Get a New Job Earn Career Opportunity

Seven Qualities to Get a Job You Want

2009-05-02T01:21:00.000-07:00

By: Carol Miller

You have graduated!!!! What a relief. You are free to manage your time as you wish. You don’t have to think about your term paper topic (http://www.besttermpaper.com/term_paper_topic.php) for hours. You believe that all the difficulties are already behind. Partially it is so, but you still have to walk half of the way. It means that you should find a rewarding and challenging work to apply your education and develop yourself professionally.

There are a lot of companies which are employing graduates with strong education background and fluency in several foreign languages. But will you agree that there are quite many candidates meeting the following requirements? How will human resource managers select from all of them? Here your personal and business qualities count. There are some essential features a person should possess to impress the interviewer and get the job.

I will list down a few.

Drive - energy and your desire to work. It is your attitude to work, your duties, and responsibilities. Of course you can approach your work formally, fulfilling your major duties with accuracy and on time. Surely, it is very important. But an employee with “drive “, the person who is enthusiastic and creative about his work is much more interesting for the potential employer.

Creativity - your ability to offer exceptional ideas and innovative methods. You have a goal and you are to achieve it. And you suggest your ways of reaching it. This quality is especially important for marketing, advertising, though of course it will present you to advantage in any sphere of business.

Result-oriented –Can you always complete what you began doing? No matter what difficulties you have while working on it, you are to complete it by the deadline.

Resilience - A man was walking, stumbled and fell down, and then he shook himself off and went on further. For example, you are taking part in a group discussion of some urgent problem. The idea you suggested made everyone laugh and no one approved it. You got offended, went into your shell and stopped proving your point of view. Then your resilience is very low. You should be able to stand your ground.

Leadership - Employers hire a young specialist hoping that he has a great potential and in ten years time he will become a leader. Not everyone must be a leader and become a top manager afterwards. But a good manager, that is a person able to handle the organization of other people, is indispensable in any respectable company.

Team-commitment – many companies have a project system of management. Several people are working on some project. The success of the project depends on each member of the team. What matters here is your ability to get on with different people, find common language with all the staff and feel like a united team. “One for all and all for one”. In any business a strong team – is a pledge of successful fulfillment of the project.

Communication skills are of primary importance for any sphere, as there is no area where we can do without communication. How to make others listen to you, how to present yourself, how to uphold your point of view. This is a mini list of essential communicative skills.
How can the employer know you have all these qualities? You will include them in your resume (e. g. mentioning that at college you were a group monitor and were involved in social activities). Give a brief and precise review of all your successful achievements in your resume.

Don’t get upset if you lack some of the qualities. As psychologists state you can develop all of them with the help of special exercises and trainings. Of course these qualities are significant not only for work, but of course for life in general. Remember, that we know what we are, but we don’t know what we might be. Our resources are endless and thanks God that it is really so!

About The Author
Carol Miller is a senior researcher at BestTermPaper.com She conducts several projects on education and current trends in educational reform in South-Asian region. She provides advice to the customers of BestTermPaper.com concerning term paper topic selection and other questions.

Top HotJobs100

2009-04-28T04:47:00.000-07:00

The HotJobs 100, showcasing many of the top U.S. employers, is a great starting point for job seekers who want to know which companies are experiencing robust hiring activity.

Despite recent increases in the unemployment rate, industries such as health care are seeing continued growth in job openings. In addition, several cities in the United States, such as Atlanta and Dallas, offer a wide array of career opportunities in growing industries.

Variety in the Job Market

"You can't think of the job market as too monolithic," says John Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, the nation's oldest outplacement consulting firm. "A number of industries out there are doing very well currently. Health care, energy, international business, agriculture, and commodities are thriving."

On the right side of this page, you'll find more information on the top employment categories and locations within the HotJobs 100.

Make Sure You Stand Out

Today's job market is nevertheless competitive, so take these steps to make sure you put your best foot forward:

Update and upload your resume. Focus on your accomplishments and tailor each resume to the job description. You can save several versions of your resume in your Yahoo! HotJobs profile.

Research potential employers. Start by looking into the top employers listed here, and learn about their businesses by viewing their online profiles here. Informed candidates always have an advantage.

Prepare for interviews. Spend time reviewing job descriptions and anticipate
relevant questions. Prepare brief stories that focus on your achievements and how you might bring value to a prospective employer.

Keep networking. Talk to friends and associates about your career interests. Attend relevant professional conferences. Explore other networking resources available in Yahoo! HotJobs.

Finally, keep applying -- until you land the next job that's right for you.

Source: HotJobs at Yahoo.com

Seasonal Jobs

2009-04-24T20:08:00.000-07:00

Seasonal jobs are a great way to learn new skills and make extra money for that snow blower you've had your eye on. Many retailers also offer their seasonal employees a store discount, which will come in mighty handy when it comes time to shop for everyone on your list.

Holiday jobs are perfect for teens, college students and teachers during the winter break, as well as anyone else looking for part-time employment. Not only are there more jobs during the November and December holiday season, but there is also greater flexibility, as holiday shopping hours have businesses opening earlier and closing later. From busy shipping companies like FedEx and UPS to retail giants including Kohl’s and Michaels, many businesses need extra elves to help out during the holiday season.

The key to securing great seasonal jobs may not even be a secret at all—you just need some common sense and a healthy dose of assertiveness. Check out our articles for the best way to land temporary employment over the winter months.

Where to look for the best seasonal jobsYou may not have to look very far to find the perfect job for you.

Your interests are reflected in the stores you frequent the most, and employers like to hire people who are knowledgeable and invested in their business. Here are some of the industries that get hot when it gets cool outside:

Retail jobs
This is a no-brainer. People buy more stuff during the holiday months. And they buy it at stores. Hence, more employees are needed for retail jobs. This is where you come in. Whether you want to refold shirts just yards from the mall food court or restock the aisles of your local toy store, the possibilities are endless. Stores such as Party City, Toys “R” Us, Target, and Bed Bath & Beyond will all certainly be hiring extra workers this season. Be sure to ask potential employers if they offer an employee discount; you might be able to pick up gifts, like a back-scratcher for Dad and some bubble bath for Mom, without being cheap!

Restaurant jobs
Holiday foot traffic picks up at both fast food joints, such as Wendy’s and McDonald’s, as well as casual dining eateries, including Romano’s Macaroni Grill and The Cheesecake Factory. Not only are people grabbing bites on the go between shopping stops, but they’re meeting up with family and friends. And when you’re spending days slaving in the kitchen on the year’s most anticipated home-cooked meals, you need a break from the potato peeler and the turkey baster at some point. Since restaurants are open later than your typical business, there’s added flexibility in the hours for restaurant jobs. And if you’re eligible for an employee discount, free or discounted grub will help you afford grabbing gifts for the grandparents and second cousins on your list.

Resort jobs and winter wonderlands
Hotels, ski resorts and ice skating rinks see a huge increase in their business in the winter and around the holidays. Not only will you have plenty to keep you busy, but you could get a discount on ski rentals, hotel stays or free ice skating passes for you and your friends. You could also join the wait staff at a resort or hotel restaurant, in which case you could score free or discounted meals. Besides, there’s nothing like a little snow and ice to really get you into the holiday spirit.

The North Pole
What better boss to have than jolly old Saint Nick, right? O.K., we don’t mean this literally. But the truth is that the holiday season offers many rare job opportunities that aren’t available the rest of the year; that is, unless we missed the shopping mall Santa fly fishing in the department store fountain in the middle of July. From the aforementioned Kris Kringle impersonators and his assistants to Christmas tree lot workers, gift wrappers and toy store associates, there’s a veritable holiday buffet of unique jobs to try out. And don’t forget Santa’s real-world sleigh – check out FedEx and other couriers with extra hiring needs during the gift-giving season

Full Story:
http://www.snagajob.com

Resurrecting the Perfect Resume, Part One

2009-04-21T04:46:00.000-07:00

Is your resume dead? Don't be so quick to say, "No way!" Of the hundreds of resumes I've seen written by job seekers of all backgrounds and educational levels, easily 95% qualify to be labelled as dead-but-not-yet-buried.

A dead resume lacks a clear structure or chronology, does not present or quantify achievements, fails to offer a "big picture" of what you would bring to the employer and is impersonal rather than expressive. Worse yet, a dead resume fails to win you the response you're hoping for from the employer: an invitation for a job interview.

To win more job interviews and dramatically increase the quality of opportunities your resume can help you attract, strip your resume down to bare bones and resurrect it using the same techniques professional resume writers use to reposition job seekers whose own job search campaigns have failed to yield the results they need.

Problem #1: Resume Lacks Structure

You cannot create a resume without first creating a structure for it. Resumes are complicated documents that include different types of information which they communicate to different types of readers. If your resume has a poor structure it will make no sense to the reader; he or she will simply discard your resume and move on the next one in the pile, and you will count yourself lucky to even get a rejection letter.

Solution #1: Create A Strong Skeleton For Your Resume

Be as specific as possible in the content you want to communicate.

Match your content to the job you are applying for and the industry you seek to enter.

Avoid jargon yet be sure to use industry-specific key words.

Organize and sequence all of your dates and details. You didn't edit, then write and then initiate; you initiated, then wrote and then edited.

List dates chronologically but in reverse order.

Combine like skills together.

Choose a resume style (chronological, functional, skills-based combination) that highlights your accomplishments.

List resume sections with most important section first, least important section last and all other sections in their appropriate place in between those two poles. Education should rarely be listed first unless you seek work either in academia or in a field where education is paramount, such as in medicine.

Be consistent in how you record information. Begin bulleted sentences and phrases with the same parts of speech. Give the same level of detail in all resume sections. Use first person for verbs, not second. It is inappropriate to refer to yourself in the second person as if you are someone else: "Resolves customer complaints promptly," really means, "Mary resolves customer complaints promptly." To imply, "I resolve customer complaints promptly," say, "Resolve customer complaints promptly."

Double check all your details. Edit your resume at least three times yourself, then invite knowledgeable others to edit it as well. Then edit it again yourself, this time reading the whole document backwards, word by word. Do not rely on spell checkers to do this for you - they are only as thorough as you are!

Problem #2: Resume Contains No Substance

Many job seekers write a resume with structure but no substance, with a skeleton but no muscles. Remember that your resume is your brochure; its job is to highlight your best qualities and credentials, downplay your weaknesses and sell the reader on the idea of interviewing you. To accomplish this you must layer details and specific examples into your key resume sections.

Solution #2: Layer Achievement Muscles Onto Your Resume Skeleton

Highlight the most vital points.

Add deeper levels of detail; articulate clearly and succinctly.

Tell success stories with brevity and power.

Make each word count.

Use graphics and bold, underline, or italics to draw your reader's eyes to what you most want them to read.

Describe results and outcomes to sell your highest level of achievement.

Apply a journalism technique to craft powerful success stories. What did you do? How did you do it? Why? With and for whom? Where? When? What results did you achieve? Answer these questions fully on separate paper, then edit your story until it fits into 1-2 sentences and insert it in your resume. Use the original expanded version of your story to share verbally with employers in interviews.

Characterize all numbers in their most powerful and realistic form. Let's say you cashiered at a grocery store and closed out your register with an average of $1000 daily. Let's also say that you worked five days a week. Multiply that $1000 times five days per week and it becomes $5000 weekly; or $20,000 monthly, if your prefer.

Put yourself in your reader's shoes and anticipate their questions, concerns and objections. Be honest in your assessment of your weaknesses and proactive in your defense against questions about them. If you know you lack specific experience, then go out of your way to translate your background into language and skill sets a potential employer will want to hear.

What assumptions do you fear an employer will make about you? That you're too old? Too young? Inexperienced? Overqualified? Build resume muscles on these specific issues by challenging assumptions before they can be raised.

Use action verbs and concrete, quantifiable nouns. Avoid passive verbs. Use verbs that communicate to your reader's senses and create the impression of action.

Avoid vague terms like "several", "many" and "some"; try specific numbers or number ranges instead.

Choose verbs and nouns that demonstrate the highest level of skill you have achieved.

Cheryl Lynch Simpson is a Spiritual Director and Solutions Coach who helps women discover and create the life they've always wanted to live. Cheryl is the author of over 30 print/Internet articles and the founder of Coaching Solutions For Women, a coaching website that produces and showcases career, business, and life solutions that improve the life balance of today's busy women. For a complimentary copy of her latest e-book, Ten-Minute Stress Zappers for Women Service Business Owners, visit http://www.coachingsolutionsforwomen.com.