Tag: Human resources

You Said What in the Interview?

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Dont

Have you ever been in an interview and said something you almost immediately wish you hadn’t? Worse yet did you say something you shouldn’t have and didn’t even realize it, only to find out later that was the deciding factor for you not being chosen for a position?

I have read several articles this week revolving around the kind of questions job seekers ask that they probably shouldn’t have.

Last week I was sitting in my office when a colleague shared that she was just interviewing a candidate for one of her open positions. The candidate asked about the work schedule and when she was informed it was 8am to 5pm her response was, “Oh, I can’t get up that early.” WHAT?

Then a friend of mine forwarded me an article she had just read titled, “ 8 of the Strangest Interview Questions Job Candidates Have Asked ” This highlighted yet again the type of career limiting questions that folks ask in an interview.

Words of advice:

  • Think before you speak. The question might seem benign to you, however how may it be received by the hiring manager looking for their next rock star?
  • Words have power and meaning. If you are unsure how a comment may be received, rephrase, reframe or refrain. Once it’s out there you can’t take it back, and yes they will remember it.
  • Know your audience. Take a moment to try and size up your interviewer; are they outgoing and gregarious or are they reserved and calculating? Whatever their demeanor, you should mimic the energy level. Don’t come out the gate with a crazy joke for someone who has a hard time smiling or shaking hands; you may turn them off when you want to impress them.
  • Exercise sound judgment. Don’t tell the interviewer that you can’t get up early enough to work the schedule they are hiring for. Don’t ask if Mom can come too. Don’t ask if the boss is single or how quickly you can put in for a raise or transfer.

The main purpose of an interview is to showcase your skills, experience and cultural fit. The best way to accomplish that is to have the hiring manager be able to visualize you doing the job. If you are asking questions during that first encounter that will cause them to take pause…your chances of getting the call back are slim.

For more interviewing tips, resume writing help or job search advice check back again to; “Connectthedotblog”

Why an interviewer wants to tell you why you were rejected, but can’t.

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9-20-13 Rejcted

Have you ever wondered why you didn’t get the job? Have you ever been in the interview and known you weren’t going to be chosen? Have you ever thought you nailed an interview only to find out you didn’t? Well join the club; we have jackets, t-shirts, and hats.

In a perfect world, we’d get the feedback we so desperately need to grow, develop and do better; however, in the world we live in, it just doesn’t happen.

In my field, I work with literally hundreds of employers. Some will give me a call after one of my students has finished an interview to give me feedback. What they can do better, differently, more professionally. This is, indeed, rare.

Unfortunately, in today’s employment climate, there is such a fear that if you provide feedback, that information can in turn be used against you. Human Resource professionals have to be part recruiter, interviewer, counselor and lawyer. What they are and are not allowed to share is so limited that they are actually hurting today’s job seekers.

I would love it if my interviewer could tell me:

  • Your answers were too short
  • You didn’t seem prepared for the interview
  • Your presentation was not professional enough
  • You spoke too negatively regarding your past experiences and organizations
  • You weren’t able to articulate your skill-set well enough

If this feedback were offered to job seekers, they could actually improve their skills and do better the next time. Instead, we blame the educational system, our culture, the economy, and on and on, when we could allow HR and hiring managers to just offer back some helpful advice.

Instead we close the door and turn a blind eye to otherwise valuable employees without them having a clue as to why. And “Why don’t they?” you may ask. Simply, they are afraid of getting sued.

Just think what it would be like if at the end of an interview we could hear, “Thank you for coming in today to meet with me. May I give you a few helpful hints that may assist you with future interviews?” Bad um bump! How hard is that? Don’t send people back out into the cold job search world without giving them some kind of help to make them better for their next interview.

As a culture we have, in my opinion, become so afraid of helping people for fear of being sued, that we’ve stopped doing the right thing in favor of doing the safe thing. In the long (and short) run this ends up causing more harm than good.

There are a few things, however, you can do to try and get some feedback from your interview.

  • Contact the hiring manager after you’ve sent your thank you note and followed up (building rapport). Ask if they would be willing to offer you some advice on how you could do better in your next interview.
  • At the end of your interview, after you’ve asked for the job, ask if there are any concerns the hiring manger has about your ability to do the job.

While these tips may help you get some feedback, nothing will do as much good as being well prepared for the interview in the first place. Being proactive in your job search will get you so much further than chasing reactive information after you’ve been let down.

For more interviewing tips, resume writing help or job search advice check back again to; “Connectthedotblog”

Graduates- don’t wait till after graduation to start the job hunt! Start now!

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8-29-13 graduates...

I’m always surprised to get a call from a graduate that I haven’t heard from in months only to find out they are not working, have not been working, and haven’t even begun the career search.

“How have you been?”

“Fine thanks.”

“What have you been up to?”

“I took a break from the job hunt after graduation, but now I’m ready to start looking.”

“Did you keep in touch with your intern/extern supervisor?”

“No. I kinda just wanted to give my brain a rest after school.”

“Have you started applying with any of the employers you met with while in school?”

“No.”

“Do you have an idea where you’d like to work?”

“No. I just want a job. Can you help?”

Unfortunately, this conversation is far from infrequent. It doesn’t seem to matter how often I inform my students they need to strike while the iron is hot; inevitably, there are those who feel a 6-month vacation is not going to affect their chances of gainful employment. Even worse, they don’t feel the education they worked so hard for adds enough value to their skill set to obtain a career over a job.

WAKE UP! The country is full of people just looking for a job. We live in a country running short on skilled, educated workers, and you just want a job? Why did you go to college? Why did you spend all that time begging, stealing, and borrowing all that money to obtain your degree? Surely it wasn’t to get just a job?

If you are looking ahead at your graduation within the next 6-12 months, you should already;

  • Have a list of employers you want to work for.
  • Have a list of contact at those employers.
  • Know how your training/education will add value to their organization.
  • Have a kick butt resume.
  • Have a stellar cover letter.
  • 3-5 professional references all lined up.
  • Letters of recommendation from your instructors, supervisors, volunteer coordinators, etc.

Last but, by no means, least you must have enthusiasm, ambition, and determination to not quit until you obtain the career you dreamt about when you started your educational journey.

  • Don’t take 6-months off. Don’t take 6-minutes off.
  • Don’t ignore your resources who are there to help you.
  • And by no means, don’t ever underestimate the power of your education.

    “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
    ~Nelson Mandella

For more interviewing tips, resume writing help or job search advice check back again to; “Connectthedotblog”

Improvise, Adapt, Overcome – Sensory Part 5

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I’ve never really been a fan of war movies or Clint Eastwood (I know that’s almost un-American), however his 1986 Heartbreak Ridge became one of my all-time favorites and not just because both my father and older brother are Marines. I’m something of a student of human nature and the dynamics of Gunny Highway (Clint Eastwood) and his ragtag band of Marine misfits (Oxymoron isn’t it) is remarkable. Why you ask, because of three words; improvise, adapt, overcome.

This group of United States Marines weren’t the smartest, strongest, most skilled or highly motivated group of young men, but these three words made them the most successful group of soldiers in their unit; improvise, adapt, overcome.

You may be out there looking for your new career. You’ve been through an uncountable number of interviews with little to no success and your beginning to wonder, “Is it me?”. No it’s not and yes it is. So many of us go out thinking, “I’ve got this.” When in actuality we are not nearly as prepared as we think we are.

The best thing you can do is to take an inventory; in other words Check Yourself before you Wreck Yourself

The days of walking into an interview, introducing yourself and handing in a resume are LONG since gone.

You have to:

  • Prepare.
  • Know your audience.
  • Understand their business.
  • Demonstrate your ability to communicate.
  • Show them you understand their company culture.
  • Impress them with thoughtful and relevant questions.
  • Put their minds at ease regarding the chance they are taking on you.
  • Exhibit your exceptional customer service skills through appropriate follow up and follow through.

Yes it sounds like a lot; however getting a job is a full-time job and anything less than your best effort will yield less than the best results. Interviewing is hard. Pardon me for a moment while I channel my mom, “If it wasn’t hard to get, is it really worth having?” I don’t normally quote her but, in this instance mom was right on.

If you have doubts regarding your interviewing skills, how to research the company you’re interviewing with, and any other interview tips and tricks; ask an expert. There are tons of great resources like A Better Interview . Ask a friend working in the field you are trying to get into. Ask your preferred employers for an informational interview to find out more about their business. Exceptional rewards take exceptional efforts. You can do this and you can be successful, it’s all up to you and what you are willing to put into it.

For more information on interviewing, resume writing and career changes, check back often. I look forward to reading your comments and hearing your feedback and suggestions for future series.

Sound Funny to You? Sensory Part 3

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sound

Have you ever listened to your recorded voice and catch yourself, “Oh my gosh, I sound just like my mom!” Then you find yourself talking with a lower voice or slower to correct what you think is just plain wrong? It’s not that different with an interview. Right along with “Sight” and Smell; Sound is a powerful influencer.

The first thing that normally comes to mind when we think of sound and how it relates to our interviewing performance is how we answer questions. That is a very true statement, but have you thought of how the following might influence your interview as well?

  • Noisy jewelry.
  • Noisy shoes.
  • Drinking from your thermos or 64oz Big Gulp.
  • Grinding your teeth.
  • Your cell phone vibrating in your purse or pocket.
  • The tone of your voice when you introduce yourself.
  • Clicking your nails or pen.
  • Tapping your feet on the floor.

Yes we all have nervous habits that make up our quirky uniqueness. However there is a time and place to display those and an interview is not one of them. I shared previously that the goal of an interview is to be able for the employer to visualize you in the job; the composed, confident, articulate, professional you.

Being aware of your quirky and noisy nervous twitches is the first step to keeping them under control. You however are not the most objective identifier. This is where a great interviewing coach or mentor can come into play. Sitting down with someone for a mock interview is the best preparation you could ask for. Let them help you identify those twitches so you can work on not doing them. Practice walking into a room, shaking hands and introducing yourself, smile, stand up straight and speak clearly and confidently.

A mock interview can help you recognize if you:

  • Mumble or slur your words.
  • Over use words such as; um, like, you know, uh, so, and other dead time fillers.
  • Grind your teeth.
  • Tap your feet.
  • Etc.

I know that not everyone feels comfortable having another person practice with them to identify areas for improvement. However, isn’t it better to find out what those areas are from an objective 3rd party than from the employer you are dying to work for? That’s like letting someone you don’t know cut your hair before you told them what style you wanted; not a smart idea.

An interview is a highly subjective moment in time. It’s you telling another person(s) that you’re all that and a bag of chips and hoping they believe you. Your best chance is to bring the most polished, practiced, prepared version of you to the table. The best way to accomplish that is to work with someone to help identify those areas where you don’t sound that way.

A friend of mine came to me for assistance with a job interview. She is a painfully shy young woman who has difficulty putting herself forward. We practiced question after question; she had her answers down and she was ready for whatever they asked. All she had to do was be able to walk in the door, shake a hand, smile, make eye contact and introduce herself. She didn’t think she could do it.

So what did we do? We went shopping! I took her to the mall to buy a new outfit for the interview and for each person that came up to us in the stores, she had to say, “Hi, my name is Billie, it’s so nice to meet you.” and shake their hand. I thought she was going to kill me but; 3 sales clerks, 2 cashiers and one waitress later, she had it down.

Yes she got the job, yes she still chides me for putting her through it and yes she credits the preparation, identification and practice to her success.

As the saying goes, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Identify the areas for development, practice how to improve and then nail the interview!

Come back on Thursday, August 15th to find out how Touch can influence your interview!

Their nose Knows if you’re a good fit – Sensory Part 2

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pignose

You’re in the perfect well thought out ensemble. You’re groomed, ironed, smiling and confident…but how do you smell? Seems like a silly question but let me pose this to you?

Did you…

  • Drink coffee or soda prior to your interview?
  • Light up to ease your nerves?
  • Sprayed perfume or cologne?
  • Used a ton of hairspray?
  • Have you brushed your teeth?
  • Applied deodorant?
  • What do your shoes smell like?
  • Are you a gum chewer?
  • Are you a mint chomper?
  • Did you have you a drinking binge last night?

All of these can affect your interview.

Did you know that smell is one of the strongest senses and one of the easiest to cause discomfort?

Have you ever walked up to shake someone’s hand and their breath made you want to take a step back? Have you walked by someone you know was just smoking because the cloud followed them into the building? Did you go out to celebrate the night before your interview? You know that the smell of alcohol can exude from your pores for up to 12-hours after you finished drinking, right?

It may seem obvious; in reality it is obviously overlooked.
My husband was in the process of hiring a new student worker. He had met with several candidates and was on his final interview walking in the door when he experienced an extremely offensive smell. Now before you get carried away, he has one smell aversion and that is watermelon. I can’t even have the stuff in the house, unfortunate for me because I love it. The student walking in the door had just been chewing on a piece of watermelon gum and had disposed of it before she came in. However, the smell was so strong that he couldn’t even make it through the interview. He asked all the required questions, thanked her for her time and sent her on her way. Did she get the job, no, was that fair, maybe not. However, this speaks exactly to what we’ve been talking about. You need to present a clean, neat, professional slate that an employer can see in the job. My husband just saw watermelon pink and green coming in the door with that smell every day. It wasn’t going to happen.

Before you leave your house make a check list.

  • Shower!
  • Did I brush my teeth (after the coffee)?
  • Did I apply deodorant?
  • Don’t apply cologne or perfume.
  • Don’t smoke before your interview!
  • Don’t chew strong smelling gum or candy.
  • Don’t party the night before; your cosmo will come seeping through your pores.

    You never know who you are going to interview with, what preconceptions, hang ups and prejudices they are bringing to the table. Your best chance is to come in as a neutral palate they feel they can write on. Check yourself, and be yourself…the very best version of yourself.

    Check back on Wednesday, August 14 to hear more about how sound can affect your interview.

Is Interviewing a Sensory Experience – Part 1 of 5

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sensory overload

How much time do you spend getting ready for an interview? When I ask my students this question, the normal answer is a tirade upon how long it took for them to pick out an outfit (the winner thus far is two weeks), picking the right hair style and make up, and coordinating shoes and lip gloss. For my male students, it’s the Shakespearian, “To iron or not to iron” conundrum.

What many people fail to realize is that an interview, believe it or not, is a smorgasbord of sensory experiences. The interview encompasses all of your senses and after taking a minute to review them, you may be surprised how missing just one can cost you the job.

This is the first part of a series regarding the five senses of an interview.

Let’s take these one at a time…

Sight – This, of course, is the most obvious; it takes into consideration… your clothes, shoes, jewelry, make up, hair, etc. It also takes into consideration your walk, your smile, your cell phone, your watch, eye contact, etc. One of the things that novice and professional job candidates alike fail to recognize is that sight encompasses ALOT!

  • Are you talking on your cell phone when you walk in the door? BAD
  • Do you keep checking your cell phone or watch? BAD
  • Are you standing up straight and presenting a professional confident demeanor? GOOD
  • Do you look people in the eye when you introduce yourself and shake their hand? GOOD
  • When you are sitting waiting for the interview to begin, are you sitting up straight? GOOD

When I’m working with students to hone in on their soft skills, especially their interview skills, I tell them the purpose of the interview is to make sure that the hiring manager can actually visualize them doing the job. You never know what kind of prejudices the employer may have, so you want to present a clean, professional slate that they can see fitting into their culture. If you have tattoos, facial piercings, stiletto heels, low cut tops, high cut skirts, wrinkled clothes, and messy hair…what does that say about you and the image their organization is trying to present? Yes you may look great, for Friday night, but not for Monday morning.

Remember to think of the job you want and dress for it: not too much, not too little, but just right. Give yourself the best foot forward to get the job, and then let YOU shine through. An interview is not the time to make a social political statement; it’s the time to show the employer you are the best fit in skills, culture, and professionalism.

  • When in doubt, look in the mirror. If you think your skirt may be too short or your top too low…it probably is. Change it.
  • If you’re wondering, “Iron or not to iron,” throw it in the dryer till it’s flat.
  • Is your make up Friday night fresh or Monday morning professional? Fix it.
  • Can you hear your shoes or jewelry coming down the hall? Change them.
  • If you are expecting a call that’s so important you have to take your cell in with you…Reschedule the interview.
  • Take a look in the mirror, and ask one simple question: “Would I hire me?”

Take a deep breath, walk into the office, smile, introduce yourself with confidence, look them in the eye, and let them know you are the best person for the job.

Check back on Tuesday, August 13th where I’ll discuss how it’s not your nose but theirs that matters.

What’s happened to the human side of recruitment? Humans allowed it to be removed.

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human interaction

I recently read an article by Liz Ryan CEO and Founder, Human Workplace . She writes, “Algorithm-based, keyword-searching processes that seek to match job-seekers with job openings by clerical means are not only inhuman but bad business process, too.”

Why then, you ask, do we continue to sit at our computers hour upon hour filing out online applications knowing that the likelihood of them being seen is minimal at best? What are our other options? Well, believe it or not, we do have them. They just take a little more EFFORT. No it’s not a vulgar four letter word and it can make all the difference.

First

  • Make a list of all the companies you would like to work for.
  • Do some research on that company. Find out what their mission statement is (it’s usually can be found on the “About Us” section of their web page. Do your skill sets, hard and soft, align with their mission/vision statement?
  • Find a phone number under the “Contact Us” section of the web page then call! Find out who you would need to speak with regarding open positions and who you could talk to. If they refer you to apply online, let them know you are looking for some more information regarding the company and culture. Don’t just say, “Ok.”, then hang up. Be persistent, put some effort into it.
  • Make sure you have an awesome cover letter that references their mission/vision and how you as a person will not only fit into their culture but add value to their company. Don’t make it too long, or it won’t get read. Mail it, yes I said mail not email, to the hiring manager, recruiter, HR representative. You can also use e-mail but it’s not the end all be all. Utilize all your resources, phone, mail, email.

I think you may be getting the picture I’m trying to paint. Job hunting is not a lazy person’s activity. Activity , it’s a pretty strong word – “The state of being active, energetic action or movement, liveliness, the intensity of a radioactive source, the ability to take part in a chemical reaction.” As you can see activity is not a dull word, it certainly does not describe the decision to sit on your butt at a computer screen, nor does it include an element of wait and hope. It means you are active and lively, you have in you the ability to take part in a chemical reaction. Deep within you is the power to make amazingly big things happen. Do it.

I read article after article daily on what job seekers need to do while job searching;

  • Have a complete and dynamic LinkedIn profile. Sit on your butt.
  • Have an powerfully written resume that can be thoroughly understood in as little as 3 seconds. Sit on your butt.
  • Make sure you personalize your cover letter for each company before you submit. Sit on your butt.
  • Use all the keyword combinations you find on the job posting to improve your chances of getting through the automated resume filters. Sit on your butt.

Rarely if ever do I read, get off your butt and meet people, face to face, shake hands, make contact, be remembered, REALLY? I work with job seekers all day long, and yes I too let them know the above is important to have done, however the wonderful world of the web is not going to get you a job, YOU are. If you aren’t finding ways to put your face to your name, you’ll be two lengths behind at the starting bell.

We’ve sat back and allowed our humanity to be removed from the equation. It’s time to stand up and act vitally. Bring the dynamic component of activity back. Get out there and make yourself known. Have a stellar resume, put it in someone’s hands, collect business cards, follow up after applying, pick up the phone and dial it, get to the right person and make a great impression. That’s what will get you the interview, not sitting at your computer hoping the 25 applications you filled out will miraculously wind up on the desk of the right person at the right time on the right day.

It’s time to create your own chemical reaction, action, intensity and energy. Go out and make something happen today!

Interview? Why? I’m a college graduate!

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7-3-13 Why Interview

Believe it or not my friends, the days of your degree or the mere mention of your Ivy League education landing you a job are over or at the very least in extreme jeopardy. Stanford, Columbia, Harvard, and many more of the Elite Tier 1 schools have been announcing the expansion (and at some creation) of their Career Services centers. “Why?” you ask. Because employers are becoming less and less concerned about where you went to school, your GPA, or how you landed the most sought after internship. They are concerned with how you will perform in the career they have to offer; are you dedicated, determined, and innovative? Do you have integrity and reliability? How have you performed in your past positions, and how likely are you to be successful in your future endeavors, lending your personal skills to add value to their organization? Those questions can rarely be accurately described on your resume.

I know it may sound corny, but “times they are a changing;” the days of no muss, no fuss job searching are quickly coming to a close, and those individuals who don’t have the skill set to master an interview, regardless of education, background, and work history, are going to be left in the cold.

Recently, while meeting with a group of employers regarding our graduate performance, one of the employers made the comment, “Technical skills may get graduates hired, but a lack of soft skills will get them fired.”

The purpose of an interview isn’t to reiterate the information on your resume (although some of that may happen for the purposes of clarification); it is to uncover the real YOU and to discover if that YOU is going to be a good match for the position, department, and organization.

Why do you need to interview? Because your education does not entitle you to a job! Employers are looking for candidates who want to work, bring all their cards to the table, and add value to their organization. They are not looking for a faceless name with a long list of accomplishments. You need to bring the whole package to the table, and an interview is the only way (for now) to showcase what and who you really are.

For more information on interviewing and resume skills check out A Better Interview

Summertime is here! So is the end of most people’s job search…

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summerjobs

June is the end of most educational institutions fiscal year. Graduates are pouring out the doors of academe and jumping in full force to their job searches…NOT! I can’t tell you how many graduates I speak with in June, July and August who tell me that they are going to take the summer off from their job search; “no one is hiring anyway”. Wrong! The summer months may seem like a good time to slow down or stop your career search, but it’s not.

According to a recent article on mashable.com “8 Reasons Why Summer Is a Great Time to Job Hunt” there is a myth out there…much too prevalent, that summertime is a bad time to job search. If you just do a quick monster or CareerBuilder search you’ll see that contrary to popular believe there is as much, if not more hiring going on during the summer. That research does not bring into account the up to 80% of hidden job market jobs that are out there looming as well.

Summer is not the time to slow down your job search but to heat it up. Take advantage of the fact that so many other job seekers are falling into the “no one’s hiring right now” mind set and get a step ahead.

Here are a few simple tips provided by Barbara Safani in her recent article on AOLJobs.com.

1. People do more entertaining in the summer months; use these opportunities to network your network. Who do you know? Who do they know?

2. Family obligations can be reduced during the summer months. Use this time wisely, get up earlier, look at the job boards, make some phone calls, go to networking events. You’ll see the competition you had two months ago…has gone on vacation.

3. Most of your fellow graduates are headed to the beach so the competition for the jobs out there will be greatly decreased. It’s much easier to stand out as one of 10 then one of 100 or 1000.

4. Employers will be impressed by the fact you are diligently working to find your career not the best new hang out.

Summer has traditionally been the time to relax, have fun and enjoy the weather. A time to slow down and smell the roses; however, remember what your professors, career services advisor and parents told you…getting a job is a full-time job. The longer you wait to start your career, the harder you will find it. Literally tens of thousands of graduates are pouring into the job market at the same time as you. Most will wait to start looking, taking a break to kick up their heels and enjoy some summertime fun. If you take the opportunity to beat them to the punch, you’ll be laughing all the way to the bank as you begin your Christmas shopping while they are still wondering how to pay the next month’s rent.