Tag Archives: Resumes

Back to Basics: Resumes, References and Networking

Many job seekers start the hunt with a positive sense of urgency. You do all the right things, in the right order, and when weeks turn into months and nothing happens, you lose your way along with your energy.  If you’re bumping, slumping, and sputtering, it’s time to get back to basics. Resume: The longer it takes to find a job, the more you’re apt to tinker with your resume. If you’re trying to be Continue reading →

Questions from Readers

Thanks for your calls, emails, and the questions you’re asking. Here are a few examples: Q: I have a question about my resume. I’ve worked for many companies, held both hourly and salaried positions, volunteered for countless committees, and traveled to every state in the US. Because I’ve accomplished so much I can’t possibly include it all in a two- page resume. I figure it’ll take about five pages if I use small type. How Continue reading →

Question: The Job Search

Thanks for sending me your questions about job search. Here’s just a sample of what you’re asking: “I’m a career changer having a tough time finding a job in my new field of interest. Do you think that a headhunter will be willing to work with me?” Headhunters (more politely known as recruiters) will not work with career changers. They will work with individuals who have a proven track record of success in a specific Continue reading →

Question: How do I find a job after prison?

Q: “I’ve recently been released from prison and want to get back into my profession. I’ve been trying to re-hone my skills but given my felony record am I just spinning my wheels? What do I say when I’m asked about the lapse in my employment A:You’re not spinning your wheels, you will find employment, and you will have some real challenges ahead. Let’s start with the first hurdles to overcome, and go from there: Continue reading →

Resume Your Resume

We haven’t had a heart to heart about resumes in a while and it’s high time that we did. What you’re sending out isn’t getting the response you deserve. Here are just a few of the reasons why that’s happening: You may not know the difference between a resume and a promotional piece. You’re using the dump and stir method (dump it all in, stir it around, and let the reader figure it out). You’re Continue reading →

The Persistent Payoff

If you’ve been looking hard, and haven’t found a job worth cheering about, it’s time to return to job search basics. But before you dig in, look around and see where you are: Are you sending out dozens of resumes and getting no responses? Are you toying with giving them out at basketball games? Have you tried billboards and carpet-bombing? When is the last time you wrote an original cover letter? Are you still mailing that worn Continue reading →

Question from a reader: Is my resume better than I am?

Q: I’m getting interviews. I’m not getting offers. Does this mean that my resume is better than I am? A: It sounds as if your resume is doing a better job speaking for you than you are speaking for yourself. If that’s the case, you’ll want to know how you’re missing the mark. Those answers can come from a combination of soul-searching, self awareness and candid feedback from people who know you best. To jump Continue reading →

Eliminating Job Search Frustrations

It’s frustrating to send your resume to dozens, even hundreds of job openings and not get a response. It’s frustrating to interview and not get a call back that tells you where you stand. It’s humbling to feel as though you’re being judged and maddening to feel that you have no way to control the outcome. What can you do to shift your emotional responses to tactical actions? Eliminate one frustration at a time. For Continue reading →

Back to Basics

Many job seekers start the hunt with a positive sense of urgency. You do all the right things, in the right order, and when weeks turn into months and nothing happens, you lose your way along with your energy. If you’re bumping, slumping, and sputtering, it’s time to get back to basics. Resume: The longer it takes to find a job, the more you’re apt to tinker with your resume. If you’re trying to be Continue reading →

Fast Track Your Job Search

You’ll fast track your job search when you increase your focus, improve your efficiency, and target your marketing. If you’re sending out resumes and not getting responses you have either lost your focus or never had it. Your resume has three roles: scout, matchmaker, and mouthpiece. It probes for possibilities, looks for a match, and speaks on your behalf. If it fails to deliver on any of these roles, it won’t be considered and neither Continue reading →

Tips for Job Seekers of All Ages

“It’s about time you got a job and earned your keep!” Now that’s a comment that will get the attention of your children, whether they are fifteen or fifty. And it’s easier said than done, particularly if your youngster of indeterminate age hasn’t had any experience getting a job, has had a bad experience trying to secure one, or hasn’t been able to keep one.  With that in mind, here are some tried and true Continue reading →

Cardinal Career Advice

I’ve noticed that people seem to pay more attention to suggestions when they’re offered in a numerical format. With that in mind I thought you’d benefit from a little cardinal career search advice. Here’s a warm-up: you need to do three things before you leave for an interview:  1. Comb your hair. 2. Brush your teeth, and 3. Take your resume. OK so far? Good, now let’s get a little more complex. There are three Continue reading →

Sharpen Your Writing and Speaking Skills

Sharpen your writing and speaking skills folks, because the lights are on and they’re shining on you. With every resume, cover letter, telephone call, networking meeting and interview, you’re presenting your skills and abilities in the two ways most of us have learned to communicate; you’re either writing or talking. You better be good at both. A worried reader comments that, “introverts like me don’t have a chance against extraverted competition.” Instead of focusing on Continue reading →

Stand Out In Less Than 30 Seconds

Earlier I answered questions from a frustrated job seeker who, despite stellar credentials and carpet-bombing the area with resumes, hadn’t landed his first interview. We spent some time together discussing his resume, and I provided the candid feedback he requested. It wasn’t pretty. His resume was too long, too wordy, and too hard on the eyes. It contained too much jargon, and was written in a format many interviewers reject outright. Yep, those last five Continue reading →

Basic Interviewing Mistakes

In life, little things can become big things. In job search, little things are the big things. Last week I described some big mistakes that job seekers make and asked you to compare them to the do’s and don’ts you’ve been practicing. Here are a few more, just to keep you thinking: What to wear: How to dress is a matter of concern to many interviewees who ask what they should wear if it’s casual Continue reading →

Killing the Interview

What are the mistakes that job seekers make and how do they compare to the do’s and don’t you’ve been practicing? Check these out and you decide: Smile. For some, that big bright toothy smile comes naturally. These job applicants use their pearly whites to send the message that they’re genuinely happy to be in your presence and you in theirs. As an interviewer you are easily drawn to their warm and expressive nature because Continue reading →

When All Else Fails

When all else fails, read the directions. Searching for a job is a big enough challenge without winging it. Rather than take a scattershot approach or sit at home and wait for the phone to ring, get out there and make something happen. Here’s how. Prepare your resume but don’t let the effort consume you. There are resources out there if you want them; libraries, bookstores, and internet sites just waiting to serve up the Continue reading →

Networking Success

He wanted to meet so we could discuss his job search. He said it wasn’t going anywhere and he needed help re-starting it. And, he said he just needed to vent.           “Joyce, I’m not getting any replies to my resume. I must have mailed 300 copies and I haven’t gotten one nibble in response.  Please review it and tell me what’s missing.”           He handed it to me, I glanced at it and told Continue reading →

Common Mistakes with Resumes and Interviews

I’m often asked to describe the “one greatest error job seekers make when looking for work”. Well, you’re already ahead of me if you figured that there’s more than one, so, I’ll go through a short list of some of the more common mistakes and missteps, and you determine if you’re in the midst of making any of them. Let’s start with resumes. Many job seekers, in an effort to be all things to all Continue reading →

Bridges Burned

Don’t burn bridges, no matter how aggravated, provoked, or justified you believe yourself to be. It isn’t worth it. To illustrate, read on. I’ve changed the employee’s name but not the story: Karen was ticked. In a major way. The manager that she had worked so hard to please had passed her over for promotion. Not once. Not twice. But three times. And three times was the charm. She decided she was going to leave Continue reading →