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Good News for Federal Job Applicants
Tweet Share on Facebook October 19, 2011 Comment (3)When planning your job hunt, have you considered targeting public service or government opportunities? Heather Krasna, director of career services at the Evans School of Public Affairs at the University of Washington, is the author of Jobs That Matter: Find a Stable, Fulfilling Career in Public Service. While tax and revenue shortfalls have affected essential government services, she says about 60,000 people are slated to retire from government jobs by the end of this year. Some agencies are replacing these workers, despite slashes in funding, so there continue to be jobs in the pipeline.
Krasna says the following specialties are in high demand:
[See The 50 Best Careers for 2011.]
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6 Networking Tips for Your Job Search
Tweet Share on Facebook October 18, 2011 Comment (4)Networking with other professionals in your industry can be beneficial when you’re looking for work. You might meet the hiring manager for a company and hear about an unadvertised position, find a new consulting opportunity, or get some insight into the best way to apply for a position.
The biggest mistake people make in networking is focusing on what they want, rather than on connecting and listening to others. If you want your networking to be truly effective, the goal should be focused on helping others and making memorable connections.
[See The 50 Best Careers for 2011.]
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The Most Important Interview Advice You’ll Ever Hear
Tweet Share on Facebook October 17, 2011 Comment (4)If you’re like a lot of job seekers, when you get called for an interview, you swing into preparation mode. You research the company, you try to predict what questions you’ll be asked, and you practice your answers until they’re flawless. But in the midst of all this effort to make a great impression, don’t lose sight of what might be the single most important thing you can remember as you head into the interview: The point of the interview is not to get a job offer. It’s to figure out if you’re a mutual match, emphasis on mutual.
If you go into your interview focused solely on convincing the employer to hire you, you’ll lose sight of whether this is a job you even want or a company (or manager) you want to work for. Instead, in addition to showing the interviewer what you can do, your goal should be to make an informed decision about whether this is the right job and the right employer for you.
[See The 50 Best Careers for 2011.]
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How to Make Your Resume Stand Out
Tweet Share on Facebook October 14, 2011 Comment (1)You know that “black hole” everyone is always talking about in your job search? This phenomenon often occurs because employers use applicant tracking system (ATS) software to manage the large volume of resumes and job applications they receive for their open positions. Most of these have special pre-screening technology to help hiring managers and recruiters find the best fit through keywords and phrases—and might even rank candidates based on how they measure up within the system.
How can you “beat” an employer’s ATS in order to get noticed? Here are a few ways:
[See The 50 Best Careers for 2011.]
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New Grads Not as Hireable as They Think
Tweet Share on Facebook October 13, 2011 CommentSo you’ve graduated with your bachelor’s degree, and you’re ready to jump into corporate America. Only no one is calling you back about the jobs you’ve applied for. Unfortunately, finishing college and heading out into the workforce is not as easy or lucrative as it once was for young grads.
A study by American Express, in conjunction with its Build Your Career Bootcamp, reveals some sad facts:
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5 Things You Need to Do to Get a Job
Tweet Share on Facebook October 12, 2011 Comment (15)Two construction workers sat down to lunch. Worker #1 took out his turkey sandwich and eagerly started eating. Worker #2 tentatively opened his first sandwich. Examining it, he exclaimed, “Yuck, peanut butter,” and tossed it aside. Reaching in for his second sandwich, he opened it, and carefully peeled open the bread to examine the contents. “Yuck, peanut butter again!” he cried, with a dismayed look. Worker #1 asked, “Why don’t you tell your wife you don’t like peanut butter?” “Wife?” worker #2 asked, “I packed this lunch myself!”
Many job seekers behave a lot like Worker #2. They create their own discomfort by resisting change and insisting on continuing to job search in the exact same ways they always have, even when they know they don’t like the results. You don’t like peanut butter—or the lack of job offers? Make some changes, because it’s all in your hands!
[See The 50 Best Careers for 2011.]
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How to Deal With Unreasonable Deadlines at Work
Tweet Share on Facebook October 12, 2011 Comment (4)If you find yourself constantly struggling to meet impossible deadlines at work, it’s worth stepping back and taking a different approach to the problem. Here are six strategies that might help you cope.
1. Look at your colleagues. If you have colleagues who do similar work, do they also face similar deadlines? If so, how do they meet them? Are they starting earlier, planning differently, pulling in additional help, or using any other strategies that you can copy?
[See The 50 Best Careers for 2011.]
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What the American Jobs Act Means for You
Tweet Share on Facebook October 11, 2011 Comment (9)In an effort to stimulate the economy and lower the unemployment rate, President Obama has announced a new jobs plan that aims to create more jobs and reward companies who continue to hire staff. While we won’t see a flood of new jobs overnight, if passed by Congress, it should keep our heads above water as we wait out this economic uncertainty.
Part of Obama’s goal is to prevent as many as 280,000 teachers from being laid off. In states like California, education is the first area to be cut, and teachers and educational administrators are usually the ones to suffer. The American Jobs Act will also put measures into place to keep police and firefighters working.
[See The 50 Best Careers for 2011.]
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10 Clues to Watch for in an Interview
Tweet Share on Facebook October 11, 2011 Comment (5)If you’re like most people, after you’ve had a job interview you replay the conversation over and over in your head, trying to figure out how you did. Were your answers okay? Did they like you? How likely are you to get the job?
Here are 10 clues to figuring out how your interview went—along with one very important caveat: No sign is foolproof. Sometimes you can be sure that you flubbed an interview but get a job offer anyway, and other times you might be absolutely sure an offer is coming your way, only to find that one never materializes. So keep in mind that these are guideposts, not guarantees.
[See The 50 Best Careers for 2011.]
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How to Job Search on the New Facebook
Tweet Share on Facebook October 7, 2011 Comment (4)Facebook is constantly evolving, which can be frustrating for job seekers and employers alike. Although a few years ago you might have locked down your profile to keep it from an employer’s eyes, today you might opt to allow “subscribers” and share only industry-related content with them.
How will the new Facebook affect your job search? Joshua Waldman, author of Job Searching with Social Media for Dummies, provides five ways you can use it to your advantage:
[See The 50 Best Careers for 2011.]
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