Cv For Interviews

Posts Tagged ‘Employment’

For some reason, writing a description of ourselves and our life achievements is a difficult task. It is easy enough to recount our life to others, yet when it involves describing it with the aim of securing a job; suddenly the words to describe our talents escape us. Thus, the process of resume writing begins. To make a resume which describes personal achievements in a manner that will get noticed, the power of words must be used, as the use of keywords can make or break a resume. Keywords consist of the lexicon that relates to the field you are applying to work in. Including such vocabulary indicates some savvy of the field, and will immediately attract employers’ eyes to a resume. Keywords are also the words which make a strong resume: words of action, and words that show accomplishment and achievement - as opposed to words that merely describe previous employment. Lastly, use the vocabulary to market the resume. Marketing has proven to be a powerful tool, and should be used in the instrument of the resume. Using the right keywords can strongly change the tone of a resume, turning average curriculum vitae into a stellar description of achievements and talent.

Very often, if you are applying to one job, you are applying to many. Great - as chances of finding a fitting job are increased; not so great - as the resume is made to conform to as many job applications as possible. Fortunately, most of the various jobs being applied to fall under the same genre, so the resume will fit the majority of the jobs. However, it is important to make the resume as specific as possible to each job. This not only increases your chances of being noticed, as tailoring your resume to highlight your most applicable skills and experience to each particular job will result in a more interesting resume than a generalized one, but also shows the potential employer that you truly are interested in the specific position, and have put effort into making a resume that is not generic. Steering away from the general resume and keeping a resume focused is only a good thing in job applications.

This is where keywords come in. It is vital to show potential employers that you are a hard worker who will be a benefit to the company - as well as the type of employee who already knows about the field. If you are not yet acquainted, become knowledgeable in the lexicon pertaining to the job. Show that your previous jobs have used skills that will need to be used in this job. Indicate that you are not only capable, but you are interested enough to invest your time in learning about it before being promised a salary in the job. This shows potential and dedication, traits simple to convey by using the correct keywords which correspond to that which the career requires.

The mistake that far too many resume writers make is thinking that the best manner of phrasing must be the route that others have taken. In a resume, keeping to an accepted form is in order, but using others’ words is not! This will make your resume like any other - tidy, complete, and boring. When browsing through others’ resumes, learn and follow good resume form, and learn and avoid the common words. The vocabulary used must be relevant to you, and help describe as specifically as possible what you have done throughout your education and previous employments. Vocabulary that is relevant to you is not only that which applies to the job you want, but that which applies to you: don’t use words which you don’t know the meaning of - it’s important that your resume reflects you. At the same time, be sure to use proper grammar, and vocabulary that it is not obsolete. In other words, stay within the boundary: use vocabulary to indicate that you are a well-educated, contemporary person, who leaves out pretentious words and common slang, as neither end of the spectrum will strengthen a resume.

The words that you will use should be words that make you the most desirable candidate. In other words, your resume is your strongest initial marketing tool, and word choice plays a large role in this marketing scheme. Words should show you as an active, contributing player to every job and team you have worked with. Your resume should highlight your achievements at previous jobs - not your responsibilities. Using words of action make you jump from the paper into the resume reader’s mind. Exclude jobs that do not apply in any way to the job you hope for, and turn your activities into points that strengthen your potential as a candidate. For instance, focus on how you brought the soccer team together and the great group dynamics you helped to establish as captain of the team. This is more valuable knowledge than a winning record (unless you are an NCAA champion). This extra step of care put into your resume will result in a much stronger resume.

Making a unique resume takes thought and effort, but is possible and very worth it. An average list of accomplishments and employments can become a strong resume if phrased correctly. Remembering to use keywords pertaining to the career, as well as keywords which set your resume apart can make the difference between an average and an exceptional resume. Marketing yourself as not merely a good worker and team member, but as a creative addition, will also strengthen the value of a resume. Make sure that in fitting the form of a standard resume, yours is completely unique when it comes to content. Words, those strings of morphemes which the world is never short of, are the secret to making a strong, unique resume when used with careful thought and attention.

Interviewing is a two-way street.  Obviously, the organization is using the interview process to evaluate you and your credentials to determine if you are a solid fit for the company’s needs.  But the interview is equally important for the opportunity it affords you to evaluate how well the company and the position match what you are seeking.  Formulating a series of well-thought out questions in advance of the interview will not only help you draw out pertinent information form the interviewer, but also demonstrate your intelligence and sincere interest in the position at hand.

The best questions are those that arise from the initial research you will conduct of the organization while preparing for the interview.  Whenever possible, questions should be tailored to the position and company.   The following questions will provide you with some ideas and get you started thinking about potential interview questions you may want to consider asking employers during the interview.

- Fit for the Position

What are the most important skills and attributes a candidate needs to be successful in this position?

What are the characteristics of a successful employee in your organization?

Describe the work environment.

What are the challenging facets of the job?

What would be a typical work day in this position?

What is your management style?

What is your preferred method of communicating with your team?

What is the next step in the interviewing process?

- Company Culture

How would you describe your company culture?

What is the organization structure of your department?

Who are the primary parties that you are responsible to support: shareholders, customers, employees, etc.?  How do you go about making decisions when the needs of these groups are at odds with each other?

- Measures for Success

What are your expectations for new employee hires within their first 90 days on the job?  Within the first six months?

How and when will my job performance be evaluated?

What metrics are used to measure whether or not you are achieving your predetermined goals?

How will my success in this position be measured?

How is success measured in this department (or organization)?

- The Future of the Organization

What is your vision for the organization (or department) over the next two years?  Next five years?

What current major challenges are you facing as a manager?

What is the organization’s biggest challenge currently?

What is the organization’s competitive advantage in the marketplace?

The job market can be very competitive which leads many people to ask themselves, “How do you write a cover letter for employment?”  It is true that writing a compelling cover letter can be a daunting task.  A cover letter introduces not only you but your resume as well.  You want that cover letter to be interesting and make the person reading it not only WANT to read your resume but HAVE to read your resume.

So how do you write a cover letter for employment?  Start out by referring to the job that you are applying for and note where you found the position opening.  Remember that if you found it in a newspaper, underline the name of the newspaper.  Sometimes these little details really count!  Then go on in your cover letter to say how excited you are to know that there is a job like this available and how interested in it you are.

Your resume should be concise, but your cover letter can be a little more in-depth.  I have applied for countless jobs and experimented around with various formats for cover letters.  That does not necessarily make me an expert so I can answer the question of “how do you write a cover letter for employment”, but it surely has taught me a few things about what I shouldn’t do!

First and foremost, be brief in your cover letter.  Introduce yourself, tell the employer why you want the job, let them know about your special skills that would make you perfect for the job, and then express your eagerness for a personal interview.  You should ALWAYS include a telephone number at the end of the cover letter so that the employer knows how to get hold of you.  They may not always pay attention to the top part of your resume, but they most likely will see your contact number in your cover letter.

So, how do you write a cover letter for employment?  Just speak from the heart and let the person reading the cover letter know that you are truly interested in the job and that you have the qualifications to do the job.  Be sure and let them know, too, that what you do not know, you are eager to learn.  Your cover letter should be professional, but it should also reflect your personality.  That is what will get you the interview.  Once you are face to face with the person doing the hiring, it should be a cake walk from that point.  After all, it is your personality – as well as your abilities – that make you perfect for this job.  When you are face to face, you can express that in ways that can never be shown on a simple piece of paper!

There really is no such thing as an autobiographical sketch resume per se.  While a resume is a brief sketch of your employment and education history, you won’t want to include any personal information on your resume which is why some companies ask you to provide a written autobiographical sketch along with your resume when applying for a job.  Although they are two different documents, the two collectively together are referred to as a single document called an autobiographical sketch resume.

An autobiographical sketch resume is often used to determine the way you write and organize information and ideas.  Prospective employers are looking for words that flow, ideas that lead smoothly from one to the other, and good use of the English language.  You need to include a lot of information in your autobiographical sketch resume.

First, know that prospective employers are not necessarily looking for personal information in an autobiographical sketch resume.  If you want to offer up that information yourself, you can certainly do that, but, most likely what they want to know about is how you got into the field you are working in or the reasons why you want to work in another field.  They may also be wondering your thought processes regarding the philosophy of the business world or the career you want to get into.

Some things to include in your autobiographical sketch resume would be past work experience, why you decided to work in that field, thought processes about work assignments, any new projects and feelings about how you were going to complete those projects, and interactions with co-workers.  You will want the whole thing to be a page or less and you will also want it to be extremely positive.  Focus on the good stuff, stay away from the bad stuff.

When writing an autobiographical sketch resume, be professional and use good prose.  Make sure the words flow smoothly.  You may want to read it to someone else to get their opinion of what you have created.  Then, you can make any changes you think you need to make to improve it.  This is how your potential boss will get an introduction to you, so you will want it to be a great example of who you are and what you are capable of.

Writing an autobiographical sketch resume is not difficult, but it must be done in a way so that you will represent yourself in the most positive light that will compel your prospective employer to call you for an interview.  After that, you can dazzle them in person and show them that what you wrote in your autobiographical sketch resume really was true after all!