JOB SURFING: MOVE ON TO MOVE   

Never ever do the mistake of holding off your search until you've fallen to rock bottom at the workplace. Negotiations start from the position of strength. Therefore, it's often good to make a move when you're on top. It's an old story: Success begets success. If your performance is fine, you feel confident and this confidence radiates in the Interview as well. In a nutshell, the best time to switch is at the peak of your cycle.

Another important thing is that you have to be flexible when looking towards the change. This will benefit your career. It might be wise to join some faster growing companies. You can be looking towards big companies for the professional touch and the credentials. But a move to smaller companies could be worth because of the responsibilities they offer, where you get to learn much more than you can hope for in any big company.

That's what some people do. Ram Kumar worked in a big MNC looking after the finance. But after a few years, he realized that he was not happy. He found that there were "preset matrices and job hierarchies." There was intense pressure, long working hours and no path-breaking work. Also, there was VRS given to some people. So, he decides to move to a medium sized company, where he starts working as brand manager. He makes a little less money than earlier, but he is satisfied. He is learning lots of new skills, and is able to utilize the skills he learnt at B-school. He is gaining expertise in new areas, such as sales and marketing. He is able to look after a lot more things than he could have never hoped to achieve in previous organization. Also his efforts are recognized and not lost in bureaucracy as in earlier organization.

Always try to be open-minded about your career, thinking about how to expand your skill sets, and not just focus on climbing the ladder in your office. Be prepared, in short, to consider all options, and then let your hunt begin.

And when it begins, you may need to rethink some old job-search options. At some time or another, nearly all of us have considered the three basic sources of information on new jobs - classified ads, personal contacts, and recruiters. But do give a thought to new tricks in the job-search game. Search Internet, where the job search is faster and you get feedback faster. Also, you can get the addresses of the headhunters from various sites and can, therefore, write a personal mail to them indicating your interest along with your CV. And the best thing is that it is fast, and you don't have to spend a fortune on contacting them over phone, or personally meeting them. You may be able to find dozens of useful job sites on the net. There are many places where you can post your resume. Also, there are many companies that run job listings at their Websites.

Remember to use your personal contacts in the hunt. Prime networking venues tend to be social occasions such as parties and dinners. But don't continue talking about the sports or Pamela Anderson. Also, don't talk about yourself only. Just appear normal and casual. Know exactly what you're after. If you were anxious or intense about it, you would be giving the impression that you are desperate. And you wouldn't want to seem desperate. Do a little research about the company. Get the available information so that opposite person will think that you are genuinely interested in the company. Have some questions ready to which you might like to seek answers. Ask them to provide references to other people. Follow-up is crucial too, as during that initial conversation, your contact simply may not know of a job for you.

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