You’ve chosen your direction, you’ve researched the market and found that you are reasonably well placed to apply for jobs given your capabilities, work interests and values, you’ve identified some suitable opportunities, so now it’s time to apply for some jobs!

Other pages within these respurces will have helped you to identify possible employers and industry information. You’ll also find some recruiters in those pages. Here you’ll find links to resources that will help with first impressions and interview preparation. There are also sites that will help with planning your journey to the interview. You’ll also find some infosheets here with tips on handling difficult CV design, interview questions and salary negotiations (COMING SOON!).

Body Language for Interviews

Not very sophisticated but worth a look

The AA

Use this route planner to ensure you get to the interview on time!

Transport for London

Includes a useful journey planner for London Transport

UK Recruiter

Useful information, resources and links for anyone using the internet for jobsearch activity.

Salary Checker

A useful salary checker based on advertised jobs

Salary Surveys

A collection of salary surveys available on the net.

GetAhead Direct

Useful salary negotiation tips

Cheating CV’s

Although most employers still fail to check CV’s more and more

are doing so. Have you ever been tempted to be “economical

with the truth”?

Some years ago when I worked in recruitment I saw a

candidate who had sent me his CV. He had attained a

respectable degree at university. two years later he returned

looking for his next move. Mysteriously, his class of degree

had improved. I decided to check with his university and found

that he had deliberately lied. When I challenged the candidate

he said

that he had been advised to do it because it would help him get

interviews. “Not through me”, I told him. “I’m not going to put

you forward to any of my clients knowing that you would lie on

your CV because I can’t risk my reputation if you are found to

be dishonest in employment”. The unfortunate thing was that

he

was a good candidate and didn’t need to “improve” his degree

class.

Be truthful at all times on your CV. It’s not difficult to find out

the truth about somebody. Specialist investigators are

springing up all the time because this is a growing business

need. The chances of being found out are increasing every day

and the risk to your reputation is too great if your lies are

discovered.

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Win-Win or no Deal

When negotiating with your next employer over the job offer,

try to avoid an adversarial approach. You are much more

likely to reach a mutually acceptable solution by seeing it as a

series of small

problems to be solved rather than a battle to be won.

Confrontation is difficult for many people and usually leaves a

bitter taste on all sides. Even if you succeed in reaching an

agreement with this method your relationship will get off to a

rather uncomfortable start.

The best starting point is to know you “walk away point”. That

is, the absolute minimum you will accept, below which you

simply will not agree to join.

Another important part of “win-win” negotiating is to focus on

the areas of agreement at all times and to move on to a new

item for negotiation if the conversation looks like it will reach a

stalemate. It’s amazing how trivial some matters turn out to

be when everything else is resolved!

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Handling Redundancy

Many people fear that redundancy suggests failure. In fact,

Redundancy does not visit the untalented. Indeed, it is often

the more able who find themselves in this position, many times

by design.

Redundancy is just one way by which people leave an

employer. The world of work is changing rapidly and the

human resource requirement is changing equally fast. The

capabilities required by an organisation last year may differ

significantly this year. There’s no need to be ashamed if your

employer can no longer use the skills you offer. The answer is

to move on to an organisation where you can add value and to

keep your skills up to date so that you are never caught with

skills that are no longer required at all.

The first wave of redundancy may be voluntary. Who would

volunteer for redundancy? It’s usually the more talented and

confident people. Those who are not happy at work and

believe they can find a better job outside. Many people in this

category were going to leave anyway. Here’s a chance to leave

with a pay-off as well! Did you consider, while worrying about

how you were to explain redundancy, that you might be

amongst a group who consider themselves to be more capable

than most?

Not everyone can volunteer for redundancy. However, it’s

rarely the case that individuals are singled out on the basis that

they are performing poorly. For those that are made

compulsorily redundant, it is important to remember that it’s

nothing personal and it’s not about performance. If a whole

department shuts down in order to cut costs, there is no

consideration of the talent that will be lost. It’s possible that

some people will be re-deployed elsewhere, but not finding an

alternative role does not equate to being unwanted. It all

comes down to whether or not your capabilities are required by

the re-designed organisation.

Note the important point there: it’s your capabilities that are

under scrutiny, not your talent. You may be the best PR

manager the organisation has ever employed. You may have

helped raise the profile of the organisation so that rarely does

a week go by when your company is not mentioned on TV or in

the national press. However, that won’t guarantee that you

keep your job if the decision has been made to outsource all PR

activity to an agency.

This is an extract from a longer article which can be found on our website

Researching Potential Employers

Many people join an organisation only to find before long that they wish they hadn’t. The company does not share their values, they have nothing in common with the people they are working alongside, the boss is from another planet… we’ve all been there. So what can be done about it?

It’s difficult to get a true picture of what it will be like to work somewhere but most people don’t ask the right questions or open their eyes and ears enough to give them even the slightest insight.

Here are six questions to ask before, during and after an interview:

Before:

1 Do I like the “feel” of this organisation? Is it lively enough, or too lively for me? Do the people who work here look like my kind of person?

2 Does the website and literature I have seen tell me that this is the type of organisation I want to be a part of? Does the design of their brochures and communications appeal to me?

During:

3 What is your management style? (To the line manager you will be working for)

4 What sort of people succeed in this organisation?

After:

5 Did I warm to the line manager? Did we see eye to eye? Do we share common ground?

6 Do I really WANT to work for this company? I may need a job but will I be happy here in six months time?

The last question is perhaps the most difficult, but consider the consequences of brushing over your answer and taking a job that’s wrong for you. You may find yourself in the market again before too long, and this time you may need to explain to people how you made a poor decision last time you went looking for a new position?

The Interview Room – be interviewed with confidence!

Are you worried about your performance in interviews? Have you ever wondered how you come across at interview? Would you like a chance to practice your answers to those tricky questions and receive feedback and coaching from a highly experienced interviewing trainer?

If so, our Interview Room programme is for you. We will send you a comprehensive workbook to help you to prepare for interviews. Next, in a two-hour session in the London area you will be filmed while role-playing an interview. Finally, you will be given a copy of the interview in the form of a DVD to review further at home.

For further details of this opportunity see our website www.workjoy.co.uk or contact nick@workjoy.co.uk.

Your Reason for Leaving Statement

Whether or not you have been made redundant, it’s important to have a clear and confident answer to the question: Why did you leave your last employer? Or, Why are you planning to leave your current employer?

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Workjoy provides career advice and coaching face to face (London, UK only) or by telephone. Contact me, Nick Gendler by emailing nick@workjoy.co.uk to arrange a free initial consultation

There are usually three stages to the interview:

1 Screening. Your CV or original application is evaluated against the essential requirements of the post. If you can demonstrate you have the right experience and capabilities along with a significant number of other candidates (i.e. more than the employer wants to interview) then you will be subject to a second screening, this time to see how well you meet the “nice to have” skills, knowledge and experience. When applying for a job, make sure you clearly show you have as many of the essentials and preferables as possible. If you come through screening successfully you will be invited for a first interview.

2 Selection. At the first interview stage the recruiter will typically be looking to a) confirm that you understand the role and that it is within your capability, b) check that the role would be right for you that you will be committed for the minimum acceptable amount of time, and c) assess whether you are likely to fit in with the company and team culture. Often more than one candidate will pass this stage, in which case a further question is addressed: “Who is the BEST candidate for the post?”

3 Approval. Just because you are deemed to be the best candidate, you may not necessarily be offered the post immediately. Sometimes you will need to meet a very senior person in the organisation or the owner. Don’t assume that the job is your and this meeting is a mere formality. Many a job has been lost at this stage. Make sure you take it as seriously as the earlier stages and perform to impress, even if you are told the job is yours and this is just a formality.

DVD INTERVIEW PRACTICE – a new service from Workjoy!

Are you worried about your performance in interviews? Have you ever wondered how you come across at interview? Would you like a chance to practice your answers to those tricky questions and receive feedback and coaching from a highly experienced interviewing trainer?

If so, a two-hour session in the London area can be booked. During the session you will be filmed during the interview and then review it with our consultant. Finally, you will be given a copy of the interview in the form of a DVD to review further at your convenience.

Contact nick@workjoy.co.uk for further details of this opportunity.

Five Top Tips to calm yourself before the interview

1 Prepare for the interview. The better you understand their problem and requirements, the more relaxed you’ll feel in the meeting. Know who it is you will be meeting, their position, and the details of the interview process.

2 Don’t be late! Practice the journey before the day. Don’t forget to take account of local traffic at certain times of the day (e.g. school runs) if you are driving. Aim to arrive 10 minutes before the arranged time. If you are earlier take a walk around the block to compose yourself.

3 Feeling anxious? On arrival ask for directions to the loo. Wash your hands and face in tepid water – not too hot or cold. This should help to stop you from perspiring or getting clammy hands.

4 If you are asked to wait in reception, don’t sit down in one of those low soft seats that are so often provided. They are difficult to emerge from and it might mean that you leave your greeter waiting awkwardly for several seconds while you fight your way onto your feet. Instead, put your case down and just stand around, perhaps look at any promotional materials on display, or, if they are not busy, engage the receptionist in pleasant conversation. This will help you to get a feel for how friendly and open the organisation is.

5 Try to build friendly rapport with the person that greets you. That doesn’t mean talk like there’s no tomorrow, it just means be nice and engage them with openness. Maybe mention what you like about the office décor or think of something topical to talk about as you are making the journey from reception to the interview room. Don’t make it anything political or controversial.

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Workjoy provides career advice and coaching in face to face (London, UK only) or by telephone. Contact me, Nick Gendler by emailing nick@workjoy.co.uk to arrange a free initial consultation

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Killer Questions

Be prepared for these. They are rarely used but when they are they can be very effective at identifying those who can think quickly, are creative, diplomatic or unflappable, amongst other possibilities. If you are asked an unusual question such as “Who should be Pop Idol this year?” or “If you were a fish, what kind of fish would you be?” Don’t be afraid to take a while to think about the answer. If quick thinking is what they are testing then OK you may get marked down, but if careful thinking and the ability to give a well reasoned argument is what they are interested in, you may do well. The important thing is to have a view even if the answer is “I have no idea nor do I care; I think Pop Idol is an abomination to both music and television”. Also, remember that there is a playful side to these questions and by engaging with them you are showing an appreciation of the culture of the organisation that chooses to ask them.

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I’m often asked for help with working abroad. These requests often

come from non-EU citizens wishing to work in the UK but I’m also

asked for advice about working in the US and in the southern

hemisphere.

The rules about working abroad are complex and I can’t go into detail

here. The basic thing to know is that without an automatic right to

work (i.e. a work permit / green card, citizenship or residency

rights) you need to be able to demonstrate that you have sought after

skills not easily available in the host country as well as needing to

be able to qualify on a number of other (usually economically

related) criteria.

This excellent website offers plenty of up to date information about

immigration and working abroad: www.workpermit.com

Good luck!

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Keeping motivated during the job search process

Have you noticed how much harder it is to maintain momentum while

looking for a job? If you’re in a job already then time is at a real

premium and you probably want to use your relaxation time for

anything but looking for work! Moreover, nobody’s depending on you

like at work where your motivation is driven to a large extent by a

desire not to let your colleagues down.

Motivation comes down to setting measurable and achievable goals.

Don’t make it a big goal like “Get a new job” – that’s far too

vague. It’s your objective not a goal. Your goals should act as a

stimulus to do something that day or week. Maybe it’s about

contacting a certain number of recruiters for a conversation to see

if they can help you? Maybe it’s to network with a certain number of

people to discuss your career change ideas? Maybe a goal will be to

apply for a given number of positions in a two week period or to get

your CV ready. Whatever the goal you set yourself. Make it realistic

and achievable and don’t forget to reward yourself for completing the

task before creating the next goal task.

Redundancy

Many people fear redundancy and try to hide it during the job search

process. Don’t be embarrassed or ashamed about redundancy remember,

it’s the role not the person that is no longer required by the

company. There is no stigma around redundancy these days. With

companies becoming flatter structures and undergoing ongoing change,

it is simply a fact of business life that employers and employees

will move in and out of mutual suitability. Just as when you are

resigning you are actually saying “this company no longer offers what

I need”, so when people are made redundant , the company is

saying “this person no longer has the capabilities we need”. That’s

not saying your capabilities are of no value, just not to that

particular organisation.

Redundancy is just one of a number of ways that people leave

companies. It doesn’t mean you are no good so don’t be afraid to be

up front about it. Think of the advantages: the compensation and

time gives you the opportunity to think carefully about what you want

to do next, so that when you are being interviewed you can assure

that the potential employer that you have thought carefully about

what you want as your career moves forward. It also means you are

likely to be more quickly available than other people who may need to

work their notice.

You’ll need to be familiar with your strengths for your CV and at

interviews so get thinking! Your strengths are how you make a

difference for your employer. What you do best; what you do better

than most others; how you succeed.

So how do you identify your strengths? It’s all down to your

achievements. Your achievements are things you did to make a

positive impact for your employer: saving money; making money;

completing a project quickly or efficiently. It needn’t be

accurately measurable but you should be able to describe the benefit

to the organisation. Everyone is employed to make a difference

otherwise there would be no need to employ them. If you make a

difference then you have achievements. So what are yours? There are

two components to every achievement: an action and a result.

When you’ve identified around 6 achievements (at least half of which

are work related, but they don’t all need to be), then think about

which particular capabilities you used to succeed in each particular

task. You should be able to generate a good list for each

achievement. Now compare these lists. There should be some skills

that repeat themselves. Your core strengths are the 4 – 6

capabilities that appear most frequently.

A cover letter that gets you noticed

To stand out from the crowd and get that interview, a good cover

letter may well make all the difference. Keep it to one side of

paper and get to the point quickly. A good cover letter has 4

paragraphs:

1 Introduction and reference the post you are applying for

2 Note the key stated requirements of the role and how you have

the required experience or capabilities

3 Again, using the information from the advertisement or job

description, state why you think the job is what you are looking for

4 Sign off, with a note that you will follow up with a phone

call in the next few days

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Workjoy provides career advice and coaching in face to face or by telephone. Contact me, Nick Gendler by emailing

nick@workjoy.co.uk to arrange a free initial consultation

===============================================

Choosing between job offers

You know the story. Weeks and weeks of job hunting with nothing

happening, then all of a sudden three offers at once! It’s not

unusual, all your hard work takes time to pay off.

So how to handle it. You need to do some quick evaluations. Use a

piece of paper and consider the various aspects of the role.

First off all, the offer itself. Do all offers meet your minimum

requirements in terms of salary and the rest of the package, as well

as the other needs such as training provision, location. Think about

all the things that are important to you.

Next, the environment. Did you like the feel of the place and the

people. Ask yourself honestly.

What about the job? Does it offer you good career development

options? What about challenge? Think about all the things that

might be important to you in terms of your needs from the role itself.

Your list of criteria can be as long as you like. Ask some friends

to brainstorm this list with you.

When your list is complete, weight each item in terms of importance

by giving it a multiplier of 1 for required, 2 for important or 3 for

very important. Next, score each offer out of 5 according to how

well it meets your requirement. So, if getting trained is very

important (3) and the employer only offers you a little bit of in-

house training you may choose to give it a score of 2. The weighted

score will be 6 for training, whereas you may get a much higher score

for another employer that offers you a generous training budget.

At the end of the scoring process, count the marks for each role.

Does this help you make your decision? The most important step is

then to ask yourself if the winning job is the one you really want.

Don’t ignore your instincts!

Does your CV provide all your contact details? Often people will

include address, home `phone, mobile, email and even IM (internet

messaging) details. Yet these might not always be appropriate. Only

give details for methods you would like the recruiter or HR manager

to use. If you are not comfortable being contacted on your mobile

phone out of the blue for a brief, informal interview, then don’t

offer that number, unless you are prepared to tell them you don’t

want to talk at that time.

Do you have an email address that is mainly used by friends and is

therefore unprofessional? Do you really want to invite prospective

employers to email you on hotstuff@anyisp.com? If not, either don’t give it, or get

a new address!

Evaluating a Recruitment Advertisement

Recruitment ads are a valuable source of information for your

application and for the subsequent interview. The ad will probably

indicate to you the problem the employer hopes you will solve. Your

job is to understand that problem from what they are asking for.

Analyse the text carefully, and separate out into three sections, the

essential requirements, the “nice to haves” and any other statements

about the company and their direction. The last part, although not

always explicit, sometimes tells you plenty about the “problem”.

If you can’t tick at least 90% of the essential requirements you are

probably going to struggle to make the interview stage. If you can,

and you can tick a good proportion of the “nice to haves” then go for

it!

We’ll look at drafting a cover letter in a future edition of “Great

Tips for Jobseekers!”

Know Your Weaknesses

This question at interviews often strikes fear in the candidate, but

there’s no reason for this. We all have weaknesses and the purpose

of the question is simply to find out how well you know yourself.

So, when asked what your weaknesses are, give a straight answer

demonstrating something that you really work hard to improve. If

you’re struggling to think of a weakness, consider your strengths and

what happens when you overdo them. I call it your “strength gone

toxic”. Enthusiasm can lead to pushiness, perfectionism can lead to

inaction, etc. Your job is to recognise the weakness and explain to

the interviewer how you overcome it.

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Are you thinking about a career or job change? Workjoy provides a

comprehensive service of tailored, 1:1 advice sessions to help you

address the issues that are stopping you from making that move.

Consultations can take place face to face or by telephone or IM.

Contact Nick Gendler nick@workjoy.co.uk

for a free, initial chat to discuss your needs.

CV: Your Education Statement

There’s been plenty of talk recently about lying on CV’s. many

people think they won’t be found out if they exaggerate here or there, and often

they won’t, but that’s because CV’s are not checked thoroughly enough. As more

employers get wise to the practice the chances of “porky’s” being

noticed are increased.

Often people upgrade their educational achievements because they

don’t want to be selected out of the process. It’s annoying to think that you

might not get a chance to prove yourself just because you didn’t get top

grades. Maybe it would be better to look at other ways of impressing on

potential employers that you are the right person for the job?

People frequently put their educational information right at the top

of their CV. Your career history is much more important – your

education is old news, so leave until after the professional sections.

If your formal education went beyond school, give full details of your

highest level of achievement by including the name of the institution, type

of qualification, subject and date completed. If you started work

straight from school, give the name of the school the level of education you

achieved and dates.

Professional courses and training should be included in a separate

section directly following your work experience.

That “Salary Question”

Salary negotiations should not be entered into until you have been

offered the job, however, many employers will try to begin this process very

early on, sometimes even before you have been invited for an interview.

Almost all application forms ask for salary information, for example.

They often use this data to decide if you are likely to accept an

offer before wasting time at an interview. The assumption they make, and

it’s a big one, is that you won’t accept less than you’re currently earning,

so if your current salary is more than they wish to pay, they won’t bother

to interview you. That’s the real waste. How do they know what is

motivating you to apply for the job? Money might be the last thing on your

agenda.

Importantly for you, if you tell the employer your current salary

details, needs or expectations, you’re bound to be in a weaker negotiating

position. The name of the game is to get the employer to make an offer for you

to respond to.

Here are some simple ways to handle the salary question:

Q: What is your current / last salary?

A: I’m happy to tell you, but I must emphasise that it will bare no

relation to what I would expect to be paid in this or any other position.

Please will you let me know what you see as the appropriate salary for this

position?

Q: What are you salary expectations?

A: I’m looking for a salary that fairly reflects the expectations and

responsibilities of the role. I’d also hope to fit into the salary

structure of the organisation I’m working for. Please will you let

me know what you see as the appropriate salary for this position in your

organisation?

Q: What’s the minimum salary you are willing to accept?

A: What’s the maximum you’ll offer!

For application forms, write “Salary Negotiable” in or near the boxes

provided.

Don’t Forget Your Values

Many people get stuck when they are considering job change because

they don’t include a consideration of their values in the decision making

process. Without exploring what’s important to you, both at this

point in your life and overall in your life, you are missing one of the key

components of the choice. In future issues we’ll look at Interests

and Capabilities, but for now, here are some things to consider in terms

of Values or, “What’s important to me”:

1 What are the key principles upon which I live my life?

Examples might include integrity, religion, or helping others.

2 What is going on in my life at the moment that

affects my work choices? Examples here could be “being available for elderly

relatives”, “financial security” or “taking care of my health”.

3 What do you want from the workplace? Perhaps you

prefer to have a lot of autonomy, perhaps you like a sociable environment,

maybe you like to be out of the office and on the road as much as possible?

4 If you need a list of human values to work with take

a look at this site where over 500 are listed: humanityquest.com.

You’ll find some work related values here:

www.careercenter.sjsu.edu/download/WorkValues.pdf or here:

www.findaresume.com/career/Analyze%20Work-Related%20Values.html

5 Think about what you “must have” in your next job,

what you’d “really like”, and what you definitely “don’t want”. When you

evaluate a role you are considering you will be expecting to see all

of your “must have’s”, none of your “don’t want’s” and the more of the “really

like’s” you see, the happier you are likely to be.

Everyone talks about the elevator pitch, your verbal marketing message that ensures that you are not lost for words when you meet someone you wish to connect with. Well, when you send someone a CV the Profile statement serves the same purpose. It’s to raise interest in you.

Remember, you have 30 – 60 seconds to gain someone’s interest. If you fail to achieve this, your CV will probably end up on the reject pile even if you’re the ideal candidate. So in that first 30 – 60 seconds they must read some clear, relevant messages about you. Then they’ll read on and hopefully you’ll be invited for interview.

I see profile statements everyday that completely miss the opportunity. Why? Because they are full of unhelpful, even meaningless information.

Keep clear of opinions in the profile, please. If you tell me you are enthusiastic team player it won’t mean anything unless you can prove it, and you can’t in a profile statement.

What I’m looking for is facts, facts, facts! The profile has two components:

1 Define yourself

2 Set yourself apart

Define Yourself

In other words, Describe exactly what you are. For example:

A call centre manager with 8 years experience leading teams of up to 120 operators.

If the employer is looking for a call centre manager you have probably already done enough to put you into the ball park. They’re bound to read on with attention.

Set Yourself Apart

They’ll be plenty of call centre managers applying, so why should the employer take you on? Tell them something that separates you from the others. This is likely to demonstrate experience of particular interest to the audience. If you’ve worked in the same or a similar industry sector, make the point. By reading the ad or job description you’ll get some clues about what they are looking for. The profile is a good place to point out that you have this expertise.

Do you have any additional relevant skills such as languages? The following might be suitable if the call centre position was in the fund raising section of a charity taking inbound pledges from across Europe

Worked the charity and retail sectors and previously worked as a sales consultant for a major retail chain. Currently a volunteer fundraiser for a children’s charity. Fluent French speaker.

Notice – no opinions, just facts. Plain and simple. From here I’m going to want to read some evidence that the person is good at their job. That comes under achievements and we’ll look at it in a later edition of “Great Tips for Jobseekers!”

Routes to the Jobmarket

There are four main ways of finding a job: Advertisements, recruiters, direct approach to employers and using your network.

Advertising and recruiters are reactive methods. The job is out there already, and you are reacting to it. If you know about the opportunity so do many other people, and that means you’re in competition. What’s more, there’s not much you can do, except apply and wait for the next stage. So you shouldn’t need to spend too much time looking at ads or talking to recruiters.

Direct approaches to organisations you think you have something to offer, and networking, are proactive. You must go out and find the opportunities. You need to build your knowledge and awareness of organisations to discover where the need is. You are the solution to a problem, so you must find the problem.

It’s highly de-motivating for people in the job market to be relying on others to come back to them with good news. Furthermore, there’s a lot more bad news than good when you are focussing on the reactive strategies, so get proactive! Seek out the interesting people to talk to, to ask questions and find out where the opportunities are.

Sure, you can still apply for advertised positions and register with recruiters, but don’t rely on them. Let them do their thing and hopefully something good will happen, but if it doesn’t there’s no need to get worried because you’ll still be busy with your own proactive activity – researching organisations and people, and writing to them!

5 Quick Tips for Before the Interview

1 Read the job description or advertisement carefully. It is full of clues about what the employer is looking for and this will indicate to you what experience they will be interested in. If you know this you can prepare answers to the questions they are likely to ask. Remember, it’s your past experience they are interested in, so prepare to tell them your success stories!

2 Know where you are going and make sure you arrive 5 – 10 minutes before the stated time of interview. If you’ve never been to the location before, do a practice run of the journey before the actual day if you can. Try to make it the same time of day; local areas have particular traffic patterns and if you’re going to a residential area, for example, you might get caught in school traffic. If you’re using public transport, make sure you leave plenty of time for delays. If you’re very early, take a walk around the neighbourhood.

3 Nervous? Just before the meeting wash your hands in luke warm water and dry them thoroughly. There’s nothing more likely to leave a bad first impression than a sweaty palm!

4 While we’re on the subject of handshakes, make it firm but not a bone cruncher – take hold of the other persons hand in your full hand and give it a slight squeeze so you just feel it give, nothing more. One or two up-down motions and let go. The person has just introduced themselves as Emily Jones. As you shake her hand, make eye contact and say something like: “Very nice to meet you, Emily”.

5 Sometimes you can be hanging around a reception area for a long time. It’s very tempting to allow yourself to sink into one of those soft, low chairs that furnish reception areas to make people feel c at ease. DON’T! When your host arrives to collect you they may have to wait hours with their hand outstretched while you fight your way out of the chair! It could be even worse if you’re trying to fold up a big newspaper that’s been strategically placed to distract you so you don’t realise how late the host is! Instead, put your case down, and look around the reception area. What the place like? How friendly is the receptionist? Is there a company brochure you can glance through? This will help you to evaluate the organisation much more than reading a newspaper. It shows you are interested in the organisation and you are ready for action!

Understanding your needs

Many people embark on the job search without first considering what’s important. Have your needs and lifestyle changed since the last time you changed job? Are you planning an important lifestyle change in the short or medium term that is likely to have an important impact on your work?

I was recently talking to someone who is returning to work after a career break. One of the options she is considering is setting up a party planning business. I asked her what’s important for her in her life outside work. The answer came back:

“I need to have the flexibility to be available for my children before and after school”.

Working for oneself does offer a degree of flexibility but you can also be a prisoner to your own business, particularly if you are trying to build customers. In the case of party planning, it’s likely that my client would need to be available for consultations in the evening and at week-ends, as many of her customers are busy during weekdays.

It’s important to consider your needs when looking at career options. What are the implications of those needs in terms of your availability? How do the jobs you are considering fit in with your needs?

Before you start looking at particular career ideas or opportunities, write a list of the things that are important in your life and how you need to devote time to them. What does this rule out (travel, long hours, being on call, for example)? Do you need predictable work or work that you can do from home?

Your career needs are also important. Do you need a particular working environment: open plan? small team? Does the role itself need to fulfil certain criteria such as offering variety or the opportunity to work directly with clients? What about training? Do you want access to formal training or are you happy learning as you go along? Would a mentor be better for you?

When you are clear about your needs it will be possible to consider work opportunities and easily seen from the job description if your needs are likely to be met. If not, ask the employer before applying.

Some CV myths dispelled

1 The Perfect CV

First things first: There’s no such thing as the perfect CV, and there’s nobody better able to write your CV than you. So there’s a few quid saved immediately if you were thinking of paying someone to write it for you!

The purpose of a CV is not to get you a job, it’s to get you an interview. If it does that, it’s done its job.

2 A CV must be no more than 2 pages long

A CV does not need to be any particular number of pages. It needs to be readable and appealing. Would you rather read two pages of crammed up, tiny font, or three pages with space that looks comfortable to read? Keep your margins comfortably wide, and your font size no smaller than 11pt. Use a classic font that is known to all PC’s – Arial and Times New Roman are safest. You can be sure that these will not distort on someone else’s machine into some strange font or gobledegook.

3 A reader spends 60 seconds on each CV

The average amount of time that is spent reading a CV is not 60 seconds as many people think. In fact what happens is that every 30 – 60 seconds the reader decides whether or not to continue reading. That’s three or four times per page. So make sure that your CV stays interesting! Don’t let the reader get bogged down in detail or they’ll be bored and will lose the will to read on. (Are you still with me?!)

4 You shouldn’t put your date of birth on the CV

If someone wants to know how old you are they can easily work it out to within two or three years unless you are being deliberately misleading. Never lie on a CV, and never leave gaps. Curriculum Vitae translates as “a running through of my life” and should include the whole of your working life. So should you include your date of birth on the CV? If someone is going to make a decision based on age, there’s not much you can do about it (it’s not unlawful discriminate on age in the UK….yet). Usually people just want to know how old you are to help them visualise you as they are considering your CV. It may also help you if you have progressed quickly in your career or the employer may be concerned about the social mix of the team she is putting together. On the other hand, it’s more ink, and the best CV’s have a minimum of ink. Include your DoB or don’t, just don’t waste time worrying about it!

5 The reader won’t be interested in my hobbies

They may not share your hobbies, but there’s a good chance that some, especially the “people person”, is interested in getting a feel for the kind of person you are. Your hobbies ought ideally to indicate that you like to keep yourself healthy (sport or outdoor activity of some kind), that you like to engage in the community and don’t just work, sleep and watch TV so any voluntary work or involvements you have are worth mentioning, and they also want to know that have interests that keep your mind exercised. Try to be interesting, and they may want to engage you on these subjects, if you just put “Cinema, eating out and keep-fit” they’ll be very bored by you! What genre of cinema are you into (if you just go for the latest releases like most people don’t bother, but if you are a big fan of Fellini, tell us about it). What kinds of cuisine can’t you get enough of, and in which ways and how often do you work out?

Future newsletters will consider each of the different elements of the CV, starting next time with the Profile or Summary

The importance of networking

Did you know that more jobs are found through networking with contacts than any other method? That includes direct approaches to companies, advertising or recruitment consultants. Networking is not about some dodgy sales scheme, it’s about allowing the people that know, value and trust you, to help you.

Many people are reluctant to network because they are afraid of appearing needy or pressurising. Don’t think of it like this. Think about how you would feel if someone asked you for help. If you could help, I’m sure you’d be happy to do so. If you couldn’t, you’d say so, politely and with encouragement, wouldn’t you?

So make networking one of the tools you use in your job search. Let people around you know what you are looking for and ask them who they know that might be able to give you some advice and guidance. Remember: networking is not about asking for a job, it’s about asking for advice and guidance, and more importantly, it’s about making yourself available to help others.