{"id":5283,"date":"2014-06-26T12:00:07","date_gmt":"2014-06-26T16:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/?p=5283"},"modified":"2018-08-09T16:20:15","modified_gmt":"2018-08-09T20:20:15","slug":"ryan-kahns-secrets-to-landing-a-job-after-graduation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/2014\/06\/26\/ryan-kahns-secrets-to-landing-a-job-after-graduation\/","title":{"rendered":"Ryan Kahn’s Secrets to Landing a Job After Graduation"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Ryan<\/a>*Editor’s Note* A similar version of this article first appeared on Careerealism<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Have a Unique Story<\/b><\/p>\n

One of the greatest assets you have when looking for your first job \u2014 and every one after that \u2014 is your life experiences. Who you are, and what makes you unique and interesting, is something all employers seek to understand during the interview process. And, while the job description may not give you any guidelines on what exactly they\u2019re looking for, a well-rounded, cultured perspective is always in demand.<\/p>\n

Remember, it\u2019s all about perspective. If you think your Spring Break trip to Mexico isn\u2019t relevant, think again. Find ways to give your stories depth \u2014 like how bungee jumping off Macau Tower in China gave you a new perspective for facing personal fears, or how running the New York City Marathon taught you how to overcome challenges. Have a few good stories in your back pocket (can we say \u201celevator pitch\u201d?), and be ready to smoothly deploy them at a moment\u2019s notice. Who knew getting a little culture would be so useful?<\/p>\n

Forget What You\u2019ve Been Told<\/b><\/p>\n

It\u2019s not what you know or who you know \u2014 it\u2019s who knows you.\u00a0I know it may sound unsavory, but let\u2019s face it: Relationships rule the world. There\u2019s a reason \u201cSix Degrees of Kevin Bacon\u201d exists, and that\u2019s exactly why you need to get your own game going starting now.<\/p>\n

Make a name for yourself by getting in front of every person that falls in line with your interests. But when I say get in front, I really mean make yourself valuable. People in positions of influence are peppered with \u201casks\u201d all day, every day. Don\u2019t be that person. Instead, find a way to make yourself useful to them.<\/p>\n

Create a \u201cHit List\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

Finding a job is no easy task, so it should come as no surprise that I\u2019d suggest you approach it like a covert assassin. In other words, you need to create a hit list of the companies or gigs you\u2019re after and pursue them relentlessly.<\/p>\n

Start by creating a knock list of the top 20 companies you\u2019re coveting an offer from, then use your social media and networking expertise to acquire a target contact at each. In time you\u2019ll have a personalized, top-secret list of known informants and assets to help you achieve your mission of finding a job.<\/p>\n

Creep \u2014 Just Don\u2019t Be Creepy<\/b><\/p>\n

Call a spade a spade, right? Well, when you\u2019re trying to get in with your dream company, that sometimes requires a bit of high-level interaction, aka, creeping. But don\u2019t get it twisted; do this right and creepy won\u2019t even be in the vocabulary of your new employer.<\/p>\n

That said, get back to your creeping, stalking senses and dig in deep with the companies you\u2019re interested in. Follow them on Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr and like them on Facebook, but don\u2019t just be a passive bystander. Interact with your coveted companies in intelligent, relevant and memorable ways. Just as you\u2019d hope companies would interact with you \u2014 with information that\u2019s relevant and interesting \u2014 do the same for them, and you just might make a name for yourself before you even apply.<\/p>\n

Make Yourself an Industry Expert<\/b><\/p>\n

Sure, you\u2019re a freshly-minted grad, but that doesn\u2019t mean you don\u2019t have great industry content to share. Thanks to social media and a plethora of blogging platforms, it\u2019s easier than ever to create a name for yourself on the Internet (where I assure you, your prospective employers will be checking you out). Create a blog or a landing page with your basic information, include a portfolio of completed projects and, if at all possible, get a few approved quotes from former employers and professors to back up the buzz. Before long, your online presence will speak for itself. Just remember, the Internet never forgets, so keep it classy.<\/p>\n

What are some of your tips for landing a job after graduation? Share in the comments below.<\/b><\/p>\n

_____<\/p>\n

Ryan Kahn<\/a><\/i> has helped thousands of college students and recent grads get hired into some of the world\u2019s most coveted internships and jobs. Kahn is founder of The Hired Group<\/a><\/i>, career coach on MTV’s \u201cHired,\u201d and author of \u201cHired! The Guide for the Recent Grad.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

Forbes described Kahn as a \u201cTop resource for helping students and recent grads in landing their dream career,\u201d and included his company in this year\u2019s \u201cTop 100 Websites For Your Career.\u201d His work has been praised in hundreds of media outlets <\/i>including<\/em> The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Huffington Post, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Star Magazine, Washington Post, \u201cNBC News,\u201d <\/i>Chicago Tribune, Career Magazine, Yahoo! News, <\/i>and <\/i>US News & World Report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

*Editor’s Note* A similar version of this article first appeared on Careerealism. Have a Unique Story One of the greatest assets you have when looking for your first job \u2014 and every one after that \u2014 is your life experiences. Who you are, and what makes you unique and interesting, is something all employers seek to understand during the interview […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2892,2894],"tags":[1539,560,363,75,15,40,730,885,1770],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5283"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5283"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5283\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5287,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5283\/revisions\/5287"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5283"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5283"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/progressions.prsa.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5283"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}