No one ever said finding a job is easy. It can be a lengthy process and include several rounds of interviews before you land an offer that is right for you. The good thing is that if you are receiving positive responses and getting interview opportunities, your resume is doing its job – reeling in opportunities for you to further make the case that you are the most qualified candidate for the job. There’s no guarantee that all interviews will go smoothly. It would be fair to say that from time to time there will be an occasion or two where you do not perform your best. It may because of one or several factors, such as an unexpected late arrival to the interview, your inability to communicate with focus because questions were not clear, you stumbled on responses because you did not have enough information or did not come prepared enough, your nerves got to you, or there was a lack of rapport with the interviewer. Even if there are times when you do not perform your best in an interview, it is important to not give up. Continue with a professional follow-up and stay motivated. You should:         ... Read more

You might come across a situation where you know a friend or colleague who is job-seeking and could use a little “push” or extra help in their search. Potentially, this friend may actually be interested in working at a place you have worked before or where you have connections. If you are comfortable with it, you can help your friend by writing a brief recommendation note to your contacts, once you’ve talked with your friend and know for sure that he or she is applying. But what to say?       ... Read more

Over the last couple of years, some executives may have experienced a longer gap between jobs than ever before in their careers. As someone who wants to move to the next step in the interviewing process, you are anxious to hear back from the hiring manager after an interview. What can you or should you do? Following up after an interview is crucial. CareerBuilder conducted a survey in 2011 and found that 22% of hiring managers dismiss candidates who don’t send a thank you note after the interview. Wow! What that says to them is that the candidate has poor follow-through and perhaps even lack of interest in the position. Not a good image for the hiring manager to have if you expect to get called back.       ... Read more

It’s been a bit of a wobbly start to 2012 for the UK economy and the job market as a whole. Unemployment among 18-25 year olds is the highest it’s been for decades and industry mutterings such as “graduates without existing work experience have little or no chance of receiving a job offer in an organization’s graduate program” can’t be helping the confidence levels of recent grads. Thankfully, we know that fresh graduates are an optimistic and resilient bunch who aren’t easily discouraged! Still, it is worth recapping the news to allow us to understand the current situation better: ... Read more

It happens. You’re trying to help the new boss but they don’t take to the help you’re offering so well. The new boss says the right things when you raise a concern or idea, but they... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]] ... Read more

Three of my colleagues wrote a book a few years ago called The Twitter Job Search, and it’s a good read. However, there’s still not a widespread consensus that Twitter makes an effective job search tool. That said, you shouldn’t let it deter you from checking out Twitter and seeing whether you can apply it to your situation in a way that makes sense and, hopefully, produces positive results for you.

Twitter power users: what this means to your job search

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Dallas is probably one of the hottest places to find work right now, but you might not find evidence for that on the job boards. Even though it’s the fourth most populated metropolitan area in the country, the unemployment rate is only about 7 percent, two points below the national average. According to Simply-Hired’s Nov 2011 Job Outlook, Dallas has experienced 17 percent year-over-year job growth. ... Read more

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I recently came across a video called Sh*t New Yorkers Say. The video is a funny account of what it’s like to live in New York City. It touches on all that is magical and all that is annoying about this city in less than 3 minutes. Its accuracy is uncanny and as a native New Yorker I’ve undoubtedly uttered at least 90% of the same things about this city during my time here. But I think the beauty of the video is that it depicts New York City life in a transparent and authentic way. It’s a city that attracts and repels its inhabitants at the same time. The feeling you get living in New York City is not black or white. It’s gray. And to me, anything that appears only black or white is not authentic. There must be gray in order for it to be real. ... Read more

Nicki Beekman has always been motivated by working with others to help them achieve their goals. She was able to put this entrepreneurial spirit into practice when she was laid off in 2009. A single mom who also takes care of her live-in mother, in addition to her teenage son, Nicki was terrified about her next career steps, knowing that she had others to provide for. The lay-off was not a complete surprise since ... Read more