Create a 30, 60, or 90-day plan for your job search.

Create a 30, 60, or 90-day plan for your job search.The average job search can take anywhere from six weeks to six months, depending on factors like your industry, your experience, and the economy. Thats a lot of ambiguityand if youre feeling a time crunch, its leid a very helpful statistic. If youre seeking to put the job hunt timeline on your own terms, there are things you can do to maximize the time you do have. Lets look at three different job search plans to make the most of your valuable time. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1467144145037-0) ) The 90-Day PlanLets say youve given yourself three months to find a new job. It can a pretty spacious timeline, allowing you to take your time on all of the necessary elements. You can use some of that time at the departure to figure out what you want to do.Ask yourselfAre you looking for the same kind of job you had/have now?Are you thinking about a career change?What would you like to do next?A less urgent t imeline helps here, and gives you the opportunity to really consider what your next steps are.Your SearchWith 90 days, you have the time to do a deeper dive. Translation youre not just blitzing every related job opening you can find with your resume. You have time to research potential target companies and adapt your application materials (resume, cover letter) accordingly. Now is also the time to start really looking at your network to see if there are the kinds of targeted job opportunities you can pursue over the next 90 days.Your SkillsWith 90 days, you dont have all the time in the world to learn how to do something from scratch, but you do have time to boost skills, or take a refresher. The average ansprechbar course is eight to nine weeks, so this gives you time to work on some next-level skillsespecially if the class is self-paced.Your ResumeTake the time to overhaul your resume. Seriously, do it. Youve got a few months in your plan, and if you really want to get the most ou t of it (and maximize your interview-stage potential), your resume has to be spot-on. Start from scratchno shortcutsYour NetworkIts about quality, not quantity. If you havent already, start reaching out to targeted people who may be just outside of your network, friends of friends, or someone you met once and added to LinkedIn, but who now just happens to work at the company where you want an in. Because so much hiring is done based on who you know and not always what you apply for, as much time as possible in your 90-day plan should be devoted to bolstering your network. Hiring expert Lou Adler recommends spending 60% of your time networking if you want to score a new job within 90 days.Your Interview PrepBuild in a little interview preparation every day. This could just be five minutes as youre getting ready in the morning, or a few quiet moments before you hit your pillow at night. Things to work on in the meantime, so that they come naturally when the time comesYour handshake. G rip is key here (think confident, but not obere extremitt wrestler), so it can take practice to get the right combination of strength and moderation.Your body language. Things like eye contact and posture can be your best assets in making a good initial interview impression.Your outfit. You have time to think about what your go-to interview outfit(s) will be, and then make sure theyre cleaned, pressed, and ready to go as soon as you get that hey, come meet us and talk about the job emaille.Your talking points. Take your resume and come up with real-life examples for each bullet point. Practice talking about them, ideally with a trusted friend or family member, so that you get comfortable talking about yourself and your achievements.By putting extra effort into the pre-work and crafting a strong base for your job hunt (serious consideration of job openings and companies, a rebuilt resume, time spent building skills and personal habits that will benefit you in the future), youre makin g the most of those 90 days.The 60-Day PlanIf you have about two months before youd like to see yourself settled in a new gig, youve still got buffer time to do some quality building when it comes to your application package.Your SearchLike with the 90-day plan, you have time to focus on particular areas or companies and do your research. But because 60 days will pass quickly, its time to increase the intensity. Your job search should be highly focused, with you looking for the best-fitting opportunities that align with your goals. If youre unsure about what you want to do next or what job openings you want to go for, take the time to reflect on your goals for this job search (beyond get a job) and your immediate professional goals. It takes some time up front, but will save you time later on in the 60 days.Your SkillsSixty days can be enough time to brush up on skills on your resume that could be stronger, or to revisit old skills that you want to feature for a particular job. Self -paced zugreifbar courses can help you get the crash course you need, or even just a self-study program where youre intensively researching things online, reading up on new trends, etc. And lets face ittheres a YouTube video for everything these days, so theres no shame in using those for your skill-building The most important thing here is, again, focus. Its not really enough time to say, hmm, maybe I really should start to learn HTML. Its more like, Okay, I have these basic HTML skills. What do I need to bump them up on my resume?Your ResumeWith 60 days on the table, its still worth it to rebuild your resume from the ground upit doesnt have to be a long undertaking, just a focused one. Youll also want to take the time to take another editing pass and optimize your resume, which can help you get more out of applications.Your NetworkCultivating people in your network by having email conversations or even having a coffee IRL is great, but theres no replacement for human contact. Howe ver, with 60 days to meet your goal of getting a new job, there might not be that luxury. Thats why networking tools become so handy in this two-month window. LinkedIn is a good starting point to start focusing your networking efforts. Are there people who work at your target companies? An old friend who you know happens to be married to someone in your field who might be hiring? Its time to harness the power of what youve already got.Thats not to say you should neglect starting new relationships, but on your more aggressive timeline its most important to maximize what you have.Your Interview PrepLike the 90-Day plan, you have some time to prep. Practice your body language skills especially, and rehearse your talking points. And the earlier in the two-month window you have that interview suit dry cleaned and ready to rock, the better.The 30-Day PlanIf your plan is a 30-day one for whatever reason (like economic urgency, or you need out now of a terrible gig), then thats a daunting g oal, but a do-able one. There just isnt much wiggle room or time for blowing things off. If youre serious about getting a new job in a month, then that means your focus has to be on the job hunt.Your SearchIts time to come up with a hardcore job hunt time budget. With such an aggressively short window of time, you really dont have the luxury of saying, Oh, maybe Ill do that this week. Instead, write down your list of job search goals for the week and attach specific days/times to them. For exampleMonday Check saved job searches, research job openings at ABC Company.Tuesday Call Karen about potential referral for ABC Company.Wednesday Follow up with HR at XYZ Company about application.Whatever time you have available, figure out how you can set a time budget and stick to it. The closer you stick to that plan, the less likely youll be to fall off schedule, and discover that 20 days have gone by before you hit your early checklist goals. Figure out where you can devote chunks of time ( ideally each day) to check things off on your list.Your SkillsAt this point, you need to go with the skills you have, or ones that you can learn very quickly by researching online or playing with programs (like finally learning how to do a vlookup, or revisiting how to use Adobe Photoshop). Focus on the core skills you want to feature most prominently on your resume and in interviews.Your ResumeIts definitely crunch time, which means you dont really have a week to write, edit, and seek feedback on your resume. So lets truncate that a bit. Start with some of the great tools that are already available, like resume templates you can use as a starting point.Butand I cant emphasize this enoughnever skip the proofreading step. If you have zero time, give it the most thorough check you can. And if its at all possible, have someone else read it. They may notice mistakes that passed right under your hurrying eyes. Simple mistakes can put your resume in the no thanks pile quickly, so even wit h a short schedule, you need to take the time for those extra steps.Your NetworkWhoever you have on your side now, thats the squad youre taking into battle. Focus on the people you already know who can help you with your job search. Use LinkedIn, Facebook, or any professional contacts you have, and dont be shy about letting people that youre on the lookout for a new job. Though that comes with a caveat if your search is on the DL because you dont want your current anfhrer to find out, youll still want to be a little discreet. No blaring Facebook posts saying, Im looking for a jobYour Interview PrepAs with other aspects of your job search, your interview prep should be laser-focused on the resources you have. Identify your most interview-ready outfit, and get it ready to go dry clean, fix any messy bits (like loose threads or saggy hems), and dust off your lucky interview shoes. Your schedule is so aggressive that you need to be ready to go almost immediately for interviewsif you get an interview tomorrow, you may not have time to rush around getting ready.Its also important to know your resume points backwards and forwards, so you can speak to any aspect of it on short notice.However much time youve assigned to your job search plan, the most important thing is to maximize whatever time you do have. Coming up with a goal-oriented plan is a great start, and will help you make the most of the coming weeks. Good luck