Do you know that job search is marketing?
Do you give employers reasons to pick you from the lot?
If you are about applying for a position and cannot answer the question "Why will I be invited for this position?", then, do not hit Send button yet.

We all understand the element of "luck" and "God factor" but we need to sell ourselves.

Selling here does not mean the following:
1. "I am a graduate of XYZ..."; what does it change? Being a graduate is not a big deal now.
2. "I am hardworking, committed, etc."; they are too generic; afterall we are all hardworking on paper.
3. "I have been looking for a job, please I need help..." This line is now trite. We have millions of unemployed & underemployed Nigerians. I guess you know they all need help.

Find below few illustrations of the selling you need. Please note that this list is not in any way exhaustive.

A. Before Application:

- Ask yourself this question: What can I offer? What skill do I possess? If you cannot answer this question, please learn a skill.
- If you want to learn but cannot afford classroom training, take free courses online. Data is a lot more affordable now. Below are platforms offering online courses

1-www.edx.org/
2- www.coursera.org
3- www.udacity.com
4- www.edraak.org/en
5- www.class.stanford.edu
6- www.venture-lab.org
7- www.udemy.com
8- www.openhpi.de
9- www.ocw.mit.edu
10- www.khanacademy.org
11- www.oli.cmu.edu
12- www.oyc.yale.edu
13- www.webcast.berkeley.edu
14- http://openclassroom.stanford.edu/MainFolder/HomePage.php
15- www.see.stanford.edu
16- www.ck12.org
17- www.skillshare.com

- We know that your ability to speak good English is not really a measure of intelligence but reality is this: it matters. If your English is not sound, pick a Secondary School book on tenses. Yes, Secondary School book.
- Sell yourself socially. Create professional LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

--- to be continued. Duty calls. I will continue from here when I have some more time to spare.

Informative. Thumbs up