5 Tips to Prepare for that First Real Job Interview

You’ve graduated and now have to land that perfect job. Do you know how to present yourself at the job interview?

You have graduated high school or college and now you’re ready for your first real job. You’ve mailed out resumes and have been called in for your first interview. How can you do well at the interview so you wind up being offered the job?

1. Dress professionally. No midriff shirts, low-cut blouses or flip-flops because you’re going to work and not the beach. While it’s not necessary to buy a suit, it is particularly important to look professional. If you’re trying to get a job in a conservative office such as an accounting firm, don’t dress as if you were going to a concert. If you are applying for a retail position, you have a little more freedom. Rather than list what clothing is and is not acceptable, I would tell you to dress as if you were going to meet one of the most important people in your life- because you are!

2. Make sure you are well-groomed. Don’t look as though you just rolled out of bed and couldn’t bother to take care of basic personal hygiene. Nothing will make the HR Manager bring the interview to a close faster than unwashed hair, dirty fingernails or body odour. As an employee, you will be a reflection of the company and no customer wants to do business with an unkempt person.

3. Be aware of your body language. A firm handshake at the start of the interview shows you are self-confident. Maintain eye contact, stay relaxed and be attentive to the interviewer. Ask questions and listen thoughtfully to the answers. Think before you answer questions from the interviewer- don’t ramble and keep the conversation on the topic.

4. Be prepared for the interview. Research the company beforehand- every business now has a website where you can learn what they do and who their customers are. This shows the interviewer you are interested in the job and took the initiative to find out all you could about the company.

5. Be present in the interview. I’ve interviewed candidates who acted as if they were waiting for a bus. They didn’t ask questions, but instead just listened to me, and I wasn’t really sure if they were paying attention. Be enthusiastic, ask questions and participate in the interview. After listing all the duties required of the position, I asked one candidate if this sounded like something they should be interested in. Her reply was a quiet, I can do the job.  She didn’t answer my question, she seemed indifferent, and she didn’t get the job. If you can’t be excited in the interview, you’re not going to be energised in the workplace either.

First impressions count, and you want to let the interviewer know you want the job, are willing to work hard and will do your best. You might not necessarily be the most qualified candidate, but still land the job because you were the most outstanding one. Good luck!

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5 Creative Ways To Find A Job

Five creative ways to find your ideal position.

Ok, you have posted to every internet job board and every job on Monster, CareerBuilder, and HotJobs. You’ve followed up with calls and networked until you are blue in the face. Each Sunday you take the newspaper and apply for every job in your field with little to no results. Try some unique ways to find a job.

Send Half of Your Resume
Find a company you want to work. Write a great cover letter on why you are a good fit, pointing to the enclosed resume. Don’t seal the envelope and don’t enclose a resume. They’ll think the resume fell out in the mail. They will call and engage in a conversation. Sell yourself shamelessly.

Write A Prospecting Letter
Make use of the power of direct mail. Locate 5-10companies. Write up a letter to your contact network and ask them if they know anyone who works at any of the companies on your list. When a contact says they know someone on your list, send them your resume and ask them to forward it their contact or ask permission to send it yourself.

E-Mail Chain Letter
Create a list of 20 companies you want to work for and send an email to everyone you know to see if they know anyone who works at these companies. Ask them to contact you if they do, so that you can ask for a referral. Finally, ask them to forward your email to 10 more people. However don’t do this if you’re currently employed!

Distribute A Booklet
Write a booklet with information relevant to your industry and give it away. Everyone loves free information and this demonstrates your expertise. Give the booklet away electronically and advertise it to newsgroups where hiring managers will see it.

Call Human Resources
Sounds crazy, right? Call the human resources department. Ask them what outside agency or third-party recruiting firm they use. They will ask you why do you want to know. Tell them that their company is not currently looking for someone with your skill set right now the agency may be dealing with other firms, so you are looking for a recommendation. They may very well ask you for an interview. If not at least you do get a lead. They would love to save the agency fees. Also being recommended gives you special attention. Send them a thank you note.

These are guerrilla tactics that can give you better results. Be sure to stay toned for another 5 creative tips.

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If Your Resume is the Cake, Your Cover Letter is the Icing.

The goal in a cover letter is to get the attention of the hiring manager. Use this article to help write your own.

Cover letter writing is almost as important a skill for a job seeker to learn as resume writing. The cover letter accompanies the resume at all times as the primary support document. Whether you use traditional mail, email, faxing, or another type of electronic submission, this should always be sent with the resume. There are, of course, other tools youíll use when job seeking. Your cover letter and resume come first of course, followed by follow-up letters, thank-you letters for after the interview, reference sheets, salary histories, and job acceptance letters. If you have good cover letter writing skills, and good resume writing skills, the other written tools should be a snap to compose.

Your goal in this is to get the attention of the hiring manager, just as it is with resume writing. The method and format are a little different however. Your resume will cover all, or most of your professional career, and will be from one to two pages. Your cover letter will be a very brief page serving as an introduction to the resume. Cover letter writing style must be direct, to the point, and able to grab the attention of the reader quickly, with a goal of making the reader want to read the attached resume.

Many people, when engaged in this type of writing, have a tendency to say too much. Good cover letter writing is short and punchy, and will take two or three key points from the resume and emphasize them. The old adage ìtell them what you are going to tell them, tell them, and then tell them what you told themî holds true in both resume writing and cover letter writing.

As an example, letís assume that you are a materials handling manager for a defense contractor, seeking another position. In your line of work the buzz words are MRP, lean manufacturing, ISO 9000, and cost savings. Your writing efforts should reflect these buzz words to show your value to your current employer and any future employers. Your resume will go into more detail about how you accomplished these goals. The cover letter will simply point out to the hiring manager that you accomplished them. An example of this would be two bulleted paragraphs in the body of the letter that sayÖ.

  • Experienced in quality assurance and quality control, MRP, ISO 9000, QS 9000, and Lean Manufacturing.
  • Demonstrated results in saving significant money for employers through cost savings, inventory level reductions, and on-time supplier delivery.

The hiring manager, according to many surveys, devotes only about fifteen seconds to each resume and cover letter he or she reviews. With that in mind your writing skills need to be top notch to get this person to look at your resume. Your resume writing skills need to be just as good to get the reader to want to grant you an interview. In turn, your interviewing skills need to be excellent to get the hiring manager to offer you the position. This long, and hopefully positive chain of events begins with good cover letter writing skills and ends with job satisfaction and a nice paycheck.

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