Life is about to be renewed!

Be first in line as fiscal budgets are being renewed and managers are thinking about new hires, new possibilities, and exploring new business profitability. Managers are putting the old year behind them and setting their sights on first quarter results.

Now is the time to be prepared for opening job possibilities. The first thing to remember in your job search is: You need to be clear how you communicate your skills so that you demonstrate how a company can soar, taking advantage of your acumen and work experience.

Another thing to keep in mind as you maneuver through the lists of job opportunities is: Don’t approach a company if you do not have the requisite skills. You are not the right candidate. Companies can and do postpone hiring decisions until they find someone who meets all their criteria.

Your ability to sell the value of your skills should be driving your job search, so you need to examine the challenges, opportunities, and problems the companies or industries in which you are interested are facing.

Finally, communicate to relevant department heads why your skills will make a difference in their organization. Pick your jobs carefully and create a business plan to prove your value. Heeding this difference over conventional job-hunting by merely passively responding to ads.

According to Nick Crocodilos in Ask the Headhunter, most people are cows when it comes to job search strategy. Cows stand around docily chewing their cud, unmotivated to do much else as cars speed by.

Move away from the herd, discard your bovine ways, and think strategically and shrewdly.