Job Hunting Tips
It’s strange to realize I’ve been a manager at Ye Olde Day Job for more than seven months now. One of the most surreal parts so far has been the process of hiring new employees, doing everything from reviewing applications to writing screening questions to conducting job interviews.
In some ways, it reminds me a little of being an editor. Some stories just aren’t that well-written. Others might not be the right fit for your project. Then there are those that are good, but are they good enough? And of course, I hate the rejection part…
Having done this a few times now, I wanted to pass along a few observations and suggestions. I hope they’re helpful!
Read the Guidelines: When you’re submitting a story, the guidelines are a test. If you submit a 10,000 word story to a market with a 4000-word upper limit, you fail. Same thing with a job application. If the application says to include a cover letter and you don’t, that’s going to cost you. If it asks for a copy of your transcript and you don’t include that, you’re much less likely to get an interview.
Learn to Write Well: I suspect I’m more critical of people’s writing skills than most, but your ability to write complete sentences and paragraphs in your cover letter, to present a clean, grammatically correct resume, these things do make a difference. And whenever possible, ask someone else to review and proofread your material before you send it in.
Research the Employer: This is advice I’ve heard for years. Having sat on the other side of the table, I finally understand why. Not only do you look more invested if you’ve taken a few minutes to study the company online before the interview, but it lets you tailor your interview answers to the company’s specific goals and needs. It really does make you stand out.
Practice: Interviews make a lot of people nervous, even when they’re fully qualified for the job. If you can do practice interviews through your school or a job training program, that will help. If not, get a friend to throw practice questions your way. You can find lots of standard interview questions online.
Make Sure You Understand the Questions: When you’re interviewing, make sure you listen to and answer the whole question. If you’re nervous, it’s easy to get tunnel vision about a particular key word and miss part or all of the question. Wait to hear the entire question, and if you’re unclear about anything, ask them to repeat or clarify.
Be Confident in Your Skills, but Don’t Lie: Don’t be afraid to talk up your strengths and accomplishments. You’re there to make yourself look good! But don’t lie. It won’t end well.
Martin
May 15, 2013 @ 9:58 am
I would add one:
*Radiate the will to do the job:* Nearly everything can be taught or trained by a company, but not motivation. Make it your top priority to prove you already have it.
I have gone through hundreds or even thousands of applications in my time. An application crying “I WANT TO DO THE JOB” would be forgiven a lot of problems (spelling mistakes, food stains (!), etc).
Steve Buchheit
May 15, 2013 @ 2:33 pm
Also, especially for us older workers, I would recommend learning a lot about the new standards of resumes (different focus of the descriptions, also how to tailor your resume for the dreaded computer review).
Pam Adams
May 15, 2013 @ 4:26 pm
Be polite and attentive during the process. TURN YOUR PHONE OFF. If you’re not waiting for a kidney, there’s no reason to even have it on vibrate.
Brendan
May 15, 2013 @ 8:46 pm
Spellcheck … I had a friend relate a story of her manager sitting there with a red pen correcting spelling and grammar on people’s resume and application letter.
sean
May 15, 2013 @ 9:27 pm
We had this lady who centered her entire resume….yes the ENTIRE thing. It was weird….and hard to read.
we had another resume printed on bright orange paper…
we had one candidate show up for an interview and there were three of us in the room with said candidate, i had to get up and step out because the perfume was so heavy my eyes were watering, one of the other guys had to get up and leave for a minute also. I said i had to step out, the other guy offered to get EVERYONE something to drink, neither of us wanted to be rude.
we has one who we had a interview call scheduled and he never answered and the next day he called and wanted to reschedule because he was busy the day before…
oh so much fun stuff…
sean
Jessie
May 15, 2013 @ 11:33 pm
Interesting that I noticed this post since I am in the process of trying to find a new job in a city that is many many miles away from where I am currently residing.
Good tips, many of which I have used before. Though weirdly enough I tend to get more nervous after I submit a cover letter and resume than before. Or maybe that isn’t as odd as I think it is.
Morvidra
May 16, 2013 @ 9:37 pm
Same here – I think the post-submission nerves have something to do with the fact that the process is out of my control as soon as I send the letter/resume off. Up to that point, I can (theoretically) improve what I’ve written.
Michael
May 16, 2013 @ 9:54 pm
Advice from a friend who helped me retool my resume.
Restate the question to show that you understand, helps to organize your thoughts shows attention to details. In one of his books Anthony Bordain blew in interview at a steak house cause he thought the owner said “What do you know about me?” he replied practically nothing, later he realized that the question was likely “What do you know about Meat?”
Silence is not a bad thing, think things through, if it is allowed bring a pad of paper and take notes organize your thoughts on questions, before you speak.
Shower and smell at least clean and not heavenly scented, addresses Sean’s issue
The point about getting someone to look at your resume is great, it’s even better if you can get someone who is in the field.
Also many large companies use computers to pre-screen so read the posting carefully and try to work in what are likely key words. If it mentions knowledge of the Q42-9860 operating system and binary vaporators likely you should have mentioned that in your cover letter.
Also in a good economic environment you should get 10 % calls for interviews with a good resume. Scale for conditions %5 is likely closer to reasonable at the moment your area/field may be better or worse. If you don’t think you are getting enough call backs your resume likely needs work.
Pat Munson-Siter
May 17, 2013 @ 10:15 am
I used to work at a hotel as head housekeeper. We had over the years several women come in for job interviews- for the position of chambermaid- dressed in extremely high heels, really tight pants or skirts slit up to you-know-where, plunging necklines, long decorated fingernails, high maintenance hairdos. And they tried to vamp on the hotel owner who sat in on the job interviews. After one of them left, the gentleman who owned the hotel turned to me and said ‘You know, we really don’t want our guests thinking we sell something we don’t.’ my reply was, ‘and can you imagine trying to scrub out a toilet or tub with those fingernails?’ in other words, ‘dress appropriately’ doesn’t just mean no torn jeans, no sloppy tee shirts, and so on. Oh…and even when you are looking at housekeeping/chamber person positions, most of the time we DO call your references. A lady who got fired from our hotel used us as a reference, and said on her application that she had been head housekeeper. Owner of hotel she was applying to called, and I was the one who answered the phone. They asked if she had done a good job as head housekeeper. I told them she had been a chambermaid, and that I had been head housekeeper for fifteen years. Somehow I don’t think she got hired….
Chris Mayhew
May 22, 2013 @ 8:02 am
These are definitely some great tips. Job seekers often overlook the writing aspect of their applications but whatever job you are going for it is important to display that you have a good grasp of language and can write well.