Landing a job when you're first starting out in your career can be challenging. Your work experience is limited, your network is small and you may be unsure where to begin. This post offers suggestions on how to start your job search. While the advice is tailored to people with little or no experience, many of the tips are relevant to anyone looking to find a job or to change jobs.

While you may already know some techniques for finding a job, you probably could stand to learn more. (I learn something new every time I read up on the subject.) The Internet is full of advice about how to craft a great resume, how to write an authentic cover letter, how to land an interview. But don’t just stop at Google. Ask others how they got their first job. For example, I got into government by first working for an employment agency. I gained experience and exposure, two things I advise young workers to seek. Also check out books from your local library. And consider visiting an employment centre to get ideas on where and how to look for a job.

Tell your friends, your neighbours, your old school chums. You’d be surprised at how often someone says, "I’m looking for someone to join my team." Make sure your acquaintances can say, "I know just the person."

Job seekers with little work experience often struggle to write a CV. But skills can be acquired in more ways than on the job, including volunteer work, extracurricular activities, community involvement, blogging, even a hobby—any undertakings that enable you to develop and hone your skills. My son includes in his CV acting in three community theatre plays, which demonstrates comfort speaking before a large group, ability to work as part of a team, and commitment (each play required about 150 hours of volunteer time).

If your communication includes obvious spelling or grammar mistakes, it may create a negative impression. Whenever I encountered numerous mistakes in a CV or cold email, I would wonder of the candidate, "If you can’t pay attention to something that really matters to you, could I trust you to pay attention to something that really matters to me?" Ask someone with a good eye for finding mistakes to review your covering letter and CV before you send them out.

Even if your CV is short on competencies, you can start gaining new ones today. Volunteering allows you to acquire and demonstrate skills, but it also helps you to expand your network and gain exposure. Hobbies such as blogging (whether text, photos or videos) can help you to hone competencies such as research, writing and editing abilities. A third way to gain experience and exposure is to join a professional organization and volunteer to play a role, such as managing the organization’s social media or web presence. My daughter is a volunteer website administrator for a nonprofit.

Cover letters (or cover emails) were usually the first thing I read when someone contacted me in the hopes of finding a position or a lead on a job. Any message that sounded like a form letter (the kind mailed to hundreds of managers) was an immediate turnoff. So were messages that were devoid of personality and crammed with sentences in the passive voice.

Once you've Googled yourself, look at the brand you’re putting out to the world through your online presence. What do your Facebook, X (Twitter) and Instagram profiles and posts say about you? Do you project positive qualities such as professionalism, dedication to causes, and concern for others? Or do you leave a negative impression, perhaps as someone who dislikes their boss or complains about their work? "If [your online presence] doesn’t align with the narrative you’re using in your job applications, invest the time and energy to change it," says Katie Burke in How to Find a Job After College: The Ultimate Guide.

Establish a profile on LinkedIn.

If your online persona is inconsistent with your job-search persona, start building a professional online presence, especially through LinkedIn. Make the effort to include a professional photo since this will be the first thing most people will see on your profile. In A Five-Week Guide to Getting a Job, published in the Harvard Business Review, Isaiah Hankel states: "Profiles with a photo receive 21 times more profile views and nine times more connection requests than those without them." As you work on your LinkedIn profile, go beyond sharing the details in your CV. Add the profile from your cover letter. Beyond your own presence, use LinkedIn to demonstrate your passions: like, share and comment on posts that you find interesting. Follow people in your field or the field you'd like to work in. Endorse other people for their skills (they may do the same in return). Join groups, including your alma mater. In other social media platforms, such as X (Twitter), join conversations, particularly those with other people in your field.

In How to Get Hired When You're Just Starting Your Career, Alison Green advises: "Get in touch with your alma mater and ask to be put into contact with alumni in your field. You might be surprised by how willing fellow alumni are to help you out, whether it's talking with you informally about their career path and what you can expect within the industry or helping you connect with hiring managers in your field." People who have the same degree or diploma as you understand the challenges of the educational program you both pursued and the skills graduates typically possess. This can give you an in with such a manager.

As I've written before, an informational interview is one in which you interview others—including people you’d love to work for—rather than the other way around. Here’s the simple recipe:

An informational interview is an opportunity for you to gather information, so do way more listening than talking.

In fact, treating others with respect is a best practice at all times. On interview day, show respect by noticing and valuing everyone you encounter over the course of your day—from the commissionaire you meet when signing into the building, to the assistant who escorts you to the interview or sets up your Zoom call, to the HR person sitting on the board. "Treat everyone you interact with at the company as though they are your interviewer," advises Burke. If you leave a negative impression on the assistant, they're liable to mention it to the hiring manager.

A former colleague illustrated this point beautifully through this story:

Have I ever told you how I got my first job in Canada? Freshly immigrated to Montreal, I decided to volunteer for an NGO to obtain Canadian work experience. That NGO was located in a building with other small organizations, and its photocopier was used by employees from those organizations at minimal cost. One day, during lunch hour, a woman, carrying a Harvey’s lunch bag came to our office to make photocopies. We usually gathered in a room to eat our lunches; employees eating lunches in their cubicles, like we do in Ottawa, was unthinkable. I invited that woman, whom I had met for the first time, to have her lunch with us and to make her photocopies after. She smiled and responded that she was too shy to join us. Then she asked me what I was doing in that NGO. I told her that I was a volunteer and was looking for a job—a line that I had learned at a job search workshop for immigrants. She took my phone number and told me that she had submitted a project to the City of Montreal that would be approved very soon and that she would hire me as the project coordinator. I asked her if she needed my resume and references; she said no. The day after, I gave her my résumé and references anyway (she told me months later that she put both in the recycle bin as soon as I left her office.) That’s how I got my first job with the Jewish Family Services. That 6- or 8-month project helped me start a career in Canada.

What this story also demonstrates is the value of being helpful. My friend invited the stranger to lunch, never realizing that she would one day be offering him a job.