Whether you’re navigating a career change or re-entering the workforce after some time away, landing your dream job can be challenging, especially if you’re trying to break into a highly competitive industry. In fact, a recent study found that the average person has to make 162 job applications before landing a job! 

While you do need luck on your side when applying for work, there are many different steps that you can take in order to secure your dream job - here are just a few of them! 

Enhance your resume. The first step toward landing your dream job is to ensure that your resume is working for you, not against you. This often means that you need to close any gaps where possible. For example, if you’re looking to work as a Pilates instructor but have not worked in the field before, then you should look into 

pilates instructor training. This, coupled with any transferable skills you’ve developed throughout your career, will make you a much more attractive hire! 

Edit your resume for each job you apply to. While you may be keen to fire off as many job applications as possible, it's important that you edit your resume depending on the role you are applying for. For example, you should ensure any keywords that are embedded into the job description appear in your resume. Though this is a little more time-consuming, it makes it easier for hiring managers to look through your CV and find what they are looking for. 

Work on your interview skills. While there are many steps that you can take in order to succeed in your next job interview, such as ensuring that you dress to impress and get plenty of sleep the night before, none of this will matter if your interview skills are subpar. Fortunately, there are many ways in which you can improve your interview skills, such as by practicing basic interview questions ahead of time. 

Research the company ahead of time. Researching the company ahead of time can also go a long way toward interview success. This is because you can then avoid asking any overly generic questions at the end of the interview, replacing them with something much more specific and relevant. Not only will this help you to further your understanding of the company itself, but it also shows the interviewer that you’re genuinely interested in the role and aren’t just applying for every vacancy that you see. 

Remember that these things take time. While you may feel a certain element of pressure when it comes to finding a new job, it is important to remember that these things take time. As such, it's unlikely that you’ll land the first role that you apply to - but rejections do not mean that this is out of the question for you; it will just take time to get where you need to be. You should also work to reframe the way you think about rejection. View it as a learning opportunity as opposed to a sign that you are going down the wrong road!