Seven Tips for Acing Your Interviews - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Seven Tips for Acing Your Interviews - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career In todays competitive job market, face-to-face job interviews are like gold. Once you get one, you need to do everything you can to perform your best and come out on top. And job interview skills have become even more important when you consider that you will probably need to change jobs more often in the future and survive more rounds of interviews prior to each hiring decision. You just cant afford to be a poor or mediocre interviewee. The good news is that most interviewees are relatively unstrategic and underprepared. With superior strategies and preparation, you can gain a competitive advantage and greatly increase your odds of acing your next interviews. Heres an example: A recent client prepared properly for his interviews and ran through each of four back to back one-hour interviews confidently. Between each interview, each interviewer gave feedback to the hiring manager. He walked into the fifth interview, which was with the hiring manager. As he sat down, the hiring manager looked at him and said You really prepared for this, didnt you? Three days later, he had a job offer for a job he desperately wanted with an employer far superior to his current one. The point of my story is that his preparation allowed him to perform confidently and effectively, which the interviewers clearly were able to see. You can do what he did, by incorporating these seven tips quoted from Fast Track Your Job Search (and Career!):  Smile more and be more friendly. Most interviewers want to hire friendly people who appear well adjusted. Remain aware of your body language and movements. You can tune into these by getting a friend to conduct a practice interview and videoing your performance. Mirror the interviewer, if positive. Modifying your body language and speech rate to better match the interviewer will tend to make him/her feel more comfortable with you. Keep your responses and explanations under 60 seconds on a consistent basis. You will appear more intelligent and prepared it you keep your answers crisp and avoid rambling. Diagnose before you prescribe. Where possible, gain information from research and from questions in the interview before drawing conclusions and offering suggestions. After diagnosing, offer highly relevant information that will be of interest or help. By focusing your remarks on the business needs of the specific employer and exact role, you will be viewed as a better match for their needs. Encourage the interviewer to do more of the talking than you do. I know this is not always possible, but keeping this tip in mind will tend to curb any tendencies you may have to drone on myopically while reminding you to engage the interviewer rather than simply talk at them. Some of these suggestions may seem obvious, but people frequently overlook them. I encourage you to try them and would love to hear your suggestions, too. Author: Richard Kirby  is an executive career consultant, speaker on career strategies, and author of Fast Track Your Job Search (and Career!). Richard Kirby’s earlier experience includes managing engineering, human resources, marketing and sales teams for employers that ranged from a Fortune 100 to a VC-funded entrepreneurial startup. For the past 11 years at Executive Impact, Richard has helped hundreds of executives and professionals successfully navigate today’s transformed 21st century job market and achieve better employment for themselves. Richard’s expertise includes career assessments and goal setting, personal marketing/branding, resume enhancement, strategic networking and job interviewing, and “contrarian” job search methodologies. He is a Board Certified Coach (in career coaching) and a Certified Management Consultant (recognized by the ISO).

Tips for Building Your Own Brand

Tips for Building Your Own Brand Many busy stay at home moms are now finding full-time employment online.  These hard-working women juggle childcare and careers, making it look easy.  But the struggle is real and without the right information, working at home can be very difficult.  Today, we are going to learn why building your own brand is so important and learn a few tips that can help you get started. Stand Out with Your Own Logo No matter what type of at home online business you run, building your own brand will help you stand out from the rest.  Remember, you are competing not only with like-minded work at home mothers, but with major companies as well.  That’s why finding your own identity as early as possible will help you achieve your work goals faster.  Having your own logo will help you do just that and it doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg.  A free logo creator will allow you to design your very own logo without the need to spend hundreds of dollars.  With just a few clicks of the mouse, your new logo will be ready.  You will be able to use it not only on your website, but also on business cards, invoices and more! Get Social One of the best ways to get the word out about your brand is by being social.  Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter can provide you with enormous opportunity.  Start by building a Facebook landing page for your company.  This is very easy, and it won’t take you very long.  This page will allow you to communicate directly with your customers and engage with them on a more personal level.  But don’t just stop with Facebook.  Make sure to branch out to other social media platforms as well.  For more information on how to use social media to build your brand, please visit this link. Utilize Video Another sure-fire way to heat your brand up is by using video.  This form of content creation is powerful and it will help you to quickly get the word out about your company.  Start by setting up a YouTube account.  Here you will have the opportunity to record videos related to your business.  YouTube has a huge following, and this is a wonderful place to attract new clients.  Also, you can monetize your videos and make some extra income.  Next, take your video production to the next level by going live on a site like Facebook and Google.  This will allow you to speak directly to your customer base. To find out more about using video to build your brand, please check out this website. Now that you know more about brand building and why it’s important, why not get started today?  The faster you set yourself apart from others, the quicker you will start to see results!  Brand building can be difficult, but with the right knowledge and tools, you can easily build a brand that you as a work at home mom can be proud of.

Personal Branding Interview Tamara Keith - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Personal Branding Interview Tamara Keith - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Today, I spoke to Tamara Keith, who joined NPR in 2009 as NPR’s newest business reporter, covering the latest trends in housing and consumer spending to new developments in the ongoing financial crisis. She also hosts and produces “B-Side Radio,” an hour-long public radio magazine and podcast. In this interview, Tamara talks about how she got her job, why she started her website for her personal brand, and more. How did you get your cool job at NPR as a reporter? The short answer is: years of hard work, good timing and a little luck.  The long answer plays out over 15 years and involves a family road trip, following love and a global financial crisis. The summer before my senior year of high school, my family went on an epic road trip.  We started in California and stopped in nearly every state, visiting more national parks and tourist traps than you can imagine.  At the time I had just started writing a column in the local newspaper and was also trying to figure out where to go to college.  So, I wrote letters to all of my favorite NPR hosts asking for advice.  I sent along a copy of my column too. All I was really hoping for was a little advice and maybe a tour of the NPR studios when my family drove through Washington DC.  What I got was some excellent advice, and an offer to become an essayist for Weekend Edition Sunday. I continued to do essays for NPR until I was mid-way through college.  At that point, I made the switch from first-person writing to reporting with an internship at KQED in San Francisco. I ultimately got a real paying gig at KQED as a producer/director, then transitioned to reporting when I opened the station’s Central Valley Bureau in Fresno.  From there I spent 9 months reporting in Columbus, OH (followed love conveniently just as Ohio became a battleground in the 2004 presidential race), then came back to California and worked for KPCC and KQED. Then in 2008 I followed love again, this time to Washington DC where my husband was starting a fellowship at the National Institutes of Health.  When I arrived in September 2008, I had no idea what I would be doing.  I thought I would freelance and hoped maybe just maybe I could get a little work at NPR. Well, just as we were pulling into town, the financial crisis hit its peak.  NPR needed extra reporting manpower, and I was available.  Over the next year, I worked as a temp at NPR and Marketplace and last December actually got an official staff position. And that long-winded answer isn’t even the half of it. Why did you start a website, tamarakeith.com? What was your strategy with it? Has it helped your brand? I initially started tamarakeith.com as an online resume. I think a lot of journalists (and job seekers in general) do that.  I was able to showcase my work on the site and could send links to potential employers.  I’ve actually taken down my resume since I am no longer looking for a job.  So, the initial strategy, of using the site as part of a job search has worked.  Now I am attempting, very slowly to transition it to something that would be interesting to the occasional person who hears a piece on NPR and googles me. A while ago, I started blogging on the site, though not as consistently as I should.  It allows me to share some behind-the-scenes insights about the reporting process and to highlight some of my favorite pieces.  There’s also a feed on the site that displays all my most recent stories, which makes my parents happy. As for branding myself, I hate to say, I’ve never really thought about it.  My work isn’t really about me.  It’s about the people I interview and the stories they share with our listeners.  It’s a real thrill to have a conversation with someone about a story they heard on NPR, where they recount the details and retell it with excitementand yet they have no idea it was a story I reported. How has your job as a reporter changed in the past few years? Where are you going for information these days? When I started reporting, the Internet had already arrived. I truly can’t imagine reporting without the help of the web.  I can’t even remember the last time I dialed 411 to get a phone number.  In recent years, social media have come along and changed the way I do my job.  I find Facebook to be so useful for finding sources that I’m not sure how I did it before.  In particular, Facebook is a great way to find “real people” who can help bring a story to life.  Policy debates and economic data are valuable and important, but people make them real. When it comes to finding information, I am still a fan of traditional media websites like wsj.com, nytimes.com and of course npr.org.  There are some blogs that I visit regularly.  I find twitter only somewhat useful.  Facebook is a good place to crowd source, in addition to finding folks to interview but it can also be an amazing time suck.  Another wonderful place to find information is incredibly old fashioned.  Just talking to people is still the best way to learn and find ideas. When selecting an expert source for a story, what do you look for? How do you find them? There are tons of experts out there, many equally smart and insightful. Because I am in radio where the spoken word is very important, a key factor for me is finding a source who is a good talker.  I’m not actually looking for someone who speaks in -second soundbites, rather someone who can break down complicated issues in a way that is engaging.  I also like to find experts who have a personal experience with the issue they are talking about or in some other way are willing to allow themselves to be humanized.  Talking heads may advance a story or contribute an interesting fact, but I want to interview people who will draw the listeners in. I often find people through web searches. I’ll look at other articles or pieces where they’ve been quoted to get a sense of whether they may be a good interview.  And unfortunately, I often end up going back to the same people over and over again.  There are some people who are just really good, and when you’re crashing on deadline, it’s an easy phone call. One thing I will say is that I get a ton of press releases and e-mails from PR people offering up experts.  Often it seems like they have no idea what my beat even is.  They pitch topics that aren’t even close to anything I have covered before.  One I remember started with the line “how are you going to keep your teenager occupied this summer?” It was something like that.  Well, I don’t have a teenager.  Heck, my dog isn’t even a teenager. I’m sure they’re getting paid for every e-mail they send, or perhaps it’s a case of hope springing eternal that the pitch will resonate with someone who receives it.  But for me, these unsolicited and often insistent aggressive pitches are a real turn off.  The pitches that I respond well to are the ones where the person contacting me knows what I cover, maybe even references a recent story and then suggests a possible expert. For aspiring reporters, what lessons can they learn from your career? I got an early start, and was occasionally lucky but I think my career followed a pretty traditional path.  I did my time.  I started out with an entry level production job.  I moved to less-than-desirable locations and as a result got experience I never would have gotten in a larger market.  Most of all, I worked very hard, never assumed I was owed anything and threw myself into every job I ever had with an eye on how to prepare for the next step. I got a good piece of advice 2 years ago from an editor: make yourself indispensable. Another thing I would suggest, be open to feedback and criticism.  Build a thick skin early and demand tough edits.  There is so much to learn from editors and colleagues.  Even people at the top of their fields can continue to improve and learn from others.  I feel very lucky to have had so many wonderful mentors over the years.  And it all started with asking for advice. Oh, and if you want to get into radio, check out these technical tutorials some friends and I wrote up:  http://www.bsideradio.org/?cat=47 http://www.bsideradio.org/?p=288#more-288 ? - Tamara Keith joined NPR in 2009 as NPR’s newest business reporter. Her coverage spans the business world, from the latest trends in housing and consumer spending to new developments in the ongoing financial crisis. Keith has deep roots in public radio, and got her start in news by writing and voicing essays for NPRs Weekend Edition Sunday as a teenager. After earning her a journalism graduate degree from the Graduate School of Journalism at UC Berkeley (where it was reported she was the youngest person to ever enroll), she went to work for NPR station KQED’s California Report, where she covered topics including agriculture and the environment. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including a first place trophy from the Society of Environmental Journalists for “Outstanding Story Radio.” In her spare time, she hosts and produces “B-Side Radio,” an hour-long public radio magazine and podcast. She is a recreational triathlete and half-marathon runner.

7 Reasons Youre Hiring the Wrong Employees

7 Reasons You’re Hiring the Wrong Employees Have you ever hired a really bad batch of employees that you scream at every day and simply want to fire?Every business owner has probably experienced this, and it’s normal. It simply means that there’s a mistake somewhere in your hiring process that you have to change.If you want your business to flourish, you need to improve your hiring process by first knowing the reasons why you tend to hire the wrong employees.Why Hiring the Wrong People Will Ruin Your BusinessevalBefore we go to the reasons as to why you’re hiring the wrong people, let’s go through how doing this affects your business.First of all, you’ll be wasting a lot of productivity. Correcting, scolding, and picking up the mistakes made by your employees takes time, and that is something you can’t afford to lose.Second, you’ll be wasting money because you’ll be paying salary to someone who can’t get work done properly.Third, the morale of your other employees will be dragged down because there will be pr oblems in the operations. Lastly, your company’s reputation will also go down with all of these events happening.Reasons You’re Hiring the Wrong EmployeesevalThere are seven main reasons as to why you might be hiring the wrong people. These are the seven reasons:1. You Don’t Take Note of The AttitudeMost employers only think about skills without the attitude. A person who has a bad attitude will not go very far in his or her career and will only be a liability to your company.evalIn the interview, you must already take note of the attitude of the applicants through hard questions to test how they answer.2. You Hardsell Your BusinessOne mistake you could be making is that you’re trying too hard to sell the business to the applicants. Don’t do this as the applicant will feel like he or she is doing you a favor by spending his or her career there. If they feel like that, then they will take your company for granted.3. You Strongly Practice NepotismIt’s no big deal to hire y our relatives for a few of your posts. However, if you always do this, your relatives would take your company for granted and eventually slack off, especially if you don’t scrutinize them thoroughly.evalTake note that if you do hire your relatives, treat them like you would other applicants.4. You Ignore the Totality of the CandidateWhen we talk about totality, we mean personality, traits, and other personal factors. First, you want someone who can do the job well. Second, you want someone who can fit into the working environment of your company.5. You Don’t Do Background ChecksThis is one of the things that most employers neglect to doâ€" background checks. Don’t skip your background checks on those applicants that have been screened positive as you might find something that may make you change your mind.6. You Hire Too Quickly Because of DemandAnother reason would be that you may be hiring too quickly because you need someone to fill in the post right away. No matter how muc h of a rush you’re in, don’t rush; otherwise, you might miss out a lot of details that you need about your applicants.7. You Don’t Analyze the PersonLastly, you don’t clearly analyze the person. Usually, your analysis is backed by your intuition. If your analysis concludes that the person is not really that good no matter how great his or her skills are, don’t hire.These are some of the reasons that you have to take note of when changing your hiring process.Always remember that hiring isn’t just about grooming people and helping them mold their career, but it is more about fitting in the pieces of a puzzle that are your business in order to complete the picture. If you want your business to flourish, you need the right pieces.

New Resources Resume Books for 2016

New Resources Resume Books for 2016 2 Resume Books for 2016 Job Search When gearing up for a job search, whats the one thing you  obsess over more than anything else? Your resume, right? You will need help creating a solid resume. To be clear, I dont write resumes and I dont like to provide resume advice. Im not a fan. Of course you need to have a good one, but there are already tons of  people (and experts) writing on the topic, so I dont need to. The Many Reasons You Need Resume Help If you think you can dust off  your old resume and add your new responsibilities, that wont work. If you think you can use someone elses template, that wont work either. When you go online to look for examples, those probably arent the best ones for you reference. If youre on the cheap and going to the library check out a book on resume writing, look at the date it was published. If that date is more  than 5 years ago, the information is sadly out of date. And what happens when you show your resume to 50 people and ask for feedback? You get 50 different opinions. (Funny thing about opinions, everybody has one!) Hiring someone to write your resume (and a good one) can cost hundreds to thousands of dollars. I dont think your budget should determine the quality of your resume. Good news. Two new books have hit the market and this is your chance to get the expert advice and help you need to create a powerful, contemporary document that should land you interviews, or at the very least help you get on a recruiters radar. [Full disclosure, both these books were sent to me at no cost to review. And one of my infographic resumes was featured in  Modernize Your Resume: Get Noticed Get Hired] 2 Resume Books for 2016 Job Search Resumes for Dummies by Laura DeCarlo (Wiley, 2015) This is more than just a resume book. It addresses the new strategies you need to use in creating and distributing your resume. Laura DeCarlos book walks you through the many important changes in recruiting. The book also addresses the important strategies for  each section of the resume to help you design the best solution for your specific situation. The key is to understand who you are writing for and what they are thinking. From format to font, your resumes visual appeal is critical. The words you use to describe your experience are  also important and DeCarlos book has lists of Wow words to use. Whether you are just starting your career, switching careers, or returning to the workforce, youll find valuable advice and recommendations on how to position/spin the situation on your resume (without lying).  Sure, there are sample resumes in this book too. Resumes for Dummies is an all-inclusive book on how to create and use your resume so that it gets you results (an interview, not a job). Because a resume doesnt land you a job, you do! Resumes for Dummies on Amazon What I Like About It Like all the books in the Dummies series, it is easy to read skim and yet meaty enough to provide help. You can flip to the books sections and work on a specific troublesome part of your resume or once you are finished with your resume, use the book to help you troubleshoot why it isnt working. DeCarlo refers to the sample resumes as OnTarget resumes. Theyve been customized by types of occupations, experience level and even special circumstances (too many jobs, gaps, and even military to civilian transition). In Their Words This is how the publisher promotes the book Resumes for Dummies spells out: tips on avoiding common resume-writing mistakes updates on the latest changes in the job market that youll need to take into account when writing a resume how to approach a lay-off in a professional light how to confront privacy and reputation issues in online social job search Whether youre a recent graduate, second-timer looking for your next job, prime-timer who hasnt job-searched in decades, or the unfortunate victim of a lay-off, Resumes For Dummies takes the fear out of putting your skills on paper and sets you on the path to getting your foot in the doorâ€"and landing the job of your dreams. Everything you need to create a targeted resume How to make your resume stand out in the digital age Guidance on making the most of social networking in your job search How to make education, skills, experience, and competencies work for you The best type of resume for your career situation Advice for first-time job seekers and recent graduates A ten-point resume checklist to make sure your resume is the best it can be Modernize Your Resume: Get Noticed Get Hired  by  Wendy Enelow and Louise Kursmark (Emerald Career Publishing, 2016) This book by Wendy Enelow and Louise Kursmark shows you, through examples, the many ways todays resume has evolved. A resume is more than a listing of your work experience, it is a marketing tool. Youll get advice and examples on tightening the language you use on the resume to make it easier to digest, modern formatting ideas and samples of  design elements and layouts  that are being used on resumes. Enelow and Kursmark have also included what you need to know about online job search strategies and how to create a resume to submit online, through email or present in person. Theres even pointers on how to incorporate the information from your resume into your LinkedIn profile. Enelow and Kursmark provide advice so that your  profile complements, not copies, your resume. What I Liked About It This book helps you step outside your resume comfort zone. Youll find graphics, testimonials, and logos within the samples provided. It contains just the right amount of information to help you understand resume writing and why, when and how to use your resume. I feel  Modernize Your Resume is most relevant  for  experienced professionals, either mid-level or above. It is very easy on the eyes, inspiring and youll walk away feeling empowered to craft a resume that represents your style/personality. If youre tired of the same-old, same-old resume and want to try some new tricks, this is a book to check out. In Their Words This book tells you and shows you how to write resume content that is powerful and meaningful, select the best  format to highlight your career, add design elements for  a competitive edge, and bring a positive mindset to the challenge of writing your resume and finding your next job. Youll also learn how to create a modern resume that is both human-friendly and electronic-friendly for todays online, mobile, technology-based employment market. 80+ Sample Resumes: College grads to mid-career professionals to senior executives in a diversity of industries and professions. Goal-Setting Worksheet: Starting point for every strong, well-positioned, and distinctive resume. Career Vault: Structured technique  to collect and manage resume information for your  career. Dig-Deep Questions: Thought-provoking questions to uncover career achievements. Verbs with Verve: 402 resume writing verbs to rev up your resumes  vibrancy. LinkedIn Profile Essentials: Strategies to translate resumes into powerful LinkedIn profiles. Modernize Your Resume: Get NoticedGet Hired on Amazon

How to Write a Resume For Moms

How to Write a Resume For MomsWriting resumes for moms can be a challenge because they are busy working full time. Unfortunately, most mothers are not able to afford additional resources that would be able to help them write an effective resume. This is where resume writing for moms can help.The best way to learn how to write a resume is to take advantage of the various resume writing software that is available for free on the internet. These resume templates will help you get started on creating a resume that is appealing to potential employers. While these templates are simple to use, they still allow you to customize the design and content of your resume.Most of the sites that offer quality resume templates do charge a fee for their service. This is completely understandable because these sites have purchased the rights to various templates in order to display them for sale. In addition, many of these sites will offer templates that are not from a specific company or from just one source.Resume writing for moms can be done free of charge by simply going to a site that offers resume templates. You can search online to find sites that offer templates that are free. Most resume writing sites offer free templates and these can be used by the general public.A resume template is going to consist of your professional name, your company name, the title of your position, a list of your achievements, education, certifications, work experience, and certifications. Depending on what position you are applying for, there may be other items that will be included in the resume template. The more detailed your resume, the better.If you are unable to find a resume template online, there are several resume writing programs that are available for purchase. These programs allow youto custom design your resume the way you want it to look. Many of these programs are designed specifically for the mother of the person that is to be hired.An important element to consider when designi ng a resume is to be able to present yourself as an expert in your field. Many people have the tendency to embellish information in order to present themselves as more qualified than they really are. A well crafted resume will present you as a professional in your field and as someone who is qualified to fill the position.Resume writing for moms is not hard work at all, if you know where to look. To make the job much easier, try to use resume writing programs that come with the sites that offer them for free. These programs will allow you to customize your resume to meet your needs. This can save you a lot of time and make your resume writing for moms a lot easier.

How to Write a Resume For Civil Engineering Students

How to Write a Resume For Civil Engineering StudentsCivil engineering resume writing for students is easy if you know what you're doing. If you do not know what you're doing, then it will be a challenge to make your resume stand out from the rest. There are three things you need to get right with your resume.First, your academic information must be very clear and concise. Make sure your educational information includes your name, residential address, contact number, employer, and educational institution. Be precise with your information as this will help land you the best job possible. The more information you include on your resume, the more appealing it will be to employers and recruiters.Second, you must present your accomplishments to the hiring company. It is imperative that you list your accomplishments on your resume so that the hiring company can see what you have done for the company. This will show potential employers that you are a motivated individual and will make you st and out from the rest of the candidates.Third, include a web page in your resume. Most employers take notice of this. Web pages help the hiring company views your work history, provide a more interesting picture of you, and give a link back to your resume. Remember, you want your resume to stand out from the rest.While a few years ago the company hiring process was very manual, the advancement of technology has made things easier and faster. This has meant that many companies now have a web site that is designed specifically to make it easier for their hiring staff to find and hire the candidate they are looking for.One of the challenges when writing resumes for civil engineering students is that you have to think about the future. Remember, civil engineering is a booming industry and the need for qualified engineers is only going to grow in the future. You can write your resume today that will impress future employers and it will also serve to make you stand out from the rest of th e applicants.As mentioned before, making your resume stand out from the rest is just a matter of being specific with your information and being very clear in your purpose for writing your resume. These three simple steps will help make your resume writing for civil engineering students easier.