We’ve all heard of the “For Dummies” series, and the books are generally considered to be comprehensive instruction manuals in plain English for those of us who don’t want to puzzle through unnecessary jargon and just get right to the point. When I read Job Hunting for Dummies, however, I was completely surprised by how thoroughly it reviewed the entire job searching process from the very beginning to nailing down a positive offer from a potential employer. In addition to being the most comprehensive book I’ve read on the subject, it was also very clear, easy to understand, and sometimes funny.

The book opens with a review of the necessity of getting organized, and the resources that a job searcher may need to invest in to aid in their search. While most job searching manuals omit this step, it’s helpful to stop and think about how to organize a search to save time and use your time and resources in a way most likely to result in a job offer.

Next, the book discusses setting you job target—determining what you want to do, what sort of company you’d like to work for, and what skills you have to offer. It even discusses the pros and cons of career counselors, and what questions to ask when choosing one.

The book includes an extremely thorough exploration of the resume writing process, including a solid discussion of chronological resumes, functional resumes, and combination resumes, and the best way to choose the appropriate format for your job search. This section of the book is peppered with sample resumes that are useful to get the flavor of a truly successful resume and consider different formats that can be used. I especially enjoyed the gray sections titled “Yes, someone actually wrote this in a resume.” These sections include bizarre quotes from infamous resumes that the author’s friend, Robert Half, collected throughout his career. While these are good for a laugh, they can also serve as great examples of what not to do.

If I had to find fault with this book, I’d say that I was a bit disappointed in how briefly it covered the ins and outs of cover letters. If you’ve read my four-part workshop on cover letters, you know how important I think they can be—they might make all the difference between inspiring a hiring manager to review an applicant’s resume with interest or set it aside. For this reason, I think that the six pages the book devotes to cover letters, while heartily informative, is still far less than I would have liked to see on the subject, especially considering the fact that more than 60 pages were dedicated to the drafting of successful resumes.

I was pleased to see that the book devotes a great deal of room to developing job leads, something frequently left out of job searching books. It discusses networking methods, getting outside assistance, and how to conduct a targeted mail campaign (as opposed to replying only to posted job leads). There is also a section on online job hunting.

Finally, the book includes an excellent section on successful interviewing, including dealing with tough interviews and interviewers who play games with interviewees. It also discusses how to close the interview on the right note, and even how to handle it if you don’t hear back about a job. I was pleasantly surprised to see a section on nailing down an offer, assessing an offer—and even when to decline a job offer.

Overall, I enjoyed Job Hunting for Dummies, and I am comfortable recommending it to others as a comprehensive guide to a successful job search. With the exception of the small cover letter section, Job Hunting for Dummies provides an in-depth exploration of every aspect of the job hunt from beginning to end, and will provide new ideas and insights not only to new job seekers but to seasoned professionals looking for a career change.

If you’d like to check out this book at Amazon, you can find it here: Job Hunting for Dummies



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