How Evernote Changed the Way I Job Search

I have written many posts here on staying organized and productive (by setting goals, using a calendar, and staying focused), but there is not one resource I have found that has helped me be organized better than Evernote. Evernote has transformed how I keep myself organized, both in my professional and personal life. This series of short posts will take an in-depth look into how I use Evernote for a more organized life.

Before you read: Check out the other posts in this series: Evernote Series: A Primer, Evernote for Student Teaching, How Evernote Helps Me Deliver Killer Presentations, and Evernote in Daily Life

My job search is probably one of the biggest things in my life right now, and Evernote has helped me every step of the way. As I am looking for jobs teaching high school band next year, Evernote has provided a way for me to organize the jobs I am looking at. My mom has been very helpful in sending me links to a TON of job postings I might be interested in, and as I decide which postings I want to apply to, I clip the application webpage into Evernote using the Evernote Chrome Web Clipper. Here’s how:

The Procedure

• I have a notebook called “Job Search” into which I save these websites
• I tag them with
  • The grade levels (i.e. “Middle School” or “High School”)
  • The state in which the job is located
  • The name of the school or county (i.e. “Anywhere HS” or “Main County”)
  • The tag “Apply” for schools I have yet to send an application to
• For positions I have applied to, I create another note, tagged the same way, with a list of the required application materials. I can check off on this list what materials I have sent to the school district, and what I still need to provide. I also use this note to keep track of who I listed as my references for that particular job.

I also save other important notes in my “Job Search” notebook, including notes from any discussions I have had regarding what school districts to look into, what counties to “avoid,” or particular connections I may be able to call on later in the process to get an edge! All these notes are tagged similarly to those above.

I have also created a few saved searches to help me find my information more quickly. For example, I have saved searches by region (the “Midwest” search pulls all notes tagged with states from the Midwest, etc.) as well as status (the “apply” tag). This helps ensure that I can always have access to the information I need quickly.

The “Networking” Notebook

I have another notebook that I keep for more general networking reference. I take photos of any business cards I receive at conferences and clip them into this notebook with similar tags from above (state, school if applicable). The best part about this? Text from images that are clipped into Evernote is searchable! That means that the text on any business card I clip can be searched. This makes searching for individual people’s contact information very easy.

How do YOU use Evernote in your everyday life? I am collecting answers via Twitter (find me at @Zweibz7) and through comments to these posts; responses will be posted in a wrap-up post at the end of next week! Leave a comment and let me know how you use Evernote!

Related posts:

1. Evernote in Daily Life
2. Evernote Series: A Primer
3. Evernote for Student Teaching
4. What I’m Reading: A Shared Notebook
5. How the Community Uses Evernote [BONUS Tip!]