If you think about it, you have “employees” of your own.You pay them to do things for you — find information on what concerns you, keep track of data you need to access again, and anything else you don’t want to do yourself. Some of your employees are paid when you get the bill from the phone company and your internet provider. Others are paid when you get your electric bill. Some are actually people who provide a service you appreciate. Technology can be an excellent employee, if used correctly. How much easier is life when your smartphone works? How much harder is it when you can’t figure it out? If you don’t have a smartphone (“substitute computer”), or whatever technology you use on hand, life can feel out of control. One problem with this employee of yours is that technology changes over time. Your comfortable way of doing things gets out of sync with the way the rest of your world is moving and you miss out on important details. This is when a person who provides a service can help. You could catch up with the current technologies yourself, if you spent the time and energy to figure it out. But employing someone to get you started lets you get up to speed much more quickly and you get a head start.
The LinkedIn Profile Development service is a good example of what I am talking about. Right now, LinkedIn is one of the best technological tools available for connecting with others in your career field. But they are moving at a very fast pace. This service puts you in the best position to start putting technology to work.
One Surprising Way Work/Family Balance Affects Salary Negotiation
Most of the time you hear about the wage gap between men and women — and how the gap is caused by the struggles women face in balancing work and family responsibilities. But the effects of that struggle are not all bad, because the result of your efforts has given you strength as well.
This applies to both men and women. I don’t want to act like men don’t struggle to keep job and family priorities straight. But since the majority of the wage gap conversation seems to focus on how women have lower wages as a result of motherhood, it’s a good thing to consider the strengths you have when it comes to negotiating your salary.
You have a life outside your cubicle. No matter what the result of your negotiation brings, your identity is not solely defined by the title on your paycheck or the amount written on it. This can give you the strength of perspective, allowing you to negotiate without focusing on one issue at the expense of others.
You have a lot of experience in negotiation. How many times have you had to work out the details to juggle childcare and career? If your kids are older, how much negotiation have you done over chores and homework? You have the strength of past experience in countless encounters in figuring out compromise.
You have a solid goal in mind. You know what the bills are and you know what your income is. If you can’t reconcile the numbers on your current salary, you need to be prepared to look for a different position if this one can’t provide the paycheck your family needs to survive. You have the strength of vision, that goal of providing for your family.
It is very likely that your next job application will be done electronically.In some ways this makes the process easier, I think, since many find it laborious to fill out paper applications by hand. Still, there are some issues you can run into with an electronic application that could cause problems if you’re not paying attention.
Read the instructions. Don’t assume you know how this particular company’s software will work just because you have filed online in other places. There might be a nuance that makes a difference to the person (or computer) screening the applications. When hundreds of applications are being screened, little things can get you in the wrong category.
Load your resume in the right format. There’s a reason why Professional Resume Services offers both ASCII and PDF versions of your resume in our professional resume packages. We don’t know what your (hopefully) future employer will want. Having both versions gives you the best chance of having the right one.
Check all the information carefully! It happens all the time: the resume is attached and the little boxes of the electronic job application magically fill up. But those little boxes don’t have the information in the right place and, again, a little thing makes a big difference in getting your application passed through the initial filter. You need to look it over with the idea that you are proofreading, even though your resume was already proofread. Otherwise, you could end up verifying that your college degree was earned at your last job when you carelessly submit it. That scenario isn’t as farfetched as it sounds–so check to make sure the right information is in each box.
Most professional builders wouldn’t dream of starting on a project without a set of blueprints. The detailed drawings are essential to guiding the process of building so that no important factors are left out. The blueprints are examined, changed where potential problems are noted, and referred to during the entire process.
Your career plans should have a set of blueprints, too. They don’t have to be big pieces of paper with diagrams on them, but there should be a carefully-thought-out plan that you follow to make sure all the important factors are being addressed. You should be looking at your career blueprint at least once a year and thinking about these questions:
The end of one year and beginning of the new is a popular time for looking at things like this. But be careful about making all those New Year’s Resolutions that end up ignored in February! Most people decide to toss the blueprint they were using and start over, then they get discouraged because it is too much change, too fast, and too difficult to maintain.
There is a lot in your life that is working well, and you want to build on that good foundation with small changes instead of completely changing an area. Sometimes, it is true that you have to tear down an old building and start over but many builders will renovate a beautiful older building and keep all the good stuff. Your career is like a building in this way — most of the time, the best can be presented in a well-written resume and a new job is offered because of the good stuff you bring to the position.
A blueprint is a professional, carefully designed picture of the planned project that is followed, evaluated, and only redesigned when necessary. The blueprint for your career should be treated the same way.
Do you tend to remember stories instead of facts?I know I do. Most of us do, because we are people who love stories — movies, tv shows, books, gossip, family lore, and all the rest of the ways one can tell a narrative. Even jokes are stories, if you think about it! I don’t know the fancy reasons why this is so, but it probably has something to do with being able to identify with the story teller or a character in the story. This love of story plays out in your career in several ways:
Your brand is a synopsis of your story; a general overview of who you are
Your references are anecdotes of your story; testimonials from people with memories about you
Your resume is a capsulation of the highlights of your career story; the highlights that affect a potential job opening
It’s a good idea to remember that people usually will think in terms of story. That person interviewing you has sifted through a lot of resumes to choose the best character to introduce in their next chapter. They will try to figure out if your story, who you are, and how you will fit into the ongoing narrative of their enterprise. When you sent that thank you letter after the interview, you remind them of that story.
Not all story is going to be profitable for your career — gossip, backbiting, etc. are not things you want people to remember about you. The way you act and speak today will become the story people remember about you tomorrow. You can change parts of the story they remember by apologies and reforming, but it is really better when you realize that the narrative of your career and life is being written by you every day.
Questions You Should Ask During Your Job Interview
Most of the time, a job interview will consist of you answering questions. But most interviewers will also ask if you have any questions, and it’s a good idea to be prepared to ask the right kind. You don’t have to use my phrasing, but think through why these questions are good to ask and how you can ask something similar:
“The job description cites these responsibilities. How are those responsibilities filled in a typical workday?” This gives you an idea about the work load and expectations involved.
“What do you hope to see this position accomplish for your company?” A question like this gives you an opportunity to hear what their goals are for this particular job and get an idea of the long term plans you will be a part of.
“Is there any reason you think I might have trouble accomplishing your goals for this job?” This is a scary question to ask, but it will let you address their concerns and possibly correct misconceptions they may have about you.
“I see from the mission statement that you value creativity. How does this position employ creativity in meeting that goal?” This is a sample question…what matters is your display of knowledge about the company and their goals. You can use recent press statements, mission statements, or anything that shows you cared enough about the job to learn more about it and think about how you will do it.
“Is this a newly created position or one that has been in place?” An established job description for a position that has been in place usually has a lot of support in place, too. They’ve figured out what works and you just slip into the spot and carry on. You can ask if the previous worker moved into another position, if you will be part of a team, etc. But a newly created position is fuzzier because the bugs haven’t been worked out yet. You can ask what the problems were that led to the creation of the position and how flexible the job description will be as you work on fixing them, for instance.
If the idea of asking questions like these fills you with fear, consider something like our career coaching services to help you prepare. You can choose a packaged deal or a la carte coaching and use the investment to gain the confidence to interact with ease. A coach helps you learn what you need to know and improve the skills you already have to be the best candidate for the job you want.
A recent survey of 1,205 business decision makers in four regions and twelve countries has confirmed what many would say is obvious: video conferencing is here to stay and going to increase in the future. The survey, “Global View: Business Video Conferencing Usage and Trends,” was done by Redshift Research for Polycom, Inc. and is a fascinating look at how technology changes the way we do business. It’s also a reminder that your job will be affected by it in the future.
One finding was that 32% of the U.S. respondents were likely to use video technology for interviewing potential employees. That’s the highest percentage of all the countries represented, with the next largest group being 28% of the Asia-Pacific region. So I’d say that knowing how to get ready for an online interview is a very good idea.
Another factor that may come up in your interview is your view of working with colleagues from other countries and cultures. Quite often, this doesn’t mean globe-trotting; it means video conferencing.
The more familiar you are with the idea, the better a candidate you will be for that position. So Polycom came up with a Guide To Collaborating Across Borders as a result of their survey, and I’m letting you in on the free tool because I want you to be that savvy candidate who knows about the trends where business is heading.
The interesting thing about all this is that no matter what your background or career track is, your job will probably include technology and multicultural experiences in the future. Being ready for it at the interview gives you an advantage.
One Reason Why A Thank You Letter Is Still A Good Idea
Did you have to write thank you letters at Christmas and birthdays when you were a kid?Did you groan and moan piteously while your mom stood over you, threatening dire things if Grandma didn’t get that note in the next few months? Do I do this to my own children, too? Of course! Most of us have had to write a note thanking someone for a gift or a service they appreciate, and if you have been the recipient of a thank you letter on paper, you know the feeling you have about that writer. It is impressive in today’s email world, and most people don’t do it. It’s the right thing to do. In the hiring world, there are many faces seen and forgotten as applicants crowd into the arena vying for a job. One of the most impressive ways to do an interview follow up for maximum success is the old-fashioned thank you letter. On paper. To hold in your hand and look at again. In one simple act, that of observing a professional courtesy, you have given the interviewer a reason to remember you positively. I am assuming the thank you letter is one that meets professional standards, is well-written, concise, and mentions specific favorable points in the interview. It will be a tangible reminder of your assets for the position if it reflects your good points and comes in the week following the interview. There is a place for an email thank you letter, and your research on the company will help you determine its appropriateness. Most of the time, though, the “real thing” is going to be the best thing. If you do decide the email thank you letter is preferred, all the rules about professionalism apply! This is no place for typos or formatting errors, so make sure your final impression is an excellent impression when following up that job interview.
This is part of the package when writing your resume, the final piece of the cover letter-resume-thank you letter trifecta. Don’t ignore it!
