Latest Hot Career Article

If you want to find work soon, pay careful attention to your words.    Your behavior can swiftly sway the interview the wrong way.

1) I don’t want to move.

What you should say:

Although I would prefer to stay in (Dallas), I’d like to hear more about the job.

2) I don’t want to drive that far.

What you should say:

I’d really like to work for your company, but the distance might be a problem.  Let’s see what develops.

If the job is fantastic, you might be able to work from home when they see your work ethics and productivity.  Do not ask to work remote until you know whether the opportunity excites you, as you might be able negotiate flex time during less traffic or work remote several days a week.  Why mention this at all until you discern whether this is your dream job?

3) I can’t start for another six months.

What you should say:

I’m on a project which I truly enjoy, but it won’t end for six months.  Please tell me more about your opening as it would be difficult to leave in the middle of this commitment.

Sometimes loyalty interferes with good judgment.  Is your company stable?  Companies base their layoffs on business situations, not personalities.  If the opportunity tantalizes you, take the time to explore it.  You’ll learn about the company and its culture in the process.  Companies ordinarily won’t wait more than six weeks for any candidate, unless they are looking for a new grad in the next semester.

4)  I’m not sure I have the background for this job.

What you should say:

Let’s talk more about the job requirements and duties before we move forward.

Don’t squelch the opportunity before you hear the details.  Time is money.  Take adequate time to explore the requirements.  Perhaps another job opening in the company would fit you better.  Or maybe they see your potential better than you do!

5)  I never share my last/current salary on the first contact.

Many, many recruiters will move quickly to the next candidate, if you won’t share your salary.   Not sharing your salary is irresponsible.  Outplacement consultants teach you to provide a salary range but recruiters need the specifics.  I could write an entire article about this topic.

6)  I can’t talk right now; my child needs to go to soccer practice.

What you should say:

I need to contact you at a better time.  May I call you in about an hour or tomorrow at 10:00 a.m.?

Be specific.  Better yet, take the call and be late to soccer.  Do you want a new job or not?  Perhaps the screaming child could wait in the next room with the door closed briefly.  Reaching a recruiter is often very challenging.

7) I can only work 20 hours per week.

What you should say:

Let’s talk about the job duties and responsibilities.  My experience would be an excellent match.  I was really looking for part time but maybe this is an opportunity which could work for us.

8)  I don’t have my references ready.

What you should say:

I haven’t reached one of my critical references yet, as he’s out of town.  I’ll send you the two confirmed references.

Complete your reference list at the very beginning of your search.  Notify your references each time they will be called.  Be sure your references know what the job is so they can concentrate on relevant information about you.

9) I can only work from home.

What you should say:

I’d like to hear more about the job.  Since we live in an electronic age, I’m hoping to find work, where I can affect the bottom line, while working from my home office after we become better acquainted.

Not many companies hire virtual employees before on site training.  Be flexible.

10)  I can’t talk right now; I’m watching the Cowboys play.

What you should say:

I’m very sorry I can’t talk at the moment.  I’d like to return your call at 4:00 p.m.

Maybe you need to see if the Cowboys have any job openings.  They seem to need a bit of new talent.  You are not a serious job seeker unless it’s the World Series in the last of the 9^th inning, in which case the recruiter should not have called.

Other show stoppers:

• Talking too much, rambling, giving too much detail.
• Talking too much about dress code, time off, stock option, sports, etc.
• Not being specific enough or not providing enough detail.
• Hygiene and attire: you’d think everyone would look good and smell clean.
• Answering your cell phone during an interview; turn it OFF!  Or leave it in the car.
• Trying to negotiate higher salary too soon, if at all; the economy is not robust yet.
• Responding without enough research.
• Criticizing former managers and co-workers.
• Overly friendly; too much personal information.
• Late to the interview.

Summary

Be prepared.  Do your research about the company and its people.  Show enthusiasm.  Be sure to know what the next step is in the process.  Ask good questions (but not too many).  It’s a little like playing ball or getting married.  You just never know what curve ball may be thrown at you but adequate preparation and awareness of each of these items will help you score a touchdown or find a new business family.

Ruth Glover owns Career Consultations, an engineering recruiting agency in the Dallas area.  She is the author of MORE than a Paycheck: Inspiration and Tools for Career Change. She can be reached at careers@hotcareers.com.

Anxiety is part of job search.  The monotony of trying to manage the sheer idiocy of applying online through difficult applicant tracking systems, the lack of response when you had a good interview, not being able to reach the recruiter…all are significant reasons for stress in your life while you look for a new job.

Problem: Loss of Control

“I can’t do this any more.  I’ve been out of work so long.  My MBA and EE degrees don’t help.  I attend many networking events and send out resumes.  What is wrong with me?  I am so de-moralized.”

Problem: Shame/Embarrassment

I don’t want to go to the upcoming family Thanksgiving dinner.  My brother-in-law is a lawyer who never looked for a job and he doesn’t understand.  We can’t afford the travel and expense for food contribution they expect.  I would rather stay home, but the family really wants to go.

I attend a faith based unemployment group where others seem to be getting jobs and return home completely deflated.

Emotions run rampant during your job search.  You cannot eradicate the emotions entirely, but pessimism can ruin your efforts.  Here are simple survival techniques to assist you.

Exercise

• Take a walk
• Go to the gym
• Quick no cost exercises at home, like crunches
• Coach or participate in a team sport
• Yoga
• Chair exercises

Relaxation techniques

• Write affirmations on “post-it”  notes, putting them in visible locations (on your computer, on the dashboard, on the bathroom mirror) to remind you to breath deeply
• Listen to music periodically
• Turn off the music and brainstorm creative solutions; write them down
• Visualization: go to the beach in your head for a few minutes or picture  your new office
• Get enough sleep
• Don’t exercise before bedtime
• Pray

Volunteer work

• Offer to help someone with a project, demonstrating your talent
• Volunteer to do a pro-bono project for a favorite charity
• Become a foster home for the Humane Society
• Serve food at a local homeless shelter

Rewards

• Take a walk after making five superior job contacts
• Go to a cheap movie
• Talk with an old friend
• Clean a closet or drawer
• Write an email to someone you haven’t seen for awhile
• Post a motivational or humorous slogan

Time management

• Choose a “career partner” who can be objective (not a family member) whom you will call daily at a specific time to report your  job activity
• Maintain a record of how you spend your time
• Make a daily/weekly/monthly list of things to accomplish.

These suggestions are simplistic but they work.  You can Google “depression job search” and you’ll find six million articles to assist you with more sophisticated ideas to help.  If you are immobilized for more than three weeks, you may need to see your doctor as you don’t want to spiral downward any longer.  You may have a health issue.

The bottom line:

If what you are doing is not working, try new methods.  People like helping others.  Don’t hesitate to ask for suggestions and help.  This is not a good time to feel shame or lack of confidence, but to take control of the roller coaster in new ways.  Maybe your brother-in-law will have a good contact for you on Thanksgiving!

Please subscribe to be notified of upcoming posts. If you have tips for maintaining balance on the  job search roller coaster, please comment.

Why does China pertain to you?  Are you open to global opportunities?  Are you connecting with people you know outside your immediate area of expertise?  Are you staying in touch with your boss who moved to Malaysia?  What about that friend of yours who moved to Budapest?

According to my former colleague, Francesco Masetti-Placci, China is a wonderful place to live and work.  Reading articles about the economic opportunities in China or India  sounded so far away for my colleagues or me.  But the more I think about it, the more likely we all need to consider global careers.

Francesco is a fabulous example of the globally oriented engineer.  When I met Francesco, he was Director of Research and Development for Alcatel in Richardson.  He’d already migrated from Italy to the US, later returning to Italy for a two year assignment with Alcatel in strategy and marketing.  From there he moved to China for the company to develop business in the Asia-Pacific market.  When that assignment ended, he took a few months to decide what the next step in his career would be.  And he’s still in China!

Francesco and I re-connected through Linkedin, after many years.  He’s truly a “renaissance man” in today’s marketplace.  Willingly and with excitement, he’s creating his own career adventure.

Francesco is now a part of a small, growing consulting company with a niche and connections doing business with companies who need, not only advice, but also people willing to take calculated risks with developing their careers in new ways.

Certainly there are families who can’t move but the ones who are stuck in a rut, unwilling to move into our global, electronic world may be left behind in the dust.  If you are an entrepreneur, you want the best profits for whatever your endeavor may be.  That may not be in China.  With the right advice, your innovative idea may become reality in Argentina or Allen, Texas.

You may want and need to take some classes to prepare for the idea of being employed abroad or owning your own company.  Southern Methodist University, as well as University of Texas-Dallas in Dallas offer excellent programs.  My bet is you can find classes in your area or online to help you fill the gaps in your background before moving forward.

If you have a creative idea for a business, think globally.  You may work from your garage after writing a plan on a napkin, as innovation is critical in this economy.  Experts exist to encourage and help you.  Brainstorm your ideas.  Make some plans.  Research and revise the plans.  Leaving relatives and friends may be difficult, but with our global communications, you can easily stay in touch.  Being open to change prevents missing opportunities!

Are you a calculated risk taker?  Can you willingly adapt new ways to use your skills?  I bet you know some people like Francesco.  And if you don’t, I have some more stories to share in upcoming articles to encourage you to think globally!

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GUEST AUTHOR: Murli Melwani

from the Dallas Morning News

The term “persons in transition” is rich with possibilities of interpretation. It can range from an echo of Buddha’s immortal saying, “Change is the only constant in life” to the heartbreaking situation of people out of work today.

Recently I attended a meeting conducted under the auspices of JOB, named after the Biblical unfortunate, but really an acronym for Job Opportunity Basics.

Invited by Ruth Glover, one of the coordinators of the JOB Group, to introduce ourselves, I heard snippets of human drama: the mother of a challenged child juggling situations and losing jobs; an engineer being told after being interviewed three times by the same company that he was overqualified for the position; a systems designer announcing that he had filed six applications in six days; a man with experience in sales and engineering being told over and over again that the opening was not for a “generalist.” There were 16 such cameos.

The expressions I saw on the faces of the participants, the range of body language, the variety of inflexions in voices, were a testimony to both the frailty as well as the strength of the human spirit. Eyes around the table showed the disappointment from losing an opportunity to an internal candidate. A flicker of anger surfaced as an injustice was narrated; the anger harnessed a moment later. The dull narration of one’s circumstances reflecting the shell-shock of being laid off recently. Some struggled with focus even though they knew goal setting was important. All of us reached out in our own ways to the other 15.

The speaker of the evening, Jan Moorman, spoke about the career changes she had made at considerable financial and emotional cost. “But a trapeze artist cannot swing from one trapeze to the other if he does not let go of the bar.” That attitude had in fact opened her up to opportunities.

Her talk struck a chord. When Ruth Glover asked us to share what we were taking away from the evening, several people said we must “make a leap of faith,” have the courage to follow our dreams, develop a passion, go with the flow and be ready to make sacrifices in its pursuit.

What surfaced was our shared humanity. Dick mentioned three openings he had learned about that others in the room were free to apply for. Jane confided that volunteering had been a shortcut to a job for a friend. John said he was ready to give up his current position for a job that would perhaps pay less but allow him more human interaction. Bob mentioned an opening in a finance company.

Everyone was ready to share the information.

Custer Road United Methodist Church sponsors the JOB Group with volunteers Ruth Glover and her co-coordinators — Roy Hunter, Sara Owen, Locke Alderson and Craig Gussow — to host the JOB meetings on its premises. The format of the group is interesting. The résumé review and interviewing tutorials take place on the first Tuesday of the month. A subgroup, called the Advanced Action Accountability Group, or the AAA Group, consisting of those who have a completed résumé, know how to interview and understand networking, meets every week, on Tuesday nights at 6:30 p.m.

On the fifth Tuesday of the month, the JOB Group invites a speaker. The speaker is a specialist in his field and the talk invariably relates to issues connected with job searches.

There is no charge, nor any conditions, for attending JOB Group meetings. I can’t recognize angels with wings. But I can spot one in human form; when I do, I don’t hesitate to recommend her volunteer work to others.

(THANK YOU, MURLI, FOR SUCH A NICE ARTICLE ABOUT OUR GROUP!)

Murli Melwani is a Plano resident. His blog can be read at www.indoenglishstories.blogspot.com. His e-mail address is murli@unigain.net. Contact Ruth Glover at 972-208-2333 .  You can subscribe to be notified when she posts new articles.

Steve Jobs is the founder and CEO of Apple Computer, NeXT and Pixar.

“I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. I never graduated from college. Truth be told, this is the closest I’ve ever gotten to a college graduation. Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That’s it. No big deal. Just three stories.

The first story is about connecting the dots.

I dropped out of Reed College after the first 6 months, but then stayed around as a drop-in for another 18 months or so before I really quit. So why did I drop out?

It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed college graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption. She felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and his wife. Except that when I popped out they decided at the last minute that they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list, got a call in the middle of the night asking: “We have an unexpected baby boy; do you want him?” They said: “Of course.” My biological mother later found out that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would someday go to college.

And 17 years later I did go to college. But I naively chose a college that was almost as expensive as Stanford, and all of my working-class parents’ savings were being spent on my college tuition. After six months, I couldn’t see the value in it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and no idea how college was going to help me figure it out. And here I was spending all of the money my parents had saved their entire life. So I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out OK. It was pretty scary at the time, but looking back it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The minute I dropped out I could stop taking the required classes that didn’t interest me, and begin dropping in on the ones that looked interesting.

It wasn’t all romantic. I didn’t have a dorm room, so I slept on the floor in friends’ rooms, I returned coke bottles for the 5¢ deposits to buy food with, and I would walk the 7 miles across town every Sunday night to get one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple. I loved it. And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on. Let me give you one example:

Reed College at that time offered perhaps the best calligraphy instruction in the country. Throughout the campus every poster, every label on every drawer, was beautifully hand calligraphed. Because I had dropped out and didn’t have to take the normal classes, I decided to take a calligraphy class to learn how to do this. I learned about serif and san serif typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter combinations, about what makes great typography great. It was beautiful, historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can’t capture, and I found it fascinating.

None of this had even a hope of any practical application in my life. But ten years later, when we were designing the first Macintosh computer, it all came back to me. And we designed it all into the Mac. It was the first computer with beautiful typography. If I had never dropped in on that single course in college, the Mac would have never had multiple typefaces or proportionally spaced fonts. And since Windows just copied the Mac, it’s likely that no personal computer would have them. If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards ten years later.

Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

My second story is about love and loss.

I was lucky that I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parent’s garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10 years Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4000 employees. We had just released our finest creation – the Macintosh – a year earlier, and I had just turned 30. And then I got fired. How can you get fired from a company you started? Well, as Apple grew we hired someone who I thought was very talented to run the company with me, and for the first year or so things went well. But then our visions of the future began to diverge and eventually we had a falling out. When we did, our Board of Directors sided with him. So at 30 I was out. And very publicly out. What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating.

I really didn’t know what to do for a few months. I felt that I had let the previous generation of entrepreneurs down – that I had dropped the baton as it was being passed to me. I met with David Packard and Bob Noyce and tried to apologize for screwing up so badly. I was a very public failure, and I even thought about running away from the valley. But something slowly began to dawn on me that I still loved what I did. The turn of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I had been rejected, but I was still in love. And so I decided to start over.

I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.

During the next five years, I started a company named NeXT, another company named Pixar, and fell in love with an amazing woman who would become my wife. Pixar went on to create the worlds first computer animated feature film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful animation studio in the world. In a remarkable turn of events, Apple bought NeXT, I retuned to Apple, and the technology we developed at NeXT is at the heart of Apple’s current renaissance. And Laurene and I have a wonderful family together.

I’m pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn’t been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith. I’m convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You’ve got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.

My third story is about death.

When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: “If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.” It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.

Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything that all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.

About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn’t even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctor’s code for prepare to die. It means to try to tell your kids everything you thought you’d have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months. It means to make sure everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes.

I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy, where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor. I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I’m fine now.

This was the closest I’ve been to facing death, and I hope it’s the closest I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept:

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalog, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late 1960′s, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and Polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic, and overflowing with neat tools and great notions.

Stewart and his team put out several issues of The Whole Earth Catalog, and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the words: “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.” It was their farewell message as they signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.

Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

I’m on the phone with a potential candidate whom I’ve sent a LinkedIn request to call me.  The email or InMail I sent provides my name and telephone number.  I’m not allowed to put my website within the correspondence in some instances, but if the individual goes to my LinkedIn profile or has my email address, he or she can visit my website where the job is usually posted.  But frequently the candidate says, when he calls, “I’d like for you to send me the ad.”

Recruiters usually have limited time to fill positions.  They work fast and want you to look at the ad on your own.  Is this candidate so unfamiliar with social media, like LinkedIn, that he cannot click on my profile and then click on the spot for my website?  Next the candidate must determine that the “hot careers” tab is where the jobs are listed.  Is this difficult?  Most of my candidates are very, very bright engineers, many with advanced degrees, yet I am asked regularly to send ads, which are posted on my website.

Rarely would I be searching for the perfect candidate without posting an advertisement with the requirements, even if it’s a “confidential” search.  Doing your research before you ever connect endears you quickly to the recruiter.

Basically there are three or maybe four parts to the phone interview with the recruiter, but in order to “ace” the interview, you need to adequately prepare.

Research and Preparation

Let’s say the recruiter calls you out of the blue for a job you applied for several weeks ago.  You cannot recall the details but you want the job and ask, if you can answer the questions immediately.  Bad idea!  You need to find the ad, research the company before you take the call, if possible.  Research the recruiter’s name, too.  You may have mutual acquaintances or have attended the same university or worked in the same companies.  These are talking points which may help.  Ask to schedule a convenient time to assure no barking dog, no screaming children and a good phone connection.  I have had people want to do the phone screen while driving.  You need pen and paper to take notes.  The recruiter certainly doesn’t want to hear wailing sirens or listen to you crash into the car in front of you!

During your conversation, try to assess the personality of the interviewer.  Is he quick with short answers?  Is she very detailed?  That gives you a clue that your answers need to be quick or very detailed as some recruiters like details and others would rather move quickly to the next question.

Background, experience, personal qualities

The recruiter will undoubtedly ask your reason for leaving or interest in the new job.  Be prepared.  Practice the answer and do not be negative about the previous or current situation.  Red flags arise.  You need to be truthful if you were terminated but you can use terminology that keeps you on track rather than creates an opportunity for the recruiter to request unpleasant information.  You could simply say, “There was a re-organization and I no longer fit what was needed.  I’m excited about hearing more your group as it sounds like it would be an excellent opportunity for new challenges,”  or something similar.

If the job requires relocation, try to be open-minded.  The economy is awful.  If the job sounds good and you think you can sell your house, it may be the chance of a life time.  Please don’t waste your time or the recruiter’s.  You don’t want to leave a bad taste in everyone’s mouth by interviewing in Chicago with no intention of moving.

You will probably be asked about your accomplishments, as well as duties.  What did you do that makes you a star?  You will probably be questioned about career progression and why you left some of your other jobs.  Some recruiters are very thorough and others, not so much. You must know how to talk, not only about your technical skills, but your strengths, such as organizational skills, ability to thrive in chaos and other notable attributes.  The initial phone screen is less likely to be technical as most recruiters do not understand the intricacies of all the jobs they recruit.  The technical skills would be ascertained in a second phone interview with someone more technical in the company or maybe not until the face to face interview.

Specific Skills

If you’ve reviewed the job description, this should be a “walk in the park” as you can address every one of the requirements with a specific story about how you’ve used the skills.  Be prepared for unexpected questions.  Some recruiters have been known to ask “trick” questions, so listen carefully.

Be prepared to ask a few good questions about the job, such as, “Is this a new position?”  Or maybe, “How soon do you expect to start interviewing?”  If you are told you will be actually interviewing on site, it is perfectly all right to ask who will be interviewing you.  You might not receive an answer but you may be given titles which can help, by researching LinkedIn for people in that company.  You can ask what you should wear to an interview and how long you will probably be on site.

Closing the Loop

Be sure to summarize the reasons why you feel you are qualified.  If you don’t want the job, gracefully withdraw.  Your attitude needs to demonstrate your interest.  Enthusiasm and sincere interest will help you, both on the phone and in that next step. Telling the interviewer you want the job is important.  Even if you are missing a few critical skills, you may be able to move to the next step with your stories of success and motivated demeanor.

Don’t forget to say “thanks” and if possible, quickly send a thank you note.  Now ACE the phone screen!  Preparation pays the bills.

By subscribing, you will be notified when Ruth Glover posts new articles for hiring managers and job seekers.  She is the author of MORE than a Paycheck: Inspiration and Tools for Career Change.

Perplexed and puzzled by job search, Jake attended the weekly accountability group. With seven months of unemployment under his belt and no viable job offers, he wants answers, leading quickly to a job.

Jake applied for over twenty positions and listened carefully when the facilitators at the various unemployment groups told him he must customize his resume for every opening. He claims he has 20 versions of his resume and his confusion centers upon how he can make his LinkedIn profile appealing to various hiring managers. He knows HR professionals, hiring managers, friends, neighbors and others will see his LinkedIn profile which might not agree with the resumes he’s submitted.

Dirk Spencer, is a fellow recruiter who speaks regularly on the topic of LinkedIn.

His most recent presentation entitled “LinkedIn for Recruiters” was held at the August luncheon of the Dallas Fort Worth Recruiters Network over 100 attendees. He responded to my inquiry.

Dirk

There should be very little difference between the resume and the LinkedIn profile with the core content and context. The smart job seeker is customizing both the resume and LinkedIn profile as he or she develops improved ways of communicating expertise.

Ruth

A resume or profile is never completed. A candidate must keep the profile fresh by periodically introducing nuances about skills. These updates can ensure the profile pops to the top or near the top of a search, whether in LinkedIn or posted on a resume job board like Monster.com, Careerbuilder.com or Dice.com.

Dirk

This idea of “customized” resumes should be about variations of data compared to the risk associated with their competitive insights to their target companies.

Ruth

I agree. The same logic which makes having customized resumes a smart move requires making adjustments to a LinkedIn profile periodically, too.

Dirk, what about Search Engine Optimization (SEO), specifically including words in the profile and resume which will catch the search strings?

Dirk

SEO and search strings are two different concepts used interchangeable by mistake.

RUTH

Please explain this for our readers.

DIRK

A search engine does not use Boolean logic or a Boolean engine to index or catalog Internet web content. Most are now using sophisticated language pattern or inference engines. (Boolean is a particular way recruiters search for candidates online.)

Boolean logic engines are not all the same either. The Boolean engine inside Monster is not the same as the one inside of Dice or LinkedIn for that matter.

Bottom line – the software function of “search” and data “parsing” (mining) (Boolean, fussy logic, artificial intelligence…) are not created equal.

This is why it is important to know your industry’s history so you can traverse the keyword-yellow-brick road from keypunch to Droid apps.

RUTH

So you are saying it is important to know terminology from trends in business practice as described by the use of language or keywords?

DIRK

Yes. Candidates need to understand and use their industry jargon. It is important, not only to know the keywords and jargon, but also the abbreviations, acronyms and synonyms.

RUTH

How do you tie this together between the resume and profile on LinkedIn?

DIRK

The “how” is the secret sauce. The “how” forces people to do their homework.

Here are some examples of increased detail masquerading as “customized” resume content:

- Supported carrier based client

- Supported carrier based vendor

- Supported telephony carrier

- Supported telecom customer

- Supported area telecom company

- Supported carrier based telecom vendor

- Supported carrier telecom company Verizon®

Which statement is “customized” versus “clarified”?

Which statement belongs on the resume?

Which statement belongs on the LinkedIn profile?

If you said “it depends” and “all” then you understand!

“It depends” means you must weigh the risk associated with the research on the target job or target company against the level of detail that clearly defines your skills.

Ruth

Your examples are quite useful.

And the risk means you must add enough information in the resume that coordinates with the “core” data on the LinkedIn profile. If it deviates too radically in scale or scope it ultimately hurts the candidate.

Dirk

The resume and LinkedIn profile must be congruent, not identical, but congruent. If the data on the resume and the LinkedIn profile are not aligned, questions may arise instead of attracting the desired attention.

Consider the resume the Ying to your LinkedIn Yang. They should always complement each other. The same core data on both should be arranged to create your total brand message.

That is the goal!

Ruth

Thank you, Dirk, for sharing your insight. I urge our readers to attend your next presentation which is the Colorado Association Healthcare Executives (CAHE) 2011 Annual Conference.

If you are a recruiter, be sure to visit Dallas Ft. Worth Texas Recruiters Network to register for our next recruiter luncheon September 7, 2011.

Jason Leonard, Director of Recruiting at JC Penney will present Pipelining – Moving from Reactive to Proactive.

Be sure to connect with Dirk or Ruth on LinkedIn.

You may want to subscribe to be notified of new posts.

Ruth Glover is the author of MORE than a Paycheck: Inspiration and Tools for Career Change, a book especially for those who want to change or move their careers in various ways. Be sure to contact her for additional information at www.morethanapaycheck.net or www.ruthglover.com.

Maybe you’ll think this is a movie review but since I’m a recruiter, not a movie critic, you can understand my desire to comment on the film with Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts.  The movie, titled Larry Crowne, tells us nothing about the content, which is the story of the tribulations of an unemployed guy.  Perhaps this review will help you decide whether to see the movie, as well as give you pause for thought.

Plot

Larry Crowne, happily employed at a pseudo-Walmart, thinks he’s going to receive Employee of the Month at the beginning of the story.  Instead, he’s laid off as he lacks a college degree which thrusts him into the new box on the organizational chart called “no longer fit for the job.”  The HR lady is cold and the employee with the SMU degree leers pompously since he’s staying while Larry is left out in the cold.

Larry needs money.  He sells his house and many of his possessions, moves to a small apartment and goes back to college to further his education and position in life.  Along the way a sweet, young, pretty co-ed helps him dress a little less geeky. He returns the favor by helping her start a retail boutique.  He decides to ride a motor scooter and tries to sell his expensive SUV.  He lands a job as a cook through a friend to help support himself.  He falls for his professor in college.

What’s Right?

Anyone who has heard my presentations for job seekers knows I would approve of Larry’s march towards success.  He down sizes quickly, selling almost all his possessions.  Larry improves his appearance and upgrades his skills through classes to help him advance professionally.  By helping his friend he meets others and has some fun.  Although the scene where he provides his records to the bank to declare bankruptcy might have been sad, the blond actress played her role with the right amount of surprise and disdain, demonstrating the irony of our current, erratic economy.  Larry didn’t hesitate to use his prior cooking skills to support himself, let go of his home and try something new, when he couldn’t find retail management.  He listened and grew from the experience.

What’s Wrong?

The romance in the movie added some humor and a little love in what could have been a very bleak story.  Most of us know that Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts are friends and they probably are making a mountain of money by inserting a bit of fluff which in another movie was called Fatal Attraction.  But the truth is, finding a new partner to play with during job search is not a good idea.  Larry needed to stay focused on the future JOB, not a girlfriend.  Unemployed people need friends but developing a new relationship while grieving for the loss of your business family is not a great idea, as too much change at once can lead a person down a very rocky road.

Larry didn’t seem to have any children, step-children, aged parents or siblings.  So many people today have financial AND family obligations that make returning to school very difficult.  Having to sell your kids’ possessions and move to a homeless shelter was not a part of this fluffy film.  The fear, angst, roller coaster of unemployment was superficial, at best.

Should you see it?

If you love Julia Roberts or Tom Hanks (as I do), you may want to see Larry Crowne.  Laugh a little, commiserate if you’re in transition, but don’t expect this to win any Oscars.

What can we learn?

If you are in Human Resources, you might want to see it as a reminder that if you must lay off people, do so with as much grace as you can muster.  If you appear uncaring and cold, it may haunt you when it happens to you. And it’s rarely easy for anyone concerned.

If you are a job seeker, you may take notice of Larry’s very positive outlook and action, despite the reality of the market place and the need to realize you may be obliged to find a different type of job.

If you are a hiring manager, I urge you to consider hiring the unemployed.  If you only hire employed people, our economy cannot improve.  If you’ve never experienced unemployment, you may not understand how difficult it is not to ever hear a response after an interview or know the extreme effort in preparing the perfect resume.  You are missing a tremendous opportunity if you discriminate against people in transition.  It happens to good people every day.  You could be next.  Let’s get more people back to work!

I’m glad I saw the show.  It was not whiny, tear jerker, but carries a sincere message of encouragement.  And it’s a reminder that we need to do more to help those in transition find new opportunities.

Note: I’ll be speaking at Watermark Church on Tuesday at 8:00 a.m. on July 19, which is located at 7540 Lyndon B Johnson Freeway, Dallas, TX 75251.  Title of the interactive presentation is Driving Your Job Search to Work.

Many articles appear today detailing thoughts about the Supreme Court ruling on the Walmart lawsuit.  Was this the right decision from the Supreme Court?  What is John Q. Public saying about the results?  Basically, the court ruled against the plaintiffs.  Does this mean Big Business will be able to discriminate more or less?  No one knows but hopefully, employers will pay more, not less, attention to possible discrimination.  Maybe the Supreme Court ruling will encourage more women to step forward sooner to voice their concerns and be heard before finding a lawyer. Or maybe more people will start filing lawsuits, whether frivolous or factual, for unfair labor practices.  Does this mean employment lawyers will make more by filing and winning individual cases than with class actions?  Does it mean class actions will fall from favor?

In a quick call to Barbara Hale, Employment Law Attorney with Blanscet Sutherland Hooper & Hale, L.L.P., I asked about her thoughts on the Walmart case.  In essence she indicated the lawyers filed under a law which simply didn’t work for the EEOC, as the experience of each woman would have been different.  “The case was too massive and should not have been brought originally,” she said.  The women who filed can each bring suit and tell her story, but after waiting ten years for this suit to come to trial,  energy may have waned.

Only time will tell what will happen.  The article re-posted in full below is from Workforce Management Magazine.

Employment Law Landscape Changes With Wal-Mart Ruling

By Rita Pyrillis
The Supreme Court’s dismissal on June 20 of a huge sexual discrimination class-action lawsuit against Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is a major victory for the retail giant and employers across the country, say employment lawyers, and sets guidelines for the way similar lawsuits can be structured and litigated.

“It’s a big win for employers because it sets new ground rules for the way in which class actions are constructed and defended,” said Gerald Maatman, a Chicago-based lawyer with Seyfarth Shaw, an employment and labor law firm. “The bar has been raised and tightened making it harder for plaintiffs to marshal the evidence needed for a class-action suit. In this case, the plaintiffs failed to establish a pattern or practice of unwritten discrimination.”

In a 5-4 ruling in the case of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. v. Betty Dukes, et al., the high court reversed a lower court decision that would have allowed as many as 1.5 million female workers to sue the nation’s biggest private employer for back pay and punitive damages that could have totaled billions of dollars.

The decision makes it more difficult for employees to file such lawsuits unless they are able to clearly identify a common injury, such as a companywide discriminatory policy, Maatman said.

The plaintiff’s key evidence was Wal-Mart’s policy of allowing local supervisors discretion over pay and promotion decisions, “which in and of itself was not evidence sufficient to raise an inference of discrimination,” Maatman said. The justices also deemed anecdotal evidence in the form of 120 affidavits as insufficient proof.

“The Supreme Court says there’s nothing sinister about subjective decision-making,” Maatman said. “It doesn’t lend itself to discrimination, which is what the plaintiffs asserted.”

Katherine Kimpel, a partner at the Washington, D.C.-based law firm Sanford Wittels and Heisler, which filed a friend of the court brief on behalf of the plaintiffs, said that the ruling marks “a significant departure from previous cases in terms of what the Supreme Court will and will not countenance as actionable claims. It significantly limits the way individuals can stand up to Goliath corporations and effect change in policies and procedures. This decision takes away the possibility that through a lawsuit you can actually bring down Goliath.”

Wal-Mart’s executive vice president of people Gisel Ruiz said in a written statement: “Clearly today’s ruling in the Dukes case has important legal implications, but just as important, it pulls the rug out from under the accusations made against Walmart over the last 10 years. Every female associate and every customer can feel even better about the company as a result of today’s decision.”

Alison Davis, CEO of employee communications consulting firm Davis & Co., said companies’ initial reaction to the ruling may be to breathe easier. But, she said, “It doesn’t mean that they can relax.”

To avoid a lawsuit in the first place, business leaders she has spoken with have been trying to do a better job of communicating their policies, sharing job opportunities and listening to employee concerns.

An active, thorough approach to good employee relations is all the more important in today’s climate of workers who use Facebook and Twitter, Davis said. Complaints voiced by an employee in one location can grow into a groundswell quickly, she said.

“Social media has meant that these things go viral very fast,” she said.

Workforce Management Senior Editor Ed Frauenheim contributed to this story.

More articles for you:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304070104576399673899870098.html

http://blogs.forbes.com/danielfisher/2011/06/21/wal-mart-case-wounds-but-doesnt-kill-the-class-action/

Feel free to post your thoughts. You may subscribe for future posts.

Anthony Weiner, a formerly esteemed member of Congress, knows about Twitter. But he failed to realize how to stay relevant and not ruin his reputation.  Today you must vigilantly guard your profiles and messages as you never know when you may flip a message to a friend, thinking it is private, but it lands with 1700 of your connections.  Everyone makes mistakes periodically. Whether you are 25 or 55, employed or unemployed, you need to grasp the power and perils of social media practices with extreme care.  Whether it’s an email or a profile, checking it twice or more before post  is imperative.

Social media will continue to evolve. If you don’t have a Linkedin profile, you are missing an excellent opportunity to show the world you are relevant and professional.  If you are a hiring manager, your profile is extremely helpful for candidates.  Knowing where you went to college could engage your candidate quickly.  Your profile needs to be up to date, showing more than just your title and number of years’ experience, along with education.  It is not your resume but a short, concise statement, showing your professional expertise.

What good is a profile if it’s marked “private?”  What good does it do, if you say you are an engineering manager with no details regarding what kind and what products you develop?  Look at someone’s profile you admire or with similar background to find an example to assist you.

Some people are fearful that details will increase internet traffic and phone calls which will interfere with responsibilities.  If that happens, you simply mark the profile, “Not currently accepting InMail.”  I’ve been using Linkedin successfully for approximately four years with no unfortunate incidents.  Some refuse to connect with people they don’t know, which was the original intent, but the tool evolved to assist with electronic communication.  I rarely hear of inappropriate use.

For several years I resisted putting my photo on Linkedin as I didn’t think it added value.  I had a picture of my dog posted briefly before I realized that was a huge mistake: it made me look less than professional.  Facebook is ok for less formal communication with friends and family (and a picture of my dog).  Linkedin is for professional business associates.  Having your picture on Linkedin is almost like putting the fork on the left side of a dinner plate.

Probably before long another business network will become the new “ultimate source.” But for now, using social media effectively is a wonderful way to show you understand the power of technology.  Eventually, lawsuits may cause companies to create a policy to keep you from using it but it is currently the “tool of the day.”

Many older workers are refusing to learn about new methods using social media.  Many younger workers spend hours on end texting and using language which, when they start looking for a new job, may haunt them.  Too many people are wasting time on Farmville and other games, which can be seen by recruiters when they look for work.  “Hmmm!  Maybe that person will continue to play Farmville if I hire her.”  If you are a professional, act like one!

Whether you are 24, 44 or 64, using technology is important.  You may only want SKYPE for to see your grandchildren in Poughkeepsie, New York or you may need it for an interview with your Sales VP in Paris, France.  Keeping up with technology is like keeping your grass cut.  You want to be relevant, not old-fashioned or crass.  Social networking is here to stay in various formats.  You don’t want to act inappropriately or be known as a dinosaur.

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