Not everyone can claim strong verbal communication skills, and sometimes nerves or stress can unhinge a normally effective communicator. Interview coaching can often work out the kinks, but other times, it’s a problem for which job search candidates need to devise work-around strategies. When faced with a traditional face-to-face interview scenario, consider some of the following strategies to downplay your weakness and improve your odds of a strong interview:

• Create a PowerPoint presentation that can be used as talking points to reduce the need to develop answers on the spot. This allows the candidate to take control of the situation. The slides can include selling points about your experience, value in past projects, educational highlights, and perhaps even suggestions or a recommended course of action for the potential employer to show you did your research well (something that might not be conveyed well during the course of an interview if your communication skills are subpar). Depending on your preference and comfort level, this presentation could be a bound flip book or a PowerPoint presentation on a tablet or laptop.
• Ask the interviewer for a problem to solve if you have strong technical skills. This would allow you to share your technical knowledge, but further advice would be to practice this technique so that poor verbal communication skills do not interfere with delivering the answer.
• Suggest or agree to any initial phone screenings rather than face-to-face meetings. Telephone interviews allow you to have notes spread out in front of you as you speak. This is not as easy during a Skype call, but it works well during a traditional telephone screening. This again would eliminate some of the need to devise answers on the spot.
• A general recommendation would be to practice, practice, practice! The majority of interview questions can be prepared far in advance. I recommend clients get a notebook or set of index cards and write out answers to standard interview questions ahead of time. This improves your comfort level with the material and should reduce the amount of error.

If this describes your concern with interviewing, consider contacting us for an interviewing preparation session or two to boost your confidence to ensure you are well prepared.

A client recently wrote me that she was struggling with drafting a general closing for her cover letters. “I look forward to hearing from you” felt a bit presumptuous, and “When would be a good time to discuss the position?” a bit too pushy. “Thank you for your consideration” is nice, but too passive. She was searching for an ending sentiment with an “in-between” tone.

I told her my philosophy is that the cover letter is usually tied to one of two scenarios:

First, if you’re applying for a job through a job posting, it would definitely be advantageous to call and speak with someone on the phone to follow up, but in all reality, it’s hard to do that as they are trying to keep candidates at bay and sometimes ads are even blind. If you know the hiring company, I recommend clients skip trying to get HR on the phone and network into the company through one of their own connections to put in a good word. So in this scenario, I usually write, “Looking forward to hearing from you…” If you have a hiring manager’s name, I encourage my clients to add that they will call to follow up “later this week” or “next week,” whenever is most appropriate. “I will call your office in the near future to follow up” gives you a time buffer if you’re unsure.

But…. if you’re directly contacting an employer about an unadvertised opportunity and trying to tap into the “hidden job market” as everyone likes to say, then I believe you really should be stating that you will follow up with a phone call (or an email) a week later since you are proactively sending your resume and cover letter to them.

This month’s collection of verbs focuses on educators, including teachers, professors, lecturers, teaching assistants, and tutors. If your job is in the academic field, some of the following verbs may apply to you.

1. Advocate
2. Apply
3. Assess
4. Communicate
5. Demonstrate
6. Develop
7. Educate
8. Encourage
9. Energize
10. Evaluate
11. Facilitate
12. Innovate
13. Instruct
14. Introduce
15. Lecture
16. Listen
17. Participate
18. Prepare
19. Review
20. Standardize
21. Structure
22. Summarize
23. Support
24. Teach
25. Test
26. Train
27. Translate
28. Verbalize

Academic resumes or CVs can have slightly to dramatically different formats than a traditional resume depending on your status and the level of educational institution. If you are unsure about resume format, please contact us. We will review your current resume and offer helpful tips or give you a quote for rewriting your documents.

Job interviews aren’t meant to be an interrogation — they are supposed to be a dialogue. An interview is as much about making sure the company is a fit for you as it is that you are a fit for the company. With that in mind, before the interview, you should research the company — and the interviewer(s), if you know that information ahead of time.

At a minimum, conduct a Google search. Take a look at the company’s website. Look for the interviewer’s LinkedIn profile. While you’re on LinkedIn, see if the company has a profile on the site. Also check out the LinkedIn profiles of other key employees of the company.

How long have they been in their current jobs?
How long have they been with the company?
What was their background before they joined the company?
Did they come from competitors, or from other industries?

Your research will not only help you understand the company better, it will help you ask more informed questions in the interview.

If you haven’t asked questions as the interview progresses, there will likely come a time in the interview when the person conducting the interview says to you, “So, do you have any questions for me?” That’s where your research comes into play. Surely, as you were learning more about the job and the company, you were curious about a thing or two.

Even if you weren’t, it makes a huge (negative) impression on interviewers when you don’t ask any questions. That can either signal that you’re not interested enough in the job to muster up any questions — or that you didn’t know anything about the company coming into the interview, and you weren’t paying attention enough to latch onto any information shared in the interview. Both scenarios don’t bode will for your employment prospects.

If you’d like help preparing for your next interview, email or call me to schedule an interview preparation session or two. I work with clients who need a jumpstart and some ideas to get going as well as those who want a partner to work with them on each step of the process.

Filling out an application can be filled with land mines if you’re conducting a confidential search, and filling in an application online can be even trickier if the fields require a certain type of answer before letting you progress. This topic was a recent conversation on one of my professional e-lists, and what follows is a summary of my colleagues’ suggestions on how to answer (or avoid answering) some common application questions:

Name of Supervisor: “Job search is confidential. Will provide at a later date.”

References: “Will offer list at the interview”

Salary Desired or Salary Expectations: “Will discuss at the interview”

Even if your search is not confidential, it’s strategically smart not to divulge all the details of your salary history or expectations up front. Alternate solutions are to provide a range for your salary expectation or to write “open.” If the application is online and requires a single numeric answer, try using $1 to get through the applicant tracking system, with the reasoning being that, at the end of the day, few employers will disqualify a top candidate because no salary is specified. If your qualifications and background have caught their eye, almost all employers will call you in for interview and readdress salary expectations later.

Finally, another option for filling in the salary blank is to conduct salary research to identify the current market rate in your area. To start, Indeed.com has an option (on the left-hand side) to select a desired salary range to generate search results that include positions likely to meet the desired salary level.

Salary History: “Confidential” or “will provide at a later date.” This may be especially appropriate for an employee with an existing non-disclosure agreement.

With the strategies listed above, you have an arsenal of tips and phrases to help you through the difficulties of your next employment application.

Have I overlooked any other tricky questions? Email me or post your question in the comments section and I’ll offer my suggestions.

verbs by monashores.net

1. Accelerate
2. Build
3. Capture
4. Champion
5. Clarify
6. Close
7. Convert
8. Deliver
9. Double
10. Drive
11. Energize
12. Establish
13. Exceed
14. Execute
15. Expand
16. Generate
17. Implement
18. Launch
19. Leverage
20. Overcome
21. Persuade
22. Pilot
23. Propel
24. Prospect
25. Qualify
26. Rebuild
27. Recapture
28. Rejuvenate
29. Reposition
30. Revitalize

Since keyword searches are part of today’s hiring manager and recruiter tactics, be sure your career documents and online profiles maximize the use of keywords. If you need additional help to strategize and optimize keywords targeted to your industry, feel free to give us a call.

Almost every professional today knows about LinkedIn and has created a profile page. Hopefully you can count yourself among them. If not, take a look at the following ways to create and/or enhance your LinkedIn profile.

1. Connect with at least 50 people. You don’t need to shoot for 500. 50 has been proven as an effective number of contacts at which you develop an effective number of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd degree contacts.

2. Add a picture. For two reasons – 1) you want to make yourself appear friendly, personable, and likeable, and 2) it’s been proven that profiles with pictures are more likely to be opened when they appear in search results.

3. Add skills to your summary section. One of the sections you can include under Summary is “Skills.” (From the “Profile” tab in the main navigation toolbar, click “Edit Profile.” Under the main box is a small section that says “Add sections to reflect achievements and experiences on your profile.”) This is a great way to include more keywords in your profile. Also consider listing your proficiency level and years of experience.

4. Maximize your summary. After the headline, the most-often read section of your profile is the Summary. LinkedIn allows you up to 2,000 characters in your summary. Use them wisely — and use them all! One popular format for Summary is the “Who/What/Goals” structure. Using this format, you outline Who you are, What you have to offer or add (what is unique about you or your experience), and what are your Goals for being on LinkedIn or your career.

5. Be unique. According to LinkedIn, these are the 10 most overused words/phrases on the site. Avoid using them in your headline and summary! Extensive Experience – Innovative – Motivated – Results-Oriented – Dynamic – Proven Track Record – Team Player – Fast-Paced – Problem Solver – Entrepreneurial.

6. Customize your summary section. Utilize and maximize the recently added optional sections that are available for your summary, including: Certifications – Courses – Honors and Awards – Languages – Organizations – Projects – Patents – Publications.

7. Post updates to keep your name top of mind. What kind of information should you post in your updates? The content that you share doesn’t necessarily have to be yours 100% of the time. It’s a great idea to share links to content from others in your industry, along with your thoughts on how this work will affect your industry.

Some additional ideas to enrich your LI profile include: sharing current and upcoming trends in your industry; offering insights from projects you’re working on, events and seminars you’ve attended or training courses you’re taking; linking to articles/blogs within the industry; or sharing an inspirational quote. Take advantage of this opportunity to create a free online presence.

A LinkedIn profile is important today whether you are employed or unemployed. Recruiters and hiring managers are using LinkedIn heavily as a resource to search potential candidates. If you need a professional service to help you create a strong LinkedIn profile, please contact us for more information.

Google Images: Erik from BPO Diary

1. Document Style – Word templates, be gone! To catch the reader’s eye and stand out from the crowd, I recommend clients avoiding using standard-looking resume templates. In general, your format and font style should be eye-catching and unique, not cookie cutter. Even if you are in a more conservative industry, it’s smart to take the time to jazz up your page format so that it doesn’t come across as a Word template.

2. Header details – Is it all there? It’s commonplace to include an address but I do have some clients who prefer to not list a street address for privacy issues. A compromise is to include your city and state. Nowadays, listing at least one phone number and an email address is expected. You want to make it easy for the employer to get in touch with you. This is not the time to play hard to get!

3. Professional Summary – Draw the reader in! Before diving in to your job descriptions, many resumes today have a headline (and possible subheading) with a branding tagline that markets your strengths followed by a summary section and areas of expertise. Consider it the headline to the news story – its purpose is to pull the reader in.

4. Job Description Formatting – Too much of a good thing. Ever seen a job description with 10 bullets? In a word, ineffective. It becomes hard to walk away with a sense of what the person did or accomplished. Too many bullets and their impact on the page is diluted – the reader’s eye glazes over. I recommend saving the bullet formatting for accomplishment-based statements so they stand out when the reader skims down the left-hand margin. One trick to creating accomplishment-based statements from existing resume content by asking the question “why?” or “with what results?” after each statement.

5. Think marketing document, not detailed chronology. Consider your résumé to be prime real estate. Allocate space appropriately based on relevance to your job target and professional experience. It’s okay to minimize jobs from earlier in your career. A general rule of thumb is to include details from the past 12-15 years, and even within that time period, limit the space allotted to earlier positions as they are typically less relevant to your job target than more recent experience.

6. Quantify Pending Degrees – Give yourself credit for completed work. If you’re more than halfway finished with an academic degree, I advise clients list the specific number of credits completed as a more concrete sign of progress rather than just listing an expected date of graduation (which may or may not be accurate).

7. Less is More for Academic Details – On-campus club memberships have a short shelf life. Once you’re a couple years post-college, begin paring down the details listed under your academic degrees. An exception worthy of staying on would be any strong honors or awards directly correlate to your field of study or current profession.

8. Let’s Round You Out – Help define your character for the reader. Beyond the usual “computer skills” section towards the end of the document, do you have any community involvement or volunteer activities? Do you hold any current (and relevant) professional association memberships? Have you received any professional or civic awards or recognition? One caveat is to not list “hobbies.” I recommend clients keep content professional and value-added.

When revitalizing your resume, keep a critical eye to details, spelling, wordsmithing, and punctuation. Never write a resume from 3rd-person or use pronouns like “I” or “my.” If you find it too difficult to be objective, then you may want to call a professional. At Sterling Career Concepts we focus on each client’s unique value to a prospective employer and showcase their talent to appeal to the hiring manager. We’d be happy to give you a free consultation and estimate of costs.

Interviewing is often stressful for the average job seeker. When you finally have the opportunity to speak to a recruiter or hiring agent, what do you want to ask them? You don’t want to blow the interview and yet, you may have many questions whirling around in your head. What’s appropriate to ask in which conversation? Here are good questions to consider asking your executive recruiter and if you’re interviewing with a hiring manager.

Questions To Ask Headhunters and Recruiters

Most job seekers know it’s important to have questions to ask at the end of an interview, but it’s also a good idea to have a sense of what you can or should ask an executive recruiter. If you’re speaking with a recruiter about a specific posting, the following are all good questions to ask:

THE PROCESS:

• Are you dealing with the client’s HR people, or do you have direct contact with the hiring manager?

• How many candidates have you placed with this client? How long have you worked with this client?

• May I have a written job description?

• How long have you been working on the assignment?

• What can you tell me about the person who will be interviewing me? What is his or her position, title, management style?

• Who will make the final hiring decision?

• After you present my résumé, when can I expect to hear from you regarding the status of this position?

THE POSITION ITSELF:

• Where is the position located?

• To whom does the position report?

• Is this a new position? If not, why is the position open?

• What happened to the person who previously held this position?

• What does the position pay?

• Are there any pay or compensation constraints that I should take into consideration?

Questions To Ask Hiring Managers

When meeting with the hiring manager directly, a job seeker has a great opportunity to learn more about not only the opportunity, the group or department, and the work environment, but also about the hiring manager personally. Here are some questions to consider asking:

• What attracted you to working for this organization?

• What have you liked most about working here?

• Could you describe to me your typical management style and the type of employee who works well with you?

• How would you describe the experience of working here?

• What are the most important traits you look for in a subordinate?

Knowing the right questions to ask at an interview or when speaking to a hiring agent is a common concern for job seekers. Put your concerns or fears to rest by using some of these questions and portray yourself with more confidence and knowledge. You’re one step closer to getting the job.

Multiple Job Offers by o5com

As in my client’s case, for someone unemployed one of the first questions to consider is “Can you afford to not accept this position?” This will differ for each job seeker based on personal finances. I would never recommend a client accept a position and continue long-term down a career path he doesn’t like purely for the paycheck. It’s important to enjoy what you do. Rather, if you feel compelled financially to accept a position, I would recommend strategizing and brainstorming on possible paths or transitions from this role. If you must accept the position from a financial standpoint and it’s your only viable option, go in with a game plan. Is there a way to accept this position and transfer within the company later or could this experience be marketed as transferable skills? Is there experience or the skills you are gaining useful to you? If you accept this position and it’s not in line with your career goals, will you have time to continue your job search? Do not go in feeling defeated or that you “gave up” or “gave in” as this will affect your morale and focus.

For a passive job seeker who is gainfully employed, this is a very different scenario. In that instance, you need to weigh the risk of accepting it and possibly having to leave after a short period of time if you do not like it. This decision will depend on how happy or unhappy you are in your current position – are you willing (and financially able) to be unemployed if the new position does not work out? If you are looking for a new position because you’re desperate to leave a hostile or otherwise unhealthy work environment, it’s best (and tricky, I know) to separate that emotion from the decision of accepting the new opportunity. I know from counseling clients in this situation that this step is not easy, but it’s critical to avoid making a potentially regretful decision. The key is to keep your wits about you to avoid jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire.

In the long-run, if you don’t make a habit out of jumping ship and changing jobs quickly, having to include one short-lived position on your résumé will not make you look like uncommitted as long as you are able to discuss it and you can show longevity and commitment with the rest of your positions.

If you find yourself in this situation and need to consult with a professional for advice, please give us a call.