Her Next Chapters

97. The Overlooked First Steps of a Successful Job Search

• Christina Kohl

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Ready to restart your career—or finally make a change in the one you have? Before updating your resume, there are critical early steps that make all the difference in a job search.

In this episode, Christina shares the four foundational moves she wishes she’d known when she returned to work after a 13-year career break. These aren’t the obvious tactics you’ve heard before. They’re the overlooked but essential steps that help you shift from scattered applications to a focused, confident job search.

Tune in to hear how to:

  • Avoid the #1 mistake most job seekers make at the very beginning
  • Reconnect with your network in a way that feels natural (not awkward)
  • Eliminate last-minute stress before interviews
  • Project confidence in every interaction

Whether you’re reentering the workforce, pivoting mid-career, or simply exploring what’s next, these strategies will help you start strong.

Grab the Free Strengths-First Resume Template - it's perfect for anyone in career transitions, whether with a long career gap, a career pivot, or just ready for a change.

  • Want to chat about your career goals? Schedule a free call HERE.
  • Send me an email ---> christina@hernextchapters.com
  • Connect with me on LinkedIn ---> www.linkedin.com/in/kohlchristina






Christina Kohl:

Hi and welcome to Her Next Chapter's podcast. I'm your host, Christina Kohl. I'm a mom of three and soon to be an empty nester. I'm also a certified HR pro who restarted my career after being a stay-at-home mom for over a decade. I created this podcast to connect with moms who have an empty nest on the horizon and are wanting to redefine their identity outside of motherhood, which might include a job search. On this show, we'll have raw conversations about our ever-changing roles as moms. We'll hear from women who restarted their careers and share tips for a job search after a career break. So if that's you, you're in the right place. Friend, let's get started.

Christina Kohl:

Hi, friends, and welcome to this week's episode of Her Next Chapters. As always, I am so glad to have you here with me today, and whether you are going for a walk, running errands, cleaning house, just hanging out, folding laundry, I'm so excited to have you listening in today. So thank you so much for being part of this community. And now that it's the second week of September, if you're listening in real time, so I think across the country, at least in the US, we could say school is back in session and then some, like you know, a few, for a few weeks and there's new rhythms. The Fall is coming, the leaves are starting to turn and it might be something that you were really thinking about your career. Now that the kids are back on track with what they're doing, whether it's off in college and they've moved into the dorm and getting settled in their classes, or they're, you know, a kindergartner going off to school for the for the first time in K through 12, or somewhere in between.

Christina Kohl:

I know for myself, this is really the season when I was like, okay, they're all settled. What's next for me? And if a job is next for you, whether you're working right now and you're just ready to make a change, or you are a full-time caregiver at home, whether it's for your parents or your kids, you might be thinking this is the time and opportunity for me to go all in on my career. And what's next? And if I were starting over and starting a job search right now, in September of 2025, here are some things that I would start with. Number one is getting crystal clear on what it is I want to do. I know that sounds so obvious, but so many times the job seekers that I work with they want to start with their resume. Let me get all my resume up to date and then I can start applying for jobs.

Christina Kohl:

But if you do that, you're really missing the point, because your resume and, I've said this over and over, your resume is a marketing document, not a historical document, and what I mean by that is that you only need to have things included on your resume that are pointing to the type of job and role that you want next, not what you've had in the past. So if there's things that you don't want to do anymore, they don't go in your resume. I t's okay. It doesn't mean that you've lost that experience. It hasn't disappeared. It just means it's not really something, it's not coming with you into this next job. So really, we have to back things up.

Christina Kohl:

Before we touch the resume, we need to get really clear on what it is that you want to do next. So if you were working in accounting before but you really love marketing, okay, it's time for a pivot. What can you bring with you from your accounting days that'll pivot into marketing? If that's how you presented the year-end financials to the board of directors, in a way that was easily digestible and meaningful, that's marketing, okay? So there are connections and I did not have notes for this; I literally pulled that out of the air. But there are connections that you can make as you, as you do these pivots.

Christina Kohl:

So the first step in starting any job search needs to be getting that clarity, and that's something that I help my clients with, and that is the first thing that we do is work to get clear on what those goals are. And this second step and this sounds a little upside down, but is to get your references in order, and usually references come at the end of the process, right. So we've applied, we've got our resume, we've applied for a job, we've had interviews and they come back and say you know what? You're our final candidate. We want to start doing a background check. Please give us three people who can speak to your professional experience. And so it comes at the end, right. But what I'm suggesting is you reach out at the beginning, maybe even before you have clarity. That's fine. You're working on your clarity i n the meantime.

Christina Kohl:

Reestablish contact with people that you might've lost touch with over the years, particularly if you've had a career gap, because they're. Let me tell you, it feels like, oh my gosh, it's been five years since we've talked, or maybe 10 years. If you remember them, they'll remember you, right? And the other thing about that is that they'll remember you as the person, the professional who they used to work alongside. And make this a bigger list than it needs to be. So most jobs, most employers they might ask for you know two to two to five references, but I encourage my clients to have a multiple, a long list of potential references and then you can pick and choose. When the time comes, when you get through the end of the selection process and you're the final candidate, you can say okay for this job, these three people can speak the best to my experience.

Christina Kohl:

But in the meantime, the reason I suggest getting those references at the beginning is you're reestablishing contact. You're having a connection with that person, having a conversation, and you're not just going to come out of the gate saying, hi, we haven't talked for five years, but will you be a reference for me? You connect with them, whether they're in your phone already as a contact and you just have to send a text or a phone call, or you haven't talked to them for many years and you have to track them down on LinkedIn or Facebook, but send out those messages like hey, it's been a while since we've worked together. I just wanted to touch base and see how you're doing and if there's anything you can remember personal about them, if it's about their kids, their dog, where they're living, where they moved to, where they're working now, ask those questions. And then they're going to turn around and ask you those questions too.

Christina Kohl:

Once you guys engage, that's when your turn to say, hey, I'm getting ready for a job search and I really mean a lot to me for when the time comes, if you'd be a reference for me. I don't think anyone's going to say no, first of all, and then you also have a reason to keep in touch with them. Oh, you know, once a month or so, like hey, I applied for three jobs. You know we'll see if anything turns up. Or, more specifically, I'm interested in a role at this company and according to LinkedIn, there's someone who works there, who's in your network. Can you tell me more? Would you be willing to make an introduction? So if you've already done that legwork up front, then it's so much easier to reach out to have those conversations.

Christina Kohl:

So that would be the second thing. First thing is getting clarity on what you want to do and what you don't want to do. Those are kind of wrapped up together. The second thing is starting your reference list and obviously the tactical part of that reference list, as people are saying yes to you, then that's when you ask them what is the best way for someone to contact you, because for some it may not be their work, they might rather have it be their personal or vice versa. So be gathering that information so that when you need it it's at your fingertips.

Christina Kohl:

And then the third thing and this might sound kind of silly, but you're going to like it, is check your wardrobe and make sure that you have two or three outfits that make you feel amazing. Whatever that is for you and it could be that you're just shopping your closet. Right, you're going through your wardrobe and putting together an ensemble top to bottom, because you might still have to come in in person for interview. A lot of interviews, particularly early ones, are done via video, but a lot of them in person. So be prepared for a full on in-person interview and, like I said, shop your closet. If you've got the budget for it, . A.

Christina Kohl:

And to the mall, pick out something went, new, whatever makes you feel really good and confident and I don't have any guidelines for that, that would be somebody else's podcast as far as fashion like, just whatever makes you feel good, because that's how you want to show up. You want to .... up feeling confident and there was one time when I went this is when closet: I'd been a long time stay-at-home mom and I had applied for a job, did some networking and like literally the next day they're like we want to talk to you, come on in tomorrow. And I'm like, oh, okay, great, what am well, going to wear? So I had to go through my closet what fits, what's still in style, what fits me okay, what shoes are going to go with it, what necklace is going to go with it like, and it was kind of a stressful thing. So this is kind of a mindset shift as well of I'm going to be interviewing and I'm a, going to be working funner, in (ha) a new role and so I need to have some put together outfits ready to go. So when that happens, that I get the call like come in tomorrow and you don't have time to go to the mall, then you've already got that taken care of. So it's kind of a one of the funner funner.

Christina Kohl:

One of the things that I find that's most fun about the job search is doing that. And, while you're at it, check your, your um video setup. You know so, your camera, your background um, your the, the. Practice it with a friend, even if you're, even if it's your kid who's in the other room. Practice a zoom call or a team's call. Practice a video call and make sure that your lighting looks good and that you kind of are familiar with the tech, because a lot of the, especially the early interviews, are happening on video calls, not necessarily Zoom, it could be multiple platforms. So just make sure that you're a little bit familiar with that. And practicing with your kid, whether they're at college or down the hall. Practice and just have those conversations.

Christina Kohl:

So the three things that I've just shared getting really clear on what you want your next role to look like. Okay, so that's number one, and before you do your resume or anything else, you're going to get really clear on your goals and what your ideal situation is. Activating your network, reaching out to people that you've worked with in the past and just connecting with them and having conversations. And then, finally, being wardrobe ready, and I guess part of that is being tech ready as far as preparing for the interviews, being on camera. So those are four things.

Christina Kohl:

I started with three, but those are really four things that you can do at the beginning, very, very beginning, of a job search to build some momentum, start building some confidence and getting that clarity. And obviously we're just scratching the surface because from then you're going to get into the more technical things of building out your resume, searching for different opportunities, going deeper in your network, of course, your LinkedIn profile and how to interview, how to show up in the interviews with your experience, your star stories of things that you've done and accomplished that are relevant to the job, and then, finally, negotiating your salary. So those are all the things I cover in my coaching. But for today, if you're just at the beginning, just focus on the four things we talked about, okay, and then momentum will start to build.

Christina Kohl:

All right, friends, that is it for this week's episode. I hope you have a wonderful week and we'll talk to you next time. Thank you so much for listening today. I hope this episode hit home for you and, if you haven't already, be sure to connect with me on LinkedIn and say hello, so I can personally thank you for listening. Until next time, remember, your story is uniquely your own, and your next chapters are ready to begin.