How To Get A Job You Love

Are you having a good day? Did you vault yourself out of bed with a smile on your face before breezing your way through yet another infinitely satisfying day at your inspirational office? No? Yeah, thought not.

You're miserable, right? Your life is essentially Office Space except Jennifer Aniston isn't your girlfriend. You don't have a girlfriend. You have a cat that hates you and a job that is almost impossible to get out of bed for. Well, it doesn't have to be this way.

We spoke to John Lees, author of How To Get A Job You Love who shared his 10 tips to finding happiness in the workplace. Well at another workplace...

1. Be clear about the problems you want to solve

How do you want your working life to change? What’s preventing you from doing work that feels exciting and worth doing? Tackling these questions is the first step to change. Work hardest on the problems you have some influence over.

2. Focus on your strengths

What do you do well? Review your skills, including those acquired outside work. Where do you achieve the best results? What skills do you look forward to using during the working week? Gather evidence of where you have learned new things and added something new to each job.

3. Write a job wish list

Break down the ingredients in your ideal job – think about key elements such as the kind of people you enjoy working with, the results you like to achieve and the organisation's working style. Look for jobs which match at least 6 out of 10. Throw values into the mix – what products or services matter to you?

4. Mine your experience

Few people discover their dream job through career tests or by accident. Usually it’s by combining new ideas with past experience. Look at what you’ve found stimulating in your past – in work, study or leisure – and map that as closely as you can onto activity that takes place in work.

5. Look before you leap

Research before you job search. Don't rely on second-hand information, find out for yourself. If you find an idea exciting, enthusiasm will help you persist in your search. Don’t accept second hand views about jobs. Work is changing fast, and new kinds of jobs are being created every day.

6. Get real data

Pick a couple of job ideas and ask for introductions to people who have these roles. Ask the question ‘what do you do most of the time in this job?’. Find out what the job is really like, and learn the language which surrounds it.

7. Get your message right

When you get close to deciding on your ideal job, learn how to present your experience in short, upbeat statements. Be ready to summarise your skills and know-how quickly; say how you can help an organisation. Decide in advance what are the six most important things on an employer’s shopping list, and prepare engaging stories to match.

8. Take the task seriously

Invest time digging into interesting sectors. Make up a hit list and give yourself a score showing how close you’re getting to target organisations. Keep pushing as if someone was paying you to find things out. Keep your contact sheet near you in case the phone rings.

9. Make social media work for you

Keep your online ‘shop window’ clear and professional, with a simple summary of what you know and do. Make it easy for people to recommend you by offering a short summary of your key areas of experience, know-how, and skills.

10. Just do it

You’ve researched the market, spoken to people who do the job and honed your CV, so approach employers you’d love to work for, ideally through a face to face discussion. Even if you’re just work shadowing, get closer to decision makers who have the power to offer you the job.

(Image: Rex Features)