Juggling a Job Search While Currently Working

The latest report from the U.S. Department of Labor shows that employment opportunities continue to increase, especially in the healthcare, hospitality, and technology fields. There are more jobs and more people looking, which means now may be a good time to search for that next step in your career. If you have a job now but still welcome a change, consider these tips on searching for work while employed.

Be Prepared

If you are currently looking for work while employed, you should not tell your current employer unless they’ve already told you to look for a job.  Assuming you are looking for new opportunities in secret,  you should have a plan on how you will keep your search in secret but also for what to do if your secret comes out. Beware of these scenarios:

• You interview with the CIO of a small company who plays racquetball with your boss
• You forget a copy of your resume in the office printer/copy machine
• A company calls your office and leaves a message reminding you to send job references with your application

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• You’ve used your work email for a job search and your Compliance department has discovered your search

Situations like this could leave you facing some tough questions in the workplace. Should your manager become aware of your job search, the best course of action is to be honest about your job search. After being caught, it’s difficult to keep up the secrecy act.

Use Your Own Time and Resources

Even while searching for a job, continue to work hard at your current job and remain a good employee. You should conduct your job search outside of work hours so that you can continue to focus on your current job while in the office. Do your research and interviews (to the extent possible) on your own time and don’t give your manager or peers any reason to doubt your dedication to your current job.

Resources that automate your job search and application process can be leveraged (see below) to help make the time spent on your job hunt more efficient. Also, avoid using company equipment such as work phones, computers, fax machines, or copiers for your search. This could be a violation of company policy.

• Job-applications.com – This site aggregates the company career site links for many companies, making the application process much easier.
• Glassdoor.com – Find out how much you are worth before your job search (set your goals to match market expectations).

Keep it to Yourself

Leveraging the Internet and social media for your job LinkedIn (in a non-confidential way) could make its way to your boss’ racquetball partner. Take no chances and keep any word of your job search off social media.

There’s one exception: Do update your professional profiles, such as on LinkedIn, since these could be a valuable asset to your job updates available to all of your connections, versus keeping them private.

• How Do I Find Jobs on LinkedIn? – Learn how to leverage your job search.
• Five Devastating LinkedIn Profile Errors – Don’t make these LinkedIn mistakes.

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Act Professionally

As with any job search, avoid speaking poorly of your current employer; rather keep a positive and steady attitude at work. If you walk into your job in a particularly good or bad mood because of an interview the night before, you might start getting questions from your boss or peers.