Free riding is not an option!

Where do you start when looking for your first job or a new challenge?
Pre-corona you went to job fairs, networking events and drank cups of coffee until your heartbeat hit 150, due to the amount of caffeine you had ingested. Unfortunately, now in the middle of the corona pandemic, you don’t have these opportunities. Now you have to pull yourself out of your passive mode to start the journey to your new job.

Once started, you feel lonely. Who are my colleagues, how did my predecessor do this and am I on the right track? All questions you have no answers to. Everyone is in a Zoom meeting all day and has little or no time for sincere interest in you. At least, that’s how it feels!

Rest assured that this also applies to talents who are already in the middle of their career. You are not alone and that is also how hiring managers think. In addition, you can stand out by showing your character, your persistence, your enthusiasm in application procedures or the start of your new challenge. Show your curiosity and dare to be creative with the situation.  

The fact is that your talents are even more exposed in the period we are living in now. First of all, during your job interviews you are expected to substantiate your talents even better. After all, you don’t have to rely on your first jovial entrance. Second, when you are in the first 100 days of your new job, you have to rely on the previously defined talents. After all, it’s hard to copy from your neighbor.

Therefore, there is little question of ‘free rider’ behavior in this corona period:
you need to trust on your own talents!