Companies can be a bit hectic around Christmas time and often put a freeze on recruiting until the New Year. This means you can use the time to re-focus on your job search putting you in a strong position to get straight back on it once the New Year comes. Follow our guide to the tasks you should be doing this month to help you in your job hunt.

Countdown to the 12 days of Christmas:

1.    Review your CV

The more time you invest in writing your CV, the better it will be. Your CV needs to be reviewed every so often, so make this your number one task. Have you included all the best examples of your achievements to highlight your relevant experience? Could you phrase some of the wording better? Have you double/triple-checked for grammatical and spelling errors? Use this time to get advice from the professionals too – they might see things that you haven’t spotted.

2.    Practise interview techniques

Grab a mirror, a friend and a video camera, and go through a mock interview scenario. It can be quite a shock when you see yourself through someone else’s eyes – you might notice some habits, such as flicking your hair or coughing, that you never knew you had. Work on these habits until you’re happy that you come across as professional and business-like.

3.    Do your research

Take the time to properly research some companies that you’d like to work for. Browse their websites, read trade journals and even try talking to someone at the company about opportunities. Many people will be in quite a relaxed mood in the run-up to Christmas and may applaud your initiative.

4.    Write to companies

There’s no harm in writing speculative letters to your chosen companies and keeping these on file until the New Year. Don’t post anything until January, when the post will be back to normal and employers will have settled back in after the Christmas break.

5.    Talk to your recruiter

Getting the most from your recruiter is all about maintaining relationships, so make sure you speak to your recruiter before they go for their Christmas break. Tell them you want to refocus your effort in the New Year, then make sure you get in touch again in early January.

6.    Get networking

If you haven’t already, sign up to some social networking sites. These are a great way to broaden your list of professional contacts. Use them to keep up with industry news so that you remain up to date about what’s happening in your field.

7.    Set a date

If you’re feeling brave, make the most of the festive cheer by speaking directly to company recruiters to try to fix a date to come and see them in the New Year. It is the season of goodwill after all – you might just get lucky!

8.    Read up

Ask Santa for one of the excellent self-help books that are on the market. Many are written by respected career coaches and contain useful information about how to handle interviews, how to write a CV and covering letter and other job hunting essentials.

9.    Party on

Get out and enjoy the round of Christmas drinks and parties. These can be great networking opportunities; it’s all about getting your face shown.

10.    Send Christmas cards

Go through your old contacts books and send Christmas cards to ex-colleagues, managers and old friends to remind them of your existence. You never know who might be looking to recruit in the New Year and getting back on people’s radars is always a good thing.

11.    Make a New Year resolution

Do one task a week to help with your job search in the New Year. This could be sending an application, signing up with a new recruiter, or contacting an old contact – just as long as it takes you one step forward in your search for a new job.

12.    Enjoy the Christmas break

Knowing that you’ve done everything you can in the lead up to Christmas, you can be pretty pleased with yourself and enjoy the Christmas break just like everyone else. Merry Christmas!