is a true story, and it all happened in less than a week. There is, however, nothing miraculous about it. Miracles, by definition, are not supposed to happen every day with consistent frequency.

The way Mr. Lucky got the job is how majority (yes, majority!) of the jobs get filled up in the job market--every day! According to some estimates, about 70-80% jobs are filled up in this manner--without ever being advertised. Welcome to the invisible job market!

>>CAREER TIP: As a job seeker, we often think the way to get a job is to identify suitable ads in the newspapers, magazines and job search Web sites, then send in applications and then patiently wait for interview calls. Most job seekers concentrate about 80-90% their efforts on following this approach without realising that what we see in the newspapers and on the Internet is only about 20-30% of the total job market. For every vacancy you see, there are 3 or 4 that you don't see--and will never see.

Unbelievable but it's true that while majority of the people desperately look for jobs in newspapers and on the Internet, some smart job seekers (like Mr. Lucky) coolly keep filling up vacancies that are only available in the invisible job market.

If you want to get a job faster, focus a larger (not all!) proportion of your efforts to tap the invisible job market. And that means doing something as simple as Mr. Lucky did: Telling those you know that you're looking for a job and sincerely asking them to help you. Some people call this "networking."

There are two other ways you can tap the invisible job market:

1. Approach potential employers directly even if they have not advertised any vacancies. Try this with smaller organisations rather than with big multinationals.
2. Approach recruitment agencies.

All the best!

Listen to Your Body's Wisdom

Before you read this story, let me introduce you to its two characters:

Norman Cousins (1915-1990): NC was a famous writer, editor, promoter of holistic healing and author of dozens of books, most notably of "Anatomy of an Illness." He was an Adjunct Professor of Medical Humanities at the University of California.

Pablo Casals (1876-1973): PC was a great Spanish cellist and conductor. So great he was that, in 1976, the Spanish government issued a commemorative postage stamp to honour Casals on his 100th birthday.

Now, the story:

Shortly before Casal's ninetieth (90th) birthday, Norman Cousins went to see him. And what he saw there became part of his famous book "Anatomy of an Illness."

Norman recounts in his book how painful it was to see Casals as he began his day. Frail and under the grip of arthritis, Casals needed help in dressing himself. He suffered from emphysema (lung disease), which resulted in laboured breathing. He was so weak that he couldn't walk; he shuffled. His fingers were swollen and clenched.

Before eating his breakfast, Norman saw Casals slowly moving toward his piano. With great difficulty, he then sat down on a piano bench. Finally, he slowly moved his clenched, swollen fingers to the key board. And then, something magical happened.

As Casals started to play the piano, he suddenly transformed from an old, tired, sick man to someone full of energy and excitement. Says Norman in his book, "The fingers slowly unlocked and reached toward the keys like the buds of a plant toward the sunlight. His back straightened. He seemed to breathe more freely."

"His entire body seemed fused with the music. It was no longer stiff and shrunken but supple and graceful and completely freed of its arthritic coils."

Norman saw a completely different person when Casals walked away from the piano. He stood taller and walked, not shuffled. He coolly came to the breakfast table, had breakfast with Norman and then they went for a stroll along a beach nearby.

>>CAREER TIP: What happened with Casals does happen with us, too, but we don't pay much attention to it. If you observe carefully, you would find there is one activity that, instead of making you feel tired and bored, makes you come alive and energised. This activity is nothing but expression of your passion.

Each person has his/her own unique passion. For Casals, it was music. If you want to know what's your passion, pay attention to your energy level. Whenever you feel suddenly energised while doing something, that's it. That's your body's wisdom telling you about your passion. Listen to it!

Will be back after two weeks.

Atul Mathur

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***Copyright 2005 Atul Mathur***

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