Career development

Three Simple Rules For Emailing Potential Employers

By Peter Weddle A recent survey found that over a third of HR professionals have visitedsocial networking sites to look for information about employment candidates. Personal info and videos posted on Facebook, Twitter,YouTube and other sites are now considered fair game when employers conduct "background checks" on job seekers. With concerns about office security, employee theft and malicious behavior on the rise, companies want to learn as much as they can about the character of a job seeker, in addition to their capabilities on-the-job. However, this assessment isn't limited to social media, but also applies to every interaction you have with a company online. To put it another way, your evaluation begins with the first email you send, and continues through every communication you have with HR and the company as a whole. From an employer's perspective, you are what you write. This has been true for years, as employers have long judged job applicants by evaluating their resume, cover letterand other interactions with HR. But with the increased frequency and casual nature of online interaction, it's far easier for job seekers to get trapped into careless - and potentially damaging - mistakes. So to help make sure you always write at your best, follow these three simple rules for how to email a prospective employer: Rule 1: Be Business-Like in Employment-Related E-Mail Always assume that all online correspondence you have with an employer is of a business nature. Email may be a casual medium, but trying to get a job is a serious activity, and should be treated that way.

When initiating a correspondence, err on the side of formality.

Begin your message with a standard business greeting that uses the recipient's last name. For example, you might write: "Dear Mr. Brown."

When replying to an employer's email, follow their lead on what greeting to use.

For example, if they begin with an informal "Hi Joseph" or "Hello Joseph," your response can do the same. But if they begin with the more formal "Dear Joseph" or "Dear Mr. Brown," then you should reply with a more formal greeting.

Also follow HR's lead on whether to use a first or last name in your greeting.

If a hiring manager signs their message with their first name, then you should use it in your greeting. If, on the other hand, they used their full name or some variation of their last name (Mr. Jones, Ms. Kay or Steven Jones, for example), then you should greet them using their last name. Rule 2: Watch Your Tone The tone of online communication can be easily misunderstood. In fact, one study found that nearly 50% of all emails imply an unintended (and potentially harmful) tone. How does that happen?

Watch out for the case you use when writing messages.

Just as nobody would like it if you shouted constantly during a conversation, over-using caps in your emails won't go down well, either.

Tone is also conveyed, although more subtly, by word choice and syntax.

Make sure you select terms and phrases that can't be read more than one way, and avoid anything that might be misunderstood if a person isn't familiar with your way of speaking.

Stay away from ambiguity.

The longer and more complex your sentences get, the easier it is for them to be misinterpreted. So keep things short and precise. Rule 3: Represent Yourself Well in Your Writing Job seekers often make a bad impression by failing to pay enough attention to their correspondence. Carefully compose every message, and then proofread what you've written even more carefully before hitting send.

Employers are most impressed with e-mails that are articulate and to-the-point.

Multi-syllable words and complex thoughts don't influence them as much as clearly expressed answers and simple, accurate explanations.

Employers don't like bad punctuation, grammatical errors and misspellings.

This makes it look like you don't pay attention to detail. And if you can't be bothered to double-check something as important as an email to HR, that doesn't say anything good about the potential quality of your work. No one believes that a resume fully conveys all of your potential value to a company. It is, however, the key to the front door. If your resume doesn't open the door and get you invited in for an interview, you'll never have a chance to expand on what you've written. The same is true with your online communication. Even the shortest, seemingly insignificant email between you and HR becomes a part of your record. In fact, in some cases these can have more impact on your evaluation than your cover letter and resume. Since emails are typically less formal, employers see them as a candid snapshot of who you are - and potentially how you will act as an employee. Does that make them more important than your resume? Of course not. Your resume tells an employer what you can do. Your online messages, however, tell them who you are. And in a highly-competitive job market, how you handle emails and what you post online can mean the difference between a job offer and a rejection letter.

The Long Resume: Pushing the SelfMarketing Envelope

By Douglas B. Richardson, Certified Master Coach You all know the rules: your resume should not burden the reader. It should never exceed two pages, and must be easy to scan during that first 30-second once-over by an overburdened, uncharitable screener. It should hit the high points, set the hook and leave elaboration of the fine points to your face-to-face interviews. Conventional wisdom becomes conventional because generally it's correct. That is, most resume-writing guidelines reflect principles that work well for the majority of job seekers, and particularly for those whose resume reflects a progressively-responsible linear career path. When to Break the Rules Yet there are exceptional cases where these resume-writing ground rules do not apply, where the resume is called upon to do the heavy lifting of persuasion rather than the initial tap-dancing of simply piquing a potential employer's interest. For example, job seekers who are well along in their careers or who have made many employment shifts may feel constrained by that two-page limit: there is just too much information to cram in there.

All the venues and all the accomplishments begin pushing the margins outward and shrinking the font size until the resume looks so dense and so cramped that Sam (or Suzy) the Screener lifts it off the pile of 100 resumes, sighs at its heft and drops it immediately into the round file. Similarly, job seekers whose "product profile" contains a lot of diverse elements and skills may find it difficult to summarize their diverse gifts without leaving out a lot of sexy selling points. So, for multifaceted people in their 40's or 50's with a broad variety of employment experience, the best approach may be (play ominous organ chord here)The Long Resume. Having a lengthy resume that breaches the brevity rule is not a good idea when your resume is one of hundreds in a stack that will be scanned at hyper-speed by a jaded reader. But there are situations where it's a safe bet that your resume regardless of its length is going to receive a careful and courteous reading, such as:

When you've already survived an initial screening and are positioned as an attractive candidate When you're a big dog in your field or your skill-sets and experience are esoteric or unique When the details of your accomplishments are relevant in distinguishing you from competing candidates When those interviewing you further along in the selection process need to get the fullest understanding of whom they'll be talking to When the position in question has many diverse functions and responsibilities and your resume must prove many things

Long Means Just Long Enough How long is a long resume? Just long enough to get the job done. Someone once asked Abe Lincoln how long a man's legs should be. "Long enough to reach the ground," he said. That is, it's important to be mindful of the distinction between being comprehensive and being dauntingly verbose. Sixteen pages of single-spaced verbiage will exhaust any reader's patience. But for a senior executive or professional, three or even four pages may be acceptable, particularly if the formatting preserves a lot of "white" on each page and encourages easy reading and retention. There are, moreover, tricks and techniques one can use that keep your self-marketing tool from looking like an Encyclopedia Britannica entry. Reverse Chron Forever I remain convinced that the reverse-chronological resume format is the only acceptable way for senior, sophisticated job seekers to present their bona fides. "Reverse-chrons" answer the reader's natural questions in a natural, logical learning sequence:

Okay, what's the product? What "deliverables" are you selling? (The Profile or Summary of Qualifications) Who has trusted you before? (Past employer) How long did they trust you? (Duration of employment) What's the biggest thing they trusted you with? (Job title) What were the nature and scope of your responsibilities? (General position description) Did you DO anything with those responsibilities? (Selected accomplishments addressing each assigned functional responsibility) Who trusted you before that? How long did they trust you? Etc., etc. going backward Where did you go to school? (Educational summary)

Anything else I should know about you? (Affiliations, certifications, professional activities, relevant community/volunteer activity, books, articles, patents, etc.)

Responsibilities vs. Accomplishments Whether the resume is short or long, inept resume-writers frequently confuse responsibilities and accomplishments, mushing them together in a common stew. They are different: responsibilities describe the nature and scope of your duties, the stakes, risks and outcomes of this position. Accomplishments always described in the past tense are examples of what you already have done; they are your performance proofs. Interestingly, the higher one rises in an organization, the shorter the recitation of responsibilities may need to be (Job Title: President and CEO.Responsibilities: Ran the place, with accountability for everything). Yet the older and more experienced you get, the more those space-consuming accomplishments naturally mount up. What to do? While maintaining the basic reverse-chron format, you can pull the accomplishments out and stick them someplace else. One option is to summarize your greatest hits in a section headed "Selected Career Accomplishments" near the front of the resume, directly following your "Profile" or "Career Summary." With this approach, you choose one "selected accomplishment" for each major functional strength you've listed in your product profile. Six is about the max here: that's all the categories an average reader can handle. Besides, you must leave enough space on page one to list your most recent employer, dates, title and position responsibilities (this way the reader knows you are observing the reverse-chron format rule and are not trying to wing a functional resume by him/her).

The Long Resume: Pushing the Self-Marketing Envelope Page 2

Another approach is to pull the selected accomplishments out of the body of the resume and create a whole new document, called "Selected Accomplishments" or "Relevant Career Achievements," after you've gone over the basic reverse-chron sections. This approach allows you to write about more things without bogging the reader down. This supporting document can be perhaps two pages long (I think longer than that is risky), and it should be organized around basic topical headings keyed to your experience or functional expertise. (See an example Selected Accomplishments Resume) You may want to label this ancillary document an "Addendum." By doing so, what you're saying, in essence, is "here is additional information that expands on my basic pitch points, but you don't have to read all this to get a basic feel for the product." Addenda also are great vehicles for listing impressive but tedious credentials: patents, articles, presentations, awards, professional activities, board memberships, relevant interests, etc. (See an example Resume Addendum) On the other hand, some long resume writers have formatted this supplemental document as if it's not an extension of their resume, but a separate item completely with name, address and contact information up top. They may or may not deliver it at the same time as the core resume: "Yes, I do have a resume with me, Ramona, which summarizes my basic career path. Also, if it would be of interest, I've listed some relevant career accomplishments in greater detail on a separate document. Would you be interested in seeing that too?" And there may be times when this separate accomplishments document should be handed out without the resume, for example, when the recipient already knows the candidate's career history and is interested in learning more about some particular area of his/her experience or accomplishment. Tell Me a Story Each such accomplishment should take the form of a mini-case study that tells a nice, tight little story. For each entry, think of the acronym "SSAR":

1. 2. 3. 4.

What was the Situation? What were the Stakes? What Activities did you do? What was the Result? For example: From 1999 to 2003, as Director of New Product Development for an emerging mid-cap company, launched three new biochemical product lines and grew revenues from zero to $22 million, during a period when industry revenues for similar lines declined an average of 35%. Or: As an external consultant, have implemented comprehensive litigation management and risk management programs, policies and procedures including Sarbanes-Oxley controls for three of the largest property and casualty insurance companies in the U.S. On occasion, a little extra explanation is necessary to help the reader interpret the cold, hard data on the page. Henry Ford II once said, "never apologize, never explain," and I agree that attempting spin-control in a resume can weaken your case. On the other hand, if your corporate structure or titling is confusing, if your company was acquired ("merged with ABC Corp in Spring, 2003...") or was impacted by external events ("following the industry downturn in 2008..."), you may want to provide a couple of interpretative phrases to clarify the waters [see an example]. Furthermore, add details. When readers are interested in specifics, not generalities, it's useful to add plenty of cold, hard numbers to quantify your accomplishments. "Significantly improved productivity" just doesn't have the impact of "reduced operating costs 22% in six months while increasing top-line revenue by more than 18%." Similarly, if you can do so without breaching client or employer confidences, name names. It's more impressive to talk about your work with Hewlett-Packard than to say you were employed by "a major technology company."

Should I Use an Objective? A lot of resume readers abhor objective statements on resumes. The word "objective" basically means, "I want." The employer thinks, "I don't care what you want. I care what I want. I'm the one doing the buying here." Furthermore, the resume world is replete with vapid, prove-nothing objective statements: I want a challenging position with a dynamic company that will draw on my skills and abilities and contribute to the goals of the company. Please avoid such empty, rah-rah verbiage, no matter what your age. On the other hand, for an experienced, senior-level employee, a focused, concrete objective statement can help pinpoint the precise Level, Roles, Functions and Setting in which the candidate's skills and abilities would find fullest expression. As our first long resume example illustrates, such a statement can provide a sort of "rule-out diagnosis," making it clear what kinds of positions and employers are inappropriate. In short, if you know exactly what you want to do, say so and an objective is an acceptable way to do this. On the other hand, if there are a variety of roles or settings where you might be productive and happy, don't draw too tight a box around your product statement. Provide the reader with a "Chinese menu" of your diverse skills, abilities, interests and aptitudes and let them decide what kind of meal they want. In summary, remember that resumes are intended to be helpful. If a short, concise resume will be most helpful, use that. If you're at a stage in your career where you have a lot to sell or where your marketability is shaped by a lot of factors, use a format that delivers all the goods. Need more info on how to create your own successful long resume? Check out our examples for a complete guide to language and formatting.

To Survive the Recession, Become a Career Athlete

By Peter Weddle In order to achieve true career security in today's tough times, we must re-imagine ourselves as "career athletes." We must see ourselves as a new breed of worker-champion. Our model is not that of the athletes engaged in professional sports, but rather, the athletes who are most like us. Worker-champions are the workplace version of Olympians, at least Olympians as they were originally envisioned. These champions are not amateurs; they are athletic activists. Such athletes have a number of special attributes:

They are independent

They decide where and when they will exercise their physical abilities and under what conditions. It might be jogging around the neighborhood or playing in a tennis tournament, but they determine the content and duration of their activity.

They are passionate about their sport

They love the doing of it and are energized and fulfilled by that activity. It strengthens and conditions them, exhilarates and rewards them, and leaves them with a pervasive sense of physical and psychological well-being. Indeed, athletic endeavor can actually create a pleasurable physiological response-what is sometimes called a "runner's high"-that replenishes the spirit as well as the body.

Their goal is to be the best they can be in their chosen sport

A successful athlete continuously strives to excel and then extend the limits of their performance. There is no end to their effort because they believe there is no limit to what they can achieve.

They can be anyone

Athletics are a democratic activity. All of us have a body, so all of us have the inherent ability to engage in and enjoy physical activity. Sure, some of us will perform better than others, but all of us can be athletes, and all of us can reach for and attain the peaks of our own personal excellence. Career athletes are also not amateurs; they are career activists. Their attributes are identical to those of athletes engaged in sports:

They are independent

Career athletes decide where and when they will work and under what conditions. It might be for one employer rather than another or as an independent contractor, but they determine the content and duration of their activity.

They are passionate about their field of work

They love the doing of it and are energized and fulfilled by it. It strengthens and conditions their self-expression, exhilarates and rewards their personal growth, and leaves them with a pervasive sense of mental and emotional well-being. Indeed, a career athlete's work can actually create a pleasurable physiological response-what is sometimes called "flow"-that replenishes the spirit as well as the body.

Their goal is to be the best they can be in their profession, craft or trade

A successful career athlete continuously strives to excel and then extend the limits of their performance. There is no end to their effort because they believe there is no limit to what they can achieve.

They can be anyone

Career development is a democratic activity. All of us have a mind, so all of us have the inherent ability to engage in and enjoy the work we do with it. Sure, some of us will perform better than others, but all of us can be career athletes, and all of us can reach for and attain the peaks of our own personal excellence.

We can't become successful career athletes, however, by simply stating our intention to do so. We also can't rely on serendipity or depend on fate or good fortune, and we certainly can't look to our employers to make it happen. We won't transform ourselves into career activists by wishful thinking or by being loyal and dependable and showing up for work every day. There is only one sure way to establish ourselves as genuine career athletes, and that's to practice Career Fitness. This concept is based on two lessons all of us have learned about our physical health. From our earliest days as a child, we are taught that:

Each of us is individually responsible for the well-being of our own bodies We must work at strengthening and protecting our physical well-being every single day.

These responsibilities are nontransferable and nonnegotiable. When we ignore them, we harm ourselves; and when we accept them, we better our lives. In the 21 Century workplace, the same facts of life apply to our careers as well:
st

Each of us is individually responsible for the well-being of our own career We must work at strengthening and protecting the health of our career every single day.

These responsibilities are also nontransferable and nonnegotiable. When we ignore them, we harm our standard of living; and when we accept them, we better the quality of our lives. Career Fitness enables us to become career athletes and face down the bullies among our employers. It gives us a new vision for our work and the fortitude and self-confidence with which to redesign the nature of our employment. It transforms the reality of our workplace experience. It alters the possibility in our lives from simple survival to prosperity and fulfillment. Career Fitness will restore us it will give us back what many of us have lost: our belief in the American Dreambut it will not recreate the past. It will not bring back the gold watch or a workplace built on (seemingly stable) career ladders. Instead, Career Fitness enables us to re-set the conditions of our future. It empowers us to end the abusive behavior of bad employers and to reach for the extraordinary occupational goals that each and every one of us is naturally capable of achieving. It liberates us to claim our right to full citizenship in the American workplace as well as in the American polity. Ultimately, Career Fitness gives us the vision and the tools to transform our work into a personal and potent pursuit of happiness.

Brag Your Way to Job Interview Success

By Douglas B. Richardson, Certified Master Coach Informal research conducted over the course of three decades of career counseling suggests that over 87.6% of all job interviews begin with one of three queries:

"So, tell me about yourself." "What are your greatest strengths?" "Why should I hire you?"

The same research suggests that at this moment, 87.5% of all interviewees experience involuntarily-dilated pupils, parched mouth, sweaty palms and an incipient case of brain freeze. Yep, when the marbles are down, the stakes are high and the stress is surging, even the most talented people find it hard describe their strengths clearly, confidently and succinctly. As a country we have no trouble shouting "look at me!" in every imaginable media outlet, but when it's time to sing our own praises up close and personal say, in a job interview we suddenly go all shy. It's a Drag to Brag

Why are we so bad at bragging? If you've done a candid self-assessment, tallied your skills, abilities, accomplishments and personal strengths, if you've prepared carefully for the interview and planed for possible questions, why is it so hard to hit the 'play' button and start promoting your achievements? When the spotlight's on you, why do you feel like you're on the verge of a Napoleon Dynamite imitation? Psychologists can probably tell us what the problem is fear of rejection, humiliation or outright scorn, perhaps. Maybe it's lack of basic ego strength, the belief that your most earnest expressions sound like worthless babble, or the fear that you're missing crucial signals about what the interviewer really wants. Or maybe it's simply the worry that aninterview might spin out of control the moment the gate opens, and you'll fail to generate any rapport or chemistry whatsoever. At least you're not alone. Everybody feels that same strange tug around the diaphragm when it's time to sell themselves. The higher the stakes I really want this job! the tighter the tug. But just because everyone suffers the same out-of-body experience when asked to extol their virtues ("Is this me saying this stuff?") doesn't mean that you can't master some basic techniques to quiet yourself down, cool your delivery and calmly blow prospective employers away. To Be or Not to Be Let's start with one general principle: When most people are asked about their strengths, they naturally start to answer with "I am" as in "I am intelligent," or "I am a great project manager" or "I am able to leap tall buildings in a single bound." Don't answer questions with "I am." One of the most important things NOT to say in a job interview is a form of the verb "to be" followed by some high-flown adjectives: "I am creative, bottom-line oriented, innovative, practical, kind, trustworthy, brave, clean, reverent and wholesome." This is unsupported self-praise it's not true just because you say it is, and the interviewer knows it. Equally important, most of us feel squeamish uttering generalized self-praise, even if it's true. We're afraid it sounds arrogant, or lacks self-awareness. Cut to the Chase Remember that employers aren't interested in who you are, but what you can do . They're not buying abstract virtues; they crave stories about you in action, action that addresses their company's needs and wants. The next principle is that you need to learn how to brag in the past tense. To put a finer point on it, employers want to know what you have already done. The fact that you've already accomplished something is evidence that you can do it again for the next employer. Therefore, potential employers tend to be most impressed when you list your skills inpast-tense action verbs. Consider these two sentences:

"I am a very good project manager." "I have always performed best in situations that required strong project management abilities."

See the difference? Use those past-tense verbs! Wrote this. Directed that. Recruited and trained them. Conceived, planned, Implemented and trouble-shot that innovative initiative. It further helps to use verbs that create a visual picture of you in action, as well as simply conveying meaning: "struck a balance among competing interests" instead of "mediated controversy," or " forged a powerful management team" rather than "hired skilled managers." If your personal vocabulary is short on action verbs, find a list online. And remember to have variety don't fall into "Planned A, Planned B, Planned C," but instead find alternate forms of expression to keep things interesting. In addition to all these "Do's," here is one very important "Don't": Don't use overly-fancy words. Eschew erudite multi-syllabic confirmations of your innate intelligence and concomitant facility to translate definitive denotation into awe-inspiring obfuscation (annoying, isn't it?). The average college-educated worker naturally speaks at about an eighth-grade level of written expression. If you drop in a bunch of high-level words and phrases not used in everyday speech, the interviewer will likely think that your answers are rehearsed.

This is not good. Interviewers are constantly looking out for BS, and asking "is this conversation I'm having real?" Being prepared for an interview is good, but looking like you've rehearsed stock answers and impressivesounding words is definitely bad. Anything that suggests your answers are not spontaneous makes it look like you're trying to trick the interviewer. This is a deal breaker for most prospective employers. Practical Tactics Once you've learned how to brag in the past tense, try a few specific techniques on for size. One comfortable way to sing your own praises is to let other people do it for you. This could be called the "other people tell me" approach, and it sounds like this: Well, my staff tells me they like working for me more than any of their prior supervisors because, they say, I'm fair, listen to their point of view, and provide clear performance values and feedback. The source of such praise can be informal, such as "My mommy tells me I'm adorable," or it can be official: "I was named Salesman of the Year in 2005, 2007 and 2008." The awkwardness of self-serving praise is avoided by this technique because you're not the author of the favorable judgment about you. You're simply passing on what other people have said or would say if asked.

Continue Reading Brag Your Way to Job Interview Success

Brag Your Way to Job Interview Success - Page 2

Preferential Treatment Another low-stress approach to talking about your strengths is to state them in terms of preferences. Consider these two statements:

"I am an excellent
trainer."

"Of all the different

things that are part of my job, I enjoy training the most." Same content, utterly different impact. The first is a boast and will be discounted as such, while the second implies that you're motivated and enthusiastic and people usually don't like things they do badly. Let your enthusiasm do the bragging for you. Practice a few variations on this theme:

"The kind of challenge I like best is..." "I really go for situations that require me to..." "There's nothing that gives me more satisfaction than..."

This technique has been battle-tested in interviews, and is unquestionably the easiest and most effective way to brag. Another version of this "I love to do it" approach is the "I'm really proud of it" approach. Statements of pride in past accomplishments can be powerful, because they suggest a strong drive to repeat the satisfaction: When the crisis hit, I was able to assemble a new project team and revise the whole design in six weeks with no down time. I was proud of my people, and I'm proud of the outcome. As this example shows, successful boasting relies on the skilled use of understatement. When asked if you can fix a failing sales force in 16 countries, none of which speak the same language, you could shout "I have every confidence that I can achieve that goal!" Or you can pause, make eye contact with the interviewer, and say quietly, "I'd be completely comfortable with that."

Watch this magic word comfortable sink in. Observe the evident relief in the interviewer's body language, that short, involuntary sigh of relief. It's the best possible reassurance: "I'm not sweating it, so you don't have to sweat it." Powerful stuff. His Master's Voice When gearing up for that big interview, it's important to practice. While making eye contact with a mirror, try mixing and matching all the techniques: My strengths? Well, my performance evaluations have always rated me highly on strategic planning ability, and my boss has told me he trusts my ability to turn goals into practical objectives and action plans. I really like situations where get to translate theory into tangible outcomes. When it comes to implementing marketing campaigns, I'm comfortable collaborating with both the product development people and the sales force. In fact, I'm proudest of my track record in this area. The Proper Sequence When asked about their strengths, people often dump all their diverse features in the same bucket, listing them in random order. However, in an interview you're selling three distinctly kinds of value: your skills, your abilities, and your personal attributes. These are not the same, and should be discussed using separate terms. I suggest using the phrase "skills" to denote areas of subject-matter knowledge and technical expertise. You brag about them by saying, "I know..." (as in I know the new TARP regulations) or "I'm an expert at..." Note that young people can know technical skills just as well as older job-seekers: "I was just certified as..." Abilities are different. They reflect things you've already done, and therefore presumably can do again. You talk about them not in terms of expertise, but in terms of experience (or the equivalent terms "judgment," "maturity" or "savvy"). While expertise usually refers to something specific ("I can write javascript"), the point of experience is that it translates from setting to setting, situation to situation. That's why career consultants often refer to experience as "transferable abilities." When bragging, it's important to distinguish skills from abilities. This will make you sound focused and articulate. When talking about the third component that you're selling personal attributes it's usually best to separate these into two categories:

Motivational drivers interests, specialties, favorite tasks, etc. Comfort zones the types of companies, settings, colleagues and tasks that inspire your best work

It's often hard to talk about your personal traits directly. However, discussing your past accomplishments and qualities required for each of them can be a great solution. In general, sell yourself in this order: first skills, then abilities, then personal qualities. Your technical skills show that you're qualified for the job; you then talk about the broader, transferable abilities you've mastered through experience: leadership, planning, trouble-shooting, business judgment, etc. This category is particularly important to articulate clearly if you you're changing careers. Here's where you say, in effect, "if the employment settings are similar, then what I achieved in my previous career will apply to this one, too." Last, but not least, bring out the personal traits and qualities that do the following:

Distinguish you from other similarly-qualified job seekers Reinforce the "can do" impression created by your previous description of your skills and abilities

While this information is no less important, if you talk about soft, personal stuff first, you risk losing the interviewer's attention before you can wheel out your heavy artillery. Match Needs Now Our final bragging point is perhaps the most important. You should go to each interview with a clear and prioritized view of the potential employer's needs. That way you can give your answers in terms of what the

company is looking for, instead of what you want to offer. Sales professionals know all about this: it's called "qualifying the lead." Tailoring your content to the buyer's perspective pertains both to job-related requirements, and the style the interviewer's personality. Stay alert for signals about the interviewer is looking for, and play your cards off those "tells." As one HR expert once said, "I do not hire people to self-actualize. I'm the one who will be paying the money, and I want value for my buck. I'm a lot more interested in what I want than in what you want." So your interview priorities are these: Find out what the other party perceives as his greatest (and that usually meansmost immediate) needs and interests. Then highlight your skills and abilities that are relevant to those needs. This strategy can be summed up by three words: Match. Needs. Now. To succeed in a job interview, the most important thing is establishing your fundamental compatibility with the employer, both in terms of your skill set and building a basic chemistry the elusive "good fit" interviewers are always looking for. You can get into more detail after that, maybe even in a second interview. Show how you can meet the company's needs, but don't try to cover too much territory too soon. Next time, we'll explore the flip-side of bragging skills answering the other most commonly paralyzing question: "I understand your strengths. What are your weaknesses?"

What Is Your Greatest Weakness?

April 20, 2009 by Lance Haun | 18 Comments

Have you ever received that question in an interview? First, let me apologize. Most of us in HR who ask this question dont even know what were asking, why were asking or what were supposed to get out of this question. Furthermore, candidates are usually so poorly prepared for this question that it usually defeats the purpose of asking it in the first place. I know all of the cool people in HR think the question is bogus. They have a point but there are thousands of bogus questions getting asked daily that we never address. If you arent preparing yourself for this stupid question, than you arent preparing yourself for the other stupid questions that will come your way. It is easily one of the more common questions still asked today. Heres what Ive figured out from asking this question (or being in interviews where this question is asked): If you answered the question quickly, you are either well rehearsed or you are extremely self-aware. If you cant answer the question quickly or you give me some bullshit response, youre either ill-prepared, not at all self-aware or a liar. Well, youre probably all liars when it comes to this question which is why I dont ask the question much. Even if you dont choose to give me a straight answer on this question, your glaring deficiencies should be on the top of your mind. No matter how good you become at anything, your weaknesses will hold you back. If you are the best salesperson in the company yet you neglect your spouse, it will hold you back. If you are the best number cruncher in the government but you cant speak to other people without stuttering, it will hold you back. If you are a great speaker but you cant ever execute a plan, it will hold you back. When important people in your organization are talking about you, they are using but statements. Hes a great welder but he cant get along with people. Shes a great

CEO butshe is a liability with the press. Those but statements point to your perceived weakness.

My weaknesses are pretty simple ones: Impatient If you tell me I cant do something now, I either figure out a way around you or I lose interest in it completely. Getting married has helped this immensely but I am sure my wife would say it still needs improvement. Lacking detail orientation Terrible weakness for a HR person in the current legal climate right? Absolutely. At my first job, I said I was good on detail orientation and simply made it happen. Yes, I have to work twice as hard on it but I can make the big picture stuff happen more quickly to make up for it. Laid back - I couldnt ever say this in an interview (because it would sound like BS) but my laid back attitude has definitely impacted my career negatively. Being approachable helps in HR but it is a pain when it is time to lay down the law and people dont understand why the attitude has disappeared. What I can say is that working on all three of these has made me not only a better employee but a better person. Which, you know, sounds corny. Some people have advocated just focusing on your strengths and letting them compensate for your weaknesses. Unless you are wildly successful (like top 0.01%), focusing on your strengths to compensate for your weaknesses isnt going to get you anywhere. Maintain (or slowly build your strengths) and focus your energy on your deficiencies instead. Whats your greatest weakness and what are you doing to improve it?