Job searching in summer is not everyone’s cup of lemonade. While I don’t advise anyone to abandon their search–after all, hiring does happen at all times of year–there are some ways you could spend the summer that might accomplish just as much for you.
For example, you could . . .
Go on a learning binge.
To refresh your soul as well as your skills, learn two new skills: one just for fun–take online music lessons, or learn to play pickleball, teach yourself magic tricks or juggling–and one that will help you in your work, like a foreign language, website development or video editing. There are loads of online tutorials and other resources.
For each of the two skills you study, you might set a goal to attain by Labor Day. That way in fall you’ll have something to show for your time off, plus a sense of accomplishment.
Freelance or consult.
What if you could simply experiment with consulting or freelancing while you’re between jobs? It might seem less daunting to think of it that way. If you’re not going to be in a job this summer anyway, what have you got to lose? You may even discover a new career.
There are several very smart reasons to freelance or consult when you’re between jobs.
Do some volunteering.
Nonprofit organizations are looking for people to tutor children, manage databases, coordinate disaster health services teams, do social media work, and so much more. Volunteering can build your resume, your network and your skills, not to mention giving you the joy of pitching in to make things better.
Talk to people about companies that interest you.
Okay, maybe this looks like job search. But what if you let go of looking for openings or having any intention of applying to anything? Instead just focus on having informational meetings (a.k.a. info interviews). By fall you may find that you’ve gained knowledge and relationships that will help you get faster results once you start your job hunt. And if something just happens to fall into your lap sooner, your fall job search may never even need to happen.
