When you determine you need to look for another job (say, because yours just went away) to ask, "Why should I pay for help when I could just do it myself...for free?"

There are only two reasons that hold any water:

1. Because what you don't know about the process can cost you serious money.
2. Because the cost of help (most often) is repaid to you many times over.

In some ways, yes, it is all about money. You definitely should do what you love to do, and that's not entirely about money. But it's foolishness not to be paid what you're worth. You run that risk when you go it alone.

If you assume you know what you're doing, you could make what looks like the simplest mistake...and cost yourself hundreds of thousands of dollars over your working career. You certainly could cost yourself thousands or tens of thousands from your next job. Get what you should get by getting help.

I can imagine the gears in your brain working...Doesn't help cost money? In case you forgot, I don't have any money coming in.

Look, help costs money, although it doesn't have to break the bank. But think about it. When a big corporation wants to do something complicated, they often hire a consultant to help out. You need to hire a consultant.

Just because the steps in my road map are simple doesn't mean it's easy to do job search (or career change) well. It can be downright tough. That's why you need help. Consider a hypothetical.

Suppose you, all alone, write a resume and cover letter that you think sound pretty good. You blast your resume to job sites on the web and wait for the phone to ring. That process takes 4-5 months. How much does that cost you? Assume, for example, that your gross monthly salary from your previous job was $4,500, and that you contributed 5% to your 401(k). Let's do some simple math.

Your approximate after-tax salary 3,217.50 per month. Your 401(k) contribution is about 225. Don't forget that second amount. It's your money! When you add those to values together, you find you lose AT LEAST $3,442.50 every month you have no job. Your actual number could be lower. Or much, much higher. If you work an 8-hour day (I'm sure you work more), delay is costing you a little over $0.34 per minute. Why does that matter?

Suppose you get help along the way, and you have a great target career or job, a killer resume, a laser-focused cover letter, and outstanding interview prep. All of that together costs you, say $1,000. Sounds like a ton, but suppose all that help gets you a job one month faster than doing it on your own (a very conservative estimate). That saves you $3,442.50!

In fact, unless your total job search expenses are more than one month's salary, it's worth spending the money to get help.

The temptation to go cheap can be extreme, but cheap costs time. That's what you don't have. Don't flush money down the toilet, but get the best help you can afford.

If you're a job search expert already...you probably wouldn't be reading this. Since you are, I'll consider you part of the other 99% of job seekers. If you don't have money to pay for the Caddilac of job search, get cheaper help. But there IS help here that you can afford.

Copyright (c) by Roy Miller