How to Get Ahead In Your Next Interview

How to Get Ahead In Your Next Interview You’ve navigated countless job websites, you’ve filled out the ten page application form and you’ve been selected for an interview. The hard bit is over, right? In today’s economic climate, interviews are more competitive than ever. In some parts of the UK, as many as 30 people apply for every vacancy, which means you’ve got to do whatever you can to not only stand out from the crowd, but impress your interviewer if selected. There are lots of important things you need to do to make sure you’re fully prepared for your next interview. From learning about the company you’re applying for or turning up to the interview on time, impressing your next employer on the day of the interview takes a lot of thought and preparation. To help you on your way, here are some of our tried and tested techniques when it comes to shining in an interview: Before the interview Preparation is key. You’ve probably heard the term “fail to prepare, prepare to fail” countless times, but people say it for a reason. Prepare for an interview in the best possible way, and suddenly it all becomes a lot less scary. You’re less nervous because you’ve got loads of pre-prepared answers for the inevitable “tricky” questions that invariably pop up. You arrive on time because you already know where to go in the morning before being lost in rush hour traffic. You look the part after ironing your suit the night before. These things matter, and they will make a huge difference to your composure, your chemistry with the interviewer and your overall ability to think on your feet. Preparation is everything: Research into the company:  Before your interview, do your research. Learn about the company’s history, the staff at the business, their latest projects. Have they just released a new product? What is it? What are your thoughts on it? Impressing the interview panel with your knowledge on their latest developments shows them that you care about them, which can only be a positive. Find out where the interview is: This in an obvious one, yet not everyone does it. It doesn’t matter whether the location of the interview is a short or long drive, bus or long train journey away, planning your route and travelling to the interview location ahead of time saves you a whole heap of stress on the day of the interview. You don’t want to be held up by roadworks and getting lost on the day. Dress appropriately: For most job interviews we’d recommend a suit, but thats not always the case, so dress appropriately for the interview and industry you work in. Dressing appropriately for your industry is one thing, but whatever industry you work in, you need to make sure your outfit fits. Arrive at an interview in a suit that is too big or too small, and you’ll start to feel uncomfortable straight away. This is going to affect your poise and composure, so as important as it is to be smart, it’s just as important to be comfortable. The big day Items to bring with you: Your new suit is ironed and fits perfectly, you’ve arrived at the interview with enough time to sit down and relax, and you’ve brought everything you needed to bring. But what should you bring? Bringing spare copies of your CV might seem obvious, but rushing out the door solely focused on getting to the interview on time makes it so easy to forget such things. To help you out on the big day, here’s what you should bring with you: Spare copies of your CV: just in case the interviewer hasn’t printed yours off. Notepad: writing down any interviewer answers will make you look astute and interested. Pen/pencil: because you need to write down those answers somehow. Bottle of water: don’t assume interviewers will provide you with a drink. Bring your own just in case. Top questions to ask: You can answer all the questions that the interviewer throws at you, but if you’re caught open-mouthed when they ask you if you’ve got any questions for them, you’ve blown it. Asking questions during the interview is incredibly important as it shows an interest in the company and the people interviewing you, but it also shows that you’re not afraid to step forward to get what you want. Make sure to ask questions that you genuinely want answers to (within reason; don’t ask how trustworthy the members of staff are). Here are some example questions to get you started: What training/induction will I receive? What are the main responsibilities for this job? Would I be involved in any other projects within the company on a one-off basis? Who would I have most contact with either within the company or clients/suppliers? What are the company’s plans for the future and how would these affect my role? Where are the opportunities for future progression or personal development within the company? When the interview is over: Get feedback: If you’re not successful and don’t get the job, there’s still more to gain from this opportunity. No matter how well or poorly you think the interview went, it’s essential for you to ask for feedback. Getting honest feedback from interviewers will enable you to plug any possible skills gaps, work on your questions or prepare your answers better. Failing to get feedback will only leave you making the same mistakes for future interviews, so be sure to ask what went wrong after your interview. Author:  Oliver Adderley  is  Managing Director of Jobs Direct.

Things to Remember When Shopping for Wedding Bands

Things to Remember When Shopping for Wedding Bands Exchanging your wedding bands on the wedding day is the ultimate signal you have made a lifetime commitment to live as a couple in front of God, your family and friends. Naturally, couples want their wedding bands to reflect on how they feel about each other and their personalities. This makes choosing the right bands to wear for the rest of your life a big decision.  Be Sure to Start Early  Couples often make the mistake of leaving the decision about their wedding bands until the last minute. It is better to avoid leaving this vital purchase too long, as you will have to pick and choose from a number of options and might even need the rings to be adjusted for size. Starting early will you have time to find exactly the bands you in your mind. With enough time you can add a very special personal touch and have them engraved.  Set a Budget  Not knowing how much you are in a position to spend will always make shopping for wedding bands difficult. You should set enough money aside at the time of planning your wedding expenses. Depending on what you want, bands can cost you thousands of dollars. With clear information about your budget, you will be able to narrow down your options and buy something that is affordable and yet still very attractive.  Learn about Different Metals  It is also important to be aware of the different metals to be able to select the best brands. For instance, many couples decide on white gold, others choose platinum. But there is also rose gold, yellow gold and bands with mixed metals. It is also possible to find male bands in cobalt and titanium. Platinum works great if youre looking for something durable with no maintenance. Which you choose depends as much on your budget as what you prefer but be sure to buy from a jeweler who has all the metal options available for you to take a look atâ€" going for quality retailer such as Baltimore wedding bands will help you make the right buying decision.  Know Your Tastes  Are you the kind of person whose tastes often change? If this is the case, going for a fashion-forward option might be tempting. But, it is better to put your money into bands with a more classical style. They will continue to look good long after fashions have moved on. Consider Buying Matching Sets  A great idea for wedding bands is to buy matching sets. Since wedding bands are the symbol of commitment to life as a pair, it makes sense to have bands that match. Marching bands may not suit everyone, but as it is a way to demonstrate your bond, you might like to consider it.  There’s an endless choice of wedding band styles and choosing just the right one that speaks to you of your love can take time. Rest assured it is out there. The chances are you will recognize it instantly. Just like you know you’ve found ‘the one’ in your bride to be, you will know you’ve found ‘the one’ for your wedding band.  

Customer Service Resume Objectives (15 Examples) - Algrim.co

Customer Service Resume Objectives (15 Examples) - Algrim.co Writing a customer service resume can be a challenge. Your resume objective should speak to customer service experience and the soft skills required to be excellent in the position. But what does a good customer service resume objective look like? And what makes a great one? In this guide we’re going to cover what makes a great customer service resume objective, what keywords or buzzwords you may want to use, which soft skills you may want to speak to and provide you some examples of resume objectives to emulate. Ready to get started? Let’s get going with your customer service resume! What Makes a Strong Customer Service Resume Objective A strong customer service resume objective contains any prior work experience which alludes to your abilities to perform customer service with world-class excellence. This means, leaning into particular soft skills which are crucial for the customer service role. Those skills would be considered: Strong levels of patience. Strong levels of empathy for your customer. Ability to actively listen to your customer. Ability to question your customer in order to better understand their needs. Ability to be a problem-solver and adapt to what problems your customers are facing. Ability to be self-motivated and strive to deliver an incredible customer experience at all times. When you understand what’s required to be a great customer service representative, you can use that as a way to state your understanding of what’s required on the job. Your resume objective shouldn’t be a statement. Or a desire. Avoid anything that might make it appear as though you are desperate for the position. Instead, create a strong, bold statement that alludes to your knowledge of the job and your understanding of what’s required to create success and resolve customer issues. Top Customer Service Candidates Have These Skills If you still aren’t certain which skills to lean into in your resume objective, these are the top skills that top candidates have in all customer service positions: Adaptability Skills Empathy Skills Active Listening Skills Comprehension Skills Problem-solving Skills 5 Examples of Customer Service Resume Objectives To give you an idea of what your resume objective should look like, below are a few examples that you can use to emulate your own or to use as a guide to writing your own. Try to keep your resume objective to less than four sentences if you can. Or roughly 200 words or less. Seeking a position that embraces the idea that customer support is part of the brand. A living, breathing, product that needs to be nurtured and tracked like any other department. Desiring to work with other strong professionals who understand how to empathize with our customers, learn about their needs, and problem-solve on the fly. Desiring to work with other collaborative customer support agents who know how to adapt when necessary and deliver world-class customer experiences by listening to our customers, addressing their needs, and following up on our quality assurance. Seeking to work in a fast-paced environment where customer service is part of the backbone to the business. Where we treat customer service as a tracked service offering much like we do other departments. anting to be in a fast-paced environment where learning, flexibility, feedback, and team building is part of the everyday workflow. Avoid These Common Customer Service Resume Objective Mistakes The most common errors job seekers make when writing your customer service resume objective is not to state what you're looking for or what a successful customer service environment looks like. If you focus too much on yourself in your resume objective, it may appear as though you aren't looking at the opportunity as what's best for the company. For example, you may be wanting to write something regarding how you may want to advance yourself. While some mentions of this are okay. If your entire resume objective is about what type of advancement opportunity you're seeking, it avoids speaking to the type of environment that allows for advancement. And that's the trick to it. By providing business results, you will advance yourself. Write that as part of your objective, that you are seeking an opportunity or environment where you can prove yourself and garnish business results.

Why Your Time is Valuable

Why Your Time is Valuable Why Your Time is Valuable Misc Tips / https://www.edenscott.com/blog Your time is valuable, both in your career and your overall life.In fact, time is the most valuable resource youll ever have.You can never get more of it. Once you use a bit of it, its gone forever. (Unlikely money, which you can get more and more of, and probably will throughout your career!)So how should the value of your time effect your decisions? And how highly should you value your time to begin with?Answering these questions will help you live a more productive, happier life while wasting less time on tasks that you dont feel like completing. Youll also have a more successful career if you use these principles when evaluating jobs.How to Value Your TimeIts worth taking time to think about how much your time is worth.How much does your job currently pay? Thats a good starting point. It doesnt have to be your final answer though.How much money would you require to spend an hour on the weekend doing something you dont feel like doing?How much do yo u think you ought to be paid in your next job? What if somebody wanted to hire you as a consultant for a ten-hour project. How much would you charge per hour?These are all good questions to ask yourself when deciding how valuable your time is.Whatever you decide on, come up with some figure of what your time is worth.Now heres the key: After youve decided how valuable your time is to YOU stop doing time-consuming tasks that arent worth the time spent.For example, calling a company to dispute a $5 credit card charge and holding on the phone for an hour.Thats NOT a good use of time for most people.If you value your time at less than $5 per hour, then stay on hold. Otherwise, hang up the phone.This is why its important to come up with an amount that your time is worth to you first.Without this figure in mind, how will you be able to decide which tasks are worth doing?Stop Doing Tasks That Arent Worth Your TimeFor the tasks not worth doing, you can either choose to pay somebody else to do them, or cut them out completely.Calling your cable provider would probably be one that you want to neglect completely if you value your time at $20 per hour or more. Tasks like mowing your lawn or cleaning your kitchen might be things that make sense to pay somebody else to do.One of the biggest differences between the top earners and the rest of people is their focus on earning rather than saving. Most people think about how to save $20. The top earners are thinking about how to earn enough that spending $20 doesnt matter.Why Time Is Valuable in Your CareerEspecially in the early portion of your career, you should be looking at jobs in terms of where you can learn the most in the least amount of time. If you want to advance your career in the long run, you need your first two or three jobs to be challenging and to really stretch you.Look for companies with room for growth and positions that can develop your experience and continue providing challenges as you master the basics.I f youre not struggling or learning anything at work, your job is wasting your time.If you are bored at work, you are doing yourself no favors by staying at the company without speaking up about it.If you have to take a small pay cut to be in a challenging position in the field that interests you, its well worth it.

5 Ways A Cover Letter Can Make or Break Your Application

5 Ways A Cover Letter Can Make or Break Your Application Cover letters are a huge pain to write. No one likes writing them and hiring managers don’t spend much time reading them This mentality of quantity over quality is a double-edged sword in the job-searching realm. Obviously, the more applications you submit, the greater your chances of getting interviewed.But on the other hand, if you’re submitting the same application with a poorly written cover letter to EVERY opening you find, you’re sabotaging your chances of getting interviews.How can a cover letter potentially kill your chances of even getting an interview?1. Wrong dateIf you’re using a cover letter format similar to a traditional letter in that the date is on the top, be sure you get the date right. To some recruiters or hiring managers, this little detail will make or break your cover letter.Being off by a day or two isn’t the end of the world but if a detail-oriented person is reviewing your application, that’s the end of the road for you. Being off by weeks, mont hs, or even years is just flat-out inexcusable.2. Addressing the wrong personReferring to the reader as Hiring Manager, Recruitment team, or playing it safe with just “To Whom It May Concern” is totally fine. You may not know who will contact you for the interview so keeping your salutation a bit vague is acceptable. But if you don’t know for sure who will eventually read the letter, don’t put a specific name down.Say you’re using an old contact name at a company, but that person’s replacement is still getting their emails. That person might think that you’re sending the letter to someone at another company and delete that email in response.3. Using an obvious templateevalIf you’ve never written a cover letter before, then using templates will be a saving grace. But they’re just templates; they cannot standalone by themselves.If you can’t be bothered to customize a template by writing why you’re the best fit for the job, why should hiring managers and recruiter s be bothered to interview you?4. Riddled with typosPlease, for the love everything you hold near and dear in the world, PROOFREAD YOUR COVER LETTER BEFORE SENDING IT OUT. This is especially vital if you’re applying for any kind of writing or communication job.If you can’t or won’t write your own introductory letter with any care or eye for spelling and grammar, why should a hiring manager even bother reading it?5. Has nothing to do with the jobevalTake care that you don’t use the cover letter for one job when applying to a completely unrelated second job. If you’re applying for a Financial Analyst job but your cover letter references your graphic design experience, it’s the endIn your haste, zeal, or desperation to find a job, you might end up committing one of these cover letter crimes. I know to some of you it seems like common sense to proofread your application and make sure it’s absolutely flawless before clicking the submit button.Just be sure you triple check e verything and you’re confident that your cover letter is the best reflection of yourself. Literally check yourself before you wreck yourself!

Three Tips on How to Tailor a Resume - CareerEnlightenment.com

Three Tips on How to Tailor a Resume It’s your birthday. I’ve bought you a present! Do you want to know what it is?Socks.Happy birthday! WooNot impressed? What? Are you saying I would have made you happier by giving you something you wanted or needed?Well, let me share something with you. It’s the same with sending resumes to recruiters.Writing one resume in response to multiple job offers is the equivalent of giving a recruiter a pair of socks for their birthday. And do you know what happens to birthday socks? You know.Every time you respond to a job offer you need to tailor your resume to that job offer. That means rewriting your resume every time.And while that sounds like a lot of unnecessary work, I assure you that matching your resume to the job description is the only way to make your resume  more exciting than a generic pair of unwanted birthday socks.1. Here’s What Recruiters Really WantThink about this:Recruiters get flooded with an average of 250+ resumes in response to typical a job offer.They only have time to scan each one for a few seconds to see if it has what they want.What do they want?Keywords.Because these “keywords” are the skills and experience that they’ve asked for in the job description.Look at that! They’ve told you what they want.When you base your resume around the keywords, it should be clear to a recruiter that you have what they want.So, grab your trusty pen and mark all of the skills and required experience you can find listed in the job description.2. Three Tips For Tailoring Your ResumeMost of the skills that you’ve marked will fall under one of the following categories.Job-related Skills: Mandatory skills that you need to do the job. Example: DrivingTransferable Skills: Nice to have skills that translate from one job to another. Example: Microsoft OfficeAdaptive Skills: Abstract skills that help you cope with life.  Example: DiscretionTip 1: Find the Job-related Skills Which keywords from the job description are job-related?Hint: are you able t o do the work without it?If you answer no, then it’s a job-related skill. If you are applying for a job as a truck driver and you can’t drive, it’s likely that you are not the droid they’re looking for.Once you’ve located all of the job-related skills, work the ones you have into the top part of your resume. Make sure they also appear at the top of the list in your skills section.You will want to add some of them verbatim. Want to Read More Articles Like This One?Sign up here to receive weekly updates from Career Enlightenment, and never miss another powerful job searching tip! SUBSCRIBE! You have Successfully Subscribed!We hate spam too. Unsubscribe any time. Tip 2: Find the Transferable SkillsYou’ve probably picked up some basic skills from past jobs, such as customer service or the ability to use Microsoft Office. These are all transferable skills that you recycle from one job to another.Most employers need you to have a few of these skills. Some will be required, and some will be “nice to have.” Look at your list of keywords and find the transferable skills.If they are required, make them more prominent on your resume. Also, add transferable skills that you have that are missing from the job offer but that a new employer would find valuable.How do you make a keyword more prominent?First, put it as close to the top third of the resume as possible. Second, add numbers and details.Adding numbers and details makes the keyword more visible and easier to find. Plus, it allows the hiring manager to imagine you achieving the same results for them if they hire you.It works like this:Instead of writing: “Responsible for increasing sales.”Write: “Increased quarterly sales by 10% over 2 years.”Tip 3: Find the Adaptive SkillsIf the job offer asks for an energetic, upbeat, friendly person these are adaptive skills. They are skills that have more to do with your personality.The easiest way to include them is to use them as adjectives to descr ibe yourself.For example:Detail-oriented Sales AssociateOr, you could add a hobbies and interests section to your resume. It’s a great place to show your personality.Add hobbies that require certain characteristics. Do you need to show that you are energetic and friendly? Add a team sport to your interests section.Key TakeawayThe thing to remember is that a resume should give a recruiter what they want.To do that, you must tailor your resume to EVERY job offer.And while that may seem like a pain, it’s one of the few foolproof things that you can do to improve your resume.

Resume Writing Services - What You Need To Know About Oak Brook IL Resume Services

Resume Writing Services - What You Need To Know About Oak Brook IL Resume ServicesAs more business owners are finding themselves in need of resume writing services Oak Brook IL is offering a wide variety of options for you to choose from. The first step is to research the various options and then decide which one works best for you.Some of the most commonly sought out resume writing services are one that provides help with business-specific resumes, education and job search related resumes and the possibility of helping with a local or national resume writer. Some people who have had a difficult time finding quality help are those who do not have an extensive knowledge of the industry or people they are trying to hire. By starting this research early, you will find the best resources to start your search with.If you are looking for professional assistance, this type of help can make the difference between hiring a business for your business or having someone else take care of it. A g ood writing service for business resumes will provide the best possible help and be available for questions or concerns you may have during your job search.When creating a resume it is important to collect all relevant information and send it to the resume writing service at the same time. By doing this you will receive two different documents and will have the ability to tailor them to what is needed. In addition, if you mail the resume to a specific address, you will be able to track any progress the company makes with your resume.As a business owner, you should consider what kind of help you would like to receive from a resume writing service. Are you seeking assistance for filling out employment applications, understanding why you are receiving the responses you are receiving, how to respond to common questions or problems, or how to address specific employment requirements? Each of these services will help you determine what you need and will give you a clear idea of what you a re looking for.If you are looking for help with creating a customized resume for a job interview or job opening, a resume writing service will be able to meet your needs. They will create your resume on your specific needs and then attach it to the appropriate employment application or job announcement.There are many individuals who use a combination of individual resume services and online services to gather information about job openings. You can also find resources that specialize in helping business owners create a resume that is made specifically for your own unique needs.Utilizing these services can help you select the most qualified candidate to fill a position as well as ensure that your resume is of the highest quality. Using a good company will allow you to focus on your own needs and not having to worry about your resume being helpful in your efforts to hire or retain an employee.