Career
25.08.2009
Blog - Tips For Your Career, Career
I am excited to let these people finally know what I think of them…
This is the time when you can really let everyone who has ticked you off for the last two years have it. Anyone who has wronged you, you can put in your email to the entire company. You can tell them why their ideas are stupid and why they should have never been promoted to the positions they are in. And then, in five years when they become the CIO of your new organization, you might as well start beefing up that resume even though you love your job. Bottom line – NEVER, NEVER say anything negative about your bosses or coworkers when you leave a company. There is nothing good that it will serve in the long run.
Stick to your guns…
Make a decision and stick to it. If you don’t, you won’t respect yourself and no one will respect you – they’ll use you until they find someone they do respect, then they’ll hire that person to replace you.
Write a letter…
Write a letter. People will try to talk you out of it but you should write down a thank you for all the time at the company and a thank you for the success the company has allowed you to achieve. Also, use a phrase such as “my decision is final and irrevocable.” Don’t fear the words that mean your decision is final unless you’re not ready to leave.
Five years down the drain in two weeks…
Give notice. Two weeks is standard. If you leave your old company hanging, you might get hung out yourself in the future. It’s a small world.
Never accept a counteroffer…
- See 10 reasons to never accept a counteroffer.
19.08.2009
Blog - Tips For Your Career, Career
Expect it and be prepared for it. Anytime you leave a company and it is not their idea that you leave, it is at the very least inconvenient for them and they will most likely attempt to talk you into changing your mind. A counter-offer may come in several ways such as:
- Telling you of plans for a promotion either now or in the future.
- Explaining reorganization goals which hold promising future rewards for you.
- Offering you more money, perhaps matching or even exceeding your new offer.
- Asking you to meet, perhaps over dinner, with one or more company executives before you make a final decision.
Hazards of a Counteroffer
A counter-offer can be very flattering and your emotions may cause you to temporarily lose sight of your original objectives. You may second guess your decision and feel the pull of the familiar. This is exactly what your present employer hopes will happen. Here are 10 important reasons for not accepting a counter-offer.
- When the “smoke clears” following a counter-offer, all the reasons why you wanted to leave are still there! You made the decision to leave because you felt that another opportunity would better fill your career needs.
- If you are worth more when you are leaving, why weren’t you worth more when you were staying?
- Where is the money for the counteroffer coming from? Is it your raise early? Companies have strict wage and salary guidelines which they are not going to change just for you.
- Your company will probably immediately start looking for your replacement at a lower salary.
- When tough times come, your employer may begin the cutbacks with you.
- You have now made your employer aware that you are unhappy. From now on, your loyalty may always be in question.
- Accepting a counter-offer may make you lose respect by seeming unsure and indecisive.
- It may seem harsh, but chances are good that the reasons for a counter-offer have more to do with inconvenience and avoidance of change, than with your indispensability to the company.
- Statistics show that if you accept a counter-offer, the probability of voluntarily leaving in six months or being let go within one year is extremely high. By that time, this new opportunity will be only a distant memory.
- Accepting a counteroffer is most likely an emotional rather than an intellectual decision.
- In the final analysis, a counter-offer comes because of a resignation. Will you have to threaten to quit every time you want to advance within this company?
19.08.2009
Blog - Tips For Your Career, Career
| It sounds cliche, but dress to impress…
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The dot.com-era is over and so should be your urge to interview in casual attire. Wear a suit – it is better to be overdressed any day.
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| For interview’s sake, get a grip…
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The first impression is how you dress and how you grip. Shake hands with the same strength it takes to twist off a bottle cap. If you shake hands with someone and they think they are holding a dead fish, your interview too, could be floating upside down in the water.
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Sure, I had bad breath, sweaty palms, a weak handshake, and a wandering
eye… but why didn’t I get the job?
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These are all things that portray a lack of confidence yet all are things that can be somewhat controlled. If you have some of these challenges, you won’t get the job if there is someone equally qualified. So, always have a mint – never gum. Keep a new tissue in each pocket, it will help dry those sweaty palms (but don’t keep your hands in your pockets!) Practice looking and speaking with a friend to look them in the eye. If you don’t have a friend, use the mirror.
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| Be concise, don’t just keep uncontrollably talking without ever really saying anything more then what you said in the first place…
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Most people talk too much because they are afraid of silence or they get nervous. They answer the question, they get no response from the interviewer, so they proceed to answer the question again in another way and proceed to talk themselves out of the job. Try instead to make the meeting more conversational. If you feel a nervous pause after answering a question qualify you were responding correctly or ask the interviewer the same question in relation to his experience. For instance…
Interviewer: Where are you from?
You: A little town called Brookneal, Virginia.
You – thinking: This is an uncomfortable silence, like that bad date in high school, how can I stop this, should I tell them about Macon, should I tell them about my dog Skip? – instead…
You: How about you? |
| Know the answers to common questions they may ask…
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What are your strengths, weaknesses?
Why should we hire you?
What are your leadership qualities?
What are your goals?
Why did you leave your jobs?
What job did you like most and why?
What can you do for us others can’t?
What are the best things about your last boss?
What salary are you looking for?
If you were a tree what kind of tree would you be?
Do you know the answers? Write them down for yourself, memorize them, this is at least half of the interview. It will help you get the job. |
Sell, don’t tell…
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When discussing your technical background, don’t just tell…sell. First, find out what skills in your background the interviewer is interested in and then be excited about your experiences and let the enthusiasm show. If you were bored during your experiences, why would the interviewer think you would be excited about their job. Explain that you have the experience and lead the interviewer to the job on your resume where that experience was gained. Finally, if you aren’t excited about these experiences, don’t interview for this job.
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I don’t know the answer, but I am going to make something up – it’ll show my creativity… What?
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So you went in, they asked you a question you didn’t know the answer to and you made up something that made you look like a fool. Why would you do that? This isn’t the SAT’s. It’s not multiple choice. If you don’t know the answer, say, “I don’t know.” Don’t make it so hard. Follow up with, “I know I could find the answer to this in such and such a location.” This will show resourcefulness. Being resourceful is better than making up answers – it will make you look better too.
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Ask for the kiss, or at least another date…
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So it’s the end of the interview and the manager has not given you any indication of the way he feels. So ask! Why not. If he hates you, you’ll know why which will help you on your next job interview. If he loves you, you’ll know why. Better yet than either of these, if he is unsure about you, you can find out where and continue to give him the reasons he should talk to you. So, you could say, “Do you think I’m a fit technically for this position?” Maybe he was confused on a portion of your background you could clear up for him. If you don’t ask now, you’ll never really know how you could improve and he may never call again.
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| Take notes, look interested, and you’ll do great. Good Luck! |
19.08.2009
Blog - Tips For Your Career, Career
Your resume shouldn’t clone itself again and again…
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If you get submitted to the same place twice, thrice or more the client will begin to get the idea that you are trying to physically insert your resume down his/her esophagus. Also, the client will not know which staffing company to work with if your resume is received from multiple staffing companies. Finally, the unprofessionalism will make the clients and staffing companies leary of working with you.
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So, keep a list and check it…
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Keep a list and check it and only send your resume to the same company once. Keep a list of what company, the date, which staffing company and the names of the people you spoke with.
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Make sure your staffing companies have the same professionalism…
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There are staffing companies out there that prefer the shotgun approach. They throw your resume everywhere in the marketplace and hope that someone will bite. This makes you look bad not only because of the “double submittal” but it also makes it look like you are applying to jobs you’re not qualified for. Only work with companies who call you for each and every position before they send your resume. If a company won’t give you the name of the client, they don’t trust you – why would you trust them?
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Don’t stick your resume where it doesn’t belong…
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So you’re good at what you do…but you don’t do everything. There are candidates out there that claim they can do “that” – “that” being anything we ask. After a while, we begin not to trust those candidates can do anything. Their reputation gets around, clients distrust them and it ends in a nasty spiral where they can’t get a job so they continue to say it out of sheer frustration and lack of work. Stick to what you know and do it well. If you get a call about a job you can’t do, just say, that’s not me. Eventually you’ll get that perfect job. And when you do say, “Yes, I can do that.” Everyone will also know you are the perfect candidate.
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Be honest about your background…
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When talking to recruiters, be honest about your background, salary, etc. If you overshoot, you will miss the target in the same way as if you undershoot. It is better, however, to underpromise and overdeliver than the alternative.
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19.08.2009
Blog - Tips For Your Career, Career
The one page rule no longer applies: Don’t worry how long it is, it is more important to explain your technical expertise. If you make it short, you have to cut valuable experience that could make the client cut you.
People scan resumes first, read them second: You have about five seconds to get your point across in your resume before the resume is discarded. Most people have a skills section and think that if they put their technologies there, the people reading will look there. This is not always the case. People care more about the skills you used on your last two jobs. Put as many of those skills in your job history as possible. That is the first place recruiters and clients look most times.
You’re only as good as your last two jobs: In the ever changing technology world time is important. When writing your resume spend the most amount of space on the last two to three years. No one really cares about the cobol work you did in 1981. It doesn’t really apply. If you want to shorten your resume in any place, back then is where you can start.
You are professional, your resume should look like your suit: You would never walk into an interview with a non-conforming appearance – tennis shoes, warm-ups, shorts etc. So why would you use laid back or unique fonts to try to make yourself stand out? Use standard fonts, let your skills and background do the talking.
But I really was laid off ten times in one year: Writing your resume begins with living your life. You have to think about how your moves in the business world will affect it. People check references. They find out where you’ve been naughty and nice. Your history has to be put down on paper eventually. If you were laid off ten times in one year, it is a good idea to put your reason for leaving on your resume. You want people to know when reading through your resume that you are not a job hopper…And make sure when searching for a new opportunity that the next job lasts a significantly longer period.
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