Communications of the ACM
The Secret to Job Search Success: Planning and a Positive Attitude
Even with a proliferating number of social networking Web sites and online job boards, the most important assets for today's job seeker are a positive attitude and the ability to develop and execute a job search plan. According to a new study from the University of Missouri, specific personality traits — extroversion and conscientiousness — influence a job seeker's approach to the job search process and, ultimately, his or her success. Starting with demographic and personality data gathered on 327 graduating, undergraduate and graduate students from two large universities, the researchers analyzed their emotions, "meta-cognitive" activity (planning and goal setting), and any job-search results to date, such as the number of submitted résumés, interviews, or job offers.
The University of Missouri researchers found that conscientious and extroverted job seekers engaged in more meta-cognitive activities. They set goals, developed job search plans, assessed their skills and monitored the progress of their job searches. These activities led them to submit more résumés and increased their chances of landing first-round interviews. Extroverted jobseekers also reported feeling positive throughout the job search process. As a result, they were more likely to engage in meta-cognitive activities, more likely to score follow-up interviews, and more likely to receive job offers than people with less positive attitudes.
From CIO.com
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