Socialize and be Likable! Do you have physician friends who are not that smart and are not that talented but are HUGELY successful in life? How did they get into medical school in the first place? Do you know why these people land top doctor jobs? Because they are great at socializing and are well-liked by everyone. They get their name out, they project confidence, and they are fun to be around. You don’t have to be all that skilled to land an amazing job. Landing a job is often 99% likability and 1% talent. The more you advance in your career, the more you will learn this. According to a seminal hiring study from Harvard Business School, your personality, flexibility, adaptability, and ability to win friends and connections can get you much further than your talents, resume, or brainpower. A whole field has been coined, Likeconomics, to capture the invincible power of likability for getting a job. Ask yourself, do people enjoy being around you? Are you a people pleaser? Be honest with yourself. The more people enjoy being around you, the more likely they will want to see you every day at work or recommend you to other physicians looking to hire. Hospital Department Meetings: If you want to practice in a certain region of the country, go to the departmental and division meetings at local hospitals in the area. You can bring copies of your resume and network with the doctors at the meetings. You must see and talk to other physicians face to face. Mailing out random resumes to people who have never seen you or have never heard about you is much less productive, and often a waste of time, when trying to secure top doctor jobs. Your Family and Friends: They know people who know people. The majority of employers want to hire someone whom they know, or someone whom a close friend, family member, or colleague can recommend highly. If the employer knows your mom or dad or your close friend, that is a major advantage as they have already established a level of trust with someone closely connected to you. Trust is of utmost importance when employers recruit candidates for medical jobs as patients’ lives are at stake. Your Medical Specialty Society Meetings: Physician society meetings are a great way of getting a job. Ironically enough, it is casual schmoozing with the other physicians at these meetings, as opposed to the scheduled formal interviews at job fairs,that will be far more likely to lead you to top doctor jobs. Healthcare Job Websites: Go to practical medical websites–like DoctorCPR.com–which post new medical job listings from all over the country every day. DoctorCPR.com is run by a group of physicians from Harvard, Johns Hopkins, UCLA, and Cedars Sinai Medical Center who are invested in posting top medical jobs from high quality employers. Post your resume on several top physician job sites, sign up for automated e-mail alerts with your job preferences, and scan the sites periodically to see what the latest physician job opportunities are for your specific job title and desired location. You have worked so hard to make it though those grueling years of medical school, residency, and/or fellowship. Now, we want you to avoid struggling to secure a satisfying job. We hope you will consider these five main ways of landing the medical job of your dreams. Pete Brady MD Source
