It is difficult to describe the length of an "average" campaign, because there is no such thing. Every job hunter has his own objectives which he has defined, and every individual's situation is different. However, in very general terms, the campaign detailed in this article is designed to last approximately ten weeks, from start to acceptance of the offer. This allows extra time for consideration of the offer, delays by the PE, and administrative tasks such as printing and typing. You can shorten the ten-week campaign by reducing the time for subcontracted tasks such as printing, having someone else do your typing, or working more than eight hours a day on your campaign. Another way to shorten the time is not to set excessively high requirements as part of your job objective.
If you are currently employed or in school, you will not be able to spend eight hours a day on your campaign. If you are employed, you may need to campaign in secret. You must work harder than the unemployed executive. Work hard on your campaign at night and on weekends. Get someone else to do your typing. Unless you can take a vacation, you will not be able to work on the telephone. Also, you may have difficulty setting up interviews or meetings with employment agencies.
Once you have put your campaign plan into action, you will need to adjust your plan. Certain tasks may take you less time than you planned; other tasks may take longer or may have to be repeated. In addition, responses to your sales letters and answers to advertisements will not all arrive at the same time. You may receive an offer from one company at the same time as your interview with another company. You should adjust your plan accordingly. Finally, you may find yourself so successful in some phase of your campaign (for example, getting y ou may not like the "touchie-feelie" stuff. It makes no difference; if you want a great job fast, you must first attain the goal of that job in your mind. No great anything was ever achieved until someone did this. The motto of The Royal Air Force goes something along the lines that "what man can conceive, he can achieve." And that's absolutely true. But the converse is also true. If you cannot conceive of yourself getting a great job, you will not be able to do so. To start conceiving the great job in your mind, you must start with a positive mental attitude.