Beat the Black Hole

Readers, we really appreciate the feedback that we get from all of you on making TheLadders.com an even better service for finding your next $100k+ job. We use that feedback to find ways to make it easier for you to make your job hunt less stressful, more effective, and short.

And one of the truths of the job hunt is that no matter how effectively you work it, even the best candidate sometimes runs up against the Black Hole -- that No Man's Land where you just know you're right for the job, but haven't heard back from the recruiter or hiring manager. With that in mind, I thought I'd give you my holistic advice on beating the Black Hole in Six Easy Steps:

Step 1 - Complete or add to your bio. 91% of TheLadders.com subscribers that report finding a job through TheLadders.com have a complete bio on the site. And that's a stat you just can't ignore.

One of the easiest ways to increase your "hit rate" with hiring managers and recruiters is by letting them find you.

Step 2- Be selective. Did you know that reducing the number of jobs you apply for can actually increase the absolute number of responses you get?

Yes, I know the job hunt is a numbers game - you've got to send out a lot of feelers in order to find that next great position. But quality matters too. Your time and focus are important, limited commodities in the job hunt. And if you needlessly spread them thin by applying for hundreds of jobs, you're not going to be putting your best foot forward for the ones that truly matter. And you're going to find yourself becoming very frustrated and agitated when you get only a dozen replies to the thousand applications you've sent out.

Re-think your strategy and only apply to the 50 or 100 most likely jobs for you, and then invest the time you save in following up on those jobs only. You might be surprised at what focus can do for increasing your response rate.

Step 3 - Search smarter. You know, it can seem tedious picking through the 70,000 jobs we have active on the site to find the right one for you. And that's why you fall into the trap of applying to jobs that aren't quite right.

If you find yourself performing the same search over and over, you may be losing valuable time. Instead save a search and set up a job alert. Heck, save five searches if that helps you narrow in on just those ones that are right for you.

When you save your search and choose the frequency of e-mailed alerts you'd like, we'll deliver the results to you on your schedule. This way, you'll never miss an opportunity!

Step 4 - Network. No, I'm not suggesting the kind of all-purpose aggressive networking that requires you to pester friends of friends of friends. I've been on the receiving end of more than a few of those "can we just get together for 15 minutes so I can pick your brain" calls from complete strangers and I know how uncomfortable it is for both parties.

But once you find a job that you're interested in, it's a whole different ballgame. Now you have a mission, a quest, a goal in sight, and people in your network, or even your friends' friends' friends, can help you out. You might even be surprised at how well people respond to targeted requests like this.

You're a much more effective networker when you can reach out to your college football buddy and say, "Hey, Jim, I'd heard you've been at IBM for a few years now - I just found out that they're looking for a VP in my specialty in your division. Do you know who's really the decision-maker on this hire?"

By requesting help with a specific job, you get Jim on your side, and he can feel like he's really helping out his old buddy on a mission that seems achievable.

Focus your networking around the jobs you find on TheLadders.com, and you'll find your calls are much more effective and likely to be returned.

Step 5 - Follow up! The squeaky wheel gets the grease. If you're truly the perfect fit for that position, always follow up. Because you've cut down the number of jobs you're applying to, you can focus ten times the energy on one-tenth the jobs.

When you save jobs in our "MyJobs" tool, you can set yourself reminders for following up. And viola! You'll always be sure to... follow up!

Step 6 - Work with recruiters! TheLaddders.com is the only major job site with a recruiter profile database. Did you notice the "Search Recruiters" tab on the site? Have you reached out to recruiters in your field, your specialty, your city?

By reaching out to recruiters and getting added to their contact list, you'll be at the top of the heap when they have a new job that's right for you.

So, Readers, that's how you can beat the Black Hole. If you do your six easy parts, we'll do our part to make the $100k+ job hunt even better for you!

Have a great week, Readers!