Want
a Better Job? The Smartest Place to Start Looking Isn’t Where You Think
The world doesn’t wait for you, and it
pays to have your current employer at least a little concerned about the
importance of keeping you.
EXPERT OPINION BY HOWARD TULLMAN, GENERAL MANAGING PARTNER, G2T3V
AND CHICAGO HIGH TECH INVESTORS @TULLMAN
Oct 20, 2026
If you’re happy and
fully satisfied with your current employment, go read something else. But also
drop me a line and let me know what it is that you must be eating or drinking
to be so content, because you’re one in a million. On the other hand, if you’re
eager, ambitious, and smart enough to always keep one eye open for the next
opportunity, then read on because I’ve got a few tips for you.
I’d start the
conversation with my time-tested caution: you never know who’s going to bring
you your future. Be open, be observant, don’t be a snob, and understand how
quickly things are changing around you and how new doors and career paths are
opening every day. If you’re not paying attention and at least passively in the
hunt, the best bets will pass you by. As Ferris Bueller noted: “Life moves
pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss
it.” And also, be ready to bail or bolt. The world doesn’t wait for
you. And it pays to have your current employer at least a little concerned
about the importance of keeping you.
Step one in any job
search is to remember that your prospects are 1,000 percent better if you’re
presently employed while you’re looking for the next step rather than if you’re
out on the street or sitting at home. Don’t jump ship before you’ve got a safe
and secure place to land even if every day at work is getting tougher and
tougher to take. And even if you’re the world’s most conscientious employee and
hate slackers who quit without leaving. It’s still OK to spend a little of that
long day looking out for yourself. You may have loved the company, but these
days the company will never love you back, so you’ve got to be the one looking
out for yourself and your family.
Step two is, before you
spend any time looking elsewhere, take a look around and see what opportunities
may be available—vertically or laterally—within your own shop. These are the
folks who know you best—strengths and weaknesses as well—and there may be slots
opening up within the company in other areas or divisions or even locations
that may offer greater challenges, better compensation, and a chance to keep
growing in a new work environment with some new team members as well. AI is changing the game entirely and different sets of
skills will be required in various areas of the business that are being
radically restructured. Your talents and liberal arts background may be far
more portable and valuable in a world where prompt engineering is just as critical as mechanical
engineering and creativity may trump the whole lot.
The best leaders always
know who the key performers are within their organizations and also know that
an employee’s great attitude, grit and a solid work ethic are
much more important to their company’s long-term success than the pain involved
in switching someone’s roles or positions—not to mention the costs of finding a
suitable replacement if they leave. So, shop around inside and check out the
internal prospects. If there’s nothing there, you’ve spent a little time and
probably gotten a better handle of what you’re really looking for in your next
job.
Step three is to try to
get a short meeting with an executive at one of the major headhunting firms.
Find a connection, something in common, some excuse to ask him or her to spend
30 minutes with you and give you a little advice. In the best case possible,
they’re in the process of looking for someone just like you and it’s Kismet,
fate or simply good fortune. But it’s not very likely. On the other hand,
getting your story and your resume on the radar and in the hands of the right
people is very important and it’s a great way of networking as
well. Finally, these people are trained sharks and sitting with them and
pitching yourself is unbelievably great practice even if nothing else comes
from it.
Step four is a don’t.
Don’t put your resume online or list it with even the biggest of these volume
operations. It turns out that there’s just about nothing more damaging to your
reputation and perceived value than joining the desperate crowd even if your
credentials are great. You can be the biggest fish in the pond, but if the
pond’s a cesspool, you’re not doing yourself any favor. Honestly, much like
dating sites, the success stories are few and far between at the higher salary
levels, the horror stories are voluminous, and the black mark on your resume is
largely indelible. Word of mouth from peers, friends and relatives is a far
better channel.
Finally, be persistent.
Once you’re in the door at a place you’d like to work, don’t take “No” for an
answer from someone who can’t say “Yes.” Get yourself in front of the ultimate
decision maker and make your pitch there. Great entrepreneurs will tell you two
things: they try to hire the best people and worry about positions later; and
over their many years of hiring folks, they’ve found some of the very best
employees in the strangest and most unlikely places. Find a way to take your
best shot. You miss 100 percent of those that you never try.
