Pre–Call Check List

Before you pick up that receiver, take a few minutes to ensure that you have everything you need to get that “dream job” by going through the following “Pre–Call Check List.”

General Requirements:

• Equipment. Have plenty of pens or sharpened pencils plus paper beside your telephone to write down the valuable information that will be contained in the job hotline messages. Generally speaking, you will need a touch tone telephone. Find a comfortable chair and table because you will be doing a lot of writing.
• List of Potential Employers. Use this Directory to develop a list of potential employers and their telephone numbers for easy reference. You should develop this list using the priority that factors most in your selection, namely the type of job, location of the employer, company for which you wish to work.
• Time to Call. The best time to make your call is late evening or early morning during nonbusiness hours. This allows you to make use of low long distance rates and, in the event the line is only available during nonbusiness hours will save you and the potential employer time. Be aware of different time zones.
• A Quiet Room. Make your calls from a quiet room, free of such distractions as noisy children or spouse, television, radio, music, etc.

Using the National Job Hotline Directory:

• Start with the Table of Contents to locate the state or states in which you wish to work.
• Scan the broad occupational sections within the state. If your occupation is not specified in one of these sections, check the “Miscellaneous” section where the employer’s general business is given in brackets after the job hotline number.
• Be sure you are aware of the time zone in which the potential employer is located and make your calls accordingly.
• If you call a job hotline and are told it’s a wrong number, check the list of area codes and major cities at the beginning of the appropriate chapter to see if the area code has changed. If that doesn’t do the trick, call the “Operator” or click here to discover some fabulous tools that will help you find the current area code.
• Be sure to check “Nationwide Job Hotlines” and “Toll–Free Job Hotline Numbers” chapters for more job hotline numbers.
• Conduct a “savvy, balanced job quest.” Don’t limit your job search to just job hotlines. Be sure to use the Professional’s Job Finder, Government Job Finder, Non–Profits & Education Job Finder, or International Job Finder to locate additional resources for all the other job–hunt techniques you will use.

After completing the “Pre–Call Checklist,” you should be ready to begin the job hotline portion of your savvy, balanced job search. Make your calls with a positive attitude. The job is out there that will fit you. If you don’t find it the first day, first week, or even in the first month, don’t get down on yourself. These job hotlines offer hundreds of thousands of jobs every day. It’s up to you to use the lessons learned here, and in other career books, to target your calls to the employers most likely to offer the sort of job you really crave, where you want to live. Now is the time to start dialing, dialing, and dialing.

If you skipped any part of this chapter, you can go back by selecting the appropriate section below:

Click here to go back to the beginning of this chapter.

Click here to go back to “Elements of a Savvy, Balanced Job Search.”

Click here to go back to “Preparing to Use This Directory.”

Click here to go back to “Using This Directory Effectively.”

Click here to return to the National Job Hotline Directory starting page.