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Justice Mandhla asked:


Career Builder : The Four Pillars of Job Hunting

  

 

Your CV

Your Cover Letter

Interview

Job Skill Testing

 

Your CV

  

Your CV is probably the most important document in any job search process. Most people think that because they have a qualification, skill and experience they can sell themselves to hiring managers and ignore the CV. What they do not realize is that a CV is the first document that will attract the hiring manager to consider to shortlist them for interview. Ignoring and neglecting to provide an effective CV and resume will nullify your chances of been shortlisted. Hiring managers scan through hundreds of CVs’ looking for the exact qualifications, skills and experience required to fill the vacancy. If your CV is badly written recruiters will find it difficult to select such candidates. It must be remembered that hiring managers are also under pressure to fill vacancies and will not have time to read every CV thoroughly to understand if potential candidates fulfils the exact requirements of the post. Why make it difficult for them to select your CV? The hiring managers will only scan and select a CV that present the most concise information with  the relevant and informative text that will catch his eye. Your CV can open doors for you to be selected and hopefully shortlisted for the position you have applied for.

 

The content of your CV and how you have arranged your career history will improve your chances of getting into the interview. Your CV should contain a flow of information that starts with your qualifications and ends with your latest employment history. Anybody who reads your CV should be able to understand your CV without meeting you or reading your cover letter. Besides, that is what happens in real life - hiring managers peruse your CV long before you are called for interview. The final decision to finally call you for interview will ultimately rest on your CV. Your CV is the only key that will get you through the door of the company you wish to work for.  It is therefore advisable to keep two CV formats to meet the requirements of different employers. Those who need a summarized CV of a few pages (3-4pages) and those who need a longer and more detailed CV.

The easiest way of blowing your chances of a job opportunity is by making a poor impression with poorly presented and sloppy CV. Many applicants are usually not aware about the importance of this first stage of securing employment. They believe incorrectly that because they submitted a CV this guarantees them an interview or a job. The CV provides the employer with an overview of potential candidates for the position, and it gives the interviewer and idea of what to expect from the applicant. A good CV will improve the possibility of being granted an interview during which a good impression can be made. A good impression improves the chances of being hired.

Your CV is there to assist you to get a job. It acts as a support in search for employment and either secures you for an interview or ensures that you do not even get the opportunity to be interviewed. It markets and acts as the sales agent for you. A CV is an account of your career, and it enables you to present yourself to a prospective employer before meeting him/her on the interview day. It also provides the hiring manager with an opportunity to from opinions about you in advance. Your CV has to make an impression on the hiring manager, if it does not, you do not have a chance of being called for interview. The purpose of submitting a CV is to project a positive image about yourself by illustrating your educational qualifications, skills knowledge and experience. This will enable the hiring manager to form an impression about you. If through your CV you project a negative impression, the chances are that you will not be afforded an opportunity to attend an interview.  

 

Your Cover Letter

 

The second step to actually getting a job interview is to create an attention-getting cover letter. Your cover letter is a piece of information that lets’ a potential employer know what your skills are and whether you would make a perfect fit for the available position. Your cover letter must be as detailed and informative as possible, without going beyond a one-page limit. Write a cover letter that will be attractive and draw as much attraction as possible. Remember getting noticed amongst hundreds of CV’s is the only way to get a job. Take time to compile a compelling cover letter that sells your skills.

Here are five points to include in your cover letter:

Address your cover letter to a specific person - this will show that you have done your research about the company.

Clearly indicate the position you are applying for.

Showcase your experience and how it will be helpful in the position you are applying for.

Use company “buzzwords” for instance, “Breaking New Ground” if that is the company’s buzzword.

Be enthusiastic - Your enthusiasm will be communicated to the reader of your cover letter and enhance your chances of gaining an interview. If you can take time and write a cover letter that summarises your strongest skills, you have the edge over other contenders who skip this important step.

 

Interview

 

The keys to making a brilliant impact at any interview are researching relevant information, preparing yourself mentally anticipating the questions you are likely to be asked and working out the best possible answers to these questions. Remember all interviewers are seeking answers to two fundamental questions;

 

Can you do the job?

Will you fit in?

 

Preparation for job interview is the most important part of the entire interview process. Know the position and ensure that you know something about the job you have applied for. Talk to people you know in the same job and learn about the tasks involved. Prepare answers to questions you are likely to be asked relating to the job.  You should also know about the industry to which you’re applying. Find out as much as you can about the industry. More importantly than knowing the industry, is knowing something about the company to which you’re applying. Having the skills to do the job well and a strong knowledge of the company will put you above candidates who only have the skills to do the job well.

 

 Having managed to secure an interview means that the real preparation must begin. You have the opportunity of marketing and selling yourself to your prospective employer. You have passed the first stage and now you have to negotiate your way through the second. There are a number of ways and tools you can use to find the information you need. The first is obvious; do you know someone who works at the company? Perhaps a friend or relative of yours knows someone who works at the company and can put you in touch with that person. Use this to gain an inside perspective on the company. There’s also a wealth of information at the library, newspapers and magazines about the company.  Look for everything about the company. The product or services they offer the type of customers they deal with, name of company and CEO. You should make yourself familiar with the company’s size and anything else you deem important. If you think you will do well without having taken time to acquaint yourself with the company and its business, you will not succeed in landing a job. You should perform intensive research once you have secured a date and time for the interview, otherwise you may waste your time researching companies that may never call you.

It always helps to practice. The only way to measure your readiness for interview is to practice. Practicing your answers to likely questions is the key to projecting a calm and confident impression during the interview. Sit down with your best friend and have her fire questions at you. Ask her for feedback. You can also have your friend to tape you on a tape recorder or video camera. Listen to your voice is the pitch of your voice and tone pleasant, clear and distinct? Watch your eye contact, body language, do you see yourself confident or are your answers rambling and off-the-mark?  Analyze the way you your answers sound on the tape recorder. On the next run-through make a conscious effort to make yourself sound more like a professional and work on your flaws before that eventful day of interview.   Apply to several companies you do not have all that much interest in. If you are not successful, analyze what went wrong so that you can improve in the next one. Consider each job- hunting activity as an additional step in enriching your abilities and take criticism as an opportunity to improve yourself.

 

Interview Day

 

Having arrived for interview;

 

Be prepared - bring along an extra copy of your resume and reading materials in the event you have to wait a little while before the interview.

Dress appropriately - ensure that you are neat and well presented.

Be confident and project a positive attitude - the manner and confidence with which you answer questions will be carefully observed. Project an air of positive attitude and remember that the company called you because they believe you are capable of performing the job at hand.

Make eye contact - maintain eye contact as you talk about your skills and experience and let the interviewer know that you think you could do a good job.

Show enthusiasm - there is nothing that sips energy like a candidate who lacks enthusiasm. Even if the interviewer discusses your having to perform a skill that you are not familiar with, show him how eager you are to learn.

 

After the interview

 

Aside from being a recruiters test, sending a thank you letter to the person with whom you met during your interview can be a way for you to underscore your continued interest in the position and the company. Be polite and make sure to express your continued interest in the position as well as your ability to perform the duties required. Send a handwritten note and make sure to send the thank you letter immediately following the interview while your meeting is still fresh in the interviewer’s mind. It will help to put a face to the letter. Ensure that your letter is brief and emphasising your interest in the company and position.

You should not stop working on finding a new job until you have received an official offer. Even if you think the interview went great, there are no guarantees that you have the job until the company tells you so. Continue sending out resumes and scheduling more interviews. It is not wise to stake the future of your employment on one interview. Remember that finding a new job is a full-time job in itself, be prepared to work on your job search to make job offers come rolling in.

 Job Testing will follow in our next session.

 

Justice Mandhla is the author of What they did not teach you in school: Life Long Learning Tips to land a job straight out of school and he spends a great deal of his full-time writing day researching and writing about job search strategies.

 

 

 

 



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S. C. Mishra asked:


Whether you have completed your college, are planning to change your current job or are just looking for a change, it’s a good idea to look into getting international jobs. It’s not just that these jobs are worth considering in terms of giving a bulge to your pocket, it’s also that you can gain different kinds of experience and exposure. Making up your mind for an overseas job is only the second last step in going for an international job. Here is some homework you will need to do before considering such a job change.

Create a job vision: Irrespective of whether one chooses to work in his/ her own country or go abroad, a job vision is a must. This is basically an individual’s professional plans laid down on a whiteboard which depicts their career growth till date, short term goals and long term plans. To begin this, write your expectations clearly in terms of your achievements and growth with respect to a specific duration of time.

Choose the company/ destination: Once you are done setting a clear job vision, you need to list down companies you want to work in or destinations you want to be in. Also, do a research for job profiles in various countries and chose a country that has surplus jobs matching your work experience/education, etc.

If by chance you have posted your resume on a job finding site or with job consultancies and are open to considering overseas jobs, you will find that many suggestions for Gulf jobs, USA jobs, UK jobs and many others will come to your mailbox.

The following information should give you some idea of what to choose among the international job destinations.

Jobs in Gulf has been a favorite target for decades. The oil-rich Gulf region has provided ample international job vacancies due to the wide spectrum of career options. Nearly five million skilled Indians are housed in highly paid Gulf jobs. Some of the hot careers in Gulf are: oil & gas jobs, construction jobs, banking jobs, finance jobs, IT jobs, hospitality jobs, nursing jobs and medical care jobs. States to explore for good paying jobs in the Gulf are UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Needless to mention that these states are attracting the outside talent by providing lucrative offers in terms of money and lifestyle. So if you are a big-time spender and lifestyle connoisseur, you will love this place. If you feel proud to say that you work for a Fortune 500 or Fortune 1000 company, USA jobs and Canada Jobs may be of help. There is lots of advertising you will find job sites or in magazines for your dream USA job. Hospitality jobs, Construction jobs, Media jobs, Entertainment jobs, Manufacturing jobs, Accounting jobs, Logistics jobs, Administration jobs, Service jobs, Sales jobs, Consultancy jobs, Design jobs and retail jobs are just a few areas where one can seek his dream job. States to explore when finding jobs in the USA are New York, Connecticut, Texas, California, Ohio, Colorado, Washington, Dallas, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Orlando, Arizona, Kansas, Georgia, Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Ontario. Good growth record and continuous economic growth rate can be well depicted by UK jobs. You will find that a large Asian population has jobs in UK due to varied job streams. There are many UK job sectors that one can choose from when taking a job in England. Scotland, Wales and North Ireland are a few hot places for UK jobs. India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, China, and Indonesia are the places to move to if you are looking for having Asian Jobs.

Consistent and rapid economic growth and liberal trade policies in these regions provide a favorable environment for having plenty of job opportunities. Apart from work, many of them are quite known as leisure destinations with mystic natural beauty and delicious sea food.

But no matter where you choose to work, once you find a suitable place you want to take up a career and a position where you can fit in, be prepared for a series of interviews and number of technical rounds for matching the standards.

Having selected the company and destination you want to work in, also look for a job profile you desire. Many a time a job profile may differ slightly or more dramatically for different companies in different geographies. Therefore, you must be sure about the profile you are getting into before you sign and contract or make any commitment.

Once you are fine with the profile, try to find out the known and unknown policies of the company.

Discussion forums and groups over the net will help you in finding out hidden policies of the company (though one need not be too skeptical about it since usually good companies follow quite transparent policies).

Last but not least, don’t forget to look for all the documentation and official formalities from both you and the company.



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nicoleofficial asked:

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Geetika Jain asked:


If you are in a successful career, chances are you are enjoying what you do. You look forward to getting up everyday and getting ready to go to the job. Be happy, you are part of a privileged group. However, this is not the case with everybody. More often than not, people force themselves to go about their work everyday. Some realize it outright while others have no idea that they have touched career burnout. Career burnout can be resulted from a lot of things of which you might or might not be aware. Generally, there is a misconception that careers that involve a lot of physical labor result in burnout. This is not true. People who are in sedentary jobs or in proper white-collar jobs also feel burnt out.

Careers in all fields are prone to mental stress and anxiety leading to burnout. Whether you are a teacher, a banker, a manager or a clerk, you can experience job burnout at some or the other stage in your professional life. It can be both physical and psychological. Generally, job burnout can be defined as a state of inescapable fatigue, stress and frustration that sets in as because of your extra devotion to work, or way of life, or a professional experience that is not rewarding enough, or simply a lack of work-life balance. This is not a sudden experience but a gradual process. Sometimes, one is not even aware that this has set in. Job burnout clearly results in a lack of enthusiasm for work, a sense of failure and a general sense of disappointment towards life. Sometimes, this can become very dangerous. Thus, as soon as the symptoms are identified, one must look at arriving at a proper and timely solution.

Sometimes people shy away from owning up to job burnout. It is seen as a clear proof of having failed at the job that one was required to do. People feel that they have to like the work that they are doing, that they have to be tough and keep trying, that things will improve and that sooner or later their efforts will be recognized and rewarded. Thus, they end up dismissing that they have any job burnout. There are many clear symptoms such as not feeling enthusiastic about going to work, not caring for work, feeling anxious and reluctant, a sense of helplessness and a lack of control, perpetual weariness, boredom, guilt and a feeling as if there is no way out.

One should not ignore job burnout as it can lead to severe problems. There would be a certain decline in productivity, insensitivity and even lead to physical ailments. Some people go to the extremes of drug or alcohol abuse and even experience suicidal tendencies if job burnout is not treated in time. While everybody faces stress at the workplace, it is the way you handle it and the amount of control that you have on your fate that determines how burnt out you are at your job. Generally, managers are able to fare out better with job burnout because they feel they can control their fate. If you feel that you are losing control, others are dictating you in the job, you are prone to high degrees of job burnout. The lack of reward and recognition in the workplace, incompetent compensation, and unending tasks are the reasons that can lead to job burnout.

It is important to tend to the problem rather than ignore it. Firstly, stop ignoring the symptoms and stop denying that you might be suffering from job burnout. Once you are self-aware of the situation, it would be easier to deal with it. Then, you start looking at the problem in the face are able to do a step-by-step analysis of the whole situation and are thus able to deal with it better. Tackling one symptom at a time helps. Then, you have to believe that you and you only are in control of where your career goes. Even if there are hostile conditions at the workplace, you can still determine your professional destiny. This just might be a wake-up call. May be your career really needs an overhaul. You could consider changing profile or switching jobs. However, firstly you would have to determine what gives you real happiness.

You could look at avenues to grow outside your job, you could look at connecting with people whom you like or you could take classes to enhance your skills. The key is to introduce newness in your life. Also, look critically at your workplace and your daily work routine. If you feel there is no way out then you should probably take the first way out of your office. You have to do what you like and enjoy your job to avoid job burnout. Also, there has to be a balance in life and career. Never let a job take over your life.



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Info Arrow asked:


How to Apply for Jobs

In today’s world applying for a job is relatively easy as compared to my time when you have to scan through the newspaper classifieds. Get your résumé typed and make photo copies of it. Then note down addresses of each job advertisement and apply individually be sending a snail mail. Last thing was to sit down and hope some day a interview letter will reach at your door step.

Now in twenty first century things have changed at rapid pace. The modes of applying for a job are many. Today you can apply for a job through a job sites, employer website, job forums, social media sites and of course through traditional method of newspaper and resource management offices.

Let’s look at what are the options available for applying the jobs. First let me give information on traditional way for applying for jobs.

In Person Application

This process you can do through two methods. One method is just drop-in at company door and handover your resume in envelope to receptionist or customer service person on front desk. Hope your resume reaches the human resource office.

Next method is to be little prepared for in person application process. Go to company website and look for any job opening which are matching with your profile. Next call on company contact number and ask for appointment with human resource person. Once you have secured the appointment make it a note in your diary or add appointment in your outlook calendar. On appointment day ensure you reach your destination half hour early. Approach to front desk and give your reason of visit. During meeting with human resource officials present you in a professional manner. Things to hit hard are your recent experience and how it matches with the current opening and how you think you are valuable to company. In case no outcome comes from meeting ask for next meeting or when should you call the HR official.

Newspaper Classifieds

This one is really old method which still works for hiring potential employees. Get ready with color pen and magnifying glass. Don’t laugh some of the ads are so small that to read them in a crowded page you really need to focus and concentrate. Start zeroing on the interested positions and note them on a note pad. If you have computer I would advice to keep record of each company where you are going to apply. It helps to keep tab on your resume submission so that you don’t submit resume more than once.

Create a cover letter which you intend to send with resume. The cover letter should be brief and give good information about you. Next stuff your resume and cover letter in envelope and label stamp on it. If you don’t here from companies send them a info requesting letter about your resume submitted for job. Sometime it works and you ight get call from company officials.

Job Consultants

These are individuals who are the interface between job seekers and the companies looking for the potential employees. These folks have contact with hiring manager and have first hand information of job openings in the companies. They will not charge you for any professional or job placement services. What they do is to match your resume with the job profiles. Once they find a suitable match they will submit resume to hiring manager. Next you go trough phone interview and in person interview. If you get selected they in turn will get professional fess for placement service.

The advantage in working with them is that you can list your choices such as what companies, which positions and the salary range etc. They kind of do pre-bargain for you with company hiring managers.

Let’s switch gears and see how to apply for jobs in 2009.

Job Sites

We are living in internet age. In this age for any information people go to internet for answers. The growth of internet has created opportunity for many businesses. One of them is job portals. The job websites are one point stop for job seekers and companies for looking talented staff to fill open vacancies. These job sites also provide free resume tools such as resume builder, tips for interview and tools to create coversheet.

These websites are access point to hundreds of employers at one place. All you have to create your profile on their website with minimum information such as name, address, email address and contact number. After this you can browse their database for job openings. Some of the job portals let you keep your job submission history so that you don’t apply for job more then once. Not to mention this saves your postage and pain of mailing resumes to companies. The other advantages are cutting short for resume to reach hiring manager and turn around time is also fast.

Employer Web Sites

These days every company has presence on internet. This is also a good method of applying for jobs. Access their webpage on internet and go to “Careers” option on menu. Search for available jobs and see what matches with your profile. Some employer website allows you to just cut and paste your resume in web forms and provide a single point of submission. There is nothing wrong in following up with the company HR resource person about your resume. Remember you are not only person who is applying for the job.

Social Media Websites

Well internet space has become parallel to physical space. On earth we look for malls, restaurants, bars, parks to hang around with friends and collogue. Similarly on Internet there are many social websites which allow you to create your own personal pages and help in connecting with millions of socialites on website. You can add parameters in your profile page to whom you want to include in your friends list. You can expose your profile to many friends to many regions in world. All control is in your hand.

Now the question is how this helps to your job hunt. Many HR professionals are using these social websites to advertise job openings. Why, because these social websites don’t charge anything to users for classified ads. Now here s the free platform, millions of users and single bulletin board to get your message across. A Win-Win situation for everyone.

The few social media website examples are orkut.com, myspace.com, facebook.com, twitter.com etc.

For more information on how to apply for Jobs …. Visit  http://tophighestpayingjobs.com/ How To Apply For Jobs



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Owain Lewis asked:


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