by Michael Skinner

Created on: February 05, 2010   Last Updated: March 20, 2010

Knowledge

  Some employers love to meet aggressive, take charge individuals.  Others prefer a quiet employee who will respect their authority.  Do you know which is which?  Some employers cover the planet from pole to pole with job notices for jobs they never intend to fill.  Do you know which employers would be a complete waste of your time?  A good recruiter or headhunter does.  They take the time to canvas the employers to find the good jobs.  If the headhunter is actually doing his job properly he will notice that not only does a certain employer never hire any of his candidates.  This particular employer never hires anybody.  He has to pretend to be looking for workers outside of his company, family and friends for legal reasons.  In reality, the job always goes to cousin Billy Bob.

Suppose you have specialized job requirements.  Is there a way to discretely inquire as to whether or not your employer can accommodate you?  Sure, have the headhunter do it!

Special Requirements

Suppose you want to move to a distant city where you don't know a soul.  Wouldn't it be nice to have someone grease the skids for you and help you get a job there?   Go with a big national or international recruiting firm.  Do a good job with them every time they send you out and make sure they let their office in your next city know you are coming. 

Meet with your recruiter and let him know the wage or salary range you will be willing to accept.  Let him know if you prefer large, Fortune 500 companies with opportunities to go for the top or mom and pop storefronts wherein you may get to be the chief cook and bottle washers and the jack of all trades.

Niches

If you have military experience and have ever had a security clearance make sure your recruiter knows to be on the lookout for those kinds of jobs for you.

Use recruiters as a multiplier effect to aid you in your job search.  You still need to do some of your own looking and networking.  Try to never apply for the same job multiple times.  This can be confusing and highly annoying to some employers. 

Never let a recruiter talk you into a position you are not well suited for.  You could regret that decisions for weeks or months or even longer.

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