Leadership

8 Ways You're Wasting Time During Your Job Search

By Jessica Stillman

Updated on: December 6, 2010 / 6:51 AM EST / MoneyWatch

Looking for a job can be time-consuming and dispiriting, even if you do it efficiently. So forget about keeping your sanity if you invest time and effort where they're unlikely to pay dividends. Luckily, career blogger Tim Tyrell-Smith has rounded up the most common ways people waste time while looking for work in a post for U.S. News & World Report. Take a careful look at these eight time sinks and make sure you're getting the most out of every job-hunting minute:

Applying for everything. You're doing such a good job applying for jobs that you stop reading the job descriptions. If it's within your function or industry, you let the application fly. It's so inexpensive and so easy to shoot off a resume. Why wouldn't you apply to one more? Because you're wasting your time and the time of the hiring company. Clarify your specific job-search objectives and apply for jobs that fit what you're looking for. Sending out fewer applications will allow you to put more effort into those applications.
Reconstructing your resume--again and again. Your resume is a marketing tool to attract a call or e-mail from the hiring manager. While it makes sense to emphasize different aspects of your background, stop creating entirely new resumes for every job posting. Instead, have a few versions you can use again and again, depending on which job you're applying for.
Falling into a cover letter craze. Like with your resume, your cover letter is a document that takes way too much time to write as a custom document. Put effort into it, but don't spend hours crafting the perfect pitch. Instead of starting a new cover letter from scratch every time you apply for a job, create a good cover letter template that you can tweak quickly--preferably in 15 minutes.
Bugging recruiters. Recruiters are eager to play their role in the job market--helping their clients (companies) find qualified candidates. You're either qualified for an opening or you're not. Multiple e-mails and phone calls will not make you appear more qualified. Instead, it may make you appear desperate. Follow-up with a recruiter, but don't bug or annoy them.
Becoming addicted to digital. To avoid letting your digital addiction render you unproductive, create time windows when you work on your computer, smart phone or iPad. Then put the electronics down, and find other ways to boost your job search, like in-person networking, reading books about your industry or taking time off to recharge.
Networking blind. There's a difference between networking and socializing. If you spend a week at various events simply re-connecting with your job search crew, you're socializing. Collecting business cards and lunching with anyone and everyone who wants to meet with you, isn't productive either. Instead, network with a purpose. Decide who you want to know, and figure out how to meet those people on your target list.
Sucking on social networks. Some job seekers have their mouths over the online fire hose and still feel thirsty; they're signed up for every possible social media network. Isn't this period without a job a good time to catch up with friends and family? Sure--but only until it becomes a time-waster.
Hyper-focusing on one job. Do you feel you're uniquely qualified for one specific job? Then create a plan to find warm entry points via your network. Follow application directions, and get a strong resume in the right person's hands. But if you don't hear back in a week or two, don't let that stop you from continuing the job search. Rather than thinking about that perfect job, focus on finding other perfect jobs. That way, if the first perfect job pans out, you'll have the power of multiple options, which will help you interview and negotiate with confidence.

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(Image courtesy of Flickr user Michel Filion, CC 2.0)