How Does Job Search Desperation Make You Vulnerable To Scammers
Applying to 100s of jobs leaves you open to delusional offers from job scammers.
Desperation and anxiousness are perfect combinations for the wrong kind of vulnerability to scammers. I’ve seen so many LinkedIn posts from job scam victims who state they’ve been looking for months. We forget that scammers are marketing masters. They know their perfect target.
One surefire way to avoid scammers: Make a target list of companies to pursue. Your job search will be a powerful experience you’ve created, not the temptation of delusional job offers.
Make thoughtful, strategic choices of jobs where you could add value and where you would work under favorable conditions. If you want to increase your options, look at companies across several industries where it would help your career advancement efforts.
Your list would help you focus on what matters the most: Your career and the fulfillment of your professional aspirations and personal goals.
Understandably, some of you may need to take a bridge job to support your learning or skill development. However, you can still focus clearly on your desired career path and location.
You can ignore unwanted emails, Emails, social media messages, invites to WhatsApp conversations, etc. Your list could grow and eventually narrow your options because you’ve chosen 25, 50, or 100 ideal companies you hope will interview you. Mostly, it’s because you chose them.
It’s like a good shrimp dinner.
In an interview, I told my friend Hannah Morgan about my wife, and I found restaurants serving big, juicy shrimp. I like the fried shrimp, and she wants them fried and grilled.
We asked friends and people they knew for recommendations, Googled, looked at customer reviews of several places, found what past employees thought of working there, and looked at restaurant reviews from online food critics. Not only did we find the restaurant serving big, juicy shrimp, but also the experience was top-notch. Why not conduct a similar search for job satisfaction?
Most people treat their job search as if they were looking for a fast-food restaurant on a road trip when they’re famished. You are looking to satisfy your hunger at the time without putting a lot of thought into it. Anything tastes good at the time, and you’ll settle for food you promised yourself to avoid if necessary.
While long-term unemployment is unfortunate and sometimes unfair, why go through the unnecessary hassle of entertaining uncertainties?
In this case, the size of the shrimp mattered as much as how it was delivered. It was not the best shrimp we ever had. We were willing to experience different restaurants to find THE one we love. People research diligently for dinner but won’t do it to avoid job dissatisfaction and even potential scammers. They know when you’re unemployed for more than a year. They can figure out you’re losing faith. This is why focus is essential.
A successful modern job search requires unwavering single-mindedness.
If you’re tired of applying to hundreds of jobs only to get interested from commission-only jobs (nothing against commission jobs), a target list creates production as you’ve never seen before:
You’ll learn about companies and the problems they want to solve.
You’ll understand more about what you can help them achieve.
Talk to many people in your network who can introduce you to people working for your target company. Second —and third-tier introductions are often a sweet spot.
Join the industry organization or association to meet others and access to insider information. You can find out if you need to retool or possibly contribute to committees, webinars, or mentoring another peer. Sometimes, you find first-hand information from members moving to other opportunities.
Spend time following up with helpful people.
Conduct informational interviews to deepen your company and industry knowledge.
You’re checking reviews of companies, looking at their websites for additional insights, and talking to present and past employees who held your ideal position.
These are some of the things to inform your job search as you focus on matching companies with your values and goals rather than hanging in desperation. Scammers prey on desperate or long-term unemployed people to make them feel special.
We must keep reminding ourselves that offers to good-to-be-true are warnings unless you’ve verified and are convinced the source is credible.
Remember these crucial red flags for spotting marketing scams:
1. Scammers often present job postings that seem too good to be true, offering attractive perks like "competitive salary," unlimited PTO, and remote/hybrid work options.
2. Beware of fake recruiters on platforms like LinkedIn, who may falsely praise your credentials to lure you in.
3. Exercise caution with employer websites that lack detailed job descriptions and individual profiles.
4. Stay vigilant for dubious testimonials, absence of company reports, and outdated technology on employer websites.
5. Scammers may make unsolicited contact through cold emails or calls using email lists from conferences, webinars, or other sources.
6. Be wary of fake job ads on social media and job sites. Scammers may use stock photos and duplicate user accounts to deceive individuals and steal their identities. Stay alert and protect yourself from these deceptive tactics.
Job seekers who target companies find a better fit and seem to avoid the distractions of scammers (and some people with good intentions) offering false hope. Instead of hanging on desperation, you’ve taken control of your job search, taken power from “too-good-to-be-true” job scammers, and found positions where you’re “highly qualified.”
If you haven’t read the Quick Checklist: 19 Signs of a Job Scam To Know, subscribe to “The Job Scam Report” for only $5 monthly or $50 yearly.
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