OK. I admit it's not an analogy many would draw. But, if you stop and think about it, finding a job can be like hunting down a ghostly apparition: we find ourselves in spooky locations, face-to-face with scary people, waiting for something to materialize. Sometimes we get some solid evidence, such as an electronic voice phenomenon (aka, phone call), and sometimes we learn that what we're dealing with is simply not intelligent, nor human.
Here are a few other reasons our job search is like hunting ghosts:
1) You have to deal with skeptics: You have to be strong-willed to publicly announce your believe in ghosts - just ask PARANORMAN (in theatres now!). A job search is an exercise in tenacity. The economy has left long-term job searchers feeling cheated, disillusioned, and wronged. They don't believe in themselves or the system. Don't be sucked in by these skeptical job seekers!
2) Residual Haunting: Ask any ghost hunter about residual hauntings and they'll tell you it's a paranormal event that repeats itself again and again. Each time it is the same - like a looped video. Often, our job search feels like deja vu because we get the same responses again and again. Whether that answer is "not enough experience", "overqualified", or something else, we have to accept the feedback and move on. To bust out of that loop you may need to change up the resume, fine tune your interview answers and prepare better questions.
3) Gadgets & Tools: Zack Bagans loves his gadgets. On his Ghost Adventures TV show, he uses traditional ghost hunting gear as well as newfangled tools. Zack employs this array of equipment because ghost hunting is not one-size-fits-all. Job hunters need to incorporate the same strategy. Use all the gadgets and tools at your disposal including job boards, social media, networking events and recruiters. There are so many tools out there and you need to be dialed into them all.
Other job search / ghost busting analogies come to mind? Please post them below.
