Job Search

Where Is The Interview Doctor In March?

March 7, 2017 By Marta Goertzen

Here are a few of the places where Katherine will be speaking in March.

There are links to the events that are open to the public to register and attend.

March 9, 2017

Search Techniques That Bring Results: Proactive Recruiting
Kent State Stark Nursing Home Administrators
9am – 12pm private session

March 13, 2017

Tell Me About Yourself
Lorain County Community College Job Club

Sptizer Conference Center Room 118
7 – 8:30pm Open to the Public

March 20, 2017

Guest Interview for Find your Dream Job

Mac’s List Find Your Dream Job Podcast

The Shy Person’s Guide to Finding the Right Career Direction

February 14, 2017 By Marta Goertzen

Do you feel barricaded to finding the career path you want yet struggling with your shyness that is holding you back?

Dave graduated from college with the best intentions. He kind of knew how he wanted to use his marketing degree. He applied for jobs and got a few. Soon his career consisted of good educational credentials and a string of unrelated low level jobs ranging from customer service representative to marketing research associate. Today that string of jobs is not the career he had in mind.

Dave is a shy guy. I can tell Dave is a shy guy by the way he answers my questions. He kind of knows what he wants but is not sure how to get it. He is a little afraid to ask people. He doesn’t want to look silly or inconvenience other people.

He had trouble reaching out to me because he didn’t want to look silly or inconvenience me. The signs are all there.

Shyness is not terminal.

It is possible to overcome or at least put aside shyness if you want something bad enough.

Start with some research about yourself. What are your hobbies? What kind of work has made you happiest in the past? What kind of people have made you happiest and most comfortable in the past? What themes do you notice?

Do some research reading job ads to find the ideal job that makes your heart sing. We are not applying for jobs, just doing research. What do you know about that ideal job? You need to find out.

This is the hard part for shy people. To discover more information about your ideal job you must talk to people you don’t necessarily know… yet. Yikes!

Here are the Shy Person’s Action Tips to give you the courage to talk to people you don’t know yet:

Make a list of questions based on curiosity about your potential career direction. Write down the questions. Practice asking them out loud if you need to.
Create a written template for what you want to say in emails, on the phone or in person. You will feel more confident if you know what you want to ask people: Introduction, your questions (1 or 2), a potential follow up for more people to talk to and a thank you.
Find people who already do that job – ask your friends and your friends’ friends, use LinkedIn Advanced Search to find people. Make a list of names with phone number or email addresses. It might be easier for a shy person to send an email.
Set a schedule to talk to as many people as you think you can. You might only be reaching out to one person a day or a week but without a schedule you might never get to it.
Consider forming a support group or finding an accountability partner to give you the courage to do what needs to be done.
Use your template and schedule to reach out to people on your list to ask your questions.
Celebrate when you talk to someone on your list. This will give you confidence to do it again.
Evaluate what you learned about potential career directions. Does what you heard make sense, sound like fun, sound fulfilling? Maybe you just found your new career path!

These steps can be useful to anyone who wants to find a new career path. This is not rocket science but to a shy person, this process can be tough. But exploring your career direction with these simple steps you can get what you are looking for!

What steps will you take to find the right career direction?

If you are shy or introverted there is no shame in that but it may be blocking you from getting the career you want. There is help for you! Get your free copy of the “7 Tips for Career Success for the Shy Person” and begin to step out, beyond these barriers, onto a new career path today.

Your Social Media Trail comes back around in Job Search

December 20, 2016 By Marta Goertzen

Social Media sites, like LinkedIn, are useful in so many ways during a job search!

The other day I got a note from a good friend, David. He is interviewing engineers for an important vacancy on his team. He found a fellow with a wonderful background and wants to hire him. First he wants to check his references to be sure the person he is hiring has the skills he says and will fit in with the team. Smart, right?

David noticed that this candidate is connected with me as a 2^nd level connection. That means that someone I am connected with as a 1^st level connection is connected to the candidate, who we will call John. David sent me a note asking if I could reach out to the shared connection to check references. Interesting, huh?

This experience has some important highlights:

For job seekers: Everyone is looking at everything. This candidate likely has no idea that people so far out of his circle will be providing feedback about him. Make sure you protect your reputation by being nice to everyone and presenting the best version of yourself at all times, especially in social media. Be sure to get recommendations on LinkedIn so viewers get a full impression of who you are and what you are like to work with.

For hiring managers: Take advantage of every opportunity to check someone out by any means possible. Social media can be a powerful way to get information about how a candidate really operates. Use every means. On LinkedIn, check out the recommendations. This particular candidate, John, has no recommendations. Does that mean no one likes him? Or does that mean he just hasn’t filled out his profile completely? Don’t forget to look at Facebook, Twitter and other social media. You never know what you will find.

Keep in mind that in this day of widespread social media people are jumping to conclusions about you whether you know it or not. Be aware. Be prepared.

If you would like to be even more prepared at a Job Interview, download our ebook, “The Top 30 Most Frequently Asked Questions at a Job Interview“. It’s Free!

Rory Gilmore needs a Job Search Coach

December 6, 2016 By Marta Goertzen

I love Gilmore Girls.

My daughter and I watched every episode then watched again repeatedly until I think the DVDs are worn out. We love it that much. So we both watched the Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life on Netflix the minute it came out on Thanksgiving weekend. Loved it!!

I want to share a few things that struck me without spoiling anything for those of you who have not yet seen it.

Rory is a mess. This smart girl who had everything figured out in high school and college is lost ten years later. “I don’t have a plan, a list, a clue!” Like the thirty-something club that appears frequently in Stars Hollow, she has reached a point in her life where she doesn’t have any idea what to do next. And without a plan, she is lost.

The saddest part is seeing her float around while wasting opportunity after opportunity. She blows an interview in spectacular fashion because she cannot explain, “Why should I hire Rory”.

This is the part I want to talk about.

How in the world can a talented, intelligent woman with excellent credentials and experience not be able to explain why someone should hire her? Easy. It happens all the time. Maybe it is happening to you right now.

Every day talented intelligent people with excellent credentials and experiences get caught up in interviews and in their job search because they have no idea what they want and no idea how to express it. This is a shame and a needless waste.

Rory needs a job search coach.

Here are the questions I would ask:

What is the experience you are most proud of?
What gives you joy? What is it about that experience that is joyful and fulfilling to you?
What do you absolutely hate – in life, about some people, about your least favorite job? What makes you say that?
If you could do anything in the world right this very minute, what would it be?

“I don’t know” is not an acceptable answer. Everyone has experiences they love and hate, people they love being around or not, dreams that they are afraid or reluctant to reveal.

The path lies somewhere in these experiences and dreams. Sometimes you just need someone to tease it out of you, someone who is not your mother.

Much as we love Lorelei, your mom is not always able to be the impartial observer willing to risk it all by asking hard questions. Moms, including Lorelei, are supposed to be there for you to wipe the tears and say a soothing, love-filled something. The best moms, even Lorelei, cannot always ask the tough questions that make you dig deeper to pull out the info that forms the new path.

Rory needs someone to help her focus on these important questions so she can make a new plan. She needs a coach.

I know this is true because I cannot coach my daughter about making a new plan. Somehow despite my best efforts, everything I say comes across like some sort of unintended accusation. My daughter needs a coach too. She needs me to be her mom while she creates her new plan.

Rory really blows a big interview (and I am not spoiling anything to tell you this). She probably does not want the job and the job is almost certainly not right for her but she blows the interview anyway.

Rory has no idea how to answer even the most fundamental questions. She thinks she can wing it because she is smart and has good credentials and experience but she can’t. No one can. Rory is simply unprepared. The hiring manager sees it immediately. Ever have that experience?

An interview is a terrible thing to waste.

Rory needs an interview coach. Badly.

If I were Rory’s interview coach I would ask her:

What are three or four accomplishments that you think this organization might be interested in? Let’s turn them into stories that support your claim that you can do this job.
I would have Rory research the organization to see whether the organization has the values and people that she would like to work with.
We would create and prepare responses for questions we think the hiring manager might ask. Most of all, we would work on crafting a great answer to “Tell me about yourself”. This would give Rory the preparation to be able to pivot on the spot when the hiring manager asks questions like, “Why should I hire Rory?”

Since Rory is clearly an introvert, she needs to think these questions through in advance and practice out loud so the words flow smoothly. She might have trouble coming up with a great answer on the spot without preparation. She needs the time to think.

Do you ever feel lost, like you need a new plan? Have you blown an interview because you thought you could wing it? We can help you just like we can help Rory.

Stop floating around like Rory. Find an impartial coach who can help you put together a plan, create a job search marketing plan and interview like a pro. Invest in yourself to get the life you yearn for!

If you would like to be even more prepared at a Job Interview, download our ebook, “The Top 30 Most Frequently Asked Questions at a Job Interview“. It’s Free!

Five Ways to Use LinkedIn Groups in Your Job Search

September 30, 2016 By Marta Goertzen

LinkedIn Groups are your networking key to the kingdom.

Until you have explored and joined groups you haven’t fully utilized the networking power of LinkedIn.com. Occasionally when I work with a candidate having trouble with his/her search, I find they have not fully explored groups.

Here are some reasons why groups can be useful in your search:

Expands contacts. LinkedIn protocol allows you to send an invitation to connect to people who are in groups with you. Being in groups allows you to connect with more people and allows other people in the group to connect with you
Interesting discussions. You can post questions or comment on questions other people post. This raises your visibility and lets people see how you think. Assuming you make a good impression, it makes you more desirable.
Jobs are posted in groups that might not be posted anywhere else. You can respond directly and perhaps get a leg up on the competition who might be looking at Monster. You might also become aware of companies hiring people in your field.
Increases your visibility. The more people who know you are looking for a new position, the more likely you can land that job. Recruiters use LinkedIn as their top choice to find candidates. They look in groups.
Offer more ways to search for people, companies, and jobs. LinkedIn’s search tools are very powerful, even if you do not purchase the expanded services. You can see who is looking at your profile and search for companies in your industry. You can talk to people who already work at those companies and get inside information on who to speak to in your field.

Consider joining groups related to your education (college alumni association, college interest groups, sorority or fraternity groups), your previous employment, special interest groups related to your job, groups related to your industry or the industry you want to work in, special interest groups related to some special characteristic about you (maybe your age, sex, race). Be careful about groups related to your religion or politics so you don’t inadvertently alienate potential employers.

LinkedIn groups are a must in every job search. How do you use LinkedIn groups?

If you would like more tips on a successful job search, check out a replay video of our job search training – it is free and has tons of job search tips in it.