JobSync

Overcoming Jobseekers' Negative Attitudes about Job Prospects

October 31, 2011

It’s Halloween, and those out of a job and looking for work are the ones who are most scared.

Recently, Glassdoor.com commissioned a poll examining the attitudes and outlooks of unemployed jobseekers as well as current jobholders. What is striking about the survey results was how overwhelmingly negative most unemployed job hunters are about their prospects in the current economic climate. Among other things, the poll found:

• 91 percent think the current economic volatility will impact their ability to find a job
• 80 percent believe economic volatility will lengthen their job search
• 63 percent expect there to be fewer job openings
• 54 percent expect pay to be lower
• 45 percent say uncertainty will force them to accept a job that they are overqualified for

If that weren’t dispiriting enough, the survey results also showed:

• 32 percent think it is unlikely they will find a job in the next 6 months (this represents the highest level in the last five quarters)
• 47 percent of workers 55 and older think it is unlikely they will find a job within six months

Let’s face it, the job market today is difficult. But there are so many things jobseekers can do to enhance their job prospects that it begs the question: How many of these respondents are as pessimistic as they are because they unknowingly continue to make the same fundamental errors and oversights when applying for a job? Factors such as poorly written resumes and applying for jobs they are poor matches for can all add to the grim view jobseekers have for their employment opportunities, but these errors and oversights can easily be fixed.

Just remember, you have the power to rise above these statistics when you become an informed job hunter. And by doing so, you’ll have more than a ghost of a chance of getting a job.

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