Top 10 (Plus one) Job-Search Tips for Introverts

These are my adaptations of ideas in Wendy Gelberg's book, The Successful Introvert.

10. Realize that introverts are, to many people more impressive than extroverts. They listen better, come to the point, are less likely to make impulsive errors, and aren't overwhelming. That realization should make you more comfortable in networking and in interviews.

9. Remember that in reaching out for job leads, you're imposing no more than when you ask a stranger on the street for directions. If an employer isn't interested, she needn't return your call or can quickly say she can't help you. And you can survive the rejection. Most winners are rejected more often than they're accepted.

8. Introverts love when others promote them. So if your resume is impressive, send it to a recruiter and/or staffing company. Find links to recruiting firms at the Riley Guide.

7. The Internet can be your friend. The secret is to spend most of your Net time not in answering ads but in writing to potential employers who do not have an appropriate opening. Once the job is open, the employer will usually be overwhelmed with job seekers.

Just write a 100-t0 200-word email to the person with the power to hire you--Its guts should be three one-line statements: the three thingsyou'd most want that employer to know about you. Here might be one: " When I arrived, the office was a bunch of file folders that were often out of order. Now, I've installed an electronic medical records system."

If you like, attach a work sample or others' glowing statements about you.

Conclude your email by asking the employer if s/he'd be willing to talk with you about possible employment or offer advice on where you might turn.

6. Use the introvert's preference for research over people contact to learn about your target employer and interviewers. But don't learn too much. A quick look at the employer's site, a Google search, and perhaps LinkedIn search are enough. Not only does more in-depth research take time, when a job seeker knows more about an employer than the employer does, the candidate can appear desperate and/or make the employer feel invaded, creepy.

5. You're not bragging about nor exaggerating your accomplishments; you're reporting them. That reframing can help introverts feel better about selling themselves.

4. Write a script for:

• A 10-second job search statement, for example, "I'm a cost accountant who loves his work but my company just sent all the accounting work to India, so I'm looking for work."

• A 45-second job search statement, for example, "After getting my degree in accounting, I worked at a small firm and then moved to Deloitte for a promotion. I've gotten really good evaluations all along and so it was a shock when I got a layoff notice--they're moving the entire accounting department to India. My favorite work has been in budget forecasting and having a seat at the table when my boss discusses strategic issues but I'm also fine with tax and audit work. I'm just looking for a job at a good company with good people that's not too long a commute from Oakland."
• Interview questions you're afraid of, for example, "How come you've been unemployed for 10 years?"
  

Then practice paraphrasing your script so you don't sound scripted.

3. Employers are suckers for enthusiasm and energy. So, yes, be yourself but be your most energetic self.
2. An interview is mutual: a conversation, not an interrogation. So, apply the introvert's good listening skills during an interview to probe for information and to derive intuitions about whether you really want this job.

1. Schedule breaks to recharge your batteries when you are involved in the social aspects of job searching.

Bonus: Keep your eyes on the prize--Do what you need to do to land a good job, even if some of the necessary activities make you uncomfortable.