A well known career coach once said, "A resume is a necessary evil." Some HR folks will cringe at that statement, despite its truth. So, I'd like to take a moment and analyze exactly why that statement is some of the best job seeking advice you could get.
After all, too many job seekers spend all their time polishing off a resume to submit in an application process. Now, there are essentially three questions all hiring managers need to have answered before they can make a decision about hiring you or not. They are:
Do I like you?
What motivates you?
Can you do the job?
The first two questions are personality questions. The last one is a commodity question. Think about it, almost everyone else going for that job can push the button too.
FACT: Personality Beats Commodity EVERY Time
Considering how competitive the job market is, you have to assume there is someone more qualified, more educated and more experienced than you.
People make emotional decisions - and HR folks aren't any different. Think about the last buying decision you made. Perhaps you were looking for a new breakfast cereal at the market. You look at the colors on the packaging. You notice if it lowers your cholesterol or if it has enough sweetness. You find something you like about it and it makes you feel good. So, you buy it.
The same mental process goes through the mind of your hiring manager.
Personality Question #1: Do I Like You?
Can this manager work next to you, as cube-neighbors, for 8-hours a day, five days a week? If there isn't a spark, a chemistry, either before or during the interview, you can count yourself out.
There really isn't much else for people to go on. Every other applicant says, "I'm the perfect fit," and they have a resume to back it up. But in the end of the day, the only thing they really have to go on is if they like you or not.
And the best way to get someone to like you is to express YOU. Genuinely. Quickly. Strategically.
Social medium allows this to happen. When you get Googled, (yes, "when"), will what they find answer the question of your personality and brand? Or are you allowing Google to determine your online reputation? When they read your LinkedIn profile summary, do they get a sense of who you are. Your story?
"Do I like you?" is by far THE most important question you can answer for a hiring manager, and the sooner you do, the better off you'll be.
Take some time to really figure out what your brand is and how that relates to the needs of your potential companies. I recommend reading Chris Brogan's FREE e-book on personal branding and following his advice before re-writing your LinkedIn profile.
Personality Question #2: What Motivates You?
The proverbial risk mitigation question. A hiring managers biggest risk is hiring the wrong person. And "wrong" means someone who is not what they appear to be on paper. They lose their drive. They are lazy. They cost the company thousands of dollars.
But, if you are motivated, you are the right person. You are consistent over time. You read about your industry on the weekends. You stay up to date with joy and passion. In short, you are reliable, and you have a low hiring risk.
Answer the question of your motivation, and double your chances of getting hired. Seriously. Just ask a hiring manager!
And one of the best ways of communicating you are motivated and what motivates you is to have a blog.
Yep. Even the most simplest blog, filled with articles about your perspective, your ideas, your reviews. The sooner you can get your blog up and running the better. There are several good courses on how to get a blog out there.
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Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
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Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
How did I learn about this job?
How did I apply for the job?
Did I earn an interview?
What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
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Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
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Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.