Resume Preparations

Although in the modern day of tech-savvy generation the resume is mere a personal account of email configuration that can be as easily filled out information in an online fashion. Some believe that the resume is not the true reflection of your attitude and style to make any judgments about your career.

However, on the contrary the well built resume always come calling for a job. Lets begin with making a well weaving resume crafted to impress employers with your credentials.

Contact Details: Start with providing your contact information at the top of the resume. Display your full name prominently at the one side of the sheet paper and Include mailing address, contact number and e-mail address at the other side. To enhance your professional attributes include the URL of your personal website provided it is about your skills and career goals.

Career Objective: There is strong sense of purpose for your goals to develop a career for your life. It immediately specify the employer that who you are and what you're looking for. Thus stress upon how you are going to add value to the company rather than how it can help you to build your career.

Experience: List up experience chronologically, with your latest job at the first place. Name the organisational experience that is most relevant for the current opening in the beginning. Write the company name, location, your title and dates of employment. Also, give a brief description of your accomplishments.

• Stress on your most important responsibilities even if they weren't your primary duties.
• Write in active form. Strong sentences are those in which a subject performs an action (active form) as opposed to an action being performed on the subject (passive form). "I organised an event," creates a stronger impression than "An event was oragnised by me."
• Provide details in figures for your role with cause-effect relationships and tangible results. Quantify your achievements with percentages and numbers like "Increased employee efficiency by 20 percent" and "Heading a team of 5-persons."
• Emphasis and highlight your sense of initiative. Paint yourself as a "go-getter" with strong verbs like "proposed," "launched" and "managed."

Education: List your most recent education first and consequently later one. Mention about degree, diploma and courses completed, specialisations, dates attended and the university name and location passed from.

Qualifications: In this section you may include the additional courses, professional skills and know how developed. Write about the appropriate qualification for the present job profile at the first place. State the courses completed and name of institute with the dates attended. Today’s job requirements demand technical and computer skills. List programming languages, software programs and operating systems you've used as well as certifications you have.  Add-on with the foreign languages known or courses attended.    

Interests: Include the memberships in professional organisations, It highlighted your contribution for you career. To bring about an overall personality of you it will be good idea to include hobbies and interests, sports and other extracurricular activities. Do not over write your hobbies as it may conflict the demands on your present job thus be careful to choose about your interests that best describe you as an all-rounder.

References: It is not necessary out right to provide references. However employers may ask for this before your joining.

Final Touches

• Create several versions of your resume, each tailored to the type of position you're applying for. Writing multiple resumes can be time-consuming, but it's a small price to pay for the job you want.
• If you're applying for a specific job, research the position and company. Pay attention to the job requirements, and highlight your qualifications as they reflect the hiring company's needs.
• Be concise. Stick to one to two page only. Make sure every word is meaningful.
• Choose fonts that are easy-to-read, clean and consistent. Don't use non-traditional or overly creative fonts.
• Read, edit and re-read your resume to make sure it's well written, clear and typo-free. Do it again. Then, ask your friends and family to do the same.

Remember the last rule if your resume is well-written, the reader should want to interview you.

Interview Preparations

The Interview Session

• Arrive on time: You are very punctual and always reach on time. When you are appearing for the most important day to begin your career, make sure you do not hustle, keep your cool and reach on time.

• Introduce yourself in a courteous manner: Wish the interviewer. Believe in your self and start introducing about yourself with your education and qualification. Introduce about your previous jobs. How the previous jobs interest you and what were your most accomplished contributions. You may discuss about how your efforts could contribute to the present job. Introduction is best time to make your self appear favorable and do some public relations for your self.

• Read company materials while you wait: What a good idea to know about the company where you are going to work. You must have known about the company before and would ofcourse know about it once you start working. However it is always better to gather knowledge about the place you are going to get associated. It may help you know the organisation structure and promoters, with which you can identify your roles and responsibilities.

• Have a handshake: When you meet the other person make a firm hand shake. It makes other person know you are full of energies.

• Listen: before you have your say. Listen to the question or explanations. It is very important in an interview that the talk gels well with the interviewer. Do not rush to conclude that what you heard and what that meant to you. Answer appropriately for what is asked for. Do not exaggerate.

• Use body language to show interest: Use affirmative body language that shows your keenness in the profile and enthusiasm about your new avenues. Display your etiquettes, but do not overdo it to make exhibition of all that you know about body languages.

• Express yourself: Smile, nod, give nonverbal feedback to the interviewer.

• You are here to get this job: The golden rule to remember is that you are here to get this job. Coming out of your den all the way to the premises of employer must have a purpose. You are definitely responsible to solve this maze. You attitude to get this job will provide you amazing confidence to speak right answers for all that is asked for. Pause! Think before you speak and give out your 200% of abilities. After all, your entire job search must end here.

•What’s Next: Be curious to know that what will be the next round. Though the process will take its own course. Take the deep breath and freshen yourself for the next step.

•Experiencing: The experience comes from experiencing. Say about the pleasant time you had while taking up the interview and thank the interviewer.

Personal Appearance

Attire  

The clothing you wear to your interview should make you look like you will fit in at your prospective employer. When in doubt, err on the side of conservatism, suggest the experts. Even if the company has a "business casual" dress policy, you're better off dressing a bit on the stuffy side than in taking a gamble only to find that your idea of casual doesn't match that of your prospective employer.

For Men

» Traditional business attire means a dark, conservative suit and a white, long-sleeved (even in summer), pressed dress shirt.
» Ties should coordinate well with the suit. Avoid flashy patterns on ties—the job interview isn't the time to prove how much of an individualist you are.
» If you wear any accessories or earring, remove it before the interview.

For Women

» Traditional business attire is a conservative suit or dress. Choose a dress appropriately according to the job profile in the business world and your personal preference that does not make you uncomfortable or conscious during the course of interview.
» Avoid wearing accessories, jewelry and makeup that distract the other person’s attentions to your style than your substance.
» Forget the excessively long fingernails—they, too, are distracting. If you wear nail polish, make sure it's a subtle color and neatly done.

For Everyone

» Avoid wearing too much cologne or perfume.
» Your hair should be clean and well-groomed.
» Shoes should be polished and coordinate with your suit or dress.
» Do not let anyone interfere you, switch off your mobile beforehand.

An interview isn't a beauty contest, but how you dress and your overall appearance almost always get noticed by the interviewer. Don't give the interviewer a chance to rule you out because you didn't feel like ironing your shirt or polishing your shoes. Dress in a business-like, professional manner, and you'll be sure to fit in wherever you interview.

Interview Questions

50 Common INTERVIEW Questions and Answers

Review these typical interview questions and think about how you would answer them. Read the questions listed; you will also find some strategy suggestions with it.

(Excerpted from the book The Accelerated Job Search by Wayne D. Ford, Ph.D, published by The Management Advantage, Inc.)

1. Tell me about yourself?

What a good idea to know about the company where you are going to work. You must have known about the company before and would Of course know about it once you start working. However it is always better to gather knowledge about the place you are going to get associated. It may help you know the organisation structure and promoters, with which you can identify your roles and responsibilities.

2. Why did you leave your last job?

Stay positive regardless of the circumstances. Never refer to a major problem with management and never speak ill of supervisors, co-workers or the organisation. If you do, you will be the one looking bad. Keep smiling and talk about leaving for a positive reason such as an opportunity, a chance to do something special or other forward-looking reasons.

3. What experience do you have in this field?

Speak about specifics that relate to the position you are applying for. If you do not have specific experience, get as close as you can.

4. Do you consider yourself successful?

You should always answer yes and briefly explain why. A good explanation is that you have set goals, and you have met some and are on track to achieve the others.

5. What do co-workers say about you?

Be prepared with a quote or two from co-workers. Either a specific statement or a paraphrase will work. Jill Clark, a co-worker at Smith Company, always said I was the hardest workers she had ever known. It is as powerful as Jill having said it at the interview herself.

6. What do you know about this organisation?

This question is one reason to do some research on the organisation before the interview. Find out where they have been and where they are going. What are the current issues and who are the major players?

7. What have you done to improve your knowledge in the last year?

Try to include improvement activities that relate to the job. A wide variety of activities can be mentioned as positive self-improvement. Have some good ones handy to mention..

8. Are you applying for other jobs?

Be honest but do not spend a lot of time in this area. Keep the focus on this job and what you can do for this organisation. Anything else is a distraction.

9. Why do you want to work for this organisation?

This may take some thought and certainly, should be based on the research you have done on the organisation. Sincerity is extremely important here and will easily be sensed. Relate it to your long-term career goals.

10. Do you know anyone who works for us?

Be aware of the policy on relatives working for the organisation. This can affect your answer even though they asked about friends not relatives. Be careful to mention a friend only if they are well thought of.

11. What kind of salary do you need?

A loaded question. A nasty little game that you will probably lose if you answer first. So, do not answer it. Instead, say something like, That’s a tough question. Can you tell me the range for this position? In most cases, the interviewer, taken off guard, will tell you. If not, say that it can depend on the details of the job. Then give a wide range.

12. Are you a team player?

You are, of course, a team player. Be sure to have examples ready. Specifics that show you often perform for the good of the team rather than for yourself are good evidence of your team attitude. Do not brag, just say it in a matter-of-fact tone. This is a key point.

13. How long would you expect to work for us if hired?

Specifics here are not good. Something like this should work: I’d like it to be a long time. Or As long as we both feel I’m doing a good job.

14. Have you ever had to fire anyone? How did you feel about that?

This is serious. Do not make light of it or in any way seem like you like to fire people. At the same time, you will do it when it is the right thing to do. When it comes to the organisation versus the individual who has created a harmful situation, you will protect the organisation. Remember firing is not the same as layoff or reduction in force.

15. What is your philosophy towards work?

The interviewer is not looking for a long or flowery dissertation here. Do you have strong feelings that the job gets done? Yes. That’s the type of answer that works best here. Short and positive, showing a benefit to the organisation.

16. If you had enough money to retire right now, would you?

Answer yes if you would. But since you need to work, this is the type of work you prefer. Do not say yes if you do not mean it.

17. Have you ever been asked to leave a position?

If you have not, say no. If you have, be honest, brief and avoid saying negative things about the people or organisation involved.

18. Explain how you would be an asset to this organisation?

You should be anxious for this question. It gives you a chance to highlight your best points as they relate to the position being discussed. Give a little advance thought to this relationship.

19. Why should we hire you?

Point out how your assets meet what the organisation needs. Do not mention any other candidates to make a comparison.

20. Tell me about a suggestion you have made:

Have a good one ready. Be sure and use a suggestion that was accepted and was then considered successful. One related to the type of work applied for is a real plus.

21. What irritates you about co-workers?

This is a trap question. Think real hard but fail to come up with anything that irritates you. A short statement that you seem to get along with folks is great.

22. What is your greatest strength?

Numerous answers are good, just stay positive. A few good examples: Your ability to prioritise, Your problem-solving skills, Your ability to work under pressure, Your ability to focus on projects, Your professional expertise, Your leadership skills, Your positive attitude .

23. Tell me about your dream job.

Stay away from a specific job. You cannot win. If you say the job you are contending for is it, you strain credibility. If you say another job is it, you plant the suspicion that you will be dissatisfied with this position if hired. The best is to stay genetic and say something like: A job where I love the work, like the people, can contribute and can’t wait to get to work.

24. Why do you think you would do well at this job?

Give several reasons and include skills, experience and interest.

25. What are you looking for in a job?

See answer # 23

26. What kind of person would you refuse to work with?

Do not be trivial. It would take disloyalty to the organisation, violence or lawbreaking to get you to object. Minor objections will label you as a whiner.

27. What is more important to you: the money or the work?

Money is always important, but the work is the most important. There is no better answer.

28. What would your previous supervisor say your strongest point is?

There are numerous good possibilities: Loyalty, Energy, Positive attitude, Leadership, Team player, Expertise, Initiative, Patience, Hard work, Creativity, Problem solver.

29. Tell me about a problem you had with a supervisor.

Biggest trap of all. This is a test to see if you will speak ill of your boss. If you fall for it and tell about a problem with a former boss, you may well below the interview right there. Stay positive and develop a poor memory about any trouble with a supervisor.

30. What has disappointed you about a job?

Don’t get trivial or negative. Safe areas are few but can include: Not enough of a challenge. You were laid off in a reduction Company did not win a contract, which would have given you more responsibility.

31. Tell me about your ability to work under pressure.

You may say that you thrive under certain types of pressure. Give an example that relates to the type of position applied for.

32. Do your skills match this job or another job more closely?

Probably this one. Do not give fuel to the suspicion that you may want another job more than this one.

33. What motivates you to do your best on the job?

This is a personal trait that only you can say, but good examples are: Challenge, Achievement, Recognition

34. Are you willing to work overtime? Nights? Weekends?

This is up to you. Be totally honest.

35. How would you know you were successful on this job?

Several ways are good measures: You set high standards for yourself and meet them. Your outcomes are a success.Your boss tell you that you are successful.

36. Would you be willing to relocate if required?

You should be clear on this with your family prior to the interview if you think there is a chance it may come up. Do not say yes just to get the job if the real answer is no. This can create a lot of problems later on in your career. Be honest at this point and save yourself future grief.

37. Are you willing to put the interests of the organisation ahead of your own?

This is a straight loyalty and dedication question. Do not worry about the deep ethical and philosophical implications. Just say yes.

38. Describe your management style.

Try to avoid labels. Some of the more common labels, like progressive, salesman or consensus, can have several meanings or descriptions depending on which management expert you listen to. The situational style is safe, because it says you will manage according to the situation, instead of one size fits all.

39. What have you learned from mistakes on the job?

Here you have to come up with something or you strain credibility. Make it small, well intentioned mistake with a positive lesson learned. An example would be working too far ahead of colleagues on a project and thus throwing coordination off.

40. Do you have any blind spots?

Trick question. If you know about blind spots, they are no longer blind spots. Do not reveal any personal areas of concern here. Let them do their own discovery on your bad points. Do not hand it to them.

41. If you were hiring a person for this job, what would you look for?

Be careful to mention traits that are needed and that you have.

42. Do you think you are overqualified for this position?

Regardless of your qualifications, state that you are very well qualified for the position.

43. How do you propose to compensate for your lack of experience?

First, if you have experience that the interviewer does not know about, bring that up: Then, point out (if true) that you are a hard working quick learner.

44. What qualities do you look for in a boss?

Be generic and positive. Safe qualities are knowledgeable, a sense of humor, fair, loyal to subordinates and holder of high standards. All bosses think they have these traits.

45. Tell me about a time when you helped resolve a dispute between others.

Pick a specific incident. Concentrate on your problem solving technique and not the dispute you settled.

46. What position do you prefer on a team working on a project?

Be honest. If you are comfortable in different roles, point that out.

47. Describe your work ethic.

Emphasize benefits to the organisation. Things like, determination to get the job done and work hard but enjoy your work are good.

48. What has been your biggest professional disappointment?

Be sure that you refer to something that was beyond your control. Show acceptance and no negative feelings.

49. Tell me about the most fun you have had on the job.

Talk about having fun by accomplishing something for the organisation.

50. Do you have any questions for me?

Always have some questions prepared. Questions prepared where you will be an asset to the organisation are good. How soon will I be able to be productive? and What type of projects will I be able to assist on? are examples.

Like a Gentleman

Being Gentle

Ladies and gentlemen…Hereby we introduce you about the theme of progressing in life to the higher state and become like a gentleman or gentlewomen. Beginning right from boyhood all men goes through a journey of life with education and development to attain their equal status. Still some are called the gentlemen. What describes them be like a man or gentleman.

Good Times: When you talk about good times. You generally refer to pleasure enjoyed with others. The ability to get happiness from associating with people not only increases your chances of having a good time, It also contributes to success in every phase of living.

Qualities: A kind heart is the first thing one requires. Call it consideration for others if you like. Kindness encourages gentleness- the desire to create a harmonious atmosphere. This is so wonderful an attribute that it has given us our words for persons of high standards, gentleman and gentlewoman.

Postures: How are you when you talk to others? The way you stand, walk and sit strongly influences people’s judgments of you. You owe it to your self to stand straight, walk with you head up and to take a graceful position when you sit. By simply having the good postures you make others feel easier, besides looking better yourself.

Voice Pitch: If you have pleasant speaking voice you have something more valuable to you than sparkling eyes and dazzling wardrobe. A gentle mellow voice soothes and gratifies. No matter what the quality of your voice is, speaking very loud when conducting a meeting or socialising has a harsh effect.

Speak Up: Use the clear and concise diction of the words. Do not consider that speaking slovenly will not be noticed. Correct pronunciation is twin sister of good enunciation. Do not rely on what you hear as a word but always check for correct pronunciation before you start using the word in you language arsenal.

Wearing Appropriate: You have fair chance of having good time when your cloths are right. Dress should be appropriate to the time, place and occasion. Make the planning of your wardrobe an extracurricular study. May be for some youth with the limited budget never plan about dress sense. However good grooming and well chosen cloths lose some of their effectiveness when you start worry about your looks. A happy facial expression is part of an agreeable appearance.

Meeting others: When someone appears to meet you rise up and shake hands with gladness to have met the person. Make sure you introduce the person when someone joins you in your conversation. However it is not at all necessary to introduce if you are not in position to make introductions. If you do not fully know the person or not likely to care about knowing each other or the place or purpose of meeting are not suitable.

It is very subtle people make remark about the conversation when leaving. Always take note that you have met a person, conversed for a while and had the pleasant meeting. Appreciate the meeting and wish with a compliment of your own.

We have begun with an expression of “Ladies and Gentleman” which is often used to address all ladies as gentlewoman and all men as gentleman to mark politeness to an audience when conducting a speech. It takes sheer practice to attain the self control, self respect and behave like a gentle person. The more refined your habits become makes you better known human being, a gentleman.

Communicating Well

Understanding "communication" well

The difference between effective and ineffective communication can be traced to how well the communicating parties deal with four aspects of the communications process: perception differences, emotions, inconsistencies between verbal and nonverbal communications, and prior trust (or distrust) between the parties.

Differing perceptions:

This is one of the most common communications barriers. People who have different backgrounds of knowledge and experience often perceive the same phenomenon from different perspectives. Suppose that a new supervisor compliments an assembly line worker for his or her efficiency and high-quality work. The supervisor genuinely appreciates the worker’s efforts and at the same time wants to encourage the other employees to emulate his or her example. Others on the assembly line, however, may regard the workers being singled out for praise as a sign that he or she has been “buttering up the boss.” They may react by teasing or being openly hostile. Individual perception of the same communication thus differ radically.

Language differences are often closely related to differences in individual perceptions. For a message to be properly communicated, the words used must mean the same thing to sender and receiver. Suppose that different departments of a company receive a memo stating that a new product is to be developed in ‘a short time’. To people in research and development, “a short time”, might mean two or three years. To people in the finance department “a short time” might be three to six months, whereas the sales department might think of “a short time” as a few weeks. Since many different meanings can be assigned to some words (the 500 most common English words have an average of 28 definitions each). Great care must be taken that the receiver gets the message the sender intended.

Perceptual differences can arise due to gender differences. The communications differences and styles between genders has been the topic of much recent research. In the last decade research has shown that women and men in our culture use distinctive styles of speech and tend to play different roles when speaking to each other. These differences can lead to miscommunication and conflict. For instance, Linguist Robin Lakoff of the University of California has noted that women who speak directly and assertively may be ostracised as “unfeminine” by both men and women. On the other hand, women who adopt a more “traditional” women’s style and role that is, expressing their thoughts more tentatively and working harder to get someone’s attention may be dismissed as someone of dim intelligence or not to be taken seriously. Gender communication as well as cross-cultural communications will continue to be important areas of organisational understanding.

Overcoming Differing perceptions:

To overcome differing perceptions and languages, the message should be explained so that it can be understood by receivers with different views and experiences. Whenever possible, we should learn about the background of those with whom we will be communicating. Empathising – seeing the situation from the other person’s point of view – and delaying reactions until the relevant information is weighted will help to reduce ambiguity. When the subject is unclear, asking questions is critical.

To overcome language differences, it is particularly helpful to ask the receiver to confirm or restate the main of the message. When all members of an organisation or group are going to be dealing with a new terminology, it may be worthwhile to develop a training course of instruction to acquaint them with the new topic. Receivers can be encouraged to ask questions and to seek clarification of points that are unclear.

Mind The Gaffe

An Approach to better language usage.

As we all know that English is spoken and written in a huge variety of forms. A student being interviewed for a job does not speak the way he speaks in the sports club with his friends. English in a scientific journal does not look like the English in a legal document or English in tabloid newspaper.

It may happen to you while writing your resume, a cover letter, a performance sheet, or project report, that you may mean something else when you actually want to say something. Not realising the fact that you are going to be misunderstood. Choice of the words and simplicity in explanation adds charm to the language.

Mastery of Standard English is worth acquiring, and lack of it is severe handicap. The needs of the time require obtaining the mastery of the language in many professions. Even University graduate with good degree often find themselves with a command of Standard English that is best inadequate and the worst distressing. This is not a trivial problem, since a poor command of the conversations of the Standard English will often make a very bad impression on those who must read your writing.

The language acquired by most of us already is very much better than others. Nevertheless all of us can learn ways of improving our language which can provide pleasure to read and sound a sequentially arranged rhythm to listen.

English as the foreign language comes with two versions: The British version and American version. Fortunately the difference between the two is not great except vocabulary. Naturally it is always better to stick consistently to one version or the other.

Every living language is constantly changing, and English is no exception. Words and forms that were normal in language several generations ago, or some decade ago, may now be quaint, archaic or obsolete. Other words and forms that did not exist at all in standard language are now becoming accepted, and may already have become fully accepted.

To sum up this passage it is recommended that use the language simply, plainly and clearly. Use plain words and not fancy words – especially when you are not sure what the fancy word mean. Avoid vogue words and jargon unless necessary at all while writing for technical or specific field. Plan your writings. Think about what you mean and choose your words carefully. Don’t just dump a pile of hackneyed phrases onto the page. If you are not sure about a spelling or usage, look it up. Read what you have written. Edit it polish it. Work hard to be sure that your meaning is so clear that no reader can possibly misunderstood you or be puzzled.

Email-tiquette

Work upon your Email-tiquette

You spend an hour or two everyday checking your business mails or personal emails and already a glorious email writer. But how often do you take notice of the basic "Email-Etiquettes" while working on an email. Here is your definitive guide to civil code of conduct for popular electronic medium of communication called "Email".

Do….create the right impression and banish the BTWs. People react to email within seconds of receiving it. As the Yahoo! research shows, text speak can be very annoying and shows a lack of correct spelling ability and laziness. It won’t impress!

Don’t… offend.Using capitals is the email equivalent of SHOUTING and is perceived as being extremely rude, so make sure your caps lock is switched off.

Do…. include a subject line.You’ve got three seconds to grab attention when an email appears and by not including a subject in the email, the chances of it being read are greatly reduced. Use the subject line for the purpose it was made and tell people what the email is about.

Don’t… use read receipts. Read receipts demonstrate a distinct lack of trust, so avoid where possible. Follow up with a phone call if you want to ensure your message has reached the right person.

Do… remember the recipient. The failsafe method for emailing is to imagine you are writing a succinct letter. Address the recipient in the correct manner and title. You can be light hearted and humorous as in any written communication, it is a just a matter of judgment. But if you don’t know the recipient, don’t be over familiar and sign off with the right degree of formality.

Don’t…. use CC and BCC unnecessarily. The no. 2 email bug bear is mass distribution of emails, so exercise constraint when it comes to copying people in. If the email is important to other people, simply forward to them at the end, rather than them being caught up in a never-ending email trail. Likewise use the BCC button wisely, again forward emails separately rather than ‘hiding’ other recipients.

Do… take your time. Because of the instant nature of emails it is tempting to deal with them immediately, but rushing an email can lead to errors. Deal with them promptly but don’t panic and reply in haste and always check what you have written before you hit send.

Don’t… over use ‘importance’.Before you even consider using a red exclamation mark, ask yourself is this really important? Only use when it is vital that the email is read, otherwise you are drawing unnecessary attention to yourself and it is a quick way of irritating recipients.

Do…save the kisses. Over familiarity towards your boss or work colleagues is bad etiquette, keep the love and kisses for very good friends.

Don’t… email when angry. If you receive a ‘harsh’ email, read it through, then close it and walk away. Consider your response and if necessary ask someone else to read your reply before you send it, don’t fight fire with fire.

Do… choose a sensible email address. Common sense tells you that you are less likely to land a job if you use a frivolous email address, such as, crazychick@yahoo.co.uk. Think about what your email address says about you as it’s an insight into your personality.

Don’t… hide behind email. It is often easier to write something in words than it is to say it out loud, but don’t say something on email that you wouldn’t say in person. Emails have longevity and it can come back to haunt you!