JobTabs Job Search & Resume | Job Search Software for Job Seekers

January 15, 2009

Job Search Warning – Do not do this by yourself

Filed under: Job Searching,Motivation,Sell Yourself — Tags: Job Search, JobTabs, Networking, resumes — admin @ 12:07 am

Some of the best advice I could ever hope to offer any individual job seeker is not to be an individual job seeker. By this I mean, do not engage the job search process alone. In most every city or town of any size there is a local networking group that is helping people transition their careers or get back on their feet after losing their job. These groups are powerful resources and can do much to send a job seeker in the right direction. They often have guest speakers addressing many facets of the job search process. There are people there to critique your resume and offer suggestions on what you can do to sell yourself.

Most job searching networks are free and are held at community centers or churches. There is no need to be of a particular denomination and typically there will be no discussion of faith. These are people helping people and it is a beautiful thing. Even if you are trying to move across the country a local support group can help you in many ways. Most likely, you will also meet some new friends. The job search is a draining experience in so many ways. When people brave harsh circumstances together, a certain authenticity comes to the surface. People tend to be more sincere and open as to who they are and what they are up against. It will not be a waste of your time.

Lest you believe that the networking groups are for losers, you will be amazed at the considerable number of tier one, top-notch, alpha males/alpha females, that are looking for jobs. These people will remind you that you are not alone. The typical job seeker will look for a job every 3-5 years. By going to these support groups you will be assured that it is perfectly okay to be looking for a job. You are molting professionally and when you emerge from this cocoon you will have the wings of a butterfly.

A great resource for finding Job Networking Groups in your area can be found at job-hunt.org. job-hunt.org was founded by Susan Joyce after she was laid off from Digital Equipment Corp. Take a gander at this resource page,

http://www.job-hunt.org/job-search-networking/job-search-networking.shtml

The job search – do not do it alone!

Can you share any other sources of job networking groups? Please post them below.

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January 14, 2009

Do you mortise your resume? I hope so!

Filed under: Job Searching,Resume Writing,Sell Yourself — Tags: Job Search, JobTabs, Resume Writing, Sell Yourself — admin @ 12:09 am

When we moved into our house, the previous owner had these wide closet doors that wouldn’t stay shut and it drove my wife crazy. I decided to solve the problem by installing ball catches to hold the doors in place.

Whenever I go to the hardware store, I always read the instructions of anything I need to install before I make any purchases. It gives me the opportunity to buy any extra tools I might need and gives me a chance to make sure I am up to the task. Picked up a Stanley ball catch and read the instructions. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Got it. Took it home, whipped out my hulking, pseudo-phallic symbol of a power drill and went to work. I always read the directions several times before I do anything, because a mistake on a home project is acutely painful – especially if there is a drill involved.

I don’t know how I did it, but I completely missed this word ‘mortise’. I didn’t really know what it meant, but how difficult could it be? Any step described by one word can’t be that complicated. Step 6 was soon upon me, ‘mortise’. I whipped out the dictionary and looked it up and still couldn’t figure it out. Then it dawned on me. I had to gouge out a recess in the door frame so that the strike plate would be be flush with the frame. When the door closes, the ball in the ball catch needs a recess in the frame to hold the door shut. I don’t like the idea of gouging anything and began to make the problem much more complicated than it really was.

“Huh? I have to gouge a recess in the frame?! Why didn’t they just say so?! These people were expecting me to get my wood chisels and start carving a hole in the door frame. I’m not a carpenter! How many rows upon rows of lexicographers did it take to come up with this word – mortise!? If they wanted me to gouge out a hole in the frame, why didn’t they just say tell me to ‘gouge out a hole in the frame?’ These corporate titans sitting behind their massive mahogany desks preying upon the everyday house husband. These people screwed me!”

I was fuming. Eventually, I cooled off, accepted my situation, and set out to come up with a solution. Wound up drilling a couple shallow holes and then finishing it with a slightly deeper hole in the center. Piece of cake. The ball catch works beautifully and is the standard to which all persons installing ball catches should aspire.

Then the pall of the irony hit me like a ton of bricks. The Stanley Corporation did exactly what I would have told them to do. They skirted over the unsavory details. They created an image of simplicity by making their instructions so trite, I would just read right through them. If I had been reading the instructions in the store and read, “6. Gouge or drill a recess in the frame of the door.”, I probably wouldn’t have purchased the ball catch. I would have looked for a “simpler solution” from another company. When I actually went about installing the ball catch the real problem was freaking out when things weren’t as straight forward as I expected. I over-reacted, even though I had all of the tools and savvy I needed to do the job. They did what I encourage job seekers to do every day. Downplay the details of anything that the prospective employer might find unsavory. Bring attention to what you have accomplished in the context of what they want to hear. Downplay everything and anything that does not pertain to what they are looking for.

This of course begs the question, “Don’t you risk running the chance that the employer will be fuming after you get hired?” The answer is a firm and resolute, “No!” That’s the job you want, right? You have the experience and can attest to it, right? How can the employer fume? Gentle reader, when you are looking for a job you need to close the deal. If there is any dissonance after you are hired, you need to mollify the employer’s fears by reaffirming your qualifications and then going out there and doing an over-the-top job. In fact, if your performance is anywhere near as good as my ball catch installation you can look forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship with your employer!

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January 13, 2009

3 Mind Boggling Ironies of the Job Search

Filed under: Job Searching,Motivation — Tags: Job Search, JobTabs, Motivation — admin @ 12:21 am

Think you’re ready for the job search? I’ll bet you’re not. The job search is laden with upside down, mind numbing, ego jolting ironies. Allow me to apprise you of a few.

#1. The more you search the tougher it gets
“Huh? Don’t you mean, ‘The more you do it the easier it gets?'” Nope. That’s why its called an irony. The longer the job search takes, the longer you have been scrutinized, probed on very private matters (annual salary, reason for departure, who are you, etc.), rejected, let down, dead ended, passed over, etc. Ouch. You can’t possibly expect yourself to be as resilient after six months of this as you are in the beginning. Invest in the right tools and resources that will make the journey easier.

#2. Just when you get good at it you have to stop
When you finally get good at identifying opportunities, researching the employers, tailoring your resume, and interviewing – when you have finally mastered all of this – you have to stop. This is because you finally got the job offer you want. Wouldn’t it be great if once we got good at it, we could keep on doing it for a couple more months in case there are hard times ahead? Yes, that would be great but that is not how it works. When you get that job offer, you close the books on any other irons you may have in the fire. You are now among the employed and unless you can work two full time jobs you will have to let other employers know you have accepted a job offer.

#3. Work all day. Get no reward
The job search is a 0% commission proposition. You do not get paid to look for a job. In fact, all of the work expended in the job search is just to have the opportunity to walk into a company for the purpose of reestablishing the work to reward process. Yet, most people will tell you that they work harder at their job search than they do at the job they get paid for. An irony indeed.

What is really creepy is that this is the irony where the head games begin to seep in. Who would otherwise be hard working men and women have trouble getting out of bed. The job search begins to give way to those cob webs in the corner of the room that have for the first time in the past four years become really annoying. And look at the dust in the back of this filing cabinet! The aversion to your computer will be particularly acute, but you won’t know why. And then you won’t care.

The job search is an emotionally taxing endeavor. It is riddled with too many ironies to mention (Did I forget that you have to smile and exude confidence even though you don’t even have a job?) It doesn’t matter. What does matter is that you use all of the resources you can so that the transition will never be difficult again.

All of this served as the foundation upon which JobTabs was built. Allow us to show how JobTabs flips some of these ironies.

The more you search the easier it gets
Every time you apply to a job with a perfectly tailored cover letter and resume, you at least have that cover letter and resume to serve you for the next position. I am not talking somewhere on your hard drive, in the newest email application, zipped up files stored on the web or anything like that. I am talking right there in JobTabs in a hierarchical tree so that you can identify exactly how that resume puts your best foot forward for each kind of job. The more jobs you apply to the larger your arsenal of perfectly, tailored resumes becomes. Moreover, the more jobs you apply to the less work you have to do to perfect each resume to the specifics of any new job posting.

When you get good you will be able to begin right where you left off
We believe that if you want to stand on the shoulders of giants, the best shoulders to stand on are your own. Simply put, JobTabs has powerful facilities to create your own personal job search knowledge base. This includes file attachments, hyperlinks and even entire web pages. What’s more every contact and every single conversation you had with everyone along the way is chronologically ordered for your review. You will never forget a child’s name or a contacts favorite vacation destination ever again.

Work all day and get no reward
I would love to tell you that we can pay you while you are looking for a job – I can’t. However, I can assure you that you will get more benefit for the work you expend than you could have ever imagined. I know because I imagined and derived the benefit of that labor for fifteen years. Its your turn now.

Are there any ironies we overlooked? We would love to hear what they are, so please share any ironies we over looked in the comment section below. Thank you!

John Coffey is the President of JobTabs, LLC. Through JobTabs Job Search & Resume Builder, thousands of job seekers have taken control of their destiny in finding new and fulfilling careers. JobTabs Job Search & Resume Builder motivates job seekers by making the job search easier by a huge order of magnitude. John Coffey can be reached via his website at JobTabs Job Search & Resume Builder, by email via jpcoffey at jobtabs.com, and by phone at 404-255-0248.

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January 12, 2009

Billy Mays here with some great tips on getting a job . . .

Filed under: Job Searching,Resume Writing,Sell Yourself — Tags: Career, Employment, Job Search, JobTabs, Resume Writing — admin @ 12:48 am

Billy Mays didn’t write this post, but he serves as the backdrop for resourceful ways to sell yourself on the job search.

There are all kinds of subtleties at play during the process of selling. You need look no further than the ads that abound on CNN and late night TV. Personally, I find these ads demeaning. The sales pitch is so overwhelming it is as if they are focusing on creating a knee jerk reaction on behalf of the user to pick up the phone and buy the product. The most prolific seem to be these ads featuring Billy Mays, the purveyor of

Mighty Mendit
Mighty Putty
HandySwitch
Steam Buddy
and a host of other handy dandy items.

I have studied these ads intently.

What can I glean from these ads that would help the taberatti (people who use JobTabs) land their next job?

Common to all of these sales pitches, whether it is Billy Mays or someone else, is invariably,

“This product is amazing!”
“If you order now I will double/triple the offer!”
“But wait there’s more, I will throw in this handy dandy gizmo absolutely free!”

If you think about it, these are all resourceful ways to sell yourself on the job front. Let’s have a closer look.

This product is amazing! The message is that this is a product that delivers solutions. There are compelling videos of people struggling without their product and then showing satisfied people who are using the product.

Let the value you impart as an excellent candidate be unmistakable. Here is how you do this.

1. Present yourself as a problem solver. Much like the videos, use your resume to paint a picture of problems that were not being solved and how the company was suffering. Then you came in and solved the problems and everybody was happy. This is the P.A.R. (Problem – Action – Results) approach to writing your resume.

2. Quantify the impact you had on the solution. What percentage did sales increase? How many dollars did you save? You don’t have to do a business school case study to get these numbers. Use the best resources available to you and roll with it.

3. Sprinkle the commendations and accolades you have received from management to let the person reading your resume know that you are good at what you do.

Be sure you understand the professional demands of the position you are applying to. There are often challenges faced in one company that have been overcome in another. Be sure that your exposure in the field is rounded enough so as not to disqualify you from consideration. Make an effort to research the company and find out what challenges they are up against. The best thing you can do is put your talent in the context of the specific challenges the company is facing to the best of your ability.

If you order now, I will double the offer. The goal is to create a sense of urgency.

Don’t be afraid to create a sense of urgency. This can be a powerful motivator for employers to give your candidacy serious consideration now. It is important to note that this has to be done with tact. Too urgent could disqualify your candidacy because the administrative process cannot move fast enough. Not urgent enough, will cast doubt on how urgent all of this really is. In your cover letter, you can mention that you are getting a great response from companies looking for your qualifications, but working at XYZ Corp. is the fit you are looking for. Examples,

“The breadth of my hands on experience in the field has garnered more interest from employers than I had initially anticipated given the economic downturn. As much as I appreciate their interest, I firmly believe working at XYZ Corp would be the best fit for me. Simply put, I have the experience to leverage the breadth of the product line to give key advantages to XYZ customers that competing firms cannot offer. As confident as I am that I could deliver results for XYZ, I would not want any delays in the hiring process to impact my candidacy with other employers who are more forthcoming with their interest. If we could meet this Friday . . . “

“My success at delivering results has garnered more interest from employers than I had initially anticipated given the economic downturn. As much as I appreciate their interest, I firmly believe working at XYZ Corp would be the best fit for me. Companies want increased sales and that is what I do best. I would not want any delays in my candidacy for this position to be construed as ambivalence by other employers who are ready to move more quickly. If we could meet this Friday . . . “

“My ability to think outside the box and deliver innovative solutions has garnered more interest from employers than I had anticipated given the economic downturn. As much as I appreciate their interest, I firmly believe I can lend the most value to XYZ Corp. While every company needs structure and deadlines to succeed, XYZ Corp has long had a reputation for fostering innovation and creativity and this is an environment where I thrive. As confident as I am that I could have a huge impact at XYZ, I do not want to put off any employers who have made their interest in my innovation and creativity readily apparent. If we could meet this Friday . . . “

But wait there’s more, I will throw in this handy dandy gizmo – absolutely free! The message is that if you buy this product, you will get more than what you pay for.

We are hardly suggesting that you work for half price. We are suggesting that you stress the extra value you are bringing to the table above and beyond what they are looking for. Remember, it is not incumbent upon the employer to draw the conclusion that you are bringing a lot to the table. For example, if you have a Masters Degree in Management don’t count on your employer saying, “Hey, this candidate has a Master’s degree. This will provide a better foundation for her judgement.” It is incumbent upon you, the job seeker, to tie the extra value you are bringing to the table with what they are looking for. Sell it. For example, in your cover letter for a Product Manager position you can say something like,

“My immersion in Boston University’s M.S. in Management program allowed me to understand organizational behavior and the signposts to look for as a product line evolves. In addition to leading the product team more prudently, I will be set able to set realistic goals as well as avoid pitfalls that have beset lesser companies.”

In closing, getting a job is going to require some level of salesmanship. While we readily discourage the use of any knee-jerk, impulse buy sales tactics, there are some subtleties in this approach that you can use to improve your candidacy for the jobs you apply to. Give your candidacy an edge and sell yourself. Did I miss any other part of the sales pitch? Let me know and I will fill in the gaps!

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January 9, 2009

Resume Writing [5 of 5] – Glow

Filed under: Job Searching,Resume Writing — Tags: Career, Employment, jobs, resume, Resume Writing — admin @ 11:31 am

Job seekers are bombarded with advice, tips and articles from every corner of the internet on how to write a fantastic resume. Some of the most visible resources are,

Alison Doyle from About.com

Randall Hansen of QuintCareers.com

Susan Joyce of Job-Hunt.org

Some people are obviously paying attention. We have seen wonderful examples of well written resumes that incorporate our basic recommendations as well as the recommendations of other professionals. Sadly, for many, for all of the effort that has been put into writing the resume it manages to read like a military specification for a lug nut. Our last article in this five part series covers selling your self as a competent professional who is appreciated by his subordinates, peers and management. Glow. Bring your resume alive by taking the following cues,

Make it apparent that you do your job well
Read the bullets from your most recent job and ask yourself one extremely important question, “Could some guy who got fired for doing my job badly say the same thing?” Really, look at your resume and ask yourself that question.

To illustrate our point, let’s look at some of the bullets that a SEC Auditor of Bernard Madoff, LLC could put on his resume,

Audited the books of major Wall Street investment firms for trading irregularities.
Investigated investment banking compliance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and FTC trading regulations.
Conducted detailed investigations based on transaction anomalies and whistle blower reports.
Monitored trading transaction streams for key variances that would point to a breach in normal trading behavior.
Worked closely with federal agencies to include the Department of Commerce, Office of the Treasury and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Apprised upper managements of audit schedules and resolutions.
Oversaw a staff of nine accountants.

For those of you unfamiliar with the case, as of this writing Bernard Madoff is accused of having masterminded the largest Ponzi scheme in Wall Street history. He emerged unscathed from as many as four SEC audits all the while bilking investors of more than $50 billion dollars. Yes, that is ‘b’ as in boy, $50 billion dollars. That Bernard Madoff is a crook is of secondary importance. What is of primary importance is that the SEC auditor of his books can’t possibly profess to have done a decent job yet can still put together a respectable resume even though the biggest crook in Wall Street history waltzed right under his nose.

Don’t be afraid to sprinkle some color to let it be known that you do your job well. For those subjective issues which you cannot quantify, you can complete bullet points with statements such as,

“Commended by management for demonstrating a clear understanding of regulatory procedure.”
“Received a non-periodic raise for performance.”
“Evolved as the go to contact for all issues pertaining to database architecture.”
“Mentored junior sales associates on working within the system to accomplish their professional goals.”
“Conducted workshops for peers on advanced programming techniques.”

A common approach to let the reader of your resume know that you perform your job well is the Problem – Action – Result (PAR) approach. This acronym varies from CAR (Challenge – Action – Result) to SAR (Situation – Action – Result) but the emphasis is still the same. Describe the Problem, the Action you took to fix it and the benefit that Resulted from that action. I will cover this in greater detail future blog posts.

Come across as a person who is easy to work with.
Remember, if your resume bores the reader, then they are not going to be able to appreciate your accomplishments. Add some color which brings you out as a person and and draws their interest. Consider,

“Oversaw the United Way fund drive for our division. Raised over X dollars by . . . . .” Suggests you have a heart.

“Mentored junior peers on succeeding in the organization by working inside the system.” This is a subtle way of making you look like a kinder, gentler employee as well as allaying any concerns that you will be an organizational anarchist if you do not get your way.

“Received non-periodic raise for outstanding performance.” This suggests that you work hard, get results and please your superiors.

These are our examples, but you get the picture. Whatever you have done that would instill confidence that you are a nice person who works within the system will do wonders. These are the testimonials which can vault your candidacy to the top of the resume stack. Whether you got the interview via a network connection, a recruiter or by knocking on doors, chances are there were plenty of candidates to choose from. Once you can prove you are qualified, the next concern on everybody’s mind is whether or not you are going to do your job well and fit in. This is just as important as having the right credentials. The right credentials is only the first hurdle; the assessment as to whether or not you will be a valuable and respected member of the team is a much larger hurdle.

John Coffey is the President or JobTabs, LLC the makers of JobTabs Job Search & Resume. Working as an IT Contractor for over fifteen years, he has the distinction of having been a professional job seeker. His success in the job search process and the computer program he wrote to manage his job search became the basis for JobTabs Job Search & Resume. He can be reached at jpcoffey@jobtabs.com or the JobTabs website at http://www.jobtabs.com.

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