In the list of most hated interview questions, the question “What is your biggest weakness?” has got to be number one.You go into an interview attempting to showcase your strengths and they want to hear about your weaknesses. It’s a question that is designed to throw you off guard and put you off balance, and it works very well at accomplishing both. However, there is a third reason that the question is asked: To find out how well you know yourself. It’s a character question and most people fail miserably at answering it well.
When job seekers know that they are likely to be asked about their faults or weaknesses, they prepare a pat answer that attempts to turn a negative into a positive. The most common answer is also the worst answer: “I tend to be something of a workaholic.” This is the wrong answer because that shows you to be unable to strike a balance between work and life. Without that balance you are more prone to stress, being difficult to work with, and a candidate for making mistakes.
So what is your biggest weakness? Everyone has one and all most people need to do is think back over what types of criticisms they have gotten to find one. I tend to ask a lot of questions and over analyze everything. This can be annoying to some people, but it’s also an asset in my line of work. Figure out your biggest weakness and look for a positive angle on it. Then you will be ready to answer the most hated interview question of them all, and turn your most feared weakness into a selling point during the interview.
While LinkedIn has become extremely popular with businesses and companies, it still seems to be lagging a bit when it comes to those seeking jobs. That’s a shame because it’s one of the easiest and most effective job search tools available today. Many company hiring managers check LinkedIn before looking anywhere else for new employees.
The main reason that LinkedIn isn’t being used as much as it should be by job seekers is because it’s considered a form of social media and that term alone makes people think of it as a leisure activity. Nothing could be further from the truth where LinkedIn is concerned. There are, of course, a variety of ways to use the service and some are naturally better than others.
To start, you want to make sure that your profile is 100% complete. If you aren’t sure how to go about doing this, consider hiring a professional to translate your resume into your LinkedIn profile. Having a completed profile that stands out is a great way to give potential employers a good look at you before the interview process.
It’s also important to note that many companies are asking for your LinkedIn profile when you submit a resume. It has actually become so common that many people just include their LinkedIn URL on their resume to begin with.
LinkedIn can also be used overtly for an active job search. Because thousands of companies have company profiles and use the site for headhunting, many of their job openings are published on the site before, or even instead of, any place else. Once you have a completed profile, you can simply click a button and apply for a multitude of jobs.
Consider updating, or even beginning to use, LinkedIn as a job search tool. It’s a great way to be seen by thousands of companies fast.
So often, when researching how to put together a resume,the posts and articles are a lot of “a resume is this,” and “a resume should have this,” but often, there is no information about what is dangerous or unnecessary in a resume. That is what this post is for–to help you understand what a resume is not so you can create the best and most impressive resume. A resume is not:
A letter: It is not a place to talk or chat about yourself and your accomplishments. You can do that a little bit in your cover letter, but mostly that type of communication will be for your interview.
A soapbox: Blatantly bragging or putting false commentary into your resume in order to make your skills sound better than they are isn’t advisable. While it’s good to sell yourself and your skills, sell them on skills you’ve actually done, not what you”think you can” do.
A comedy club: You don’t need to add humor or personality to your resume. Employers are not looking for that type of thing in a resume. They want simple facts with enough information for them to decide if they want you to come in for an interview. Add some personality to your social media profiles. Talk about your interests and likes in that type of forum, but a resume is not the best place for them.
A grocery list: While, yes, you will list your skills, work experiences, and accomplishments, there is more to it than that. You can’t simply list every job without a few details like dates of employment, job title, employer, and some job duties. You don’t need a lot of detail, but you need enough so your potential employers have an idea of what you have done.
These are things to watch out for. Your resume may seem like it doesn’t have your voice or personality, but that is OK. It doesn’t need all that fluff. Save that for your cover letter and, more importantly, your interview.
One place where many people fail at work is in maintaining a professional distance between them and colleagues.This is primarily a problem for young and inexperienced workers because they are not used to being in a business environment. This can be especially problematic for those looking for a new job. It’s normal to look to those you work with for friendship. By working at the same company you already have many common interests and expectations. You know the same people and likely work on the same projects. The problem is that very often your coworkers are also competing with you for promotions, bonuses, and even a job in the event of layoffs or cutbacks. There is a natural competition that goes on in a work environment to be the best and to be the one that gets the promotions. If you have been overly liberal in complaints, for example, the person you were speaking with just might use that as a means to get ahead at work. It’s better to save your complaints for non-work friends. It’s especially advisable to maintain a professional distance when you are looking for a new job. More than one person has made the mistake of letting those at work know he was looking for something better only to find out that the boss was not happy to hear about it. Worst case scenario is that this can cause you to lose the job you already have before you find a new one. While networking is important in your job search, keep those you work with, even your friends, in the dark about this.
Everyone makes mistakes and everyone knows this. The problem is that some mistakes are a bigger problem than others. Never before has this been an issue the way it is now. Today, a social media mistake can be blasted around the world in a nanosecond. That’s why it is so important to simply avoid certain mistakes, no matter what. Don’t discuss your company online
It’s not normally a problem for your social media friends to know where you work, but avoid discussing your company online. Something you regard as a joke might not be funny to the corporate executives. More importantly, your behavior might be seen by future employers as less than desirable. It’s become the norm for personnel departments to perform a search on the candidates they are considering inviting for an interview. If you are having trouble landing an interview, try looking at your Internet persona from an employers perspective. Your mother was right: if you can’t say something nice, then don’t say anything at all. Don’t discuss your co-workers online
Everyone has a bad day now and then. You don’t want your mistakes blasted around by your coworkers so don’t do it to them. This is seen by both your employer and your fellow workers as poor judgement and something of a betrayal. It’s not worth the aggravation, hurt feelings and possible questions about your integrity.
Because more and more companies are performing searches on prospective employees and even current employees, you don’t want to make those two mistakes. They can literally be career killers.
They can be the difference between getting an interview, a promotion or even losing your job if the mistake is bad enough. It’s simply not worth the risk. If nothing else, make your accounts as private as possible, but remember that someone else may choose to share your comments. Ask yourself if it is really worth it before you post it.
There is an old saying, “hum a few bars and fake it.”There are times, and interviews are often the case, where this is the best course of action. While you never want to come off as entitled or as though you are superior, faking confidence can often be the difference between an outstanding interview and one that is a dismal failure. A great resume will get you an interview. A great interview will get you the job. Who needs to fake confidence?
At times, just about everyone needs a boost. If you are unemployed and have been for a while, it can be depressing and sap your confidence. People who are shy or introverted can also use a bit of help in this area. It’s not hard to do, and if you do it enough you will become quite good at it. There are only three essential steps:
Smile – This will immediately signal your brain to make you happier and more confident
Prepare – Know as much as possible about the position and company before you go in for the interview. This preparation will help ease your anxiety
Believe – Believe that you are going to do well in the interview; the interviewer will like you and select you as the candidate to hire.
Just fake it. If all else fails, pretend that you have the confidence you need. The interviewer will not know the difference. Studies show that you will perform better in the interview and you will ultimately feel more relaxed by wearing a mask of confidence.
The job search process can be long, boring, and more than anything, disappointing.You may spend hours searching the internet and newspapers, and will come up with almost nothing that sounds like the job you’re looking for. Which brings up another problem-do you even know what it is you are looking for? This aimless searching leads to wasted time, energy and disappointment.
Fortunately, you can make the job search easier on yourself if you take some time and decide what it is you want to search for. If you have an idea of what kind of job you want to do and a job that you would enjoy, then your search will be more fruitful and you will waste less time aimlessly searching. First, you need to decide what it is you want to do.Think about what you enjoy, what you know how to do, what you have been educated in, and where you want to be in your career. If you take the time to think through what it is you want, then you will be one step closer to getting a job and a career that you can enjoy. Next, as you begin your search, keep focused. You have decided what it is you want to do, so don’t stray from that path. If you do, you will only be wasting valuable time that could be spent on a targeted search. Use job search sites that have filter so you can search for specifics such as: full time, part time, education needed, distance from where you live, and the type of work.
If you know what you want to search for before you even begin the path to a new career, not only will you spend less time searching for a job, but the time you do spend searching will be more fruitful and you will be more likely to find a job you will love.
Writing an objective or career summary can be one of the hardest sections to write in a resume. Why? It is often the shortest part of your resume, so it shouldn’t be hard, right? Unfortunately, it can be very difficult for people because you have to briefly summarize why an employer should hire you. When it gets to the point that it is too difficult to write a tailored, specific summary, some people will give up and just write a vague or generalized one. While this is certainly an option for people, there are problems with it. Some of these include:
Confusing or Unclear: If your career summary is vague or generalized, it can become unclear to your potential employers what your focus actually is. You don’t want to make it harder for your potential employers to see what your goal is. They are looking through dozens (or hundreds!) of resumes, and if it is too hard for them to understand what you are saying, they probably won’t take the time to go through the rest of your resume.
Looks Lazy: Besides being unclear, a vague summary can look just plain lazy. It can look like you didn’t take time to research the position, and that can cause employers to feel like you don’t care about the role, or their time.
Now that you know some of the problems with having a vague objective, here are some ways that you can fix it so you have a specific, tailored objective that will impress employers.
Maintain a clear focus: Be very clear about what it is you want to do. Briefly add some tangible experiences that pertain to this role. Show your expertise and brand!
Research: Do some research on the position so you know what you are talking about. Add similar qualities that you possess to the summary as it will help you stand out more.
That is it. You just need to be willing to take the time and do the work and you will end up with an impressive focus and summary that will help keep potential employers reading and interested in your resume, and you.
