I first heard the starfish story when I volunteered for a dog rescue group. The way the story goes, a man was throwing starfish that had been washed up on the beach back into the sea. Someone asked why he was bothering, because there were so many starfish he couldn't possibly make a difference. He responded that it did make a difference - to that one starfish.
Santas and Starfishes
Back then, the economy was good, unemployment was low, and job searching was relatively easy. We all know that's not the case anymore. The unemployment stories and comments on my unemployment blog posts are heartbreaking. People who have been gainfully employed for their entire working lives, some with 30 or 40 years, with the same company are running out of unemployment and losing everything - their homes, their cars, the future they worked so hard for...
When I was sharing the starfish story with a friend, I realized the connection with job searching - helping just one person find a job is like the man saving just that one starfish and making a difference in one person's life. It matters - it's matters a lot to that once person who was helped.
I had the same thought last night when I watched Steve Hartman's Secret Santa story on CBS News. The Secret Santas are wealthy people who want to help a little to make the world a better place and they give people in need a $100 bill (or a few of them).
Can You Help Just One Person?
Helping just one person can make a big difference - in their job search and their lives. A group of career experts and job and networking sites have contributed to our annual holiday special for job seekers, donating books, memberships, products, services, and their time to help job seekers through this very tough time of the year.
Hundreds, maybe thousands, of JobAngels are using Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook, helping job seekers in need find a new job. That's a great way to help out if you can.
Job seekers have shared their job search stories and others, along with their career experts, have shared their advice on what to when unemployment runs out. If it helps just one person and gives them some hope - it will have made a difference.
How You Can Help
What can you do to help, even if you're job searching yourself? Write a reference for a contact on LinkedIn, refer a job lead to a friend, retweet a post from someone who is looking for work, visit JobAngels and see if there is someone you can help. Offer to proofread a friend's resume and cover letters.
If you've read a good job search book lately, pay it forward and lend it to someone else who's job searching. Visit my About.com Job Searching Forum and share your experiences and offer a word of advice.
If you can afford to, donate to charities that help the unemployed. Volunteer your time. If you know someone who's unemployed give them a gift card for the local grocery store or even offer to pay a bill, if you can.
There's a lot each of us can do to help someone that doesn't cost much in the way of our time and effort, but can make a big difference to the recipient of your generosity.
