Knowing what keeps hiring managers up at night will supercharge your job search strategy. In the competitive job hunt landscape, it can feel overwhelming. However, there is a tremendous opportunity.

Here are the three things every manager worries about and faces daily:

1. They have someone on their team who is underperforming or causing problems. They want to get rid of them, but they don’t have a good alternative.

2.  They have too much work and not enough time. If they could just find a person with the right talent and work ethic, they could cut back on the blood pressure medicine.

3. They have dreams stuffed in their drawer, collecting dust. They are so busy that they cannot exercise their creativity. If only they could find a competent aspiring leader to manage the team, freeing them up to explore big ideas.

These ever-present needs are the essence of the hidden job market. If you are a proactive, brave job seeker, you will find ways to have conversations with leaders in organizations, knowing they have these three problems.

The key to this strategy is your willingness to go for it. It requires ingenuity and hard work. Most of your competition is sitting behind their computer, looking at listed jobs. They apply and wait for a response. Over time, they become bitter because they can’t get hired. I’m sorry about that, but my goal is to fire you up and arm you with the biggest secret out there.

Interact with managers who have the authority to hire. Research the needs of both the organization and the hiring manager. Offer your ideas. Show you can hit the ground running. Find out what the hiring manager wishes they could be focusing on, but don’t have the time.