You may not want to hear this while you are still in a job search or once you land your new job, but your new job is not your last. The average being quoted for the number of jobs a person will have in a lifetime these days is 12 and the number of careers is 4 in a lifetime. There are steps you should take while you are employed to make the next transition easier and faster.
Once You Have an Agreement
1) Once you have an agreement and a start date celebrate! You deserve it!
2) Contact all of the people in your network so they know you have landed. Have them take your market plan off their refrigerators and let them celebrate with you. Thank them for their help regardless of what type and degree of help they gave.
3) Prepare for the new job.
Once You Start
1) Once you have your new work computer, open a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and start recording your new accomplishments on a daily or weekly basis. Capture the quantifiable data to support these accomplishments. E-mail this list home on a monthly basis.
There are two uses for this accomplishment list. The first use comes if or when you leave the company; you have your accomplishments to use to update your resume. The second use is to give to your manager BEFORE she has had time to write your annual performance review. Clean up the list (spell check, etc.) and give a copy to your manager with humility. Say you are maintaining this list for you and want to offer it to her in case it will help in writing your review. Continue with saying that if she doesn’t need it, that is okay since you are maintaining it for you anyway.
2) Update your Linked In profile with your new company & position.
On an On-going Basis
1) Maintain your contacts. Stay in touch with people in your network including the contacts you developed during the search. Don’t let the only time you reach out to Uncle Fred be when you are out of a job. After all most of us have caller id. When Uncle Fred sees that it is you calling, he’ll realize that you must be out of a job again.
2) Develop new contacts. Harvey MacKay’s new book is titled “Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty”. The point of his book is that the same goes for your network. Develop contacts in your new department and in other departments within the company. Continue to network outside of your company as well. It is hard to carve out time to work fulltime, have a life, and attend industry networking events. Think back though to the job search and imagine how much faster you would have found a job had you had an ample network in your industry already in place.
3) Maintain your skills. If your company offers training, take it – all of it. If they don’t offer training take it anyway; invest in yourself by paying for your own training. Be sure the training you take increased your marketable skills.
4) Continue the good habits and practices you started during the search (regular devotions, exercise, eating right, staying in touch with family, etc.)
5) Jim Collins the author of “Good to Great” gave the following advice to a recent graduate: “Do not spend five years getting two years worth of experience”. If you have 2 years worth of experience in your current role, ask to take on different responsibilities that will give you new experience. If you can’t get additional experience in your current role, consider moving to another position within the same company to get new experience. If you can’t move within the company then “move your own cheese” and get a new job at another company.
This is a change from the philosophy with which Baby Boomers were raised. People who changed jobs every few years were called job hoppers and looked down upon. Now anyone who is at one company for ten plus years is at a disadvantage in the new job market because hiring managers assume they have not developed new skills during that time.
6) Maintain your marketing materials especially your accomplishment list as mentioned above. Periodically update your resume, your inventory of education (with all training you have taken including webinars, seminars, extensive self study) and list of technical skills.
7) Stay up on your industry. If your industry is about to fail, be one of the first to get out. If your industry is getting into something new (ex. a new technology) get training in it and then offer to your management to train your peers on it. Say that you don’t know everything but you want to share what you know. This could set you up at the subject matter expert.
8) Save between 8 to 12 months of salary for the next transition. Most of us can’t do that all at once. Save a little at a time starting immediately and regularly. According to consumer advocates, saving that much ready cash is a higher priority than saving for retirement.
9) Assist others. Remember the job search? There were people who would not give you the time of day. However many people were willing to meet with you, give you leads and contacts and you were grateful for the help you received. You want to be like them. Volunteer at a job networking group, make yourself available to job seekers for informational interviews, share leads and your contacts as appropriate.
Keep your job search engine running so if / when you are on the job market again, it will be an easier and faster process.
This is the final article in the series “Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job”. As you continue in your job search, it will be helpful to start reading the series over again to be sure you are still on track and haven’t veered. If you follow these steps in their entirety you will land the right job. With the grace of God, 100% of RightChanges clients who followed these steps (as a part of RightChanges’ Personal Coach Series) are now employed in jobs they wanted. You can too.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job – Step 6: Select the Right Job
Congratulations! You completed steps one through five of the job search: every day you chose to have a good attitude, you inventoried your unique skills and accomplishments identifying and learning to articulate your competitive advantage. You identified your target companies, and you developed and polished your marketing materials. You successfully conducted the search and nailed the interview. They just called and made you an offer. The money is good; the commute is okay so you are ready to say “Yes, when do you want me to start?” Not so fast.
Step 6 – Select
Remember the proverbial frying pan into the fire? You want to make sure that this job and company match the criteria you identified in step 3 and is a place where the “you” that you identified in Step 2 will thrive. Don’t end up making a mistake by taking a job doing work you don’t like, for the worst boss ever, in an environment where you will not thrive.
Let’s take a look at some of the criteria you should consider and questions you should ask the hiring manager or yourself before you know this is the right job.
I’ll Take Anything at This Point
Some of you may be thinking what I have heard other job seekers say, “I’ll take any job at this point”. Don’t do that to yourself. Take a lesson from one dear friend of mine. He took the first job that came along although he saw caution flags flying. Three months later he was on the job market again and had to start over with Step 1 – Attitude. In the long run it took him longer to find the ultimate job than if he had passed the chancy job over and just kept looking.
Think back to the worst boss or the worst company you ever worked for (most of us have those). If this new job is as bad as those, then you will be miserable. There is a plan for you, one that will prosper you and not harm you, one that will give you hope and a future. Why would you settle for anything less?
Understand the Opportunity
When you receive an offer, you want to be 99.9% sure you understand the opportunity that is being offered. You understand the salary, the benefits, and of course the commute. What other things do you need to know up front?
Let’s use one example. If you will be traveling on company business, even periodically, you want to understand the policies on travel expenses. 1) Does the company require you to use your own credit card? If so, that means you have to always have enough available credit for any last minute trips your company decides you need to make. 2) Do you get a company credit card? In most cases the company issues a company credit card to travelers but the bill comes to the employee’s home to be paid. In this case you want to understand the average time it takes for the company to process expense reports and get the reimbursement check to the employee. Some companies are notorious for talking a full month or more getting the reimbursement to the employee, in essence floating a loan on the employee’s back yet companies do not reimburse late payment fees. This is one example of additional information you need to understand about the opportunity.
Be sure also to measure the opportunity against the requirements you established at the beginning of your search.
Is This Job Right For You?
In Step 2 you took an inventory of you. As part of that process you identified your personality (the way you were made). You reviewed your prior job history and identified what you liked best and least about your former companies, bosses, and the positions you held.
Personality
Let’s look at a few examples of evaluating if the opportunity is a match for your personality. The two options for the first Myers Brigg Type Indicator and Keirsey Temperament Sorter are E for Extrovert and I for Introvert. These indicators represent the source of energy for the individual, extroverts getting their energy from being around people and Introverts recharging their batteries by being alone.
If you are an extrovert, working from home could drive you crazy, like a cat in a room of rocking chairs; you can’t wait to get out and around people. If you are an introvert, it would drain you to work constantly around people with frequent interruptions and no time to yourself.
The last indicator within Myers Brigg is J or P. People with the J indicator like to have things orderly where people with a P indicator like to “wing it”. If you are a J and are asked to work in a company that has no written processes, no on-boarding orientation, and frequently changes in direction, you will feel adrift. If instead you are P and the company is buttoned up tight, you could feel stifled.
Evaluate the work environment and be sure it matches your personality.
Prior Job History
In Step 2, you evaluated your prior jobs to determine what you want in a company and in a boss so you can flourish. Leverage that information. Measure the company, the boss, and the position you are being offered against these identified qualities.
Negotiate!
The best time to get the right salary is when you come into the company. It is harder to get equity increases once you are working there. Most hiring managers do not give their best and final offer initially; on the other hand they do not low ball the offer either. Most times there is a little room for negotiations.
There are other things besides salary to ask for in the negotiation process as well. If you want to pursue a professional certificate for instance, ask if the company will cover the costs of the preparation, exam and other fees. If you need to work from home occasionally, that ability may be up for negotiation, so can the start or end time (to avoid the rush hours or to pick a child up from daycare), extra vacation days, etc. Whatever you both decide during negotiations be sure to get the agreement in writing.
Are You at Peace About Taking the Position?
You will experience as amazing peace if this is the right position and company for you. Check your “peace-a-meter” to be sure you don’t have any negative or nagging thoughts about taking the job. If you do, you need to evaluate them and make the right thought-out decision, not a decision out of desperation.
Take the job that is meant for you, one in which you will flourish.
Last Article in the Series
You may not want to hear this the moment you land your new job, but your new job is not your last. The average being quoted for the number of jobs a person will have in a lifetime these days is 12 and the number of careers is 4 in a lifetime. In the next installment of the “Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job” series Judi Adams, Senior Job Search Coach of RightChanges.biz will cover “Action Items to Take While Working to Make the Next Transition Easier and Faster”.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Step 6 – Select
Remember the proverbial frying pan into the fire? You want to make sure that this job and company match the criteria you identified in step 3 and is a place where the “you” that you identified in Step 2 will thrive. Don’t end up making a mistake by taking a job doing work you don’t like, for the worst boss ever, in an environment where you will not thrive.
Let’s take a look at some of the criteria you should consider and questions you should ask the hiring manager or yourself before you know this is the right job.
I’ll Take Anything at This Point
Some of you may be thinking what I have heard other job seekers say, “I’ll take any job at this point”. Don’t do that to yourself. Take a lesson from one dear friend of mine. He took the first job that came along although he saw caution flags flying. Three months later he was on the job market again and had to start over with Step 1 – Attitude. In the long run it took him longer to find the ultimate job than if he had passed the chancy job over and just kept looking.
Think back to the worst boss or the worst company you ever worked for (most of us have those). If this new job is as bad as those, then you will be miserable. There is a plan for you, one that will prosper you and not harm you, one that will give you hope and a future. Why would you settle for anything less?
Understand the Opportunity
When you receive an offer, you want to be 99.9% sure you understand the opportunity that is being offered. You understand the salary, the benefits, and of course the commute. What other things do you need to know up front?
Let’s use one example. If you will be traveling on company business, even periodically, you want to understand the policies on travel expenses. 1) Does the company require you to use your own credit card? If so, that means you have to always have enough available credit for any last minute trips your company decides you need to make. 2) Do you get a company credit card? In most cases the company issues a company credit card to travelers but the bill comes to the employee’s home to be paid. In this case you want to understand the average time it takes for the company to process expense reports and get the reimbursement check to the employee. Some companies are notorious for talking a full month or more getting the reimbursement to the employee, in essence floating a loan on the employee’s back yet companies do not reimburse late payment fees. This is one example of additional information you need to understand about the opportunity.
Be sure also to measure the opportunity against the requirements you established at the beginning of your search.
Is This Job Right For You?
In Step 2 you took an inventory of you. As part of that process you identified your personality (the way you were made). You reviewed your prior job history and identified what you liked best and least about your former companies, bosses, and the positions you held.
Personality
Let’s look at a few examples of evaluating if the opportunity is a match for your personality. The two options for the first Myers Brigg Type Indicator and Keirsey Temperament Sorter are E for Extrovert and I for Introvert. These indicators represent the source of energy for the individual, extroverts getting their energy from being around people and Introverts recharging their batteries by being alone.
If you are an extrovert, working from home could drive you crazy, like a cat in a room of rocking chairs; you can’t wait to get out and around people. If you are an introvert, it would drain you to work constantly around people with frequent interruptions and no time to yourself.
The last indicator within Myers Brigg is J or P. People with the J indicator like to have things orderly where people with a P indicator like to “wing it”. If you are a J and are asked to work in a company that has no written processes, no on-boarding orientation, and frequently changes in direction, you will feel adrift. If instead you are P and the company is buttoned up tight, you could feel stifled.
Evaluate the work environment and be sure it matches your personality.
Prior Job History
In Step 2, you evaluated your prior jobs to determine what you want in a company and in a boss so you can flourish. Leverage that information. Measure the company, the boss, and the position you are being offered against these identified qualities.
Negotiate!
The best time to get the right salary is when you come into the company. It is harder to get equity increases once you are working there. Most hiring managers do not give their best and final offer initially; on the other hand they do not low ball the offer either. Most times there is a little room for negotiations.
There are other things besides salary to ask for in the negotiation process as well. If you want to pursue a professional certificate for instance, ask if the company will cover the costs of the preparation, exam and other fees. If you need to work from home occasionally, that ability may be up for negotiation, so can the start or end time (to avoid the rush hours or to pick a child up from daycare), extra vacation days, etc. Whatever you both decide during negotiations be sure to get the agreement in writing.
Are You at Peace About Taking the Position?
You will experience as amazing peace if this is the right position and company for you. Check your “peace-a-meter” to be sure you don’t have any negative or nagging thoughts about taking the job. If you do, you need to evaluate them and make the right thought-out decision, not a decision out of desperation.
Take the job that is meant for you, one in which you will flourish.
Last Article in the Series
You may not want to hear this the moment you land your new job, but your new job is not your last. The average being quoted for the number of jobs a person will have in a lifetime these days is 12 and the number of careers is 4 in a lifetime. In the next installment of the “Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job” series Judi Adams, Senior Job Search Coach of RightChanges.biz will cover “Action Items to Take While Working to Make the Next Transition Easier and Faster”.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Friday, August 6, 2010
Keep Your Eyes Open for God in Your Job Search
Credit goes to the originator of this story .
The word is out: a flood is about to occur. A farmer living in a flood plain gets ready. He stops for one second to pray, “Father, protect me.”
The river is overflowing the banks. A jeep pulls up and the driver shouts out, “the flood is coming. Jump in; I’ll take you to safety.” The water is surrounding the farmer's home up to his front porch. The farmer says, "Thank you but God is going to protect me." The jeep pulls off.
The water rises to the second floor. A man in a boat rides up, and the man yells to the farmer who is now in the second story window, "Jump in, I'll save you." The farmer again says, "Nope, I put my trust in God." The boat rides away. Now the water is up to the roof.
As the farmer stands on the roof, a helicopter comes over, and drops a ladder. The pilot yells down to the farmer "I'll save you, climb the ladder." The farmer says "Nope, I put my trust in God." The helicopter goes away. The water continues to rise, sweeps the farmer off the roof, and he drowns.
In heaven the farmer says to God "I put my trust in you and you let me down."
God says, "What do you mean, I let you down? I sent you a Jeep, a boat, and a helicopter!!!"
God works through others. Don’t miss your Jeep, boat, or helicopter.
The word is out: a flood is about to occur. A farmer living in a flood plain gets ready. He stops for one second to pray, “Father, protect me.”
The river is overflowing the banks. A jeep pulls up and the driver shouts out, “the flood is coming. Jump in; I’ll take you to safety.” The water is surrounding the farmer's home up to his front porch. The farmer says, "Thank you but God is going to protect me." The jeep pulls off.
The water rises to the second floor. A man in a boat rides up, and the man yells to the farmer who is now in the second story window, "Jump in, I'll save you." The farmer again says, "Nope, I put my trust in God." The boat rides away. Now the water is up to the roof.
As the farmer stands on the roof, a helicopter comes over, and drops a ladder. The pilot yells down to the farmer "I'll save you, climb the ladder." The farmer says "Nope, I put my trust in God." The helicopter goes away. The water continues to rise, sweeps the farmer off the roof, and he drowns.
In heaven the farmer says to God "I put my trust in you and you let me down."
God says, "What do you mean, I let you down? I sent you a Jeep, a boat, and a helicopter!!!"
God works through others. Don’t miss your Jeep, boat, or helicopter.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job –Step 5: Sort – The Interview
If you have been taking the steps outlined in this series, then you have completed steps one through three: every day you have chosen to have a good attitude, you have inventoried your unique skills and accomplishments identifying and learning to articulate your competitive advantage, you have identified your target companies, and you developed and polished your marketing materials. You have successfully conducted Step 4 - the Search - and by networking have found job leads and secured interviews.
Step 5 – Sort (Interview)
You have worked hard to find the job lead, don’t blow it now.
You want to understand the 4 P’s of a successful interview. The 4 P’s are as follows:
Purpose
Preparation
Performance
Post-Interview
P: Purpose
There are actually two different purposes for an interview: there is the employer’s purpose for the interview and there is your purpose for the interview.
The First Purpose – The Employer’s
The employer’s purpose for the interview is to sort out candidates through a series of questions and tests to identify the best candidate based on skills, experience, and the best fit for the team and the company culture.
The Second Purpose – Yours
Your purpose for the interview is more complex.
• You want to use this time to build rapport with the interviewers so that you stand out from your competition. Leave them with the distinct impression that they want to work with you and need you for their business.
• From the interview process you want to affirm the problem the company is looking to solve by hiring the person. With the current economic climate, companies are not hiring people without having a driving reason to do so. You need to find out that driving reason, the pain point they have and are trying to solve. Do not assume that purpose is obvious from the job description since the job description may have been written by someone other than the hiring manager (like someone in Human Resources).
• You need to understand what they believe makes a successful candidate. What traits do they value? What experience are they seeking? What abilities will make the candidate the right fit? What prior accomplishments will convince them you are can do the job?
You want to share your previous accomplishments that support why the company will benefit by hiring you. Remember the accomplishments you inventoried during Step 2? You want to use your STARs; your prior performance is an indication of your future performance.
• You also want to understand the hiring process and the next steps.
Understand the two different purposes, the employer’s and yours, so you don’t miss
the point of the interview.
P: Preparation
Practice, practice, practice! It is amazing how many people will practice for a neighborhood championship (ex tennis) where only bragging rights are on the line but will “wing” a job interview without practicing when a job is on the line.
An invaluable way to prepare for an interview is to practice interviewing and solicit feedback. Many job networking groups offer interview workshops. Having the practice interview filmed by a job search coach will allow you to see how you come off in the interview. How is your body language? Do you forget to smile out of nervousness and come off as negative? Do you wildly move your hands about while talking? Do you talk too much? Practice your interview; find out what you do well and areas to improve.
Network into the company. Even though you have the interview scheduled, it is not too late to use your contacts and Linked In network to network into the company. It will help you stand out if people in the company approach the hiring manager and say they heard you are interviewing, that they know you, and are impressed with you. That will help you stand out from the other candidates. Your contacts are also a valuable source of information to have before walking into the interview.
Get inside information. Conduct informational interviews with current and past employees to understand the best aspects and the not-so-great aspects of working for the company and the hiring manager.
Research the company. You need to know everything that is on the company’s web site and you need to know more than that. Check out the company’s financials. Check out the company’s competition and check out all of the news articles that have been published about the company. You may also want to check out chat rooms and blogs to see what is being said about the company by disgruntled customers and former employees.
Your questions. Develop a list of questions you need answered. During your aptitude assessments and inventories you determined the type of environment in which you will flourish. You determined the style of manager you work best with. Ask questions about the company, the department, the position, the manager, and how the current economy has impacted the company. Show you are discerning about where you work.
Study your STARs. You inventoried and documented your previous accomplishments. Review that list so they are embedded in your memory. You will want to have these stories ready for the behavioral interview questions (“Tell me about a time….”).Use STARs to anchor even Yes and No questions. Example: You are asked if you know Microsoft Excel. Don’t just say yes. Add an example of a time you used it, the most advanced features you used, and what you successfully did with the information.
Drive there. Unless you are very familiar with the location, drive there ahead of time so you can discover anything unexpected about the route (ex. construction). You can also checkout the layout of the property and parking. Remove that from your stress the day of the interview.
Do’s and Don’ts. Another part of the preparation is to review the interview do’s and don’ts (included later in this article).
Pray/ Mediate. The best preparation you can do is to pray. Pray for peace and calm so you can get a good night’s sleep. Pray for wisdom and, if the job is not right for you, pray that doors will be closed.
The better you prepare for the interview, the more confident you will be during the actual interview.
P: Preparation
Pray: Praying for peace and wisdom is a great way to begin the day of the interview.
Arrival: You want to arrive at the reception area 5-10 minutes ahead of the appointed time. Do not arrive more than 10 minutes ahead though. If you live in an area (like Atlanta) where many factors can impact travel time, plan to arrive in the area at least 30 minutes ahead of time to allow extra time in the event something unexpected happens. During your test drive because familiar with the area and pick out a location at which to wait until it is time to drive to the company’s property and head into the reception area.
If you left for the destination with plenty of extra time and something catastrophic happens (an interstate is shut down due to an accident), call the interviewer at that moment (which should be well ahead of the appointed time) and explain the situation. Offer to contact him when you know more information about your status or to go ahead and reschedule at his convenience.
Be courteous to everyone you meet. Your interview begins before you set foot on the company property. The person who cut you off in traffic may be the hiring manager rushing to get to the office before your appointment. Keep in mind that receptionists are valuable sources of information for the hiring manger. The hiring manger does not even have to specifically solicit their opinions. After the hiring manager walks you out the front door, the receptionist may make a simple comment about whether you were nice or rude and that could easily impact your chances. With some companies, even what you do while waiting in the reception area may be factored into the hiring decision.
Smile! Breathe! There are two things that many nervous interviewees forget to do: smile and breathe. If you are likely to forget to relax, smile, and breathe, you may want to write yourself a note that you see periodically during the interview to remind you.
Meet their need. The company has a need that will be met by hiring the right person. Their need is not to give you a job. You want to determine what that need is and concisely address your points to how you can help meet their needs.
Use your STARs. In the answers to the interview questions, you want to add weight to your answers (anchor them) by using your STAR statements. You could easily say “I have done that before and I can do it again” but anyone can say that. It is not enough to state at which company you had that experience. You want to share the situation you faced, the actions you took, and the results you achieved to make your answer real for the interviewer.
Listen! Too many job seekers feel this is their only chance to share their skills and do what can be referred to as a brain dump: sharing everything that is in their head. Using the cliché “we have two ears and one mouth for a reason” we should do twice as much listening as talking. The best conversationalist is one who is a good listener. During the interview, many hiring managers will share valuable information in their side comments that could be missed if the job seeker is not listening intently. By listening you can understand what they are looking for so you can tailor what you say to address those points.
Ask questions! Asking questions shows your interest in the interviewer and, since asking questions is one approach to active listening, it shows your interest in what the interviewer is saying. You do not have to wait until the end of the interview to ask questions either. Throughout the interview, as needed, you can ask clarifying questions. You can ask the interviewer how long she has been with the company, what she likes best, what she thinks is the biggest challenge for the company, where she worked before joining the company, and what she feels are the traits in a successful candidate. Be sure to ask questions to determine if this is a good fit (company and position) for you. Do not ask any questions that can easily be answered by searching on-line. Listen closely so you do not ask about something the interviewer already addressed. One last question you can ask is what concerns, if any, she has about your ability to perform the job so you can address them.
What to do before you leave. There are several steps you want to take before you leave the interview.
• You want to thank them for their time.
• You want to express your sincere interest in the position (if you are interested).
• You want to ask what the next steps are in the interview process and approximate timeframes. The hiring manager or company recruiter may not have exact timeframes but she should have an estimated timeframe for the hiring process.
• Get the business card of every interviewer. If some of the interviewers don’t have business cards, get the spelling of their names and their e-mail addresses. Do not assume the spelling of their name (ex. my name is Judy but I spell it with an “i”). As long as you have the name, you can call back to the person on the switchboard to get the correct spelling.
P: Post Interview
Although you have left the company property the interview is not over yet.
Thank you. The moment you leave the interview, go back and write an electronic thank you. Thank each interviewer individually for his / her time and reiterate your interest in the position.
Thank you again. Do not stop with an electronic thank you though. Write a handwritten thank you note and get it out in the mail that same day. Compose it on a computer first so you can develop the phrasing you want to use and to spell and grammar check the message. Personalize each note with something that he / she said that you had in common or affirm you as a great fit for the position.
Follow-up. It is the job seeker’s responsibility to follow-up no matter what was said or who committed to doing it. Because you asked at the end of the interview, you know the next steps and approximate timelines for each. There are ways you can follow-up without sounding desperate or nagging. You can contact the hiring manager with a follow-up or clarifying question. Make it a good question though or she will immediately see through it. Another contact can be made to just check in and see if they had any further questions.
There are other ways to stay in the minds of the decision makers. One approach is to send a copy of an article you think they would be interested in reading and may not have read.
Continue your job search. No matter how well the interview went and no matter what the hiring manager said about you getting the job, until you have a final offer in writing continue your job search.
While you wait to hear. While you wait to hear back, continue to pray for open and closed doors. If this is not the job for you, the one that will prosper you, and not harm you, the one that will give you a hope and a future, then you don’t really want it. Pray that the door closes on that one.
Now let’s look at the list of tips and do’s and don’ts of the interview.
Tips / Do’s and Don’ts
Cell Phones & other electronic devices. Do NOT leave your cell phone on, even on vibrate. The constant NNNN, NNNN, NNNN is just as annoying as a ring. You should turn it off before you walk into the company’s building so you do not forget. If you have a watch with an alert, turn off the alert or leave the watch in the car.
Be careful with your humor. Humor is good even during an interview; just do not cross over a line that you don’t want to cross. It is wise to be conservative with your humor until you know the other person better.
Know yourself. Only have items on your resume (especially technical skills) that you are familiar with enough to hold a conversation about them.
Know your accomplishments and know why the company should hire you for the job. Prepare answers ahead of time to all of the tough questions you may be asked.
Practice your handshake. Men and women should have the same handshake. If you are not used to shaking hands, you should practice and get feedback from a trusted person.
If you tend to have sweaty hands, consider running cool water over your wrists before going into the interview. Another approach is to slyly wipe your right hand on the side of your outfit as you raise your hand.
If you have a cold, you can excuse yourself from shaking the other person’s hand by apologizing and saying you are getting over a cold and don’t want to give it to him. It will be appreciated.
Body Language. 85% of all communication is non-verbal. Body language is the most spontaneous and honest form of communication. People trust your body language over the words you speak. Learn to read body language and control your own.
Do not talk too much or too little. Many job seekers blow the interview by talking too much. This is usually not intentional; it is done out of nervousness but has the same results regardless. Practicing will give you a feel for where the fine line is between answering the question and giving a “brain dump”. Look for queues that the interviewer is ready to move on such as looking at the time, flipping papers, or looking down.
You don’t want to go too far the other way either. If you speak too little the interviewer may think you are hiding something.
Pay close attention to grooming. From head to toe, be sure you are giving your best impression. Some jobs are lost before the job seeker has uttered the first word. A practice interview is a great place to get honest feedback about the image you are projecting.
Be sure your attire, eyeglasses and accessories (ties, jewelry) don’t date you. Out of date attire and accessories will give the impression that you also let your skills age as well.
If you do not have the right clothes for an interview and truly can’t afford them, there are organizations that will provide an outfit at a greatly reduced price or even for free. Don’t let an outfit stand in the way of your success.
Phone Interview tips. If you are on a phone interview, be sure to be in a quiet area without background noise. Stand up while you talk so your diaphragm can expand to breathe. Stand in front of a mirror to echo your body language and to remind you to smile.
If you receive an unexpected call for a phone screening, regardless of what you are doing at the time, express your interest in talking with them and propose a time to talk. No company expects you to put your life on hold waiting for a call and you will not blow your chance at the job if you propose another time. Use the time to get your materials organized before talking; review the description of the position, the research you did on the company, take one more opportunity to review your accomplishments, and get to a quiet area.
Do not ask about salary or benefits. There is a common belief that the first person to talk about salary is at a disadvantage. If you are asked what salary you were earning or want, defer the salary discussion for the later.
Do NOT lie on your resume or application. Assume that everything will be verified even if no company has before.
Lunch interviews. Your main purpose at a lunch interview is not eating. Know what not to order during a lunch interview. Use the rule of thumb that you should only order food that is easy to get on your fork, to your mouth, and chew quickly. There are many books available on common table manners.
Do not talk negatively about a former company, boss, or co-worker. When you have a bad experience at a company, it is tempting to talk negatively about it. Save that venting for a close friend. Talking negatively during an interview reflects negatively on you. Before you have an interview, take the time to develop the right words to explain your experiences. Be sure to include what you have learned from that experience and have put into place to not repeat it.
For a copy of RightChanges’ interview checklist, send an e-mail to Info@RightChanges.biz with the subject line Interview Checklist.
In the next installment of the “Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job” series Judi Adams, Senior Job Search Coach of RightChanges.biz will cover Step 6 – Select the Right Job and Action Items Once You Are Employed.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Step 5 – Sort (Interview)
You have worked hard to find the job lead, don’t blow it now.
You want to understand the 4 P’s of a successful interview. The 4 P’s are as follows:
Purpose
Preparation
Performance
Post-Interview
P: Purpose
There are actually two different purposes for an interview: there is the employer’s purpose for the interview and there is your purpose for the interview.
The First Purpose – The Employer’s
The employer’s purpose for the interview is to sort out candidates through a series of questions and tests to identify the best candidate based on skills, experience, and the best fit for the team and the company culture.
The Second Purpose – Yours
Your purpose for the interview is more complex.
• You want to use this time to build rapport with the interviewers so that you stand out from your competition. Leave them with the distinct impression that they want to work with you and need you for their business.
• From the interview process you want to affirm the problem the company is looking to solve by hiring the person. With the current economic climate, companies are not hiring people without having a driving reason to do so. You need to find out that driving reason, the pain point they have and are trying to solve. Do not assume that purpose is obvious from the job description since the job description may have been written by someone other than the hiring manager (like someone in Human Resources).
• You need to understand what they believe makes a successful candidate. What traits do they value? What experience are they seeking? What abilities will make the candidate the right fit? What prior accomplishments will convince them you are can do the job?
You want to share your previous accomplishments that support why the company will benefit by hiring you. Remember the accomplishments you inventoried during Step 2? You want to use your STARs; your prior performance is an indication of your future performance.
• You also want to understand the hiring process and the next steps.
Understand the two different purposes, the employer’s and yours, so you don’t miss
the point of the interview.
P: Preparation
Practice, practice, practice! It is amazing how many people will practice for a neighborhood championship (ex tennis) where only bragging rights are on the line but will “wing” a job interview without practicing when a job is on the line.
An invaluable way to prepare for an interview is to practice interviewing and solicit feedback. Many job networking groups offer interview workshops. Having the practice interview filmed by a job search coach will allow you to see how you come off in the interview. How is your body language? Do you forget to smile out of nervousness and come off as negative? Do you wildly move your hands about while talking? Do you talk too much? Practice your interview; find out what you do well and areas to improve.
Network into the company. Even though you have the interview scheduled, it is not too late to use your contacts and Linked In network to network into the company. It will help you stand out if people in the company approach the hiring manager and say they heard you are interviewing, that they know you, and are impressed with you. That will help you stand out from the other candidates. Your contacts are also a valuable source of information to have before walking into the interview.
Get inside information. Conduct informational interviews with current and past employees to understand the best aspects and the not-so-great aspects of working for the company and the hiring manager.
Research the company. You need to know everything that is on the company’s web site and you need to know more than that. Check out the company’s financials. Check out the company’s competition and check out all of the news articles that have been published about the company. You may also want to check out chat rooms and blogs to see what is being said about the company by disgruntled customers and former employees.
Your questions. Develop a list of questions you need answered. During your aptitude assessments and inventories you determined the type of environment in which you will flourish. You determined the style of manager you work best with. Ask questions about the company, the department, the position, the manager, and how the current economy has impacted the company. Show you are discerning about where you work.
Study your STARs. You inventoried and documented your previous accomplishments. Review that list so they are embedded in your memory. You will want to have these stories ready for the behavioral interview questions (“Tell me about a time….”).Use STARs to anchor even Yes and No questions. Example: You are asked if you know Microsoft Excel. Don’t just say yes. Add an example of a time you used it, the most advanced features you used, and what you successfully did with the information.
Drive there. Unless you are very familiar with the location, drive there ahead of time so you can discover anything unexpected about the route (ex. construction). You can also checkout the layout of the property and parking. Remove that from your stress the day of the interview.
Do’s and Don’ts. Another part of the preparation is to review the interview do’s and don’ts (included later in this article).
Pray/ Mediate. The best preparation you can do is to pray. Pray for peace and calm so you can get a good night’s sleep. Pray for wisdom and, if the job is not right for you, pray that doors will be closed.
The better you prepare for the interview, the more confident you will be during the actual interview.
P: Preparation
Pray: Praying for peace and wisdom is a great way to begin the day of the interview.
Arrival: You want to arrive at the reception area 5-10 minutes ahead of the appointed time. Do not arrive more than 10 minutes ahead though. If you live in an area (like Atlanta) where many factors can impact travel time, plan to arrive in the area at least 30 minutes ahead of time to allow extra time in the event something unexpected happens. During your test drive because familiar with the area and pick out a location at which to wait until it is time to drive to the company’s property and head into the reception area.
If you left for the destination with plenty of extra time and something catastrophic happens (an interstate is shut down due to an accident), call the interviewer at that moment (which should be well ahead of the appointed time) and explain the situation. Offer to contact him when you know more information about your status or to go ahead and reschedule at his convenience.
Be courteous to everyone you meet. Your interview begins before you set foot on the company property. The person who cut you off in traffic may be the hiring manager rushing to get to the office before your appointment. Keep in mind that receptionists are valuable sources of information for the hiring manger. The hiring manger does not even have to specifically solicit their opinions. After the hiring manager walks you out the front door, the receptionist may make a simple comment about whether you were nice or rude and that could easily impact your chances. With some companies, even what you do while waiting in the reception area may be factored into the hiring decision.
Smile! Breathe! There are two things that many nervous interviewees forget to do: smile and breathe. If you are likely to forget to relax, smile, and breathe, you may want to write yourself a note that you see periodically during the interview to remind you.
Meet their need. The company has a need that will be met by hiring the right person. Their need is not to give you a job. You want to determine what that need is and concisely address your points to how you can help meet their needs.
Use your STARs. In the answers to the interview questions, you want to add weight to your answers (anchor them) by using your STAR statements. You could easily say “I have done that before and I can do it again” but anyone can say that. It is not enough to state at which company you had that experience. You want to share the situation you faced, the actions you took, and the results you achieved to make your answer real for the interviewer.
Listen! Too many job seekers feel this is their only chance to share their skills and do what can be referred to as a brain dump: sharing everything that is in their head. Using the cliché “we have two ears and one mouth for a reason” we should do twice as much listening as talking. The best conversationalist is one who is a good listener. During the interview, many hiring managers will share valuable information in their side comments that could be missed if the job seeker is not listening intently. By listening you can understand what they are looking for so you can tailor what you say to address those points.
Ask questions! Asking questions shows your interest in the interviewer and, since asking questions is one approach to active listening, it shows your interest in what the interviewer is saying. You do not have to wait until the end of the interview to ask questions either. Throughout the interview, as needed, you can ask clarifying questions. You can ask the interviewer how long she has been with the company, what she likes best, what she thinks is the biggest challenge for the company, where she worked before joining the company, and what she feels are the traits in a successful candidate. Be sure to ask questions to determine if this is a good fit (company and position) for you. Do not ask any questions that can easily be answered by searching on-line. Listen closely so you do not ask about something the interviewer already addressed. One last question you can ask is what concerns, if any, she has about your ability to perform the job so you can address them.
What to do before you leave. There are several steps you want to take before you leave the interview.
• You want to thank them for their time.
• You want to express your sincere interest in the position (if you are interested).
• You want to ask what the next steps are in the interview process and approximate timeframes. The hiring manager or company recruiter may not have exact timeframes but she should have an estimated timeframe for the hiring process.
• Get the business card of every interviewer. If some of the interviewers don’t have business cards, get the spelling of their names and their e-mail addresses. Do not assume the spelling of their name (ex. my name is Judy but I spell it with an “i”). As long as you have the name, you can call back to the person on the switchboard to get the correct spelling.
P: Post Interview
Although you have left the company property the interview is not over yet.
Thank you. The moment you leave the interview, go back and write an electronic thank you. Thank each interviewer individually for his / her time and reiterate your interest in the position.
Thank you again. Do not stop with an electronic thank you though. Write a handwritten thank you note and get it out in the mail that same day. Compose it on a computer first so you can develop the phrasing you want to use and to spell and grammar check the message. Personalize each note with something that he / she said that you had in common or affirm you as a great fit for the position.
Follow-up. It is the job seeker’s responsibility to follow-up no matter what was said or who committed to doing it. Because you asked at the end of the interview, you know the next steps and approximate timelines for each. There are ways you can follow-up without sounding desperate or nagging. You can contact the hiring manager with a follow-up or clarifying question. Make it a good question though or she will immediately see through it. Another contact can be made to just check in and see if they had any further questions.
There are other ways to stay in the minds of the decision makers. One approach is to send a copy of an article you think they would be interested in reading and may not have read.
Continue your job search. No matter how well the interview went and no matter what the hiring manager said about you getting the job, until you have a final offer in writing continue your job search.
While you wait to hear. While you wait to hear back, continue to pray for open and closed doors. If this is not the job for you, the one that will prosper you, and not harm you, the one that will give you a hope and a future, then you don’t really want it. Pray that the door closes on that one.
Now let’s look at the list of tips and do’s and don’ts of the interview.
Tips / Do’s and Don’ts
Cell Phones & other electronic devices. Do NOT leave your cell phone on, even on vibrate. The constant NNNN, NNNN, NNNN is just as annoying as a ring. You should turn it off before you walk into the company’s building so you do not forget. If you have a watch with an alert, turn off the alert or leave the watch in the car.
Be careful with your humor. Humor is good even during an interview; just do not cross over a line that you don’t want to cross. It is wise to be conservative with your humor until you know the other person better.
Know yourself. Only have items on your resume (especially technical skills) that you are familiar with enough to hold a conversation about them.
Know your accomplishments and know why the company should hire you for the job. Prepare answers ahead of time to all of the tough questions you may be asked.
Practice your handshake. Men and women should have the same handshake. If you are not used to shaking hands, you should practice and get feedback from a trusted person.
If you tend to have sweaty hands, consider running cool water over your wrists before going into the interview. Another approach is to slyly wipe your right hand on the side of your outfit as you raise your hand.
If you have a cold, you can excuse yourself from shaking the other person’s hand by apologizing and saying you are getting over a cold and don’t want to give it to him. It will be appreciated.
Body Language. 85% of all communication is non-verbal. Body language is the most spontaneous and honest form of communication. People trust your body language over the words you speak. Learn to read body language and control your own.
Do not talk too much or too little. Many job seekers blow the interview by talking too much. This is usually not intentional; it is done out of nervousness but has the same results regardless. Practicing will give you a feel for where the fine line is between answering the question and giving a “brain dump”. Look for queues that the interviewer is ready to move on such as looking at the time, flipping papers, or looking down.
You don’t want to go too far the other way either. If you speak too little the interviewer may think you are hiding something.
Pay close attention to grooming. From head to toe, be sure you are giving your best impression. Some jobs are lost before the job seeker has uttered the first word. A practice interview is a great place to get honest feedback about the image you are projecting.
Be sure your attire, eyeglasses and accessories (ties, jewelry) don’t date you. Out of date attire and accessories will give the impression that you also let your skills age as well.
If you do not have the right clothes for an interview and truly can’t afford them, there are organizations that will provide an outfit at a greatly reduced price or even for free. Don’t let an outfit stand in the way of your success.
Phone Interview tips. If you are on a phone interview, be sure to be in a quiet area without background noise. Stand up while you talk so your diaphragm can expand to breathe. Stand in front of a mirror to echo your body language and to remind you to smile.
If you receive an unexpected call for a phone screening, regardless of what you are doing at the time, express your interest in talking with them and propose a time to talk. No company expects you to put your life on hold waiting for a call and you will not blow your chance at the job if you propose another time. Use the time to get your materials organized before talking; review the description of the position, the research you did on the company, take one more opportunity to review your accomplishments, and get to a quiet area.
Do not ask about salary or benefits. There is a common belief that the first person to talk about salary is at a disadvantage. If you are asked what salary you were earning or want, defer the salary discussion for the later.
Do NOT lie on your resume or application. Assume that everything will be verified even if no company has before.
Lunch interviews. Your main purpose at a lunch interview is not eating. Know what not to order during a lunch interview. Use the rule of thumb that you should only order food that is easy to get on your fork, to your mouth, and chew quickly. There are many books available on common table manners.
Do not talk negatively about a former company, boss, or co-worker. When you have a bad experience at a company, it is tempting to talk negatively about it. Save that venting for a close friend. Talking negatively during an interview reflects negatively on you. Before you have an interview, take the time to develop the right words to explain your experiences. Be sure to include what you have learned from that experience and have put into place to not repeat it.
For a copy of RightChanges’ interview checklist, send an e-mail to Info@RightChanges.biz with the subject line Interview Checklist.
In the next installment of the “Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job” series Judi Adams, Senior Job Search Coach of RightChanges.biz will cover Step 6 – Select the Right Job and Action Items Once You Are Employed.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
If you are transitioning industries or careers
Even in this amazingly tough job market, job seekers are successfully transitioning into new industries and new career fields. I went from being in the Information Technology industry for over 20 years to successfully launching my own job search coaching business in 2009.
For anyone transitioning from one field or industry to another I recommend the following:
1) Conduct informational interviews with people who are in the field / industry you want to pursue to find out what skills and experience they value. Also ask about the good and bad aspects of the career / industry so you really know what you are getting into. See the article on the RightChanges blog about the do and don’t of informational interviews.
2) Inventory your skills, abilities, and prior accomplishments so you can speak to how the experience you have to date positions you to be successful and help the company with their needs quickly. Use the STAR format to communicate your accomplishments.
3) Network into the new industry. Go to networking groups where employed people in that career / industry network.
4) Many industries and careers are going through changes. Join Linked In groups related to the new field so you can stay current.
5) Tell the people you know in your current field that you are considering the new career / industry; you never know who they know. A tool that will help them help you is the Marketing Plan.
6) If you are missing or are weak in a core skill, use this time to take training. There is free training available on so many subjects; you just need to be determined to find it. I recommend starting with a Google of “free training”. Many software companies offer free tutorials, on-line demonstrations, even a trial copy of their software.
Take this moment in your life to determine your passion and purpose and to identify who is hiring and where you want to work. You may end up being grateful for this period of transition.
Judi Adams
www.RightChanges.BIZ
For anyone transitioning from one field or industry to another I recommend the following:
1) Conduct informational interviews with people who are in the field / industry you want to pursue to find out what skills and experience they value. Also ask about the good and bad aspects of the career / industry so you really know what you are getting into. See the article on the RightChanges blog about the do and don’t of informational interviews.
2) Inventory your skills, abilities, and prior accomplishments so you can speak to how the experience you have to date positions you to be successful and help the company with their needs quickly. Use the STAR format to communicate your accomplishments.
3) Network into the new industry. Go to networking groups where employed people in that career / industry network.
4) Many industries and careers are going through changes. Join Linked In groups related to the new field so you can stay current.
5) Tell the people you know in your current field that you are considering the new career / industry; you never know who they know. A tool that will help them help you is the Marketing Plan.
6) If you are missing or are weak in a core skill, use this time to take training. There is free training available on so many subjects; you just need to be determined to find it. I recommend starting with a Google of “free training
Take this moment in your life to determine your passion and purpose and to identify who is hiring and where you want to work. You may end up being grateful for this period of transition.
Judi Adams
Monday, July 5, 2010
Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job –Step 4: The Search
If you have been following the steps outlined in this series, then you have completed steps one through three: every day you have chosen to have a good attitude, you have inventoried your unique skills and accomplishments, you have identified your target companies, and you developed and polished your marketing materials. You are now ready to find job leads and secure interviews.
From antidotal evidence, the percentage of job seekers who are using the wrong approach to the search is 80%+. Let’s look at the various approaches and it will be obvious where you want to spend the majority of your efforts searching for that next opportunity.
Applying On-line
The majority of job seekers spend most of their job search time applying to jobs on-line. Did you know that only 10% of people find their job through on-line ads? Let’s look at the reasons behind that statistic.
The Hidden Job Market
Most of the available jobs are not listed on-line; 85% of the available jobs are hidden. You have probably read about this Hidden Job Market. You may ask the question that other job seekers ask: “If they are trying to hire people, why would companies hide the jobs?”
One of the reasons for the hidden job market is that of the hundreds or thousands of applications filled out on-line and resumes sent in response to every job posted on-line, only 10% of them represent people who are even near to being qualified. There can only be two reasons a person would apply for a job for which they are not qualified. One: fulfilling the DOL requirement of x applications per week, Two: the job seeker is under the misconception that resumes are read by individuals and the reader will say “hey, this guy is not a match for this job but we can use him for another we have open”. What these job seekers do not understand is that people do not read every resume.
Larger companies now use keyword software to scan the resumes, from which only 10% of them will pass. 10% of hundreds or thousands is still a lot. Recruiters and hiring managers then select a batch of resumes from that number to visually scan. Your resume may or may not be in the batch that was selected for viewing. If your resume is lucky enough to be a part of the batch, your skills and experience must jump off the page in the 8 – 12 seconds given each resume.
Instead of going through this whole process to get qualified candidates, companies are getting the word out through employees who in turn refer people they know.
Another reason companies have hidden jobs is to keep from tipping their hand that they are about to fire someone. Take the position of CIO for example. There is only one CIO in a company so if the company is about to fire the existing CIO, the company would not want to place an ad and chance having the current CIO seeing it.
Now, all that said, although the odds are not great, 10% of people do find jobs applying on-line.
Working with Recruiters
The statistics say that 15% of job seekers find their jobs through recruiters (also known affectionately as headhunters). Recruiters are paid by companies to locate and present qualified candidates. As a job seeker, you are not the recruiter’s client, the company is. If the recruiter has two or three highly qualified candidates of which you are one, they will present all three candidates to the company, you and two of your competition. The recruiter does not really care if it is you or one of the other candidates who get the job; they just want the company to select someone they present so they have a happy customer and they get paid.
The number of job orders each recruiting company receives has gone down over the years yet the number of candidates has gone up. You practically need to know someone to get a recruiter to return your call.
But, again, 15% of job seekers do find their jobs through recruiters.
Networking
The statistic on the number of job seekers who find their job through networking is 75%. It’s also through networking that job seekers find the hidden job market. So ask yourself, where do you need to spend the majority of your time in your job search? Correct: networking.
You may feel you don’t have a very broad network, just a few friends, family, and peers, and they have been tapped out. The process of networking, when done correctly, will actually expand your network.
The powerful nature of networking is that the decision makers get to know you and all that you bring and they would rather hire you, a known entity, than someone they only know from a piece of paper, the resume.
Where to Network
Job Networking Groups
If you are fortune enough to have job networking groups in your community, such as Crossroads Career Network (www.CrossroadsCareer.org), then you should take advantage of these meetings. Join Linked In, Yahoo, and Google job search interest groups; they are a good source of information about the various groups in your region.
Go to more than one of these groups, each has their own personality and offers different things: spiritual support, job search tips, and one-on-one mentors.
Spend part of your networking time attending these job search groups. However, you do not want to limit your networking time to events where most of the members are unemployed. You want to also network with employed people who have the inside information about the hidden job market; you want to attend meetings where your prospective hiring manager networks.
Industry Networking Groups
Industry networking groups are target rich environments in which to network. These groups are attended by employed people in your industry. When you actively work an industry networking group, you will expand your contacts, you will keep up on the industry, and the right people will get to know you and what you have to offer, getting you closer to decision makers and that next job.
How to Network
Now, many of us do not LOVE to network. In fact many of us would rather have a dental procedure.
Two good books on how to network are: Susan RoAne’s How to Work a Room, Your Essentials Guide to Savvy Socializing and Jeanne Martinet’s The Art of Mingling.
When I was in a job search in 2002, before I learned how to do it right, I would attend industry networking groups but I would gravitate to the people I already knew, most of them from the job search networking groups I attended. I soon realized I was not expanding my network. I read Susan RoAne’s book and took one of the tips, to give myself an assignment to meet a subset of the people in attendance. Since at this high technology event, there were more men than women, I decided to meet the other women in attendance.
Using another tip from the book of approaching a person who is standing by themselves, I walked up to one lady, introduced myself, mentioned that I am not comfortable networking, explained my goal, and then invited her to introduce herself. After we talked for a minute or two, I said it was a pleasure meeting her, we exchanged contact information and, as I was about to move on, she asked if she could come with me. The two of us walked up to another lady standing by herself, introduced ourselves, told her of our goal, and asked her to tell us about herself. After talking and exchanging contact information, she asked if she could join us.
At the end of the networking portion of the meeting, we had all of the women on one side of the room. The reality was apparent: most people are not comfortable networking but given a goal, it is more productive.
The next time you go to a networking event, try serving as a host by introducing others. Find someone sitting or standing alone and after introducing yourselves, find another person walking by and invite him to join your group and introduce himself. You will meet many more people this way.
Other Networking Tips
There are a few basic principles that are true in networking as well as other aspects of life:
• When faced with a daunting task – like eating an elephant – do it one bite at a time
Set a goal for every networking event.
• People say the most interesting conversationalist is a good listener
Do not feel you have to do all of the talking. Ask questions about the other person and truly listen to what they say.
• You will receive back if you help others
People feel used if they realize your main purpose in networking is to see what they can do for you. Start by first finding out how you can help them and follow through.
Have Business Cards on Hand
You developed business cards as part of your marketing materials. Keep a large stash of the cards loose in your right hand pocket. Having your cards in a card case makes it hard to get a card out quickly. As you receive business cards from other people, put them in your left hand pocket so they do not get mixed in with your cards.
When you have a moment alone, note on the back of each card the event at which you met them and anything specific you want to contact them about.
If you receive enough business cards to make it cost effective, there are card scanners that scan the individual business cards and update Microsoft Outlook Contacts. This is a real time saver.
Keep Your Hands Free
Your main purpose at these events is not to eat and drink; your main purpose is to meet and deepen your network. If you need to eat and drink something, arrive early to grab something to eat and drink and leave the prime networking time for networking and your hands free to shake hands and exchange cards.
A Handshake Does Not a Relationship Make
Too many job seekers network with the misconception that just because they met someone, then that person will be committed to helping the job seeker. Even if the person said he would help, it does not mean it will remain in the forefront of his mind. Life happens. It is your responsibility, as the job seeker, to follow-up with the people you meet at events.
Different people have differing degrees of availability and interest in helping you. Determine who to stay in touch with. Make it more than a single meeting or an e-mail relationship. Offer to treat them to coffee/soda or lunch so you can develop rapport with them. The better they know you and the closer you are to them, the more likely they will be to open up their network of close contacts to you or recommend you to a colleague.
Even if you do not enjoy networking and are not good at it, these steps will make your networking events more productive and maybe even a little more tolerable.
To be successful, job seekers need to use the various search approaches proportional to their rates of return. Spend no more than 10% of your job search applying on-line. Do not spend more than 15% of your time working with recruiters. The majority of your time should be spent networking.
People who are currently employed should be networking too. Your next job is not your last; develop your network now before you need them. As the title of Harvey MacKay’s book indicates ”Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty”.
In the next installment of the “Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job” series by Judi Adams, Senior Job Search Coach of RightChanges.biz, we will cover Step 5 – Sort (The Interview).
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
From antidotal evidence, the percentage of job seekers who are using the wrong approach to the search is 80%+. Let’s look at the various approaches and it will be obvious where you want to spend the majority of your efforts searching for that next opportunity.
Applying On-line
The majority of job seekers spend most of their job search time applying to jobs on-line. Did you know that only 10% of people find their job through on-line ads? Let’s look at the reasons behind that statistic.
The Hidden Job Market
Most of the available jobs are not listed on-line; 85% of the available jobs are hidden. You have probably read about this Hidden Job Market. You may ask the question that other job seekers ask: “If they are trying to hire people, why would companies hide the jobs?”
One of the reasons for the hidden job market is that of the hundreds or thousands of applications filled out on-line and resumes sent in response to every job posted on-line, only 10% of them represent people who are even near to being qualified. There can only be two reasons a person would apply for a job for which they are not qualified. One: fulfilling the DOL requirement of x applications per week, Two: the job seeker is under the misconception that resumes are read by individuals and the reader will say “hey, this guy is not a match for this job but we can use him for another we have open”. What these job seekers do not understand is that people do not read every resume.
Larger companies now use keyword software to scan the resumes, from which only 10% of them will pass. 10% of hundreds or thousands is still a lot. Recruiters and hiring managers then select a batch of resumes from that number to visually scan. Your resume may or may not be in the batch that was selected for viewing. If your resume is lucky enough to be a part of the batch, your skills and experience must jump off the page in the 8 – 12 seconds given each resume.
Instead of going through this whole process to get qualified candidates, companies are getting the word out through employees who in turn refer people they know.
Another reason companies have hidden jobs is to keep from tipping their hand that they are about to fire someone. Take the position of CIO for example. There is only one CIO in a company so if the company is about to fire the existing CIO, the company would not want to place an ad and chance having the current CIO seeing it.
Now, all that said, although the odds are not great, 10% of people do find jobs applying on-line.
Working with Recruiters
The statistics say that 15% of job seekers find their jobs through recruiters (also known affectionately as headhunters). Recruiters are paid by companies to locate and present qualified candidates. As a job seeker, you are not the recruiter’s client, the company is. If the recruiter has two or three highly qualified candidates of which you are one, they will present all three candidates to the company, you and two of your competition. The recruiter does not really care if it is you or one of the other candidates who get the job; they just want the company to select someone they present so they have a happy customer and they get paid.
The number of job orders each recruiting company receives has gone down over the years yet the number of candidates has gone up. You practically need to know someone to get a recruiter to return your call.
But, again, 15% of job seekers do find their jobs through recruiters.
Networking
The statistic on the number of job seekers who find their job through networking is 75%. It’s also through networking that job seekers find the hidden job market. So ask yourself, where do you need to spend the majority of your time in your job search? Correct: networking.
You may feel you don’t have a very broad network, just a few friends, family, and peers, and they have been tapped out. The process of networking, when done correctly, will actually expand your network.
The powerful nature of networking is that the decision makers get to know you and all that you bring and they would rather hire you, a known entity, than someone they only know from a piece of paper, the resume.
Where to Network
Job Networking Groups
If you are fortune enough to have job networking groups in your community, such as Crossroads Career Network (www.CrossroadsCareer.org), then you should take advantage of these meetings. Join Linked In, Yahoo, and Google job search interest groups; they are a good source of information about the various groups in your region.
Go to more than one of these groups, each has their own personality and offers different things: spiritual support, job search tips, and one-on-one mentors.
Spend part of your networking time attending these job search groups. However, you do not want to limit your networking time to events where most of the members are unemployed. You want to also network with employed people who have the inside information about the hidden job market; you want to attend meetings where your prospective hiring manager networks.
Industry Networking Groups
Industry networking groups are target rich environments in which to network. These groups are attended by employed people in your industry. When you actively work an industry networking group, you will expand your contacts, you will keep up on the industry, and the right people will get to know you and what you have to offer, getting you closer to decision makers and that next job.
How to Network
Now, many of us do not LOVE to network. In fact many of us would rather have a dental procedure.
Two good books on how to network are: Susan RoAne’s How to Work a Room, Your Essentials Guide to Savvy Socializing and Jeanne Martinet’s The Art of Mingling.
When I was in a job search in 2002, before I learned how to do it right, I would attend industry networking groups but I would gravitate to the people I already knew, most of them from the job search networking groups I attended. I soon realized I was not expanding my network. I read Susan RoAne’s book and took one of the tips, to give myself an assignment to meet a subset of the people in attendance. Since at this high technology event, there were more men than women, I decided to meet the other women in attendance.
Using another tip from the book of approaching a person who is standing by themselves, I walked up to one lady, introduced myself, mentioned that I am not comfortable networking, explained my goal, and then invited her to introduce herself. After we talked for a minute or two, I said it was a pleasure meeting her, we exchanged contact information and, as I was about to move on, she asked if she could come with me. The two of us walked up to another lady standing by herself, introduced ourselves, told her of our goal, and asked her to tell us about herself. After talking and exchanging contact information, she asked if she could join us.
At the end of the networking portion of the meeting, we had all of the women on one side of the room. The reality was apparent: most people are not comfortable networking but given a goal, it is more productive.
The next time you go to a networking event, try serving as a host by introducing others. Find someone sitting or standing alone and after introducing yourselves, find another person walking by and invite him to join your group and introduce himself. You will meet many more people this way.
Other Networking Tips
There are a few basic principles that are true in networking as well as other aspects of life:
• When faced with a daunting task – like eating an elephant – do it one bite at a time
Set a goal for every networking event.
• People say the most interesting conversationalist is a good listener
Do not feel you have to do all of the talking. Ask questions about the other person and truly listen to what they say.
• You will receive back if you help others
People feel used if they realize your main purpose in networking is to see what they can do for you. Start by first finding out how you can help them and follow through.
Have Business Cards on Hand
You developed business cards as part of your marketing materials. Keep a large stash of the cards loose in your right hand pocket. Having your cards in a card case makes it hard to get a card out quickly. As you receive business cards from other people, put them in your left hand pocket so they do not get mixed in with your cards.
When you have a moment alone, note on the back of each card the event at which you met them and anything specific you want to contact them about.
If you receive enough business cards to make it cost effective, there are card scanners that scan the individual business cards and update Microsoft Outlook Contacts. This is a real time saver.
Keep Your Hands Free
Your main purpose at these events is not to eat and drink; your main purpose is to meet and deepen your network. If you need to eat and drink something, arrive early to grab something to eat and drink and leave the prime networking time for networking and your hands free to shake hands and exchange cards.
A Handshake Does Not a Relationship Make
Too many job seekers network with the misconception that just because they met someone, then that person will be committed to helping the job seeker. Even if the person said he would help, it does not mean it will remain in the forefront of his mind. Life happens. It is your responsibility, as the job seeker, to follow-up with the people you meet at events.
Different people have differing degrees of availability and interest in helping you. Determine who to stay in touch with. Make it more than a single meeting or an e-mail relationship. Offer to treat them to coffee/soda or lunch so you can develop rapport with them. The better they know you and the closer you are to them, the more likely they will be to open up their network of close contacts to you or recommend you to a colleague.
Even if you do not enjoy networking and are not good at it, these steps will make your networking events more productive and maybe even a little more tolerable.
To be successful, job seekers need to use the various search approaches proportional to their rates of return. Spend no more than 10% of your job search applying on-line. Do not spend more than 15% of your time working with recruiters. The majority of your time should be spent networking.
People who are currently employed should be networking too. Your next job is not your last; develop your network now before you need them. As the title of Harvey MacKay’s book indicates ”Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty”.
In the next installment of the “Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job” series by Judi Adams, Senior Job Search Coach of RightChanges.biz, we will cover Step 5 – Sort (The Interview).
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job –Your Marketing Materials (Part 4)
Are you ready to move forward with your job search? Let’s check because you do not want to update your resume or begin the search until you have successfully completed the first three steps.
Step 1 is Attitude. Attitude is the most important step. Conduct an honest attitude check.
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, if you have chosen to have a good attitude (and it is a choice), then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
Step 2 is Aptitude: In this tough job market, you must know and be able to articulate what you offer a future employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Take the time to inventory (discover and document) your abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, personality, and technical skills. This information will be used to strengthen your resume and to add power to your interview answers. A side benefit is that it reminds YOU how valuable you are.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
Step 3 is Altitude: Altitude is another term for determining who is hiring and where you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_18.html
If and only if you have completed Steps 1, 2, and 3 are you ready to create or update your marketing materials. Updating your marketing materials and launching your search without completing the first three steps will sabotage your job search efforts. If you have been in a job search and not getting results, revisit the first three steps and revise your marketing materials.
Complete List of Marketing Materials
The resume is not the only piece of a job seeker’s marketing material. In fact there are other pieces of marketing collateral that are just as important as the resume. It is important to have these and use them as they are intended. Let’s look at the entire list and then we will cover each one in detail.
• Brand Statement
• Elevator Pitch
• Marketing Plan
• Business Cards
• Resume / CV
• Cover Letter
• References
• Salary History
• Accomplishment List
• Social Network Sites especially Linked In
To read up on creating a brand statement and developing an elevator pitch, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_25.html
To read up on creating a marketing plan and how to use it, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/08/what-document-is-as-valuable-to-job.html
To read up on creating and using business cards, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/05/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
To read up on creating a powerful resume, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/05/take-next-important-step-to-landing_18.html
To read the previously published article: The Most Powerful Cover Letter, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/most-powerful-cover-letter.html
This week we are covering References, Salary History, Accomplishment List, and Social Networking.
REFERENCES
Companies may like what you said in the interview but companies also like talking with your references and asking questions about you to verify what you said about yourself is true.
Let’s start with a couple of don’t statements.
• Do not write “References available upon request” on your resume. In all except the rarest occasions, you will be asked for references so this is unnecessary.
• Do not give your references to an employer until asked.
• Do not use people as references unless you are confident they will say positive things about you.
• Do not assume your references and college degrees won’t be checked, even if they have never been checked before.
Now let’s discuss the do’s.
• Contact people who you want to use as a business or personal reference and ask them if they are willing to serve as your reference (do not assume). Some companies do not allow their employees to serve as a business reference for ex-employees. Ask your references to confirm their contact information (people change e-mail addresses more often than one would think) and preferred method of contact.
• When creating your printed reference list, use the same header as on your resume (your letterhead), list the references, and indicate if they are a business or personal reference.
• After an employer asks you for your list of references, contact each person on your reference sheet letting them know the name of the company, the title of the position you are applying for there, the traits they are looking for in a successful candidate, and then remind your contacts what you have done in the past that demonstrates these traits. On Law and Order this would be considered “leading the witness”; in the job search it is helping your references help you.
SALARY HISTORY
Although you will not give out salary information until you are in the negotiation phase, you should have a documented history of your salary, bonuses, etc. You have time; use some of it to compile that information. Watch in a couple of weeks for the article about Step 5, which will include ways to defer the salary discussion.
ACCOMPLISHMENT LIST
In Step 2, Aptitude, you documented your accomplishments in STAR format. These accomplishments will be used in three ways: to add power to your resume, to help answer interview questions, and to remind you how valuable you are when you start to feel down. Continually add to this list.
It is essential that you use all three parts of the STAR format. Remember to emphasize the R (results) while interviewing. On your resume, begin with the R. The hiring manager is especially interested in the R.
SOCIAL NEWORKING
Social networking (such as Linked In, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter) is the new forum for communication and many companies have a presence on a number of these sites. Since Recruiters and Human Resource representatives search the various social media to check out a candidate, job seekers need to have a presence on social media sites to show they are up to date on the newer technologies. This is especially true with more experienced (older) workers.
Linked In
• At a minimum, all job seekers must have a good profile on Linked In (www.LinkedIn.com). A good profile will have information from the resume, a professional picture, recommendations from former co-workers, and connections.
Join work related Linked In groups. Update your status periodically with work related books you have read and skills you have developed in order to keep your name out in front of the members of your Linked In network.
Send Linked In invitations to former co-workers, members of your network, and friends. When sending an invitation, customize the invitation so the person remembers how they know you. Beware that, if your invitations are rejected by multiple people instead of accepted or achieved, you will be locked out of Linked In. When you are on Linked In though, send an invitation to Judi Adams (author of this article) and mention that you read this article; your invitation will be accepted.
There will be more information on the use of Linked In for your job search in the next article.
Facebook, My Space, YouTube
The most important point about these sites is that IF you have a presence on them, do not have anything on them that you do not want your prospective boss to see or read. If you need to, clean them up now.
Check to see if your target companies have a site and if so, “friend” them and follow what they say.
Twitter
Many companies are Tweeting (the verb used when leaving a message on Twitter). At a minimum, job seekers should “follow” their target companies.
These are the minimum recommendations. Read up on Linked In and Twitter and leverage the power of this new media.
Next week we are moving on to Step 4 – Search. Too many job seekers are using the wrong approach to finding a job and it is causing them unnecessary frustration and wasted time. Find out how to do it right.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Step 1 is Attitude. Attitude is the most important step. Conduct an honest attitude check.
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, if you have chosen to have a good attitude (and it is a choice), then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
Step 2 is Aptitude: In this tough job market, you must know and be able to articulate what you offer a future employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Take the time to inventory (discover and document) your abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, personality, and technical skills. This information will be used to strengthen your resume and to add power to your interview answers. A side benefit is that it reminds YOU how valuable you are.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
Step 3 is Altitude: Altitude is another term for determining who is hiring and where you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_18.html
If and only if you have completed Steps 1, 2, and 3 are you ready to create or update your marketing materials. Updating your marketing materials and launching your search without completing the first three steps will sabotage your job search efforts. If you have been in a job search and not getting results, revisit the first three steps and revise your marketing materials.
Complete List of Marketing Materials
The resume is not the only piece of a job seeker’s marketing material. In fact there are other pieces of marketing collateral that are just as important as the resume. It is important to have these and use them as they are intended. Let’s look at the entire list and then we will cover each one in detail.
• Brand Statement
• Elevator Pitch
• Marketing Plan
• Business Cards
• Resume / CV
• Cover Letter
• References
• Salary History
• Accomplishment List
• Social Network Sites especially Linked In
To read up on creating a brand statement and developing an elevator pitch, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_25.html
To read up on creating a marketing plan and how to use it, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/08/what-document-is-as-valuable-to-job.html
To read up on creating and using business cards, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/05/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
To read up on creating a powerful resume, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/05/take-next-important-step-to-landing_18.html
To read the previously published article: The Most Powerful Cover Letter, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/most-powerful-cover-letter.html
This week we are covering References, Salary History, Accomplishment List, and Social Networking.
REFERENCES
Companies may like what you said in the interview but companies also like talking with your references and asking questions about you to verify what you said about yourself is true.
Let’s start with a couple of don’t statements.
• Do not write “References available upon request” on your resume. In all except the rarest occasions, you will be asked for references so this is unnecessary.
• Do not give your references to an employer until asked.
• Do not use people as references unless you are confident they will say positive things about you.
• Do not assume your references and college degrees won’t be checked, even if they have never been checked before.
Now let’s discuss the do’s.
• Contact people who you want to use as a business or personal reference and ask them if they are willing to serve as your reference (do not assume). Some companies do not allow their employees to serve as a business reference for ex-employees. Ask your references to confirm their contact information (people change e-mail addresses more often than one would think) and preferred method of contact.
• When creating your printed reference list, use the same header as on your resume (your letterhead), list the references, and indicate if they are a business or personal reference.
• After an employer asks you for your list of references, contact each person on your reference sheet letting them know the name of the company, the title of the position you are applying for there, the traits they are looking for in a successful candidate, and then remind your contacts what you have done in the past that demonstrates these traits. On Law and Order this would be considered “leading the witness”; in the job search it is helping your references help you.
SALARY HISTORY
Although you will not give out salary information until you are in the negotiation phase, you should have a documented history of your salary, bonuses, etc. You have time; use some of it to compile that information. Watch in a couple of weeks for the article about Step 5, which will include ways to defer the salary discussion.
ACCOMPLISHMENT LIST
In Step 2, Aptitude, you documented your accomplishments in STAR format. These accomplishments will be used in three ways: to add power to your resume, to help answer interview questions, and to remind you how valuable you are when you start to feel down. Continually add to this list.
It is essential that you use all three parts of the STAR format. Remember to emphasize the R (results) while interviewing. On your resume, begin with the R. The hiring manager is especially interested in the R.
SOCIAL NEWORKING
Social networking (such as Linked In, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter) is the new forum for communication and many companies have a presence on a number of these sites. Since Recruiters and Human Resource representatives search the various social media to check out a candidate, job seekers need to have a presence on social media sites to show they are up to date on the newer technologies. This is especially true with more experienced (older) workers.
Linked In
• At a minimum, all job seekers must have a good profile on Linked In (www.LinkedIn.com). A good profile will have information from the resume, a professional picture, recommendations from former co-workers, and connections.
Join work related Linked In groups. Update your status periodically with work related books you have read and skills you have developed in order to keep your name out in front of the members of your Linked In network.
Send Linked In invitations to former co-workers, members of your network, and friends. When sending an invitation, customize the invitation so the person remembers how they know you. Beware that, if your invitations are rejected by multiple people instead of accepted or achieved, you will be locked out of Linked In. When you are on Linked In though, send an invitation to Judi Adams (author of this article) and mention that you read this article; your invitation will be accepted.
There will be more information on the use of Linked In for your job search in the next article.
Facebook, My Space, YouTube
The most important point about these sites is that IF you have a presence on them, do not have anything on them that you do not want your prospective boss to see or read. If you need to, clean them up now.
Check to see if your target companies have a site and if so, “friend” them and follow what they say.
Many companies are Tweeting (the verb used when leaving a message on Twitter). At a minimum, job seekers should “follow” their target companies.
These are the minimum recommendations. Read up on Linked In and Twitter and leverage the power of this new media.
Next week we are moving on to Step 4 – Search. Too many job seekers are using the wrong approach to finding a job and it is causing them unnecessary frustration and wasted time. Find out how to do it right.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job –Your Marketing Materials (Part 3)
Are you ready to move forward with your job search? Let’s check.
Step 1 is Attitude. Attitude is the most important step.
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
Step 2 is Aptitude: knowing what you offer a future employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Take the time to inventory (discover and document) your abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, personality, and technical skills. This information will be used to strengthen your resume and to add power to your interview answers. A side benefit is that it reminds YOU how valuable you are.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
Step 3 is Altitude: who is hiring and where do you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_18.html
If and only if you have completed Steps 1, 2, and 3 are you ready to create or update your marketing materials. Updating your marketing materials and launching your search without completing the first three steps will sabotage your job search efforts. If you have been in a job search and it has not been going well, revisit the first three steps and then revise your marketing materials.
Complete List of Marketing Materials
The resume is not the only piece of a job seeker’s marketing material. In fact there are other pieces of marketing collateral that are just as important as the resume. It is important to have these and use them as they are intended. Let’s look at the entire list and then we will cover each one in detail.
• Brand Statement
• Elevator Pitch
• Marketing Plan
• Business Cards
• Resume / CV
• Cover Letter
• References
• Salary History
• Accomplishment List
• Social Network Sites especially Linked In
To read up on creating a brand statement and developing an elevator pitch, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_25.html
To read up on creating a marketing plan and how to use it, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/08/what-document-is-as-valuable-to-job.html
To read up on creating and using business cards, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/05/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
RESUME
There are entire books dedicated to the topic of do’s and don’t’s for resume writing, more information than any one article could cover. This article covers the typical questions asked by and mistakes made by job seekers. Just as important as the suggestions, included is the logic behind these suggestions.
Header
The name / address section is the header and is sometimes referred to as the letterhead because it is the letterhead for your stationery. This same letterhead should be used at the top of your cover letter, your reference list, and all career correspondences to give you a professional look. Here are a few points to check about your letterhead.
1. Your name should be in a larger font than the rest of the header; you want the reader to see and remember your name.
2. Your entire letterhead should not be the smallest font on the page or squeezed up at the top making it look like an afterthought. Again, you want the reader to see and remember your name
3. You do not need to preface your e-mail address with the word “email:” The format will indicate that.
4. Simplify things for the hiring manger by listing only one phone number, the number at which you can be reached the most often, which is usually your cell phone number. Just as it was unnecessary to preface the e-mail address with the word “e-mail”, you do not need to preface the phone number with the word “phone” or “cell”.
5. Have a professional and individual e-mail address (versus an email address that contains the name of the family or couple). Using your college mascot name in the e-mail address indicates your school spirit but is not professional.
6. Do not embed the header in the MS Word Header; it should be part of the body of the document.
Above the Fold
The top third of the first page of the resume is the most important. The typical reader of a resume will spend only seconds looking at your resume before deciding what to do with it - read on or discard. You want to be sure your most important skills, abilities, and accomplishments are mentioned in this section. Therefore, the combination resume format is recommended over the old chronological format.
1. A career summary section is more powerful and unique than an objectives statement. The typical objective is so vague that anyone could write the same statement, whereas a career summary statement is uniquely you.
2. Significant Qualifications: List the items that sell you. Use of category headers will help the reader understand how this section is formatted.
3. Do not use blocks of text in this section. Points should be concise. Use bullet points where possible.
4. Keep the “above the fold” section limited to the first half of the first page. The reader should be able to see the beginning of the experience section without having to turn the page.
Experience / Job History / Chronological Portion
A combination resume is recommended because it provides the important points in the most important section of the resume (“above the fold”) as well as the career history with key accomplishments that most recruiters and hiring managers like to see.
1. If you have worked several positions for the same company, be sure the formatting clearly indicates it. The start and end date at the company should be placed on the line with the company name and the position start and end date can be placed on the line with the position.
2. Under each position, in paragraph format, use no more than 5 lines to provide the job description. This description should define the duties of anyone who serves in that position.
3. Beneath each position use bullets to list the accomplishments you had in the position; i.e. what you brought to the job.
a. Quantify your accomplishments as much as possible; ex. Saved the company 120K
b. Sort your accomplishments in priority order. This is important for two reasons 1) in case the reader stops reading them, they have read the most important accomplishments first 2) when you go to trim your resume to make room for your new accomplishments, you can trim from the bottom.
4. When listing accomplishments, put the results first. We have been told to put power verbs up front and to be consistent with tense. We have also been told to answer interview questions in the STAR format: situation / task, actions, and results. In the accomplishment section, put the results first to grab the reader’s attention. Here is an example of an accomplishment statement before and after applying this principle.
Before:
Automated system installation process for a saving of $120,000 for a rollout schedule of 120 systems.
After:
Saved $120K by automating the system installation process for a rollout of 120 systems
5. Be 100% consistent with formatting. Start at the bottom and read to the top checking everything including the spacing around the dash in your dates, the fonts, commas, capitalizations, etc.
6. Spell out acronyms with the first use. This not only helps the person reviewing your resume but also increases the chances of getting your resume to pass an electronic keyword search.
Other Sections to Consider
Education
There are two schools of thought about putting the date of your graduation on your resume if you are beyond the age of 45.
A friend and fellow job search coach shared with a group that he felt leaving the date of graduation off the resume raises a flag that you are old.
My philosophy is that if I include the date, they not only know I am old, they know exactly how old I am. I recommend leaving it off if age discrimination is a possible concern.
Certificates and Related Training
Only relevant certificates should be included. If these certificates are significant enough to distinguish you as a candidate, you may want to add them to the section “above the fold”.
Publications
If you are a subject matter expert in your field and publish articles in trade magazines or respected web sites, you can list the names of the articles, the publication, and the publication date.
Technical Skills
List your computer skills or other technical skills that you have (ex. equipment you are skilled to work on). As with other special sections, if the information is significant enough to distinguish you as a candidate, you may want to add them to the section “above the fold”.
Languages
If you are fluent in languages other than the native language of the country in which you work, list the language and the level of skill you have in that language (written, verbal, fluent, native, etc.).
Items to Exclude
There are sections on the old resume format that are no longer needed. These should be excluded from the new resume format.
1. References Available Upon Request. Logic: references are now a regular part of the hiring process and are expected and assumed.
2. Hobbies and Interests. Logic: In previous years, this was a standard section on the resume so the hiring manager could see that you have other interests. Today, companies hire you for the work you will do for them. Listing non-relevant outside interests will make the hiring manager wonder if you will be distracted from the work they need you to do.
3. Non relevant certificates, training, etc. You do not want the important facts of your resume to get lost in the noise of the non-relevant text.
4. Jobs from more than 15 years ago. After a certain amount of time, that experience is no longer relevant.
Other Tips
Adding Your Name and Page Number on the second page.
When your resume is printed out by the recruiter or hiring manager, the pages may get separated. You should include your name and the page number on the second page. MS Word has a page header feature and with a simple check you can indicate that you want a different header for page one (blank) then you do on subsequent pages.
Insert a page header on the second page with your first and last name and on the right side of the header add the word “Page” and insert the automatic page number (also a feature within Word).
If you are unfamiliar with these features, simply Google “Microsoft Word insert page Header” and you will see tips on how to do this. The menus for the 2007 version of Word are very different than 2003 and earlier so you will want to select the tip that relates to the version of Word you are using.
Relevant Experience / Other Experience
If you have experience in the field you are pursuing and experience in other non-relevant fields, you can group the relevant experience together toward the top in a section titled Relevant Experience (instead of Experience). The advantage of this approach is that you help the reader find the relevant portions yet still provide the other information.
List the jobs as you normally would in the experience section (reverse chronological order). Do not be concerned about gaps in your job history. Following the Relevant Experience section, include a section titled Other Experience and list the remaining jobs there. Together they make up your job history. The term Relevant Experience will automatically inform the reader that you have grouped the job history into the two categories.
This is especially useful for job seekers who are changing careers.
Prioritize all lists
In any place on the resume where you list multiple items, be sure the items are listed in priority order, from the most important points to the hiring manager to the least important.
In some resumes, some job seekers listed awards they won before listing the accomplishments where they saved the company money or increased revenue. Most hiring managers consider saving a company money or increasing revenue more important than a personal award.
As stated above, sort any list in priority order. This is important for two reasons 1) in case the reader stops reading them, they have read the most important points first 2) when you go to trim your resume to make room, you can trim from the bottom.
Everyone has an Opinion
In this article the logic behind the recommendations have been included. Everyone has an opinion about resumes.
One person told me that he had his resume written by a firm and then for grins and giggles, he submitted the final copy under another name to the same firm to see what they would say about the format. He heard back that there was a lot of improvements they could make and that he should pay them to do so.
Some resume writers have been writing resumes for years and have not kept up on the newer trends. Before going with a resume writer, ask them to tell you some of the new trends in resumes to see if they are familiar with them. For instance if the resume writer has you add “References Available Upon Request”, walk away.
No matter who you have review your resume, if they make suggestions for changes, ask them the reasoning behind the suggestion; then you can make an informed decision about what changes to implement.
The Resume File Name
People use all kinds of file names for attaching resumes. In one case a person used a name that was not her own name, the position, nor the word “resume”. It is still a mystery how the person came up with the name.
1. The name should include your name and preferably the position you seek. Do not just name the file Resume.doc because it makes it harder for the recipient to file and locate your resume.
2. Minimize using any other items in your file name such as the date or version. Store old resumes in another folder on your PC or rename them instead of renaming your current version. Dates or version numbers may send a wrong, unintended message to the recipient (Joe Doe Resume version 99.doc).
COVER LETTER
Have you applied on-line or e-mailed a resume without a cover letter? Or do you write a wordy letter flowing with prose? If you answered yes to either of those, you are missing out on the most powerful cover letter that will get your resume sorted to the top.
To read the previously published article: The Most Powerful Cover Letter, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/most-powerful-cover-letter.html
Next week we will detail the final elements of your marketing materials.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Step 1 is Attitude. Attitude is the most important step.
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
Step 2 is Aptitude: knowing what you offer a future employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Take the time to inventory (discover and document) your abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, personality, and technical skills. This information will be used to strengthen your resume and to add power to your interview answers. A side benefit is that it reminds YOU how valuable you are.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
Step 3 is Altitude: who is hiring and where do you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_18.html
If and only if you have completed Steps 1, 2, and 3 are you ready to create or update your marketing materials. Updating your marketing materials and launching your search without completing the first three steps will sabotage your job search efforts. If you have been in a job search and it has not been going well, revisit the first three steps and then revise your marketing materials.
Complete List of Marketing Materials
The resume is not the only piece of a job seeker’s marketing material. In fact there are other pieces of marketing collateral that are just as important as the resume. It is important to have these and use them as they are intended. Let’s look at the entire list and then we will cover each one in detail.
• Brand Statement
• Elevator Pitch
• Marketing Plan
• Business Cards
• Resume / CV
• Cover Letter
• References
• Salary History
• Accomplishment List
• Social Network Sites especially Linked In
To read up on creating a brand statement and developing an elevator pitch, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_25.html
To read up on creating a marketing plan and how to use it, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/08/what-document-is-as-valuable-to-job.html
To read up on creating and using business cards, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/05/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
RESUME
There are entire books dedicated to the topic of do’s and don’t’s for resume writing, more information than any one article could cover. This article covers the typical questions asked by and mistakes made by job seekers. Just as important as the suggestions, included is the logic behind these suggestions.
Header
The name / address section is the header and is sometimes referred to as the letterhead because it is the letterhead for your stationery. This same letterhead should be used at the top of your cover letter, your reference list, and all career correspondences to give you a professional look. Here are a few points to check about your letterhead.
1. Your name should be in a larger font than the rest of the header; you want the reader to see and remember your name.
2. Your entire letterhead should not be the smallest font on the page or squeezed up at the top making it look like an afterthought. Again, you want the reader to see and remember your name
3. You do not need to preface your e-mail address with the word “email:” The format will indicate that.
4. Simplify things for the hiring manger by listing only one phone number, the number at which you can be reached the most often, which is usually your cell phone number. Just as it was unnecessary to preface the e-mail address with the word “e-mail”, you do not need to preface the phone number with the word “phone” or “cell”.
5. Have a professional and individual e-mail address (versus an email address that contains the name of the family or couple). Using your college mascot name in the e-mail address indicates your school spirit but is not professional.
6. Do not embed the header in the MS Word Header; it should be part of the body of the document.
Above the Fold
The top third of the first page of the resume is the most important. The typical reader of a resume will spend only seconds looking at your resume before deciding what to do with it - read on or discard. You want to be sure your most important skills, abilities, and accomplishments are mentioned in this section. Therefore, the combination resume format is recommended over the old chronological format.
1. A career summary section is more powerful and unique than an objectives statement. The typical objective is so vague that anyone could write the same statement, whereas a career summary statement is uniquely you.
2. Significant Qualifications: List the items that sell you. Use of category headers will help the reader understand how this section is formatted.
3. Do not use blocks of text in this section. Points should be concise. Use bullet points where possible.
4. Keep the “above the fold” section limited to the first half of the first page. The reader should be able to see the beginning of the experience section without having to turn the page.
Experience / Job History / Chronological Portion
A combination resume is recommended because it provides the important points in the most important section of the resume (“above the fold”) as well as the career history with key accomplishments that most recruiters and hiring managers like to see.
1. If you have worked several positions for the same company, be sure the formatting clearly indicates it. The start and end date at the company should be placed on the line with the company name and the position start and end date can be placed on the line with the position.
2. Under each position, in paragraph format, use no more than 5 lines to provide the job description. This description should define the duties of anyone who serves in that position.
3. Beneath each position use bullets to list the accomplishments you had in the position; i.e. what you brought to the job.
a. Quantify your accomplishments as much as possible; ex. Saved the company 120K
b. Sort your accomplishments in priority order. This is important for two reasons 1) in case the reader stops reading them, they have read the most important accomplishments first 2) when you go to trim your resume to make room for your new accomplishments, you can trim from the bottom.
4. When listing accomplishments, put the results first. We have been told to put power verbs up front and to be consistent with tense. We have also been told to answer interview questions in the STAR format: situation / task, actions, and results. In the accomplishment section, put the results first to grab the reader’s attention. Here is an example of an accomplishment statement before and after applying this principle.
Before:
Automated system installation process for a saving of $120,000 for a rollout schedule of 120 systems.
After:
Saved $120K by automating the system installation process for a rollout of 120 systems
5. Be 100% consistent with formatting. Start at the bottom and read to the top checking everything including the spacing around the dash in your dates, the fonts, commas, capitalizations, etc.
6. Spell out acronyms with the first use. This not only helps the person reviewing your resume but also increases the chances of getting your resume to pass an electronic keyword search.
Other Sections to Consider
Education
There are two schools of thought about putting the date of your graduation on your resume if you are beyond the age of 45.
A friend and fellow job search coach shared with a group that he felt leaving the date of graduation off the resume raises a flag that you are old.
My philosophy is that if I include the date, they not only know I am old, they know exactly how old I am. I recommend leaving it off if age discrimination is a possible concern.
Certificates and Related Training
Only relevant certificates should be included. If these certificates are significant enough to distinguish you as a candidate, you may want to add them to the section “above the fold”.
Publications
If you are a subject matter expert in your field and publish articles in trade magazines or respected web sites, you can list the names of the articles, the publication, and the publication date.
Technical Skills
List your computer skills or other technical skills that you have (ex. equipment you are skilled to work on). As with other special sections, if the information is significant enough to distinguish you as a candidate, you may want to add them to the section “above the fold”.
Languages
If you are fluent in languages other than the native language of the country in which you work, list the language and the level of skill you have in that language (written, verbal, fluent, native, etc.).
Items to Exclude
There are sections on the old resume format that are no longer needed. These should be excluded from the new resume format.
1. References Available Upon Request. Logic: references are now a regular part of the hiring process and are expected and assumed.
2. Hobbies and Interests. Logic: In previous years, this was a standard section on the resume so the hiring manager could see that you have other interests. Today, companies hire you for the work you will do for them. Listing non-relevant outside interests will make the hiring manager wonder if you will be distracted from the work they need you to do.
3. Non relevant certificates, training, etc. You do not want the important facts of your resume to get lost in the noise of the non-relevant text.
4. Jobs from more than 15 years ago. After a certain amount of time, that experience is no longer relevant.
Other Tips
Adding Your Name and Page Number on the second page.
When your resume is printed out by the recruiter or hiring manager, the pages may get separated. You should include your name and the page number on the second page. MS Word has a page header feature and with a simple check you can indicate that you want a different header for page one (blank) then you do on subsequent pages.
Insert a page header on the second page with your first and last name and on the right side of the header add the word “Page” and insert the automatic page number (also a feature within Word).
If you are unfamiliar with these features, simply Google “Microsoft Word insert page Header” and you will see tips on how to do this. The menus for the 2007 version of Word are very different than 2003 and earlier so you will want to select the tip that relates to the version of Word you are using.
Relevant Experience / Other Experience
If you have experience in the field you are pursuing and experience in other non-relevant fields, you can group the relevant experience together toward the top in a section titled Relevant Experience (instead of Experience). The advantage of this approach is that you help the reader find the relevant portions yet still provide the other information.
List the jobs as you normally would in the experience section (reverse chronological order). Do not be concerned about gaps in your job history. Following the Relevant Experience section, include a section titled Other Experience and list the remaining jobs there. Together they make up your job history. The term Relevant Experience will automatically inform the reader that you have grouped the job history into the two categories.
This is especially useful for job seekers who are changing careers.
Prioritize all lists
In any place on the resume where you list multiple items, be sure the items are listed in priority order, from the most important points to the hiring manager to the least important.
In some resumes, some job seekers listed awards they won before listing the accomplishments where they saved the company money or increased revenue. Most hiring managers consider saving a company money or increasing revenue more important than a personal award.
As stated above, sort any list in priority order. This is important for two reasons 1) in case the reader stops reading them, they have read the most important points first 2) when you go to trim your resume to make room, you can trim from the bottom.
Everyone has an Opinion
In this article the logic behind the recommendations have been included. Everyone has an opinion about resumes.
One person told me that he had his resume written by a firm and then for grins and giggles, he submitted the final copy under another name to the same firm to see what they would say about the format. He heard back that there was a lot of improvements they could make and that he should pay them to do so.
Some resume writers have been writing resumes for years and have not kept up on the newer trends. Before going with a resume writer, ask them to tell you some of the new trends in resumes to see if they are familiar with them. For instance if the resume writer has you add “References Available Upon Request”, walk away.
No matter who you have review your resume, if they make suggestions for changes, ask them the reasoning behind the suggestion; then you can make an informed decision about what changes to implement.
The Resume File Name
People use all kinds of file names for attaching resumes. In one case a person used a name that was not her own name, the position, nor the word “resume”. It is still a mystery how the person came up with the name.
1. The name should include your name and preferably the position you seek. Do not just name the file Resume.doc because it makes it harder for the recipient to file and locate your resume.
2. Minimize using any other items in your file name such as the date or version. Store old resumes in another folder on your PC or rename them instead of renaming your current version. Dates or version numbers may send a wrong, unintended message to the recipient (Joe Doe Resume version 99.doc).
COVER LETTER
Have you applied on-line or e-mailed a resume without a cover letter? Or do you write a wordy letter flowing with prose? If you answered yes to either of those, you are missing out on the most powerful cover letter that will get your resume sorted to the top.
To read the previously published article: The Most Powerful Cover Letter, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/most-powerful-cover-letter.html
Next week we will detail the final elements of your marketing materials.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job –Your Marketing Materials (Part 2)
Are you ready to move forward with your job search? Let’s check.
Step 1 was Attitude. Attitude is the most important step.
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
Step 2 is Aptitude: knowing what you offer a future employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Take the time to inventory (discover and document) your abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, personality, and technical skills. This information will be used to strengthen your resume and to add power to your interview answers. A side benefit is that it reminds YOU how valuable you are.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
Step 3 is Altitude: who is hiring and where you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_18.html
If and only if you have completed Steps 1, 2, and 3 are you ready to create or update your marketing materials. If you have not completed the previous steps, updating your marketing materials and launching your search at this point will sabotage your job search efforts. If you have been in a job search and it has not been going well, revisit the first three steps and then revise your marketing materials.
Complete List of Marketing Materials
The resume is not the only piece of marketing material. In fact there are other pieces of marketing collateral that are just as important as the resume. It is important to have these and use them as they are intended. Let’s look at the entire list and then we will cover each one in detail.
Brand Statement
Elevator Pitch
Marketing Plan
Business Cards
Resume / CV
Cover Letter
References
Salary History
Accomplishment List
Social Network Sites especially Linked In
To read up on creating a brand statement and developing an elevator pitch, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_25.html
Marketing Plan
Have you looked at the face of family and friends as you hand them your resume and ask for their help getting that next job? It is probably a mixture of confusion and bewilderment as they think, “What am I suppose to do with this?” Your resume says what you have done, not what you are looking for, at least not in the level of detail your network needs in order to help you.
Other job seekers just tell their network contacts what they are looking for expecting their friends to remember it all with everything else they have going in their own lives.
Instead you want to give your contacts the key words to listen for, the target companies you’d love to network into, and the various titles of the position you are looking for.
To know more about this one page document, the marketing plan, that will help your network contacts help you, go to this link:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/08/what-document-is-as-valuable-to-job.html
Business / Networking Cards
The most acceptable form for sharing contact information at events is the business card. The same is true at networking events when you are in a job search.
Office supply stores sell paper stock so you can print your own cards. A few words of caution: 1) do not use the stock that will leave a rough perforated edge. 2) Be very careful when printing that the card stock doesn’t feed through at a slight angle causing it to print askew. 3) Do not print and use a card that is too plain (ex. Lacking color). This is your marketing material; do not settle for anything less than professional looking cards.
There are on-line sites such as VistaPrint.com where you can choose from a select set of designs and get 250 cards for free (other than the price of shipping and handling which is between $5.45 and $25.19 depending on how fast you want your order).
Have a supply of your cards with you at all times.
At networking events, you want to have your business cards readily available to hand out. If you are right handed, put your business cards loose in your right hand pocket (not in a card case from which you have to pull them out of each time you need to get one). As you receive business cards from other people, put them in your left hand pocket. Do not mix the cards; you don’t want to waste valuable time routing through all of the cards to find one of yours to hand out. [Note: if you are left handed you can reverse these directions]. Jot a reminder on the back of the other person’s card with information on what you need to contact that person about.
Once you have a quiet moment, write on the back of all of the cards you received, the name of the event you met them at.
When you get home, follow-up on the promises you made (ex. the information you offered to send) and reach out and develop the contacts you made.
You can scan the cards or hand enter the information into Outlook or Excel , both of which provides easier look up and access to the information or you can keep a rolodex of the cards. A great little scanner that automatically feeds the information to Outlook is named NeatWorks. If you receive a lot of business cards through networking or through your line of work, this scanner is a time saver.
Designs: Choose a design that is professional and representative of your industry. A person in IT should not select butterflies. A graphic artist should not select a design that is too plain. If you are willing to pay for your cards (still a reasonable price), you can select from the other designs available.
Text: Of course you want to include on the card the primary contact information: 1) name, 2) phone number. On your marketing material, it is suggested you have the one primary phone number where you can be reached, which is usually the cell phone number 3) e-mail address. Your e-mail address should be professional and should include your name; it should not include a sports team’s name as the receiving party may be for the opponent team, it should not include the names of other family members, and it should not be “cute” (an e-mail address containing the cat’s name, Foxie, could send the wrong message). 4) You want to have the title of the job you are pursuing. 5) You can use the brand statement you created to differentiate yourself and you may also want to list a few other statements that help you stand out.
Have someone else review the text (spelling, grammar, the wording, etc.) before you print the cards.
Optional text:
Mailing address: On business cards companies include the mailing address. Job seekers fall into two camps: those who do not want their mailing address on the card and those who, like businesses, include them. I fall into the latter group and have never had an issue.
Linked In address: All job seekers should have a professional profile on Linked In. If your name is a common name, where more than one person has the same name, you may want to add the Linked In address so people can easily access the right profile.
Fax number: Although people still fax documents, it is not as common. You can save this space for other information and people can contact you to get that number if they need to fax something to you.
Web address: If you maintain a web site to illustrate your skills, the card should include the site’s web address.
What not to do:
Do not use all of the white space on your card. Doing so makes it hard to read and makes it hard for the other person to find a place to jot essential notes.
Do not put a miniature of your resume on the card. The purpose of the card is not to serve as the only form of contact.
Do not use a font size that is too small or a font type where the person cannot easily differentiate between characters such as one (1) and lower case L (l) and the letter O (o) and the number zero (0).
Do not use your former company’s business cards.
Do not mark out information on your card and write in corrected information.
Do not hand out your cards to any and every one walking by, as if you were handling out a flyer to an upcoming event. Cards should only be exchanged once a conversation has taken place and the parties agree to meet up or e-mail later.
Next week we will detail other elements of your marketing materials.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Step 1 was Attitude. Attitude is the most important step.
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
Step 2 is Aptitude: knowing what you offer a future employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Take the time to inventory (discover and document) your abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, personality, and technical skills. This information will be used to strengthen your resume and to add power to your interview answers. A side benefit is that it reminds YOU how valuable you are.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
Step 3 is Altitude: who is hiring and where you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_18.html
If and only if you have completed Steps 1, 2, and 3 are you ready to create or update your marketing materials. If you have not completed the previous steps, updating your marketing materials and launching your search at this point will sabotage your job search efforts. If you have been in a job search and it has not been going well, revisit the first three steps and then revise your marketing materials.
Complete List of Marketing Materials
The resume is not the only piece of marketing material. In fact there are other pieces of marketing collateral that are just as important as the resume. It is important to have these and use them as they are intended. Let’s look at the entire list and then we will cover each one in detail.
Brand Statement
Elevator Pitch
Marketing Plan
Business Cards
Resume / CV
Cover Letter
References
Salary History
Accomplishment List
Social Network Sites especially Linked In
To read up on creating a brand statement and developing an elevator pitch, go to:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_25.html
Marketing Plan
Have you looked at the face of family and friends as you hand them your resume and ask for their help getting that next job? It is probably a mixture of confusion and bewilderment as they think, “What am I suppose to do with this?” Your resume says what you have done, not what you are looking for, at least not in the level of detail your network needs in order to help you.
Other job seekers just tell their network contacts what they are looking for expecting their friends to remember it all with everything else they have going in their own lives.
Instead you want to give your contacts the key words to listen for, the target companies you’d love to network into, and the various titles of the position you are looking for.
To know more about this one page document, the marketing plan, that will help your network contacts help you, go to this link:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/08/what-document-is-as-valuable-to-job.html
Business / Networking Cards
The most acceptable form for sharing contact information at events is the business card. The same is true at networking events when you are in a job search.
Office supply stores sell paper stock so you can print your own cards. A few words of caution: 1) do not use the stock that will leave a rough perforated edge. 2) Be very careful when printing that the card stock doesn’t feed through at a slight angle causing it to print askew. 3) Do not print and use a card that is too plain (ex. Lacking color). This is your marketing material; do not settle for anything less than professional looking cards.
There are on-line sites such as VistaPrint.com where you can choose from a select set of designs and get 250 cards for free (other than the price of shipping and handling which is between $5.45 and $25.19 depending on how fast you want your order).
Have a supply of your cards with you at all times.
At networking events, you want to have your business cards readily available to hand out. If you are right handed, put your business cards loose in your right hand pocket (not in a card case from which you have to pull them out of each time you need to get one). As you receive business cards from other people, put them in your left hand pocket. Do not mix the cards; you don’t want to waste valuable time routing through all of the cards to find one of yours to hand out. [Note: if you are left handed you can reverse these directions]. Jot a reminder on the back of the other person’s card with information on what you need to contact that person about.
Once you have a quiet moment, write on the back of all of the cards you received, the name of the event you met them at.
When you get home, follow-up on the promises you made (ex. the information you offered to send) and reach out and develop the contacts you made.
You can scan the cards or hand enter the information into Outlook or Excel , both of which provides easier look up and access to the information or you can keep a rolodex of the cards. A great little scanner that automatically feeds the information to Outlook is named NeatWorks. If you receive a lot of business cards through networking or through your line of work, this scanner is a time saver.
Designs: Choose a design that is professional and representative of your industry. A person in IT should not select butterflies. A graphic artist should not select a design that is too plain. If you are willing to pay for your cards (still a reasonable price), you can select from the other designs available.
Text: Of course you want to include on the card the primary contact information: 1) name, 2) phone number. On your marketing material, it is suggested you have the one primary phone number where you can be reached, which is usually the cell phone number 3) e-mail address. Your e-mail address should be professional and should include your name; it should not include a sports team’s name as the receiving party may be for the opponent team, it should not include the names of other family members, and it should not be “cute” (an e-mail address containing the cat’s name, Foxie, could send the wrong message). 4) You want to have the title of the job you are pursuing. 5) You can use the brand statement you created to differentiate yourself and you may also want to list a few other statements that help you stand out.
Have someone else review the text (spelling, grammar, the wording, etc.) before you print the cards.
Optional text:
Mailing address: On business cards companies include the mailing address. Job seekers fall into two camps: those who do not want their mailing address on the card and those who, like businesses, include them. I fall into the latter group and have never had an issue.
Linked In address: All job seekers should have a professional profile on Linked In. If your name is a common name, where more than one person has the same name, you may want to add the Linked In address so people can easily access the right profile.
Fax number: Although people still fax documents, it is not as common. You can save this space for other information and people can contact you to get that number if they need to fax something to you.
Web address: If you maintain a web site to illustrate your skills, the card should include the site’s web address.
What not to do:
Do not use all of the white space on your card. Doing so makes it hard to read and makes it hard for the other person to find a place to jot essential notes.
Do not put a miniature of your resume on the card. The purpose of the card is not to serve as the only form of contact.
Do not use a font size that is too small or a font type where the person cannot easily differentiate between characters such as one (1) and lower case L (l) and the letter O (o) and the number zero (0).
Do not use your former company’s business cards.
Do not mark out information on your card and write in corrected information.
Do not hand out your cards to any and every one walking by, as if you were handling out a flyer to an upcoming event. Cards should only be exchanged once a conversation has taken place and the parties agree to meet up or e-mail later.
Next week we will detail other elements of your marketing materials.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job – Your Marketing Materials
Are you ready to move forward with your job search? Let’s check.
Step 1 was Attitude. Attitude is the most important step.
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
Step 2 is Aptitude: knowing what you offer a future employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Take the time to inventory (discover and document) your abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, personality, and technical skills. This information will be used to strengthen your resume and to add power to your interview answers. A side benefit is that it reminds YOU how valuable you are.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
Step 3 is Altitude: who is hiring and where you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_18.html
If, and only if, you have completed Steps 1, 2, and 3 are you ready to create or update your marketing materials. If you have not completed the previous steps, updating your marketing materials and launching your search at this point will sabotage your job search efforts. If you have been in a job search and it has not been going well, revisit the first three steps and then revise your marketing materials.
Complete List of Marketing Materials
The resume is not the only piece of marketing material. In fact there are other pieces of marketing collateral that are just as important as the resume. It is important to have these and use them as they are intended. Let’s look at the entire list and then we will cover each one in detail.
Brand Statement
Elevator Pitch
Marketing Plan
Business / Networking Cards
Resume / CV
Cover Letter
References
Salary History
Accomplishment List
Social Network Sites especially Linked In
Brand Statement
Job seekers are taking a lesson from commercial marketing gurus and creating a brand statement that in a short phrase sets them apart from their competition. I’m sure many of you know which credit card uses the phrases “priceless”. Spend 10 minutes watching television or reading a magazine and you could compile a long list of these.
In the job market of yesterday, job seekers could show up and practically fall into a job. Today the job market is tougher and job seekers have to set themselves apart from their competition and a brand statement helps do that.
Since we are not high paid marketing gurus, it may take a while to come up with the right brand statement that in a few words conveys the right message: the value you bring, the type of challenge you want and excel at. The statement should not need explanation and should be objective, fact based, not subjective or boastful.
Draft up a few brand statements, bounce ideas off of job search professionals whose advice you value, and try them on a few occasions to see the reaction you get.
Although one IT manager was known for taking dysfunctional IT teams and increasing their productivity and quality, the phrase “troubled teams” sounds too much like “troubled teens” so the brand statement “Success at Turning Around Troubled Teams” was not so successful. Once the problem with the brand statement was identified, the problem was quickly fixed and new business cards ordered.
Your brand statement quickly identifies your passion and distinguishes you from you competition.
Elevator Pitch
There are many opinions on the elements of and uses for an elevator pitch. The elevator pitch gets its name from the very concise response that you give to someone in an elevator who says “I thought I knew everyone in this building but I have not seen you before. I’m Sam, What do you do?” You only have a few floors on a moving elevator to answer this question and solicit Sam’s assistance.
The other, slightly longer forms of what people call the elevator pitch have other uses such as introducing yourself at a table of other job seekers at a job networking meeting so they know what you are looking for – down to the list of target companies and previous companies you have worked for. That level of explanation is valuable in that situation. The briefer form of the elevator pitch is the base for which additional information can be added when solicited for further clarification.
Let’s start with the basic form.
The Core Elements to Include
After sharing your name, give the following elements of information in a concise manner:
1) Level of the position you are seeking. Examples of level include “entry level”, “mid level”, “senior level”, “C level” (as in CEO or CIO ), “certified”.
2) Position you seek. Examples combining the level and the position are: Senior Business Analyst, entry level financial analyst, certified project manager.
3) Industry
4) Location. State your preferred geographic area and whether or not you are open to relocation.
5) Closing Question. Indicate your interest in engaging in further conversation by asking a question, in the form of a question, soliciting their assistance.
Let’s put the elements together into a concise (notice the repetitive use of that term) example.
Hi, I’m Janice Smith, I am looking for a Senior Business Analyst position with a software company or a company with a large IT organization, preferable in the Metro Atlanta area but I am willing to relocate within the south east. Do you know anyone in software?
Additional Elements
If time and the interest of the other person allows, you can add the following elements:
a) Your brand statement
b) Target companies
c) Further explanation of the type of work you are pursuing
Do Not Get Historical
Sam asked what you did, not what you have done all your life. You will not only waste valuable elevator time if you start to give your life’s history, Sam will only hear Charley Brown’s teacher “wha wha wha wha wha wha” and start to regret asking the question. Unless you are specifically asked, do not say what you have done as that is backward looking and in this job search you are forward looking.
Your elevator pitch is the most portable element of your marketing materials and should be shared with everyone within three feet of you.
Next week we will detail other elements of your marketing materials.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Step 1 was Attitude. Attitude is the most important step.
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
Step 2 is Aptitude: knowing what you offer a future employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Take the time to inventory (discover and document) your abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, personality, and technical skills. This information will be used to strengthen your resume and to add power to your interview answers. A side benefit is that it reminds YOU how valuable you are.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
Step 3 is Altitude: who is hiring and where you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing_18.html
If, and only if, you have completed Steps 1, 2, and 3 are you ready to create or update your marketing materials. If you have not completed the previous steps, updating your marketing materials and launching your search at this point will sabotage your job search efforts. If you have been in a job search and it has not been going well, revisit the first three steps and then revise your marketing materials.
Complete List of Marketing Materials
The resume is not the only piece of marketing material. In fact there are other pieces of marketing collateral that are just as important as the resume. It is important to have these and use them as they are intended. Let’s look at the entire list and then we will cover each one in detail.
Brand Statement
Elevator Pitch
Marketing Plan
Business / Networking Cards
Resume / CV
Cover Letter
References
Salary History
Accomplishment List
Social Network Sites especially Linked In
Brand Statement
Job seekers are taking a lesson from commercial marketing gurus and creating a brand statement that in a short phrase sets them apart from their competition. I’m sure many of you know which credit card uses the phrases “priceless”. Spend 10 minutes watching television or reading a magazine and you could compile a long list of these.
In the job market of yesterday, job seekers could show up and practically fall into a job. Today the job market is tougher and job seekers have to set themselves apart from their competition and a brand statement helps do that.
Since we are not high paid marketing gurus, it may take a while to come up with the right brand statement that in a few words conveys the right message: the value you bring, the type of challenge you want and excel at. The statement should not need explanation and should be objective, fact based, not subjective or boastful.
Draft up a few brand statements, bounce ideas off of job search professionals whose advice you value, and try them on a few occasions to see the reaction you get.
Although one IT manager was known for taking dysfunctional IT teams and increasing their productivity and quality, the phrase “troubled teams” sounds too much like “troubled teens” so the brand statement “Success at Turning Around Troubled Teams” was not so successful. Once the problem with the brand statement was identified, the problem was quickly fixed and new business cards ordered.
Your brand statement quickly identifies your passion and distinguishes you from you competition.
Elevator Pitch
There are many opinions on the elements of and uses for an elevator pitch. The elevator pitch gets its name from the very concise response that you give to someone in an elevator who says “I thought I knew everyone in this building but I have not seen you before. I’m Sam, What do you do?” You only have a few floors on a moving elevator to answer this question and solicit Sam’s assistance.
The other, slightly longer forms of what people call the elevator pitch have other uses such as introducing yourself at a table of other job seekers at a job networking meeting so they know what you are looking for – down to the list of target companies and previous companies you have worked for. That level of explanation is valuable in that situation. The briefer form of the elevator pitch is the base for which additional information can be added when solicited for further clarification.
Let’s start with the basic form.
The Core Elements to Include
After sharing your name, give the following elements of information in a concise manner:
1) Level of the position you are seeking. Examples of level include “entry level”, “mid level”, “senior level”, “C level” (as in CEO or CIO ), “certified”.
2) Position you seek. Examples combining the level and the position are: Senior Business Analyst, entry level financial analyst, certified project manager.
3) Industry
4) Location. State your preferred geographic area and whether or not you are open to relocation.
5) Closing Question. Indicate your interest in engaging in further conversation by asking a question, in the form of a question, soliciting their assistance.
Let’s put the elements together into a concise (notice the repetitive use of that term) example.
Hi, I’m Janice Smith, I am looking for a Senior Business Analyst position with a software company or a company with a large IT organization, preferable in the Metro Atlanta area but I am willing to relocate within the south east. Do you know anyone in software?
Additional Elements
If time and the interest of the other person allows, you can add the following elements:
a) Your brand statement
b) Target companies
c) Further explanation of the type of work you are pursuing
Do Not Get Historical
Sam asked what you did, not what you have done all your life. You will not only waste valuable elevator time if you start to give your life’s history, Sam will only hear Charley Brown’s teacher “wha wha wha wha wha wha” and start to regret asking the question. Unless you are specifically asked, do not say what you have done as that is backward looking and in this job search you are forward looking.
Your elevator pitch is the most portable element of your marketing materials and should be shared with everyone within three feet of you.
Next week we will detail other elements of your marketing materials.
Copyright: The 6 Steps of a Job Search are copyrighted by Crossroads Career Services.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job – Step 3
Are you ready to move forward with your job search? Let’s check.
Step 1 was Attitude. Attitude is the most important step. If you don’t have a positive attitude, it will show in your body language, which is 75-85% of your communication. Since people trust body language over the words you speak, without a positive attitude your body may be screaming “do not hire me”. A negative attitude will also be reflected in the words you say and in the energy you need to perform the job search.
If you do not have a positive attitude, if you are not looking forward to the next opportunity with hope- filled anticipation, do not start your job search; you will be sabotaging your own job search efforts. Instead, work on your attitude until you choose a positive attitude.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job.
Step 2 is Aptitude: knowing what you offer a future employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Let’s use the analogy of selling a computer. You would not go before a customer and try to sell a computer without knowing how it works and what makes it better than the competition’s. When asked by the customer “why should I buy this computer?” you would never think of saying “I don’t know” or merely “it’s a good one”. Yet too many job seekers update their resume with just their job history and apply to jobs without really knowing their product (them), being able to articulate how they are unique, and how the company would benefit by hiring them.
Take the time to inventory (discover and document) your abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, personality, and technical skills. This information will be used to strengthen your resume and to add power to your interview answers. A side benefit is that it reminds YOU how valuable you are.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
If you have completed Steps 1 & 2, you are ready to move on to Step 3.
Step 3 is Altitude: who is hiring and where you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
Go back to the analogy of selling a computer. You would not consider selling your computer at CVS Pharmacy. CVS is a great pharmacy but it is not a place people go to buy a computer. People who see a computer for sale at CVS would think it must not be very good since it is being sold there. Your PC sales would not flourish at CVS.
For your job search, you want to discover where you will flourish and who is hiring. It is only then that you can target your marketing materials, including your resume.
Where You Will Flourish
In Step 2 you should have discovered enough about yourself that you know how you work. You should know what type of environment in which you excel based upon your review of your personality, your career history, and what you liked best and least about each company, each manager, and each position you held. Using that information, identify companies that have the right culture and identify the type of work for which you have a passion. That passion will set you apart from your competition, from the people who are just looking for a job.
Leverage the most underutilized job search tool: the informational interview. The Informational Interview is a great way to get insider information to find out how the company is doing (is it flourishing?) and to find out if it is a company in which you will flourish.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/06/underutilized-job-search-tool.html
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/06/underutilized-job-search-tool_18.html
Who is Hiring
Most job seekers depend on the on-line ads to determine who is hiring. Since only 15%of the available jobs are posted, it is not the best way.
The best ways to find out who is hiring are 1) networking with employed people and 2) reading current business news.
Networking with the Employed
Find and attend industry or profession related networking groups. Examples of industry networking groups include healthcare organizations and automotive organizations. Profession related networking groups include SHRM for HR, PMI for Project Managers, and IIBA for Business Analysts.
Read Current Business News
Many of the major cities have business journals or chronicles. Atlanta has the Atlanta Business Chronicle, Chicago has Crains etc. Reading these publications weekly, as soon as they come out, will provide invaluable information about what new companies are moving to town, which are expanding, and which businesses are in trouble. The news also includes names of some of the key people in each company.
Only when you have successfully completed the first three steps can you properly update your resume and begin the search. Skipping the first three steps sabotages your job search efforts.
Make use of the Book of Lists available in most major cities that lists all of the area businesses, sliced and diced into various categories (or lists). You should read this book once from cover to cover and make note of the companies that interest you. Since most of the available jobs are in smaller companies, this is a great way to familiarize yourself with the smaller companies in your town that you didn't even know existed.
Next week we will discuss developing and powering up your marketing materials, of which the resume is only one piece.
Step 1 was Attitude. Attitude is the most important step. If you don’t have a positive attitude, it will show in your body language, which is 75-85% of your communication. Since people trust body language over the words you speak, without a positive attitude your body may be screaming “do not hire me”. A negative attitude will also be reflected in the words you say and in the energy you need to perform the job search.
If you do not have a positive attitude, if you are not looking forward to the next opportunity with hope- filled anticipation, do not start your job search; you will be sabotaging your own job search efforts. Instead, work on your attitude until you choose a positive attitude.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job.
Step 2 is Aptitude: knowing what you offer a future employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Let’s use the analogy of selling a computer. You would not go before a customer and try to sell a computer without knowing how it works and what makes it better than the competition’s. When asked by the customer “why should I buy this computer?” you would never think of saying “I don’t know” or merely “it’s a good one”. Yet too many job seekers update their resume with just their job history and apply to jobs without really knowing their product (them), being able to articulate how they are unique, and how the company would benefit by hiring them.
Take the time to inventory (discover and document) your abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, personality, and technical skills. This information will be used to strengthen your resume and to add power to your interview answers. A side benefit is that it reminds YOU how valuable you are.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/04/take-next-important-step-to-landing.html
If you have completed Steps 1 & 2, you are ready to move on to Step 3.
Step 3 is Altitude: who is hiring and where you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
Go back to the analogy of selling a computer. You would not consider selling your computer at CVS Pharmacy. CVS is a great pharmacy but it is not a place people go to buy a computer. People who see a computer for sale at CVS would think it must not be very good since it is being sold there. Your PC sales would not flourish at CVS.
For your job search, you want to discover where you will flourish and who is hiring. It is only then that you can target your marketing materials, including your resume.
Where You Will Flourish
In Step 2 you should have discovered enough about yourself that you know how you work. You should know what type of environment in which you excel based upon your review of your personality, your career history, and what you liked best and least about each company, each manager, and each position you held. Using that information, identify companies that have the right culture and identify the type of work for which you have a passion. That passion will set you apart from your competition, from the people who are just looking for a job.
Leverage the most underutilized job search tool: the informational interview. The Informational Interview is a great way to get insider information to find out how the company is doing (is it flourishing?) and to find out if it is a company in which you will flourish.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/06/underutilized-job-search-tool.html
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/06/underutilized-job-search-tool_18.html
Who is Hiring
Most job seekers depend on the on-line ads to determine who is hiring. Since only 15%of the available jobs are posted, it is not the best way.
The best ways to find out who is hiring are 1) networking with employed people and 2) reading current business news.
Networking with the Employed
Find and attend industry or profession related networking groups. Examples of industry networking groups include healthcare organizations and automotive organizations. Profession related networking groups include SHRM for HR, PMI for Project Managers, and IIBA for Business Analysts.
Read Current Business News
Many of the major cities have business journals or chronicles. Atlanta has the Atlanta Business Chronicle, Chicago has Crains etc. Reading these publications weekly, as soon as they come out, will provide invaluable information about what new companies are moving to town, which are expanding, and which businesses are in trouble. The news also includes names of some of the key people in each company.
Only when you have successfully completed the first three steps can you properly update your resume and begin the search. Skipping the first three steps sabotages your job search efforts.
Make use of the Book of Lists available in most major cities that lists all of the area businesses, sliced and diced into various categories (or lists). You should read this book once from cover to cover and make note of the companies that interest you. Since most of the available jobs are in smaller companies, this is a great way to familiarize yourself with the smaller companies in your town that you didn't even know existed.
Next week we will discuss developing and powering up your marketing materials, of which the resume is only one piece.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Take the Next Important Step to Landing that Job – Step 2
In the last article How to Stay Positive in a Job Search, we discussed the importance of a positive attitude in the job search. Attitude is the most important step. If you don’t have a positive attitude, it will show in your body language, which is 75-85% of your communication. Since people trust body language over the words you speak, without a positive attitude your body may be screaming “do not hire me”. A negative attitude will also be reflected in the words you say and in the energy you need to perform the job search.
If you do not have a positive attitude, if you are not looking forward to the next opportunity with hope- filled anticipation, do not start your job search; you will be sabotaging your own job search efforts. Instead, work on your attitude until you choose a positive attitude.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job. Step 2 is Aptitude, knowing what you bring to an employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Let’s use the analogy of selling a computer. You would not go before a customer and try to sell a computer without knowing how it works and what makes it better than the competition’s. When asked by the customer “why should I buy this computer” you would never think of saying “I don’t know” or merely “it’s a good one”. Yet too many job seekers update their resume with just their job history and apply to jobs without really knowing their product (them), being able to articulate how they are unique, and how the company would benefit by hiring them.
Every job seeker should take time to inventory (discover and document) their abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, and technical skills.
In addition to recalling this information from memory, job seekers should ask friends, family, former co-workers, former bosses, and gather this information from previous performance reviews and correspondences. These external sources of input are essential. We humans tend to minimize what comes easy to us, we think because it comes so easily it is no big deal where in fact, those skills or traits do not come easily to everyone and it is what makes us unique.
Accomplishments
Prior accomplishments are indicators of future performance, letting hiring managers know the value you will bring to their organization. This information will be useful to you in a variety of ways. Some of your accomplishments and skills will go into your resume and cover letters. Others will be used to answer interview questions. The balance will be used to remind you how valuable you are when you start to get discouraged. This information will also help you identify the environment in which you will flourish.
• Every resume should include previous accomplishments in bullet format in the “above the fold” portion of the resume as well as under the corresponding job.
• The cover letter should list accomplishments that correspond to the requirements (see the article The Most Powerful Cover Letter:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/most-powerful-cover-letter.html).
• When answering interview questions, especially behavioral style questions, job seekers should respond in STAR format leveraging one of their accomplishments.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/06/power-of-your-star-statements.html
Strengths
When asked their top five strengths, most job seekers give the same reply, “I’m a people person, I’m organized, results oriented, multi-tasker, and have a strong work ethic blah blah blah”. To stand out as a candidate, identify and learn to articulate your unique strengths. One approach is to take the on-line strength assessment that is offered when you purchase the book Strength Finders 2.0 by Tom Rath.
Values & Interests
The passion a job seeker shows in an interview sets them apart from other candidates. Find your passion.
Document your values to help you identify companies you would not work for based on the products they sell or the values they hold (ex. tobacco) and companies you would love to work for because of the causes they represent and forward (ex. ecology / green).
Consider how you can combine your skills and your interests. One job seeker wanted to pursue a job as a property manager. The same job seeker also had an interest in golf. That person is now a property manager of a resort. Not all interests will combine with your skills into the perfect job; consider it though.
Education & Technical Skills
Most, if not all, job seekers know to include college education and professional certificates on their resume. Job seekers should record all training they have taken even though this information will not make it onto the resume. These records should include seminars, webinars, and extensive self-study the job seeker has taken.
List all technical skills (software, hardware, and equipment) even if the technology is no longer current.
Why, you ask, should you record education that will not be used on the resume and technical skills for a technology that is no longer current? The answer is so you can use this information in an interview. When asked during an interview if you know a certain skill or concept that you do not know well or have experience with (ex. MS Excel) instead of saying “no” you can draw on something similar that you do know (ex. Lotus 1-2-3-) to illustrate your ability with that skill or concept (ex. spreadsheets).
This job market is tough and requires a more active sales approach. Knowing your product (you) and articulating what makes you a perfect fit for the job will increase the effectiveness of your resume, your networking, and your interviews.
Next week we will look at Step 3 – Altitude – who is hiring and where you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
Only when you have successfully completed the first three steps can you properly update your resume and begin the search. Skipping the first three steps sabotages your job search efforts.
If you do not have a positive attitude, if you are not looking forward to the next opportunity with hope- filled anticipation, do not start your job search; you will be sabotaging your own job search efforts. Instead, work on your attitude until you choose a positive attitude.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-stay-positive-in-job-search.html
If you have given yourself time to process the loss of the job and are looking forward to the next opportunity, then you are ready for the next important step to landing that job. Step 2 is Aptitude, knowing what you bring to an employer and what makes you better than your competition.
Let’s use the analogy of selling a computer. You would not go before a customer and try to sell a computer without knowing how it works and what makes it better than the competition’s. When asked by the customer “why should I buy this computer” you would never think of saying “I don’t know” or merely “it’s a good one”. Yet too many job seekers update their resume with just their job history and apply to jobs without really knowing their product (them), being able to articulate how they are unique, and how the company would benefit by hiring them.
Every job seeker should take time to inventory (discover and document) their abilities, accomplishments, strengths, values, interests, education, and technical skills.
In addition to recalling this information from memory, job seekers should ask friends, family, former co-workers, former bosses, and gather this information from previous performance reviews and correspondences. These external sources of input are essential. We humans tend to minimize what comes easy to us, we think because it comes so easily it is no big deal where in fact, those skills or traits do not come easily to everyone and it is what makes us unique.
Accomplishments
Prior accomplishments are indicators of future performance, letting hiring managers know the value you will bring to their organization. This information will be useful to you in a variety of ways. Some of your accomplishments and skills will go into your resume and cover letters. Others will be used to answer interview questions. The balance will be used to remind you how valuable you are when you start to get discouraged. This information will also help you identify the environment in which you will flourish.
• Every resume should include previous accomplishments in bullet format in the “above the fold” portion of the resume as well as under the corresponding job.
• The cover letter should list accomplishments that correspond to the requirements (see the article The Most Powerful Cover Letter:
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2010/03/most-powerful-cover-letter.html).
• When answering interview questions, especially behavioral style questions, job seekers should respond in STAR format leveraging one of their accomplishments.
http://rightchangesjobsearchcoach.blogspot.com/2009/06/power-of-your-star-statements.html
Strengths
When asked their top five strengths, most job seekers give the same reply, “I’m a people person, I’m organized, results oriented, multi-tasker, and have a strong work ethic blah blah blah”. To stand out as a candidate, identify and learn to articulate your unique strengths. One approach is to take the on-line strength assessment that is offered when you purchase the book Strength Finders 2.0 by Tom Rath.
Values & Interests
The passion a job seeker shows in an interview sets them apart from other candidates. Find your passion.
Document your values to help you identify companies you would not work for based on the products they sell or the values they hold (ex. tobacco) and companies you would love to work for because of the causes they represent and forward (ex. ecology / green).
Consider how you can combine your skills and your interests. One job seeker wanted to pursue a job as a property manager. The same job seeker also had an interest in golf. That person is now a property manager of a resort. Not all interests will combine with your skills into the perfect job; consider it though.
Education & Technical Skills
Most, if not all, job seekers know to include college education and professional certificates on their resume. Job seekers should record all training they have taken even though this information will not make it onto the resume. These records should include seminars, webinars, and extensive self-study the job seeker has taken.
List all technical skills (software, hardware, and equipment) even if the technology is no longer current.
Why, you ask, should you record education that will not be used on the resume and technical skills for a technology that is no longer current? The answer is so you can use this information in an interview. When asked during an interview if you know a certain skill or concept that you do not know well or have experience with (ex. MS Excel) instead of saying “no” you can draw on something similar that you do know (ex. Lotus 1-2-3-) to illustrate your ability with that skill or concept (ex. spreadsheets).
This job market is tough and requires a more active sales approach. Knowing your product (you) and articulating what makes you a perfect fit for the job will increase the effectiveness of your resume, your networking, and your interviews.
Next week we will look at Step 3 – Altitude – who is hiring and where you want to work, i.e. your target companies.
Only when you have successfully completed the first three steps can you properly update your resume and begin the search. Skipping the first three steps sabotages your job search efforts.
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