Should You Send Your Resumes When Not Qualified?

No. I thought about leaving just those two letters for this one blog!

Especially now, with unemployment over 10%, resumes are flying out through the Internet airwaves like there is no tomorrow. Recruiters, human resource managers and anyone involved in any hiring process are all inundated with countless incoming resumes.

I receive over 100 a day myself for JTL Services, Inc. By the time I go through 50 of them, my attention level his well below par. There are two main frustrations with the resumes that I receive and that I thought I would share in hopes to open some eyes and minds of those who are throwing their resumes to the wind hoping it catches a nice current into a job. 1) The format and 2) The content.

The Format
By now, if you do not know how to compile a professional resume and furthermore do not know how to find out how to do so using the Internet, just about all bets are off. How can I, as a hiring manager consider someone who has not spent any quality time organizing a professional resume?

Click here for a recent post about resumes I recommend reading if you haven't.

Though it pains me to direct you to a job board like careerbuilder.com, I do so for those who really do not yet know where to go to see some quality sample resumes. Click here for some resume writing guidance.
The Content
Content is equally frustrating. There are many quirks about content that I have blogged about in the past. Of particular annoyance are those who are applying for a job that they possess very little and sometimes no skill-set at all. For example, a payroll supervisor position really doesn't require a Realtor, but yet, I have at least a dozen Realtor resumes as of late that are applying for accounting positions. Sure, some Realtors have accounting degrees and some experience, but I am not referring to those. I realize a Realtor has to be responsible for their own small business accounting of their income and expenses, but that is hardly the experience necessary to perform an accounting position at a corporation.

Please, applicants, review the job description. If you do not possess the skills that the job requires, move on. I don't want you to get complacent, sending resumes and assuming that just because you sent out enough resumes, you will find a job. Not in this market.

Use quality online job boards and keep searching until you find the job that fits your experience, education and skill set.

Conversely, you may be over qualified. Click here for a recent blog post from Jeff LeFevre, owner of a national recruiting agency and a blogger for Free Job Advice.

As always, keep your chin up. We are getting close to putting the darker days behind us.

Hiring Manager Input Wanted/Needed

I am looking for about 30-60 seconds of your time to provide a quick comment.

If you are a hiring manager or a human resource employee involved with hiring, the unemployed need your help. In all actuality your help to them may also in turn help you out. I know you are all busy. We all are busy, but we really are at a time where people really could use a minute or two of your words of wisdom.

While I have posted an abundance of items all geared to assist in the steering of job seekers, evidence provided directly from you may further advance that steering process. Your input on what they need to help separate themselves from the pack can accomplish two objectives:

1. It may help job seekers prepare a more effective approach at landing a job interview.
2. It may help weed out potential applicants that simply are not meant to for the job.
   

So I ask you again for a minute or two of your time just to post a quick comment. We have literally thousands of people that come across our blog looking for advice. Your input will help.

If you have a further moment, I would also love for you to share your opinions (good or bad) on using a recruiter, from both the perspective of the hiring process and the job seeking process.

How do you do this?
Below this article is a link titled: "Post a Comment". Simply click that and follow the online instructions.

I thank you and more importantly, the readers (those seeking jobs) thank you!!

Attend the Job Fairs or Not?

Like I always preach... every little bit helps, right?

While I wouldn't suggest that attending job fairs are useless, I will request that you not to place so much weight into them that you disregard all of the other things you should be doing to help yourself get that next job.

Job fairs can be useful but you have to ask yourselves, what is my expected takeaway from attending? In other words, what do you hope to walk away with from a job fair?

Most would agree that the answer is... a follow up interview. Some would even go so far as to hope to land a job at the event. I've talked to a number of job seekers as of late and a great number of them were preparing to attend an upcoming job fair. Their voices seemed to perk up when mentioning this to me, as if this was going to be the day they were going to get their next job. Wow! If it were really that easy. A reserved sigh is my reply, for I do not want to take away amount of confidence and positive thoughts from someone seeking a new job. Besides, I don't think that attending job fairs are entirely bad either - to a point.

I want to cover two parts in this blog entry. The first part will cater to those that believe in job fairs. I want to make sure that you are actually prepared if you are going to attend one with the expectations of landing a follow up interview (the takeaway). Going unprepared is going to be a total waste of your time.

I will then follow up with reasons why I weigh in heavy when asking not to place too much weight into them. I want to shed some of the misleading information out there about what to expect from a job fair. All of this with the disclaimer that I do realize that you can actually attend a job fair and end up with a job. My point is that you can also do lots of other important things that just may lead to a higher probability of landing a job.

OK... so you are getting ready to attend the upcoming job fair with high hopes of succeeding your objective. What should you do beforehand? Prepare. Just like anything else... prepare! You will hopefully be micro-interviewing with potential hiring managers and will be doing so while competing with just about everyone else attending. Your time will be limited. The listener is more than likely already tired and has listened to a number of other potential candidates and you will need to do your best to quickly differentiate yourself from others.

Here are some tips:

You would be wise to review several of my previous posts regarding many of these points and looking online for other available tips.

• Before attending, review the list of companies and prioritize which ones you want to meet with first.
  
• Get there early.
• Smile and portray a positive attitude at all times.
  
• Be tidy - dressed professionally, hair groomed, etc.
  
• Know as much information about the company you are micro-interviewing with/for.
• Have your traditional questions & answers prepared like your strengths, weaknesses and short and long-term goals ready.
• Take notes.
  
• Speak clearly and to the point. Stay away from fluff-talking.
• Show and exude professional confidence.
  
• Have your updated resume ready.
• Ask for a business card and follow up. If handed a business card with an email address, it is absolutely OK to follow up via email.

Now for the reasons I do not want you to place too much weight or expect too much from attending job fairs. Typically any openings are not "new" openings - contrary to what many believe. The job openings at these job fairs more than likely are on many of the large online job boards. They have been posted company-wide and are visible on many of the well-established social networks. All the more reason why you have to be a tip-top candidate. Much of the competition there will know this and will be prepared and ready. You have direct competition well before and well after you speak to a hiring manager/company hiring representative.

Also, job fairs can be an all day event. This is quality time spent that you can accomplish several other initiatives. Use what is right at your fingertips and I mention so much of these - for example, LinkedIn.com. If you are wise enough to be a member of LinkedIn.com have you explored the groups and participated in groups and the like? These are great inroads to hiring managers. Use them. You can do so at any time of the day, and in your pajamas.

And then there is the killer - complacency. There is the possibility that you micro-interviewed very well (in your own mind), and the interviewer sent the right signals (these could be false signals), and because you want it so badly, you believe you have a great shot at getting it (the job). Don't ever do this. It is not official until your first day of work.

So, either way, I wouldn't exactly write off attending a job fair or two, but don't leave it on your priority list as the best inroad to your next job. There are so many other new ways to connect with a job and I don't want you to disregard those.

Don't forget to visit JTL Services, Inc.'s website for more tips and recruiter information. And of course, don't forget, if you haven't already, to get your free, no strings attached account setup at MyJobCast.com (the free coupon code can be found on the home page of JTL Service's website).

As always - best of luck! Stay positive. Good things come to those that are patient and persistent.

Quality Job Candidates Needed

As I have been writing, there are some good signs with regard to hiring, at least with our clients. JTL Services, Inc. has nearly 1000 clients we have been working with for over a decade and for the fourth consecutive month, we have beaten our projections.

Albeit the news is not the greatest, there are at least some good signs overall that we have been fortunate enough to hear when the unemployment numbers come out. We are going in the right direction and the consensus is that we are climbing out of the recession slowly with job streams starting to slowly open.

The question is, are you ready? Have you been following the advice of the professionals? Is your resume up to date? Are your references in order? This blog has many great tips that I encourage you to peruse through and learn from.

What we all need to understand is that hiring companies have the advantage now and will seek the cream of the crop. JTL understands this and is seeking what we call "Top Candidates". If you are a top quality job candidate, I encourage you to visit this link, and to fill out the online form so that we have you ready to market to our clients as jobs continue to become available.

Once again, I can't stress enough the benefits it can be to have a free account at MyJobCast.com. Use the JTL Services, Inc. free coupon code (no strings attached at all). The code is "jobhelp" at checkout. Use this free code and pay nothing. This is not a trial period and we are not selling you anything. Go to the site to see why you should have this free account.

As always, good luck!

What to Expect in Your New Job Hunt

I've talked to a number of job seekers over the past few months and thought it might be a good idea to share some of the general consensus among these job seekers and their mindset - both positive and negative.

Let me lay some initial groundwork as to the generality of these individuals first. The typical individual I am referring to was employed with a decent jobs in corporate America roughly a year ago, had great benefits, drives or drove a nice car, lives or lived in a nice home and was living the American dream by and large. These individuals had the proverbial rug abruptly pulled out from under them over the last year and have seemingly slipped into what I will call career-coma.

These individuals have somehow fallen into the belief that their career lives are over and ruined by someone else's wrong doing. (Read that last sentence again please). This is wrong. These individuals need to switch out of reverse, into neutral and then start out in first gear again.

Believe me, I too went down the "woe is me" road in January of this year. Truth be told, I had some great conversation with one of the founders of JTL Services, Inc. who really understands these job cycles and internal (income) ups and downs and he helped me gain some perspective on what was going on and taught me how to not live in fear. He made it sound simple. I made it sound difficult. He was right. I was wrong and I woke up.

When these individuals do wake up and get back into high gear, and many of them/us will, it will be crucial for them/us to remember what they/we went through. You have to be in control of your own destiny and abreast of the warning signals around you. There is no real job security and you should always be looking to make sure your skill set is up-to-date and marketable when and if the time abruptly comes... like we all know it does from time to time.

OK... I think the groundwork is laid enough at this point. What I really wanted to share was something different. Something that I felt it critical for you to know. When recruiters at JTL Services, Inc. talk to their candidates they are not telling them to cash in their chips and ride out the storm. They are telling them to wake up and get themselves back in the game and that there are jobs out there. Bottom line, JTL Services, Inc. is placing jobs and not just one here and there. There have been some great months over the last few in terms of placement.

The reality is that there are jobs out there, and that is what I want you to know. They may not pay what you have grown used to and they may require you to learn something new, but they are there. My suggestion is to find and take one. Just the fact that you are gainfully employed can provide you with the extra confidence you need internally as well as help portray you as someone that finds a way to make it work to a potential new employer. Employment today can certainly help open more doors for tomorrow than sitting around collecting unemployment or remaining negative about job opportunity and the like. This is non-disputable fact.

My recommendation is to take it for what it is and not over analyze things. Set your expectations accordingly. Do expect to find a job, but do not expect to necessarily find what you had two years ago. The time for that may not be here just yet. If there is a job that makes some sense for you but may be $10-20K (or more) less salary for you, take it anyway. The reasons should be obvious. Now... for those who want to reply and say... "Hey, I would take anything, if anything were there..." are creating excuses. Not to be too cliche, but when there is a will there is a way. The proof to this is everywhere.

Once again, I can't stress enough the benefits it can be to have a free account at MyJobCast.com. Use the JTL Services, Inc. free coupon code (no strings attached at all). The code is "jobhelp" at checkout. Use this free code and pay nothing. This is not a trial period and we are not selling you anything. Go to the site to see why you should have this free account.

As always, good luck!

The Light Is Peeking Through...

Though certainly not over, there are finally some signs that this awful recession is turning a corner. The signs are pretty light, but nonetheless, very welcome. What does this mean for jobs and the unemployed? Per my last post, do not lie down. Per this post, do not get complacent. It doesn't really mean a heck of a lot to be blunt.

If you are unemployed, I actually prefer you not pay attention to the job data. It is almost irrelevant. Focus. Focus. Focus. Those are the three things I want you to concentrate on doing.

In the very near future, some corporations may begin opening up a little, and you want to be ready when that happens. You lie down or get complacent and you are almost sure to be unemployed for a while. This is all about Darwinism at this point.

My last post points out some of the things I think you should focus on. What I want to focus on with this post is one specific item. Recruiters.

You want to know how the job market really is? Find a recruiter in your local area and an experienced one that works within the industry you are skilled in and ask them. I believe they will have a better pulse then any news broadcast or data published on the Internet.

Recruiters are just as hungry as the unemployed. For many, their numbers are way down. Many folded up shop and have disappeared. Those that remain are the ones you want to connect with and establish a relationship. These are the experienced recruiters who have well established relationships with key organizations. These are the recruiters that survived what is billed to be the worst recession since the great depression.

Do not misunderstand what a job recruiter really is, as many unfortunately make the mistake of doing. Recruiters in fact are great bridges to currently available jobs, and future jobs - which can prove to be just as important.

So what kind of recruiter do you need? In my humble opinion, the answer to this question is an important one. Read one of my previous posts for more details.

If you have never used a recruiter in the past, I ask, what do you have to lose? I highly recommend giving it a try.

As a reminder, if you haven't already created a FREE, no strings attached account at http://www.myjobcast.com, then I also highly recommend doing that as well. Get your FREE coupon code at http://www.jtlservices.com - found right on the home page.

Hang in There

Times are tough. Times are very tough. For those of us who are fortunate to be earning an income, we sometimes forget or don't fully realize how bad it is out there for so many Americans.

For those who are dealing with the severity of losing a job and not yet having one, I am begging you to not lay down. These are times to use to reorganize, and reformulate your career agenda. For many, this task can seem daunting and overwhelming. Create a short list of "To Do" items and take this seemingly overwhelming task one step at a time.

Though there are many things you can do to plan out the next phase of your career, here are a few recommendations:

Get your resume cleaned up, organized and up to date. (Read Update Your Resume and Resume Advice) There is so much free data out there on the Internet on how to create a solid resume. Use this information and create the best resume you can.

Prepare professional job references.
Having them upfront can be very beneficial. (Read Importance of References)

Be positive as a whole.
If you cant do that, then at least be positive in any interviews that you are fortunate enough to land. (Read Be Enthusiastic and Practice Your Pitch)

If you aren't using a recruiter, consider doing so.
(Read Recruiters Make Great Bridges). When using a recruiter, you should use one that actually understands the industry you are seeking to gain employment. These experienced recruiters may already have very helpful information for you as well as have contacts within the industry that can lead to a job placement. (Read How Many Recruiters Do You Need?)

Use online tools that are proven and that will provide you with what you need vs. many services that are useless.
There are so many online services out there that claim to help you with your job seeking and placement when in fact they are in the game of collecting information from you - their member. JTL Services, Inc. created a great online application that can help you with your job search and placement. The tool is free to use and has no motive except to help you. (Read Job Connection Tools That Can Really Work For You)

Though we are not out of the woods yet, we may have passed the height of this recession. Much information out there suggests the job market may take another full year or more to recover, but we may have turned a corner. Either way, hang in there. This is no time to stay negative. If you lost your job, that is awful. Be frustrated, be upset, but be responsible. Do not let it drag you down and then keep you down. Those that plan and stay positive and relentless towards success, will be successful!

Game Development Jobs

JTL Services, Inc. began a focus on Game Development Jobs roughly two years ago and has made tremendous strides in connecting top quality game development candidates to open game development job opportunities around the US.

Bryant Madore has spearheaded the focus and has placed several jobs in North Carolina, and Florida and continues to successfully work on other areas around the country as well.

Bryant was savvy and focused enough of a job recruiter to realize he needed to continue to spread his recruiting wings and enter into new and growing markets. Game development was a very wise choice, and for many good reasons. Just go into any department store, i.e., Target, Walmart, Best Buy and the like and you will see that the game market is very much alive and very much in high growth mode. With the Wii, Play Station, XBox and many others, there is only rapid growth in the foreseeable future.

However, game development doesn't only suggest creating games for these larger entities (Wii, Play Station, XBox, etc.). There also is another segment called Serious Games that has also opened up game development opportunities in industries like defense, education, scientific exploration, health care, emergency management, city planning, engineering, religion, and politics. .

So what is game development and what jobs coincide with game development?
Game development jobs include: art, programming, design, writing, production, audio, quality assurance, and business opportunities. The most well known of these are artist or animator, programmer or engineer (sometimes also called coder), and game designer.

With all the bad news about the economy and the job market, and believe me, there is plenty of genuine bad news, we must also realize that there are still hot spots that can still provide lucrative job opportunities.

If you are a Game Development Studio looking for only the best talent in the industry or if you are in the Game Development space seeking employment, please feel free to contact Bryant Madore at JTL Services, Inc. He can help!

If you haven't already seen the following job tool, we also recommend checking that out as well. JTL can help provide this tool to you for absolutely no cost or strings attached. How can you get it free? Go to http://www.jtlservices.com and right on the home page is a free coupon code for a free account.

As always, best of luck in your job search and placement.

Does Size Really Matter?

This seems to be a question asked quite a bit as of late when job seekers are trying to connect with a recruiter to help get them placed with a job.

There are good and and not so good "recruiters" at any size firm I am sure. From what I am told and gather, the larger firms tend to be able to float not so good recruiters in their mix of many recruiters at their large firms. What I mean is that in a firm with many recruiters a not so good one can easily be found in many cases. It is the classic scenario of having a sales team of (for example), 50 sales people with ten of them being over achievers and 10 of them being under achievers, and the remaining somewhere in between. In many cases at the very large firms, the not so good ones may go unnoticed for a while. Now don't get me wrong, I am not saying that is the general rule, but you can logically see how that could and does happen.

With the smaller agencies, if the recruiter is not good, or even great, then they generally wont be with the firm very long. If you can find a recruiting agency with recruiters that have been with the firm for many years, that could/should be a great signal to an all around great agency - with a good client list and great team of recruiters.

All this said, I still believe that job placement comes down to the recruiters and their relationships with clients. If there is no solid relationship between recruiters and hiring managers, then you can see how the likelihood of the recruiter placing a candidate would be low. Conversely, you can also agree that a recruiter with a solid relationship with a hiring manager may have better luck placing a candidate.

Sure there are quality candidates (on paper) all over the place. But a great recruiter places great candidates and clients recognize that and trust is gained leading to a more productive relationship. There is nothing worse than a recruiter placing what appears to be a great candidate at a company and three months later that candidate is gone. That is a bad situation. Hiring managers can loose faith in a recruiter's ability to find top candidates and lose the relationship when this happens.

So.... size doesn't matter at all. There are many more important variables to consider when selecting a recruiter to help get you placed.

We're Not Out of the Woods - By a Long Shot!

Though there has been some positive news over the past few weeks mixed in with our daily doses of doom and gloom, I wouldn't get complacent.

Last month's new jobless claims report was somehow considered positive. Roughly a half million newly unemployed and that was somehow "good news". That's just a strong signal of precisely how bad things have realistically become. We cheer over a half million new unemployed.

Why was this positive news? Well, I wouldn't really call it positive news. In fact it is horrible news. However, the jobless claims were a little lower than previous months. To some, that indicates we may have bottomed which in a recession would be a good thing.

Another dose of "good news" was the housing market. Sales were up. Come on!!! Of course sales were up. The interest rate is extremely low; there are very good first time home buyer incentives; and the inventory is way up leading to some otherwise very good discount deals. Regular people and investors of swallowing up some very good and lucrative foreclosure and short sell real estate deals. Again, some call this good news. I call it a crock to be quite frank!

Again, I wouldn't get complacent with all this "positive" painted news. We may have a month or two this Summer of slightly good news, however, I think we are in for another rough upcoming quarter.

In fact, a good friend of mine who has worked at an insurance giant for the past 17 years informed me this past weekend that there is going to be a round of layoffs and he heard his name was on the list. Ask someone like him if we are on our way out of this recession...!

I cannot stress enough how important it is to be prepared for anything. I asked this friend of, last Friday when he told me the news, "So when did you get the news?" His answer, "last Monday". My next question, "Do you have an updated resume?" His reply, "not yet".

Look, this is no time to be what I would blatantly call LAZY. Throughout my blog postings, I stress being prepared. I am not asking you to take a month out of your busy time and do this preparation. Take some small amounts of time here and there and just get it done. It is a must.

And.... then go to http://www.myjobcast.com and create a free account. How can you get it free? Go to http://www.jtlservices.com and right on the home page is a free coupon code for a free account.

Trust me, we are not out of the woods just yet. Not by a long shot.

Are They Getting and Reviewing Your Resume?

The scenario... Your looking for a new job. You have spend the past few days electronically sending your resume to countless jobs, sending your resume everywhere you could. You have no idea if anyone has received what you have sent. You are wondering not only if they have gotten your resume, but whether or not they have any interest at all in you. A few painful weeks later you are again online looking for a job. You cannot recall who you have sent your resume to and who has responded. You are very frustrated, and you are not alone.

Keeping track of where you are sending your resume for job seekers who have been unemployed for months is a task. Knowing who has received or reviewed the resume you have sent can be near impossible. Knowing right away if someone is interested or not is also near impossible...... or should I say, used to be impossible.

MyJobCast.com has beta launched and you can get a completely free membership by going to http://www.jtlservices.com where you will find a free coupon code right on the home page.

MyJobCast.com offers some very cool interactive job tools. With regard to my scenario above, the tools include functionality that will let you know who has reviewed your sent resume/profile. For those who actually have received your online resume/profile, there is a very easy interactive tool for them to check whether they are interested in you or not. This is powerful. After all, knowing is more than half of the battle.

I strongly encourage job seekers to check out the new site and what it has to offer. It may not be free too long so jump in now to take advantage. There are no strings attached and they do not ask for your credit card information or anything like that. As a job seeker, what do you have to lose? You only stand to gain. This can also help separate and differentiate you from the others.

MyJobCast.com Not Meant to Bypass ATS Systems

With the upcoming official launch of myJobCast.com, there seems to be one consistent question from it's beta users. How can we use the application to apply for a corporate job that uses an Applicant Tracking System (ATS)? My response generally is that the member missed the point of the product. The point of myJobCast.com is several-fold, but certainly it is not a means to bypass corporate ATS systems in attempting to connect with an open corporate job. When applying for corporate jobs at a company that does use an ATS system, the reality is you should use that channel to initially apply. However, that stated, do not just assume that because you applied via an ATS system that someone has seen your resume. You should read my post on my reasoning - click here.

Many times your resume goes unnoticed by a human in the ATS process. I recommend using the system to apply and then trying to find someone internally to inquire as to whether or not it was received, reviewed and considered. Perhaps someone in your personal or online social network has a connection at the company that can provide you with someone internally to connect with and ask. Otherwise, it is not all that difficult to find someone in HR via the corporate website, to connect with and inquire.

Once you do have the internal individual's contact information (email address), that is where myJobCast.com can help. Send a general email to the individual stating that you uploaded your resume and was curious if it was received. Also let them know that you will be sending them a full online profile for their additional consideration. Then, use myJobCast.com to send your resume/profile to this individual. It can help differentiate you from the many. Even better, the system can tell you whether or not that profile send was actually opened by the individual. Once the individual opens the profile link sent by the myJobCast.com system, they can review your profile - resume, references, general career information, etc. The point here is that it is not just a simple resume that the individual gets to review. You can provide references upfront which can be very important. Want more information why? Read this post.

They can also, on the same sent profile web page, respond as to their interest level - even if their interest level is zero. The point is, when they do this, it will inform the myJobCast.com system and you as the member will know because you will receive an email indicating action was taken on a profile send. To take it a step further, the myJobCast.com system will even (if elected) send you a text message that action was taken, prompting you to login to the system and review the action(s) taken.

If there is interest, the myJobCast.com system can be a great tool in the sense that it can track all your profile sends. Unfortunately we are in an economy where job seekers are applying to dozens of jobs a week. Loosing track of where you send your resume is easy. This tool keeps track of where you sent your profile, who opened it, who is interested and any notes you wish to include on each particular profile send.

If you are fortunate enough to land an interview, myJobCast.com is a great tool to assist you through your process. Aside from the valuable interview tips, there is a calendar system that will allow you to schedule interviews and then remind you about an upcoming interview. Once you complete your interview, another reminder will be sent to you, guiding you to send a thank you letter. Don't think a thank you letter is important? Read this post.

And 12 hours after your scheduled interview, you will get yet another reminder for you to use the myJobCast.com system to send out an interview feedback request to the individual(s) that provided the interview. This is crucial. Interview feedback is critical. More information on the importance can be read at the this post.

Now as far as the main topic of using myJobCast.com to go around an ATS system - you shouldn't. However, I want to stress a valuable point. When you consider every available job opening, what percentage of them do you think use an ATS system? I would think the answer is minimal. Especially when you consider how many small to medium companies there are out there. Small businesses dominate the job market. They by and large do not use an ATS system, nor do they use the traditional Monster, CareerBuilder sites. Typically their jobs are filled by word of mouth, local print ads, their own websites and various other avenues. For these jobs, myJobCast.com can be a perfect tool.

We encourage you to give myJobCast.com a consideration. Should you use the application, we also encourage your feedback.

Importance of the Thank You Letter!

Should you write a thank you letter/email? Yes, of course! What in the world would make anyone think they shouldn't is beyond me?

What should be included in your thank you letter? Why, I thought you'd never ask. Actually I thought you'd never ask because to most, it seems like such an easy task to accomplish. Indeed it is an easy task to complete, but evidently some job seekers miss the entire meaning of a thank you letter. Allow me to help those job seekers navigate through some simple points to keep in mind before typing out those words of thanks.

Before I do so, first let me share some very interesting facts. According to some studies out there, nearly 90% of executives out there agree that sending a thank you letter can help secure a job. Many jobs come down to a few top candidates and simple variables like a thank you letter can separate a candidate from another.

Another study reveals that nearly 50% of job seekers do NOT send out a thank you letter after an interview. Wow! I must admit, I was a bit shocked at that since it again, seems such an easy thing to do.

OK, back to the points you job seekers need to consider when writing a thank you letter.

1. When? Send it within 24 hours after the interview. The sooner the better.
2. Who? If you met with more than one person, you should send a thank you note to all individuals separately. Of course, make sure you have their names spelled correctly. Seems obvious, but as you should well know, peoples names are misspelled often. And it has often led the letter directly on a a one-way course to the trash basket!
3. The obvious - express your appreciation for the interview.
4. Show your interest - express briefly how interested you are in the opportunity with the organization.
5. Restate what you can bring to the organization with your skill-set, your motivation and your enthusiasm for the specific job opportunity.
6. Maybe make a reference to something specific from the actual interview. For example, if the interviewer mentioned a few times that the job would require working within a team structure and sometimes can lead to long hours, you might express your openness and enthusiasm towards this requirement. Chances are if it were brought up a few times, it is is a serious requirement.
7. Keep the entire thank you letter roughly 3 paragraphs and a half page long.
   

As many job seekers realize, especially in today's uncertain times, an "edge" could help get the job. The thing is, there may not be one thing that gives you this "edge". This "edge" could be attained by several things, this being just one of them!

Now wouldn't it be great to know if the individuals received the thank you letter/email? MyJobCast.com, a new application launching soon can help. One of the greatest functions within this application will be the calendar function and communication functions. For example, with an free account, you can schedule an interview in your online calendar. 24 hours before the interview, you can receive an email notification as well as an alert on your cell phone reminding you of the interview. Five hours after the interview schedule time, another email notification can go out as well as an alert on your cell phone reminding you to send a thank you letter.

You can also use the online application to send the thank you email and the system will tell you if the email was actually opened. And... it will email you indicating this and send you another alert to your cell phone.

This new application will serve as a great job seeker's tool. You should strongly consider setting up a free account. In fact you can pre-register today.

Real Interview Feedback is Crucial

Have you ever left an interview feeling like... "wow, that was great!"? Well, you're not alone. Interviewers have an uncanny ability of making you feel like you will be strongly considered for a position following an interview. I mean, hey if you are way out of whack in terms of being a fit for the job, the interviewer may be upfront and provide the typical - "we'll let you know". On the other hand if you were remotely qualified, in many cases, you will be left to believe you will make it to a follow up interview.

The reason for this could be a few-fold. For the sake of this post, I will focus on one. Semantics. Do you think it is easy to tell someone who shows they will do anything to get the job during an interview that there is no way in hell they will get the job? Of course not.

Interview feedback is a funny thing. From an interviewer's standpoint, what should they say, what shouldn't they say. It's just never easy to let someone down. Hence the traditional thank you card you used to receive when a position was given to someone else. Why the card? It's easy. Everyone gets the same answer and there is no human communication where curve ball Q&A could arise.

Today there is good old email. You know... the communication medium we can't seem to live without. We all seem to have more confidence in email. After all there is no back and forth like in a human conversation. We can respond and react with much consideration and thought via email. The trouble is from a candidate's point, what do you ask in an email following an interview? You don't want to appear overzealous, over confident and so on. From a hiring manager's point of view, they are too busy and don't want to commit to anything in writing.

The biggest issue with all of the unemployed, not so much the passive job seekers. Unemployed individuals are burdened with juggling countless resume sends and interviews. There is nothing worse than feeling like you have a great shot at a job, when in reality you may never make it to a second interview. Like many things in life, knowledge is power. This unemployed individual needs feedback to guide his job seeking process. I mean, if you feel like you could be a shoe in for a particular job, you might not pay close attention to newly posted position. You might get complacent. That could be bad. Again, you need feedback!

Is there anything that could help this debacle? Yes.

JTL Services, Inc. a successful executive placement agency for more than 10 years is creating a tool with one of the functions specifically to cater to this void. The tool is http://www.myjobcast.com. The launch is coming soon. You can pre-register for free today in fact. Rather than go into great detail about all of the functionality of this new job tool, I want to focus on the topic. The tool will include an interview feedback system that will cater to hiring managers.

The objective is to get the candidate basic interview feedback in a very timely manner. So rather than ask or expect a hiring manger to write a lengthy response to various interview feedback questions, the tool will ask, on behalf of the applicant, five very simple, multiple choice questions. The answers to these very simple questions, though simple, can actually give a more reliable indicator of the possibility of placement. The objective, again, is to provide enough of an indicator where the applicant can have something rather than nothing (but their own barometer of how well an interview went).

I strongly encourage everyone to go to http://www.myjobcast.com and pre-register as there are many tools that will greatly assist with organizing job seekers and their placement process. The current pre-registration place provides some bullet points as to what this newly launched online job tool will provide all job seekers in the new Jobs 2.0 world we now live in.

Job Connection Tools for You!

When it comes to your job search these days, it is imperative to consider the plethora of available tools that can assist you with the job search and placement process. Is every tool going to work for you? No! But does that mean you don’t try? After all, you need a job right?

Among this plethora of tools are job boards, career coaches, career mentors, hr professionals, job recruiters, career networking sites, social networks, online digital applications, and the list goes on. Each of these tools has something in common – they do not all work for everyone and they are not all autonomous in the sense that you don’t need just one of these tools in most cases.

Here are some examples of tools that work for some and not others/everyone.

While most cannot afford to pay a career coach the thousands of dollars for their services, some can. For those that can afford it, a successful and proven career coach can be a wise choice in helping you find your next career choice. In selecting a career coach however, please do your proper due-diligence and make sure that they have the years of professional experience behind them to educate and provide you with the knowledge that they have gained from their vast years of experience. Do not be content with a career coach who simply wants to get you excited and motivated, as that alone will not necessarily catapult your career.

Job Boards can also help but there again the probability of being found and connecting with a job is only about 2-5% on average (based on available research). Typically, people who are finding success on these boards have a unique or highly skilled component that leaps out from their resume like CPA, MBA, etc. Another issue that I have with these sites is that your information is out there for many to grab, and for me that is a security concern (expressed in some of my previous postings, which I strongly recommend reading).

Job recruiters can also help. There are several blog posts that I also recommend reading if you haven’t already, on how recruiters can be of great help for job seekers. The main component with job recruiters is that they have relationships with company hiring managers and have much more knowledge of what that company is looking for than a job board. Recruiters can be a great in-road to many corporations. Are all job recruiters good? Of course not! Though we are a recruiting agency, we realize that, and actually discuss that several times throughout our blog posts as well.

The main point is that like many things in life, some things are effective for some and not for others. But a job is a necessity for most, and trying different things is also a necessity, especially with today’s job market conditions and the changing landscape of job placement.

A new online application by JTL Services, Inc., a premiere staffing company, may actually and finally be a tool good for most if not all job seekers. The application is in the final stages of development, preparing to beta-launch in a few short weeks. The site is www.myjobcast.com and you can pre-register there right now for free.

This new online application is in essence a communication tool that will help job seekers track their resume sending, track who is opening their resume, and secure it at the same time. The site will also assist with interview scheduling, reference generation and storage, interview feedback and other vital components to the hiring process. Finally, the site will send updates via SMS service directly to member’s mobile phones. There are other features, but this is the phase 1 premise.

“We simply wanted to create a tool that can be used by most if not all, including providers (recruiters, career coaches, mentors and the like). I got tired of not being able to help so many people. My niche is Accounting and Finance, and Information Technology. We receive thousands of resumes, with many coming from other verticals and we could do nothing with or for those individuals. Now we can! Some people will love this new tool and some will surly hate it – like everything else in life I guess”, says Jeff LeFevre, managing partner of JTL Services, Inc.

I strongly recommend, going to myjobcast.com and pre-registering as it is a free service to those that do so. The tool is a creation by individuals close to job search and placement for over a decade. The tool will be robust and comprehensive, and might help differentiate you and help you get your next job!

The Importance of References

A critical, and yet overlooked component of the job fulfillment process is having solid references available as soon as possible, and even beforehand. References are crucial because they can validate a candidate’s work experiences and most hiring managers require this as part of their hiring practice.

Most recruiters can tell you that they despise the process of getting job candidate references – and for good reason. It typically involves making several phone calls to track down past supervisors who will vouch for someone’s career abilities. This can be like pulling teeth. Reaching them is half the battle. The other half of the battle is getting them to communicate what you are seeking without their maundering.

Recruiters who finally do reach a reference will then ask various important questions and then hand write notes from the verbal conversation on a sheet of scribble paper and then type out those notes and prepare them to fax or email the candidate reference back to their client. What a process. There has to be a better way!

Sure enough… there is! In fact a new site is preparing to launch in the upcoming months. MyJobCast.com will offer several automated components that will help facilitate the job closing process in a much more effective manner. One of these automated features will be an online digital reference generator. This feature will essentially allow job candidates to use the system to send their past supervisor(s) an email seeking a reference. This individual will receive the email message and the unique URL link which will connect them to an online reference form. Once filled out, the individual hits send and the reference system will automatically create a PDF file and send it back to the job seeker’s online profile for future use. The premise is to have the references available beforehand!

Today you have to be more proactive about references. Many recruiters will testify that the ideal practice would be to send references upfront to hiring managers who have scheduled an interview with their job candidates. I highly recommend this practice at the individual level as well. The reason is that it can help set the expectation and overall outcome of the interview. If you have great references to showcase and have them ready, that is saying something and you should not shy away from promoting your references. After all they are promoting you!

Gate Keeper 101

Today when it comes to finding a job, the "gate keeper" is no longer a "secretary" screening your mail or phone calls to connect to a potential hiring manager regarding a job opening. In our modern era of technology, the gate keeper has by and large become a computer application that captures your provided/sent information, i.e., your resume, and scans it's contents for specific predetermined keywords and phrases carefully selected by hiring managers and human resource personnel.

Not familiar with these (Applicant Tracking Systems) ATS applications? I recently wrote a blog in regarding to ATS systems that you may wish to read for more details. If you have read this blog post, then you have a basic understanding of the the nuances with these applications. The tragedy is that at times, you inevitably have to go through these "gate keeper" systems to submit your resume via the corporate resume submission black hole. This being the case, I have some recommendations you may want to consider beforehand.

As job seekers catch on and rewrite their resumes tailored to a specific job and use specific trigger keywords and phrases, the applications are forced to become more artificially intuitive in what they are meant to perform for hiring managers - resume screening. Hence the problem is - as job seekers better understand how to trick these systems, the systems in turn, are reprogrammed to be more effective.

But perhaps you’re not a real life human popinjay, or online digital word-smith. What can or should you do to try and get through this initial application's screening?

Well, the goal always was and continues to remains the same - you have to be aggressive, prepared and proactive - in no particular order. Overall, the best thing to do is to try and find a contact at the company you are seeking employment with via am email or telephone number and politely explaining that you heard there was a job opening that you felt to be a perfect candidate. If you can forward you resume off to that person then perhaps they can then help guide or nudge you through the internal corporate process. Ultimately it is still much easier to get an interview if someone from within the organization can refer you to the appropriate gate keeper.

I realize that some HR personnel actually review every resume that comes into a company, but I also realize that some companies are just too large and to humanly sift through thousands of resumes can be too cumbersome and ineffective for internal hiring personnel. The trouble with this, is that you may be perfect for a job and never get the time of day to showcase yourself to the proper hiring manager.

While there continues to be an evolving process to enhance the congested superhighways of resume sending, I am still of the school that being aggressive and creative can help get you further. I urge those job seekers that disperse their resumes in these black holes, and assume they have done all they can do to find that next job, to rethink their strategy.

Do not rely on what appears to be the only gate keeper - the online ATS. In many cases, there are other options that can help you make the connection that can lead you into your next perfect job!

Demoralized Job Seekers Need Your Input

I know providing your own input on a blog can seem a wasteful task. However, many job seekers are simply losing faith in society as a whole. Being without a job, not being able to pay the accumulating bills, and listening to doom and gloom are providing the ingredients for demoralization in job seekers that can use your help!

What does your experience tell you about our current economic catastrophe? Do you ever recall spending so much time basking in an overload of doom and gloom, delivered on an hourly basis from our mediasphere? I know for myself every night is a tiring channel surfing event. Eagerly searching the abundance of cable channels to find that one station going out on a limb and offering a glimmer of hope.

I listen to the news now and at times they equate the current distress to that of the later '80's. Quite honestly, I was fresh out of high school and don't recall these levels of negative hourly news breaks. I also don't recall much chatter about it from my dad, mom or other "working adults". Being in my early 20's, I am pretty sure the economy was not the first priority on my wondering mind. My social calendar certainly didn't co-mingle with the "real world" so much in those days.

In the 1990's, I can recall working several jobs. Although there may have in fact been some economic troubling years in the 1990's, I surely didn't feel the effect. Quite honestly, I didn't notice any recession tremors at all. This is the first recessionary period that I feel the effects, see the effects and think of the effects throughout the course of my day.

The media has just about everything to do with this lingering pesimism. The television with its 24-hour new stations all repeatedly talking about the crisis our global world economy is facing. The Internet is another playground for such torturous negativity. Millions and millions of voices versus hundreds of cable channels being updated every second of everyday.

There are so many people today worrying about either losing their job or searching for one. It's hard enough to go through that and even harder to hear such barrages of negativity from everywhere they turn. Where should they look for help? Will the stimulus plan(s) really help? Can a government really help people with their economic problems? Are the elected officials really experienced in solving these problems? Did the majority of these elected officials own a business that had to generate money which provided payroll for their employees? Isn’t there some validity to the saying “give a man a fish feed him for a day, teach a man to fish you’ll feed him for a life time”.

A blog usually has someone’s opinions about a subject but I’m more interested in what others have to share about their experiences with an economy in turmoil. I'm not looking for any elaborate answers (though you may certainly bloviate as much as you'd like), as any shared experiences will go a long way towards my objectives here.

If you have experienced recessionary periods like this, what can your experiences share? If you recently got let go of your previous job and were fortunate enough to find a new job, please share your feedback.

If you are a recruiter what are you doing to help out your candidates in this market?

Share your points. I believe your experiences can help people to figure out what they need to do. If you have a website offering services that can help - here is a place to inform of that service.

If we can all pitch in and share positive result experiences, it would do a world of good!

Beware of Using ATS When Applying for Jobs Online

Today practically every company has some sort of ATS (Applicant Tracking System). With unemployment heading north and job candidates sending sometimes 70 to 80 resumes out per week there are a couple of things you need to know.

Sending your resume using many of the largest online job boards like Monster.com and CareerBuilder.com might not help you as much as you think with finding a new job!

Today more than ever, companies are trying to grab as many resumes into their database as possible. A problem with this practice is the tsunami of resumes that hiring managers are receiving via their ATS. They are inundated with people who are under qualified or over qualified for position and the ones that are right for the position are many times being overlooked. The research out there shows that there is a very low average (somewhere between 2-5%) of people who use these job boards that actually get placed in a position they find there.

Job Candidates today need an edge when it comes to finding a new Job. One area I strongly support is finding a successful recruiter with a strong client list to work with who can use his connections to help you out. I've provided countless supporting reasons for this throughout my blog. But even using a recruiter might not help many.

The fact is there is also a low percentage of candidates to placements with recruiting as well. Most candidates that meet a recruiter will not end up finding a job through that recruiter. Now... those job candidates that do not get placed by that recruiter will still indeed benefit from spending some time with a during a screening or just through a conversation with that recruiter.

Recruiters can provide very specific and effective recommendations job searching techniques that ultimately can be used by that candidate to help find and get that next job. The reality is that recruiters are seeking out the best of the best for their clients. For good reason too, since companies by and large pay, on average, 25% of a job candidate's first year annual salary to a recruiter for a placement. The last thing a recruiter wants to do is send a candidate to a client that is not of the highest quality in every aspect. After all, that is one of the main purposes that a company uses a recruiter for in the first place.

There is a misconception out there that needs to be cleared up however. Companies DO NOT pay candidates less in salary because they are coming in through a recruiter. Job salaries are set in place by a company regardless if a candidate is placed by internal hiring managers directly or by recruiters.

Now back to ATS... The fact of the matter is that when a job seeker submits their resume via a bridge like Monster.com into a corporation they are actually sending their resume to a database with thousands of other possible candidates. Then, a piece or software (not a human) scans through every word of your resume and determines if you can be a fit. This is bad. I mean, it can be good for a hiring manager in that it reduces the amount of resumes that float to the top considerably, but it is bad because there are very qualified and very talented applicants that may never get noticed.

You simply cannot rely on a piece of software to get you a job. It's like anything else in life... if you want it, you've got to be creative and aggressive in getting it. If it is a job at, let's say GE, then find out who runs the department you are seeking to get into and find a few contact names and email addresses and reach for them. Find them on other social networks like LinkedIn.

You've got to separate yourselves from the pack. You've got to be aggressive. You've got to be creative and finally you've got to stop ignoring reality and be less complacent. A job isn't going to find you!

New JobCast (PodCast) Coming Soon!

Twittering to Find a Job?

Looking for a new job? Try Twitter yet? I would ask if anyone is Twittering to find their next job, but it appears the answer is an overwhelming "yes". I just recently built out a Twitter page for JTL Services, Inc. and have already quickly gotten a few followers - pretty cool!

For those job seekers who are skeptical at adding another online social-type network to their eBranding arsenal, let me provide you some quick and easy to understand feedback.

From a job searching perspective, I would put Twitter in the top 5 online tools to help you find a job. Using Twitter can provide two advantages to you, the job seeker. The first is that hiring managers are beginning to really take advantage of Twitter to find talent. Therefore, they are listing open job opportunities in hopes to attract the perfect candidate. So from a search and find standpoint, Twitter can help.

The second advantage is maybe even more important. Find companies that you want to work for and "follow" them on Twitter. You can "follow" a company's Twitter page if you want to be kept in the loop of activity regarding that company, including new job opportunities. What is even better, is that you can "follow" this company right on your mobile phone. This provides you with real-time up-to-date job opening information from a specific company or recruiter.

In conclusion, I absolutely recommend getting on the bandwagon with this one!

Resume Pirating on the Rise!

Let me ask you a question. Is it a good thing for someone to call you and say “hey I got you an interview at XYZ Company?” Well that would depend on whether or not you know that person and gave them the OK to send your resume. I have heard more complaints of job candidates resumes being downloaded from popular sites such as Monster and Careerbuilders and being sent to companies unbeknownst to them more than ever. It has always been an issue but not to this degree. Desperate times seem to bring out the “Machiavellian” in some, while others focus on what is the right thing to do.

The other day Facebook changed their “Bill of Rights” that made their users furious. Facebook wanted and I quote “an irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, transferable, fully paid, worldwide license" to "use, copy, publish, stream, store, retain, publicly perform or display, transmit, scan, reformat, modify, edit, frame, translate, excerpt, adapt, create derivative works and distribute" of your information forever. Well you can all read up on the story but needless to say they went back to their old “Bill of Rights”. People were furious, spoke up, wrote about it and they have decided to go back to their original policy mentioning that they would revisit this in the future.

People, you need to protect your information. That is why you need to know where your information is being sent. When working with a recruiter they absolutely should tell you (every time) before sending your resume to a potential client and not a blanket statement during your meeting with them. Be very afraid of the phone call from a recruiter that you haven’t given any authority to that you have an interview. This practice is used by some recruiting firms who been around forever!

They tell you that they have been the President of CAPS and that they’ve been recruiting forever! Don’t fall victim to a few of these unethical recruiting agencies out there that prey on you the “job candidate” and take advantage of your situation. If this does happen to you, get all the information that you can by the recruiter. Call the client who you are meeting with and contact them to explain the situation upfront and don’t fear that they won’t hire you. Everyone sourcing resumes to clients know that unsolicited resumes are not warranted.

Read through some of our earlier blogs and you will find that we are upfront with job candidates by explaining the rules of conduct.

Job Search Using Podcast

I have been listening and now watching podcasts via my iPod for quite some time now. Typically listening to information regarding business and marketing. However, as of late I have been paying particular attention to job and career podcasts.

I was pleasantly surprised to find a good mix of available podcasts regarding jobs and careers. Certainly, I recommend adding this to your arsenal of tools for helping to find your next job. With blogs, there is only so much higher level insight I can provide before I begin to bore you and lose your focus. But an audio or video podcast can keep you more intrigued and I can at the same time better educate you in Job Searching using Web 2.0 techniques.

My intention is to also enter this arena and offer a weekly podcast regarding jobs and careers at some point in the second quarter of 2009. I will of course, announce and market this here as well as other online avenues but in the meantime wanted to make sure that this element of job searching was made mention of in my blog.

If you own an iPod, why not go and download a number of these free podcasts and help educate you while you are driving or walking or running, etc.? Like I have been repeating, we absolutely are in an economic cycle where Darwinism will prevail. I would be willing to bet that you can quickly find some great podcasts with helpful insight that you might not have read or heard about before.

Bailouts & Stimulus, & Spendulus, Oh My!

Whatever you want to call it, many of us are financially struggling or growing more and more concerned about our personal financial instabilities. I wont go into the politics of this bill that seems to have passed today, but I anxiously await, like so many others, for something to show us we have finally bottomed out.

Job data this month certainly did not indicate anywhere near a bottom and showed almost 600,000 more unemployed. Wow! That is staggering. In the past year, over 3 million jobs have been lost with about half of that occurring in the last 3 months.

If you are a job seeker, be patient. Realizing that patience only lasts so long, try to understand that you are not alone. There is lots of public information about how you can help yourself land that next job, including some information in my own blog posts. The trouble is, while I think you should try new things and stay the course in finding your next job, it could take time. More time than many of us can afford.

We will get through this. We will be a better country when this passes. That I feel strongly about. However, those who do nothing and don't realize that your career needs to constantly be in check will be the last to come out of this mess.

During a down time of unemployment, while seeking a job, spend some valuable time addressing your resume; get some quality professional references and letters of recommendations lined up and ready; join some quality professional networks like LinkedIn.com; connect with a successful recruiter in your area and in your industry. These are just some of the things that I have written about in my previous blog posts.

One of the items that I have left out seems to be the most obvious. Ask your own personal network if they know of job openings. Sites like Facebook.com are great for creating the ability to do things like this. For example, I am new to Facebook.com but have about 200 friends already. These are typically people from high school, college friends, family, general friends, neighbors and co-workers of current and past. When you add these up, you can see it can be easy to connect with lots of people.

Using the "Wall" in Facebook.com you can simply post a comment that you are looking for a new job and would appreciate your Facebook.com friends to keep their eyes and ears open. You might be surprised that someone in your own personal network may know of something or may find out something in the short term.

It's all about the Internet, regardless of how you connect to your next job in my opinion. Notice I didn't use the word "only" in that last sentence. Sure there are other variables besides the Internet, but I can assure you that the Internet is a huge factor with job connection for many.

Job Seekers Have to Practice Their Pitch

There are a many things that job seekers can do to find a new job. The most important part of that job seeking process is the actual job interview. Recently, I wrote about showing enthusiasm on the interview and how that can help you stand out amongst other job applicants. I am also one who believes in the old cliché, “practice makes perfect”. Common sense as well as my years of recruiting experience have repeatedly shown that if a job seeker is going to land a new job , they better prepare for the interview process.

Think of it this way. A sales executive may only really have 30 seconds to make a pitch to a customer. It is in the first 30 seconds, in many cases, that a this customer will make a decision. Likewise for hiring managers. They too will often “size up” a job candidate in the first 30 seconds of the job interview.

The sales person who has repeatedly practiced their pitch, and focuses on the positive delivery of their message (pitch) will in most cases do better. A good sales person realizes that they have to play a numbers game and deal with a tremendous amount of rejection. Sound like job searching? What gets me is that this “pitch” is the most important part of this process (and likewise the job seeking process) and yet it is being practiced DURING the game.

Now I know most of my readers aren’t in sales and can’t picture themselves selling anything let alone making a phone call to sell themselves, but you need to strongly consider this somewhat simple advice. Especially with the condition of our economy right now.

Job seekers need to understand how to sell themselves. Job seekers - did you grit your teeth on that one or roll your eyes? I know how you feel, but the fact is I still continue to hear strong feedback from our clients (hiring managers) about how job applicants can stand out . The job applicant’s balanced confidence, enthusiasm and fluidness of their pitch delivery during an interview seems to continue to be a strong motivating and decision making factor for hiring managers.

According to the latest statistics, only about 2-5% of all resumes posted via the Internet even get a click let alone an interview. How many people today spend too much time on career sites posting their resume and searching for jobs? How many job candidates spend far too little time practicing and rehearsing their interview? Read through my previous blog postings to better understand why this may not be the best time being spent for job seekers.

For over 18 years now I have trained sales people to be sales people. I have seen more people terrified of role playing than you can imagine. Grown adults terrified to role play. The trouble is that they don’t believe they need to practice and prepare, or they are too embarrassed to practice OUT LOUD. Again, it is this practicing, and doing so out loud in fact, that can be a deciding factor for you in your job interview!

Like they say, you only get one chance to make a good first impression. I have said for years that a resume may get you in the door but what matters more will be the connection or lack of connection a job applicant makes with the individual conducting the interview. I cannot stress that reality enough.

Plain and simple, hiring managers, in many cases, hire people they like and people who appear to be a good fit within an organization. Though qualifications are essential, they typically don’t come first on the list during the interview process. I’m not stating that qualifications aren’t important. Remember these qualifications and/or a recruiter with a relationship with a hiring manger can be what gets you in the door. Once you get in the door though, you have to sell yourself.

To sell yourself the best you can, you need to practice and prepare. When it comes to your big game (interview) understand one thing, your resume will NOT be the problem if you do not get the job. Again, it helped get you in the door! If you were fortunate enough to get the interview and not the job, then there is a good probability it was due to your pitch. Practice!