11 job search tips for 2011

It's 2011 and it's time to take control of your job search. This year, it's no longer up to companies to hire you, it's up to you to get hired. Forget about how the economy is doing. Reflect on last year if you must, but then forget about that, too. This year, your focus will be on finding the right job for you and doing everything you can to be the best candidate for that job. The competition may still be tough, but you're going to be better than the competition…  

Here's how to turn the tables in your favor.

1. Narrow your search. Stop applying to jobs that you're not qualified for or don't really want. It's a waste of time. Be honest with yourself when evaluating job postings. If you had to start the job tomorrow, do you have all the skills you'd need to succeed? Or are there areas of the job description that you don't have experience in? While it's always great to be willing to learn, most companies want to hire someone who can jump right in and get started without being trained from scratch. Focus your time on creating great applications for jobs you are well qualified for instead.  

2. Know exactly what you want. Narrowing down your job search may force you to ask yourself tough questions like: What kind of job am I really after? And, what skills can I offer an employer? If you're unsure of the answer, make one list of the job skills you excel at and one of the skills you like to use most. Use these skills as search terms in your job search.  

3. Reevaluate your skill set. If you feel like you've looked at every job posting on earth and you still can't find one your skills match up with, then it's time to get some new skills. The good news for those who are unemployed is that it's the perfect opportunity to go back to school. You won't have to divide your time with your job obligations, and there's also the possibility that the economy will have recovered a bit by the time you graduate school -- giving you a double leg up. There are even government funding and programs available for out-of-work job-seekers that want to enroll in training or continue their education.

4. Set goals. Yes, your overall goal may be to get a job, but setting short-term, specific job search goals for the year will help you grow and force you to continuously evaluate your progress. Improve your networking skills, for example, by making January's goal to join a professional organization and February's to attend a college alumni event. Holding yourself accountable for achieving these goals will boost your self-esteem and motivate you to continue searching by providing you with new leads and information.

5. Try something new. If you're stuck in a job search rut, add a new strategy to your repertoire. Instead of only job searching online, try working with a recruiter and setting up informational interviews with industry contacts, too. A multi-faceted approach will get the best results.

6. Get a leg up on the competition. If you come across a job that seems perfect for you, do something that will subtly help you stand out from the crowd. When you find a job posting you want to apply to, find out the name of the hiring manager or someone who works in the same department, and send the person an e-mail directly. It's 2011, which means almost anything can be found online, including names and e-mail addresses. A LinkedIn search on the company should turn up a list of employees and their titles, from which you can select the most appropriate person. Then, search the company website or press releases for the company's e-mail format.

7. Get a hold of your online reputation: When an HR manager searches your name online (and they will do it) you can either take control what they see, or you can leave it to the powers of the crawl search gods. Search results that are professional, consistent and that establish you as an expert in your field will be far more impressive than Facebook pictures from Thanksgiving. Things like a Facebook or LinkedIn profile and a Twitter feed will all show up on the first page, so signing up for these sites and populating the accounts with up-to-date, professional content will make a great impression.  

8. Start a website: If you want to take your Internet presence one step further, starting a website will showcase your skills and talents in a thorough and interesting way, and it'll add to your professionalism and give you credibility. Plus, it's not as costly or as time-consuming as you might think. Domain names (i.e. YourName.com), can be registered on sites like GoDaddy.com or Bluehost.com for around $10, and web hosting can cost as little as $3 per month. If you're not particularly tech savvy, premade blog templates give you a professional look with minimal hassle. Wordpress.com has tons of template options and also provides great technical support for novices.

9. Stay current: You should always be in the loop, even if you're out of work. Read trade publications, comment on industry blogs, and stay on top of any emerging technologies or policies that may impact your career path. This will not only help you have a great conversation with an interviewer and keep your professional edge, but it may also give you new ideas about where and how to look for a job.

10. Sell yourself: An interview is no time for modesty, especially in times like these. When you land an interview, go prepared with at least five examples that demonstrate your best qualities. That way, when an interviewer asks, "Why should I hire you," you can talk about how you're such a quick learner that you taught yourself Photoshop in a week and how your entrepreneurial spirit lead you to start your first lawn-mowing business at age 16. Be sure to leave the interviewer with the phone numbers of references who will back you up with glowing recommendations.

11. Keep that glass half-full approach, all year: A job search will always have its frustrating moments, because things don't always happen when or how we want them to happen. But instead of letting setbacks ruin motivation, take them as lessons. Your lack of interviews may mean it's time to re-evaluate your career path or skill set, which could lead you to a more fulfilling career. This type of positive attitude will be much more productive in helping you find your next job.

The bottom line is that job searching will be tough this year, but landing a job -- even your dream job -- can still be a reality. A proactive job search is your best bet, so take the necessary steps to ensure you get the job you want.

The Right Way to Turn your Weaknesses into Strengths

For many people, one of the most difficult interview questions to answer is “what is your greatest professional weakness?” Answering this question honestly can be difficult, because you’re telling the interviewer that there is something you’re not good at. The key to answering this question honestly and effectively means taking your weakness and turning it into a strength. There is one very good strategy for doing this, and one strategy that is often used but best avoided…

Many people think that by choosing a weakness that makes them sound good, they’ll be able to avoid answering the question honestly. They may say “I’m a workaholic”, or “I’m a perfectionist” or something similar, hoping to convey the impression that their weakness makes them a good candidate for the job. Answering this question in such a way often comes across as arrogance, and you’re not really answering the question at all.

When an interviewer asks this question, what they really want to hear is that you are self-aware—that you know your limitations, and you know how to minimize the negative effects of your weakness.

Turning your weakness into a strength means first that you must admit a genuine weakness—something that truly is not your best selling point.

Second, you must demonstrate that you are working to either overcome that weakness, or at least to improve your performance in that area.

For example, suppose your greatest weakness is that your organizational skills are not the best. This might seem like a very big problem, but it’s possible to turn that around and give it a positive spin. One possible answer is to say that organization is not something you are naturally good at, and because of this you make the extra effort to stay well organized.

Another good strategy is to answer this question in terms of the job you are interviewing for. If you lack an important skill that is relevant to the job, you can follow this up by explaining that you are committed to obtaining that skill quickly. This is a good strategy for young job seekers, especially those looking for their first position.

The important part is that you admit your weakness, but follow that up with your strategies for overcoming it. Interviewers will be impressed by your honesty, and by the fact that you have the dedication and self-motivation necessary to improve your work habbits.

By R.H

Why It’s Important To Unhook Your Ego From Your Job

The most debilitating thing about being laid off (or fired, for that matter), aside from the very real loss of income, occurs when a person suddenly finds herself / himself cut off from a sense of their own worth – precisely because their sense of their own worth has been inextricably tied up in their having … holding … and performing … a job.

The first question one usually gets asked when someone first meets you is: “And what do you do?” That’s the occasion to gauge where on the ladder or social scale you stand. I had a friend, a perverse friend, who held a very good job as the Head of a Data Center for a large IT Operation, who used to tell people, just to watch their faces fall: “Oh, I’m a garbage man.”

And, truth to tell, many people who face the mirror in the morning, equate their worth with their job title: “I’m a Vice President … an accountant … a manager … a project manager … the Special Assistant to …” etc., etc., etc. … ad absurdum. Think of poor Kenneth Lay, now that he isn’t Chairman of Enron any more, and how his whole puffed-up persona was linked to that role.

The unspoken rule seems to be: Equate your personal net worth with the role you hold at work.

The equally unspoken rule is: No work, no role, no worth.

When looked at objectively, after all, the person who’s been laid off today is still exactly the same person who held the job yesterday. She or he has the same capabilities, talents, internal resources and work experience that made holding the job possible. She’s still the same person the employer thought valuable when they hired her in the first place.

So what’s changed? Well, for one thing the salary isn’t rolling in. For another, the laid off person doesn’t have an office to go to or a boss or people, if he or she is a manager, to manage, or co-workers to associate with. There’s no job description. There’s no power or sense of accomplishment. There’s no challenge. (These, by the way, are excellent reasons for seeking out a support group.)

But, if you really look closely at it, all of that is external to the individual.

So what I’m saying is, if you’ve linked your worth to the role you’ve played (or are playing) in your job, you’re riding for a fall. And that fall, the more you’ve linked your worth to your job, is going to be precipitous if your job ever goes away.

My observation is that most people who are laid off experience some degree of depression, starting off with shock, sometimes disbelief or denial, anger and resentment and this often translates itself into lack of energy and motivation in connection with finding a new position. Underlying this is – what else? – the severing of the link to the job and the loss of ego … status … position.

So what can you do about it? Well, for one thing you can begin to look at yourself in terms of the qualities that contribute to making you who you are – the qualities that contributed to whatever you’ve achieved in the work-a-day world, but also those qualities that have contributed to your having friends, a life-partner, if you’re a parent those qualities that have gone into parenting your children, contributions you’ve made in other areas of your life. Are you courageous, inventive, creative, empathetic, humorous, analytic, objective, supportive, etc., etc.?

The list, I hope, is long and diverse; if not, “attention must be paid.” Those qualities are what contribute to your individuality and worth in the first place, not the fact that you hold a certain type of job or earn a certain amount of money.

(Please note that I’m not running down the importance of the money, which is another issue completely. It may be important to pay the bills, and it can buy status symbols, but it doesn’t really have anything to do with – ironically – to your self-worth.)

What I’m proposing here is, as the title suggests, that
you, dear readers, unhook yourselves from your jobs and substitute something with more permanent worth to bolster your egos.

Comparing Job Offer

If you're in the enviable position of having to choose one job offer from several, here are some things you should consider when evaluating the offers...

The Job Itself:

 One of the top things to consider is the job itself. Which job seems like a better fit for you? Which one do you think you will enjoy more? Which do you see yourself doing on a daily basis? It's important to place a lot of emphasis on the actual job because that's where you'll be spending forty hours (maybe more) every week. Consider the things you enjoyed in previous jobs and those tasks you rather you didn't have to do. How does each job offer compare? 

The Salary and Benefits:

This factor, when considering multiple job offers is important as well. Most job offers you will receive will likely be in approximately the same salary range but where they may vary greatly is in the benefits. When you are considering benefits, remember to judge them based on what you and your family will use. If they offer tuition reimbursement and you don't plan on returning to school, it's not really a benefit to you. But do consider the value of benefits like vacation time, retirement funding, profit-sharing, overtime policies, medical/dental benefits, etc.

The Location:

If you are considering some job offers that are located in a different part of the country than you are in now, remember to factor in the cost of living and relocation, as well as the emotional costs of being far away from family and friends. Consider the whole family. How suitable are neighbourhoods and schools? What is the crime rate like? All these things can affect your quality of life and should be considered if you are thinking of relocating.

Location is important even if all your job offers are in the same geographic area. How long will your commute be? Will you need to move to make the commute more manageable?

The Company:

When you are consider job offers from various companies, you should have a good idea of how each company operates. What is the corporate culture like? How long have they been in business and what is their reputation like? All these should be considered strongly as they can greatly impact you in the future. If you don't know enough about the company, take some time to research it before you say yes to a job offer. Remember too to consider what opportunities exist for the company to grow, what markets they are looking towards, and their financial stability. Also, look at your potential for advancement, how the company promotes its staff, and how they treat their employees.

Your Instincts:

When you are evaluating different job offers, it's important to listen to yourself. Consider others' suggestions and factor in the critical elements mentioned above, but remember that you will be the one doing this job every day. If you don't think you'd like the job, that's important to remember and should be weighed as heavily as the salary and benefits and other factors.

What You Should Do:

Make a list of everything that's important to you in a job and rank your job offers according to how they fulfil those needs. Consider the elements mentioned above and others you may find that matter to you. By identifying those things that are critical to you, you'll be able to evaluate each job offer in the same way. Draw up a chart and see how your job offers fare. Remember to also consider how you feel personally about each job offer. Good luck!

Working Overseas - For the Beginner

Looking for a job overseas can be a challenge, especially for the first time traveller. If you've decided you want to try something new and you're considering working abroad, here are some suggestions… Go With What You Know: Finding a job with a Canadian-based employer that operates overseas can make your experience easier. You'll be able to attend interviews and gather more information about the job while you are still in Canada. If you have limited experience traveling, and aren't very familiar with different regions of the world, look for a region that is predominately English-speaking. Adjusting to a new area and having to learn a new language can be a double challenge. As well, look for a job that will utilize your skills and take advantage of your past experiences. Going overseas to work should help your career and benefit you in the future. Get Help in your Job Search: You might also want to consider looking for a job through an employment or placement agency that has overseas assignments. Often, agencies and recruiters can provide a valuable service in dealing with your future employer and in giving you information about the necessary documentation, visas, etc. Try the Direct Approach: If you want to work at a specific company in one of their overseas locations, visit their website. Often companies don't post jobs anywhere but their company website and it's a good opportunity to see what openings are available around the world. Government: Canadian government departments often have positions available overseas. Check their website. The advantage of working for the government in an overseas position is the amount of support and assistance available. Different departments recruit for different jobs, so make sure you check the all the departments you are interested in. Consider Volunteer Assignments: Though there won't be any money involved, volunteering overseas through a Canadian agency or organization can be a great way to get your feet wet and to try traveling and working abroad. You'll gain valuable insights into what it's like to work abroad, and you might not necessarily have to commit to a contract or a specific time frame. Working abroad for the beginner can be a rewarding experience if you keep in mind some simple suggestions. Consider working for a Canadian employer with overseas offices. Consider working for the government or using the services of a recruiter. Both these offer support and information that can be vital to your success overseas. Volunteer assignments are a great way to test your capacity for working overseas in a different environment and may not carry all the obligations that a paying job might.

Jobs For Those Who Enjoy Working the Night Shift

Do you like being up late at night? Are you looking for a job that will be more suited to you?


If you are looking for work that is predominately overnights or late evenings, we've got some suggestions for you. The good news is not a lot of people like working late nights and early mornings and companies sometimes offer premiums to work nights. Consider both these entry-level and professional career choices.


Entry Level:


Restaurants and Bars
If you like the nightlife and have great people skills, a good entry-level job might be one related to entertainment. Bars, clubs, and restaurants employ a lot of staff to keep them going late into the night. From bouncers, to cooks, to DJs, and bartenders, a lot of workers help ensure the success of these operations.


Shipping/Receiving


A lot of companies operate at night but we'd never know it. Many warehouses receive stock at night as do places like grocery stores and major department stores. These jobs are great for those who like working late nights.
Consider too working for a courier company. Many jobs at their hubs are overnights.


Call Centres


Many call centres operate 24/7 and need staff overnight. Call centres need phone reps or CSRs, technical support reps, supervisors, and managers. If you enjoy this type of job, look for a call centre that offers a premium for working night shift and that can offer you consistent night shift work.


Professional:


Emergency Workers
If you are looking for a challenging career that operates nights as well, look no further than emergency workers. From electrical and power plant maintenance to police officers, emergency workers are available to work 24/7 and can be in exciting situations whatever the hour. Jobs like these range from EMTs and ambulance personnel, to doctors, nurses, orderlies, and police civilian workers like dispatchers.


Security


Guarding buildings, offices, or money is another job that operates at night as well as daytime. Security officers are often required nights to watch security systems, secure construction and building sites, and provide safety in hospitals, prisons, and bars.


Trucking


Most trucking is done in the evenings and overnight. If you enjoy driving and can work on a deadline, this overnight job might be worth considering.
Media Jobs


From newspaper print staff to hosting the early show on television or radio, a lot of media jobs start very early in the morning. Consider this type of job if you like working with the public, can pay attention to details, and are friendly and motivated.


Entrepreneurship


If none of these jobs interest you, you might want to consider entrepreneurship. Being in business for yourself provides you with some freedom as to what hours you would like to work. Keep in mind that depending on the industry you work in and how many clients or people you interact with, you might have to work around their schedules as well, which might limit your choice of hours. Choosing a business that allows you to be flexible can reduce your need to work on others' schedules.

Many industries rely on night workers for their smooth daytime operations. Whatever you choose, there are a lot of options when it comes to working night shift.

Time Management in Your Everyday Work and Home Life

Squeezing more time into your workday isn't difficult if you know to make small changes. Over time, these small changes can make a big difference to how much work you can actually accomplish. This is especially important if you work at home, or if you work by yourself a lot. For some of us, it's harder to discipline ourselves to be efficient when we're not being supervised. 
These hints and tips can be applied to nearly every aspect of your life, and not just your work life. Try these tips out next time you are searching for a job, and you'll be amazed at how far you get.

Prioritize:

What's important to your boss? What projects need to be done right away and which can wait? Once you know this, you can get started. To find out what's important, number your projects using numbers 1-5. Number 1 is the highest priority project. You may end up with a few of the same number. That's all right. Just start with those ones first and work your way down to fives. That way, if unexpected things come up, (and they always do) at least your important job is done.

The project that needs to get done right away probably isn't your favourite, and that's why you're dreading it. But it's critical that if it's the most important project, you actually move ahead on it. Set yourself some small goals. Depending on the size of the project, you probably won't get the whole thing done in one day. But if you can get a large chunk of it done, it's a start.

Be Aware of Time Wasters:

Meetings, checking e-mail, unnecessary trips to the photocopier, printer, and water cooler are all great time wasters. Sometimes we need a break, and that's fine, but if we're breaking more than we're working, that's not good. If you're on a deadline and there's a meeting you are supposed to attend, make sure you really do need to be there. Often, everyone gets invited to meetings as a courtesy, and sometimes, you can have someone report to you the important parts as necessary.

Checking your email and replying to personal messages, jokes, etc is a great way to waste time. More and more companies are being vigilant on how much internet and emailing is done at work that is of a personal nature. If you're at work, you should be working. It isn't the time to be paying your bills or playing games.

Work at Work:

The best way to actually get work done at work and to organize your day more efficiently is to be able to work at work. Make sure your work environment is quiet and you have all the tools you need to be doing your job. If you need something, ask. If you work for yourself, make sure you have everything to make your job easier. If you need a stapler and you find youself always going over to your office mate's desk for theirs, think of the time you waste. If you're office won't spring for a stapler, ask them if you can bring your own. At least it will help you.

Be Efficient:

Efficiency gets recognized eventually. Save time by doing like projects together. If you need to do ten reports, consider doing them all together. You'll already be in a "report" kind of mood, you'll have all the information you need, and you can set a specific time aside and know how long it takes you.

Other ways to be efficient - make a list of all the things you need from the supply room and get everything at once. Same goes for getting your photocopying done and your emails sent. Block off a section of time for each "project."

If you set time aside for each project, you prioritize your jobs, and you make it a habit to work efficiently at work, you'll be amazed at the actual time you do have. Apply these tips to all your tasks, including your job search, spring cleaning, etc. and you'll be surprised at how much you can accomplish.