Month: February 2014

12 Reasons Why Junior Military Officers (JMO) Should Avoid Recruiters

As a junior military officer, I progressed from pay grade O1 to O3 in thirty-six months.  As a recruiter, I have placed 100’s of men and women.  I made a fee for these placements.  I have helped many more people network their careers and got no fee for my help.  The best recruiters want to help people first and make money second.  The best recruiters also make the most money.  For a partial list of my clients, click here.

12 Reasons Why Junior Military Officers (JMO) Should Avoid Recruiters

Based on my experience, I recommend that junior military officers transitioning from military service to civilian careers avoid recruiters.

The information in this article will help anyone decide whether to use a recruiter.  The point of this article is to help job seekers avoid trading their marketability for the sake of a potential connection with a recruiter’s client.

There are great recruiters in all types of industries.  There are also incompetent recruiters, unscrupulous recruiters, dishonest recruiters, and any other negative type of recruiter you can imagine.

I have no intention of praising or condemning recruiters.  In this article, I take a critical position to look at the value and lack of value of recruiters.  I have focused this topic on junior military officers as the basis for taxonomy.  I want to examine where recruiters help job seekers and companies and where recruiters are more self-serving than they are a service to job seekers and hiring companies.  Junior military officers make an ideal classification of job seeker as a basis to create taxonomy for employment service companies.

Countless recruiting firms place military officers. These firms make a lot of money putting military officers into civilian jobs.  What is the harm in junior military officers working with third-party recruiters when making a career transition to civilian life?  I will let you decide.  I list twelve things to think about in this article.  You will find other things discussed in articles on the Internet.

Junior military officers do not need recruiters

Google search.  You will see articles from Forbes, Harvard Business Review, CNN/Money, Business Insider, and others explaining why so many leaders have gone from the battlefield to the boardroom.

The second issue is the nature of applicant pooling.

If highly marketable applicants go to a job fair and everyone at the job fair has equally strong credentials, the applicants have eliminated any advantages they have in the talent pool.  If junior military officers engage recruiters who specialize in placing junior military officers, these JMOs have gone from sharks to shiners.  They become one in schools of fish that mesh together with little personal identity.  Do you want to lose your identity in the job market?

Recruiters do not find jobs for people.

Recruiters find people for jobs.  The difference is that hiring companies pay recruiters 20-30% of the first year’s salary.  The job seeker pays the recruiter nothing.  If a job seeker paid a recruiter $10,000 to $30,000 or more to find the job seeker a job, the relationship would be very different.

Working with recruiters takes time.

Members of the military and job seekers in general have other, sometimes better resources that take less time.

For example, junior military officers and other veterans have job search help that is not available to nonmilitary job seekers.  Using Google search and enter the phrase “government programs for jobs for veterans” or other similar wording in Google search.

On LinkedIn, job seekers can search the phrase “junior military officer” or search the names of branches of the service.  In the results of the search, the profiles of former military officers include the name of the companies where these people work today.  Using that information, job seekers can search job boards for job listings with those companies.  Even better, job seekers can make direct application to the companies where the former military people work.

Nearly every company has job listings on their website.  Sometimes companies list jobs under a tab on the website menu.  Other companies list their jobs in the “About” section of the website.

Recruiters charge the hiring company a fee.

Job seekers who connect with hiring companies through a recruiter cost 20-30% more than job seekers who come to the company directly.

The extra cost is in the recruiter’s fee.  When the hiring company has two equally strong applicants and one costs 20-30% more the first year of employment, the hiring company will hire the less expensive, equally qualified applicant.

Recruiters present the jobs that they want you to take.

You need to look for jobs that are in your best interest.  Most recruiters do have your interest in mind when they refer you to a job.  They do not want you to take the job and then quit.  However, recruiters can only show you the jobs they have to fill.  Some will put a persuasive hard sell on you to push you into taking one of those jobs.  These recruiters behave like cattle herders.  Their real interest is just getting the cattle to market.

The better approach is to plan your career.  Make a list of the answers to these questions.

    What do you want to do?
    What companies have those types of jobs?
    Who are the contacts you need to make at those companies to get the job you want?
    What are the best ways to contact those people?

With this approach, you will end up with a job that you want and enjoy.

Confucius:  “Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life”

The seventh issue is employer perception.

If you find a hiring company and show that you offer solutions and opportunities that the company needs and may not have without you, you become a different person from the person who came in with the rest of the herd in the recruiter cattle drive.  I had one client who hired two-dozen people from me.  The best person she hired was a person who came to her directly and presented a business plan to improve her company’s customer loyalty programs.  She hired this person for a job that did not exist before he came to her company.

Recruiters who specialize in placing junior military officers have no special industry-specific value.

For example, I have close to 40,000 connections in my database.  Some of my connections are CEO’s and business owners I have known for over a decade.  These people are all in the consumer products industry.

Occasionally, highly marketable people contact me who cannot get where they want to go through my network.  I let them know that my network just does not offer the value they need for their career.

Junior military officers have distinctions similar to the distinctions of graduates from the top ten universities.  The JMOs have credentials that are not industry specific.  A recruiter in this process adds no value.

However, once junior military officers gain industry experience, working with a recruiter with dynamic connections in that industry offers real benefits to the JMO and any other job seeker.

Recruiters cut applicants from the process based on the recruiters’ perception and convenience.

In the process of referring applicants, recruiters base decisions on their perception of what the hiring company will hire.  Recruiters also stop referring applicants when they believe they have the job filled with the applicants they have already sent to the hiring company.

Recruiters contribute little value as career coaches to junior military officers.

I have 100’s of articles on this website on how to write a resume, how to dress for an interview, how to interview, how to negotiate job offers, and other job-seeker topics.  I add more articles weekly.  To find a helpful article, just enter any subject in the search field at the top of this page.

You can also find information on these subjects on other great websites.

When you interview, you should prepare by researching the company and the people you will meet.  That information is on the Internet.

Rather than spend your time over at the corral with the recruiter, take a few minutes a day to research the things you need to know for your job search.

Working with a recruiter guarantees the job seeker nothing.

Recruiters have contracts with hiring companies.  The terms and conditions of these contracts guarantee certain conditions to the hiring company.  When applicants use a great deal of time in emails, phone calls, and perhaps personal interviews with a recruiter, the applicants expect to get interviews through their effort.  However, the recruiter guarantees applicants nothing.

If you have plenty of time to do the things that will really get you a job and still want to work with a recruiter, certainly contact a recruiter.  However, do not expect any guarantees of anything.

Recruiters work with your competitors too.

Recruiters will ask you for referrals.  They will ask you for information about the companies where you are interviewing.  Giving recruiters this information hurts your chances of getting interviews.   Because the recruiter is working with your competitors in your job search, any information they ask from you about your connections or your job search efforts is a conflict of interest.

If a member of the United States military gives information about our military to a foreign nation, even an ally, the person compromises our national security.  If a member of the military of a foreign nation even asks a member of our military a question about United States military operations without a need and clearance to know that information, the foreign military person is behaving suspiciously.  Yet some recruiters will probe for competitive information that benefits them and works against the job seeker.

In conclusion, there are great recruiters in all types of industries.

There are times when some people just will not find a job without the help of a recruiter.  There are some circumstances where recruiters serve themselves and not the job seeker.  Junior military officers are mature, intelligent, and marketable.  They can find a job by applying directly to hiring companies.  It is in their best interest to do so.  However, once junior military officers gain industry experience, working with a recruiter with dynamic connections in that industry offers real benefits.

JMO on Liberty in San Diego
“The World’s Noblest Headhunter” in San Diego, CA.

Job Opportunity City of The Week: Houston, TX

Job Opportunity City of The Week: Houston, TX

Houston Area Employment — October 2013, Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics Report

“Total nonfarm employment in the Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown Metropolitan Statistical Area stood at 2,812,500 in October 2013, up 79,600 from one year earlier, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. From October 2012 to October 2013, local nonfarm employment rose 2.9 percent, above the national increase of 1.7 percent. Regional Commissioner Stanley W. Suchman noted that among the 12 largest metropolitan areas in the country, Houston ranked second in the rate of job growth. (See chart 1 and table 1; Technical Note at end of release contains metropolitan area definitions. All data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year analysis is used throughout.)”

Houston Non Farm Employment

Source: http://www.bls.gov/regions/southwest/news-release/AreaEmployment_Houston.htm#tab1

Supersector Employment Houston

Source: http://www.bls.gov/regions/southwest/news-release/AreaEmployment_Houston.htm#tab1

Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX

Data Series Oct
2013		 Nov
2013		 Dec
2013
Civilian Labor Force  3,102.5 3,127.7  3,131.6
Employment 2,920.5 2,951.0  2,960.5
Unemployment 182.0 176.7  171.1
Unemployment Rate  5.9 5.6  5.5

Job Opportunity City Of The Week, Kansas City, MO-KS

According to the Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Kansas City, MO-KS, ranks 115th out of 372 metropolitan areas in the United States.  The Kansas City, MO-KS Metropolitan Statistical Area unemployment dropped from 5.4% to a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.9%.  

Kansas City is setting a good pace for the rest of the nation by moving up from an unemployment rate of 5.9% in July 2013, and has risen at a steady pace since August 2013.

Bureau of Labor, Economy at Glance (2)
Kansas City, MO-KS

Data Dates

  Oct
2013		  Nov
2013		  Dec
2013

Civilian Labor Force

  1,487.9  1,487.7   1,487.4

Employment

 1,405.2 1,411.4  1,414.8

Unemployment

 82.8 76.3   72.6

Unemployment Rate

 5.6 5.1   4.9

Illegal Job Interview Questions

I am not a lawyer.

It is illegal for an employer to base a hiring decision on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.  However, employers must verify that all employees are eligible to work in the United States.

If you are interviewing for a job and the employer asks you a question about one of those factors, you may find yourself in an awkward spot.  You can always ask the interviewer what the question has to do with the qualifications of the job.  You may also ask yourself whether you want to work for a company that would ask you any of those questions.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is the federal agency that oversees employment discrimination. (1)

“The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for enforcing federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or an employee because of the person’s race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information. It is also illegal to discriminate against a person because the person complained about discrimination, filed a charge of discrimination, or participated in an employment discrimination investigation or lawsuit.”

The guidelines from The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission specifically list the laws pertaining to the factors that are illegal requirements for consideration for employment. (2)

  • “Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin;
  • The Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA), which protects men and women who perform substantially equal work in the same establishment from sex-based wage discrimination;
  • The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), which protects individuals who are 40 years of age or older;
  • Title I and Title V of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended (ADA), which prohibit employment discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities in the private sector, and in state and local governments;
  • Sections 501 and 505 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which prohibit discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities who work in the federal government;
  • Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA), which prohibits employment discrimination based on genetic information about an applicant, employee, or former employee; and
  • The Civil Rights Act of 1991, which, among other things, provides monetary damages in cases of intentional employment discrimination.”

However, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) requires that all employers verify their employees’ legal status to work in the United States.  The specific method of verification comes from the requirement of all employers to complete the following form for all of its employees. (3)

“Form I-9 is used for verifying the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired for employment in the United States. All U.S. employers must ensure proper completion of Form I-9 for each individual they hire for employment in the United States. This includes citizens and noncitizens. Both employees and employers (or authorized representatives of the employer) must complete the form. On the form, an employee must attest to his or her employment authorization. The employee must also present his or her employer with acceptable documents evidencing identity and employment authorization. The employer must examine the employment eligibility and identity document(s) an employee presents to determine whether the document(s) reasonably appear to be genuine and to relate to the employee and record the document information on the Form I-9. The list of acceptable documents can be found on the last page of the form. Employers must retain Form I-9 for a designated period and make it available for inspection by authorized government officers. NOTE: State agencies may use Form I-9. Also, some agricultural recruiters and referrers for a fee may be required to use Form I-9.”

DISCLAIMER: I am not an attorney.

Post-Interview Thank You Letter

This format will help you write a post-interview thank you letter.

Your information

Street address
City, state, zip
Phone number
Email address

Date

Contact’s information

Name, titles
Company name
Street address
City, state, zip
Phone number
Email address

Thank you for meeting with me this morning.  After our meeting, I am even more excited about the possibility of working for your company.
I believe that I can contribute immediately to your business.  I have accomplishments in the following areas that crossover to the job you have available:

Increased administrative efficiency 20%
Reduced 3rd-party contract costs  30%
Trained 6 new hires, all of whom have been promoted
Recognized for 4 years in a row as the leading contributor to
company’s  “Golden Suggestions Award” winner

Your description of the responsibilities, the team environment,  and the  growth plan for your company tell me that your job is the  job I  want and    your company is the place where I want to work.

I look forward to being invited back for another meeting and have included my contact information below.

Please contact me any time at your convenience.

Sincerely,

Example Applicant

12 Tips to Help You In Your Job Search

12 Tips to Help You In Your Job Search
1. COUNTER OFFERS

“Counter Offers: The Reason That You Resigned Seldom Goes Away If You Stay.”

Companies give counter offers when the timing works against them to lose a person. However, unless the reason you resigned have gone away, taking a counter offer means that you are returning to work where have shown disloyalty by looking for another job. Read more.

2. JOB CHANGE TIMING

“The Best Time To Change Jobs”

Changing jobs is one of the most stressful experiences in a person’s life. That statement does not mean that job changes do not bring high rewards. Getting married, having children, and buying a house are also among the most stressful experiences in a person’s life. Yet these experiences are rewarding. Read more.

To make any major life change successful and rewarding requires preparation, planning, and timing.

3. INTERVIEWING

“How To Handle The Interview Question What Is Your Greatest Weakness?”

I made the mistake of answering this question honestly during an interview for a promotion. I did get the promotion.

However, my new supervisor had an annoying habit of reminding me of my answer to that question during our work together.

Being able to answer this question is part of standard interview preparation. What should I have answered when he asked me about my greatest weakness? Here are some options that would have helped me.

4. INTERVIEW PREPARATION

“12 Things You Should Not Do In A Job Interview”

An interview is a critical step to getting a job. Preparing for your interview and making good choices in handling your interview can turn your interview into a job offer. Here are twelve things you should not do and suggestions for the correct things to do in a job interview. Read more.

5. JOB OFFERS

“How To Negotiate A Job Offer”

Employers are more open to negotiating a job offer when they can see that there is a real shortfall between what they have offered you and what you have in your current job.

The simple way to approach the matter is to make a straightforward presentation of the facts involved. Read more.

6. JOB OPTIONS

“Finding Jobs That Match Your Skills”

This lists compares skills to jobs to help you find jobs that you will enjoy and do successfully. Enter any of these jobs into the Job Search engine to find career opportunities. Read more.

7. SELF-EMPLOYMENT

“Is it Time for You to Start Your Own Business?”

Prior to entering recruiting, I worked for two terrific companies: Procter & Gamble and Polaroid Corporation.  I did a lot of things that I loved to do. I took pride in my companies’ brands. I loved giving presentations. I enjoyed the travel. I took fascination in new product introductions. I found joy in absolutely crushing the competition in shelf space, ad space, and in sales.  However, I had two frustrations. Read more.

8. RECRUITERS

“Should You Work with a Recruiter?”

Whether or not you should work with a recruiter depends upon your comfort level in working with other people about your income and upon your career goals and your urgency in finding employment. The best recruiters can help you in many ways. Read more.

9. NETWORK CONNECTIONS

“Your Know Network”

Today I so instinctively take the easy way to finding information and contacts.  I go to LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Job Boards, Business Directories, Google Search, and forget that the best network I have is the one made up of the people I already know. Read more.

11. NETWORKING FORUMS

“How to Pick a LinkedIn Group”

Different LinkedIn groups have different purposes. Some groups are directories of people in the same industry or who have the same interest. These groups are terrific for building networks or creating databases. You can pick nearly any business sector and find that there is LinkedIn group for that business sector. From there, you can build relationships to expand your network. Read more.

Other groups give terrific sources of information on how to get things done or how to find people who can help you get things done. These groups are really forums where people answer questions. The members of these forums tend are often very responsive and may give better help on topics that relate to products which have their own company forums.

12. PRIVACY IN ONLINE SEARCH

LinkedIn: Can People Tell that I Have Looked at their Profile?

LinkedIn: Who Can See My Profile?

How To Use Membership Sites To Bring Opportunity To Your Door

How To Use Membership Sites To Bring Opportunity To Your Door

The purpose in joining a membership site is to bring opportunity to your door and avoid sending opportunity to the door of other people and businesses.  The solution is as simple as how you use links to membership sites.

For example, I see resumes that contain links to a profile on a membership site.  The risk to job seekers occurs when hiring or staffing managers read resumes on a computer.  If resume readers click on the link, they land on a page that has the applicant’s profile and that has the statement “People Similar to [name of person].”  What job seekers are doing is putting a link in their resume that not only takes the hiring and staffing managers to the job seekers’ profile but to the profile of the competition.

I even had one applicant who insisted that hiring companies use his profile endorsements as references.  Conceptually, the idea is efficient, but hiring companies want references they can reach on the phone not read on a membership site.

For social media, there are three types of links.

  1. Follow Links
  2. Like and Share Links
  3. Links on membership sites that link to you

Follow Links take traffic from a website to another a website.  I use follow links to help them connect with me on another website.   Through these connections, they will receive What I had in mind was expanding my connections and followers by having my website visitors click to my profile or my business page on a membership site.  I was sending the traffic the wrong direction.  Having a profile or a business page on a membership site is a good thing, but these pages should connect people out from the membership site to the member and not the other way around.

Observing what I saw on large commercial websites, I designed follow buttons to match the icons on membership sites.

However, I see more websites abandoning the follow links, perhaps for the same reason that you do not see CareerBuilder follow links on Monster or Facebook follow links on Linked.

The Like and Share links are very helpful for promotion.  Although few people would include those links in a resume, they do have a place in newsletters, some business proposals, and on websites.  The buttons link people back to the profile or business of the publisher.

Links on membership sites that link to you are free advertising.  The first link that you get when you join  a membership site is the URL for your profile.  Presto, when you register with a membership site, search engines immediately get a link representing you or your business on the Internet.  Every comment you make in a discussion group gives you another link on the membership site.  Every business page or group that you start gives your another link.  Then you can post links that direct search engines to your website or online resume.  This third type of links for membership sites (that is, the links within the membership site)gives you the greatest benefits of being a member on these site.

The way to build contacts and followers on membership sites is to sign into the site and create connections from inside the site.  This approach directs people to you, not away from you or your business.

To make sure that you get the greatest amount of traffic, carefully write your profile to include the contact information you want people to use to reach you and create a profile of a person people want to contact.

Success on a membership site is an inside job.   You have to go into the site and work on your content and contribution. There are at least eight things you can do that will give you benefits on membership sites.

  1. Create and distribute the highlights of your professional profile
  2. Publish a listing of your personal or business contact information
  3. Put your name or your business name at the top of search results
  4. Build an online database of contacts
  5. Find and communicate with people and businesses
  6. Get professional or personal advice from other members of the website
  7. Get information about people and companies
  8. Promote yourself or your business through creating powerful, meaningful content

However, to get these benefits, do not link out to membership sites.  Use these sites to link back to you.

10 Things to Leave Off Your Resume

Remember that a hiring manager will only spend seconds looking at your resume.  Cutting the clutter is critical to your resume getting you an interview.

Recognize that you are sending personal information that stays in computer files for months to years.

Ask two questions when you are writing your resume.

  • Will this information get you an interview?
  • Will this information create risks to you or your family?

With these two thoughts in mind, I recommend that you leave the following information off your resume.

1. Leave the statement “References provided upon request” off your resume. When employers want to conduct reference checks, they will ask you for references and tell you what type of people to include in your references.

2. Leave an objective off your resume. Your objective is clear from the fact that you are submitting your resume for a job.

3. Leave fancy designs or colors off your resume. Your resume is not a website.  It is a formal business document.

4. Leave letters of recommendation off your resume.  You can include letters of recommendation with your resume, but not in your resume.

5. Leave the word “Resume” off your resume.  You can put the word “resume” in the subject line of an email or in a cover letter, but do not title your resume, “Resume.”  Putting the title “Resume” at the top is similar putting the word “Letter” at the top of a letter or the word “Email” at the top of an email.

6. Unless your hobbies make you qualified for the job for which you are applying, leave your hobbies off your resume.  Your list of hobbies is a tiring distraction for hiring and staffing managers, who read dozens to hundreds of resumes.

7. Leave your picture off your resume.  If you are interviewing for a job that requires that you give pictures of yourself, create a portfolio.

8. Leave personal and confidential information off your resume.  The purpose of leaving this information off your resume is that you are releasing information that will not help you but may hurt you or your family.  Specifically, leave this information off your resume.

  • Leave your height and weight off your resume.
  • Leave your ethnicity off your resume.
  • Leave your physical description off your resume.
  • Leave your marital status and information about your children off your resume.
  • Leave your date of birth off your resume.
  • Leave your social security information off your resume.
  • Leave statements about your home ownership off your resume.
  • Leave your income off your resume.
  • Leave your financial information off your resume.
  • Unless this information qualifies you for a job, leave your political, religious, or social affiliations off your resume.

9. Leave anything negative about yourself off your resume: low or mediocre grade-point averages, career or business failures, criminal history, or statements about losing a job off your resume.

10. If you have attended college or trade schools, leave your grade school or high school information off your resume.

For more information

Resumes
Cutting Weak Wording From Your Resume
Is a List of Core Responsibilities a Resume?
Is Your Resume a Success Story?

12 Things You Should Not Do In A Job Interview

12 Things You Should Not do In a Job Interview is a good start to preparing for your interview. How well you interview will decide whether you get the job.

An interview is a critical step to getting a job. Preparing for your interview and making good choices in handling your interview can turn your interview into a job offer.  Here are twelve things you should not do and suggestions for the correct things to do in a job interview.

  1. Do not arrive late. You should plan for traffic delays. Arrive thirty minutes early. Wait nearby to enter the building. Go into the interview five minutes early. Introduce yourself and say that you are there a bit early for your interview.
  2. Wear the proper clothes.Clothing will vary from job to job. If you need to be dressed to go to work that day, wear work clothes. If you are interviewing for a job for which you will have to wait for an offer, consider wearing clothes that are one level above the job. for example, if the job requires jeans, consider wearing khakis. If the job requires khakis, consider wearing dress slacks or a skirt. If the job requires slacks or a skirt, wear a suit.
  3. Do not use a cell phone. Turn your cell phone off before you enter the building for your interview. Do not mute your cell phone. Turn the power off on your cell phone. For the short time you have in the interview, you do not need distractions from your cell phone.  If you even check your phone during the interview, you have lost the job offer.
  4. Do not act rude. Be courteous. Know and say the interviewer’s name. Give the person a firm, but not strong handshake. Introduce yourself. Thank the interviewer for meeting with you.
  5. Do not bring up subjects that are not about the interview. Help the interviewer focus on the interview. Offer the interviewer a copy of your resume before you sit down.
  6. Do not fidget or act restless and nervous. There are simple ways to relieve your tension. Use the best body language. Take a couple of breaths before entering the interview. Make eye contact. If direct eye contact makes you uncomfortable, look at the person’s face. Focus on what you are saying and not what you are seeing. Smile. Sit up straight. Gently hold in your stomach. Keep your shoulders comfortably level. Practice sitting this way daily. It is good for your back, neck, and core, and will help you interview more successfully. Speak loudly enough that the interviewer can hear you. Keep your arms open. Make occasional gestures as you are speaking. As you behave relaxed, you will become relaxed.
  7. Do not act arrogantly or talk about yourself and not about the job. Focus on your qualifications for the job. Talk about what you can do and not about who you are. Be specific when discussing how your experience fits the job requirements.
  8. Do not go to the interview without preparing.Show that you are ready for the meeting. Refer to the things you have read about the company and about the job.
  9. Do not act as though you are not interested in the job.  Ask questions about the company and the job based on the information you found through your research and through reading the job description. Write a list of questions as part of your preparation before going to the interview.
  10. Do not say negative things about anyone. Talk positively about your present employer and your past employers. The way to keep things positive is to focus on your interest in the company that is interviewing you.
  11.  Do not dominate the conversation. Allow the interviewer to lead the discussion. Answer the questions not the things that the questions bring to your mind.
  12. Do not leave without understanding what you should expect next. If the interviewer has not told you what to expect next, ask the person when you will be getting information on the company’s interest in meeting with you again or making you an offer. Express your interest in the job and say that you look forward to meeting again. If the interviewer has a card on the desk, ask for one.

Job Opportunity City Of The Week: New York City

United States Department of Labor – Bureau of Labor Statistics
DOL/BLS Economy at a Glance(1)

New York-White Plains-Wayne, NY-NJ

Data Series Oct
2013		 Nov
2013		 Dec
2013
Civilian Labor Force  5,787.0 5,779.1  5,742.4
Employment  5,301.2  5,345.7  5,334.7
Unemployment    485.8   433.3   407.6
Unemployment Rate   8.4   7.5   7.1

Find jobs at JayWren.com

Finding Jobs That Match Your Skills

Finding Jobs That Match Your Skills

This lists compares skills to jobs to help you find jobs that you will enjoy and do successfully. Enter any of these jobs into Find Jobs Search engine to find career opportunities.

Environmental, Geographic, Geological Skills

  • Archeologist
  • Cartographer
  • Conservationist
  • Ecologist
  • Environmentalist
  • Geographic Information Systems
  • Oil and Gas Explorers
  • Surveyor

Hands Skills

  • Barber
  • Beautician
  • Carpenter
  • Cook
  • Cosmetologist
  • Electrician
  • Mechanic
  • Plumber
  • Truck driver
  • Welder

Helping Skills

  • Child Care Provider
  • Counselor
  • Hygienist
  • Librarian
  • Nurse
  • Nutritionist
  • Paramedic
  • Teacher
  • Therapist
  • Trainer

Math, Science, Research Skills

  • Accountant
  • Assessor
  • Architect
  • Astronaut
  • Biologist
  • Chemist
  • Chiropractor
  • Computer Developer, Programmer
  • Doctor
  • Engineer
  • Financial Advisor
  • Geneticist
  • Investigator
  • Meteorologist
  • Pharmacist
  • Scientist
  • Statistician
  • Systems Analyst
  • Veterinarian

Negotiation Skills

  • Agent
  • Broker
  • Insurance
  • Lawyer
  • Salesperson

Leadership Skills

  • Coach
  • Editor
  • Insurance
  • Lawyer
  • Manager
  • Pilot
  • Politician
  • Producer

Team Skills

  • Firefighter
  • Police
  • Military

Creative, Design, Performing Skills

  • Advertising Executive
  • Chef
  • Designer
  • Marketer
  • Performer (Actor, Actress, Musician, Singer, Songwriter)
  • Photographer

Language Skills

  • News Reporter
  • Translator
  • Writer

Picking A Career

In picking a career, start with an understanding of what you want to do and what you need to do to have that type of career.

First, answer these questions.

    1. How well do you relate to other people.  If you enjoy helping people, jobs in service industries, health care, hospitality, and other jobs requiring people skills will interest you.  If you have no interest in human relations, you may prefer performance jobs: writing, computer programming, sales, or other jobs where the focus is on a task more than interaction with other people.
    2. Are you a leader, team member, teacher, or worker?  Leaders need opportunities with companies that use more people.  Team members work well in companies with a focus on planning or innovation.  Teachers find jobs in education or training.  Workers should focus on jobs where the company expects them to do their job but does not need that they accept responsibility in management.
    3. What are your interests?  Answering this question will help you pick a trade or industry.
    4. How much do you like risks? If you need security, you may want to work in large institutions or government.  If you love risks, self-employment or start-up companies will excite you.
    5. Where do you want to live?  Some jobs exist in abundance in some places.  Other jobs only exist in specific locations.  If you want to sell surfboards, you should consider living near beaches.
    6. How important is income?  Your focus on income can affect the risks, amount of education or training, and the levels of responsibility you will accept.

Second, answer these questions.

  1. What skills do you need?  When you are planning your career, consider what skills you will need to move through the stages of your career.  You can build your skills through volunteer, hobbies, training, and at your workplace.
  2. What education do you need?  Understanding the education can save you a great deal of time and money.  For example, if you need specific classes to get a teaching credential, you can include those classes in your curriculum and save returning to complete those courses after you graduate.
  3. What experience do you need?  Similar to planning your career based on the skills that you will need, you can get specific experience through your work and education as well as hobbies and volunteering.
  4. Where do you need to live?  Often people have family or health needs that limit their choices for where they can live.

Job Opportunity City of the Week: Denver, CO

United States Department of Labor – Bureau of Labor Statistics

Data Series July
2013		 Aug
2013		 Sept
2013		 Oct
2013		 Nov
2013
Civilian Labor Force 1,446.5 1,450.9 1,446.1 1,437.4   1,432.9
Employment 1,349.0 1,356.5 1,353.4 1,350.6   1,349.1
Unemployment 97.5 94.4 92.7 86.7   83.8
Unemployment Rate 6.7 6.5 6.4 6.0   5.8

The Best Time to Change Jobs

The Best Time to Change Jobs

The Best Time to Change Jobs

Changing jobs is one of the most stressful experiences in a person’s life. That statement does not mean that job changes do not bring high rewards. Getting married, having children, and buying a house are also among the most stressful experiences in a person’s life. Yet these experiences are rewarding.

To make any major life change successful and rewarding requires preparation, planning, and timing.

Changing jobs often means leaving friends and familiar routines to go to a place where you do not know anyone and where the people, the ways of working, and the culture are completely different.

Although money is a good reason to go to another job, money is not the only reason. If you feel frustrated, where you are working and want to move to a new job, write down the things that you want in a job. The three most important considerations are money, location, and duties. If you are underpaid, have a horrible commute, and bored with what you do every day, you have three good reasons to begin to look for a new job.

The best time to get a job is when you have a job. People who do not have a job are competing with people who do have a job. Unemployed people must explain why they do not have a job before they can start to present their qualifications.

If you do not have a job, prepare to discuss your situation. Rehearse your discussion with your friends or family before meeting an employer.

Look at your personal situation and decide if you want to try to change jobs at the time.

The holiday season can make job changes more difficult, but you do not have to put all your job-change efforts on hold. for example, you might want to use spare minutes between Thanksgiving and the New Year to polish your resume, put together your list of references, create a list of potential hiring companies, sign up for job boards, and other things you can do while sitting on your PC or laptop during the evening or when waking up in the morning.

Companies hire people year-round. Continue to contact employers, make applications, and schedule interviews any time that fits your schedule. If you want to interview between December 26 and December 31, there are fewer interviews that week, but companies still have their doors open to applicants.

If you are having difficulties in your current job and you have found that you cannot improve these conditions, begin to discuss your plans to make a change with your friends and family. However, keep your plans confidential and private to prevent your current employer from knowing your plans. If you have already found that conditions will not improve where you are working, you will only make your current employer view you as disloyal by having them learn of your plans to leave.

Consider the timing of bonus payments, options vesting, vacation time, and other things you have earned.

Leaving a company for a better opportunity when you are doing an excellent job and on good terms is a wonderful way to stay on top in your career. There is stress involved in the change. Pacing yourself, timing your change relative to other things in your life, and planning your change carefully will cut the stress and make your change more successful as you move on to the next stage of your career.

Job References

Job references can make or break your job offer.

During the interview process, most hiring companies do reference checks on potential employees.

Some companies ask for written references.  More likely, a company will conduct references over the phone.

When giving a person as a reference, get the person’s approval first.

In some cases, your current or former employer will not give information on your performance.  The employer may have a policy that limits giving employment information to the dates that you worked at their company.

Often the hiring company will speak with specific types of references.  For example, the company will ask to speak with current or former supervisors, co-workers, customers, vendors, or business connections.

In the case of reference checks for inexperienced workers, the hiring company may ask to speak with a neighbor, teacher, or classmate.

Here are common reference check questions.

  • How long have you know this person?
  • Would you hire or rehire the person today?
  • Why did this person leave the last job?
  • What was your relationship with the person?
  • What would you say about this person and how would you describe the person?
  • How well does the person handle conflict?
  • What are his/her strongest points?
  • How does this person work with other people?
  • How does this person respond to feedback and criticism?
  • What were the person’s greatest accomplishments?
  • How would you rate the person’s performance on a scale of 1-10?
  • What area of development could the candidate focus on?

Other helpful articles
How to Receive Job-Winning Reference Checks
Build a Powerhouse Reference List As Part of Building Your Professional Network.

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