I used to love that show "All in the Family". Archie would ask the Meathead: "Why don't you just get a job?" Alas if only there were a super market for jobs & careers where you just pluck them from the shelves. In high school they don't teach job search 101. In college they have a bit more assistance, but not enough still. At this moment in my state RI there is 8.8% of the population out of work. Realistically, that is about 5% too low, as only people collecting unemployment compensation are counted. There are too many folks fired, who quit or were formally self employed who never make that total accurate. So here is a little input from me, a hiring authority & veteran Recruiter from the Advertising & Marketing, Mortgage, highline Jewelry and fine Furniture industries. Take it from someone who knows.
Always be focused on getting interviews first & foremost. People hire people, almost always from face to face interviews. Nothing else matters nearly as much. Make this priority one. How do you get interviews? Great cover letters that sell & customized resumes for each position you target. Make yourself that company's missing puzzle piece and you will fit right in at the interview. Remember no farmer can harvest unless he plants seeds first. Ask yourself these questions: "What is this company's most pressing problem?" "How will I contribute to solve that problem?" Music to your employer's ears involves more productivity, saving costs, retaining cutomers & increasing efficiency. The competition is fierce out there. Depending on the medium the average job listing gets 50-75 resumes. Did you know it is actually twice as effective just going directly to the employer and getting the interview before they place an ad? Less competition of course. A compelling cover letter is exactly what opens doors. Always get professional help on the documents that determine whether you career will sink or swim. Sales & Copywriting skills are a niche market. Not to be confused with typing skills. Always be networking. "It is not what you know but who you know." In your circle of friends and associates who might have an in at that Fidelity Investments office down the street? Imagine who you could rub elbows with at the country club playing golf, tennis or lounging by the pool. These connections are the magic beans that great jobs sprout from. Sharing and caring about your neighbor is also what makes a community great. Get out there and be part of it. Join a group, association or get out your rolodex or the contacts file in Microsoft Outlook. Target hi growth industries & careers where there are shortages of skilled workers. Nursing, Computer Programming, IT, Left handed Pitching, Fluency in Arabic, Investment Advisors, General Practice Physicians etc. Your passions or desire for career stability may lead you in a new an exciting direction. Use a search engine to look for: Fastest Growing Careers. By focusing on flourishing industries & careers you may be pleasantly surprised to find they value and appreciate you more. They are receptive to most of your needs. Because of their good fortune they usually have better benefit packages too. Have you had your references updated & contact info verified? Better yet, have you checked to see what your past employers are saying about you? References? Try to analyze why it is that you are still without a job. Which area is your weak point? Getting interviews, sending out great cover letters & resumes, or is it the interview themselves. Good news sometimes comes in small packages. Getting hired for a temporary job while you are looking often times may lead to a permanent position directly or indirectly via networking. This means it is a winner for both parties involved. Don't overlook this avenue. Change your focus. Expand your job search if possible: Non-profit, State & Federal Government, Education, Law Enforcement, Self Employment, Relocation, Healthcare, Finance, Sales, Administration, Management, Tourism, Hotel & Restaurant. Don't use one generic resume and cover letter. They should be customized for each targeted position. Honestly you have 15-45 seconds to interest your new boss. Research your targeted employer before the interview. Is profit trending up, remaining level or down? Are they hiring, maintaining, or reducing their workforce? Are they a leader or a laggard in their industry? Are they unionized? All this and more can be honed from search engines and media searches on the internet. Learn, adapt & change. Hey my whole industry went through several severe slumps. If you've been unemployed for more than 2 months a little change is called for. Try paddling down stream instead of upstream. Are you following your passion? Enthusiasm is hard to fake in interviews. Maybe you are bored stiff with your current profession and it shows. Are they doing you a favor by not hiring you? Is it location that is limiting you? If you are in an area of the country lacking opportunity being able to relocate could open new doors for you. Usually you can approve the list of places you are open move to. Perhaps it may be as simple as a longer commute. In RI jobs are scarce but in Boston MA just 30 more minutes by car jobs are plentiful and better paying. Consider sending a follow up letter to all your former targets letting them know you are now willing & able to relocate. Focus on why you can. Change your focus and change your life. Change happens at the speed of thought. Opportunity is everywhere! Maybe it is slightly disguised. Post signs to that effect where they will be seen repeatedly. Abundance is the natural state of the whole world. Consider fish & how many eggs they produce. Watch a kudzu vine grow. Plant a garden and watch what happens. Notice how many all you can eat buffet restaurants there are. Recently, the Dallas Morning News had an Employment Section that was 65 pages long. Live with an attitude of gratitude. Spend some thinking time everyday on counting all your blessings this is a great mental exercise in gaining perspective. As you distance yourself from your problems they shrink. If you give happiness a foothold as part of your everyday routine it might just gain a stronghold. The difference will certainly be noticed on your interviews. Body language, attitude, professionalism and mood are huge factors in performing well under pressure. Think back on all the folks you helped. Perhaps they are in a position to help you and you do not even know it. Reach out and touch someone. Ask them if they know anyone who is in a position to help you get an interview. It is so simple and effective it is often overlooked. Follow up and thank you letters. A lot of folks are good starters. By demonstrating you are a good finisher again you are setting yourself apart from the masses. Maybe one out of ten people take the time to write them. Do it, you will move ahead 5 spaces and collect 0 from the banker. Of course you will be remembered. Sometimes the first person hired doesn't work out and two weeks later: You will get the first call. I always kept in touch with great candidates I could not hire right away. They are kind of like having a strong bench, a must for a great baseball team. If you can't be a starter, you can at least be a bench warmer. Use professional recruiters, better employment agencies and staffing companies. They can point out your weaknesses before you interview with an employer. Better yet two heads are always better than one. Don't let them monopolize your time however. Direct employers should always be a higher priority. Fit them in where you have time. Ask around if anyone knows of a proven one. After all isn't delegating a good thing? Take advantage of your local Department of Labor & Training. (Or similar for your town.) They have career counseling, job placement assistance, job banks & even training programs to update your current skills. The talent these folks have is far greater than you might expect. Often times they are the first people to know of a new mass hiring campaign. Naturally they have connections with the right people too. I myself have gone back to the great gal that helped me find my first job out of college to find talented employees. Whenever possible try to kill two birds with one stone. While you are out on one interview, on the way back stop by another business for a visit. Talk to the employees; casually mention the fact that you are just killing time between interviews. Many bright employees are aware of company bounties that are paid for referring new employees to their company. The average is about 0 after they stay ninety days. More realistically this is a great time to get inside info from the folks who really know. Make a new friend, perhaps their former employer may be a perfect fit for you. Read a good dress for success book. Follow their instructions on this subject. Remember to always be focused on getting interviews. This is were most folks go astray I learned this from Tom Hopkins. Always prioritize your work and get the most critical item done first. If you can do this every day, you can afford to hire a housekeeper. Realistically I would have to guess that this one tip has had a whole lot to do with my five promotions.
IN RI
By Darrell Z. DiZoglio, of Righteous Resumes, 17 October 2008
Get Hired Now - Everything You Need to Know
This Article is the property of the author: Darrell Z. DiZoglio of http://www.RighteousResumes.com/ The website where you will find everything you need to get hired. You may reprint this article wherever you deem it to be useful to others provided this paragraph remains with the entire article. Go ahead see if you can "PAY IT FORWARD". Become a Christian soldier in the war on poverty. God bless you.
Recession busting package specials on all the professional services you need to get hired. Righteous Resumes real results. http://www.RighteousResumes.com/ so good you'll send your friends. I can be reached via email at: zane@righteousresumes.com
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