Saturday, September 30, 2006

Mind Change in the Job Search

Hi there. A little bit of personal sharing on this post.

I think it's easy for me to have the paralysis of analysis when it comes to my job search. I think there's something wrong with my train of thought here, and maybe you can help me out with it or share your experiences.

I think it has something to do with feeling like a drop in the ocean of job seekers for a particular job. My resume that I send in response to a job posting is just one of several. That phone call or email I send to a contact is the first impression he or she is going to get from me.

I think I can get myself caught up in the pressure of the situation, immediately thinking of how I'm going to blow it, or that there's no way this person is going to be interested in me, my skills, or my experience.

Having typed all of this so far, I can see the fallacy of my thinking. I suppose it has to do with attitude and mindset. Perspective, too.

What if instead I see things from an abundance perspective? That there are so many jobs out there for me? How about instead feeling confident that I'm the one for the job, that the company should be selling themselves to me just as much as I'm trying to sell myself to them? Something like that.

Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Simply emailed my resume - nothing much else

I just sent my resume to a recruiter with the following text:

I am forwarding you my resume because I saw the job fo rhte position posted on your website, and it looks like my skills and experience might provide a match. I'm interested in what you think.
As I look back on that, I can see the typo, but I'm not that concerned. I provided the specific position title and the link to the post, along with the job ID number. I didn't really feel that all the extra verbiage was needed; i.e., the specific ways I'm qualified for it. We'll see. I really hate sending resumes blindly to people I don't already know where there wasn't already an introduction made.

Saturday, September 23, 2006

Would You Hire Yourself?

Kforce.com has an article with some basic questions potential employers ask. What can you do when you answer them honestly and don't measure up? That's a big question that remains unanswered in this article. Nevertheless, here you go:

Entities.Show KFORCE_00486

Thursday, September 21, 2006

Job Security

From the Contract Employee's Handbook, Appendix B: Glossary of Terms for Contract Professionals:

Job security
Job security is an urban myth. The myth of job security owes its origin to the common misconception among employees that they are somehow entitled to keep their employment with a given company in perpetuity. In fact, there is no job security. Employment with a given company is not an entitlement, and the right to continued employment is a myth. Another urban myth is that of job loyalty. Job loyalty arises from the misconception among many employees that if they show loyalty to their employer, their employer will reciprocate with loyalty toward the employee. As Dan Pink points out in his enlightened book Free Agent Nation, conventional wisdom dictates that workers trade loyalty for security, when, in fact, a more realistic assessment shows that workers instead trade talent for opportunity.

Friday, September 15, 2006

Wanted - Your Thoughts on Posting Your Resume Online

Hey folks! Just a few thoughts here. I understand that all the cool kids are posting their resumes to Monster.com these days. I'm just wondering what your experience is, specifically, with regard to the posting methods.

For those that may not be familiar, Monster lets you post your resume to their site in a number of ways:

  • Build a Monster resume
  • Copy and paste text
  • Upload an existing resume
I suppose the easiest thing to do, if you already have one available, is to upload an existing resume. I'm just wondering what others' experiences are with the other methods.

I suppose that each method could be as effective as any other method. I always feel like I'm pigeonholing myself whenever I do something like this, and I believe that this is the first time I've done this in awhile.

What are your thoughts?

Thursday, September 14, 2006

`Emotional intelligence' a new hiring criterion - The Boston Globe

Understanding other people, more than who or what you know, is becoming more important in getting ahead in the job market, according to this article from the Boston Globe:

`Emotional intelligence' a new hiring criterion - The Boston Globe