Your job search will only be as effective as the level of effort you put forth (the amount of TIME) and the the QUALITY of that effort (focusing on the HIGHEST IMPACT job search activities). I have spoken with dozens and dozens of individuals over the past 90 days who are actively seeking new job opportunities. Those who are seeing little to no results are either: NOT spending sufficient time and/or are NOT focusing the time they are spending on the highest impact activities. The job search process simply CANNOT be "Short-Cut" in the current market environment -- neither short-cut in terms of time spent nor short-cut in terms of focus on the right things (and usually the "tougher" and more "involved" things).

Time Commitment. An effective job search campaign should be considered "a full time job." If you are currently unemployed, then the 40 hours or so you'd normally spend working should be devoted to your job search. At a minimum, you should follow an "80/20" approach to your time commitment -- with 80% of your available time during the week devoted directly to your job search , and 20% focused on other important activities -- personal time, community activities, training, education, professional development, etc. Rest assured that your top competition in the job market is taking this approach -- without question.

High Impact Activities. When it comes to highest impact job search activities, I am finding that most job seekers are following AN "80/20 Rule" but definitely not THE "80/20 Rule." The Rule that many job seekers are following is spending 80% of their time on lower-impact activities -- "surfing" and responding to job board opportunities, posting their resume on line and connecting with executive search professionals; and 20% of their time on high impact activities -- networking and reaching out directly to leads and potential employers. The effective job seekers are doing just the opposite -- they're spending 80% OR MORE of their time on the high-impact, "human interaction" oriented activities, including:

• Talking to and meeting with their network contacts
• Attending and participating in networking functions
• Aggressively utilizing social media applications for network communication purposes (LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, among others)
• Identifying target companies and aggressively contacting those companies directly or through a referral from their network
• Scheduling daily phone calls, daily meetings and getting out and "shaking hands"

What percentage of your time are you dedicating to your job search?

What percentage of your job search time are you focusing on high impact activities?

Are you achieving the level of results you desire in your job search campaign?