July 5th, 2010 by Kira
When putting together a resume we often remember the basics such as job history, dates of employment, objective, or qualifications summary. But is this really what employers are looking for?
Typically individuals have no problem rehashing their work history, the tasks they completed, and their daily operations; however, what is this really saying about you, the applicant?
Sometimes we forget that these skills can be taught and while a company may write “requirements” that specify all of these things are indeed needed for the job, what they are really looking for is value.
What do you bring to the table that is unique, different, outstanding and will inherently increase the company’s overall worth, culture, or sales?
Take a good look at your resume and see if your resume alludes to your personal value or if it simply retells the tasks that you are skilled in. Companies want to know “what can you do for us?”
Here are some examples:
“Increased productivity by 5% through uncovering and implementing new systems adopted by internal departments in less than six months”
“Tripled sales revenue at both 90 and 120 days of new product launch, currently averaging an increase of 5% in sales goals every month.”
“Trained and facilitated team members in new procedures that lead to lower turnover and increased morale”
You can see the difference besides just rattling off your skill set and rehasing your role, instead tell your future employer what it is you’ll REALLY be doing for them!
Tags: applying for jobs, Job Search, resume
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June 28th, 2010 by Kira
One of the most frequently asked questions in an interview is “tell me about yourself.” This is often the dreaded question by the interviewee – concerned about what the interviewer really wants to know, and how much should one really tell?
Here are a few tips on answering that question while still gaining ground in your interview.
First, remember you are still in an interview and while inserting something about your personal life is appropriate here it is not required, nor should it be the primary focus. The question is simply asked to get to know your personality better, your likes, dislikes, strengths, challenges, and weaknesses.
If you answered the question by saying in my personal life I don’t do much, but watch a lot of TV and hang out with my friends – well, I’m not so sure it would look that great. That’s totally okay if you do, but remember the place and the setting of your answer!
Tell the interviewer something they can work with – I love to travel, most recently I went to X. I have the work hard, play hard mentality. Or perhaps you could say that you enjoy being spontaneous and creative, the last trip you took you simply went to the airport and chose a city to travel to.
This question gives you an opportunity to focus on your strengths and talents while utilizing personal examples or professional ones.
You can also answer this question by saying what you like in professional settings. For example, you could say I really thrive in a team environment; I like working with others, and having the ability to brainstorm and feed off each other. I’ve always been a team player. I played sports growing up and a team environment reminds me of that camaraderie.
Think about some of your strengths and talents and see how you can turn those into a story to answer this question.
Some people get caught up when asked what are your top 3 strengths or challenges and rattle off a few things, but this question and the stories and illustrations you can use here can either support that or discount it.
Finally, just be yourself. This question also gives the interviewer a chance to connect with you on a personal level. Interviewee: I want to Xyz College Interviewer: I went there too, or my wife, or my niece, etc – you get the picture!
Tags: interview, Job Search, job seeker
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June 21st, 2010 by Kira
Does the old saying “practice makes perfect” really matter in your job interview? It’s a common concern for most interviewees, worried about how they come across in their interview and how they’ll answer those seemingly tough questions – so the question remains should 
practice be a part of your job search strategy?
“If you‘re not practicing, somebody else is, somewhere, and he’ll be ready to take your job.” Brooks Robinson
While the quote may seem a bit harsh, in reality if you aren’t taking the time to polish your interview skills – someone else out there probably is and it can be the deciding factor for what makes your interview go from slightly okay to stellar.
If nothing else, practice for confidence. The more you rehearse and visualize the interview process, the questions being asked, and the free flowing articulate answers that you will give – the more confident, calm, cool and collected you’ll be during the interview.
Studies have shown that simply visualizing an activity and running through it in your mind can have the same effects as actually going through something physically. The subconscious mind doesn’t know how to tell the difference between something real and perceived – it’s the exact reason we hear about basketball players imaging that smooth “swoosh” of the net.
When practicing your interview questions and answers don’t worry about knowing what exact questions they will ask you. What you are looking to do is increase your confidence in your responses, answer slowly and precisely, and be able to think on your feet. You don’t want your answers to sound scripted and perfected – you want to be real and genuine and practicing too much could make you sound like a professional interviewee.
Practice for the sake of practicing, not perfection.
Tags: interview, Job Search, practice
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June 14th, 2010 by Kira
You’ve received the call about the upcoming interview and you are thrilled about the potential idea of a new position with this incredible company. You call your closest friends and cheer with excitement, but then suddenly the internal dragons come out and seek to sabotage 
your win.
The internal dragons that live within us tend to rear their ugly heads during the interview and job search process. You may think to yourself that “this one won’t work out either” or “they only chose me because of xyz.” Whatever thought comes to mind, tame your dragons by thanking them for doing their job to protect you and then play the “what if” game.
This means that you take the thought that came up for you and then change it around to say “what if this one doesn’t work out?” “What if they only want me to interview because of xyz?” When you embrace the dragon and work with it instead of against it you remove its power.
It is important to take back your personal power, especially during the job search, as it is far too easy to get into a rut, doubt your own worth, and question whether or not searching for a new position really is the right thing to do. As a painless as the process feels, there are millions of success stories of people who waited out the storm and were able to find the perfect position that was waiting for them all along.
Tags: Candidate, Job Search, job seeker, Unemployed
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June 7th, 2010 by Kira
Writen by Don Schenk
Last Saturday evening my wife and I visited friends at their home. They are a couple I have known since elementary school days, seventh grade as I recall. Yes, childhood! They grew up living next door to each other, dated during high school, and are still together. Last year they celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary.
They had invited several people for dinner – all of whom I have known since childhood. After dinner we were seated in their family room talking about some of the silly stuff that has happened over the years. Suddenly their cocker spaniel, who happens to have run of the furniture, wanted attention, and jumped into my lap. I was a little surprised, because at home we will not allow our dog on the couch, and I was not expecting little Rex to land on me. But I decided that is okay. I am a dog-person.
I petted Rex for a while, and when I stopped he stuck his muzzle under my arm and pushed upward – hard. He wanted to be petted more. A few minutes later when I again stopped, he gave me the muzzle-up treatment again. I said, “No, Rex,” but he continued to want me to rub under his ears. He would not take “No” for an answer. So he persisted. Rejection did not bother him. He simply continued to let me know what he wanted.
People do not enjoy rejection, and most will go out of their way to avoid it. Therefore they will no ask to be hired. They might be turned down. Then they do not try to contact the interviewer again a few days later to see how things stand. Have you been there? You have gone through an interview, did not get the job at that moment, and a couple days later when you want to call back, suddenly the telephone seems to weigh 2,000 pounds. You can not bring yourself to call.
Relax. The business is looking for a particular person to fill the job position, they had more interviews to do, and the owner wanted the office manager to interview everyone who applied – whether or not they qualify. You are on the list, and you helped put yourself at the top of their list. The squeaky wheel gets the grease. You just have to call to keep reminding them you exist. You have to be like little Rex, and not take no for an answer several times.
Almost nobody calls back to follow-up with the interviewer. How crazy is that? Other people applying for the job all have telephones that seem to weigh a ton. When you follow-up you are making yourself stand out again. Do it. You will be surprised.
Don Schenk has been conducting hiring interviews for four decades. The real, insider’s secret to Job Search is not what you think it is! Discover the 3 little-known strategies that will make the interviewer want to hire you within the first 30 to 40 seconds of the interview! Go to:
http://www.HowYouFindAJobFast.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Don_Schenk
Tags: Job Search, job seekers, Rejection
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February 8th, 2010 by Kira
Going through the interview process can become tedious if you have to sift through too many candidates, so why not try some fresh interview techniques to liven up the process and find out who is really underneath that 
resume.
- Talk about their passions. You can discover a lot about someone when you hear what they are passionate about. You’ll find out if they love to volunteer, read and learn about new things, or just enjoy soaking up the sun.
- Where do they like to vacation? Beach, mountains, or do they never even take vacations? Do you have an adventurous person in front of you or someone who values family time?
- Let the staff who will be working with the new person do the interviewing first. Avoid having to interview everyone and find who will best fit in with the team by allowing the team to do the interviewing.
- Take them out to lunch. Instead of staying in the office all day and plowing through interviews, meet them out to breakfast, lunch, or coffee. People tend to relax a bit more when out of the office.
- Never underestimate the power of humor. While it should be used only in appropriate settings, humor can help people to relax and show a bit more of their “humanness” during the interview process. It’s often unexpected during an interview, but can take away some of the routine feelings of the questions.
There are plenty of ways that you can add a personal touch to your interview style, most importantly the interviewer should be relaxed and welcoming and allow for the interviewee to open up and be themselves as well.
Can you share your own experience with being yourself in your interview?
Tags: applicant, applicants, application, applying for jobs, careers, employee, Hiring, Job Search
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December 21st, 2009 by Kira
Usually when you start out looking for your next position we tend to worry more about the annual salary, benefits, vacation days, traveling or the drive to and from work; however, while all of these things are important there are a few more components of a company that could make or break your new position regardless of the glamorous (or not so glamorous) salary, benefits, and perks.
Here are few things to look out for beyond the stereotypical items listed above.
First, what does the new company offer? Meaning what is it they are selling, how do they generate revenue and bring in the money to actually pay your salary. If you are currently unemployed a job in general could be a great thing regardless of what they sell, but a job can be very temporary if you take the wrong one and you will quickly find yourself back out on the search engines looking for the next best thing. Take some time to look into what the company is offering, what products and services they are selling and see how aligned you are with the offer. Are you passionate about it, skilled at it, do you know a lot about it or at least have a desire to? While this may sound basic, believing in and loving what your company does will help you move up the ranks faster. Start off on the right foot and assess whether your new potential company and you truly are the right fit.
What’s their mission? Most companies have a mission statement and while they vary in their use and implementation of it, it will still give you a good idea of what the company values. If you know your values you can easily see how you and the new company may or may not agree on how situations are handled. Understanding the company’s mission statement helps to understand the foundation upon in which the company was built, and hopefully you can add to their mission and help share their message as well.
How’s the company culture? The culture of a company varies greatly from one to another. Some offices are fun and creative while others are more serious and independent. While culture is hard to ascertain without being enmeshed in it, ask as many questions as you can about the office environment and the energy of the employees. You might find that some company cultures do not fit with your style and personality, leaving for a very unhappy employee.
How’s the turnover rate? If you want a position and a company in which you can grow and advance, take a look at the turnover rate of the company. Unfortunately, some companies have a “burn and turn” mentality – where they hire and fire fast just to fill the positions without thinking about the long term. To these companies it is more important that the have someone (or anyone rather) to do a job than having the right person at all. They simply burn through new hires leaving a constant rotating door in the human resources office. If a company’s turnover rate is extremely high, it’s okay to question what’s going on within the company culture to create this and which leads us to the last thing to consider.
How does the company feel about their employees? While not all companies honor creativity and independent thinking like Pixar
where employees ride around on skateboards, have a movie theater, café’s and other spaces that encourage creativity, it does show you how Pixar feels about their employees. Not all companies can afford the luxury of providing high class services and perks to their employees, but they can value them enough to think about their employees as a part of their “customers.” When employees are happier they perform better and treat customers better which in turn leads to higher revenue and greater profits for the business. Take a look at what, if anything, your new potential company does for its employees.
Overall, be sure to check out “all” of the company before deciding to take a new position. You want to know that you fit in and they fit with you and your desires as well. You may not get all the perks and benefits that you want, but taking a smaller salary to have a great company culture, and an employer who really cares about you could mean all the difference in the world when it comes to waking up every day and loving your job!
Tags: applicant, applying for jobs, company culture, happy employee, Job Search
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November 18th, 2009 by Kira
Many people right now are saying they are “just happy to have a job,” but what if you aren’t satisfied with just any old job and are ready to finally land that ultimate dream job?
First, let’s start by saying that even though the reports state that unemployment is at all time high, which is true –90% of the population is still employed and new jobs and positions are being created every day. In a down economy as businesses shift and find new ways to market their services, attract new clients, and create new products new dream opportunities are born. 
If you are looking for your dream job here are five ways to help you get exactly what you want.
- Clarity. Get clear on what your dream job looks like to you. Think about the office environment, your co-workers, your daily schedule, travel, etc. Once you get a clear picture you can begin to weed out any corporations that aren’t ideal for your lifestyle and goals.
- Network. Most job seekers make the mistake of networking only when they need something, even if you are not currently looking, be sure to stay connected with your circle of influence and be a go-giver. Do your part in helping others and when you are ready to make a move, your network will be more than willing to help you out.
- Listen. Keep your ears open and your eyes peeled. Your new opportunity could come from unexpected sources. Perhaps you watch the local news and see a story about an upcoming company that would be your ideal dream job!
- Back Door It. If you have your eye on a particular company find ways to connect with other employees of the company – hence social media is a great place for this. A big majority of people are on Facebook, Twitter, and Linked In and they aren’t hard to find either.
- Keep an Open Mind. Even though you may have a clear vision of what you want, some companies may not look like that vision on the outside. Be sure to stay open minded and give companies or opportunities a chance before you completely dismiss them. Sometimes the best come in the worst packages.
Tags: Candidates, employment, Job Search, Loving your job
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