Are You Shutting Out The World In A Job Search?

Recently, I was flying back from a business trip, and noticed a young man seated in the row in front of me who had a brief conversation with a seat mate before we took off.job search

After some quick introductions, it came out that he was looking for a job as he was working on his resume.  (Yes, I held my tongue as I am a professional resume writer!)

 

But as soon as the plane took off, he put on his headphones, and shut out the world for the rest of the 5 hour flight.

And missed some great opportunities.

Other passenger conversations stirred in seats around him, most notably an HR manager with whom I struck up a conversation who had ended up sitting to my left.

Had the young man been more available and present, I might have tapped him on the shoulder and made a connection with the HR manager.

Who knows where that might have gone?

But instead, his world was limited to his headphones and own thoughts.

And basically told the rest of the world to go away.

This lesson underscores that in a job search, you never know where opportunity may happen.

Understand that you are on deck 100% of the time because you never know who you might run into.

If you go to the store and are standing in the checkout line…

Attend a networking event…

Interact with other parents at a child’s athletic event…

Meet a friend for lunch and someone at the next table is talking about hiring…

Go to a friend’s summer barbecue party…

Take the bus downtown…

Someone asks to connect with you on LinkedIn…

My point here is that many happenstance meetings turn into fortuitous opportunity.

You never know where or when it might happen.

How are you opening the doors to possibility?

Are you keeping to yourself, or creating those openings to let opportunities enter or filter in?

The moral of the story: Look at ways at how you might be shutting out the world in a job search, and remove as many obstacles as possible.

You never know what might happen!