Posted by: Complaints

Author: Paul Megan

As part of your executive job search your work history and educational credentials can be verified. However, it’s your unwritten level of maturity that can make all the difference to an employer. . . and to the ultimate success of your executive job search.

Savvy employers are sizing you up from the moment they lay eyes on you. They instinctively know that what they DON’T know about you will be more persuasive in the final analysis.

So they will be carefully checking you out. They may not ask direct questions about your maturity, but you can be sure they will be observing how you handle yourself to see if you qualify.

Here are 5 questions our experience tells us you should be prepared to demonstrate as part of your executive job search strategy:

1. What kind of judgment have you shown in your business affairs?

2. How have you revealed your concern for the well-being of other people?

3. Are you living within your means and handling personal financial decisions with maturity?

4. Have you pursued your career in an adult manner and with consideration for your employers?

5. Are you goal-oriented with a history of completing anything you’ve undertaken?

Typically, executives make the mistake of focusing on their work history. Traditionally they feel that they will be judged on the basis of what they used to do for someone else. Nothing could be further from the truth.

A savvy hiring decision-maker is interested in finding the answer to TWO questions only . . . what can you do for my bottom line? . . and what can you do to make my job easier?

If you fail to answer those two questions effectively, you’re out!

Behind those two critical questions are the unspoken concerns about your maturity. No one will drill you on these issues. So it’s up to you to weave them into your presentation so that they are resolved in the mind of the person who could be your next boss.

Article submitted by: Complaints

By: Shaun Z. Stevens

The first thirty seconds of the interview will ultimately determine if you get the job or not. Not only are first impressions crucial they are everything. If you have created a bad first impression you are sunk dead in the water. It would have been much better for your career and employment prospects if you had never shown up for the interview, called in sick so to say and stayed in bed at home for the day.

You have been screened into an interview because you have appeared qualified on paper. The employer uses the interview to learn whether or not you have the personal qualifications needed to fit into the organization. As well the interview process is used to confirm and further conform you work habits and work performance skills in action.

The first thirty seconds count most. People form basic opinions as well as basic assumptions about you within the first 30 seconds of meeting you. These opinions and assumptions may be conscious choices by the interviewer. In many cases this process in an unconscious one. The interviewer may never realize that they have determined basis assumptions of you - that determine you career path. It may never be acknowledged that these prejudices so to speak are even recognized as being held never mind acknowledged in conversation. The role of assumptions in our daily lives is integral.

If we did not make assumptions about people and places we encounter we would be spending most of our daily lives starting from scratch on everything in order to determine information, tactics and strategies.

The first thirty seconds do count. Interviewers will often say that they usually form strong opinions about applicant in the time it takes for the job seeker to walk across the room and say Hello”.

How can you make those first impressions and those vital 30 seconds work for you as opposed for against you in your quest for that job or gainful employment or gainful advancement.

It comes down to 2 concepts. Preparation, presentation and attitude.

Prepare to be be prepared. Arrive on time with the essentials. Never arrive late or if an emergency arises phone ahead. Show that you are a person of honor, integrity and respectful toward others.

If the interview requires some preparation or tools plan ahead to either do the task or bring the equipment. Many a job interview is sunk even before the event when a potential job seeker does not bring a pen to fill out an application. Strike one. It is reasoned by many gatekeepers of the first step in the organizational hiring process that if a person cannot even prepare to bring a pen to fill out the application form then they are a person who cannot plan ahead for tasks and are a poor choice for employment at that place of work.

Second in the list of concepts is presentation. Dress well and appropriately. Be neat. Details count down to clean fingernails and clean and polished shoes. How to dress? Generally look at the industry and its employees. Do not overdress to impress the interviewer. If you are applying at an organization where people dress in a jacket and tie it is wise to dress as such or one step up. To come in an expensive tailored Armani suit may not be a wise idea.

Attitude after the previous two concepts are attended to can be the number one factor. Attitude is said to be the primary factor that influences an employer to hire. First of all concentrate on being likeable. Interviewers want to hire pleasant people whom others will enjoy working with on a daily basis.

To project that you are highly likeable it is best to be friendly, courteous and enthusiastic. Speak positively. Use positive body language. Smile.

It is best to project and air of pride and confidence. Act as though you thoroughly want and deserve the job - not as though you are desperate for the job.

Demonstrate enthusiasm. An applicant’s level of enthusiasm often influences the employer as much as any other interviewing. The applicant who demonstrates little enthusiasm for a job or even life will never be selected for employment positions.

It is best to demonstrate knowledge of and interest in the employer. Saying that I really want this job” is not convincing and mature enough. Explain in the interview why you want the position and how that position fits into your career plans and ultimately benefits the employment organization. It may even be that the employer’s position or firm offer unique opportunities or training that are highly relevant to your career and personal growth.

Article suggested by: Complaints

Author: Mario Churchill

Thanks to the Internet, job seekers have easier access for a sample cover letter which they can use when they are composing one for a possible employment. They believe that if they can change a few wordings here and there, they will be able to have a cover letter of their own. Not really.

Not only is this lazy, it is also not proper. Think of cover letter as the first impression the company has on you as a possible employee. Therefore, your cover letter must indicate your own experiences, your own skills and your own achievement. It also helps that you mention more about the company than yourself. This gives the employer the impression that you have done your research and are clearly interested in working for the company.

A cover letter is a tool to attract attention and sell yourself to the hiring managers. Remember that employers are drowning in paperwork. They are most probably buried underneath thousands or cover letters, resumes and emails from those who are also interested in the position you are applying for. Why should your resume be the one that is cast aside?

Basically, cover letters separate the candidates. Just by reading the cover letter, employers already have an idea whether the applicant is right or wrong for their company. Therefore, when composing your cover letter, you should do your homework. Remember to stand out in any way possible.

Those who want to stand out do so by composing cover letters that already reflect a side of them. This gives the employer an idea of what kind of person they are. By merely copying a sample letter online, the applicant loses the possibility of making himself known. The cover letter must be something that lets the applicant be out there for the employer to see. Therefore, the cover letter must be original and communicating. Show that you are motivated and creative. The more interest you have in the company, the higher the chances you have of being hired.

Another key in writing an effective cover letter is by putting yourself in the shoes of the employer. What exactly do you want to read in a cover letter? Imagine spending the day reading thousands of cover letters - most of which are the same. You need something that will grab your attention. You need something creative, earnest and genuine. Usually, Hiring Managers focus on how well the cover letter communicates. It must direct and specific. The more straightforward, the better.

It also helps to have a passion paragraph.” Now, this is the part of the cover letter where the employer explains what the company will benefit once they decide to hire him. Most importantly, it convinces the employer why you should get that coveted interview schedule.

The contents of this particular paragraph vary from one applicant to the other. It also depends on the position they are applying for. This reason alone clearly shows that one cannot merely depend on a sample cover letter that is available online.