Engage with Your Friendly Forces

Did you know that at least 70% of available jobs are NEVER listed online?

This may shock you, until you realize that 46.5% of the jobs in Canada are with small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Companies with less than 100 people often rely on word of mouth and networking to find the right folks to join their teams.

Many SMEs do not have a dedicated Human Resources team and find listing jobs online to be too much trouble.

One entrepreneur I know, Tina Nguyen, XXL Scrunchie & Co. literally met one of her first employees in line at a grocery store. Tina noticed that the woman in front of her was wearing one of her scrunchies and engaged her in conversation. They got to know each other, and when production expanded Tina hired this woman to sew scrunchies!

I’ve heard countless stories like this, where job seekers met their next employer while networking in a diverse range of spaces from industry specific events to volunteering in their communities.

Friendly Forces is a military term referring to folks who are likely to help you achieve your goals. For job seekers that can be anyone from your family and friends to people you meet through social media, during virtual learning, or even at in-person events.

Some folks you meet will ask "What can I do to help you?” Be prepared to answer the question.

If someone asks what they can do to help you, or if they seem receptive to learning more about you and your career journey, I suggest sharing the following information with your Friendly Forces Network:

1. You are seeking a new job

2. What your ideal job would be

3. The kinds of work you would like to do

4. The kind of employer you would like to work with

5. Where you would be willing to work

6. The industry(ies) you would like to work in

7. The size of community you would like to work in

‍

If you engage with your Friendly Forces Network by sharing this kind of information, they may very well know someone they can introduce you to, who can help you discover that ideal job you’ve been seeking.

If you’re new to networking or feel uncomfortable with the idea of speaking to strangers, check out my free 30-minute course: Networking: Identifying and Connecting with Friendly Forces here.