Daily Career Connection

Guest post by By Sharon Armstrong, owner, Sharon Armstrong and Associates and co-author, The Essential HR Handbook

This month I’d like to share some secrets on getting to the second interview. It’s simple really — just do a great job on the first interview!

A job interview is the most important undertaking in the job search process. It’s the key to being hired, and how you approach the interview can determine it’s outcome. The goal of the interview is to raise the interviewer’s expectation of you so you will be invited to continue in the selection process, and subsequently, receive a job offer.

To sell yourself effectively, you need to match the position requirements with your skills, accomplishments, and personal qualities. So begin by doing your research.

1. Visit the company website and get informed about the organization, it’s services and products.
2. Google the company, check out the Better Business Bureau to see if any complaints have been filed, read annual reports and trade publications. In addition, ask all your friends what they might know about the organization. Try to learn something about the interviewers too, if possible.
3. Practice some common interview questions. “I have 100 free ones on my website”: http://www.theessentialhrhandbook.com (click on the Free Report banner to access them. Please help yourself!)
4. Be prepared to ask questions. This is essential because it demonstrates your interest in the position and the company. It helps you uncover the interviewer’s needs and it provides some valuable information you’ll need to determine if that employer is right for you.
5. Pack extra copies of your resume and reference list.
6. Get a good night’s sleep!
7. Dress appropriately.
8. Make sure to arrive a little early — and be polite and professional as soon as you walk in the door. When I was a full-time recruiter, our receptionist would zip into my office right after an interview if the applicant hadn’t been nice to her. And the process would stop right there.

Don’t forget to send your career-related questions or column suggestions to me at: Sharon@sharonarmstrongandassociates.com. I’d love to hear from you.

Guest Post by Natalie Joan

In my last post I discussed what experience to include in your resumé, and stressed not to leave jobs out, as you don’t want to leave gaps in your work history. What is the issue with gaps in a resumé, and what do you do if you have gaps in your work history?

The real issue is a potential employer has no way of knowing why there is a three and a half year gap in your experience (for example), and is left to their own assumptions which may not be positive. Perhaps you deleted a job where you did not perform well or left on bad terms. Did you skip over a job because it doesn’t meet your career objective? Or, they may assume that you didn’t work at all during this unaccounted time.

To avoid this, any gaps in your work history need to be explained in writing.

There are a few general rules about resumé gaps:

* Any unaccounted time that is shorter than three months doesn’t need to be explained. Having 60-90 days in between jobs is not too unusual, and will hardly be noticed . Gaps extending beyond three months should be addressed in your cover letter or e-mail.
* Always, always, always be honest! I cannot stress this enough. If you are honest with your potential employer, you will not have to worry about what they may find when checking your references, doing a background check, or surprising you with questions in an interview.
* If you have held jobs that are not applicable to your career objective, include them anyway. Experience is experience, after all. Focus on transferable skills. Highlight accomplishments. Try to use it as an opportunity to demonstrate success in a field that is outside your current expertise, and thus exhibit your resourcefulness and flexibility.
* Rather than create gaps in your resumé, explain why you held jobs outside of your field in your cover letter or in an email to your potential employer. Given the current state of the economy, employers are likely to be more understanding than in the past regarding gaps of employment. Again, just be honest.

There are often valid reasons for gaps in employment. Did you go back to school? Take time off to raise your children, or to care for a loved one? Whether you had personal or professional reasons for not working, the gaps in your employment history need to be explained as you don’t want to leave the employer to make their own assumptions.

Whatever the reasons for the gaps in your work history, it’s important to keep the tone of your cover letter and resumé positive. You do not need to be apologetic – life happens and you don’t need to be sorry for taking time off of work. Be positive, and show your potential employer that you never lost focus on your career.

Article courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap, a content exchange service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships and recent graduates searching for entry level jobs and other career opportunities.

As the mother of a toddler, I go above and beyond to ensure that my son is not afraid of the world. I tell him I love him regularly, we spend quality time together, and I make sure he is safe.
When he questions the world, or is afraid of something, I comfort him and tell him it’s going to be ok. Then, he smiles at me and goes along his merry way.

How come as adults, we don’t have more people in our lives telling us that things are going to be ok?
Instead, we are bombarded with scary news. The internet, while an amazingly useful tool, spreads scary news like wildfire uncovered from the largest to the smallest places on the globe. I was on a news site the other day, and there was story after story, proving again, why we should be afraid. I am surprised we are able to leave our homes everyday.

The world does not have to be a scary place; what we focus on is scary.

So, How Do You Not Let Fear Get The Best Of You In Your Career? Follow These 5 Steps Below.

1. Recognize The Harm That Being Scared Does To Your Career.
We hear constantly that the job market is awful. (Or, in other words scary.) Unemployment is up and we should be happy to just have a job. The truth is many people are not happy, but fear keeps them from getting ready for their next job. Fear is paralyzing. It holds you back and prevents your creativity and energy, the real you, from emerging. Highly qualified, but less confident people lose job opportunities to the less qualified and more confident.

2. Ask Yourself What You Would Be Doing Next If You Were Not Scared.

It’s ok to think big and hope for the best. Having something positive and exciting to look forward to is wonderful. It gives your career purpose, passion, and direction. What do you want to do next in your career? Ask the question and let the answer come out. Don’t worry about how you will do it yet. Allow your dream to surface, and then you can find a way to make it happen.

3. Research What’s Working In Your Industry.

Every industry has some aspect of it that’s going right. Car companies might not be making as much money as they’d like, but car repair companies are doing well. In my former profession, which was marketing, sending out catalogs is no longer profitable, but social media is. Your goal is to look inside your industry to see where the opportunities are. Once you know what aspect of your industry IS making money, you can get yourself ready to learn more/train more/do more in that area.

4. Start Planning Now.

It’s true that there are fewer jobs today. Outsourcing has taken some jobs away. But that is not your excuse to stand still and do nothing about your career. Markets go up and down and yes, we are in a downturn. The good news is there will be an up, and you can get ready for your “up” now. List your goals. What do you want and what are the specific steps you can take to get there? When the opportunities arise, and they will, you will be ready.

5. Remind Yourself That There Is A Lot Of Good In The World Too.

Not everything is bad in the world. There are the family and friends you have in your life. There are seasons and beauty in nature. You have gifts and talents that are special to you. Focus on the positive in life and spread the word. People like, and need, to hear, see, and read the good too.

So, what do you say? You only have one life to live, so it might as well be a life you love!
 
About the Author

***Deborah Brown-Volkman, PCC, is the President of Surpass Your Dreams, Inc. a successful career, life, and mentor coaching company that works with Senior Executives,  Vice Presidents, and Managers who are looking for new career opportunities or seek to become more productive  in their current role. She is the author of “Coach Yourself To A New Career”, “Don’t Blow It! The Right Words For The Right Job” and “How To Feel Great At Work Everyday.”  Deborah can be reached at http://www.surpassyourdreams.com  http://www.reinvent-your-career.com  or at (631) 874-2877.***
***************************************
Deborah Brown-Volkman, PCC
Career, Life, Wellness, and Mentor Coach
President, Surpass Your Dreams, Inc.
http://www.surpassyourdreams.com  
info@surpassyourdreams.com
631-874-2877

CareerAlley
Author Website: http://careeralley.com

“On the road again - Just can’t wait to get on the road again.” - Willie Nelson

I was speaking with one of the recruiters that I work with and he told me that he has trouble filling all of the job openings he has. He told me that he has lots of mediocre applicants but very few high quality candidates. So what does that tell me? Well for one, there are way too many mediocre applicants out there, but it also tells me that the good ones are not marketing themselves to the right people.

Looking at the candidate side of the coin, there are so many job connections (search boards, recruiters, network, company career sites, etc.) and so little time. The generic list of links and contacts across the thousands and thousands of job search sites don’t always get you to where you want to be (no pun intended). Job search should be focused based on your experience and industry, and while I’m a big believer of the mass market method, you still need to focus on the right mass market.

“On the Road Again”, a familiar song for those of us who have been on the job hunt more than one time in our careers. But today’s quote and picture have another meaning, and that is if you’re not on the right road, it doesn’t matter where you are going because you are not going to get there.

Today’s post focuses on targeted job search for the Transportation industry. The same methodologies applied here can be (and should be) applied to every profession.

• Jobsinlogistics.com - This is a job search site and, according to their tag line “Find careers in Logistics, Supply Chain, Transportation, Freight Forwarding, 3PL, Distribution, Purchasing & Manufacturing“, covers the full range of transportation related jobs. The site has a box at top center for Job Seekers which allows search by category or city. You can also register on the site. Below this is the Job Search button which lists a number of job categories (or search all jobs). The center of the page has a very long list of companies (no links), which you can use a resource for looking directly at company career sites. There were over 2,500 job opportunities when I checked the site.

• Kimmel & Associates - This firm is a recruiter and specializes in Supply Chain, Freight Forwarding and Logistics (among other fields). Their main page has tabs at the top and clicking Other Industries leads to their page with links to logistics and freight forwarding. Click on this for a full page on the topic which provides an overview as well as a list of the types of positions they’ve filled. The left hand side of the page has links for job seekers (including creating an account, search jobs and career resources). Either create an account or click on Contact Us from the links at top for their address, email address and phone number.

• Logistics Publications List - This site provides a long list of trade publications associated with this industry. There are several benefits to reviewing trade publications:
  • They keep you up to date on what is happening in the industry
  • They provide resources (names of companies, individuals, etc.) which you can leverage for your search
  • Many have career / job opportunity sections which can provide direct links to jobs

• LogJobs.com - Another Job Search Board, this one focusing on the logistics industry. The site has several links at the top, including Post Resume, Jobs, View Contract Jobs and View Featured Jobs. Below this you can click on Find Jobs Now or Post Resume followed by a list of links to jobs by category. There is also a list of featured companies further down on the page. There were over 1,000 job opportunities when I checked the site.

• LogJobsSocial.com - Associated with LogJobs, this is a social network site designed specifically for this industry. You must register in order to use the site and there are great discussions (such as Networking for a new job). You can start your own discussion or select from the list of discussion categories on the right hand side of the page.

• Supply Chain Comment: Tips for Finding a Job if the Layoff Wave Hits You - A very good article posted on Supply Chain Digest (another good industry source) provides some good advice for finding a job. While some of the tips will be standard across fields, this article provides some additional insight into this industry. Certainly worth a read if you’ve just gotten started on your search.

Good luck in your search

Article courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap, a content exchange service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships and recent graduates searching for entry level jobs and other career opportunities.