Keppie Careers

Social media speaker, social media consultant, job search coach

Don't Make the Same Mistake Twice – In Your Job Search or Otherwise!

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What an incredible coincidence (or maybe it isn’t?) that, just as the U.S. Gulf Coast areas hit by Katrina three years ago should be pausing to remember the victims of that horrible disaster, Hurricaine Gustav threatens the region still struggling to recover three years later.

This time, it seems as if people aren’t taking any chances. The AP reports that 1 million residents fled the Gulf Coast, well ahead of any official orders to evacuate the area. The mayor of New Orleans has told tourists to leave, hospitals are preparing and shelters are being set up. (The Superdome NOT being one of them.)

Hopefully, lessons learned from the Katrina disaster will inform and improve the response to this oncoming storm. People have not forgotten Katrina and will do what they can to avoid getting involved in a similar situation.

Does it always take an epic catastrophe to learn from our mistakes? Ideally, we will all be able to recognize that there’s something to be learned from every mis-step, especially as mistakes pertain to job hunting.

In my networking, I’ve recently spoken with two job hunters who face similar situations. Both out of work, they desperately needed jobs to earn income. As a result, both allowed themselves to be sucked into interviews and positions that were not well suited to their skills and experience.

“Amy” said to me, “I knew that I didn’t really have the experience to do the job. There were red flags, but they were willing to hire me, so I signed on.” Unfortunately, the result was that the contract to permanent position did not become permanent when the organization realized that their hire couldn’t manage the project they had in mind. While she had a paid job for several months, she stopped job hunting while employed, and when her concerns became reality, she realized that she had wasted several months when she could have been seeking the permanent job she needs.

“Kris” describes a similar situation. She took a job that she knew she couldn’t really do. She’s not sure how she landed the position, but after only four weeks, faces being asked to leave.

“Amy” is back on the job hunt, and finding that things haven’t changed…She’s still being recruited for jobs above her qualifications. “Kris,” facing her worst fears, now wonders how to approach her job hunt.

Maybe these stories are not familiar, but you have a different recurring job hunting problem? I met “Bill,” who says he “keeps coming in second” in his search. Others keep sending out the same resume to literally 100s of jobs, but don’t get a single interview.

Job seekers need to take stock and learn from their mistakes. Maybe trusting their own instincts will help. Maybe asking for help with a resume or interview coaching will make the difference. Recognize that doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting a different result, isn’t smart. (Not a political statement, but I can’t help but think that this sentiment is relevant here!)

Just as you (hopefully) wouldn’t hole up in your New Orleans home as a huge storm approaches, don’t make the same mistakes over and over in your quest for a new job. Take some time to evaluate your plans and consider seeking some help. Otherwise, you may find yourself facing a job hunting disaster, partly of your own making.

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Tired of making the same mistake twice? Visit Keppie Careers online for information about our services, including resume writing, interview preparation and job hunt coaching: www.keppiecareers.com

Resume Tip – Your Resume Should Read as the Perfect Match for Your Next Job

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 So, you are trying to write your own resume, and you are focusing on all of the things that you’ve done in the past to highlight?  STOP!

Your resume isn’t ABOUT your past – it’s about your future! Of course, you need to rely on what you have done to convince your next employer of what you can do for him or her, but remember: Your resume needs to read as the perfect match for your next job. You don’t want to look like the candidate who is qualified to do the job you already have.

Just as you need to target you resume to address your potential employer’s problems, you also need to target it to highlight the skills and accomplishments that propel you to where you want to go.  Review job descriptions that interest you. What do they want? What skills do they seek? Demonstrate that you are that person by artfully illustrating that you have the skills and accomplishments to get the job done.

You don’t have those skills on your resume? The “propel you forward” ones? Take the wheel and get them! Talk to your employer about the skills you’d like to develop. See where there are opportunities to get involved in projects that will give you what you need for your resume. Drive your own career bus, or be stuck hopelessly at the red light.

If you want to receive free up-to-date tips to help with your job hunt, Click here to subscribe to receive future blogs sent directly to you!

Need help with your resume? Did you know we offer a resume consulting service? We advise, you write! Or, hire us to write your resume for you. Visit Keppie Careers online for information about our services: www.keppiecareers.com.

photo by KM

Resume Tip – Be a Knight in Shining Armor!

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Do you want to be a hero?

Who doesn’t want to hire a knight in shining armor, ready to take on the problems of the day?

When you focus on your resume, don’t just focus on you and what you offer. Remember to focus on the target – the potential employer. It is just as important to know what the employer wants as it is to know your own skills and accomplishments!

Figure out what problems your target organization is trying to solve. Sometimes, this is easy to discover by reading their website and job description. Other times, informational interviews and keeping up with the news of the day helps. (If the Wall Street Journal just ran an article about the organization, you’ll want to be sure to know about it!) Be sure to Google the organization; don’t just rely on what they say about themselves. What are others saying about them?

Once you know their needs, determine why and how YOU can provide the answers to their problems. Make a clear connection on your resume. Show them that you are their knight in shining armor, slaying dragons left and right.

photo by Ms. Kathleen

Should You Hire Someone to Write Your Resume?

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Have you looked at your resume lately? Really looked at it with a critical eye? Does it highlight your skills and accomplishments? Or, is it a laundry list of “stuff” you’ve done? Are you sure it demonstrates all that you have to offer a potential employer?

Sure, you’ve shown it to your friends, maybe even a colleague or two. They think it looks fine, even great! When is the last time they studied the art of resume writing? Do they realize that, in some cases, human eyes will not even see your resume until after it is screened by a computer? Did they explain that you’ll be lucky to get a 10-second glance for your resume on a first go-around?

The fact is, most people are not resume writing experts. While everyone has an opinion, we all know how useful an uninformed opinion can be.

Have you been sending your resume out but not getting any response? Blaming it on the economy or your experience level? Those factors certainly have a role, but it is more than likely that a professionally written resume would yield better results. Do you really want to face the job market with documents that are not optimized?

Many job seekers don’t stop to consider how much money a less-than-optimal resume costs them. Consider, if you are unemployed, how much money do you lose for every day that you are out of work? If your resume isn’t top-notch, you may not appear qualified for the salary that you seek or deserve. A professionally written resume will help shorten your job search and may qualify you for a higher salary. Your return on investment in yourself may pay off substantially!

Does everyone need to hire someone to write their resume? No, I don’t think so. If you are a great writer and have kept up with resume trends, understand how to focus the reader on the key points and can objectively assess your document to ensure that you aren’t letting misplaced modesty prevent you from incorporating your very best accomplishments, you might be a great candidate for writing your own resume.

On the other hand, who has the energy or the inclination to keep up with “resume-ology?” I do! Helping people successfully navigate their job hunt is my passion. I keep up with the market, learn about new technology and approaches and stay plugged in because you don’t have the time, expertise or desire to do it.

Do you want to achieve your career goals and save money? Your career is one of your most crucial financial investments. Whether you are actively engaged in a search, underemployed or unhappily employed, it makes sense to hire an ally for your job hunt. An ally tells it like it is and helps you get where you need to be. Are you committed to discovering what you have to offer an employer?

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photo by mailophobia

What Do Job Seekers Really Control?

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If you’re in the midst of a job hunt, you probably think a lot about all of the things that are out of your control. The fact is, you can’t control the job market, the employer or recruiter’s time schedule or behavior, the traffic on the way to the interview…The list goes on and on.

You can, however, manage your own reaction to all of it, which I think is a good lesson or reminder for anyone in the midst of a (sometimes frustrating and long) job search.

Penelope Trunk recently wrote about one thing that should be in every job seeker’s control: the importance of being kind and its impact on your career. She says:

Living up to your potential is not crossing off everything on your to do list on time, under budget. Or canonizing your ideas in a book deal. Really, no one cares. You are not on this earth to do that. Trust me. No one is. You are on this earth to be kind. That is your only potential.

…If you want to live up to your potential, be as nice as you can be. Be as respectful as you can be. Be as honest with yourself as you can be. Because you can’t be honest with other people if you are not honest with yourself.

One could argue if being kind is really the ultimate goal (feel free), but to me, the bigger picture is:

  1. “Soft” and social skills are key to every job seeker – seek and nurture them.
  2. Focusing on controlling what you can is empowering and helpful in the long run.

Brilliant people aren’t always the best decision makers or the best communicators, but communication and decision making are key to success at work and in life. It amazes me how often smart, well-educated people blow opportunities as a result of poor emotional intelligence. It is easy to underestimate the value of being driven by bigger goals (being kind…being connected).

Life gets in the way, and we excuse our less than stellar behavior because we are tired, or didn’t get a good parking spot, or missed our flight, or missed a deadline…This list goes on and on.

No matter what anyone tells us, there is little in life that is totally within our control. We rely on other people for so much of what we use to define “success.”

I am convinced that people who re-set their gauges to define success based on what they DO control (how they treat others, how they react to difficult situations) are much more likely to jump out of bed in the morning than those who allow others to set those standards.

Ready to take charge of your job hunt? Keppie Careers is here for you! Need a great resume? Some help to write the perfect cover letter? Write to me and visit www.keppiecareers.com for more about what services we provide.

If you want to receive free up-to-date tips to help with your job hunt, Click here to subscribe to receive future blogs sent directly to you!

photo by andrewandlist2153