Cv for Interviews

Posts Tagged ‘Important Things’

Correct these 3 fatal flaws to dramatically improve your chances of winning job interviews…and getting job offers:

1. An ordinary resume without a good Look and Feel.
2. Weak communication skills.
3. A below average personal appearance.

If anything I say rubs you the wrong way…this might be a good thing. Pain often awakens something deep inside us, making it easier for us to see true reality instead of our limited perception of it.

Your shortcoming could be something simple to overcome…or a little more complex to solve. Either way, any problem can be solved if you simply park your ego, open your mind, and learn to see yourself in a new way.

Ok…ready? Let’s go over each of these areas. Examples and detailed instruction is provided via the link at the end of this article:

An ordinary resume:

More than ever, companies today are making the decision to interview you not only from the content of your resume, but its overall Look and Feel. It is one of the most important things you can do to improve your odds of getting an interview.

Yet, most people let their egos take over and create a resume that basically screens them out. And, by the way, it doesn’t make any difference if your resume was done by a professional resume writer. Some of those resumes don’t work very well either.

How do I know this?

Because for years I made my living by placing people with companies who gladly paid me a hefty fee to find qualified people for them. I grew sick and tired of seeing outstanding people rejected all because someone at the company didn’t like their resume.

So, if I didn’t fix this problem, I didn’t eat. Simple as that.

Special Tip: Your resume is a work in progress. It can be updated and tailored frequently. But, the do’s and don’ts of creating content and developing a good Look and Feel do not change.

Weak Communication skills:

Ok…once your resume is up to snuff and starting to turn a few heads, you can expect a couple of calls to set up a phone interview. This is the next critical hurdle you need to get over to be invited in for a face-to-face interview.

No face-to-face interview…no chance of an offer.

The only purpose of your resume and phone interview is to win an on-site interview. Period.

The telephone is a cold instrument and it is difficult to get a warm and fuzzy feeling for someone over the phone. So, you need to communicate well over the phone in order to make a positive impression.

Below Average Personal Appearance:

Ok…your resume is starting to work for you. And, you nailed your phone interview. Your greatest challenge now lies ahead…making a good first impression at your on-site interview.

Fact: People will judge you by your appearance. This is unfair, but it’s an unavoidable reality. Human beings are visual creatures.

During your job search, your appearance needs to be on the conservative side and your body language positive. I’ve seen a lot of bright, talented people rejected because of a poor personal appearance.

On the other hand, I’ve seen some pretty average folks hired because they looked sharp and interviewed well. More often than not, the best prepared candidate is hired over the best qualified candidate.

You may not have the money right now, but if your clothing is old and out of style, you might want to consider it. Also, work with a good clothing consultant at the store. Tell him/her that you are looking for a job and want to look your best.

My April newsletter, Job Brick Wall, contains detailed examples of what works best to overcome these 3 fatal flaws.

All the best to you with your job search.

Mike

Michael Petras is a veteran Executive Recruiter of 14 years and also spent 20 years in the Recreational Vehicle Industry as a Regional Sales Director. He hired and trained over 50 sales professionals. Many have since gone on to become Directors, Executives, and Presidents of companies both inside and outside the RV Industry. Mike conducts community workshops for job seekers and career changers on a volunteer basis. He also publishes a daily blog and a monthly newsletter available through his website: http://www.job-interview-wisdom.com.

Important Things to Remember About Finding a Job in This Economy

Finding a job seems like it can be a very hard thing to do right now, especially in this economy. Even when things were going very well in the economy, there was still a lot of competition because people are getting smarter and more determined. You can’t simply go to school or learn something and apply to a job and expects to make it turn up many more. You have to have several ways that you can distinguish yourself and stand apart from everybody else. This alone is the hardest part in getting a job, not acquiring the skills necessary.

So, what can you do to stand apart from the others? What can he do that will make you memorable to the person that interviews you? Well, for starters you can avoid the common mistakes. Be sure to bring your resume to your interview. Be sure to give everyone firm handshakes. Be sure to let everyone in the eye, and to be confident and smile. If you do all these things, you’re on a roll. Of course, you’re going to want to arrive too early or arrive late at all. Neither of these looks good and you’re trying to distinguish yourself, remember?

As for dress, you don’t want to wear anything too flashy. This may sound counter-intuitive, but you will be remembered for your crazy outfit. Instead, I will just distract your interviewee during the interview. If you want to be remembered, you need to ask intelligent questions and for a dialogue with the person interviewing you. Respond to questions slowly and thoughtfully and be sure to have many questions of your own, about the person ends about the company.

This will show them that you did your homework. This will show them that you know what you’re talking about that you can have an intelligent discussion with just about anybody. You’re basically building rapport and because of this you will stand out to the interviewee.

Mark J Sinclair is an expert on gliders for nursery and he knows all about the best swivel glider chair too.

Looking for a job in any field, especially for a beginner, has always been challenging – beginners have to overcome their own insecurities, at the same time that they learn to navigate the marketplace and follow promising leads. Here are some of the most important things that you can do to speed up your job search:

Prepare a good resume and cover letter

Most people do not understand the purpose of a resume – it is not to get you a job. It is the interview and subsequent meetings that will convince the prospective employer to hire you.

The resume’s main purpose is to open the door and get you that interview. But now you need to consider the employer – he or she is busy, has little time to review lots of resumes, is probably confronted with many many resumes, most of which are from people who lack the proper qualifications. So how will a resume convince the employer to call you for an interview.

The resume must stand out – there are just too many that look alike for any but the most interesting and powerful to stand out. You need to capture the employer’s attention and interest – your resume needs to make the employer feel that “this” one seems promising.

Make sure that the resume is very clear – you need to make it easy for the employer to pick out what he or she is looking for. List specific skills and experiences that you know the employer is looking for – don’t be vague!

Integrate into the resume any and all experience in the field that you are applying for that you have acquired- even if it was not. Experience in any kind of writing counts for something – and often it is the very “something” that motivates the employer to give you a call.

But simply waiting to hear from a company to which you have sent your resume is counterproductive. Here are some tips:

Use Social Contacts

It’s best to try to spread name out to as many people as possible and to let people know that you’re in the job market; this is the way many professionals find jobs, especially freelance jobs. Use your social contacts as much as possible – today, the internet also provides many ways to expand and reinforce social contacts: social networks such as LinkedIn and Facebook, twitter, etc. Make sure that you have a good LinkedIn profile and an impressive resume there – then make a habit of linking to people, correspond with your links, send lots of messages, join groups and make comments or send messages.

The key is to maintain a high profile. You can try to reinforce the internet links with real meetings wherever possible.

Social networking is one of the main ways that professionals get jobs today, especially in hi-tech fields such as programming, technical writing, etc.

Be Proactive

It’s important to realize that you need to actively contact people to get a job – you can’t just send out resumes and wait. Actively contact companies that you have strong reason to suspect have a job opening, or are contemplating one. Many companies do not advertise their open positions right away – if you can contact the company before they think about advertising, you can considerably increase your chances of getting a job.

Where do you get tips about which company has a potential opening? One source is from friends who work in the company – for example, friends may tip you off about an upcoming project. You then simply contact the company directly and introduce yourself as a friend of so and so, and suggest a meeting.

Other ways of finding clues as to which companies are hiring in your field is to follow advertisements for positions that are related to your own. For example, say you are a technical writer and you discover that a software company suddenly advertises for software engineers, programmers, and other hi-tech personnel. This indicates that the company may be starting the development of a new product or product version. Now you make a good guess that the company might be under pressure to finish a lot of documentation related to the project – so you contact them and ask if they are interested in hiring a good technical writer.

Be Persistent
You can’t just say, “OK, I’ve done enough, I’ve sent 50 resumes, that’s it. You need to be persistent. Of course, some people confuse persistence with misguided obstinacy – they send out their resume to one company and then just sit and wait for one company to come through – this is like waiting for the winning lottery ticket. That kind of persistence is just a waste of time and emotional energy.

Real persistence means to keep contacting new companies – you need to keep going and never give up. When you get a “no” from a company, just go to the next one. To put yourself in the right frame of mind to do this, just tell yourself that you have to collect lots of “no’s” before you get a “yes” – every time you get a “no” you get that much closer to getting a “yes”. That’s the reverse psychology that you need to keep going. Tell yourself that if you don’t get 10 “nos” you won’t get a job; force yourself to keep contacting new places. Have confidence when you contact a potential employer – don’t sit trembling in fear, hoping to hear a “yes”. And, avoid contacting an employer again after they have rejected you. I have seen some people contact the same company again and again, as if there were no other companies to apply to. This is a mistake – a completely warped idea of what it means to be persistent.

You can considerably increase your chances of finding a job if you apply the strategies and techniques outlined in this article – be creative, open, sociable, and persistent.

Educator and sociologist Dr. Mati Schwrarcz has been training English speakers as technical writers and marcom specialists for over 17 years. Since then his graduates have become leading writers in hi-tech companies throughout the world.

YEDA Center for Technical Communications

http://www.yedacenter.com

If you want to increase your chances of getting your perfect job, you want to make
sure you do well at the interview. One of the most important things to remember is
to remain focused on the interviewer and the interview. There is no quicker way to
fail at an interview than to allow the interviewer to see you looking out the window
or daydreaming rather than focusing on him or her and the interview. It is not only
rude but it makes the interviewer feel you are not interested in the interview itself.
Some people just feel as long as they are listening to what the interviewer has to
say there is no need to maintain eye contact. Unfortunately this is an incorrect line
of thinking and in fact makes the interviewer feel you are not really interested in
anything he or she has to say. Keep in mind that the interviewer is sizing you to
see if you are a good fit for the company, so if he cannot read your eyes because
you are staring into space you may as well leave the room because you have
already lost any chance of getting that perfect job.

Even if you find interviews boring, and most of us do, you still have to maintain an
aura of interest if you expect to be hired for that perfect job. Its not difficult to
pretend to be interested for the few minutes you will be talking to the interviewer.
Remember, if you fail at the interview you will have to continue the process but if
you present a good image and are hired you do not have to go to any more
interviews.

If you have trouble focusing when you go to an interview, try practicing at home so
that you can get into the habit of maintaining eye contact with your interviewer in
order to increase your chances of getting that perfect job. Learn to look at the
interviewer instead of out the window, into space or down at the floorworse yet,
looking at messages on your cell phone. Your focus and attention need to be on the
person who is interviewing you and not on anything else in the room. Remember
the interviewer has other things to do and has taken time out of his or her busy
schedule to interview you for the job.