Job search is a common sense, not a secret, process.

You ask yourself, ‘What do they know that I don’t that I must know to succeed?’ There are no ‘secrets’ to the process of job search. The word ‘secret’ implies something known only to the marketer. These are psychological operations (psyops) marketing words used to coerce ...

Past Salary History Request – Legal or Not?

Past Salary History Request – Legal or Not? Occasionally, hiring companies will ask applicants for their salary history and/or pay stubs to prove their past compensation. While there is no legal reason for asking for proof of past salary or compensation from candidates offered employment, a ...

Job Seeker’s 57 Interview Questions for the Interviewer

Job Seeker’s (57) Interview Questions for the Interviewer   Interviewers are more impressed with questions you ask them versus any selling points you try to make about yourself.  Create questions before each interview you can pose to the interviewer(s) during the process.  Either interject the questions ...

WHY YOU NEED A PROFESSIONALLY WRITTEN RESUME

WHY YOU NEED A PROFESSIONALLY WRITTEN RESUME: IT’S A BUYER’S MARKET NOW WITH A LOWER POOL OF QUALIFIED CANDIDATES   NATIONAL UNEMPLOYMENT RATES | 2017  Jan.  Feb.  Mar.  April  May  June  July  Aug.  Sept.  Oct.  Nov.  Dec.  2017   4.8   4.7   4.5   4.4 ...

Focus on Leadership Capabilities in Resume

How to focus on leadership capabilities in resume for a career change. Are you describing yourself as a Director, Manager, Supervisor, or a Team Lead on your resume? It doesn’t matter if you are child care professional ‘supervising’ young children, or a nuclear physicist who ‘manages’ ...

AIRS 2015 Recruiting Resource Book

AIRS 2015 Recruiting Resource Book   If you are seeking direct links to recruiters and recruiting job boards, this may be one of the most valuable documents you can find ‘out there’ on the Internet to start your job search.   Free – Downloadable – Enjoy! ...

Research You Must Do Before You Write Your Resume

 Research You Must Do Before You Write Your Resume Yeah – you gotta do it, research your next job before you rewrite your resume for your next job search. But – it’s all good – you’ll be amazed at what you find out, and what you ...

120 Powerful Resume Words

120 Powerful Resume Words For Your Next Job One of the issues I encounter, as a resume writer, when reviewing amateur job seeker’s resumes are descriptions loaded with subjective, misleading inclusivity, or passive language.  Examples are … performed ‘flawlessly;’ … conducted ‘all’ tasks; or ‘hand-picked’ to be ...

Do You Know the Difference Between Old Fashioned and New Methods for A Job Search?

Hunting for jobs is not the same as when your parents and grandparents looked for jobs. There are differences between ‘old fashioned’ job hunting methods and new methods used today in a new world of advanced technology.  

Common Sense Job Search – No Secrets

Job search is common sense, not a secret process.   Marketing gurus advertising ‘secrets’ are selling to fears they are putting in your mind. You are asking yourself, ‘what do they know that I don’t that I simply must know to succeed?’ There are no ‘secrets’ ...

Do You Know What You Need To Know Before Starting a New Job Search

  Do you really know what you need to know before you start searching for that next job search? Watch this video to know what objectives you need to learn before you start your job search …

Building a Government Service Resume

Building a Government Service Resume   Working a government services (GS) job is a dream for many. Everyone is familiar with the outstanding pension and health plans, as well as vacation days as standard packages working for a federal agency or department.  What is not well ...

Answering the Three Most Important Job Interview Questions

Answering the three most important job interview questions.   We have all heard them, read about the possibilities, studied the website sources and books.  We prepare for the interview questions most likely to be asked and questions directly related to the job responsibilities and required skills ...

Last Ditch Effort After the Job Application Rejection

Staying within the circle of awareness may pay off in the near future when you showcase your professionalism in your career search efforts.

How to handle gaps in your employment resume.

That dreaded hole – the one where you were out of work for several months, or years, through no fault of your own – the glaring employment gap when a full time student as a mature adult to get through the degree faster. How do you explain legitimate absences without getting ‘dinged’ for a spotty work record?

Using your network to find a job

The best method to start your advanced career position search is to reflect back on the people you have encountered over the past year and how you have kept up with them. Write notes for a loose script of what information or favors you are asking them for, and keep meticulous notes of the data to refer to if those calls are returned.

Job competition – staying in or getting in.

Suppose your boss called you into their office and said, “We have to cut back 50% of our work force, it’s between you and one other person. What would you do?

Top 10 things not to have on your resume and 10 alternatives

Many job seekers naively stuff too much information into a resume to attempt to communicate their qualifications for a position. Unfortunately this ‘extra information’ may hinder efforts. Recruiters look for hard facts in a resume – the warm, fuzzy, “…tell us more about you…” comes later in an interview. Here are some facts about how too much information in a resume could hinder a job seeker.

The recruiting game (the real world ‘Hunger Games’)

There is no ‘fair’ to the game – it’s play by the rules or don’t play. Job seekers are desperate to get hired and want to play the game, but need to understand the rules – as they are played by the recruiters – to understand how to play the game successfully as a job seeker.

Can company and recruiter social media and customer service relate to ‘Employer of Choice’ decisions?

Recruiters might be fighting a losing battle convincing the potential new hire to come on board with a ‘loser company’ (unless the job is to fix the company image!). Recruiters need to work hand-in-hand with marketing and PR to ensure job applicants see a positive side of the business and the result is the business is an ‘employer of choice.’

Recruiters Are Not Your Personal Job Finders

It sounds harsh, but it is reality. Finding a job is not a matter of justice or fairness or luck. No one owes anyone a job. Recruiters are your ‘friend’ only if you meet the requirements they need ‘right now.’

Avoiding Internet or E-mail Job Search Scams

Don’t believe any employer is going to offer you free housing, business vehicles, cash in advance of the job performed, or other benefits ‘too good to believe.’ Any company offering to find you employment, but charges hundreds of dollars in advance for those services, are going to do what you can do yourself. Legitimate headhunters charge the employer or the company who is seeking a qualified candidate – not the job seeker. Because someone ‘says’ you are qualified – especially via a mass generated email – doesn’t mean you are qualified.

Questions job candidates should be asking the interviewer

...the hiring manager is looking for something unique and out-of-the-ordinary to set the job seeker apart from the ‘herd.’ Having a prepared set of questions to ask the interviewer will demonstrate preparedness, attention to detail, and professional interest in the position and company. If you feel the need to remember what was said in the interview – employers should not have any problems with note taking...

Endorsements On LinkedIn Help Build Subject Matter Expert Status

I was checking my profile page today and found that I had more endorsements for my resume writing status than I ever imagined! Great SEO, but also acknowledgement from my peers and LinkedIn connections that I DO have great skills when it comes to resume writing!

Sequestration: Fierce competition for current and future job holders

Competition for those few jobs are going to be fierce. You must show you have more and better job skills to compete against others who are trying for the same position. It will revert back to a ‘hiring manager’s advantage’ when it comes to picking and choosing whom to interview and whom to leave on the back burner after the sequestration ends or peters out after the next six months.

LinkedIn Training for Beginners

OBJECTIVE: You walk out excited and have a more than basic understanding about what LinkedIn can do for your business, branding, business development, building relationships with other business owners, and to start your quest for more B2B sales in the future.

Tips to Get That Job in 2013 on LinkedIn

When I get an email request to ‘forward an intro’ to someone in my network, a recruiter looking for recommendations for a specific role, or a conference requesting speaker recommendations, I'll happily respond. That's what LinkedIn is for. And to hobnob with the top 1 percent of viewed profiles, all two million of us.

Are your ‘ums’ and ‘ahs’ and ‘ands’ killing your interview(s)?

You might be flabbergasted how many times those words creep into your sentences. If you can’t string a well-put-together sentence to sound intelligent, then the impression to the listener is – you aren’t.

Why You Didn’t Get the Job

Wonderful insight from another expert in the recruiting industry I’d like to share: Why You Didn’t Get the Job, November 01, 2012 By: Dave Fecak (Link: https://www.amanet.org/training/articles/Why-You-Didnt-Get-the-Job.aspx?pcode=XCRP ) Over the course of my career I have scheduled thousands of interviews with hundreds of hiring managers at ...

Alumni benefits: What to expect when rehired

Many rehired employees have the capacity to negotiate from a point of strength with employers who wish to rehire them. Smart job seekers can regain benefits, higher salaries, and other tenured perks, if the company has the financial capacity. No company is legally obligated to provide the grandfathering of benefits, privileges, or perks. But offering these in small or incremental amounts could be a deciding factor to hiring back a special skills or unique employee that can give the company an edge against the competition. Alumnus should get everything negotiated in the final interview for an offer of (rehire) employment letter so there is no misunderstanding once onboard.