The Smart Way to Get Your First Job Post Grad
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I’m Alexis, and I’m a 22-year-old working full time at Google. After recent world events, it’s been super hard to find a job after graduation and I’m extremely grateful for mine.
These are tips that are going to apply to every industry, but I will say there are certain nuances that apply to STEM Majors, for example, it’s super tough to do that.
Let’s level set here though. Most people don’t absolutely love their jobs, and your first job after college, even if it’s amazing and well paid etc, is not going to be your dream job. Think of this as a learning experience that will propel you to where you want to go long term, not an end-all-be all that is going to determine your long term worth. Separate your worth and your personal happiness from your job.
This is the formula that I apply to my clients that helps them identify and go after the job they want, so let’s get started.
Identify what your long term goals are for your life. I am of the mindset that you need to find a job that supports your long term lifestyle goals, not a job that informs your long term lifestyle. There are tradeoffs that exist here - if you want to live in a big house and go on vacation all the time all that, you won’t be able to work at a nonprofit comfortably u know. Start there, work backwards.
Then, identify your lifestyle non-negotiables. Where do you want to live? What do you need to live comfortably in the city you want to live in? What benefits do you need? Do you have parental support?
It’s crucial to take in all the financial support you may have because if you do have your family supporting you, it’s smarter to take advantage of that now.
Then, identify your work non-negotiables. Do you want to work at a small or a large company? What type of manager do you do well with? What type of team do you do well with? Would you like to work somewhere where the corporate ladder is clearer, or go somewhere that it’s easier to get a lot of management experience in one?
Once you’ve identified all of these ideas of what you want, then it’s time to choose the industry and the area in which you want to work. You need to spend at least 1 day doing research on that industry and learning the ins and outs of it - subscribe and read industry newsletters, find the titans of that industry and follow them on LinkedIn, and if you don’t have a degree in that industry, identify coursework that you’ll be able to realistically take.
Now it’s time to do a personal brand audit - what have you done that makes you good for these roles? You don’t have to have perfect experiences, but you do need to craft a story - why do you want to do this? Edit your Resume and LinkedIn to be professional - links below for what you need to do but I’ll keep it simple: use compelling adverbs, show your work and quantify it as much as possible.
Finally, you’re going to identify 20 roles that sound like you’d love to have them. They don’t have to be open roles, but just go crazy on LinkedIn and look for things that spark your interest - what do they do that sounds interesting to you?
Once you identify these roles, you can reach out to these people with a few questions - I wouldn’t recommend asking to talk to them because that takes a lot of time for people and it’s not respectful of their time, but reach out and ask them a few questions in writing that they could realistically answer.
Once you’ve done all of this and get an interview, that’s a whole nother ball game, let me know if you want to see a video about how to get there!
