The Behavioral Interview

Tell me about yourself.
Why are you looking to leave your job?
Why do you want to work for our company?
Tell me about a professional conflict you've had.

These are all very common questions asked by recruiters and hiring managers that every job seeker should be ready for. What exactly are employers looking for when they ask you behavioral questions that aren't necessarily related to your skills or the role?

Employers are looking to see if they'd want to work with you and if they'd like having you on their team.

When listening to your answer, employers are evaluating you on a few core areas.
1) Is this person excited about this position at this company or do they just need a job?
2) Can this person play well with others and solve problems or could they disrupt the current team dynamic?
3) Is this person aware of their strengths and weaknesses, and will they take criticism well?

The best way to prepare for a behavioral interview, in addition to doing mock interviews, is to do some soul searching. Have your resume in front of you and take notes about each job you've had, specifically what did you like/dislike about the job, what did you do well/accomplish, what did you learn, and how did you work with others. Being aware of these factors will help you understand what responsibilities you don't like, and more importantly what duties and roles you do like.

After you've analyzed your work history and are more aware of what you're looking for in a career move, it's important to come up with examples and stories that can be used in an interview. If you have a handful of specific examples with detailed stories at hand, you can use them for a wide range of questions. The types of examples you want to have should address the following:

• An accomplishment/success
• What are you proud of? Have you won any awards or received a promotion?
• Conflict resolution
• How do you work with difficult people? What would you change about your manager? When have you disagreed with a colleague?
• Challenges
• What has been the most difficult responsibility or project you've tackled? Have you spearheaded a new project/program? How did you successfully complete it? Did you exceed expectations?

Job searching, again? What now?

By: Marché Howell

For one reason or another you’ve come to the point where it is time to look for another job. Let’s be honest. Searching for another job is quite comparable to dating after being in a long-term (or sometimes short-term) relationship. You find yourself asking questions like ‘how do I update my resume?’ and ‘where should I search?” You’re questioning the value of LinkedIn or even rethinking going back to school or getting that certification renewed.  Whatever the case may be, you are looking to advance yourself to the next level in your career – or looking to start one altogether.

Here are a few things to consider when placing yourself on (or back on) the job market.

Invest in a quality resume.

Your resume is the first thing a hiring manager, employer, or recruiter sees and you want it to reflect you in a positive light.

Find the role you that you want and add the qualities of an individual that works in that role to your resume.Now, use discretion here, of course. You want to be honest, yet purposeful in the things that you highlight within your resume. So, if you are looking for a role in customer service, be sure that ‘customer service – like’ skills are within your resume. Lookup key words or buzzwords that coincide with the role that you want and find a way to incorporate that into what you are currently doing.

Not sure how to improve your resume? Utilize a professional resource like Inside Recruiter to get a revision consultation and other tips on things to do when job hunting.

Use sites like LinkedIn to display your resume as well as job hunt.

According to a recent study on LinkedIn usage, LinkedIn has over 433 million users with 128 million residing in the US alone.

Facing the facts, we live in a digital age where everything is done electronically and digitally. Social and grassroots media has taken over by storm and changed the way we do every day things – including looking for a job and sourcing for employees. Employers are using LinkedIn to post positions; and recruiters and HR managers are going there to recruit talent. Wouldn’t you want your information to be seen by employers? How are you supposed to get noticed by that hiring manager, director, partner, etc., if you don’t put yourself out there? Use your resources!

Practice your interview etiquette!

To the more seasoned job seekers, I know what you’re thinking. You’ve being doing ‘x’ for so long and shouldn’t have to practice…but that’s not the case at all. You’d be surprised by how difficult it is to tell an individual who didn’t work along side you what you did, how you did it and the impact or affect it yielded your department/team. These are things to practice telling a friend who works in a different industry, to be sure they understand you and can repeat back to you what you’ve said. Simple things like articulating your strengths can make or break your interview and either make you look sharp to a potential employer or unprepared.

  

It seems like a full-time job in itself to look for a new job, project to join, or next career move, so the more that you can do to be prepared, the better. Doing the little things like updating your marketing materials, investing in a quality resume, and practicing communicating your strengths are the very things that will make you stand out to employers and prove how serious you are about advancing yourself professionally. 

Just remember, employers want to know what YOU can bring to the table, so TELL THEM! Be confident and diligent in your search and that next position is yours!

Happy Job Hunting!

Related Resources: http://expandedramblings.com/index.php/by-the-numbers-a-few-important-linkedin-stats/

The Employment Gap

A lot of candidates have gaps in their employment, especially with the recent Great Recession. While this is very common, you should fill the gap if possible.  Did you volunteer or go back to school? Were you a stay at home mom/dad? Travel the world? Did you care for an ill family member? It is better to list these things on your resume than have a 1 year+ gap.

If you did freelance/contract work, be as specific as possible! If you were a freelance writer or contractor list the publications/companies you worked with and projects you worked on.  If you don't do this, employers will assume you just put that on the resume to fill the gap and didn't actually have any clients.

The cover letter is a great place to explain employment gaps.  If  you were laidoff, say so.  If you survived 3 rounds of layoffs but got let go on the 4th, say so.

Show that you made use of your time and did more than just sit at home during your gap in employment.

Do you have any helpful tips for how to pass the time when you're not working? Share them in the comment section below!

Resume Tips

In honor of the Game of Thrones Season 4 premier, I'll be tweeting resume tips all weekend - Game of Thrones style ;)  

Follow me @Natasha_29. 

Negotiating Pay

Money can be such a touchy subject and is always uncomfortable. I have talked about negotiating before, in this article. Make sure you do your research, find out how much people with your job title make, and make sure it's area specific. I highly recommend using www.Glassdoor.com, www.salary.com, and Google searches.

When asked about what you're willing to make, stick to professional reasons, including the amount of experience and education you have, the requirements of the job, and average pay for this kind of role. Do NOT, under any circumstance, use your financial situation as reasoning. Your bills/debt/etc should never be discussed with your potential employer, and could easily work against you.

Its always a good idea to negotiate, and if you're consistent with the numbers you give, you won't come across as greedy. For example, in discussions, if you always say you're looking for $75-85k and they make you an offer of $70k, it's perfectly acceptable to say, "Thank you, i'm extremely interested in this position and think I can make a big impact, however, I really can't accept anything less than $75k."

If they stand firm, then you can say something like, "Well I understand, but maybe we can be creative about the $5k difference. Perhaps extra vacation time or a sign-on bonus".

It's not your place to be grateful you were made an offer, it's your place to make sure this is a mutually benefiting partnership between you and the employer.

Have you negotiated your salary before? Let me know your story in the comments!

Shine and Graphical Resumes

While technology has grown at light speed over the past several years, resumes haven't changed much in the past several decades.  They can be boring and plain, but when you try to make yours unique and interesting, it gets rejected.  Graphical resumes and apps like Shine by Boluga, might look awesome, but they aren't generally accepted by recruiters and hiring managers.

If you are in graphic design or some kind of artist, you may be able to do a lot more than the average Administrative Assistant or Operations Manager.  However, to the average person looking for an office job: do not use graphics.  They take up room that can be used to show your skills and experience, and don't add anything of value to your resume.  And please, for all that you consider holy, do not use multiple colors on a resume.  It is distracting, tacky, and will be changed before it is ever seen by a hiring manager.  Maybe the HR/Recruiting industry will catch up to technology one day, but they are slow to do so.  For now, if you want to use graphics I would recommend one or two and sticking to black, maybe navy blue.

Let me know in the comments below what your thoughts are on graphical resumes or what ways you make your resume stand out :)

Interview Prep - Questions and Answers

Interviewing can be tricky, and it's normal to be nervous, but preparing for your interview is the most important thing you can do.  Check the company website, www.Glassdoor.com, and do a quick Google search for interview questions.  Write out the questions you might get on paper and practice your answers.

Ask a question at the end! Have some stock questions prepared in case you don't have any questions about the job:

• What are the challenges of the position/department?
• How is performance measured/what are the goals?
• What is your favorite thing about the company/department/position?

Be confident!  Its not just about what you say, but how you say it.  If you're not confident with your skills and experience, the interviewer won't be either.

Say "I" not "we"

Remove "I believe" or "I think" from your answers and just make the statement

"My strengths are communication and prioritizing." sounds better than "I think my skills are communication and prioritizing".

Resumes 101 - What to Include and What to Leave Out

Resumes are meant to give a brief overview of your experience and skills and to highlight your accomplishments.  Resumes have four basic sections: summary, skills, experience, and education.  Resume objectives are outdated and pointless, so leave them off and replace them with summary of what you bring to the table.  There are several thing that should be left off your resume, which I list in this post; and your resume experience should be in chronological order with you current or most recent job listed at the top of the page and your oldest experience listed last.

When you get into your experience you can do several things.  I recommend to list any awards you've received first, followed by your most important responsibilities like supervising other employees or growing the company's revenue. Then, you should list your other important responsibilities, BUT this should only be 5-10 bullet points at most.  Your resume is not meant to be a job description or list of every single thing you do at your job - just the highlights.  You can explain your other responsibilities in a phone screen or interview if needed.  If you're struggling to find things to include on your resume, view this post.

Resumes can feel strange to write because people aren't used to thinking about their strengths and how to market themselves to companies.  However, if you can get over this and be confident in your abilities, you can create a resume with really strong content.  Once you have the content done, it's about formatting and making the resume easy to read and visually appealing.  Bold font for companies and job titles is great, along with italics for awards or promotions, but the majority of your resume should be in plain text and all the same font.  It's important to stay away from long paragraphs which are difficult for recruiters to skim, and instead list skills and experience in bullet points, which are much easier to read.

Insider Secrets for Your Job Search

Interviewing should be a conversation, you shouldn't be rambling on for 10 minutes answering one question, and you shouldn't be give one word answers either.

Be confident, not cocky!  Interviewers aren't going to hire you if you doubt yourself or are super negative.  You're also not going to be hired if you  come across as cocky and arrogant.

Explain your responsibilities like I've never heard of that job before.  Some of what you might consider irrelevant and simple tasks can be really important and transferable, so don't leave them out.

Organization and simple formatting on your resume go a long way.  Have everything left-adjusted, use bullet points for your experience and bold the job titles and companies you've been at.  Condense what you can so there isn't a ton of blank space on your resume.

What are some tips you've heard that really resonate with you?

Skills on your Resume

The skill section of your resume is a great place to highlight your strengths and it gives you another opportunity to focus your resume.  Again, this section should be factual!  There should not be any areas of your resume that are just meaningless buzzwords.

The skill section of your resume can include software and programs that you are comfortable with, how many WPM you can type (if 50 and above, otherwise do not include), specific industry knowledge or skills (i.e. - medical terminology or reviewing budgets and revenue statements).

This section is best when it's in bullets, not paragraphs.  It should typically be at the top of your resume, under your Summary of Qualifications or Education sections.

Do Resumes Really Have to be One Page?

The answer is no, resumes do not have to be limited to one page.  However, it depends on how much experience you have.  If you're entry level, or have only had a couple jobs, then yes, your resume should be one page.  However, if you've been working for several years and have enough content in your resume to warrant two pages, then go for it.  Recruiters aren't going to toss your resume because it's two pages.

That being said, not much time will be spent screening the second page, so make sure your main highlights and most recent experience are on the first page.  Also, (this is going to sound nitpicky) if the second page is only a couple lines, rearrange things so it fits on one page.

There are some very easy ways to cut a few lines off your resume:

• Combine your phone number and email onto one line using a symbol or " | " to separate them
• Remove your full address, just leaving city and zip code
• Combine similar skills and/or responsibilities into one bullet point
• Don't include the full address or phone number of previous employers, you can put that on the application
• Include your job title on the same line as the company name
• Remove really old jobs (This is a judgement call, but it's ok to remove that fast-food job you had right after high school)
• Remove the references section, I say this all the time, it's unnecessary
• Reduce the font to 11 pt (Don't go any smaller than this)

Profile Summary for Resumes

I am a strong believer that Objective Statements on resumes are pointless, so how should you start off your resume?  Well a "summary of qualifications" or "profile summary" is always a good idea and can highlight your main strengths as well as give your resume a focus.  If you're a student or recent grad, this is a great place to include what area or industry you want to go into.

The most important thing to remember for the summary section is to keep it brief, focused, and quantitative.  Do not use this section to say how much of a team player and goal oriented person you are (those are just buzzwords anyway).  Instead, use this section to say how many years experience you have, what industry or career path you are focused in, and any skills or experience that's relevant.

For example, if you have been working in retail or the food industry and are now going to school for nursing, not only should you focus on the customer service and human interaction in your jobs, but you should make sure your summary focuses on your schooling and the skills you've learned in your classes.  Any recruiter or manager looking at your resume will know that you are focused in healthcare and nursing roles.

Guaranteed Ways to Ruin Your Interview

There are many tips on what to do in an interview, being prepared being at the top of the list. However, there are a few things you may do that tank the interview immediately. Here's what to avoid:

Saying you're not the best for the job/Talking about what you're not good at - many people feel awkward talking themselves up, and self deprecation is alive and well, but avoid it at all costs in an interview. I would never say I don't like or am not good at calling candidates, it's like saying, "Here's one of the main job duties for this role, I suck at it". If the interviewer wanted to hire you before, they don't now.  Be confident and positive about yourself and your skills.

Being Mean/Rude - its not just the interviewer that's making the hiring decision. The receptionist and/or executive assistant has a lot of say in the matter, be kind and courteous to everyone from the moment you get in your car to drive to the interview. 

The Two Most Important Things When Job Searching

Ever since the recession hit in 2008, the job market has been in the employer's favor.  While unemployment rates in the U.S. have improved overall, there are still far more applicants than there are jobs.  With the job market being so competitive, you need to be able to sell yourself to employers positively and with confidence.

Your cover letter and resume should highlight the skills and experience you bring to the table, not what you want out of a job.  You're not begging to be hired, you're telling employers why they need to hire you and what they'll get out of hiring you.

Confidence and positivity are two of the most important things you need when job searching.  It's easy to get discouraged and become jaded, but you have to catch yourself and switch back into positive thinking.  Go on Youtube and watch a clip of your favorite comedy skit, or search "funny animals".  Do something to laugh and the go back to applying for jobs, because no one wants to hire someone who seems negative or desperate.

What do you do to stay positive?  Let me know in the comments! :)

Employee Assessments - Why and How

Depending on what field you're in, employers may ask you to complete an assessment of some sort.  This could be anything from a basic aptitude test to a skills assessment or case study and can be before or after an interview.  This is usually a large factor in whether or not you're hired, so make sure you do your best work.

If instructions are given, make sure you follow them.  Talk to your recruiter about expectations, what it takes to pass, and when it must be completed by.  If it's a timed assessment (most online tests are), make sure you can give your undivided attention, and don't run up your time doing other things.

Take home tests: If it's an assessment you can do at home, make sure you give it your undivided attention.  As a recruiter I would much rather a candidate ask to turn in an assessment a day late, than rush through it and fail.

Excuses recruiters don't want to hear: I wanted to turn it in as soon as possible; I don't test well, I was sick; I was on medication; I couldn't concentrate.  All of these things are in your control.  If you need more time, ask for an extension!

Tests onsite: Ask you recruiter if there's anything you can do to prepare for the test, if yes then do it!  If there's nothing you can do to prepare then don't freak out and just make sure you read the instructions and each question carefully.

Professional References

References won't necessarily get you the job, but they could ensure that you don't.  All employers ask for references before making an offer and these references need to be professional, which can include coworkers, supervisors, and managers from your current or previous jobs.  I've said it before and I'll say it again, there is absolutely no point to put "reference provided upon request" on your resume.  Of course you're going to provide references when asked, that's a given, delete the stock sentence.  While you can include your references on your resume, you don't need to, and it's probably a better idea to provide them after you've interviewed and had a chance to prepare them.

There are a few important things to remember to ensure that your references will be great:

1. References should NOT be family members or friends you've never worked with.  If you put your mom or dad as a reference, you will not be taken seriously.

2. Tell your references that they might be getting called by a company, what position you're interviewing for, and if there is anything you'd like them to highlight (i.e. - an important project you worked on, award, or extra responsibilities).  Make sure the person you list is going to give you an outstanding reference; you'd be surprised how many times I've had reference calls where the person doesn't have anything good to say about the candidate.  Sometimes it's what a reference doesn't say that makes the difference, so make sure the people you list are ready to talk about how great you are.

3. Don't lie!  If a recruiter feels like something is off during a reference check, and perhaps you're lying, they can call the company's HR to verify your employment.  If what HR says doesn't match up, you could lose your chance at getting the job.

Some employers have a policy of not providing references because they're afraid of being sued for libel or discrimination, but they usually will verify title and dates of employment.  Don't count on this though, because many employers are willing to provide references and it's not worth the risk.

So make sure your references are from somewhere you've worked, know that they might be getting a call, and are willing to talk about how amazing you are.  What are some things you do when asked to give your references?  Let me know in the comments! :)

How Recruiters Get You a Job

Whether they work directly for a company or at a staffing firm, recruiters are incentivized to fill job openings, so it's important to stay on their good side.  The best thing you can do is develop good rapport with your recruiter.

A good recruiter searches for and screens applicants and then narrows down the pool of applicants to qualified candidates the hiring manager would want to consider.  It's our job to figure out what kind of pay/benefits/perks you want in order to accept an offer.  This is one of the reasons why it's so important to be honest and upfront with your recruiter.  Don't expect to turn around and ask for more from the hiring manager, it won't happen, and it could hurt your chances to get hired.

While every company is different, a recruiter will typically make recommendations to the hiring manager and do their best to bring the manager to a decision and facilitate the onboarding process.  Follow-up with your recruiter when needed and help him or her make a case for you.

Applying for a Job: How to Stand Out On Paper

You have your resume and cover letter written and free of spelling and grammar mistakes, now what?  There are many things you should do to ensure you stand out compared to other applicants.

First, make sure you are specific about your skills and experience, and don't just include buzzwords on your resume.  If the content is on your resume, you should really look at the tone of your writing.  Read your resume and cover letter out loud.  Does it sound like you?  Are those words and phrases you would normally say?  If not, make some changes; you want your personality to shine through.

I am NOT suggesting to be unprofessional or crack jokes, but you don't want to sound like you're a robot or used a thesaurus for 80% of your resume.  This is one of the many reasons why I don't like the Objective Statement of a resume, because it doesn't sound like something a person would ever say in a normal conversation.  The point of a resume is to get a recruiter to call you, so make sure your resume is professional and full of content, however it is also beneficial to ensure you are not exceedingly verbose (see what I did there?).

What do you do to stand out in your resume or cover letter?  Let me know in the comments! :)

Skills and Experience on your Resume

When listing your skills and experience on your resume one of the most important things to remember is to show not tell.  Buzzwords may be helpful if a company uses applicant tracking systems, but won't do any good when your resume gets in front of a recruiter.  Instead of using buzzwords on your resume, be as descriptive and quantitative as possible.

If you're team-oriented, you can say "Trained new employees on systems and procedure" or "worked with coworkers to create a presentation on the department's metrics".

Do not just copy and paste your job description on to your resume, but you can refer to it to make sure you include all your important responsibilities.  Your bullet points should be brief but descriptive and include measurable skills and accomplishments.

Strong customer service representatives can say "Helped over 90 customers a day with questions and product solutions"

Look at the job you are applying to, and tailor your resume to it as much as possible by highlighting your experience that will be needed for this new position.  When speaking to your recruiter, ask if there's anything they'd recommend you focus on, and consider updating your resume to reflect that.  If you're having trouble thinking of responsibilities to include, think about what you do on a typical day at work, the things you like about your job, and the things you don't like about your job, don't assume that the recruiter or hiring manager knows what someone would do in that role.

Interview Prep - Your Turn to Ask the Questions

"So what questions do you have for me?" is something you will be asked in 99% of all your interviews, and you need to be able to fire back with at least two thoughtful and relevant questions.

One great question that was brought up by a student when I spoke at Cal Poly Pomona was "Are there any concerns you have about me being a good fit that I can address?".  This gets to the heart of what you want to know and allows you to recover from anything that the interviewer might see as a weakness or red flag.  This may throw the interviewer off so give them a second to think about it and make sure you respond by addressing their specific concern.

Ask about specific things at the company, such as the company culture, most important things for someone in this position to achieve, what a day in the office would look like, and the biggest challenges the department faces.  These questions are very specific and will tell you a lot about the company and the role.  These questions also show that you are serious about the opportunity and very interested

You should always end an interview with "When can I expect to hear back from you?" or "What are the next steps in the interview process?".

While you may think its funny to ask "So do I start tomorrow",  its not, don't say that.

What are some good questions you've asked the interviewer?  Let me know in the comments.