Struggling to Prepare for a New Job? Here Are Some Ebooks That Can Help

Struggling to Prepare for a New Job? Here Are Some Ebooks That Can Help

For fresh graduates, preparing for a new job is essential to get their career moving forward, but it is understandably stressful if they are not equipped to deal with everything it entails.

A survey from the Mary Christie Institute found that almost half of recent graduates feel emotionally and behaviorally unprepared for the transition to the workplace. Additionally, approximately 50% feel even more ill-prepared because of financial stress. 

Reading is undoubtedly one of the best ways to gain knowledge, with countless tried and tested methods that offer wisdom on landing a job and enduring once you’ve started your career. The many career paths you can choose will depend on your goals, so it’s good to have some references to fall back on as a base point. There are thousands of ebooks on Everand that cover practically everything within the realm of career growth. Whether you need the inspiration to make a change in a trying market, like with Quitting: Why I Left My Job to Live a Life of Freedom, or you are seeking reassurance like Happier Hour, there’s a title to answer your questions. 

Navigating the career space can be overwhelming, so prep yourself with solid reading material in one accessible platform. With their digital forms, you can keep them handy whenever you need some valuable tidbits to guide you through. 

1. How Work Works: The Subtle Science of Getting Ahead Without Losing Yourself 

By Michelle P. King

Often, the anxiety surrounding a new job can stem from concerns about giving up who you are or compromising your morals and ideals. There’s a common notion that sticking to who you are directly contradicts adapting to business. Michelle P. King aims to dispel this notion by diving into How Work Works. In this book, the award-winning author talks about how to get ahead without feeling constricted by outdated rules and practices. 

This is also useful to have on hand when you are in the ‘What Career is Right For Me?' asking phase. When considering the answer to that question, you want to look at your motivations and experiences as a pair. Within this book, you can find your way by considering five main areas: developing self-awareness and awareness of others, navigating informal networks, learning adaptive skills for changing conditions, getting support for your next promotion, and finding meaning and fulfillment in work. 

2. Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance

By Angela Duckworth

In a highly competitive market that's currently seeing a troublesome outlook on the economy and bracing for the development of AI, it’s more important than ever to develop your grit. Best-seller and researcher Angela Duckworth looks into the ‘power of passion and perseverance’ through history. This book is meant to remove any preconceptions about limits and equip you with the mindset to succeed in the long run. While others may believe that outcomes are based on hard and fast numbers alone, there are steps to surpass expectations based on your background or initial ability. 

Preparing yourself for work is a balancing act between self-care and discipline. Duckworth notes how you can’t go to the extremes of toughness or softness; instead, you must cultivate the means to stay interested throughout your life and persevere through change and hurdles. Through a combination of neuroscience and business acumen, this may have the tips to feel ready for a job that isn’t just “for now.”

3. Great at Work: The Hidden Habits of Top Performers

By Morten T. Hansen 

This book is for you if you need a resource to help you become Great at Work. The bestselling title takes insights from an in-depth study of over 5,000 managers and employees. Certain habits emerged as the connecting factor between the top performers across the board from various environments, backgrounds, and industries. Whether it’s from an Indian farmer trying to improve how women live in his village or a Michelin-star subway station restaurant run by a sushi chef in Tokyo, you’ll leave this book with seven practices meant to help you find your strengths and identify your weaknesses.

In reality, performing at the top isn’t something you just chance upon. Forbes reports that only 2% of employees are top performers who go ‘meaningfully above the average.’ Despite this small number, the top 5% also drive over a fourth of workplace output. Even if you’re not vying for a head role, this is a great read that can help you achieve more as you work smarter but not necessarily harder.

How To Nail Your Next Interview

Before you head on over to your job interview, you need to understand that the hiring process works like a game. While you may have the necessary skills tech companies are looking for, a strategy is still required to set yourself apart from the competition. In the first half of 2022, PRNewsWire reported that 96% of the 50 top tech firms increased employment year over year. The surge in demand for talent underpins how necessary it is to stand out in a sea of IT candidates. One way you can do this is by navigating your interview with an informed mind and a strong presence. An interview, after all, can make or break your job application. As such, you’ll need to be prepared and cultivate the right attitude to ensure you can market yourself well to potential employers.

Here are three ways that can help you nail your next interview:

Leverage your value sets

During interviews, potential employers will gauge if you’re a good cultural fit for the company. This means that employers will be looking into your soft skills and personal values. Generally, the tech industry is collaborative and ever-changing. So much so that in the referenced PRNewsWire report, IT employers stated that they target talent that adapts to the increasing demand for technological advancements (such as cloud computing infrastructure) while being an actively contributing member of the team.

All those considered, leverage your value sets during your interview, such as your ability to work well with others. A Harvard Business Review article discussed that while many admire independence in a candidate, employers also value collaboration. Aside from that, another common question that can pop up is how you handle pressure. In this case, share an experience when you stayed calm despite the stress of, say, looming deadlines. If you find that you lack this ability, be transparent and state that it’s something you wish to work on. During the interview, when you relate the beliefs that guide how you work, it can help your employer determine how aligned your values are with the company’s.

Share your professional career story

The experiences that make up your career story are unique to you unlike certain skills that many may share. During your interview, these anecdotes can add depth and dimension to your resume, certifications, or degrees. Crafting a career story isn’t meant to be complicated. It only requires you to reflect on— and be honest about— the influences, problems, and passions that have shaped your career thus far.

For instance, what has led you to pursue a job in tech? Were you interested in web development or did you want to install and oversee network systems? Aside from these starting points, don’t be afraid to talk about your failures as well. If these have caused your dreams to change, and perhaps shifted towards improving a business’ cybersecurity instead, what specific challenges motivated you? Fundamentally, a career story is a succinct summary of your journey in tech. Your professional life is always informed by a set of goals and values. By sharing your professional career story, employers will better understand what caused and continues to motivate you to pursue a job in tech.

Offer up incisive questions

Conducting research on the company you’re interviewing with shows dedication and great foresight. Although it’s great to familiarize yourself with the brand’s mission, values, or past products and services, you can show your enthusiasm by asking incisive questions about their current or future projects. It's well-documented that the tech industry is constantly evolving. There are numerous trends, such as work from home technology, that you have to keep an eye out for.

Many tech firms have steered their efforts into developing services that can enhance IT support or create cloud computing systems, for instance. So if your employer has recently dabbled in these technologies, you should certainly ask them about their process and goals. In doing so, you can showcase your confidence and provide insights on what the company has been working on. This also shows, as early as your interview, that you’re prepared to learn about emerging tech trends and can add great value to the team in the future.

The Virtual Trend: Industries Hiring Workers for Remote Job Opportunities

One of the most noticeable changes brought about by the pandemic was the shift from in-person office work to remote work from home. While people initially struggled with the logistics of hosting and joining Zoom meetings, most people today have gotten used to the conveniences and perks that come with working remotely — two years after the pandemic first hit. Insights on flexible work from McKinsey found that 35% of workers say they can work from home full time, while employers regardless of industry are continually making changes to offer and accommodate flexible work.

Fueling the shift towards remote work is a career change phenomenon as workers realize the potential of flexible work gives them more control. Take Dr. Sara Laskey, MD, for example, a C-suite executive from Greater Cleveland, whose extraordinary career change journey we covered in a previous post. From a career in performing, to medicine, to getting involved in business leadership, Sara overcame barriers in the pursuit of her accomplishments and prides herself in doing a job she loves and can bring value to.

Today, we'll talk about some of the industries with burgeoning remote work opportunities, and why you should consider them even if they may not be within your field:

Technology

The tech sector is one of many that has benefitted from the shift to remote work. During the pandemic, people were given time to explore new interests, and some have taken up learning new skills such as coding and programming — bringing fresh talent into the industry's pool. CompTIA's analysis of monthly jobs report notes tech job postings that specify remote work have been up 56% over last year, and 281% from 2019 — the last pre-pandemic year. Some of the biggest tech employers have even removed college degree requirements from their job postings to attract a wider pool of applicants.

Tech skills ranging from software development to IT support are in demand, gaining popularity as full-time remote positions so that organizations can work with employees from everywhere. This has created opportunities for those with tech know-how while keeping the doors open for workers who may want to leave their current fields in pursuit of higher-paying salaries.

Healthcare

The shift of healthcare services from in-person to remote was an urgent necessity during the pandemic. Now referred to as telehealth or telemedicine, healthcare professionals were trained to accommodate patients' needs and concerns remotely during lockdowns, and the practice has stuck. Many healthcare workers have found this arrangement to be convenient and effective for patients still, especially as they provide the same quality of care. For instance, Remote nurse practitioners in Georgia and other parts of the US undergo additional training to maintain the same standard as in-person care, although there is no state-mandated training specific to virtual health services. Some of the additional training includes education on how to use relevant technology and platforms, while others focus on best practices for bedside manner.

While remote nurse practitioners must be qualified and have certification, the remote nature of the work gives them ample time to pursue other opportunities for side income as their work schedule becomes more flexible. In fact, the same can be true for most remote jobs. Even if you're not in pursuit of a drastic career change, working remotely can provide additional opportunities for eager learners and earners.

Art & Entertainment

As we return to work in the new normal, there is a growing need for new content — which has led to the opening of more opportunities within creative departments. For the arts & entertainment industry, the field has seen a rise in individualized content creation fueled by the Internet and social media, shifting away from big media corporations. Insights from Entrepreneur emphasizes that this is due in part to the global recession post-pandemic.

While people turned to hobbies and entertainment consumption during lockdowns, others saw it as an opportunity to create content and earn additional income. This is evident in the popularity of the short-form video platform TikTok, where the democratization of content rules is continuing an era of home-based content creation and influencer-driven advertising.