Need A Better Job?

Much of the time, my blog focuses on helping unemployed people find work. Today however, I want to reach out to those who are currently working, but increasingly feeling the desire or need to find a new job.

I hear from a lot of people who are interested in moving from their current job to a new one. Their reasons vary from dissatisfaction, not liking management and their boss in particular, a drop in hours, no room to grow and being passed over for promotions when they feel it’s their time. Sometimes it’s being harassed on the job site, new owners making sweeping changes that don’t go over well with existing staff, a desire to work closer to home, or yes, more money.

You can see that there are a lot of valid reasons for looking for a job when you already have a job. In many ways, that’s the best time to look for work. After all, you don’t have a gap on your resume to explain, you don’t feel desperate to grab a job just for the sake of having one, nor do you have the stress and mental anguish that comes with no income while you look for work. These are just some of the reasons why you may have heard, “it’s easier to get a job when you have a job.”

Before I proceed further, let me give everyone who is currently working, a few tips which, if you heed them, will help you greatly in the future when you need a change. First update your resume with your current job. I know you might feel this is something you can do later, but it will only take 10 minutes. Next, if you have a good performance review stashed somewhere in your locker or desk at work, bring it home. This document will be of great help should you eventually need a reference from your current employer only to find that they have a policy of only confirming your job title and years of service. Third, get a copy of your job description and again, take it home and store it somewhere you can easily find it.

Those 3 tips are going to help you should you need or want to make a change. The performance review will help you prove your worth to interviewers, the job description will put in words all the good skills and responsibilities you have now and both will help you defend your credentials during an interview. Don’t wait. Do these two things this week. You’ll thank yourself for doing so. And if you work with an Employment Counsellor to help you out, show them copies of these so they can best market your experience and accomplishments.

Now let me remind you of something you need to hear; you’re entitled to work in a positive and supportive environment and be paid fairly for the contribution you make to an organizations success. If you find your hours of work are dropping, you have no benefits or your salary and hope for advancement seems frozen, you owe it to yourself to land somewhere better. But to do that, you have to motivate yourself to actually actively job search.

I’ve said this so many times before, but phone or get yourself into an Employment Centre in your community.  I know this might be your morning or afternoon off, but it’s a good place to start. Ideally, bring your current job description, resume, identification and an idea of what you’d like to do. The people you meet with will have a good idea knowledge of your local labour market, jobs in demand, know who is hiring – and many of these employers don’t put signs in their windows anymore.

Here’s some encouraging news if you’re looking for work. Employers are crying for workers. Not just anybody mind you. They are looking for enthusiastic people who get along with co-workers, are dependable, punctual, problem-solvers, good communicators with both verbal and written skills. They can’t find workers!

I’m going to guess many of you are really good at whatever it is you do. In your line of work, you’re experienced and you’ve got a pretty decent work ethic. You may have put in several years in your current job and yet, feel unappreciated and taken for granted. The one thing you know you’re not good at perhaps is resumes and cover letters, along with performing well in job interviews. That’s actually expected. No one is great at everything.

The main reason to drop in to an Employment Centre is to partner up with a job search pro. Hey, you’re good at what you do and they are good at what they do. Get these people working with you to shorten your job search and help you find your next job faster. You might even find Counsellors have more time to devote to you due to the pandemic as it keeps other job seekers from seeking help.

Think you don’t need their help? Think anybody can put together a great resume? That’s like me saying I could do your job just as well as you do – and I can’t.

You’ve nothing to lose and everything to gain!

The Argument For Strong Cover Letters And Resumes

Job applicants tend to fall into two distinct groups when it comes to looking for work. There’s those who put in minimal effort and those that do everything they can to submit strong applications.

A poor application might mean no cover letter at all or a short sentence or two with spelling or grammar errors, along with a pretty basic resume that is printed multiple times and fanned out to numerous employers. This is typically contrasted with the cover letter and resume tailor-made to address all the requirements and qualifications the employer who posted a position has indicated as their needs.

Now, as the reality job seekers know only too well is that you’ll likely get passed over a lot before getting hired on, some might argue that the person putting forth the least effort is the smarter of the two applicants. After all, if the end result is no interview and no job, why invest a lot of effort?

The answer of course comes down to two things; improving your odds of success and improving the experience of the job you get.

Improving your odds of success.

The job applicant submitting a weak, generalized resume is going to be job searching for a long time, simply because each and every time they are measured up against some other applicants who are taking the time to craft their resumes to the specific needs of each and every job posting. In that pool of applicants, the employer looks through the many they get and each and every time begins with the same thinking; the ones closest on paper to what I’m looking for are the ones to interview.

The job applicant with a strong, targeted resume will have a shorter period of unemployment simply because when measured up against some other applicants, they will have their application put in the pile of those who got through the first stage of being screened. The stronger the cover letter and resume, the more they survive each stage of being evaluated, be it by human or digital software.

Improving the experience of the job you get.

This is the second reason for investing effort in the jobs you apply to. When you put the barest level of effort into applying and put a basic resume before employers with scant detail and errors, you send a message along with your resume. The message a potential employer receives may be that here’s someone who doesn’t put in a lot of effort, doesn’t care and isn’t going to be in high demand. Therefore, I can likely hire them at a low wage, maybe do menial work and they may go as far as assume you won’t stay long either, so they don’t invest a lot of effort in your development and training. As a consequence, the experience is poor.

The person with the strong resume and well-researched cover letter on the other hand comes across as well-informed, professional; someone to be taken seriously. Poor employers tend to avoid these types because they feel they won’t be able to manipulate them as much. Good employers are drawn to people who show effort in their application because there’s the hope they also show the same effort in doing the actual work once hired. As a result, not only do these types get hired more often, employers train these people better because they want them to stay and add value to the organization. As a consequence, the experience is better.

Imagine  someone coming up to you as you were buying a lottery ticket. They ask why your only buying a single ticket for the big draw and you tell you it’s all you’re willing to spend because there’s a lot of other people playing. Why play at all then you’re asked? Well, there’s a slim chance you might win and you get to dream about how winning would change your life.

Now suppose this person claimed they could improve your odds of winning by eliminating a lot of the other tickets; a lot of other tickets. No, they aren’t expecting you to shell out additional money and buy more tickets. Would you be interested? Oh yes you would be! You’d only have one thing to say. “How?”

Landing the job is like winning the lottery and it will change things in your life beyond the job. More money to spend on the things you want, feeling better about yourself and having others view you in a better way. Saving some for retirement or a trip you’ve only thought about. On a small scale perhaps eating out every so often, paying down debts, feeling less stressed and having a purpose in how you spend your time.

When you always use a cover letter and improve the strength of both your cover letter and resume through research and get help and advice, you increase the odds of success. You move ahead of the people who apply with weaker resumes and fail to use cover letters. You eliminate the other lottery tickets.

Please share with others as you wish. You may just be doing someone a huge favour.

 

Working Hard Isn’t Enough Alone

Ever had a report card with the comment, “If only (insert name) would apply him/herself more” ? Well working harder and applying oneself more to tasks is a good start, but it’s not a guarantee of success. In fact, one can work really hard but still come up short. No, working hard is only part of it.

Success comes when you have the right tools, understand how to use them, then apply yourself to using those tools as they were designed. It’s not just working hard, it’s working smarter. All you weekend do-it-yourselfer’s out there ever used the side of a wrench as a make-shift hammer even though you have a perfectly good hammer designed for just such a task but you’re too lazy to go to the other end of the house to get it? Yeah, it’s kind of like that.

Looking for work today has changed significantly from the way people looked for jobs in the past. Yet not in every aspect. And so it is that because in some ways things stay the same, many make the mistake of assuming going about looking for work in all respects is something they know how to do. Hence, they go about job searching with sporadic bursts of energy, thinking they are making great progress, when in fact, it’s a lot of energy wasted. Take the person who makes a résumé on their own and hands out photocopied one everywhere. If they really think this is what you do these days; if no one has informed this is an outdated practice, all the hard work they are doing distributing it isn’t going to result in the desired end goal.

Older job seekers are guilty much of the time for lacking the awareness of how things have changed. Their resistance to technology is widely known – although to be fair there are many to whom this stereotype does not apply. Still, there are many who are still searching for that employer that will let meet them face-to-face and put in a days work on a voluntary basis, hoping that single days work will convince them to hire them full-time. Employer’s however will  generally avoid such antiquated practices. After all, if such a person injured themselves or someone else on that trial day, the insurance companies would have hysterics and raise that employer’s premiums to dizzying amounts.

However, the older worker is an easy target for the young, tech-savvy job seeker to point to and chuckle. Ah but such behaviour has its irony; for the young tech-savvy types themselves might know all about applicant tracking software and have their LinkedIn profiles and be prolific on social media websites that didn’t exist two weeks earlier, but they have their issues too. Just try suggesting they get off their tech devices and actually start a conversation with someone in the flesh. Suddenly their thumbs used for texting have no purpose, their gravatars fail to protect their identities, and what they’ve put little effort into developing – interpersonal skills and verbal communication skills, leave them exposed.

Working hard at the things you already do well is very good for keeping those skills used and ready. However, failing to understand that the job of looking for a job might just require some tools you don’t even know you’re missing in the first place can be a critical mistake ending up in repeated failure. Then all the hard work in the world won’t result in getting what you’re ultimately after.

The problem with this is when you’re taking stock of your skills, it’s one thing to know you’re not using a skill and consciously be okay with that. It’s another to not know in the first place what you lack; then you haven’t even got the option of using it or not.

There’s the added problem too of finding something new and then wondering if this is a fad or a trend. Fads come quickly and disappear just as quick. If you mistake a fad as a new trend and invest a lot of your time and energy in them, you might be one of a handful, and in the end find yourself mislead into thinking you’re on to something. To follow a new trend however, you’d be on the frontier, and then you hope the employers to whom you apply are savvy enough themselves to accept what you offer.

What makes it hard is knowing whom to trust when they say, “Trust us; we know what’s right and what’s hot out there. Do it our way and you’re in good hands.” Ultimately it comes down to you and whom YOU trust.

I suppose good advice continues to be to ask yourself if you’re getting the results you’d expect based on the effort you’re putting in. If you don’t put in effort to begin with it doesn’t matter at all of course. But if you’re working hard at getting a job and getting nowhere, stop doing what you’re doing. Open yourself to changing something in your approach and then applying yourself to actually apply what you learn to your search. Then go ahead and put in the hard work. Now you’ve got a recipe for greater success – you’re working smarter and harder.

 

 

Before Submiting Your Resume

Writing a résumé would seem to be something most people should be able to do on their own; which is precisely why so many people often take to doing it themselves. I mean, it doesn’t seem overly complicated requiring the services of a professional. It’s just something that many people feel they have the skills to do; it is after all just words on paper, and who knows a person better than themselves?

And to be fair, when one professional can’t agree with another about what to add, what to leave off, the layout and the formatting, one’s left wondering if the one they’d make themselves might not just work as well. While the best advice I have to offer is to enlist the help of a professional who will work with you face-to-face, there will always be those who insist on doing it for themselves and saving time and money into the bargain. (What they believe is the case at any rate.)

Over the weekend I had some time and went looking online for the help of a résumé writing service, not because I would actually employ their services mind, but to see what was on offer. This is what I do in part for a living myself, but I thought it might be interesting to see what services are out there. I started looking on Kijiji;  where I know  some people begin their search for such help.

It didn’t take long actually. Here was an ad which seemed to say a lot of the right things. It promised quick results, whether a person wanted a résumé, a cover letter or both. It mentioned three times in the ad that the writers are all English; which immediately made me suspicious. It was just an odd thing to add in an ad that is written in English to begin with. As I read on, the choice of words started to fit together less and less appropriately. It started sounding more and more like the writer spoke and wrote English as their second language.

The ad advises people to send them a deposit to get started, plus their old resume or all the things they’ve done in the past if they don’t have one. Then the service will send them a picture of the completed resume, and once the balance is paid, the completed document(s) will be sent; satisfaction guaranteed. They claim to have, “lot of happiness from others.” See what I mean? One can just imagine an entire resume with this rather crude sentence structure. The price? $40 per resume.

I also went looking at a few job search websites; seeking jobs that I’m not qualified or interested in applying to personally. I wanted to see what guidelines or expectations employers had in the resumes they expected to receive. One ad asked for applicants to include their hobbies and interests outside of work; something typically left off resumes these days. Another ad instructed applicants to apply directly via LinkedIn; so without a profile on that platform, don’t bother to apply. A third ad requested that applicants should clearly state why they want the job they are applying to at the top of the résumé.

So the advice I give you is before submitting your résumé, read the ad wherever you find it and carefully look for anything specific the employer requests. Failing to add or drop things as the case may be, could end up terminating your chances of success before you even send your application. Of course there are other guidelines to look for; send an accompanying cover letter or don’t, include a job reference number if one is provided, and instructions on whether resumes can be faxed, emailed, hand-delivered or mailed. Does anyone actually mail resumes anymore?

Employer’s websites often give specific instructions on the right font style and size they expect, the size of paper, number of pages permitted and whether they want every job you’ve ever done or just the relevant bits. I imagine at least some of the people reading this piece are still mass producing their single resume and distributing it to many employers in the hope that something sticks. By the way, stop doing this; it’s annoying and it doesn’t work effectively most of the time. Or continue to do this as you wish; sure, you might get lucky.

The bottom line of my message is that before you start a résumé – whether you do it yourself or you enlist the help of someone else, read the post and see if the employer has left you some guidance with respect to their expectations. You would be wise to go and read the employers website too if they have one. A lot of the time you can find information on their submission guidelines there; it’s like a reward for those job seekers who bother to check out the employer and separates these from those who don’t see the value in doing so. Resumes that don’t follow the employer’s expectations may be immediately trashed because after all, if the applicant can’t be bothered to even check out the employer’s publicly posted webpage, how invested are they going to be doing work for the company when they don’t invest in doing work for themselves?

Go at this résumé thing any way you like of course; it’s your future after all. Please don’t think you get what you pay for; not in this case.

Writing A Cover Letter

No the cover letter is not dead; nor has it fallen out of practice. Yes you will come across job postings that ask that you only include a résumé, but don’t take these directives as justification for not writing one as your usual practice when applying for a job. Put in the effort required and include a cover letter as the rule.

The first thing to look for in a job posting is whether there is a job number to quote in your cover letter. Typically an ad will instruct you to put this in the subject line of an email when applying, and likewise it’s good practice to put this at the beginning of your cover letter and underlined for prominence. This courtesy just ensures your application gets to the right hiring people for the job in question as it may be just one of many they will interview for.

The question now comes up as to whom the letter should be addressed. ‘To whom it may concern’ might be your standard opening, but I strongly discourage this generic opening. We have social media, company websites and of course the phone; do some digging and get the name, proper spelling and job title of the person you want your cover letter and resume to end up with. Sure some employers go out of their way to hide this information from job seekers, but do your best. If this information can be tracked down with a phone call or a visit to their website, applicants who address their letter to the person in question stand out from the pack right off the top.

Now, how to begin? Well, let’s put ourselves in the place of the reader of your mail. “Who is writing me and what do they want?” Two obvious questions. Your name at the top and bottom of the letter will explain the who, so your opening line should get right to your motive for contacting them. You do after all, want the résumé and cover letter you submit to lead to a job interview, correct? Right; so ask for one.

It is with genuine enthusiasm that I request an interview for the position of _______.

Oddly enough some people think this is too aggressive. Well, it’s not; it’s assertive yes, and it respects the time of the people who read the cover letter, right from the Receptionist, Human Resources staff and the specific Hiring Supervisor. Everyone who reads your opening knows what you’re after. Please don’t dance around what you want and dither about just hinting at what you want. Too often I see people write things like,

Please find my attached resume. I believe I have the qualifications you are looking for and I would appreciate the chance to meet and discuss how we can benefit each other

There’s just so many things wrong in a paragraph like the one above. The language is passive and weak, and if you can’t just come out and tell them what you’re after, that’s an issue. After all, you do want an interview don’t you? Of course you do!

So what’s wrong with that opening? Okay, first off, why are you asking them to find your résumé? Did you hide it? Do you have the qualifications or don’t you? If you do, then saying, “I have the qualifications you are looking for” is the right thing to say instead of inserting the word, ‘believe’ which literally means you’re not sure you have the qualifications needed, but you think you do. While we’re at it, substitute the word, ‘opportunity’ for the word, ‘chance’. This is an opportunity – for both you and the company. ‘Chance’ sounds risky, and you don’t want to sound like a risk at all. Finally, while it’s true that both you and the company will mutually benefit each other if/when hired, in your opening greeting, you should concentrate on what you’ll do for the company and not speak about what you’ll get out of things.

Okay so you’ve asked for the interview right up front. Now move to their needs and how your combination of skills, education, experience and attitude fit their needs. Research you’ve done will clue you in about what to speak to. Without some digging, you’re just guessing.

Your cover letter should include words from the posting but not just be a rehashing of what’s in the resume itself. Consider speaking to your motivation here, possibly stating why you’re entering the workforce, returning to your field of choice, you’ve just relocated to the area, etc. but whatever you speak to, don’t place yourself as a charity case; it’s not about what they can do for you but rather how your background qualifies you uniquely. Sell and market yourself to their needs.

When you do close off your cover letter, reiterate your request for an interview.

As stated in the opening, I am requesting an in-person interview to best demonstrate my strong candidacy for this opportunity.

Anyone skimming your cover letter can’t miss your intention. Assuming they know why you’re writing and that’s it’s obvious or a given would be a mistake. If you haven’t the courage to simply state what it is you want, how will you perform if they actually hire you?

When you close off, stand out. Drop the, ‘sincerely’ and ‘yours truly’.

With enthusiasm,

Enthusiasm after all is the number one trait employers want.

Cover Letters: Passive vs. Assertive

I often have the opportunity in my line of work to look over and review cover letters written by job applicants. One of the most common trends I notice is the tendency to use passive language; words that often communicate a different message than the one you intend.

Let me give you a few examples; phrases you might be using yourself and may wish to avoid using in the future.

“I would like to express my interest in applying for the position of…” This sentence, or some version of it is often one I read that starts off a cover letter. So how does it appear to you? Any problem with it? As I read it, I always think to myself, “Well, if you would like to express your interest why don’t you?” In other words, re-word it to read, “I am expressing my interest…” By removing the words, ‘would like to’, the sentence shifts from a passive indication of what the writer would like to do, to an assertive statement of what they are doing; in this case expressing interest in the job.

Another example is, “I believe I have the qualifications you need.” Once again the sentence is not as strong as it needs to be. If you drop the first two words of the sentence – ‘I believe’, the sentence suddenly becomes more assertive. “I have the qualifications you need.” This isn’t in doubt anymore; I have what you stated you need. The first statement leaves room to question whether the writer has the qualifications or not; sure they believe they have the qualifications but they might be mistaken.

Let me provide one more example at this point and it’s a classic. “Please find my attached resume.” Really? Applying for this job is extremely important to you and you are asking the employer to go find it? Did you hide it somewhere? Why make it sound like you’re playing hide and seek? “I have attached my résumé” is actually the case, and therefore why not just indicate so? This is one of the most annoying phrases apparently when I’ve listened to employers tell me what they find irritating in the cover letters they receive.

Now the biggest concern for job applicants when writing assertively is the fear of coming across as aggressive. Take the phrase, “I would like to apply for the position of…”. Somehow it seems aggressive to some people to just drop the, “would like to’ and replace them with, ‘am applying’.

This feeling of being aggressive is even more pronounced in another common cover letter-writing  tendency. Let me set it up first by asking you one question. Do you apply for jobs for which you meet the stated qualifications? I assume you do. While every so often it’s good to stretch yourself and apply for positions where you meet most but not all the employers stated needs, more often than not I imagine you also apply for jobs where you tick all the boxes of what is being asked for. So why then is it seemingly difficult to actually state this in the cover letter and let the employer know that you meet all their stated needs?

Consider writing the phrase, “Having read your stated needs in the job posting, I am confident in stating I have all the qualifications you need. In short, I am the candidate you’re looking for.” Wow! Could you write that? Does it sound like you? Many applicants I work with get a little gun-shy about using this phrase because to them it sounds like boasting. Or, it sounds like they are better than other job applicants. My rebuttal is, “Well aren’t you?”

Now it’s not boasting if you are truly qualified. You can see on the job posting exactly what the employer has stated they need from those applying. If indeed you check all their needs, and if you really want the position, then shouldn’t you believe you are in fact the candidate they are looking for? Of course you should! So why be hesitant to say so?

It probably harkens back to what mom or your primary school teachers said over and over, “Don’t think too highly of yourself. Nobody likes someone who boasts about themselves.” But this isn’t boasting. This is self-marketing; stating that you do indeed have what they are looking for. And quite frankly, should you ever apply for a job where you believe you aren’t the best candidate? Wouldn’t that be a waste of your time? Sure it would. So if you really do believe you have the right combination of skills, experience, education and the right personality to match, I say be assertive and communicate so in your writing.

This need not transform you into some pompous, arrogant know-it-all who will rub the employer the wrong way. I’m not suggesting you change your character and pretend to be someone you’re not either. That’s disingenuous and will always turn out poorly. Writing with assertiveness however just accentuates your position.

Here’s my last point; please ask for the interview. That after all is the thrust of the whole cover letter isn’t it? “I am requesting an interview to best show my strong  interest and suitability for the position of…”.

Re-read a cover letter of your own slowly and see if you can strengthen your presentation by using some of these tips.

How Do I Start A Cover Letter?

Not every employer out there wants you send them a cover letter, and some make it clear in the job posting by asking you not to send one with your resume. However, 50% of employers do read the cover letters they receive, and the ones that do take your ability to communicate effectively into consideration when deciding whether to have you in for an interview.

The trouble for many people is how to begin the actual body of the thing. “What should I say?” many wonder. My advice is to start by thinking of things from the perspective of the person who is going to receive your letter at the other end.

Whether your cover letter is going to be sent by email, as part of an online application, hand delivered or in the post, it’s going to ether start by being received by only one of two people; the right person or someone who needs to pass it on to the right person.

In either case, unless they aren’t going to look at it at all go right to the resume, either of the two people are going to ponder, “What’s this letter all about?” at first glance. So if it lands in the Receptionists mail, he or she will have to open it and read enough in order to know who to forward it to in the company based on the contents. If it first lands in the inbox of the person making up the short list of people to interview, they’ll be wondering what it’s about on first glance too, as the job you are applying to isn’t the only thing they’ get mail about.

Make the assumption these are busy people with a lot to do in a day. Time is money; that kind of thing. The time they are now spending reading your cover letter is precious time to both you and them, so you should be thinking as you write your first few words, “Get to the point right away.”

I’m going to make two essential suggestions. Once you have the date of your letter at the top and some contact information just below that, put what the letter is regarding next in bold and underline it quoting any job competition number provided. It might look like this:

RE. Senior Bookkeeper/Account #16-537 

Remember how I said your cover letter might be read by someone who has to forward it to the right person? This information clearly and boldly stated just above the content of your letter gives the person enough information right there to get your cover letter and application moving to the right person. Let’s face it, after the time you invested in writing this cover letter, you don’t really want to put your chances of a potential interview in the hands of a Receptionist, expecting him or her to really read the entire letter without this and then figure out who to pass it along to. They are too busy and you’re not helping yourself.

The second suggestion I have is to start the first sentence stating what it is you want. What do you want? An interview of course! Why so many people are uncomfortable actually asking for an interview when that is precisely what they are applying for in the first place is beyond me. It’s not aggressive, it’s not rude, it’s actually exactly what the interviewer appreciates because you save them time.

“I am requesting an interview for the Senior Bookkeeper/Account  position. Having reviewed your desired qualifications, I am confident in stating my qualifications, experience and skills are an excellent match making me an ideal candidate.”

“But I can’t say that!” at least some of you reading this are gasping! Well, other readers will be happy to hear that because they are already revising their cover letters and just improved their chances because you’re reducing yours. You want an interview right|? The point of your cover letter and motivation for writing at all is immediately clear right? The time of the person reading it is respected right? It’s all good.

You see when your letter gets into the hands of the right person, the job you are applying to may not in fact be the only job they are interviewing people for. Not to mention of course they get a lot of other correspondence; bills, invoices, requests for charitable donations, business letters etc. Again, as they open your letter they first ask themselves, “What does this person want?” You are doing them a favour.

Scared of the direct language that says essentially you’re the right person; the best person for the job? Afraid that’s boasting? It’s not and in the forthcoming interview you are asking for, aren’t you going to be making the best case you can as being the best person for the job? The one they should hire? So where’s the conflict?

Here’s the clincher; at least for me. If the cover letters you’re writing were effective, you’d be getting calls for interviews on a regular basis; assuming you are qualified in the first place. If you’re not getting those calls, don’t be timid and afraid of changing your approach in order to see if you get a different result.

You are undoubtedly good at what you do; maybe even very good at whatever it is you do. This is in my area of expertise; take it or leave it but think on it.

This Is That Chance You Wanted

So you are out of work and are frustrated with your lack of progress. How frustrated? Well you stopped really looking on a full-time basis last year and told anyone who would listen that no one was hiring in December anyhow; you’d start fresh in January. Well it’s now January, and we’re actually already four days in.

Yes the second best time to look for work is right now. The best time to look for work was when you stopped going at – whenever that was; but that time is past so no point beating yourself up over that now. The key is right now; here today, at this moment. I don’t think it can be put any plainer that this; “Get going!”

The first thing you need to do is evaluate where you are in the job search in order to change the outcome of your 2016 job search vs. what you’ve done in the past. After all, if you go about your job search in the same way you went about it last year, your odds are likely to be about the same of ultimately being successful – and you weren’t were you? Hmmm…

In other words, if you’re using the same resume and it didn’t work last year, it likely won’t work this year. If you haven’t practiced and improved your interviewing skills, you are likely going to be eliminated from future competitions at that point just like last year. If you are still going about job searching by mass distributing your resume – well, that didn’t work last year so it’s not likely to work this year. Quite frankly, if you haven’t determined what it is you really want to do work-wise in 2016, you’re likely just as confused or desperate to do, ‘anything’ as you were in 2015; and ‘anything’ has yet to be found on a job board.

The best thing about undertaking any activity in the early days of a new year; in this case 2016 is the fresh start. This mental view of starting all over with a fresh new start erases all the failures and frustrations of the past year. If you plan on making significant progress over last year’s dismal failure, you usually need to make significant changes in your approach. After all, it’s not very likely that pounding away doing the same thing will result in positive changes. No, you need a different approach to the situation at hand.

First of all, evaluate if you’ve targeted a specific job; two at the very most, or are you looking for any old job. If you are looking for any old job, stop please. Do some self-assessments under the watchful support of a professional who can help you figure out what you really want. After you figure this out, by all means start a focused job search.

If you know what you want to do, find out how competitive you really are with your current skills and experience. No point going forward and applying for jobs you are underqualified for is there? This is just going to result in a lot of rejection. You need to talk to people in that industry or field and find out how you stack up. Listen to them and take their advice. If you need upgrading, go get it. If you have the skills and experience, let’s move ahead!

Now if you know what you want and you’re qualified and can compete on a level playing field, the next thing to do is see how you are marketing yourself. Here you need some objective feedback on your cover letter and resume. Do these two documents brand and market your abilities in such a way that you appeal to employers? Do you solve a problem for them, or are your resume and cover letter solely about you and what you want?

Marketing and branding yourself to appeal to employers on paper is one thing; doing it in person another. So, how are your interpersonal skills? How’s the self-confidence, the clothing, smile, handshake, listening and speaking skills? Yes of course you should be hired based on your skills and experience; but if you think that you won’t be judged or assessed based on your personal presentation skills, you’re sadly mistaken. If you need some dental work, get it done. If you’ve neglected your personal grooming and need a bit of a personal makeover, get it done. You’ll feel better, you’ll look better, and you’ll act differently too.

It would be a wise thing to look into some self-improvement classes and if there is a cost involved, think of it like an investment in yourself; you have to spend money to make money. In other words, it’s 2016 and you’ve got to look it. The clothes you wear might need some freshening up – maybe you got just what you needed for Christmas? If not, find a sale or two and take someone with some fashion sense with you; not your similarly unemployed best friend or mom. We’re talking change here.

Look if you’re going to erase the mistakes and plunders of 2015, don’t start the year by wiping the slate clean and then set out to make the identical plunders. This is your big chance to put some changes in place so that you get the results we both want for you in 2016. What changes are you making?

Signs Of A Successful Person

Back in late 2014, one of my co-workers shared with me that she had been applying for internal jobs in our organization, hoping to move from the ranks of permanent part-time to permanent full-time. This week she shared with me the news that she has successfully landed a full-time position, and how she went about it might provide you with an example if you are in a similar position.

When I first heard she was looking for employment, I asked her how things were going in order to get an idea of whether or not an offer of help would be appropriate or not from me personally. As it turns out, she mentioned that while she was getting some interviews, she would invariably not do well in the interviews themselves; sometimes wondering if she was saying too much, perhaps not really answering the question, and her anxiety coming through. Bazinga! A specific area I could help with.

So I made an offer to look over her resume and cover letter, help with a mock interview, whatever she wanted and felt she would benefit from. Now here’s the first sign of a successful person; she welcomed the offer of help. Within a 24 hour period, she provided me with her resume and cover letter, plus the job posting they corresponded to. Following through and delivering what she had been asked to provide me with was the second sign of a successful person. You see too many people nod their head and say, “Yeah I’ll get it to you”, but they don’t.

After I edited both resume and cover letter, we set up a time to get together. Working only part-time, she made the effort to meet after her own shift was done, and she followed through – another successful step. When I was going through her resume revisions, she leaned in, looked interested, listened, clarified what she initially didn’t understand, and was genuinely interested in understanding where it was weak and why, and how it was strengthened in replying directly to the employers stated needs. Again, the sign of a successful person.

The cover letter review was much the same. In overhauling what she initially gave me and comparing the before and after versions, she saw the difference. Was she ticked off, affronted, defensive? Absolutely not. In fact, she was appreciative, thankful and open to change. You guessed it; yet another sign of a successful person. The bottom line is get interviews and job offers, not protect her ego. And guess what? The more she was open to ideas for improvement, the more she received.

Now to the mock interview process. She mentioned that applying for these full-time jobs was very stressful. Each application meant undergoing a test of competency and face-to-face interviews. Working for a large Municipality, she was going to various departments for these jobs; Water Treatment, Works, Social Services etc. Similar office administration positions but in completely different sectors. She’d get excited and nervous, talk quickly and lose focus.

We first went over the non-verbal areas; posture, first visual impression, eye contact, smiling, hand gestures, etc. This woman is actually very good at being engaged in conversations, makes solid eye contact, has a beautiful smile naturally and her non-verbal body language is pretty good to start with – just a few small suggestions.

As I asked her my questions in our mock interview, I made notes as fast as I could jotting down exactly what she said without paraphrasing. After the last question and answer, we went over the questions I’d asked and her answers. Now, whether she gave me a good answer or a poor one, during all of my feedback, she sat there intent on learning, being open to the feedback, taking it all in. Yes another sign of a successful person.

Constructive feedback can mean what you hear isn’t all flattering. It should be honest, helpful, instructive and delivered as straight-forward as the person receiving it is capable of taking it in. It should never be delivered with an intent to ridicule, embarrass or demean. As we talked, she was so receptive to getting better, I had the green light to keep it coming and I got more invested in the process. A huge sign of a successful person.

All of this I am thrilled to say, changed the way she viewed the interview. Seeing it as a conversation; an exchange of information centered around both an employers and applicants needs, she improved. Her answers became stronger, the framework for delivering those answers tightened up her nervous babble, and using specific examples to prove her skills validated her as authentic and believable.

You know why I’m really excited for her? She’s a mid-twenties homeowner who now has a better income, benefits, vacation time, and a brighter future. She’s also done for the time being with the distraction and stress of job applications, tests and interviews. I’m going to miss her very much actually because she’s incredibly positive, helpful and genuinely helpful. A sign of a successful person. Our loss is someone else’s gain.

Take advantage of offers of help. Be receptive not defensive. Implement ideas for improvement with enthusiasm and be hungry to improve.

Finally, she did one last thing that marks her as a successful person. Though not required, she said thanks with a token of her appreciation. A beautiful compass with the inscription, “Life is about the journey not the destination”. For a guy who helps provide people with direction, it’s perfect and now treasured.

Let’s Talk Cover Letters

Do you use cover letters or not? It’s been my experience, (and I am opening myself up to some possible criticism here but nonetheless here goes) the cover letters are generally written more often by people with better vocabularies and higher education than those who do not.

Please however, instead of firing back a retort that speaks of me being judgemental, I tell you honestly I’m basing that opening statement solely based on what I observe and have experienced first-hand in both my professional life and personal life over many years. Let me run the risk of saying there are two other groups who don’t usually pen a cover letter and they are either ignorant of how to write one through no fault of their own, or they know how but can’t be bothered to write one.

A cover letter is essentially an introductory letter that sets up your resume. It introduces you to the employer, tells them what you are applying for, how adding you to their organization would be advantageous for them, demonstrates your understanding of the position and why you are a good fit based on the criteria, and in a good one, it prompts the reader to both read the resume and there is a plain request for an interview.

Now what if I told you that only 50% of employers actually read a cover letter? Would that fuel your argument not to write one if you never do? How can you be sure that the job you are applying for falls into the ‘don’t read them’ category? Truth is you can’t unless the job specifically states that cover letters are not to be included.

In a cover letter, you can also head off any potential concerns a reader might have who only looks at your resume, such as having an employment gap, or several jobs in varying fields which might cause an employer to wonder if you are committed to them if hired or not. Stating something such as you have intentionally sought out employment in different sectors to gain a diversity of experience and have now settled on the job you are applying for as a longer term career move might dissuade them from thinking otherwise you are a job-hopper and can’t be counted on to stay with the company even if they hired you.

And let’s clearly understand why some people with lower education levels stay away from cover letters at all costs; literacy plain and simple. If spelling and grammatical errors are a weak skill set, it is more than understandable that a person would shy away from exposing themselves as being unable to string together sentences with glaring errors of irregular capitalization, spelling mistakes and run-on sentences without proper punctuation etc. I get that entirely and that’s not a knock at all on the people for whom this is a huge challenge. They are in fact recognizing their weaknesses and trying to avoid giving the employer just one more reason to pass them over and that shows how smart they actually are.

I have watched however many people put together a resume for a job with a vague opening and not use a cover letter, and I then ask them to play the role of the person receiving it at the other end. “Suppose you are the person opening the mail at the other end and the company is looking to hire 5 people including a Janitor, Clerk, Cashier, Stock and Inventory Worker and Cafeteria worker. Would you know what job this person was applying for and which Hiring Manager to forward this resume to?” The answer is that it isn’t always obvious unless the person reads the resume. And that is sending this message to a Receptionist in many cases: “You have lots of time on your hands. Read my entire resume, figure out what I’d be good at in your opinion and pass my resume on to the right person please.”

If you are putting your hopes for an interview in this persons hands this way, no wonder no one is calling you for an interview as that Receptionist doesn’t have the time or sometimes the skills to figure out what you’d be good at and for what you are applying. That’s your job not his or hers.

What to include? The date, your contact information, the name and title of the person to whom you are writing, one line stating the job title you are referencing all before you begin the first paragraph. Now open with a statement telling them clearly that you are applying for the job, followed by how you meet the stated requirements, and how your background makes you a solid, perhaps unique fit. Demonstrate what you know about the company and how you will add value but most important of all ask for the interview clearly and plainly. Don’t go all soft at the end and make the request for a meeting sound implied.

Good advice? Proofread it slowly then repeat. Get someone to look it over who writes them themselves and can give you some pointers. If you ask a friend who has a similar literacy level as yourself, they may easily miss errors despite giving it their very best. That too is understandable. This is an important document and worth your time to write.

Cover letters also demonstrate you’re putting in some real effort instead of a minimal effort. Good luck out there.