Finding a Job in Spain - Job Searching Strategy for Foreigners

All right. I think we got almost everyone. So let's just start it. So hi, everyone. Thank you again for attending this webinar. And I hope the previous webinar helped as you and your career searching process a lot. So right now we're going to talk about the second webinar to ensure this webinar provides good online experience. I will mute you guys to avoid noises. However, you can always write in the chat. If you have you have anything that you want to ask, we're going to answer it in the end of this webinar. And again, this webinar will be around 50, 45 minutes. So first, I would like to introduce myself for some new faces here. Some of you already know, my name is Emily, and I was one of you studying UIC cultural management back in 2016. So right now I work as a career coach and help international talents to find jobs in Europe. All right. So today actually is our second webinar. So for the ones who has, you know, who didn't attend the first webinar, we will send follow up email to you guys about the previous recordings and also this one as well. So if you want to check out what we have talked about last time, you can check the emails later on. So this webinar, we will be sharing the job seeking strategies for internationals in Spain and Europe. Our last webinar will be next week, same time about building positive job searching mindset. So in this webinar, we were going to first talk about the common mistakes we have been made in job seeking process. And then we will share the platforms to find the job offer both online and offline. Also, I will teach you guys some techniques to increase your successful rate. Then there is another bonus giving out and the Q&A session. So stay with us. All right. Unlike looking for jobs in our home country, look for jobs in foreign country and as minorities. There are some areas we are not aware of and need to know how to make our process as much efficient as possible. So the first mistake is rush to things. What does it mean? We were conditioned to send CV right away when we are looking for job urgently. However, this may get backfired with much slower response and poor results. We should come up with a step by step plan what to do first and next, etc. For example, we may first think about what positions we want to look for and then what industries, who I want to work for, etc. And then push up your CV and cover letter catering to that. Then start application sending process. This will save you much more time and energy in the long run and have better results in the end. So give yourself some time to prepare and research first. The second mistake is random targets. For many students I have mentored, 80% of them when they start job seeking process, what do you really do? You just go on all random job portals and send applications to random companies who ever post related positions there. And then just wait there and pray if any of them replies. This kind of strategy is called spray and pray job searching technique. It may work if you have an extremely good luck, but we don't encourage students to do that as the first to go solution. It can be used as a backup plan, however, but still to put this solution as priority. The third mistake is the message is not clear or wrong. What does it mean? First, can be yourself is not clear about what do you want. You are lost and confused. So it's impossible to find a fulfilling job if you are not aware of what you want and what you can do. Second can be you are clear about what you want. However, the message you are given is not clear enough for others to interpret the same way. I will share how to deliver a strong and clear messages later on in this webinar in the technique slides. The last mistake is to use best context too early. Connections is very important and useful, of course, but only when we are prepared and be ready. Otherwise, it can easily be wasted. So bear in mind, if you are not clear about your goals or not prepared with outstanding profile or application, it can be hard for your connections to recommend you or help you. So only use them when you are all set up. Overall, one sentence to summarize is don't start your job seeking process in sleepwalking. Think and be aware. So now we know how to make a good start. That's good. So moving on is to know what the timeline looks like in the job seeking process. Step by step. Again, this is very special for internationals, actually. So as you can see in this chart, normally there are two stages in the job seeking process overseas. One is preparation and research. That normally takes one to two months here. Of course, if you can do it intensively, it can shorten to one month. One of my students actually finished this process in three weeks, which is very intensive. So in this stage, first, you may want to map out your job seeking strategy. That includes employers selection, platform identification and career positioning. Also, come up with a very efficient job management tools like Excel or Word document, etc. Then you may want to adjust your CV and cover letter with more professional and Western style to stand out and sell yourself. And then get interviews. When all the paperwork is set up, you can copy your CV to LinkedIn and try to connect target people there and develop your personal branding online. Second stage, you can see here, is where the real change happens. You will start sending applications in the second stage. And also, you will send the application with one or two rounds. And last, you may find some offers in the end and you're going to select them and negotiate the contract, etc. So you can see that the whole timeline can last from three to six months. Personally, it actually cost me six months because I was relocating from China with one month and I think one month and a half to prepare visa, etc. However, the fastest student I mentored, it cost her three months to get an offer in UK. So be aware this may last long, especially with COVID situation. Next, moving on, I will share with you guys some common job portals here in Spain and Europe in general. First is a Monster or Monster Board. They have different versions for each country with local languages. So make sure you open the right country and use Google Chrome to auto translate it. Then is Indeed, you may already know. However, be careful with this job searching website because some of the offers there, they are fake or they're just marketing tools. Because some companies, they want to promote themselves as well on those job seeking websites. And then LinkedIn, very popular. However, the offers there are not as many compared to other sites. But it's an excellent place to do the networking and to find hidden offer. And also, it's possible to get recommendation or referral from LinkedIn as well. Last is a European job portal. This is actually an official job portal from European Commission. It's aiming to facilitate the labor market in EU. Be aware, some of the offers there may not sponsor visa, as it targets EU citizens. But still, it's worth to try. Then I have listed some local platforms here in Spain. I want to highlight InfoJobs and The Local as they are quite popular here in Spain. Nevertheless, if you have already filtered the companies out from all channels, it's always recommended to also send application via company official websites and find who is the recruiter and send it directly. I also recommend to download apps from two main job portals and two local ones. And just check them out daily. All right. Moving on to the next slide, we're going to come into the magic of networking. How to find the hidden offer and get referrals. I love this part. You may know that actually many offers are actually not posted. They're not posted online or simply they are not advertising it at all. And for the offers posted, the recruiter may got too many CVs to pay attention to yours. So what to do? Network. Find the people and make them like you to help you. How to do that? Build your network circle to get the right person. As a career coach, we said there are three circles in your networking. Same as on LinkedIn, actually. So first, it's your close friends and families or simply the ones you have met and talked very often. Professors like the professor in UIC or your career mentors like me, whoever has more professional connections. The second circle is the ones you don't know but have things in common. Such as same university, same company you worked in, same country background, et cetera. And the third circle is where the target you want to make connection to. But still, you guys are total strangers for now. So list and connect with people in all those three circles and just knock doors to all of them. Moving on to the next topic is the techniques to increase your chances during this challenging time. I have worked with many talents like you. I'm still very excited to share those proven tips because it just works. First is, again, research the field. This is hard work. It's not technique, though. But most people, they are just too lazy to do it. And it's very important and I want to emphasize this again and again. So if you do this hard work, you are already ahead of them. So what does it mean? Especially for international job seekers. Just because not all employers, they are open to hire foreigners or sponsor them, it can be a waste of time and energy and appears passive aggressive. I highly recommend you to first do the research to filter out the potential employers. From our first webinar, actually, we talk a little bit about this. We talk about the features of potential employers. So please listen to the recording I send you if you don't remember. Second, use social media in a creative way. This is especially for this period when everyone is at home and lacking of real conversation with people. To make high quality of connection, try to just invite other people for Skype call over coffee. We say it's virtual coffee meetup. Make sure you open the camera at least from your side. Also, if you want to stand out from other candidates, make a 60 second video to introduce yourself. Tell your story, make some editing if you know how. Put it online next to your profile on LinkedIn or other social platforms. Use TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, etc. to highlight your passion there. View the website, etc. Manage and enforce your personal brandings online. Third, don't be shy. Just tell people you are looking for a job actively. Tell all the people in your three circles and spread the words. Next, use direct approaches, particularly for the moment when the companies or organizations are not advertising wisely and widely. Use no more than five short sentences. List who you are, means your background. And then what you want to do, means your goals. And how you can contribute, means your expertise. Don't drag it to complicate and too long, 50 words and that's it. And make sure they are all connected. The story makes sense to other people. Sorry, just excuse for a second. I think I'm going to turn on the lights. It's getting dark. All right. So this should be the first message. Message on all your online presence and CV as well. Because recruiters, they are busy decision makers, especially for the first round of shortlisting. So make sure you stand out right away with clear and strong message. So now we know how to do it from this kind of persuasive writing skills. Then you may want to know how to deliver this message through conversation. People can get bored when someone is talking all the time and try to sell the product. Here means to sell yourself. So in conversation, we cannot do the same approach. Instead, we need to trigger other people to get interested and ask your background, your goals and expertise by themselves. So how are we going to do that? Right. So after I have told my students, the most successful results is when you talk with excitement, curiosity and enthusiasm that reflects your energy. This is getting a little bit psychology-like. So, for example, you can say, I'm fascinated by this, this, this. I have discovered that and blah, blah, blah. I really would like to find out more and blah, blah, blah to show your curiosity. However, make sure you have done your research in the field and talk about the field knowledge with people. It's much easier to make a conversation with others like this instead of just talking by yourself. And believe it or not, that in the end, the person you are talking to, they actually will ask you in the end about who you are and what do you do from their sincere interest. And that is where you are starting to sell yourself. Talk a bit about your strengths and how you're going to help organizations, etc. And next tip is to show your empathy and humanity. It has been a tough period for many professionals and companies, and it may actually continue for a while, for some of them at least. So empathy and humanity have never been so important for many of us, actually. So employers may like the candidates who are more composed, outstanding, and heart-filling than the ones who present themselves a little bit arrogant, a bit pushy, despite their professional and hard skills. So, for example, when you are following up with a recruiter, instead of just using, for example, just checking, acknowledge the situation first by showing your understanding of the recruitment process. The recruitment process might be on hold, and you want to message them your interest is still there, and ask if there is anything you can do to be proactive and keep in their candidates' database. Last is try to focus on the long term, like three years further, because let's be realistic, and we want to prepare for the worst. You may not get the dream job you want with the current situation, and that's totally okay, and that is actually totally normal. Good things take time. And believe that COVID will pass, and just be positive. Think about what you can do now to get a step closer to your dream job in three years. For example, you want to work in the culture industry as a content marketer or blogger, and now you couldn't get a suitable offer in this field, simply just know it's very difficult. However, you can try to find a position where you can develop your writing skills or marketing skills in other sectors for now. Here I actually put a hard picture on the side, because I want to say that although techniques are very important, and it can come in handy sometimes, however, express yourself from the bottom of your heart when you talk to people. Express your sincere interest. People can feel it. People can feel your true self. So in the meantime, try to build understanding and just to give. Help others and see how you can give values to them without expecting a job offer or finance rewards from them. Because in the long run, I can assure you that you will benefit from all the help you have given to people around you. So just not to think about what I want from you, but what I can give, what I can give with the range of my capability. I remember in the book of Seven Habits of Successful People, it mentioned that the most successful person are not the ones who always think what I can take, but the ones who can contribute and help people, always be there for them. So in summary, it's all about thinking from others' shoes and be prepared. All right, so before going to answer your questions again, like from the last webinar, we will have a bonus giving out. Like I said, all of you can schedule a 30-minute free consultation with me. And actually, I already received some requests from some of you. So please do that if you think I can help you. Then it's a special offer for UNC students to sign up for a class with only 30 euros for the courses below, like cover letters, TV, LinkedIn interviews, etc. Or you can sign up one-to-one package with me only to support you till you find the offer. Also, please add me on LinkedIn. I personally post many useful daily insights there. So you can write in the chat or just tell me if you have any questions. We have actually around 10 minutes to answer your questions. Hello. Oh, hello. Hi, how are you? Good, good. It's Mario, right? Yes. Okay. What happens when you're under a situation that you met someone that is really involved into the cultural environment, but you have just a little time to introduce yourself or try to create a little contact with that person? What can you do under that situation? So have you met these people in person or just through online? Well, I remember that we went to a course of cultural managers. And I met a really important guy from the music environment in culture. And I just introduced myself, but I didn't have time to try to create a connection. Okay. It's just an example. I don't know. Yeah, I understand. I understand your question. So, I mean, this actually happens a lot during the meetup events or mixer or in the conferences. Sorry, I'm going to... Can you put your unmute? So, yeah. So I understand the situation that can happen a lot when you attend conferences or mixers. And this key speaker is very busy because everyone wants to ask him questions. Everyone wants to introduce him. So what I suggest is if you don't have time or some people are ahead of you asking questions, just take this person's contact information. Or if this person has assistants or has someone work together with him, so not necessarily himself, but people work with him, you can talk to that person if no one is asking the second person. And then through that person, you can get his contact. So because, you know, when people are on the lecture and they talk to many people, sometimes I forget people as well. So this is more important. After that, who is going to follow up with him? Who is going to reach out? For example, we are doing this webinar, but I will remember the people who actually reach out to me afterwards. So make sure get his contact. Remember his name. Search him on LinkedIn, et cetera. If not, get to know the person who works with him. So I hope this tip is going to help you. Okay, thank you. And I have another question. The question is, I would like to learn tricks to best set up my LinkedIn job alerts and filters so that the right opportunity are visible. Are there additional tools beyond the basic options that you are familiar with? Okay, so as you know, LinkedIn do have a lot of filters, but sometimes you have to reach out the opportunity for yourself because, like I said, the offers there in LinkedIn is not as much as other job platforms. So LinkedIn, yes, you can do it to look for job offers. But more importantly, look for who is posting there in the field, what companies are there, and just talk to them. Talk to them what other offers they are having or are they looking for people or simply, like I said, just talk to them to know what they are doing, show your interest about the field, et cetera. So the tools are limited in LinkedIn, but the network and people are limited. So if you choose to do job alerts, it's kind of passive. So just reach out and be proactive. And another question from Claudia says, okay, Tina, yes? Yeah, I just wanted to go deeper into that question. I think it was helpful when Maho spoke on the microphone. Sure. What I mean is that, yes, I understand the active versus passive searching through LinkedIn. But, for example, my job-seeking alerts right now are reflective of my profile in the way that my marketing experience is capitalizing my filters. And so although I want to work in social justice and community development through arts and culture, et cetera, it's showing opportunities for more brand and product marketing because that's what I have. I see. Yes, because it's the algorithm in LinkedIn. They're matching your skill set in your profile. I would say go back to profile. Try to adjust your keywords there, okay? Try to adjust maybe to highlight more in the skill sector. I think in LinkedIn you have a skill sector. Try to list more skill about, for example, cultural management or something related with art and cultural, social impact, et cetera. So make sure your keywords are not overwhelmed by marketing in your LinkedIn. So that may help a little bit with algorithm. Okay. Thank you very much. Yes. And at the same time, if you want to search a job also, as I know, when you do search history in LinkedIn, LinkedIn remembers as well. So make sure you also search with keywords like culture or keywords with social organization, et cetera. So LinkedIn has more history about it, and then they maybe will offer more opportunity in that field. Perfect. Thank you, Emily. No problem. We have a last question, and we have only two minutes left. So the question is from Claudia. It's, can you advise some tips on what usually recruiters take attention checking CV, pay attention to check CV? Okay. First, recruiters be aware they're actually juniors. Maybe they are younger than you. Maybe they just entered this company. So they are not actually like high profile for the first round. So what you're going to do is you need to make the recruiter easy to read. That means your CV is very clear. It's not overwhelmed by many, many words that's, you know, like I will be intimidated if I see your CV with one page, and it has a lot of words on it. And also be aware that highlight your summary, because summary is in the top of your CV after info, to say what's your background, what's your skill, what's your goal, that is related to the position you're applying for. So more details about that, and you can schedule a 30-minute session with me. I can explain more or simply sign up for the CV courses. Because we don't have much time, I'm afraid we're going to end this webinar. But, again, please reach out to me through email, and we can call individually. Thank you. Thank you, Claudia. Thank you, everyone. So we will have our next webinar next week. So look forward to see you next time. Bye.