Maybe it was a teacher, or perhaps your mom or dad, or that aunt who gushed when she said you could do anything, first asked, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" If you don't like the answer you came up with as an adult, it's time to go after your dream job. And as Pollyanna as that may sound, remember, you're the person who can do anything.
Vicki Salemi is an author, public speaker, columnist and a "Career Expert" for Monster.com, a well-known job search website. She agreed landing a meeting with someone who has your dream job is possible, but it's going to take time, patience and perseverance. Here's her advice on how to get started:
1. Figure out exactly whom you want to contact for a conversation to learn more about your dream job and how they positioned themselves to get it.
2. Work backwards: Come up with several avenues for reaching them, whether it's through contacts at their current employer, or people in your circle who may have contacts there, or organizations they're actively involved in.
3. Create a spreadsheet to keep track of all of your activities, such as reaching out to the first point of contact to get to the next and the next until ultimately you get to the person whose job you aspire to have.
4. Stay focused on why you're doing this: To land that coveted dream job, start compiling questions along the way that you would like to ask the person and keep your eyes and ears open for serendipitous conversations and advice from people you're contacting.
"You never know when they can suggest someone else in that dream job or know of a dream-job opening," Salemi said.
Granted, there may be roadblocks in the way, especially if you are applying online as you work to land a meeting. Often companies only accept applications online, which means if you fail to match some computer-generated keywords, your application will never see the light of day. How do you get around that?
"Keywords play a critical role in successfully penetrating the applicant tracking systems," Salemi said. "Make sure that the language you use on your resume matches the job descriptions you're applying to, and include a succinct cover letter. No matter how technologically advanced the recruiting industry gets, landing your dream job still boils down to solid skills (both soft and technical) and relevant experience."
