How to Actually Get a Job

Jeff is an economist in Washington, D.C. After a six month job search, he’s got some advice for finding a new job. He is very smart, and his advice is very smart.

To start, he writes, do anything:

1. Get something current on your resume. Now.
No one will talk you if your plate is empty. Employers think you are a pariah if there is a blank space for your current position. When I returned to Washington, D.C., in March 2013, I already had a gap in my resume. I almost never got to explain this gap until I got something to fill it (with a part-time opportunity in my field that started in July). After that, responses to my resume were more enthusiastic and my interviews were more successful. Even if you are waiting tables or waiting out a big life event, volunteer or consult part-time in your field (or on the edges of it). You will be more desirable if you seem already desirable.

More here.

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