YOU CAN SAVE TIME JOB SEARCHING BY USING ADVANCED SEARCH OPTIONS on job boards. All the major job boards (like Indeed.com, SimplyHired.com, CareerBuilder, Monster and Dice) have an “Advanced Search” option where you can search by keyword, location, a radius of a location, job title, company, type of job, date posted and other options.
APPLYING FOR EVERY JOB YOU FIND ISN’T ALWAYS A GOOD IDEA. Focus your search on jobs that you’re qualified for. You’ll have a better chance of getting selected for an interview. Sending out random resumes’ and cover letters is just going to be a waste of time. Before you start job hunting, take the time to decide what type of job you’re seeking. Even better,
come up with a target list of companies you’d like to work for and do your best to get noticed by them.
DON’T STOP APPLYING FOR JOBS
while you are waiting to hear back from an employer. Most job seekers are rejected by over 15 employers before landing a job. Learn more from your mistakes and keep applying until you
get the right offer. Worst case scenario, you will be juggling multiple job offers. That’s a good thing.
YOU NEED A SPECIFIC COVER LETTER, OR YOUR RESUME’ MAY NOT GET LOOKED AT. You only have a few seconds to impress a hiring manager enough to select you for an interview. I know hiring managers who screen every application personally and they tell me that if you don’t show what you can do for the company in the first paragraph of your cover letter, you’re not going to get an interview.
YOU SHOULD ALSO TARGET YOUR RESUME’ TO THE JOB. It’s not just your cover letter. Your resume’ should be edited and tweaked, so it’s as close a match to the job as possible. Otherwise, it may not get picked up by the applicant tracking systems companies use to screen resumes’ or the recruiter who reviews it.
YOU DON’T NEED TO INCLUDE ALL YOUR EXPERIENCE ON YOUR RESUME. Someone shared a resume’ with me that had over 40 years of work experience. Unfortunately, that’s not going to impress anyone. It date’s him and it’s too much information and too much experience for most job openings.
YOU CAN INCLUDE MORE THAN FULL-TIME EMPLOYMENT ON YOUR RESUME’. If you’ve been out of work, you don’t want your resume’ to look like you have done nothing since you were laid-off. There are other things besides your employment history you can use to bolster your resume’.
DRESS LIKE A MANAGER OR A SUCCESSFUL PERSON IN YOUR PROFESSION. Maybe appearances shouldn’t matter so much, but they do.
The first few minutes of an interview are when you get to make that critical first impression. Be sure that you’re dressed appropriately for the type of job and company you’re applying to.
BE YOURSELF. Susan Heathfield, Human Resources expert, says that you need to be yourself. Rehearsed answers, fake smiles and saying what you think the interview wants to hear instead of what you actually believe, mislead the employer. Employers want to know who they hired and that’s the person they expect to show up for the first day of work.
STORYTELLING DURING A JOB INTERVIEW IS AN EXCELLENT WAY TO SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS. One way to show the employer what you’re actually like is to tell a story. When you’re asked questions during a job interview, relay the specific skills and experience you have, as well as how you handled the situations you’re asked about. The more concrete information you provide, the more the hiring manager will know how qualified you are.
NEVER SAY ANYTHING BAD ABOUT A PREVIOUS EMPLOYER.
When I was a hiring manager, I used to cringe when people badmouthed their boss. In fact, one of the most common interview mistakes is badmouthing your boss or co-workers. The first thing the interviewer is going to think about is what you will say about their company when you’re moving on.
YOU SHOULD SEND A THANK-YOU NOTE AFTER A JOB INTERVIEW. It’s important to follow-up after a job interview. It’s a way to show your appreciation for being considered for the job. It’s also a way to reiterate your interest and share anything you neglected during the interview.
REFERENCES CAN MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE IN GETTING HIRED.
References are important and employers check them. Get recommendations from bosses, co-workers, clients, subordinates
and suppliers. Store them on sites like LinkedIn and share them whenever possible. If you are worried about getting a lousy reference from your supervisor, work on getting some personal references you can add to your credentials.
IT’S ACCEPTABLE TO APPLY FOR THE SAME JOB MORE THAN ONCE. So, you applied for your dream job and you didn’t hear anything back from the company. Then you see the job posted again. A “do over” is fine, but be sure that you carefully match your qualifications to the job requirements in your resumes’ and cover letters. Also, check LinkedIn to see who you know. You might be able to get a referral the second time around.
BONUS TIP
POLISH YOUR SHOES PRIOR TO YOUR INTERVIEW. This one’s an extra, but, yes, hiring managers do look at your shoes. If you don’t have shoe polish, a leather or multipurpose cleaning wipe will work. It’s important to look your best from head to toe.