You have an impressive resume, you know how to present yourself well in an interview, you know what kind of position you are best suited for. . .now all you need is a chance to get your foot in the right door. Just what can you do to make that happen?
Make sure you write a knockout cover letter, advise career planning specialists. "A cover letter is your chance to explain to an employer why he or she should consider you for the job," says Jennie Z. Rothschild, Ph.D., executive director of Jewish Vocational Service on Reisterstown Road in Pikesville. "The best cover letters are specific and give examples that directly relate to the job you are trying to get.""Your cover letter is a targeted sales tool which should be tailored to the specific position you are seeking," adds Ann Harrell of the Johns Hopkins University Career and Life Planning Center on Alexander Bell Drive in Columbia.
The cover letter is also a good opportunity to show potential employers your writing skills, says Jennie Rothschild, and for those job-seekers whose native language is not English, a chance to show that you are comfortable with the language. Whatever your writing and language skills are, though, make sure that your letter has no mistakes. "Proofread! Proofread! Proofread!" emphasizes Ann Harrell. A cover letter, like most business correspondence, says Ms. Rothschild, has three basic parts: *Paragraph 1, in which you state: who you are; how you heard of the position or the company; why you are writing. "Your goal in this paragraph," says Ann Harrell, "is to convince the reader why you are the only candidate to interview." *Paragraph 2, in which you discuss: why you are interested in the position and/or company; how your qualifications fit the specific skills needed for the job; some specific examples of how your past experience has prepared you to do the job for which you are applying; any other relevant skills, qualities, achievements, and experiences that make you the best candidate for the job. "The second paragraph is your chance to shine," says Ms. Harrell. "Discuss your experiences and skills that match the criteria for the position. If you met your contact through networking, refer to your meeting notes. Use the company information you found if this is a cover letter for a direct mailing." *Paragraph 3, in which you: repeat that you are hoping to be considered for the job; give specific information about your plans to follow up; thank the employer for his or her consideration. "And then be sure to follow through," says Ms. Harrell. When closing, "Sincerely" or "Sincerely Yours" with your typed name and signature will be appropriate.
Jennie Rothschild suggests these additional DOs and DON’Ts:
DOs…

• In the first paragraph, name the title of the job for which you are applying and be specific about how you heard about the position or company.
• Try to find out the name and title of the person who will be able to hire you and use the name, instead of writing "Dear Sir" or "Dear Madam."
• Write the letter based on exactly what the ad or job listing says the employer is looking for; try to give an example from your experience for every qualification listed in the ad.
• Type the letter and use paper and font that is the same or looks similar to your resume. Don’t forget to sign your name.
• Reread the letter carefully and check for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors. It’s a good idea to have someone else proofread the letter as well.
• Keep the letter brief–under 1 page. Keep the paragraphs to 2-4 sentences each.
• Say that you are enclosing a resume.
• Include your phone number in the last paragraph.
• Make sure the envelope is clearly and properly addressed.

DON’Ts…

• Send a resume without a cover letter.
• Discuss salary unless the ad or job listing requires it.
• Repeat information that appears on the resume, except in the briefest, introductory manner.
• Generalize about personal qualities or past job titles. Instead, give specifics about your skills and experience.
• Talk about what the job will do for you.
• Give unnecessary personal information.
• Include anything that you will not be able to explain in an interview.
• Send Xerox copies.
• Say you will follow up without having a specific plan to do so.
• Staple or paper clip items.

Written By: Carol Sorgen

1. Research the company. Any career oriented job will require you demonstrate some kind of knowledge about the company. Recruiters and job interviewers will ask this question because it helps gauge just how interested you really are in their company. Are you more likely to be a job hopper or do you look like someone who will stay for a couple of years?

2. The Phone Interview. You just received a phone call from the executive assistant to some top dog in management. And he wants to interview you, but over the phone. Before you think - easy, you’ll ace it, try this. Before the phone call, get dressed in your business attire. And stand up during the interview. You will sound more confident and it will feel more real as if you are interviewing in person.

3. Do you have any questions? This is always expected. Whenever the interviewer asks if you have questions, be sure to say absolutely yes!

This is your chance to rate the company and get a feel for them. This is a two way street here. Of course the employer needs to hire you, but you also need to agree to work for them. Just like taking someone new out on a couple of dates. During the courtship process - the interview process - you find out if the company culture matches your interests, values and philosophies.

4. If you get invited back for a follow up interview, make one to two significant changes on your resume. There is always time to continually update your resume. It’s like a living document - not something static and hardly changing. When you bring in a resume this lets the interviewer know you continue to refine your skills and work on personal development.

This shows resolve, motivation and tenacity. An employer can teach skills easily to a someone. However, the biggest battle is finding the motivated people who take challenges upon themselves.

5. Do you know what you applied for? Before even saying yes to a job interview, do you remember exactly who and what you applied for? If you like the low-tech method, keep a simple note book of places you sent applications to, call backs and interviews lined up.

Or you could use a simple spreadsheet like Excel and keep everything in one file. The idea is to keep track of which position at which company you had shown an interest in.

Follow these five tips and you can virtually guarantee a more memorable impression upon an employer when it comes to job hunting.

As competition for positions increases, it becomes even more important to use the job searching tools at your disposal effectively. 
So, on that note, here are my 3 top tips on how to help make sure you get interviews during times of increased competition.

1. Take a look at your resume; does it match your target market? Look at relevant, advertised positions. Again ask the question. Does your resume relate your skills and experiences to what employers tend to be looking for?

Also, does your resume demonstrate that you are an achiever? Many resume only list responsibilities. On your resume, remember to add a section for achievements under each of your previous positions. Make your resume stands out from the crowd, this is very important.

Extra Tip:

Try and avoid companies who offer a resume writing service, they tend to be very expensive and tend to use a box standard template. Your resume will look like any other resume out there. If you want to find out how to write a powerful resume Carla Vaughan has a  great book called:

"How To Write a Professional Resume"

6 easy and fast steps to follow, a very useful checklist that saves you time and and shows you how to make sure your resume passes the 30 second scan.

2. Make a list of those outside of your current company who may be able to help you. Rather than ask directly if they know of any openings, mention that you are considering a career move.

Then, look at your skills and experience. What can you offer the company?. This helps to ensure that many more people have their ears and eyes open for relevant positions for you.

3. While considered a passive way to job search, adding your resume to job site databases can bring results.
Your resume will of course only be seen if it has the right keywords in it and it comes up on the first two or three pages of the recruiter’s search results.

You can increase the chances of your resume being seen by updating your resume regularly. Updated resumes are pushed further up the recruiters’ search results, making it more likely that recruiters will see these when searching.

You must also remember to always create a new cover letter for each job you apply for. There is no point in having a standard letter, make the letter unique, read the job description and pick out two or three points and match them to your skills, by doing this you will draw the attention of the reader to your resume

• Regular readers of my posts know how much time I spend writing about the importance of preparation. If you want to land that dream job just sitting around waiting for the big day and that all important interview without bothering to do any work towards it, just seems to me a complete waste of time. The whole world is going through an economic slide real people are loosing their jobs which is having a major effects on family life, just trying to pay the bills is hard enough, without the worry of having to find a new job! The interview selection process is going to get a lot tougher, if you thought having 100 people in the race was tough, what happens if that turns into 150, 200 or 300.

Why not give yourself a head start. If you are  one of the lucky ones to be selected for an interview why let it slip through your fingers simply by being lazy or just being over confident. Spare 10 minutes read the rest of my post, you can take the advice or leave it, its up to you. 

Start by looking at :

Go to the companies website, have a really good look around you will find a lot of really good and informative information for job seekers. The best part is its free!, the only investment you will need is your time.  So get going and do the research it will give such a return.

Competitor’s websites are also a good source of information for your job preparation. Try the following related search “related:[Web site Address]” in Google to see other related sites that might be competing with your interviewer.BizJournals.com is also a good tool in your job interview preparation.

Using your own network of contacts is an extremely useful resource to tap during your job interview preparation

• Alumni network

• Family members

• Friends

• Workers Unions

The Web as a resource:

• ValueLine

• LexisNexis

Websites for major business publications:

• Forbes

• Money

• Kiplinger’s

• The Wall St. Journal

• Investors Business Daily

By investing the time your research will give you a better insight on:

• The Job Description.

• What business the organisation is in.

• Hiring process procedures.

• Early experiences on the job.

• Corporate culture

• General Organisational Structure.

• History.

• Career paths.

• What to wear for a job interview.

• General knowledge about current state of industry.

• Protocols before and after the interview.

• The location of the interview.

• Size of organisation

• Number of employees

• How long has the company being operating

• Are there any subsidiary companies involved in this company.

• Who are the major competitors of this company

• Who is the direct supervisor

• Information on your direct supervisor

Where to find information?

There are a number of good places available to find useful information: 

• Public Library

• Local Bookstore

• Access Books

• Journals

• Magazines

• Newspapers

In summary:

Any time spent doing research before an interview is time well spent, it maybe a hour or two or a couple of days, any time is better than none, allocate the time, trust me you will reap the benefits. One final tip, before you start the research make a list of the basic things you would like to find out about the company, this will save you a lot of time.  

Now you are prepared for that interview  — Good luck.

Fresh out of college, most people are excited about landing that first job. Given that most grads do not have work experience or only had a part time job while studying, it is not easy to secure an executive position right away.

Wage for the New Graduate.
Starting from scratch, one has no choice but to start from the bottom in an entry-level position then in time move to the top. The challenge most grads face in applying for a job is the competition. Aside from those who just graduated, there are also those who have left the previous job and are looking for a new one.

According to hiring and compensation experts, there is not that much room to negotiate when one is just a fresh grad. This is because that person does not have substantial work experience as basis to negotiate for a higher wage compared to those who have already worked before.

Job and Career
The range of the salary fresh grads get are based on the course one has finished in college. To those who volunteered to be surveyed, it was found that people who graduated from the sciences were able to get a higher salary compared to those who graduated from the liberal arts.

A tip that may help a little in the negotiation process is knowing your potential and not easily giving in or selling yourself short. In the course of an interview, it will boil down to the how much you will be getting. Most fresh grads accept what is given immediately and reply ok ending it there.

It is best to only talk about the salary when an offer has been made. If the interviewer is good, it can wait. During that time, one can try asking how much the company will give for someone in that position then be able to negotiate about that further later on regardless of the figure that was given.

Job Information
The applicant can then ask questions such as job responsibilities and mention that the contribution one can give to the company is more important than the salary you will be receiving showing the recruiter you are a team player.

Applicants can negotiate more by doing research on how much other companies are offering for the same job before giving an immediate answer. By knowing that information, it is possible for you to negotiate the salary offered for a little more.

Getting a job is not only about a salary. This includes other things that the company offers to its employees and by thoroughly checking out the other benefits and perks, it can also help in deciding whether the applicant should accept the job or not.

I always dream of becoming a productive person and that is the reason why I constantly strive to upgrade my myself by learning new skills and knowledge. Because of this vision, I still want to enroll for personality development courses that may be available and applicable for me. And because some of particular institutions I want to be in are so far away– like on the other face of the planet– I decided to use the Internet and look for their personality development made available online.

I really did not an idea on what site to go but some gave me a hint that I could use search engines to find those sites which are offering distance learning program. So, I used google and yahoo search engines.

personality development and goal setting
The first thing that I did was to try to look for personality development program so I inputted keyword phrases such as “personality improvement” in search engines. Fortunately, I found some useful information with link– like below:

“Person to Person coaching is obviously meant to toughen the confidence of folks in an establishment by centering attention on their really powerful performance steadily and touching on individual strengths as well as faults to improve folks to do better. It is an important catalyst for personal development.There is the necessity to elevate optimism if you are curious about self improvement for the reason that it is connected to fine morale in addition to optimistic thinking which are substantial for long life, perfect physical vigor and advancement.”

distance education
Since I wanted to upgrade my learning, I have typed keywords like “distance education”. It gave lots of information about online degrees with links which allowed me to go to sites about this topic. I retrieved the following information:

“The rise in the availability of online universities?are really a great thing when you consider that someone could be living in somewhere such as India could be working towards studying a degree from a university in a place such a California. It is the rise in the availability of distance learning facilities that have made this at all possible. Largely we can thank the widespread use of the internet that has been a major enabler as for that the internet is a great thing for people the world all over.”

distance learning
I wanted to know more about distance learning courses offered by universities like Oxford and Harvard so I have inputted key phrased like “online education program” and prompted with lots of information about it like the following:

“We all know that to earn more we must learn more and one of the ways that we can improve our knowledge is to take advantage of some of the many Free Online Classes?which are available to us all. This is one of the great things that the widespread use of the internet has brought to us all, it means that we can the information we need whenever we need it. If you want to improve your career prospects you are advised to take some of the many free online classes which are open to us all.”

Indeed, I was able to acquire relevant information for personality development. These will surely be always helpful for me.

 Unemployment is on the increase and it’s going to harder to get that first interview. Competition for vacancies is fierce. But it’s not the time to simply give up; you need to redouble your efforts — and were do most people fail, the cover letter. So many people spend hours on their resume, but leave the cover letter to chance – Why?

No matter how good your resume is, your cover letter is always going to be the first piece of information that a recruiter sees about you. Anything you write in your cover letter will help the recruiter to form their first impression of you.

1. Do not write the same cover letter.  Target it for each role that you apply for.

2. If the advertisement gives you a reference number, use it in your letter so that it is clear which role you are applying for.

3. Keep the letter short and simple and to the point.

4. Keep the sales acronym ‘AIDA’ in mind when composing your letter.  Gain the readers Attention by introducing yourself effectively.  Keep their Interest by showing that you have the skills / experience to meet the role.  Ensure that the content is relevant to the role and the recruiter will Desire to meet with you.  Make sure that your contact details are clear in order for the recruiter to Action a response to you.

5. Provide exactly what is requested in the advertisement.  If you are asked to supply both your CV and any evidence of a successful project you managed, then do so.

6. Do not over use technical jargon that may not be understood by people who administer the initial stages of the process.

7. Always proof read your letter and watch out for errors that a spell checker may not recognise.

8. If your application is speculative, find out the name of the person you need to forward your CV to and address your letter accordingly.

9. If replying to an advertisement, use it as the format that your letter will follow.

10. Remember that your cover letter is primarily a sales letter so concentrate on what you can do for the company.

I was sent this article by Aaron Boyce and it gets right to the point of why to use  Job Fairs

Job Fairs are one of the worst time wasters that have ever befallen a job seeker. You wake up early, get professionally dressed, compile your resumes, and head off to the event, ready to speak with the employers. Not So Fast! As you turn the corner, you see a line the size of a football field, chock full of job hopefuls like yourself. Do the math – 100 employers inside; 2000 job seekers outside. Someone is going home unhappy. But not you, you think, as you take your place in the line from Hades. 45 minutes later you are inside and ready to speak with the employers. Not So Fast! There are at least 20 – 30 job  seekers already there. You see a company you like and you squeeze in, ready to speak with the employers. And you do – for all of two minutes (if you’re lucky). Meanwhile, the employer is being distracted by the ten other candidates asking him questions, by the cute girl who just passed by, and by the clock that is beckoning him closer and closer to the lunch line. After a few hours of this, the job fair is closing and you haven’t even completed half the room. Okay, the employers you did speak with all have your resume. So you go home and wait for them to call you. The (not so happy) End. There has to be a better way. Try these seven tips.

1. Find out who will be in attendance before you go to the event. You can plan a strategy around this information.

2. Arrive no more than an hour before or after lunch. Like all of us, food has a way of stopping the brain from working and the ears from listening.

3. Walk around the room first without speaking to anyone. See where the employers are that you want to speak with. If you do see an employer that you covet, and they are available to speak, you may break this rule.

4. Stand in front of the employer you are speaking with. Coolly block their vision away from the crowd and onlookers. Speak clearly and with purpose. Look them in the face and they will respond back.

5. Get their business cards. Ask if they are the person in charge of the particular department of position you will be applying for. If not, ask for the name and write it on the card. Pick up as much information from the table as possible. Even pick up stuff that does not directly pertain to you. Everything you can know about the company will help you get the job.

6. Give them your business card. You don’t have a business card? Make one and bring them. By the way, the card I mean is a mini-resume that you can distribute along with your resume.

7. Send everyone you speak with a thank you note. Employers at job fairs NEVER get thank you notes. When they do get one (from you) they will seek you out.

These seven steps will guarantee that your adventures in Job Fair Land will provide a rewarding experience that will ultimately lead you to employment.

Aaron Boyce, founder of ABworkshops, national columnist for examiner.com, and author of four publications, travels across the country spreading his message of success through self-motivation and self-awareness. A stutterer since the age of nine, Aaron had overcome the pain of rejection, humiliation, and self-loathing to become a powerful, motivational, and dynamic speaker and trainer on the issues of career development and employment. His message, , has informed, inspired, and entertained thousands of motivated people nationwide. You can reach him at: aaron@abworkshops.com; www.abworkshopsarethebest.com; toll-free 1-866-745-6966.

Why do so many people dislike a job interview?

Answer - Job seekers are uncomfortable with the uncertainty of the interview situation.

The good news is that you can take charge of every interview, by using a common interview technique to your advantage.

Behavioural interviewing, which simply means that interviewers ask very specific questions about real situations. The theory is that your past behaviour is the best predictor of how you will behave in the future, so employers probe your background for clues.

Let’s imagine that a company is looking for a Sales Manager who can motivate and lead a small sales team. In order to understand your experience in this area, the interviewer will ask you questions about your past and experience, for example:

“Tell me about a time when you had to plan for a sales meeting.”

Or:

“Describe a time when you had to review your sales team performance.”

Behavioural interviewing has become quite common over the last 15 years and, you may well have experienced it yourself, either as an interviewer, or an interviewee.  Provided you are prepared (and we’ll talk about this in a moment) a behavioural interview gives you an excellent opportunity to talk in detail about your experiences and accomplishments.

Unfortunately, many interviews still follow the old format – the questions may be arbitrary, sometimes based on the content of your resume, sometimes on the preoccupations of the interviewer.  They may also be very general in nature. 

The secret to wowing them at every interview is simply this: 

Act as though your were asked a behavioural question, even when you were not.

Imagine two different candidates for this fictional marketing position. When asked “How much experience do you have working with a small budget?”

Candidate A replies, “I’ve had to do that a lot actually – most of the companies I worked for were small to mid-size, so there was never a lot of opportunity to spend money. I’m very good in those situations and I always find a way to make things happen.”

Candidate B, however, gives a ‘behavioral’ answer:  “I’ve had to do that a lot actually. Let me give you a recent example… you know the film “The Fallen Soldier?” I created the campaign around that movie with a $20,000 budget.  It came to my attention because it was the only film all our staff were excited about, although it was a low-budget, independent production.  I decided to create a really cool web site around the film, and then we planted seeds of interest on forums and in chat rooms … the whole thing took off within weeks and the movie eventually grossed millions. We never did run a single TV advertisement.” 

By answering in such a concrete and specific way, Candidate B brings himself to life – and ensures that he will be much more memorable than his competition.

You can use this technique for any question that is vague or general in nature:

Q: “How much do you know about?”
A: “I’m very familiar – just recently I ….”

Q: “How often have you had to ….?”
A: “That’s something I’ve done frequently … actually, I remember when …”

The technique also works when an interviewer asks a hypothetical question:

Q: “What would you do if …..?
A: “Well, I faced a similar situation just last year. What happened was …”

MY NUMBER ONE RULE AGAIN

PREPARATION IS THE KEY!!

To prepare effective stories you must first focus on the employer’s needs and then develop examples that demonstrate your ability to meet those needs.

The employer’s needs

Research the company before you go for the interview – identify their key business issues (Are they growing rapidly?  Are they in a crowded marketplace? Are they planning new product launches?) Get into the minds of the company’s executives and ask yourself: Given their business issues, what will they want to know about me?

Developing Your Examples

Use the C-A-R (challenge-action-result) formula to develop stories that demonstrate your ability to meet the needs of the employer. 

If your interviewers have been trained in behavioural interviewing, you’ll be exceptionally well-prepared.  But if not, you’ll be able to separate yourself from all the other candidates by telling compelling, interesting and targeted stories that demonstrate your ability to add value.

Many companies used to rely solely on interviews to assess candidates for most jobs, and quite a lot still do. However, we know that interviews can be highly subjective and don’t necessarily produce the most accurate results. Therefore, many companies are complementing the interview with more objective and accurate assessment methods such as these.

Why use these tests and questionnaires?

They aim to measure your abilities and personality so its important to know as much as you can about these tests, but again its down to preparation, and for those regular readers its my number one must do!!

Preparation Preparation Preparation.

The information companies collects from the tests helps to identify your strengths and areas for development on an objective basis. A lot of information can be collected in a relatively short time and is collected under standardized conditions. Its objectivity is further derived from the fact that a person’s score is compared to the range of scores obtained from a large group of people from a similar background who have taken the same psychometric tests.

2. Types of psychometric tests and questionnaires

First, let me make a distinction between tests which have right and wrong answers, and questionnaires which do not, but which ask about your interests and how you normally behave.

There are three main types of tests or questionnaires, measuring:

Ability/Aptitude

These assess specific enduring abilities such as:

Verbal understanding and reasoning with words;

Numerical understanding and reasoning with numbers;

Diagrammatic reasoning with abstract symbols;

Spatial reasoning with shapes and forms;

Mechanical comprehension involving principles of mechanics and physics;

Checking ability, with words and numbers

Tests of Special Aptitude are also fairly common and assess your capacity for a specific job like computer programming, or for a task such as learning foreign languages. Often aptitudes are measured by a number of different, but related, tests.

Personality

These psychometric tests assess up to 32 different aspects of personality such as your temperament, feelings and relationships with others, and your attitudes and values.

Unlike tests, these do not have right or wrong answers and are known as questionnaires.

They are always in multiple-choice format, normally with three, four or five possible responses to choose from, or rank in order.

Interests.

Interest questionnaires are normally only used for career counselling purposes. The questions usually relate to different types of job activities or tasks. You are asked to give your preferences, and from your answers the types of jobs you would prefer, and the direction your career might best take, can be deduced. The Strong Interest Inventory is one you may see.

3. Using the results.

The psychometric tests and questionnaires:

Are always administered and interpreted by qualified staff that are trained in their use;

Are chosen because they are relevant to the specific requirements for a specific job, or a range of jobs at a specific level;

Are reliable, i.e. you would get similar results if you sat them again;

Are valid, i.e. they have been shown to predict current or future job performance;

Results are never used on their own but usually in conjunction with an interview.

The results can help the interviewer to prepare, and to focus the time on key questions which need detailed consideration. By using these methods, it is much more likely that the right person will be selected and developed for each job. You are also likely to benefit by securing a job which is more suitable for your particular abilities, interests and personality.

4. A typical psychometric tests session

You may be asked to take a number of tests. They will be administered in a comfortable environment and all necessary equipment will be provided. The time allowed for each test will vary. Each ability test is unlikely to take less than 10 minutes and not more than 40. Personality and interest questionnaires have no set time-limit since you must respond to all of the questions, but usually take between 20 and 60 minutes.

Preparation

Being well prepared and doing practice example questions beforehand will give you a much better idea of what to expect and reduce any anxieties you might have about the testing session. Consequently, you will be more likely to perform at your best and give a truer account of your abilities. Many bookshops stock books containing practice material and it is also possible to access examples of psychometric tests practice questions through the internet.