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How to Keep a Job Search Discreet - Amy Gallo - Best Practices. Looking for a job while you already have one can be stressful, especially in the age of social media when privacy is scarce. You don’t want to rock the boat at your current company but you want to find the next great opportunity. Should you tell your boss you’re looking? How do you handle references? If you get an offer, is two weeks notice really enough? Since how you leave your current job can be as important to your career as how you perform in the next one, you need to know the answers to these questions. What the Experts Say The job market may be bleak, but that doesn’t mean you’re stuck. Do your homework Fernández-Aráoz says that the first step to any job search is a thorough analysis of what you’re good at and what you love to do. Consider internal options first Once you know what you want, start your search inside your company. Keep it secret if necessary Many people have to keep their search quiet.

No matter how bad things are, don’t just walk out the door. Do: Don’t: 10 tricky interview questions that could trip you up. For the long-term unemployed or those workers looking for a change, getting an interview in today’s market may feel like a win in itself. But once you’re in the door, interviewers often put you through an obstacle course of deceptive questions with double meanings or hidden agendas. Do you know how to read the subtext? “On the other side of the desk, hiring managers spend countless long hours interviewing candidate after candidate,” says Joyce Lain Kennedy, a nationally syndicated careers columnist and author of Job Interviews For Dummies. “A tricky question may be used as a time management tool to quickly eliminate a less qualified candidate.” Kennedy says that even if job hunters have rehearsed anticipated topics, an unexpected question may jar loose an authentic answer that exposes hidden problems.

She outlines the top 10 most common questions designed to trick you. No. 1: Why have you been out of work so long, and how many others were laid off? Don’t fall into this trap. Ms. Control your fate, and the quality of your phone interview. The following excerpt is reprinted, with permission of the publisher, fromThe Essential Phone Interview Handbook© 2011 Paul J. Bailo. Published by Career Press, Pompton Plains, NJ. 800-227-3371. All rights reserved. World-Class Phone Interview in Action You deserve a better opportunity and all you need to do is get past the phone interview.

The following techniques will assist you in being a champion phone interviewer. It’s In Your Control The interviewer may be asking the questions, but ultimately, you control your phone interview. In order to maintain control, you must be strong-minded, ruthless, and unwavering. It is all about control, staying in control before, during, and after your phone interview. Listen Carefully Has anyone ever told you the famous saying, “God gave us two ears and one mouth so we could listen more and talk less?”

Listen, listen, listen. How do you demonstrate you are listening when you are on the phone? Don’t Interrupt! There Is No Need to Rush. Is this the job you want? How to find the right fit and then sell yourself in an interview. The following article by Wendy L. Werner appeared in the January 2012 issue of LAWPRO Magazine. On the face of it, interviewing should not be all that difficult – particularly for lawyers. As members of a profession who primarily make their living either writing or speaking, the idea that having a conversation about your interests and abilities in your own profession sounds both logical and easy. But throw the words “job interview” into the mix and a whole new paradigm emerges.

At the same time, it also seems that candidates often appear at interviews unprepared for a conversation in which they have voluntarily decided to participate. Here are some thoughts about making the most of a difficult process, and in the end making good decisions about where you want to work. Preparation is key While most law firm interviews feature relatively standard questions, corporations now often employ what are called “behavioural” or “situational” interviews. The SAO formula. Reference etiquette: Boost your résumé with strong contacts. I have been out of the work force for more than a year and recently have been invited for a job interview. I am not on great terms with my previous employer and am unsure what to do about references. How many references do you need to provide at an interview?

Should these references be included on the résumé, or separately? What information do you include in the references? Should I provide the names of people I had poor working relationships with? I don’t want to provide poor references, but is it better to provide references from the people who were my most recent supervisors, or can I provide references I know will be more positive? Is there a reference etiquette? References are a critical part of the interview process. So providing good, solid and relevant references are paramount. And yes, there is a reference etiquette, including these key points: Go for the positive Gather references from people you know will speak positively about your work. Get permission Be thorough, and discreet. Prepare for an Interview by Thinking Like an Employer - Bill Barnett. By Bill Barnett | 2:39 PM January 26, 2012 People have different natural talents at interviewing for jobs. But even the most talented can fail to get offers if they don’t prepare.

This goes beyond arriving on time, dressing professionally, being polite, and preparing to discuss every detail of your resume. Of course, these things are important. An employer’s purpose is to help determine who best fits the job opening and who will improve the organization’s capability in that position. Consider these six steps to align your interview skills with an employer’s mindset: 1. But you can do better. This foundational knowledge leads to all the other steps. 2. 3. Imagine questions interviewers may ask and how you’ll answer. 4. This line of discussion is important for everyone, and it’s essential for senior roles. 5. 6. What more have you learned about the company? A winning PVP will set your direction, and your network can surface good possibilities. What do you do to prepare for interviews? Canadian employers seek new ways to foster growth, and reward it. You’ll be rewarded for coming up with ideas to help your employer expand this year, but the appreciation may not come in the form of cash, a new study suggests.

Canadian companies are focusing on new ways to gain efficiency and grow, a survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers International Ltd. found. Despite the slow pace of economic recovery and global competition, 82 per cent of the 306 companies surveyed across Canada have made growth a priority for the year, with 10 per cent looking at aggressive growth of 15 per cent or more. Almost two-thirds of the companies surveyed indicated they plan to grow by improving sales and marketing, the Business Insights Survey found. Seventy-one per cent of companies said they plan to change their human-resources strategy by using more non-financial rewards to encourage creativity and motivate staff. “It’s a question of having to do more with less money and fewer people.

Salary Negotiation: Make More Money, Be More Valued. [Editor’s note: At nearly 7,000 words, you probably don’t want to try reading this on an iDevice. Bookmark it and come back later.] Imagine something a wee bit outside your comfort zone. Nothing scandalous: just something you don’t do often, don’t particularly enjoy, and slightly more challenging than “totally trivial.” Maybe reciting poetry while simultaneously standing on one foot. If I told you I would pay you a hundred thousand dollars if you did five minutes of poetry recital while standing on one foot, would you do it?

It’s an absurd image, but play it straight. There is no hidden gotcha here. Would you read poetry for me? Of course you would. What if you were talking about this at dinner with your friends, and one of them said “Oh, no, I’d never do that. This is pretty much how I feel every time I talk to my engineering friends about salary negotiation. Dude, it’s five minutes. (New to the blog? Why Negotiation Matters Shifting Your Mindset To Embrace Negotiation Never give a number.

Inside the Recruiter's Head: What He's Really Asking You During the Interview. Jayne Mattson is Senior Vice President at Keystone Associates, a leading career management and transition services consulting firm in Boston, Massachusetts. Mattson specializes in helping mid-to-senior level individuals in new career exploration, networking strategies and career decisions based on corporate culture fit.

You applied for a new job, and you've been called in for an interview. During the interview process, there are three main questions that need to be answered to help the HR person determine if you're the right fit for the job: Can this person do the job? Will he do the job? Will he fit in with the company culture? By asking what I call “the question behind the question,” hiring managers have a better chance to making the right hiring decision. 1.

This question gets at the heart of why you're leaving the current job or, in the case of a reduction in workforce, it helps the interviewer understand what was missing. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Jayne Mattson. Want better employees? Ask better questions in job interviews. Tell me about … your biggest weakness ... your favourite colour ... the superhero you most admire. At least 70 per cent of employers still ask lame, predictable questions such as these in job interviews. That’s why they often miss clues that a candidate is destined to be a flop as an employee, leadership coach Mark Murphy found in a study his company did, which became the basis for his new book, Hiring for Attitude. ( Click here to read an excerpt.) (What's the weirdest interview question you've been asked? Send it to careerquestion@globeandmail.com.) The study tracked 20,000 newly hired employees in the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia, and found that 46 per cent of them had either been dismissed or received poor performance reviews or written reprimands over the course of the past three years.

“Most new hires don’t fail for lack of skill. Rather, their underlying personalities and attitudes aren’t a good match for the job and the organization,” Mr. Mr. Given these findings, Mr. Tips for cracking a tough job market. The past year has been frustrating for many Canadians in the job market, and it isn’t likely to end soon. A new report from Manpower predicts that employers will remain cautious about hiring in 2012, as they wait to see whether the economy has truly turned the corner.

This is a good time for a reality check, experts say. If you’re searching for a new position, you need to readjust your focus, and your approach to the career hunt, based on definite trends: Postings are rare: Move quickly Being well connected, both in your business network and in social media, is crucial because more positions are being filled by word-of-mouth referrals or online searches, rather than job postings, said Warren Lundy, partner with executive search firm Feldman-Daxon Partners Inc. in Toronto.

“Openings that do get posted are being filled much more quickly. Where it would have been eight weeks in the 1990s between a job posting and a hiring, it’s now sometimes only a week,” Mr. Employers are cautious Ms. Five Steps to Assess Your Strengths - Bill Barnett. By Bill Barnett | 2:07 PM November 29, 2011 As discussed in my previous post, your personal value proposition (PVP) is why an employer should hire you or promote you over someone else. It’s the foundation of your career strategy. A product’s value proposition only works if it’s true, if the business has the organizational competencies needed to deliver the value proposition.

Likewise, a PVP only works if it’s true — if you have the strengths required. So the first step in developing a winning value proposition is self-appraisal to assess your strengths. Is it possible to come up with new insights about strengths? Here’s someone who did just that. Pallab (name has been changed) was a marketing Vice President at a Fortune 100 company that acquired his company two years earlier. He needed a new career strategy. Pallab first thought he’d emphasize his experience with marketing and growth, especially in emerging markets. Pallab began an aggressive job search. List your strengths. The Interview Question You Should Always Expect - John Lees. By John Lees | 11:26 AM November 4, 2011 Whether you are a new middle manager or a new President-elect, the common wisdom is that you have three months to make an impact in your new role. And yet when preparing for job interviews, candidates make the mistake of believing that most questions will be about their past experience, not what they plan to do once hired.

New hires have to impress their bosses, peers, and employees in less time than it takes some of us to arrange a meeting. So if you’re interviewing for a job, plan to be asked the question: “What do you hope to achieve in your first three months?” First, approach this question — and indeed, every interview question — as an audition. Imagine your interviewers running a movie in their heads where you are sitting working with their team, presenting to their boss, talking to customers or shareholders. Second, beware of extremes. Finally, think about your presentation.

Analysis. Three steps to a better first impression. The question Generally, I think of myself as a good employee – willing to work hard, work with others, and always willing to go the distance – which has always gotten me good performance reviews. However, I find it so difficult landing a new job since I generally feel that I do not make the best first impression (I got my current job through a job placement agency). I feel that the company needs to get to know me before I can be judged accurately on my work and abilities.

Given existing hiring practices, I don’t really know how to improve my skills in making a good first impression and showing employers that I would be an asset to their company right from the start. The answer Making a great first impression is about three key things: self-confidence, knowing what you want to communicate, and doing your homework. Walking into an interview with a good amount of self-confidence is critical. Second, confidence also comes when you know what you want to say.