25 Jan
Selling Yourself To A Potential Employer
In many ways, a job interview is akin to a salesperson presenting to a buyer. First, if you were in sales you would spent some time researching your potential client. Next, you would analyze their needs a sales person and were about to sell a product to a customer you would do some homework or research
These steps would help you convince potential clients that your product was the best choice to so that you could convince your customers that you had the best product to fill their needs.
04 Jan
2017 Kickoff – Time To Get Going On Your Job Search
For better or worse, 2016 is over. Time to make 2017 a great year. If one of the ingredients of your great year is a new job, it’s time to get going.
Even if you’re not actively looking, you should make many of these activities part of your life. You should always have your resume ready to go and an ongoing practice of networking.
If you are actively looking, get started on this list today.
Get Ready
First, make sure you resume is recruiter ready. Your resume is your calling card so make sure that it is a marketing document, which clearly demonstrates your value, not a boring employment history. Your resume should convey how you can solve a potential employer’s problems and be presented in an modern format.
03 Jan
Self Assessment To Go – A Career Change Checklist
Choosing a career is a big decision. A decision that should involve more than thumbing through a book or newspaper and picking a job that sounds kind of interesting.
While your next job will probably not be your last job, you will be spending many hours each week at the office. If you’re working full-time you will be spending more time with your co-workers than with your family.
20 Dec
How To Save Your LinkedIn Data – Steps You Need To Take Today
In September 2016, LinkedIn announced a redesign of its desktop (non-app) user interface. The announcement noted, “This is the largest redesign since LinkedIn’s inception.” The design update is expected to bring the desktop experience closer to what users of the LinkedIn mobile app are used to seeing.
More important than how LinkedIn will look once the redesign is rolled out is what features will — or won’t — still be included.
In the past, when LinkedIn has refreshed its user interface, it has removed features. In anticipation that this may happen with the forthcoming redesign, you should consider backing up your LinkedIn profile right now, so you don’t lose any data.
I don’t have the new version yet, but I know several people who do. I’ve gone through this process, it takes 5-10 minutes at most.
14 Dec
Mix & Mingle: Successful Holiday Networking
We all know that networking is one of our most powerful business tools. One of the things most of us forget is to continually nurture our network even when things are going well. The holiday season is a great time to catch up with old friends and make new ones.
Why are the holidays so great? When do you have a better opportunity to rekindle relationships? This is the perfect time of the year to get back in touch with people just to find out how they are doing. Make sure you take the opportunity to reconnect with friends and family – to do a little holiday networking.
30 Nov
4 Reasons The Holidays Are Great For Job Seekers
Despite colder temperatures, many job seekers regard the holiday season the same way they do the summer. They see it as another opportunity to take a break from job hunting. A time to sit back and enjoy the festivities.
As with relaxing in the summer, this is a big mistake.
As tempting as it may be, if you’re looking for a new job, this is not the time to slack off.
If anything, this is the time to ramp up your job search.
One of the best things about looking for a new opportunity during the holiday season is that most of your competition is on hiatus. They mistakenly think that no one finds a job during the holidays. For this reason they scale back their efforts.
16 Nov
3 LinkedIn Strategies You’re Probably Not Using
While I occasionally meet someone actively looking for work who doesn’t have a LinkedIn profile, most job seekers are smarter than that. They’ve heard having a LinkedIn profile is important so they spend a few hours putting one together.
Some job seekers make an effort to complete their profile. Most put up a “skeleton” profile that doesn’t include much more than their name, title, employers, and job titles. That’s just not enough.
Putting up a LinkedIn profile with just the basics will not help your job search. Here are 3 LinkedIn strategies that will make your profile more engaging.
Strong Summary
While your resume needs to showcase your qualifications, your LinkedIn profile needs to do double duty. It needs to convey your value and give readers an idea of who you are as a person.
Your Summary is an opportunity to tell your career story in a more personal way. Perhaps, you will want to share the impetus behind what you do or your management philosophy.
Unlike your resume, your LinkedIn profile should be written in the first person. Some resume writers make an effort to infuse your LinkedIn profile with your own words to provide authenticity. This can be particularly effective in your Summary. (Here are some tips for your Headline)
10 Nov
Don’t Get Caught Off Guard Without A Resume
Today every job is temporary. When our parents, or grandparents, were in the workforce it wasn’t uncommon to have a job for 20 years. That’s not true today.
Even if you’re one of the lucky ones who’s never been laid off or fired that doesn’t necessarily mean job security is a sure thing.
We’ve had a local cable news program covering Fairfield County CT for over 30 years. Last year, a European telecommunications company bought our local cable company. Last month, they announced that they are closing the production studio to New Jersey.
So the “as local as local news gets” station is going to be coming from a production studio 2 states away.
08 Nov
3 Career Lessons From The Presidential Election
Today marks one of the most historical elections of our lives. It’s also the end of a divisive election season. One that most of us are eager to see end.
While this is not a political post, there are many career lessons to be learned from this election cycle. Here are 3 things to remember.
Be Careful with Email
My grandmother used to say don’t put anything in writing that you wouldn’t want to see in the paper. Today, that goes for email as well. While it’s unlikely that your email will be hacked by a foreign entity you can’t control who, besides the intended party, will read it.
19 Sep
Clothes To Keep Your Job Search Under The Radar
While being employed makes you more appealing to employers, looking for a job while you’re already working has its own set of challenges. Finding a way to take calls from recruiters and interview, and still keep your job search under the radar.
While sneaking out of the office for interviews can be tricky, other things, like being dressed appropriately for a job interview, just need a little planning.
If you work in a casual office wearing an “interview outfit” will likely be a red flag to your current employer. Just as someone coming into a casual environment for a job interview is easily spotted by everyone else working there.