Posts Tagged ‘job’
When you’re searching for a job, you can easily run out of energy and motivation. Many people ignore the rigors of a job search, thinking that it’s easy to simply submit a few resumes and handle a few interviews, but when a search goes on for long periods of time you’ll inevitably get some fatigue. This is especially the case when your search for a job begins to wear on, lasting more than several months.
If you have been searching for a job for a while and are tired, feeling discouraged, and just want a break, it’s time to employ some rules that will help you to stop overextending yourself. Before engaging in a job search, it’s vital to take some time to develop good habits that will help you stay motivated and optimistic.
Remember that Job Seeking is Job Within Itself
Many people take for granted the amount of energy required to conduct a job search. You’re doing something you’re not used to, something you haven’t really been trained for, and it may feel foreign. You’ve got to get used to searching for a job each and every day until you’re successful. Eventually, you may get bored with a job search, just as you’d get bored with a day-to-day job that didn’t change. Taking time off is as important as the job search itself, and it lets you get used to job searching as a sort of temporary “career.”
Take Care of Your Entire Self
You may be used to thinking of yourself as a “worker” and now that you’re out of work and searching for employment, you’re struggling to regroup. A job search can be a great time to get on-the-ball physically and mentally.
For instance, you might have been accustomed to physical activities before you started your last job, but let those die down as you traded them for hard days at work. Now that you have some time again, build yourself back up physically by participating in an activity you love whether its aerobics, basketball, tennis, or even bowling. You should also pay attention to diet. You’ll feel much better if you eat good foods, including vegetables, fruits, and lean meats. When you exercise and keep your diet up to snuff, every part of you will feel better.
On the emotional side of things, it’s good to pay attention to how you’re feeling during your job search. If you feel down-and-out or emotionally drained, it’s good to journal about your experiences to help get them out of your system and provide a way to encourage yourself through the process. Being mentally drained is also a common occurrence during a job search, which is why it’s a good idea focus on activities like yoga and meditation to calm the mind.
Conducting a job search for a long period of time is definitely a tall order. Don’t ignore the strain you take on during a job search if you want to have any chance of landing a job and staying optimistic during the period. This makes it important to watch all aspects of your health, so take occasional stock of how you’re doing physically, emotionally, and mentally. This will help to prepare you for not just the job search, but also interviews, and essentially your first day on your new job.
Executives are very aware of the concept of a ROI, or return on investment. Returns need to be visible and definite in the business world, and every investment and venture must be carefully considered.
It’s the same thing for employers when they’re trying to fill an opening. Their investment in you needs to be validated by significant returns. When a return isn’t guaranteed, you won’t be hired. Given that, how can an executive prove to a prospective hiring company that he’s worth the money? Here are a few ideas to consider …
Look at Your Revenue
If there were quantifiable parts to your previous job, you want to make sure to put them into numbers on your executive resume that will help illustrate your success. For executives, businesses often look to revenue, so show what you were responsible for with your previous employers, whether this means accounts you brought in, sales prospects you’d sold to, or other elements of revenue.
For instance, you might note that you not only were able to slash hiring expenses by cutting advertising costs (advertised on free websites), but you were able to create a stellar staff that increased revenue by X amount of dollars over a year’s time. Showing numbers that correlate with the success you brought a company clearly shows your value to said company and makes you a safer hire.
How Productive Was Your Staff?
Businesses are often very concerned with productivity, as you probably are as an executive, and they look for ways to ensure that their employees are earning them as much as possible. If you can look at productivity in practical terms, this is a good idea.
For example, you can look at the amount of time it took to complete a major project that resulted in a revenue increase of 3 percent for the year. Here’s a simple example; consider that you employed twenty workers for twelve weeks at a cost of /hr and forty hours per week shifts for a certain project. Employee time, then, accounted for costs of ,000. However, you invested in a new training module that cost 0 per employee, as well as updated software for ,000 that cut the project time down to 6 weeks, including paid training time. If the cost of the project you undertook totalled ,000, the company saved about ,000 with a 3 percent revenue increase, and process efficiency improved, allowing your employees to tackle other work projects.
Other Numbers to Think About
If your segment of the company didn’t work in terms of revenue, you can still note numbers that represent progress. For example, if you’d managed customer service, use the metrics that you used in your old department to show improvements in customer satisfaction. You might also look at the number of calls your department took, and the number of minutes spent on each call, to quantify your results.
Remember, just like on your previous jobs, prospective employers want to know their potential ROI when looking at candidates. As an executive, you know how to consider and decide on an investment, so use that knowledge to improve your chances of being hired.
Most people are pretty nervous when preparing for an interview, whether it’s their first or 51st time. However there are some individuals who are beyond nervous when interview time rolls around – they’re flat out fearful. They could be a shy person or just be very nervous in a situation where they are scrutinized and judged.
If you fall into the category of being fearful of job interviews, there are a few ways to side step the fear and enter the situation with confidence. So let’s take a look at some tips to consider so that you’ll be ready and willing to dive into your next interview.
Make Sure You’re Prepared
One reason that people get nervous before and during interviews is because they’re anticipating the unknown – they simply have no idea what will be discussed and fear they won’t have the answers. One great way to reduce this fear is to prepare before going in. Jump on the Internet, hunt for some questions that are commonly asked during and interview and practice your responses as much as possible.
If you’re not sure how you effective going through the list will be for you, you can always have a friend step in and act as an interviewer. Although you’re talking to a friend, it still can give you an idea on how and what to say in the interview. You can rehearse the ideas you want to get across, practice confident body language, and even learn how to ad-lib a bit by having your friend throw in questions not on your list.
Wear Your Favorite Outfit
If you have a favorite business outfit that you feel very comfortable in, wear it. You’ll be surprised how much this improves your interview success. Be sure to wear something that is comfortable and well-fitting so that you don’t have to worry about constantly adjusting your clothes.
“Relax, Relate, Release”
You may have heard this phrase from time to time to signify calming down before a stressful situation, but it’s something that you should definitely consider before your interview. You need to exude confidence in your interview so taking a few deep breaths may be helpful in calming your mind and body.
Rely On You
Sometimes, job candidates are so desperate to find work that they pretend to be someone they’re not just to get the job. You won’t fool the interviewer and it will definitely not impress them.Let your personality shine and if you get the job, you can be pleased that you can relax without having to be someone you’re not. Instead, rely on your own personality since this is who they’ll have to know once you’re hired.
Of course, a job interview can be a scary thing. However, if you make sure you’re prepared, have a well-written resume, and are comfortable, calm, and confident in yourself, you’ll ace the interview and will likely get a call back in no time.