If you ever need to stay in Niagara Falls on the cheap, I highly recommend the Backpackers International Hostel (http://www.backpackers.ca/listings.php?companyid=116). Clean, in a quiet neighborhood, and very convenient to things for the price. Single and traditional rooms (ensuite bathroom!).
I came home with a whole bunch of brochures and information packages, great swag (pens, bags, etc) from the vendors, and most importantly... business cards! My task now over the next few days is to follow up on those cards, and drop a quick e-mail at the very least to the people I met. Maybe we'll stay in touch, maybe we won't. We'll certainly run into each other at future conferences.
If I made and can continue to make a good impression when I run into my new professional contacts, I am hoping they will do for me (as I do for people already in my professional network) the following:
a) let me know of employment opportunities at their centres
b) invite me as a guest or speaker to their facility, or have them to mine, so I can impress
c) act as references for me once they have seen what I can do!
As you can see, networking isn't a one-off activity - it takes a concerted, ongoing effort to develop relationships with people. And that isn't easy! But in the long run, it's a tool for finding rewarding work. I will refer you to one of my favourite websites for more resources on Networking: http://www.quintcareers.com/networking_resources.html.
Myself? Another networking tool I'm going to develop is to get involved in a local professional association. There isn't really one right now for Career Development Professionals, so I'm going to see what I can do about that. The OACDP (http://www.oacdp.on.ca) is expanding and just needs someone to launch a branch in this area. Why not me? We'll see!
Showing posts with label job searching. Show all posts
Showing posts with label job searching. Show all posts
Friday, April 11, 2008
Friday, April 4, 2008
Conferences as a networking strategy
Going to conferences is a great way to meet people who can help you with your career development later on! Students usually get a good rate too, and often if you volunteer to help out, you get in for really cheap or free!
For example, I'm going to the Ontario Alliance of Career Development Practitioners annual conference, Opportunities (see http://www.onestep.on.ca/opportunities/) this week. I had to take time off work to do it, but I have worked some overtime to make up the difference. As a student at the moment, I have the opportunity to volunteer as well, so my entrance to the conference is very cheap!
My goals for the conference are as follows:
a) to absorb as much info as possible!
b) to meet lots of colleagues, learn about what they're doing and share what I'm doing;
c) to develop some new relationships, both for information sharing and professional friendships.
I'll post when I return on how it went!
For example, I'm going to the Ontario Alliance of Career Development Practitioners annual conference, Opportunities (see http://www.onestep.on.ca/opportunities/) this week. I had to take time off work to do it, but I have worked some overtime to make up the difference. As a student at the moment, I have the opportunity to volunteer as well, so my entrance to the conference is very cheap!
My goals for the conference are as follows:
a) to absorb as much info as possible!
b) to meet lots of colleagues, learn about what they're doing and share what I'm doing;
c) to develop some new relationships, both for information sharing and professional friendships.
I'll post when I return on how it went!
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Self-Marketing Strategies
You know you're good. Your last or current employer knows you're good. Your spouse or partners tells you you're good. So why is it so hard to toot your own horn when it comes to putting together a job application and presenting yourself at an interview?
I don't profess to understand. What I do know is that it's usually the candidate who presents her/himself the best who gets the job, not necessarily the best-qualified.
The days where you could rely on your supervisor to recognize your abilities and promote you appropriately are gone - they went, in my opinion, during the recession in the 1980s, when large corporations most obviously showed their lack of loyalty to their employees and fired huge chunks of their workforces. More jobs are being created in small and medium sized businesses in Canada in the last 15 years or so (see http://www.rbc.com/newsroom/20061030smallbiz.html, http://ehobdxsqtwdqeete.nqi.com/articles/article_details.aspx?ID=600 and http://www.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/sbrp-rppe.nsf/en/rd02101e.html), and there is often much less room for promotion in small business since there is usually already a large amount of responsibility placed on each employee.
So how do you promote yourself and your abilities to a new employer? I suggest starting by asking yourself the following questions:
What am I proudest of, specifically?
And come up with some powerful examples of your work to answer these questions:
Not just what did I do, but what did I do WELL?
What positive feedback have I received on performance reviews? (keep these!)
What are the top 3 skills or experiences I bring to the job I am seeking to get?
Examples are powerful tools. Think of every laundry soap commercial you have ever seen. What's the one common factor? Clean laundry. Show your "clean laundry" to an employer - it's a strategy that has worked for laundry soap for years, why not you too?
I don't profess to understand. What I do know is that it's usually the candidate who presents her/himself the best who gets the job, not necessarily the best-qualified.
The days where you could rely on your supervisor to recognize your abilities and promote you appropriately are gone - they went, in my opinion, during the recession in the 1980s, when large corporations most obviously showed their lack of loyalty to their employees and fired huge chunks of their workforces. More jobs are being created in small and medium sized businesses in Canada in the last 15 years or so (see http://www.rbc.com/newsroom/20061030smallbiz.html, http://ehobdxsqtwdqeete.nqi.com/articles/article_details.aspx?ID=600 and http://www.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/sbrp-rppe.nsf/en/rd02101e.html), and there is often much less room for promotion in small business since there is usually already a large amount of responsibility placed on each employee.
So how do you promote yourself and your abilities to a new employer? I suggest starting by asking yourself the following questions:
What am I proudest of, specifically?
And come up with some powerful examples of your work to answer these questions:
Not just what did I do, but what did I do WELL?
What positive feedback have I received on performance reviews? (keep these!)
What are the top 3 skills or experiences I bring to the job I am seeking to get?
Examples are powerful tools. Think of every laundry soap commercial you have ever seen. What's the one common factor? Clean laundry. Show your "clean laundry" to an employer - it's a strategy that has worked for laundry soap for years, why not you too?
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Writing "Killer" Cover Letters
A lot of people tell me they are intimidated by writing cover letters. Writing a cover letter is like writing a hit pop song: just follow the formula! My favourite site for cover letter help is QuintCareers, at http://www.quintcareers.com/covres.html.
______________________________
THE FORMULA
Your Contact Info
Address, Phone, etc
Remember - this is a business proposal!
Date - really important!
Company's Contact Info
Include snail mail address
E-mail address if submitting my e-mail
Remember - this is a business letter!
Dear Ms. __________:
It's worth the 10-second phone call to a reception person to try to get a name. How much attention does your junk mail at home, address "Dear Occupant" get? Not much.
And "Ms." is safer than "Miss" or "Mrs" if you don't know the marital status or age of a woman contact.
1st Paragraph: This is just the W5 - who, what when, where and why.
Who are you? What, in just a few words, are your top qualifications for this job?
What job are you applying for?
When and Where did you see the job advertised or did you hear about it?
Why (briefly) are you interested in this job? in working for this company?
That's it - nothing fancy. Just the W5.
Middle Paragraph(s): Provide some detail of your qualifications as they relate to the job you are seeking. If you have a job ad, refer to the requirements in the ad! If you don't have a job ad (ie, you heard a rumour of a job or you think you'd be a good fit somewhere and you are applying on speculation), write one for yourself with what you think are the skills the company needs the most. Use examples and show proof of your qualifications - even say, "For example..."! It's unconventional, and therefore a small risk, but you can even lay out a comparison table of their needs and your skills, like this:
You may find you need more than one paragraph, and that's fine. Just make sure that there is some logic to how your information is organized: for instance, one paragraph on education/training and another on experience; or one on technical skills and one on transferable skills. Do provide proof of yours skills - results, grades, the purposes behind your actions. They are much more interesting to read than an un-qualified "laundry list" of skills.
Closing Paragraph: Thank the employer for reading your letter. If they read to this point, you wrote a good letter, so good job! Also indicate some confidence that you will be invited to an interview, with something like "Looking forward to speaking with you in person" or the like. And that's all you need to put in the letter.
Sincerely,
Sign here if delivering on paper or faxing!
Type Your Name
__________________________________
The first paragraph is the W5, the last paragraph is just thanks and looking forward, and the middle is just connecting the dots between the employer's needs and your background. When an HR person is facing a stack of 100 applications, you need to connect those dots for her/him - s/he doesn't have time to do it for you in the 10-20 seconds your application will get the first time it is looked at. (And if it doesn't catch attention, it won't get looked at again.)
Here are the most common questions I hear, and the answers:
"Do I have to send a cover letter for every job application?"
Yes. Now, anecdotally, I can tell you that only about half of employers will read the letter before your résumé, but you never know which half you are dealing with. So yes, send a cover letter with every résumé. They are a pair, like socks.
"Do I have to send a unique letter with each application?"
Not every job is the same, and every company is different too, so yes, you will send a unique letter for each application you make. That doesn't mean you have to re-invent the wheel every time you write a cover letter, either: once you have written a solid letter, you can adjust it appropriately for each application.
Be sure to save each one individually, though - you may need an old letter for reference when you are called for an interview! Keep any job ads and leads you respond to too so you don't forget where you applied.
______________________________
THE FORMULA
Your Contact Info
Address, Phone, etc
Remember - this is a business proposal!
Date - really important!
Company's Contact Info
Include snail mail address
E-mail address if submitting my e-mail
Remember - this is a business letter!
Dear Ms. __________:
It's worth the 10-second phone call to a reception person to try to get a name. How much attention does your junk mail at home, address "Dear Occupant" get? Not much.
And "Ms." is safer than "Miss" or "Mrs" if you don't know the marital status or age of a woman contact.
1st Paragraph: This is just the W5 - who, what when, where and why.
Who are you? What, in just a few words, are your top qualifications for this job?
What job are you applying for?
When and Where did you see the job advertised or did you hear about it?
Why (briefly) are you interested in this job? in working for this company?
That's it - nothing fancy. Just the W5.
Middle Paragraph(s): Provide some detail of your qualifications as they relate to the job you are seeking. If you have a job ad, refer to the requirements in the ad! If you don't have a job ad (ie, you heard a rumour of a job or you think you'd be a good fit somewhere and you are applying on speculation), write one for yourself with what you think are the skills the company needs the most. Use examples and show proof of your qualifications - even say, "For example..."! It's unconventional, and therefore a small risk, but you can even lay out a comparison table of their needs and your skills, like this:
| YOU NEED: | I BRING: |
| Simply Accounting | training in the latest version, including a run-through of the complete accounting cycle |
You may find you need more than one paragraph, and that's fine. Just make sure that there is some logic to how your information is organized: for instance, one paragraph on education/training and another on experience; or one on technical skills and one on transferable skills. Do provide proof of yours skills - results, grades, the purposes behind your actions. They are much more interesting to read than an un-qualified "laundry list" of skills.
Closing Paragraph: Thank the employer for reading your letter. If they read to this point, you wrote a good letter, so good job! Also indicate some confidence that you will be invited to an interview, with something like "Looking forward to speaking with you in person" or the like. And that's all you need to put in the letter.
Sincerely,
Sign here if delivering on paper or faxing!
Type Your Name
__________________________________
The first paragraph is the W5, the last paragraph is just thanks and looking forward, and the middle is just connecting the dots between the employer's needs and your background. When an HR person is facing a stack of 100 applications, you need to connect those dots for her/him - s/he doesn't have time to do it for you in the 10-20 seconds your application will get the first time it is looked at. (And if it doesn't catch attention, it won't get looked at again.)
Here are the most common questions I hear, and the answers:
"Do I have to send a cover letter for every job application?"
Yes. Now, anecdotally, I can tell you that only about half of employers will read the letter before your résumé, but you never know which half you are dealing with. So yes, send a cover letter with every résumé. They are a pair, like socks.
"Do I have to send a unique letter with each application?"
Not every job is the same, and every company is different too, so yes, you will send a unique letter for each application you make. That doesn't mean you have to re-invent the wheel every time you write a cover letter, either: once you have written a solid letter, you can adjust it appropriately for each application.
Be sure to save each one individually, though - you may need an old letter for reference when you are called for an interview! Keep any job ads and leads you respond to too so you don't forget where you applied.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Writing an Effective Résumé
If I could offer only three ideas in regard to writing effective, interview-getting résumés, I would offer the following:
1) Use relevant key words - as many as you can make fit!
Many companies, especially larger ones, are turning to electronic recruiting tools to assist in the candidate sorting process. It may help to understand how a hiring process often works, in general terms, to understand why you must prepare your résumé for these digital tools as well as for human eyes.
A hiring process follows a few basic steps, most of the time. A gap in current staffing is identified, and candidates are sought to fill the gap. Bear this in mind: companies usually prefer to hire from within or through people who are already known to them. Why hire a stranger when they could hire someone referred by trusted employees or business partners? If a suitable candidate is not found through existing business and personal networks, a company may have to advertise. A job ad usually results in a wide variety of applications from candidates who are qualified, and also candidates who are not at all qualified or suitable for the role. How does the company sort through them?
Many companies, if they are advertising a position and anticipating a large number of applicants, will take advantage of the opportunity to sort through applications using a database. That means that when you apply through a website, and sometimes via e-mail as well, your application goes into a database, and it may not come out for review by human eyes unless it contains the desired set of key words for which the employer searches the database!
So if you have a job ad in front of you, use the list of requesting qualifications to inform your application. Use their words and ideas! If it helps, go through the ad point-by-point and identify where in your training and your experience you acquired the skills being sought. For a highly technical role, or a role with a long list of requirements, it might even be appropriate to include a section of key words!
If you use a good set of key words, when the employer uses a database to sort through the first cut of candidates, your application will come out! Then your application will have to pass a set of human eyes before you will be invited for an interview.
2) Pack your Profile or Summary of Qualifications
The top of half of the first page of your résumé will probably be looked at the most closely of any part of your application, especially since your application will only get 10-20 seconds of attention the first time (and could be last time, unfortunately) it is looked at. Your Profile or Summary of Qualifications must remain concise and also compelling. An HR person sorting through a pile of candidates relies on you to identify your strengths and show how you are a match for the role. S/he does not have the time on a first pass through a set of candidates to "figure out" how you are a fit. Her/his job is to pick a short list of candidates to be looked at more closely.
Your Summary should be brief - aim for no less than 5 points but no more than 7 or 8. It should include active verbs, accomplishments, and proof that you can/have perform(ed) the skills you identify. If an HR person only read your Summary, they should know enough about your background to be interested in meeting you.
3) Focus on Accomplishments
Lists of duties are dull. And just because your 'responsibilities included' X, Y and Z doesn't mean you did them well. Talk about what you did well, differently, or better than previous employers or coworkers. You can often infer that information.
For example: I worked with a young man who had been made the assistant manager at a fast food restaurant while he was still in high school. Wow! And he had on his résumé something dull like "counted cash registers". There was nothing about how he got to be the assistant manager. He explained to me that he made a great suggestion about the cash registers that earned him the managerial spot - he had noticed that other fast food restaurants close most of the tills after a certain point at night, since business rapidly drops off after 7 or 8pm. As it was, at least 1 staff member was staying for 1 1/2 hours after close to count, which made no sense since most of the staff were just standing around for the last hour of the night anyway. So the restaurant stared closing 3 of the 4 tills early and counting them when they had staff there still. We worked it out - if the staff member who stayed made as little ast $8/hour, his suggestion was saving the restaurant at least $2000/year! So we phrased it as a problem solved, in terms of an accomplishment: Recommended closing unneeded tills before restaurant close, saving 300+ hours and $2000+ per year.
Much more interesting than "counted cash registers" isn't it? And it shows an analytical and thoughtful approach to working.
For each bullet item you list under a job description on your résumé (or in an Accomplishments section - if you have some great ones, you may want one), if you can ask the question, "So what?" you have not given enough information about it. Identify how you saved time, money, or solved a problem. How did you make something easier? more efficient? Even if you can't attach a numerical value (although that is powerful), can you attach a qualitative term like "significantly"? How did you encourage repeat business or attract a new customer? Include results whenever you can as well - "provided customer service" doesn't say whether your customers came back, or whetever they liked the service you provided!
Be specific where you can. Specifics sell. Think of every laundry soap commercial you have ever seen - what are you guaranteed to see? Specific kinds of stains, and then a very clean and stain-free result. Examples are interesting to read and provide proof of your qualifications. Anyone can say they are organized. So what? Saying you organized an annual silent auction that enabled your company to donate over $500 to a charity every year is much more powerful.
Implementing these ideas will make your job applications more interesting to both the digital recruiting tools and to human recruiters.
1) Use relevant key words - as many as you can make fit!
Many companies, especially larger ones, are turning to electronic recruiting tools to assist in the candidate sorting process. It may help to understand how a hiring process often works, in general terms, to understand why you must prepare your résumé for these digital tools as well as for human eyes.
A hiring process follows a few basic steps, most of the time. A gap in current staffing is identified, and candidates are sought to fill the gap. Bear this in mind: companies usually prefer to hire from within or through people who are already known to them. Why hire a stranger when they could hire someone referred by trusted employees or business partners? If a suitable candidate is not found through existing business and personal networks, a company may have to advertise. A job ad usually results in a wide variety of applications from candidates who are qualified, and also candidates who are not at all qualified or suitable for the role. How does the company sort through them?
Many companies, if they are advertising a position and anticipating a large number of applicants, will take advantage of the opportunity to sort through applications using a database. That means that when you apply through a website, and sometimes via e-mail as well, your application goes into a database, and it may not come out for review by human eyes unless it contains the desired set of key words for which the employer searches the database!
So if you have a job ad in front of you, use the list of requesting qualifications to inform your application. Use their words and ideas! If it helps, go through the ad point-by-point and identify where in your training and your experience you acquired the skills being sought. For a highly technical role, or a role with a long list of requirements, it might even be appropriate to include a section of key words!
If you use a good set of key words, when the employer uses a database to sort through the first cut of candidates, your application will come out! Then your application will have to pass a set of human eyes before you will be invited for an interview.
2) Pack your Profile or Summary of Qualifications
The top of half of the first page of your résumé will probably be looked at the most closely of any part of your application, especially since your application will only get 10-20 seconds of attention the first time (and could be last time, unfortunately) it is looked at. Your Profile or Summary of Qualifications must remain concise and also compelling. An HR person sorting through a pile of candidates relies on you to identify your strengths and show how you are a match for the role. S/he does not have the time on a first pass through a set of candidates to "figure out" how you are a fit. Her/his job is to pick a short list of candidates to be looked at more closely.
Your Summary should be brief - aim for no less than 5 points but no more than 7 or 8. It should include active verbs, accomplishments, and proof that you can/have perform(ed) the skills you identify. If an HR person only read your Summary, they should know enough about your background to be interested in meeting you.
3) Focus on Accomplishments
Lists of duties are dull. And just because your 'responsibilities included' X, Y and Z doesn't mean you did them well. Talk about what you did well, differently, or better than previous employers or coworkers. You can often infer that information.
For example: I worked with a young man who had been made the assistant manager at a fast food restaurant while he was still in high school. Wow! And he had on his résumé something dull like "counted cash registers". There was nothing about how he got to be the assistant manager. He explained to me that he made a great suggestion about the cash registers that earned him the managerial spot - he had noticed that other fast food restaurants close most of the tills after a certain point at night, since business rapidly drops off after 7 or 8pm. As it was, at least 1 staff member was staying for 1 1/2 hours after close to count, which made no sense since most of the staff were just standing around for the last hour of the night anyway. So the restaurant stared closing 3 of the 4 tills early and counting them when they had staff there still. We worked it out - if the staff member who stayed made as little ast $8/hour, his suggestion was saving the restaurant at least $2000/year! So we phrased it as a problem solved, in terms of an accomplishment: Recommended closing unneeded tills before restaurant close, saving 300+ hours and $2000+ per year.
Much more interesting than "counted cash registers" isn't it? And it shows an analytical and thoughtful approach to working.
For each bullet item you list under a job description on your résumé (or in an Accomplishments section - if you have some great ones, you may want one), if you can ask the question, "So what?" you have not given enough information about it. Identify how you saved time, money, or solved a problem. How did you make something easier? more efficient? Even if you can't attach a numerical value (although that is powerful), can you attach a qualitative term like "significantly"? How did you encourage repeat business or attract a new customer? Include results whenever you can as well - "provided customer service" doesn't say whether your customers came back, or whetever they liked the service you provided!
Be specific where you can. Specifics sell. Think of every laundry soap commercial you have ever seen - what are you guaranteed to see? Specific kinds of stains, and then a very clean and stain-free result. Examples are interesting to read and provide proof of your qualifications. Anyone can say they are organized. So what? Saying you organized an annual silent auction that enabled your company to donate over $500 to a charity every year is much more powerful.
Implementing these ideas will make your job applications more interesting to both the digital recruiting tools and to human recruiters.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Self-Assessment - Know Yourself to Sell Yourself!
Most people moving into the workforce today will have 4 or 5 different careers and employers throughout their working life. Change is becoming a constant, and the change from one career to another could be very significant. How does a worker choose a direction? And how does one sell oneself in a brand new field or for a brand new job?
Like any marketing plan, your self-marketing plan in your new (or even your current) field requires that you know your profuect: you. You have to identify what you have to offer and make it clear to potential employers how you will benefit their organization, and what features you bring that make you a better candidate than any of the others they might interview.
How to Assess Your Skills
Think back to your previous work. Don't forget the unpaid work (volunteerism, extra projects, helping friends).
What did you do well? or differently?
Even if you don't think you stood out, compare yourself to your coworkers. Were you consistently on time? Ahead of schedule? Offering more useful ideas? Better at involving teammates in a process?
What good results did you have?
Even coming from fields were results aren't directly observable, try to identify a few: happy customers; positive comments from supervisors, coworkers or clients; parts of your work turning into a finished product. If you can quantify something (ie, doubled efficiency of e-mail communication by using filters to sort the majority of incoming requests; saved $2500/year by reducing end-of-shift till counting time), that's even more powerful.
Identify transferable skills.
These are sometimes called soft skills or employability skills. Some of these might include: Writing concisely, Identifying resources, Providing support for others, Coordinating tasks, and so on. (For reference, see http://www.quintcareers.com/transferable_skills.html) That said, do not simply identify a "shopping list" of skills. Anyone can say they are "organized." How has that organization shown in your work? Improved the way you worked? Helped your organization to achieve a goal? Provide some specific detail, or the skill loses much of its power.
Choosing a Career Direction - What skills will I need?
First of all, talk to some people who work in the area you are considering. This is called Informational Interviewing. Why? It might not be what you thought it was about. People with experience in the area you are thinking of moving into may also be able to offer you advice on how to get into the area, and what training - if any - you might need to succeed at it. (See http://www.quintcareers.com/informational_interviewing.html) You're not asking for jobs - you just want the information.
Then do some market research. What are the prospects in the new area I'm exploring? What kind of training do I need and where can I get it? How much can I expect to be paid? The Government of Canada offers some great information at http://www.jobfutures.ca/ and http://www.labourmarketinformation.ca/.
Still not sure you're cut out for it? You could try some personality and interest assessment. See a career counsellor for personal assistance. Some brief online tools from the Government of Canada include http://www.jobsetc.ca/toolbox/quizzes/quizzes_home.do?&lang=e.
All of the above will help you to identify what skills you will need (many of which you will already have, others you will need to acquire) in your new area.
Conclusion
When your instincts are telling you to try something new, be it a new job or a new field, do some solid self-research and solid research of your new area before leaping into it. It's important to know what your feet will come down on when you land!
Like any marketing plan, your self-marketing plan in your new (or even your current) field requires that you know your profuect: you. You have to identify what you have to offer and make it clear to potential employers how you will benefit their organization, and what features you bring that make you a better candidate than any of the others they might interview.
How to Assess Your Skills
Think back to your previous work. Don't forget the unpaid work (volunteerism, extra projects, helping friends).
What did you do well? or differently?
Even if you don't think you stood out, compare yourself to your coworkers. Were you consistently on time? Ahead of schedule? Offering more useful ideas? Better at involving teammates in a process?
What good results did you have?
Even coming from fields were results aren't directly observable, try to identify a few: happy customers; positive comments from supervisors, coworkers or clients; parts of your work turning into a finished product. If you can quantify something (ie, doubled efficiency of e-mail communication by using filters to sort the majority of incoming requests; saved $2500/year by reducing end-of-shift till counting time), that's even more powerful.
Identify transferable skills.
These are sometimes called soft skills or employability skills. Some of these might include: Writing concisely, Identifying resources, Providing support for others, Coordinating tasks, and so on. (For reference, see http://www.quintcareers.com/transferable_skills.html) That said, do not simply identify a "shopping list" of skills. Anyone can say they are "organized." How has that organization shown in your work? Improved the way you worked? Helped your organization to achieve a goal? Provide some specific detail, or the skill loses much of its power.
Choosing a Career Direction - What skills will I need?
First of all, talk to some people who work in the area you are considering. This is called Informational Interviewing. Why? It might not be what you thought it was about. People with experience in the area you are thinking of moving into may also be able to offer you advice on how to get into the area, and what training - if any - you might need to succeed at it. (See http://www.quintcareers.com/informational_interviewing.html) You're not asking for jobs - you just want the information.
Then do some market research. What are the prospects in the new area I'm exploring? What kind of training do I need and where can I get it? How much can I expect to be paid? The Government of Canada offers some great information at http://www.jobfutures.ca/ and http://www.labourmarketinformation.ca/.
Still not sure you're cut out for it? You could try some personality and interest assessment. See a career counsellor for personal assistance. Some brief online tools from the Government of Canada include http://www.jobsetc.ca/toolbox/quizzes/quizzes_home.do?&lang=e.
All of the above will help you to identify what skills you will need (many of which you will already have, others you will need to acquire) in your new area.
Conclusion
When your instincts are telling you to try something new, be it a new job or a new field, do some solid self-research and solid research of your new area before leaping into it. It's important to know what your feet will come down on when you land!
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Hunting the Elusive Employer…
Or "How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Job Hunt!"
It’s easy to find job-hunting stressful – the research on employers, tracking down their HR department, composing a special cover letter and tweaking the resume, following up on the application… so much to do!
But it isn’t too hard if you’re organized about it. I recommend keeping a log in a word processor of what you have done for each employer you are going after. I also recommend putting your targets (and achievements!) on a calendar.
I also like to look at job hunting as a challenge. Can I get 1 interview per week? Can I send 10 really good applications in a week? (That means I have done the research on 10 places where I want to work, called and worked with their reception people to find out what’s happening at the company lately and get to HR, left a message or two with HR and wrote down the name on the voicemail to address my application to, ensured I have added keywords relevant to the employer in my resume, written a specific cover letter outlining my experience, proofread it, had a friend proofread it, proofread it again, dropped it off or sent it, and made a note on my calendar to follow up in a week.) Finding a job is a full-time job, and I always treat it as such.
The importance of proofreading can’t be stressed more. Most employers say that they will not forgive even one typo, and that one error means that your application ends up in “the circular file” (the garbage can). It’s also very important that you write a specific cover letter for the company, and tweak your resume to make it specific to the company.
Your resume must have places and especially dates (including months) associated with your work history. You should include achievements and results where you can, like:
WEAK: “supervised front counter staff, handled customer complaints”
STRONG: “supervised 10+ front counter staff and handled customer complaints with tact and diplomacy”
Your cover letter should include specific examples of things that you have done that are related to the kind of work you are trying to get at the company, like:
WEAK: “I have excellent customer service skills.”
STRONG: “I have used my excellent customer service skills to defuse tense conversations and to ensure that the client left feeling like they were treated well. Often these customers remained loyal to my company and I continued to serve them regularly.”
DO NOT RELY ON JOB POSTINGS ALONE. I can’t stress this enough. Most jobs just don’t get advertised. Why? It’s expensive! As a head of a company, would you spend hundreds of dollars to advertise a job to find a complete stranger, when you can just ask your current, reliable, trusted employees and business associates if they know anyone who might be suitable for the position? That’s free! This also means that you should tell everyone you meet that you are looking for work, and what kind of work you’re looking for. You never know – the women who lives across the hall might work for a company that’s hiring!
To make best use of your time, I strongly recommend attending any and all Career Fairs or Job Fairs in the region – like Job Fair 2008, happening February 6 at RIM Park in Waterloo! This Fair has consistently been one of the largest job fairs in Canada, and once again promises to be a not-to-be missed opportunity to network and meet face-to-face with employers from the Waterloo Region and across Canada. See www.partners4employment.ca for details!
A few other great big job fairs:
http://www.thenationaljobfair.com/visitors/ (Montreal and Toronto)
http://www.canadacareerweek.com (Canada)
http://jobsearch.about.com/od/jobfair1/Job_Fair_Directory.htm (USA and Canada resources)
It’s easy to find job-hunting stressful – the research on employers, tracking down their HR department, composing a special cover letter and tweaking the resume, following up on the application… so much to do!
But it isn’t too hard if you’re organized about it. I recommend keeping a log in a word processor of what you have done for each employer you are going after. I also recommend putting your targets (and achievements!) on a calendar.
I also like to look at job hunting as a challenge. Can I get 1 interview per week? Can I send 10 really good applications in a week? (That means I have done the research on 10 places where I want to work, called and worked with their reception people to find out what’s happening at the company lately and get to HR, left a message or two with HR and wrote down the name on the voicemail to address my application to, ensured I have added keywords relevant to the employer in my resume, written a specific cover letter outlining my experience, proofread it, had a friend proofread it, proofread it again, dropped it off or sent it, and made a note on my calendar to follow up in a week.) Finding a job is a full-time job, and I always treat it as such.
The importance of proofreading can’t be stressed more. Most employers say that they will not forgive even one typo, and that one error means that your application ends up in “the circular file” (the garbage can). It’s also very important that you write a specific cover letter for the company, and tweak your resume to make it specific to the company.
Your resume must have places and especially dates (including months) associated with your work history. You should include achievements and results where you can, like:
WEAK: “supervised front counter staff, handled customer complaints”
STRONG: “supervised 10+ front counter staff and handled customer complaints with tact and diplomacy”
Your cover letter should include specific examples of things that you have done that are related to the kind of work you are trying to get at the company, like:
WEAK: “I have excellent customer service skills.”
STRONG: “I have used my excellent customer service skills to defuse tense conversations and to ensure that the client left feeling like they were treated well. Often these customers remained loyal to my company and I continued to serve them regularly.”
DO NOT RELY ON JOB POSTINGS ALONE. I can’t stress this enough. Most jobs just don’t get advertised. Why? It’s expensive! As a head of a company, would you spend hundreds of dollars to advertise a job to find a complete stranger, when you can just ask your current, reliable, trusted employees and business associates if they know anyone who might be suitable for the position? That’s free! This also means that you should tell everyone you meet that you are looking for work, and what kind of work you’re looking for. You never know – the women who lives across the hall might work for a company that’s hiring!
To make best use of your time, I strongly recommend attending any and all Career Fairs or Job Fairs in the region – like Job Fair 2008, happening February 6 at RIM Park in Waterloo! This Fair has consistently been one of the largest job fairs in Canada, and once again promises to be a not-to-be missed opportunity to network and meet face-to-face with employers from the Waterloo Region and across Canada. See www.partners4employment.ca for details!
A few other great big job fairs:
http://www.thenationaljobfair.com/visitors/ (Montreal and Toronto)
http://www.canadacareerweek.com (Canada)
http://jobsearch.about.com/od/jobfair1/Job_Fair_Directory.htm (USA and Canada resources)
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