That’s an interesting question to ask, especially in the current post-pandemic climate when there are more jobs available. No doubt, many people will tell you about focusing on your CV, getting interviews and stuff like that, but my reply is going to be completely contrary to the usual focus on the practical aspects of recruitment.

Preparation for the job world does not start with CVs and interviews. It starts inside your head. You are only as good as you believe and that belief determines how others treat you. They cannot treat you better than you rate yourself. YOU set the parameters for your persona, your future, your achievements and your success. People merely follow your lead and either reinforce it or reject it, according to your actual performance and the evidence to support that belief.

Begin by forgetting everything around the tangibles relating to job search, and the desired interview, and focus on your thoughts. Exactly what are you thinking about yourself right now? Quite simply, if you believe you are a ‘nobody’ seeking to be ‘somebody’ you’ll never be anybody! When you focus on being ‘nobody’ you merely emphasise what you might lack right now, instead of what you could contribute, or the impact you could make in the future. You dwell on the negative instead of the positive which then directs your actions.

You are already ‘somebody’, just an unknown one; perhaps an unskilled one; an ambitious one; an uninformed one; an inexperienced one – whatever the case might be – but you ARE somebody. Nobody is better than you are because we all have a role to play in life which is of value to our world. When you appreciate and fully accept that fact, you are ready for the next stage: putting your self-belief into action by being clear on the following questions:

All those are important points to address before you apply for anything. If you don’t know who you are, or have doubts about what you want, you will end up in the wrong job because you will be dazzled by the peripherals, instead of the job satisfaction. For example, if you hate taking orders or being controlled too closely, don’t go into the military, no matter how attractive it might look!

A good litmus test to see how prepared you are for the job market is to rate yourself out of 10 on suitability for any position. If you are not giving yourself at least 8 for each application, you need to work on that confidence and self esteem because they are the only two things that will propel you forward in life, whatever the situation! After all, if you don’t think you’re quite suitable, why should others think you are?

In essence, only YOU can turn yourself into ‘somebody’ by your beliefs and actions. No one else.