Why Can’t I Find a Job? 8 Common Reasons

At every moment, there are millions of people looking for a job. There are also millions and millions of offers, and still, it can be hard to find proper employment.

We’ll cut to the chase and talk about some mistakes people make when looking for a job as well as some stuff you should put more focus on if you’re hoping to nail that job opportunity.

Do not lose motivation if you are refused. It is a very common thing to happen. You should not take this personally. Rather be indifferent and analytical about it. Think of it as a way to gain new knowledge that will help you to get a hold on a better job.

The best way to deal with refusal is to try to analyze what was the reason for it. Sometimes, there are better candidates than us, but in that case,  there is another job for us, as well.

The best and the only thing to do is learn something from recruitment experience and improve yourself.

YOU ARE NOT LOOKING HARD ENOUGH

Seek and thou shall find, right?

Well, how hard have you sought? Did you just scroll around and ask a couple of friends or did you actually apply?

Needless to say that no one will come knocking at your door and offering you employments of a lifetime if you don’t reach out.

By reaching out, I mean every possible way that you can. Use google, LinkedIn and other social media, contact your friends, form CV and cover letter templates and specify them for every single job…

Until you send at least 100 CVs, you can’t even say that you tried.

Google offers a lot of help so try searching: Where to apply for a job?

These days there are many online and remote work solutions so you can apply from the comfort of your home.

I remember this one time when a  colleague told me he can not find a job. I asked him how many positions has he applied by now, he told me –  only one.

I was confused because it looked as if he didn‘t want to find a job, rather than he couldn‘t find one. We recommend applying for between ten and fifteen positions a week. This will bring the best outcome.

YOU ARE JUST NOT MOTIVATED ENOUGH AND THE INTERVIEWER CAN SEE THAT

If your resume and cover letter are top-notch, you might have gotten all the way to the interviewing process.

It’s not a coincidence that employers are looking for highly motivated staff members. It’s not just a par of words to put in a cover letter.

Being motivated is one of the factors that will determine how much you’ll put your back into the job which will consequently determine your results.

Sometimes, people are not sure whether they want to find a new occupation or change the current one, so they are applying just to apply and to say that they tried to find something better, but instead they want an excuse to stick to their comfort zone.

It’s the job of a recruiter to sniff and root out such candidates so make sure you’re not one of them.

YOU HAVEN’T NARROWED DOWN THE FIELD OF YOUR INQUIRY

Yes, we’ve established that you should have a broad scope when it comes to mailing resumes, but you should also know what your targeted sector is.

You should try to create a list of goals and execution plans so that you know each step of your way to that position you’re after.

It’s a good thing to be versatile, without a doubt, but it can sometimes compromise your chances of getting that job.

The market these days is all about the highly specialized staff because everyone aims to increase the quality of their products and services to the maximum and the competition is high.

You must be skilled at something so make sure to check what your talents and expertise are and then give it your all to find a job at an adequate sector.

You can’t be good at painting at use that to find employment as a medical assistant… and vice versa, right?

Try to write down your qualifications and interests.

One of the best ways to explore yourself is to make a SWOT analysis of your personality. Here you can put your strengths and weaknesses, and compare them to opportunities and threats that you might run into.

SWOT tool is very good because here you can see either internal feats of your personality and external data such as offer and demand on the workforce market. Many companies are using this tool for their projects, and it can be useful for making the final decision when it comes to your employment, as well.

Check out this article to optimise your job search.

YOUR WORKING EXPERIENCE DOESN’T IMPRESS THE INTERVIEWERS

Working experience in a resume and during an interview is a must.

However, it can be a Catch 22 sort of thing where you need the experience to apply and you need to get a job to become experience… so how do you get that first employment if you’re totally inexperienced?

There are millions of offers and millions of job variations. If you don’t have any working experience, you can look for internships, part-time or full-time jobs as a volunteer.

This is important because if you don’t have experience in the field where you are applying, you will most probably be rejected.

So, the best way to gain experience is through an internship, and after some time you can even get a job at the same company where you worked as an intern.

This scenario is typical for the start of your professional career. It does not mean that you need to stay and work for the same company after you gain experience, you have also other possibilities, like to apply in other companies.

There are many organizations such as Aiesec, that can provide you with an internship, especially if you’re a student.

hey have many opportunities and you can gain international experience because most of the opportunities are abroad.

YOU ARE NOT ADEQUATELY PREPARED FOR THE INTERVIEWS

In general, you need to be fully prepared for the job interview… yes,  but what does that mean?

Is it enough to just fix your tie, polish your smile and look good? Should you do positive affirmations and use the law of attraction in order to charm your way into that chair?

Those things could work, but I’m not sure they’re essential here.

You’ll need to do some work here instead. Try to research as more as you can about the potential companies and about the field of your future work.

For example, you should research the average salaries in the industry that you are applying to so that you have a prepared answer when the interviewer starts asking questions.

You don’t want to give out an impression of someone who doesn’t know how and where he applied

It can be bad if your expectations are super high, or low. If you can predict, or guess how big would your salary be, it gives an impression to the employer that you are generally well informed and prepared for the position.

Otherwise, if you say that you are expecting a much bigger salary than the average, you need to back that expectation with perfect CV and experience.

On the other hand, if your expectations are low, it means that you are insecure and probably not a good option for the position. Like everywhere else,  balance is the key here, as well.

And that’s just for the salaries… Try to do research on the company’s goals and policies… try to see if the founder, owners or executives in command have some visions or codes that they uphold.

People do not prepare themselves for an interview. Even if you pass the first stage, it doesn’t mean that you got the job. You need to think ahead – reconsider all the questions they might ask you during an interview and be prepared to answer them.

The first impression is the most important. If at the start your recruiter likes you, everything is going to be easier. Try to give your best during the first contact, it can mark you for the rest of the process.

You can check the typical questions ln the interview.

Every HR manager is going to ask you what do you know about the company that you are applying for, and what motivated you to become a part of their company? In that case, you need to read something about the company, like a short history, what is the company doing, where they do their business, etc.

The biggest focus should be on the values of the company. You should read the values and try to relate. The Human Resources (HR) manager would like to hear an example of that relationship and see how would you emanate those values during your work for the company.

One more obligatory question from the Human Resources (HR) manager is about your advantages and disadvantages when it comes to the position. The point of this question is not to avoid your disadvantages, you should not say that you are perfect,  it would mean that you are not aware of yourself and your weaknesses.

Every human being has something that he should change, and it is okay, to be honest. Let’s take an example –  you are applying for the position of Junior finance accountant. The keywords for this occupation are good organizational skills, analytical skills and working in a team.

You should use these keywords and mention them among your qualities and skills. The best way to say something about your disadvantages is to show that you are working on improving yourself. For

Example: My disadvantage is Oracle program, I do not know how to use it properly, but I took a course to learn as much as possible. This answer tells the recruiter that you are aware that you do not know everything, but you are willing to improve yourself.

Your resume looks sloppy

It doesn’t matter what kind of job you are looking for – your CV must be flawless.

Whether you’re aiming for the position of a Manager, Pharmacist or a Sanitary worker, you simply must exhibit attention to detail and your resume is your business ID card, so make sure it’s not all washed out.

Make sure there are no typos in your resume and edit your resume so that it fits the criteria of the job you’re applying for.

Your photo must look representable and your education, working experience, etc. must be top-notch.

Even if you don’t have any education or working experience, make sure it looks professional.

Some people have a habit of forging their working experience even if they have none. It’s a dangerous maneuver, but if you’re 100% sure that you’ll be able to fully compensate for the lack of your working experience, perhaps you should consider „imagining“ some, just in case.

Don’t overdo it though. Too many words in your resume can make the interviewer lose interest. Find the golden ratio. Only put the information that you feel might be crucial for the employer.

The best course of action here is to check out this article.

YOUR COVER LETTER SUCKS

One of the best methods to improve your chances to get a job is to write a motivational letter. This document should be added to your CV.

Here,  you should say something more about yourself and why you would like to work in the company you are applying for.

Say something more about your previous experience, and what have you learned by working there. Also, you can mention and connect those earned skills with the ones that are needed for the required position.

Pay attention to the part of the letter where you should address your motivation. Keep it real, if you’re motivated, let it show. Tell them why you want that particular position and how hiring you will benefit your employers.

Are you positive that you’ll be a valuable asset to the company? Do elaborate.

Why would you be the best option for this position? What distinguishes you from every other candidate?

You should say something constructive, not too short, you do not want to be incomprehensible, but still not too long, because the HR manager can lose his/her focus, and maybe the same can happen to you.

While answering, try to say more about your strengths and qualities.

YOU MIGHT BE OVERQUALIFIED FOR THE POSITIONS YOU’RE APPLYING TO

Make sure you’re not looking for jobs that are under the weather when it comes to your expertise.

Turning down overqualified candidates might seem funny, but it’s definitely a thing!

No one wants someone who can hoist the sails and leave after a while. Recruiters suspect that, if you’re applying for a lower position than your education suggests, you’re just looking for something to pass the time until you land a better opportunity.

Only a small number of people can afford to waste time with candidates like that. Mostly, the companies are looking for candidates who want to stay in one position for a longer period of time (which is impossible in this time of migration), so they do not need to spend more money on training the staff and looking for another candidate if one is leaving.

The process of hiring is not cheap at all, so it is cheaper for the company to try to keep the current employees than to hire new ones.

It’s only natural to assume that you’d feel discontent with a job that doesn’t suit your status. Discontent breeds slacking and slacking breeds poor results.

If you’re dissatisfied with your position, you might infest the working atmosphere and no one wants that. To put it in simple terms, your managers want it to go as smoothly as it can.

YOU DIDN’T ADEQUATELY BRAND YOURSELF

Branding yourself is a crucial thing to get a job. But the question is –  how to brand yourself? You can see many examples in the world how people made success and you can try to copy them and learn from their experience.

In this case, you can learn how to better „sell“ yourself to the employer. I hope you understand why branding is so Important and crucial in getting a job.

You need to advertise yourself as the product of your capabilities and training. It doesn’t matter if you’re selling a service or a product, you need to be noteworthy.

It’s no wonder big businesses invest a lot in marketing. Sometimes, a good commercial is worth more than the product itself.

Now, branding is not about what you own or what you do, but how you present yourself. Especially if the job you’re applying for has something to do with skills of presentation (and most jobs do), the first thing you’ll be presenting is yourself and the hiring manager will know that.

CONCLUSION

Hopefully, you’ve found some keen advice on how to land those opportunities more efficiently. All these activities do not guarantee that you are going to get a job immediately. This process is not simple unless you are enormously lucky, so get ready to be refused.

It is not about how many times you have been refused, it is about how many times have you applied. You should use all this experience during this process and become better and better. Improving is a process that never stops, and this is what the employer wants to see – passion, motivation and you giving your best when it is the hardest.

You can not predict the flow of your interview or every question they might ask you. Still, you can practice how to make a business conversation with your friends by answering common questions.

If you still can not find a job, I suggest you volunteer. This would help you to gain a routine and also meet new people, and maybe one of your acquaintances can help you find a job.

Try to expand your horizons. An employer wants to see an all-round person, who is ready to adapt and overcome many various situations. You can find many organizations on the internet about volunteering.

Try to learn as much as you can from every situation. Even if you get rejected, try to get feedback from the recruitment team and see what should you improve in order to achieve your goal.

Do not act like a kid, in other words, do not be mad at the recruitment team if they tell you something that you do not like or you disagree with it.