 We all make mistakes. It’s what makes us human. Big or small, those mistakes can usually be corrected provided you are self-aware and motivated to want to change. But it may be harder to correct course when our actions collide with others’ perceptions, opinions, and needs.
This is particularly true when we are engaged in a job search – a time when when we are being evaluated and it is imperative we put our best foot forward. A single unintended mistake can cost us an opportunity to get the job we’ve always dreamed of. There are many times we can make missteps in the job search process – from resume typos to failing to attach a cover letter. But assuming you’ve checked and triple checked your resume, drafted a stand-out cover letter, and have proofread all of the key correspondence, your next challenge is to be ready to knock ‘em dead during the interview. If you made it this far, you’ve likely met the basic requirements and qualifications for the position. Now is your chance to really shine and stand out from the competition. Here are 4 mistakes you can avoid making during the interview phase to ensure that you are selected as the top candidate: 1. Being Late and Not Offering an Apology Everyone knows that the first rule of thumb at an interview is to arrive on-time. Generally, on-time means arriving at least 10-15 minutes early to allow yourself time to get to the right place and be ready to greet your interviewer should they choose to start the interview a few minutes ahead of schedule. Arriving a few minutes early shows that you are organized, capable of managing your time and schedule, and respect the time the interviewer set aside to get to know you. That said, given your best efforts and intentions, sometimes things happen that are outside of our control. Perhaps you left your house way ahead of schedule but there is an unexpected traffic jam, or a train delay. Or, maybe you got delayed going through security downstairs. And yes, there really could’ve been a small fire in your kitchen! Whatever the reason, if you are late to an interview, you are probably worried that you’ve hurt your chances. You are right -- it doesn’t look good. But, it is not a deal-breaker provided you are honest, apologetic, and put your best foot forward during the rest of the interview. What’s much worse than being a few minutes late? Appearing that you don’t own up to your missteps, however minor (or unintentional) they may be. 2. Not Being Properly Dressed This is a no-brainer, right? Of course you know that you must be properly dressed for an interview. Yet, it is surprising how many still assume that “properly dressed” can mean anything other than a suit (and tie, if you are a man). In this day and an age, there are many companies that have moved beyond requiring traditional attire. In the more creative and entrepreneurial fields, it’s frequently accepted to wear casual (day-to-day) clothes to work. And you may have even heard advice that says that you should try to “match” the style of the workplace when you go on your interview. This may be a well-intentioned but misleading advice. Leave the “matching” to the time when you’ve already scored the coveted job. While you are being evaluated for a position, it is always best to dress in formal wear. 3. Being Underprepared It’s important to be confident going to an interview. When you believe in yourself, you are setting yourself up for success. However, sometimes feeling confident (or over-confident!) can backfire – particularly when we underestimate how much to prepare in order to do well. Confidence and thorough preparation are not mutually exclusive. And in the case where you have to display your value in a short amount of time, they simply must go hand-in-hand. There is really no way to over-prepare for a job interview. So, if you haven’t already thought through all of the interviewer’s possible questions and your responses, done a mock interview with a trusted friend or mentor, and thought of questions to ask about the company/role, then perhaps it makes sense to consider setting aside some additional time to prepare. 4. Having Body Language that Does Not Match Your Story You’ve done your prep-work and showed up on time dressed as your best professional self. Now it’s time to share your story. You’ve heard it many times – a good first impression counts for so much. Stay calm and do your best. No pressure! Even those of us with nerves made of steel, in this scenario, may feel the jitters coming on. It’s normal and natural to feel nervous, and it’s expected. Showing a bit of vulnerability will certainly not take you out of the running and anyone but the most unforgiving of interviewers will see it for what it is – excitement and genuine desire to get the job. But there is a fine line between looking nervous and appearing inauthentic and it is the latter that you want to guard against. Inauthenticity is a turn-off and others pick up on it quickly when there is a mismatch between your words and your behavior. There is not much you can do if you are truly pretending to be something you are not. Eventually, and probably sooner rather than later, it will become obvious. However, if like many of us, you tend to temporarily crumble under pressure, staying aware of inadvertently sending negative non-verbal messages will help you remain in control. Fidgeting, shifting eyes, looking down instead of making eye contact are all examples of poor non-verbal communication – those behaviors may be perceived as signs that you lack the confidence in yourself and your skills. And that is a sure deal-breaker. Be yourself, know the value you add, breathe and keep composure and you will be sure to shine!
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 December is not traditionally considered a month for serious job searching. It is a time to relax, enjoy the holidays, vacation and be with family.
Still, if you are seeking new opportunities, you’ll probably be keeping your ear close to the ground, ready to strike when the time is right. Perhaps you are continuing to make connections at holiday parties, or browsing the listings on the web in your spare time. More than likely, though, you are waiting patiently for the new year to roll around before re-starting your search in earnest. Today, more than ever, there is so much useful career advice available on the web. Still, you may find yourself getting tired of the tried-and-true sites, like LinkedIn, Glassdoor, or Indeed. For those of you looking for some new perspective, I’ve put together a list of my favorite career websites and blogs that regularly feature helpful job search tips and strategies. Check them out and start your year off fresh. 1. www.careersherpa.net 2. www.theundercoverrecruiter.com 3. www.careersdonewrite.com 4. www.9livesforwomen.com 5. www.themuse.com 6. www.dailyworth.com 7. www.idealistcareers.org 8. www.chameleonresumes.com 9. www.mscareergirl.com Happy New Year and best wishes for a successful job search!  A resume is one of the most important tools in your job search toolbox. Without a strong stand-out resume, it is virtually guaranteed that your application for a job will be overlooked by the prospective employer.
Even if you have networked extensively and have an established connection at the company you are seeking to work at, you cannot underestimate the importance of a well-crafted resume. Your resume is the prologue to the story you tell the employer about yourself and your professional background. It tells the employer where you’ve been and where you want to be headed next. It lays the setting for further conversation. And you know that in today’s competitive job market, you can’t afford to showcase yourself in any but the best possible light. Which is why, I recommend that you spend a good chunk of time editing and updating your resume before clicking ‘send’. This is particularly important if it’s been a while since you’ve updated the document and/or are considering switching careers. Below are 7 tips for drafting a stronger resume: Make Sure the Formatting is Consistent and Resume is Typo-free Tiny details often tell a much bigger story. Formatting may seem less important that the substance of your resume, but make no mistake. If the formatting is not consistent throughout the document, it says one thing about you: you rush to get the job done. No employer wants to see quality sacrificed for speed. The same point applies to typos. Take extra time and read each bullet point over at least twice to make sure there are absolutely no errors or inconsistencies. The Resume Length Should Be 1- 2 pages Unless you are an academic or a scientist and have a long list of publications to list, it is not generally recommended that your resume exceed 2 pages. For young professionals without an extensive job history, the ideal length is 1 page. In today’s competitive job market, it’s not unusual for an employer to receive hundreds of resumes for one position. A hiring manager will likely spend only a minute, if that, reviewing your resume before deciding whether you make the cut for an interview or not. They want to quickly assess your qualifications and appreciate a concisely crafted document. Use a Chronological Format You have likely come across two different formats for a resume: chronological and functional (or sometimes a mix of those two). In a chronological resume, as the title implies, you list your experience chronologically, with accomplishments as they pertain to each job experience. In a functional resume, on another hand, you highlight your abilities and categorize your skills instead of creating a timeline for your work experience. If you are a career changer, are re-entering the workforce, or have gaps in your resume, you may prefer the functional format because it takes the focus off the gaps. You may think that works in your favor. And there are times you may be right. However, when a prospective employer picks up your resume, she wants to quickly understand your work history. Functional resumes typically take longer to piece together, and the hiring manager may simply choose not to take the time to do so. It may also seem that you are trying to hide the gaps, rather than focusing on your skills and abilities, and your efforts can backfire. So, why not play it safe and use the more popular chronological format? Then spend some time drafting a good cover letter where you tell your story and summarize your skills. List any Gaps in Employment This point is related to the recommendation above. Yes, you may be concerned about putting down gaps in your resume, particularly large gaps, however it is better to be upfront about them than seem like you are trying to hide something. If you have taken time off to raise a family, as one example, put that down. Took time to travel? List that as well. If during the “break”, you did consulting or freelance work, be sure to list those projects. Any volunteer experience during the gaps should not go in the work experience section, but in a separate volunteer section. Tailor Your Resume to the Job Description The days of the standard resume are gone. You can no longer send the same resume to multiple employers and expect that you will be rewarded with a call back. Want to show you are genuinely interested in the job? Then take some time to tweak your resume and customize it to fit the job to which you are applying. How can you tailor for best results? First of all, create a compelling narrative throughout the resume that shows your work history and prior experiences are a good fit to the desired position. You will have to show you have built a set of skills in your prior roles that will be transferrable to the new position. Put emphasis and highlight the type of work that’s relevant to the new job. Delete or minimize any work or other experience that doesn’t directly apply. Use keywords listed in the job description. This point is important! Many times your resume may not even make it past the employer’s applicant tracking system, if the wording within the resume does not match with the specific skills and qualifications listed in the job description. Scan the job description carefully to make sure you understand the requirements of the position. Then, identify your past work/projects that match those requirements and use the same vocabulary used by the hiring manager to describe the experience in your resume. But no embellishments or exaggerations! Those can become obvious down the line and will surely backfire. Quantify Your Achievements When you talk about your experience, what do you want the prospective employer to remember? That you worked on some project they’ve never heard of, or that you can produce results? Likely the second. You are an attractive candidate because you have proven time and time again that you can deliver by increasing sales, revenues, or by creating more efficient processes. Show and quantify those achievements for each role you list on your resume. Talk about any improvements that you were responsible for. Use Strong Language – Action Verbs and Keywords If your Experience section is packed with words like “managed”, “led”, or “oversaw”, perhaps it’s time to update it. Although common, these words have become so overused that they risk obscuring and minimizing your true accomplishments. Worse yet, instead of highlighting your uniqueness, you’ll seem like everybody else. So, why not be a bit creative? Start out each description with strong action verbs instead. Try “headed”, “planned”, “executed”, “organized”, “built”, “created” or “implemented”, as just some examples. Don’t stop there. Look up action verbs for more great ideas. And don’t forget to sprinkle in the all-important keywords. As mentioned before, hiring managers search by keywords to find resumes that match the skills and qualifications listed in job description. Make sure your resume includes those keywords. Use Bullet Points This may be an obvious point, but it can’t hurt to repeat it. The clearer your resume, the easier it is for the prospective employer to get a quick grasp of your history and identify your key leadership roles, contributions and accomplishments. Use bullets to communicate your information clearly and effectively. When you show that you can create a well-organized resume, you will be sure to stand out from the crowd.  We’ve all been there. After weeks, or sometimes months, of networking, you finally score an interview. You are now one step closer to getting the job you’ve been aiming for, and you are excited.
You begin to visualize yourself in your dream job and it feels so right. You belong there, but your goal is still only a dot on the horizon. For now, though, you have to ace the interview. The stakes are high. You need to perform at your best, but how do you handle such a high pressure scenario? You are about to be evaluated and judged, and as if on cue, the feelings of anxiety and insecurity start creeping in. Yes, this is your chance to evaluate as well – the fit, the culture, the team. But, there will be time for that later. For the time being, though, how can you maintain the confidence needed to perform at your best? How do you stay in the moment, instead of experiencing self-doubt and imagining the worst outcome? Conventional wisdom will tell you to thoroughly prepare. And it is true that preparation helps to reduce anxiety and boost self-confidence. Researching the organization before the interview, thinking through potential questions, and having prepared answers, especially for any tough questions you might expect or fear, will most likely make the difference between being chosen for the next round or not. But, let’s say you have done your best to prepare, yet the anxiousness remains. Or, you are confident the day before the big interview, but as you step into the waiting area your heart begins to race and your head starts playing tricks on you. Suddenly, your mind goes blank and your worst fears begin to materialize. Are you about to fail? What can you do to recover, to master your insecurities, to get back to your place of calm? Is there a way to become more present? Turns out there is. Perhaps you’ve heard of a technique called power posing. Power posing was introduced to the mainstream by Amy Cuddy, a social psychologist and an associate professor at Harvard Business School who studies how nonverbal behavior influences people’s judgements. She is most known for her widely popular 2012 Ted Talk “Your Body Language Shapes Who You Are”. In her talk, Cuddy introduced the idea that our body language can influence how we view ourselves, and in turn, how others view us. Basing her talk on prior research conducted with colleagues from the University of Berkeley, Cuddy shows how by adopting “power poses” for as little as 2 minutes we can affect our thinking and self-perception. Cuddy describes how our bodies have a biological response to “high-power” (open, spread out arms, arms on hips or stretching behind your head etc.) vs. “low-power” (hunched down body, hands covering neck or hands crossed over body etc.) poses. When we hold “high-power” poses, our bodies react by increasing our levels of testosterone and decreasing our levels of cortisol, both of which are shown to lead to higher confidence and decreased anxiety. Those effects then carry over to our interactions with others. Our higher levels of self-confidence allow us to put our best foot forward in situations that require it most, if only for a short while. Cuddy calls this a mind-body hack. Sounds a bit illicit, right? Hacking others’ systems may be considered a suspect pursuit. But hacking your own? Centuries ago, the indelible Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu referred to this concept a bit differently. “Mastering others is true strength, mastering yourself is true power” said Tzu, and these wise words still resonate today. Perhaps his teachings gained ground before hacking came into vogue, but which one of us will disagree that a two-minute hack to get some personal power is not a bad short-term solution, especially when you may be still working towards lifelong self-mastery. |
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