Making assumptions (read: You notice, you imagine.) about other people based on their appearance, what they say or don’t say, and how they behave is a universal human tendency. We form first impressions of people by making assumptions about them, such as whether they’re: …and the assumptions go on. Making assumptions is quick and easy and reduces the… Read More »
Employers are human beings; like all humans, they look out for their interests. In other words, companies structure their hiring processes to identify and select candidates who will effectively serve their company’s interests. People with meteoric careers often envied, acknowledge, and therefore strategically work with two facts: “You can get everything in life you want if you will… Read More »
Right now, there are job opportunities all around you, with a catch: they’re attached to people. Hence, what you already know, networking is the most effective strategy for finding a job. If you still need convincing that networking is essential to landing a job, I recommend reading Why Networking is More Important than Ever Before by Leslie Stevens-Huffman,… Read More »
I’ll break it down: Your skills, resume, LinkedIn profile, and digital footprint will get you interviews. Your character and personality are what get you hired. Hence, the advice “Hire for attitude, not aptitude” is floated around. Rather than chasing more education and skills, consider taking a Dale Carnage course to enhance your social etiquette and become more likeable. Recently, an… Read More »
Business is all about numbers, making numbers the language of business. It’s puzzling why so many job seekers make their job search harder than needed by not speaking the language of business. The most common job search advice is to use numbers to showcase what you’re capable of. However, I rarely see a resume or LinkedIn profile populated… Read More »
Most people use social media to serve their self-interests. What could be more self-serving than evangelizing your local businesses, the heartbeats of your community’s economy? Thriving local businesses create local jobs, support local charities, and often offer a broad range of goods and services not found elsewhere. It’s the eclectic mix of independent coffee shops, restaurants, specialty shops,… Read More »
In my previous column, I outlined the steps for preparing for an interview: I wrote it’s understandable for interviewers to be interested in a candidate’s reason(s) for being interested in the job. Therefore, ensure you have a solid grasp of why you want the job and can confidently answer, “Why do you want this job?” or “Why do you… Read More »
Shiny objects catch our attention. When job searching, you want to be that shiny object that catches the attention of employers; exposure is the key. There’s no “shiny” without exposure. Some people—perhaps you know one or two—are constantly sought after by employers, while most chase employers. Sought after people understand it’s not their knowledge or experience that will… Read More »
In Mad Men’s season four episode Waldorf Stories, Roger Sterling tells Don Draper, who’d just interviewed a junior copywriter candidate, who unbeknownst to him was Roger’s wife’s cousin, advice he gave him he knew seldom works in the corporate world: “I told him to be himself. That was pretty mean, I guess.” The key to getting hired is telling… Read More »
More than ever, job seekers, with a sense of entitlement, are hyper-focusing on getting paid what they’re worth. Job seekers seldom consider, let alone quantify, the value of their work, which determines their worth. Hence, a candidate’s or position’s worth is calculable and, therefore, isn’t as subjective as is often assumed. INTERVIEWER: “What salary are you looking for?”… Read More »