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Credit Scores and the Job Search
Credit Scores and the Job Search
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For years, we’ve been told how important our credit rating is. The higher your FICO score, the lower the APR on your mortgage or car loan or new credit card. And with the collapse of the banking industry, a solid credit rating has become more vital than ever. Radio and TV commercials bombard us with promises to reduce debt and improve our credit. Well, now you can add a job search to the many ways your credit rating affects your life.
What does it mean to network?
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As many job seekers know, and as many job-search resources will tell you, it is important to network as you look for your next position. Everybody says it, but what does it really mean? How can it help you to find the position you want or the person you want to speak to?
Long story short, it doesn’t always do that, but both concentrated and light networking can help to supplement your job search. Hopefully by creating some new connections, an internal recommendation or two, or even a tidbit of information about a person, position or department you wouldn’t otherwise know about.
Here are two tips we’ve come up with to help our candidates best focus their networking efforts.
Map out your social connections: Using resources like LinkedIn and Facebook, take stock of who you know and what those people do for work. Do they work in a position or at a company you’d like to target? Ask to speak with them briefly over a cup of coffee to find out more about what their career trajectory was like, or who they know in a department you’re trying to target. Be open about your desire to work for the company or in a specific position and ask them what they think you should do to get an informational interview.
Find a MeetUp Group: If you have completely exhausted your existing network, it’s important to grow some new connections! There is a MeetUp group for virtually every interest under the sun (sometimes two!). MeetUps offer a way to connect with new and different people around a shared career, field of industry or simply a shared interest. These group meetings follow a variety of different layouts, usually meeting at a neutral location for some education, networking and socializing. While these do tend to be more prevalent in urban areas, it is always possible that you’ll find something close to where you live. Here in Boston, from the Boston Volunteers MeetUp, which covers a variety of volunteer opportunities in and around the city, to the HTML5 Game Development MeetUp to the Boston IT JobSeeker’s MeetUp, there is a lot to do and talk about.
Do you have a networking strategy that’s worked for you? Let us know about it in the comments below!
Blogging Forward,
Landing a New Job Can Be…Stressful
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“You’re hired.”
For professionals who have been treading water in the unemployment pool, one would think those words would resonate as loudly as “you’ve just won the lottery.” For some people, however, finding a new job can be bittersweet. The pressures of exceeding new employers’ expectations, coupled with the fear of being laid off again, weigh heavily on the hearts and minds of some.
An article in the Wall Street Journal by Joann S. Lublin, spotlighted this growing phenomenon.
“Persistent ill effects [of being unemployed] include damaged self-esteem, fears about repeating job mistakes, concentration difficulties and insomnia,” writes Lublin.
Networking: The Power of Meeting Face-to-Face
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It’s no secret that online social networking outlets are all the rage. It seems that everyone has their own Facebook page or Twitter account. Not surprisingly, job seekers, as well as gainfully employed professionals, have found ways to utilize this technology to aid them in their job searches or to build their business.
In fact, social networking sites seem so popular that you might get the impression that traditional networking strategies are as relevant as your dusty collection of VHS tapes. But industry experts caution while online networking does have its uses, old-fashioned networking techniques should not be overlooked.
Laid Off? Stimulate Your Job Search.
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Even as the wheels of the country’s economy try to get back on track, professionals in all lines of work continue to run the risk of hearing those dreaded words: “We’re eliminating your position”, or “We’re downsizing”. Regardless of how delicately it is put, the harsh reality is you’ve just been laid off. And with the national unemployment rate hovering around 10% Bureau of Labor Statistics , you are not alone. What do you do now? Even if you are among the fortunate to avoid the swinging lay-off pendulum, it’s best to be prepared.
In fact, if a lay-off appears imminent, preparation is the key, according to Alison Doyle, job search expert for About.com.
The Importance of SEO and Resumes
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In late 2010, we encouraged people who are actively job seeking to revamp their resume for 2010. If you missed it, you can catch that post here. So that post was a good first step in taking the fluff out of a resume. The next question is what will recruiters want to see? How can a simple resume rewrite make you an easier target for the recruiters and headhunters at companies you want to work for?
The answer lies in keywords. Just like websites and companies focus on Search Engine Optimization (SEO)- so should you as a job seeker. Many companies that are hiring rely on resources like Monster.com, CareerBuilder and internal job search engines to divert qualified candidates right into the email inboxes of recruiters and hiring managers based on established searches built around—you guessed it—keywords. This means that because companies have an automated and easier time finding candidates, your job as the job seeker is harder. It should be obvious that you reread and tweak your resume to fit every position you’re applying for, but now failure to do so can mean that a well-qualified candidate could be skipped over completely (or rated a low percentage match).
Make a habit out of comparing the description of every job you apply for with the words on your resume. If a company is referring to a position as a “Web Developer” and you’ve got “Software Engineer” on your resume, it will be harder for a search filer to catch your resume first. Additionally, if a non-technical person (such as a human resources representative) doesn’t know that these phrases are synonymous, you risk the chance of being passed over all together for a job for which you are qualified.
This simple exercise should make the job hunt a more productive endeavor. Good luck!
Blogging Forward,
What to Wear to a Job Interview for Men
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This may seem like a fairly basic topic but first impressions are extremely important and many people are unsure about the proper dress attire to wear to an interview. There are a lot of different type of work environments and different corporate cultures that range from casual or informal to very formal business attire. For both men and women try to keep tattoos and piercings limited and covered up, obviously if you are applying to be a designer as a tattoo artist this may differ; but for an office setting you should not show up with your nose ring, ear plugs, and tattoo sleeves showing. I am of the mindset that one should always be overdressed rather then under-dressed for interviews, this shows that you are taking the opportunity seriously. Even if the place you are applying to allows you to wear jeans, a t-shirt, and sandals everyday you should still be in some sort of business attire which also is a sign of respect and professionalism.
For men, if you are going to start interviewing at companies, you should at least own one full wool suit and make sure it fits you right. There are plenty of places where you can purchase a suit on the cheap that will still look quite nice: check out Joseph A. Banks or Men’s Warehouse for example. The important thing here is to make sure the suit does not fit too tight or too loose because then you will just look sloppy. When buying a suit they should take your measurements, and if a little light tailoring is needed it shouldn’t break-the-bank. If you will be purchasing just one suit a good color to go with is a very dark gray (almost black) suit. This is very versatile and can look completely different depending on what shirt and tie you wear with it.
In regards to picking out a shirt and tie it is good to stick with either a solid white or pale blue button down shirt. Colors like red, orange, navy blue, hunter green, etc. for shirts can be too bold, hard to match a tie with, and often look awkward. Be sure that your tie matches your shirt appropriately and that it is also a professional looking tie. While you may find your novelty rubber-ducky tie hysterical and great looking, it is not something to wear to an interview. If you don’t already own a pair, buy black dress shoes or “wingtips” and a black belt to match. Investing in a good pair of dress shoes is always a good idea because they can last you a long time and you can wear them with almost anything. You also do not want your shoes to look scuffed up or dirty; same goes for the belt. Don’t forget to be wearing a pair of black dress socks either, this is not a trip to the gym and the white tube sock will not fly here. You can purchase black dress socks at any Marshall’s or Target for about $15 for a three-pair.
In regards to facial hair be aware of what others in the industry have but make sure you keep it trimmed and tidy. You can usually find pictures of the men working for the company on LinkedIn, Facebook, or the company website to get an idea if it is acceptable. Some more conservative industries and office environments frown on having any facial hair at all so you might have to lose your awesome soul-patch for this one. One last tip in regards to jewelery, wearing a modest watch, or if you a married, a wedding ring is fine. But this is not the occasion to be wearing a chain necklace or large ostentatious pieces of jewelery; less is more.
Now tuck in shirt, tie your tie, put on your jacket, and go ace that interview!
Blogging forward,
Careerjuice
50 Common Interview Questions
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Sweaty palms, shortness of breath, dizziness. Are you having a heart attack? No. You’re in the middle of a job interview.
Job interviews are extremely stressful situations and can cause a lot of people to panic. The worst part of an interview is if you get asked a question that completely stumps you or that you were unprepared for. Well the best way to prepare yourself for these situations is to know what types of questions you will get asked and how to answer them.Lucky for all of us, a software engineer named Bhuvana Sundaramoorthy has listed out an excerpt from Wayne D. Ford’s published a book called “The Accelerated Job Search,” and listed 50 of the most common job interview questions and how to answer them.
Hopefully after reading this you wont have to panic the next time a hiring manager asks you what your weaknesses are.
The Best Salary Research Site
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Whether you are about to ask for a raise or if you are looking for a new job you should always be aware of the appropriate salary range for your compensation. Luckily there are several websites that give you the resources to research what you deserve to be paid, but I think the most detailed and accurate one to use is PayScale.com.
PayScale is a free service that gives the user can either access as a guest or create an account. The service asks a variety of questions to get the most detail on your job history and current job market for the position or raise you are applying for. Such questions range from where you graduated college and what your degree is, how many years experience in your field, where you live, the title of the position you are applying for, how many people you will be managing (if any), who you will report to in the position, and more. Answering these questions gives PayScale its edge because it takes all these factors into account to produce a much more reliable prediction of what salary you can expect. Many other services simply base their estimates on the title of the position rather than the numerous other factors at play.
Try using Payscale and let us know how accurate you think it is in the comments section!
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Mobile Job Apps: LinkedIn
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Last week we discussed a bunch of free web-apps that can help your job search improve in various aspects. This week I want to highlight different mobile apps that can help you with a job search as well. When you are commuting to work or school, taking a break for a coffee, or having lunch etc. most people always have their smart phone or some sort of mobile device on them. The expression goes, “The best camera is the one that you have with you,” well now the best job search tool is the one that you have with you.
We blogged about the benefits of having a LinkedIn profile a while back, and hope by now you have signed up. Be sure to download the LinkedIn mobile app to enjoy all the functionality of the professional network on-the-go. The UI is cleverly put together with an office motif by giving you a “badge” icon as your profile, a stack of paper as your updates, a stack of mail for your inbox, and more. Through the app you can adjust your status updates, browse the profiles of others in your network, browse open job positions, and plenty of other options. Download the app and let us know what you think!
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