The Interview Edge

Latest Jobs Report - Flat is the Word

February employment data, released this morning, show a loss of 36,000 jobs for the month. The unemployment rate remains 9.7%. (Point of reference: the economy needs to add 200,000 jobs a month in order to post net gains).

Temporary help was the big winner, adding nearly 50,000 jobs (many were in the manufacturing sector).

Two troubling indicators: both initial and continuing claims for unemployment insurance remain high, and the number of discouraged workers ticked up. The broader unemployment rate climbed from 16.5% to 16.8%.

March, April and May should look brighter due to the addition of census workers to the ranks. It'll be interesting to see what happens in June, July and August after the census is completed and those jobs are eliminated.

Bottom line: there aren't a lot of people losing jobs, but neither is there a lot of hiring going on.

Be Memorable – For the Right Reasons

In a hyper-competitive employment market, it’s important to stand out from the competition.  You need to get noticed. You need to make an impression. You need to be memorable.

Whether it’s a networking opportunity or an interview setting, you want people to remember who you are. 

That said, while it’s important to stand out from the crowd, it’s even more crucial that you get the right kind of reaction. You don’t want people remembering you for the wrong reasons.

The recruiting world is replete with tales of candidates who’ve made inauspicious impressions. There’s no question these people are remembered. Some of the stories become almost legendary.

Career Management: Learning to Like Change

“If you don’t like change, you’re going to like irrelevance even less.”
General Eric Shinseki, Chief of Staff, U.S. Army

Change can be tough. Some people are very resistant to it. Others let it sneak up on them; having settling into comfortable ruts, they’re jarred when the status quo is interrupted.

Even if you’re the type of person who’s inclined to embrace it, change can still be challenging. Especially when the pace accelerates to the point where a fluid environment seems to be the norm, it can be difficult to keep up with.

Whatever your personality type, you need to learn to like change…and know how to proactively manage it. If you don’t, in the words of the good General, the alternative isn’t very attractive from a career management standpoint.

Why Not You?

Somebody’s going to get the job offer.

Why shouldn’t it be you?

Never go into an interview thinking you have no real shot at the job. (Beware the self-fulfilling prophecy.) If you’ve prepared thoroughly, you always have a chance.

The fact that you received an invitation to interview says something about you and your candidacy. You’re obviously doing a lot of things correctly. There’s something about your qualifications that struck a chord. Especially in a hyper-competitive job market, progressing to the interview stage is an achievement in and of itself.

Pick Me, Pick Me! What Your Resume and Dodge Ball Have in Common

Tap your memory banks and think back to elementary school phys ed.

Before you could play a rousing game of dodge ball, of course, teams would have to be established. Two captains would be named, and they’d take turns picking kids for their respective sides.

Typically, everybody would wave their hands in the air, jump up and down, and yell “pick me” in an attempt to be chosen early. (Naturally, everyone would eventually end up on a team. But in the kid kingdom, being highly sought-after was important.)

Will Adversity Make You Stronger?

Best seller Team of Rivals is a fascinating study of the political shrewdness of Abraham Lincoln. The introduction includes a concise summary of how and why Lincoln was able to gain a critical advantage over his competitors:

"More accustomed to relying upon himself to shape events, he took the greatest control of the process leading up to the nomination, displaying a fierce ambition...and a wide range of emotional strengths forged in the crucible of personal hardship that took his rivals by surprise."

Lincoln was self-reliant. He took advantage of circumstances within his control. Adversity made him stronger.

Those are some of the very same character traits the 21st century worker needs to cultivate in order to succeed.

There's obviously been no shortage of adversity on the employment front. The recession and its messy aftermath will leave some people battered, bruised, and at loss regarding next employment steps.

Others, while contending with a rough ride through the same choppy waters will nonetheless come out of the storm sailing smoothly.

The Benefits of Saying Yes

 
 
In the toughest job market since the early 1980s, it’s been widely reported that workers in their 20s are routinely turning down opportunities – with no alternative employment lined up – because they don’t feel the jobs are good enough.

With no income, they retreat home to live with Mom and Dad.

On the other end of the spectrum, we have workers who’ve watched their industries contract significantly – they’ve seen it coming, sometimes for years – yet the response has been and continues to be inertia. They've done nothing. They changed nothing.

And because they’ve done nothing, because they said “no,” they become less and less marketable. They find themselves competing with exponentially more people for fewer opportunities. Skill sets erode or become obsolete. They have few options.

On the Job: Patience is Not Always a Virtue

Good things come to those who wait.

But not always.

While patience is a commendable virtue, there’s a time and a place for everything. Waiting on the sidelines is not always the appropriate course of action.   

Take your first week or two on a new job, for example.

You haven’t been given any directives yet. No marching orders from your new boss. You don’t have any concrete idea regarding what sort of deliverables he’s expecting, or on what timetable.

You don’t know anything about procedures he’d like to establish: frequency of reporting, preferred format, and so forth.

You’re pretty much in the dark. You wait patiently.

Bad idea.

The Job Interview Starts Sooner Than You Think

Most people think the interview begins when they take a seat in the hiring manager’s office and the conversation gets underway.

Not true.

The job interview starts the minute you walk in the door to the building. You begin making critical first impressions sooner than you might think (and these initial assessments have the power to make or break you).

You arrive, announce yourself to the person at the front desk, and are seated in the reception area waiting for the hiring manager. The interview has already begun. The receptionist has formed an impression of you. So have other individuals with whom you’ve come into contact.

Focus on establishing rapport quickly with every person you meet. There’s no telling who may quickly become your advocate and – if you get the job – a potential ally.

You also have no idea who has the sway to take you out of the running.

One Interview Mistake You Can’t Afford to Make

Jack finally scores an interview with a company he’s had in his sights for quite a while.

He preps carefully for the meeting.

The day arrives. He looks great. He feels good. He goes in primed and ready to hit a home run, but walks out…disappointed.

The hiring manager didn’t ask the kinds of questions Jack anticipated – and was hoping for. As a result, he didn’t get a chance to properly showcase his value. He couldn’t make a strong case for his candidacy. He wasn’t able to underscore his uniqueness.

Jack’s pretty sure this won’t go any further. There won’t be a follow up interview. He won’t get the job.

While Jack thinks his problems stem from this interviewer, he’s got it backwards.

Is Your Job Going, Going, Gone? Here’s One Thing You Can Do About It

There’s a cyclical nature to all markets, businesses and industries – which means the employment landscape is always shifting. Jobs are created on the one hand while others are phased out over time. It was true in when the automobile replaced the horse and buggy and it’s true now.

Throw in a serious economic downturn and the pace of change accelerates…like during this latest recession when that natural ebb and flow seemed a lot more like something on steroids.

Many of the changes to the employment picture over the last two years will be permanent. Economists project that roughly one quarter of the 8 million-plus jobs that have been eliminated during this recession aren’t coming back.

Are you one of those people working in a field that’s materially changing?

It’s Not How You Start…It’s How You Finish That Matters

If you’ve been watching the Olympics at all, you’ve seen some interesting contests – and in some cases, surprising outcomes as athletes who looked as though they had no chance at all end up winning gold.

There is no such thing as a sure thing.

And in this there is a parallel to the hiring process. You may think you're such an underdog it’s ridiculous to even go in for the interview. You’re entering into this thing at a huge disadvantage…is it even worth bothering when you’re competing against somebody with an inside connection or a candidate who’s a superstar?

Just because you aren’t the favorite going into the competition doesn’t mean you can’t come out on top.

Your Career - The Ultimate Road Trip

 
If You Don’t Plan Your Trip, the Destination May Turn Out to be a Dud.

So vacation time rolls around, and you’re ready for a road trip. You pack your bag, grab your keys, get into the car and start driving. With no plan. No destination in mind. No map. No navigator.

You drive for hundreds of miles and end up in the middle of nowhere. You can’t even find a place to stay overnight.

No amazing scenery.

No museums.

No famous landmarks.

No great restaurants.

No whatever-it-is-you-find-most-interesting.

Starting a New Job? Don’t Spend Too Much Time in the Acceleration Lane

If you’re getting ready to start a new job and expecting a nice, gradual ramp-up until you’re at full speed, you’re in for a rude awakening.

Whether you’re a seasoned executive or the junior person on the totem pole, employers expect new hires to get acclimated and begin making contributions right away. Meaning you don’t have a few months to hang around in the acceleration lane until you’re ready to find an opening to merge.

You need to show up ready to hit the gas and get onto the freeway. Which can be a challenge.

The first 90 days on the job can be overwhelming. You’re stepping into a new culture, learning a new role, adjusting to new schedules, getting acclimated to the company’s political climate, and building a new network of relationships. On top of it all, you may have moved (or be in the process of relocating) to a new city with your family following.

That said, nobody’s going to be very interested in sitting around and waiting until you feel like you’re ready to contribute.

What 'On-the-Job' and 'Looking for a Job' Have on Common

You spend hours preparing for a big presentation.

You conduct meticulous due diligence on a potential client.

You study the competition.

Correspondence or proposals that’ll be going to a potential customer are written and edited carefully.

You and your team conduct multiple dry runs to make sure the demo goes off without a hitch.

You invest a considerable chunk of time creating and updating the roadmap for a high-stakes project.

This type of hard work and preparation on the job is standard operating procedure for you – and countless people just like you. Yet when it comes to the job search, it’s not uncommon for candidates to switch gears and approach the process with a completely different mindset.

Employment Outlook: Doctor My Eyes…Tell Me What is Wrong

Commercial real estate and...jobs? Read on.

The next shoe waiting to drop is going to be a doozey.

Commercial property values have plunged more than 40% in the last three years. A whopping $1.4 trillion in commercial real estate loans will be due for refinancing starting this year; nearly half of those properties are under water.

With so much commercial real estate at risk, that means a lot of banks are in potential trouble as they face nearly $300 billion in losses on commercial property and development loans. Look for even more bank failures (smaller banks have been failing at the fastest rate since the savings and loan crisis some 20 years ago).

As bad as the commercial real estate picture is now, though, it'll deteriorate further next year when the pace of refinancings increases.

What does this all have to do with the job market?

Elizabeth Warren, law professor and Congressional Oversight Panel Chair: “If hundreds more community banks go under, the effect would be to…dump sand in the gears of the economic recovery.”

Eyes forward. Pay attention.

The Interview Edge - a comprehensive guide for people who are serious about their careers. Available in instantly downloadable format 

Job Security: Is There a Temblor in Your Future?

If You’re Sitting on a Tectonic Fault Line, Expect an Earthquake
~Dylan Grice, analyst with Societe General

Grice was talking about the financial crisis continuing to brew in Japan and its implications worldwide. The quote can be applied broadly, though, so I borrowed it for our purposes today.

That tectonic fault line? It could be your company.

It’s in financial trouble. Or it’s going to be acquired. Or the president of your division announced his departure, which is setting in motion a chain of events that could materially change the landscape. Or your business unit has been underperforming. Or the tax burden in your state has become so onerous that the owners are exploring options elsewhere.

And on, and on.

You’re sitting on a fault line. The ground beneath your feet is unstable.

Are You the Boss of You?

Earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal ran an interesting piece about the “age of going solo” – working for yourself. While it focused on the ins and outs of how to succeed as a consultant, I was struck by the snapshot of today’s workforce in the article’s setup.

With unemployment stuck on “high” and millions of people in the “long term unemployed” bucket, seismic shifts are taking place in the composition of the workforce.

According to author Richard Greenwald, 20% to 23% of U.S workers are “operating as consultants, freelancers, free agents, contractors, or rmicropreneurs.”

Think about that. Close to one quarter of working Americans are employed on a contingent basis.

Like the Best Athletes, Winning Candidates Know How to Adjust

If you like mild winters, Vancouver is a good place to be, with average temperatures this time of year usually in the low- to mid-40s. 2010, however, has started out milder than usual – again yesterday it tipped above 50 degrees.

Great for joggers and cyclists.

Not so great for the Olympic organizing committee, which has been feverishly working to get one of the skiing venues in shape. With only three days to go before the Games begin, they’re still trucking – and flying – snow to Cypress Mountain.

When asked about the situation, one of the skiers on the American team shrugged it off and said, “You have to adjust to every condition” and be prepared to go out and do your best.

If You Were the Hiring Manager, Would You Hire You?

Seriously!

Take off your candidate’s cap and put yourself in the role of hiring manager.

Start with your submission materials – your cover letter and resume. Try to look at them objectively – as if you’re seeing them for the first time. As if you are unfamiliar with the candidate.

Is the person you’re describing someone you’d want to interview?

Do you sound interesting? Unique?

Are your materials full of empty statements, or do you back up what you’ve written with quantifiable information? Do you tell a complete story, or are chunks of it missing?

Interview Regrets: That’s Not What I Meant to Say!

Sometimes interviews don’t go as well as you’d like. Your nerves get the better of you – or you’re fatigued, or a little under the weather. You slip up. We’ve all been there at one time or another.

• Your mind goes blank for a minute and you fumble an answer.
• You’re not as articulate as you should be – and therefore fail to make an important point you wanted to convey.
• You inadvertently make a misstatement or omit information.

Don’t be too hard on yourself. A mis-step does not necessarily mean all is lost. Remember, it was one aspect of an entire conversation. And even if it was a crucial point, it doesn’t mean you can’t come up with a “save.”

(Whatever you do, don't dwell on the fumble while you're interviewing. Maintain focus. Move on. )

Jobs Report: The Song Remains the Same

According to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data, the economy lost 20,000 more jobs during the month of January.

The unemployment rate dipped slightly to 9.7% - which you might think was a good thing. Unfortunately, though, that was due to a shrinking labor force (the number of people who have given up looking for work increased sharply).

The bigger headline was the significant downward revision of the number of jobs lost since the recession began, plunging from an already dismal 7.2 million to 8.4 million.

Ouch.

The number of people who have been unemployed six months or longer increased to 6.3 million.

Bottom line: a whole lot of jobs have to be created – and there’s not much hiring going on right now.

Led Zeppelin had it right: The song remains the same.

Jobs are Number One

The President was here in New Hampshire Tuesday speaking at a town hall meeting; he reiterated the theme unveiled a few weeks ago that jobs “will be our number one focus in 2010.” I don't know about you but I'm wondering why it took so long to come around to that point of view.

Refreshingly, he did mention small business – which we know is an important driver of the economy. However, the proposals being floated in the so-called jobs bill aren’t likely to have much impact. Worse, the spending ultimately may do more harm than good.

For example: $30 billion intended for banks to lend to small businesses. Most agree that lack of capital at the banks isn’t the issue…rather, it’s a dearth of creditworthy borrowers, along with the fact that businesses are spooked and don’t want to bite off loans just now.

Resume White Lies…What’s the Big Deal?

They may seem harmless. After all, your resume is a marketing tool, not a legal document.

Say you stretch the truth about your educational credentials…or inflate a job title or two… or shift a few dates on job tenures. So what? 

You’re just trying to put the product in the best possible light. No different than any marketing brochure, right?

Wrong. There’s a big difference between smart positioning and outright misrepresentation.

I’ll bet you expect that glossy marketing piece describing the car you’re thinking about buying to be truthful. If it says you’re paying for a V-6 engine and leather seats but in reality it’s a V-4 and upholstery...

The problem with white lies on your resume is that they can turn into big black marks. In permanent ink.

Does That Revved up GDP Mean Jobs, Jobs, Jobs?

That 5.7% GDP growth rate for the quarter just ended (announced Friday) had some people almost giddy. One writer pronounced that it may be a signal that the economy has not just recovered, but is “robust.”

I’m as starved for positive news as the next person, but let's just say I didn't break out the champagne.

Growth is good, no doubt about it - though this more than likely a spurt rather than the start of a trend line.

More than half of the uptick resulted from inventory drawdown. Companies also purchased more equipment and software than they have in a long time. Two good things.

But there’s a mountain of uncertainty about what’s coming down the road. Uncertainty doesn’t encourage the kind of action necessary to take a bite out of unemployment.

Rate Your Candidacy: How Good Are You?

Imagine you're a tennis pro getting ready for your next important match. Are you better than Roger Federer?

Maybe tennis isn’t your thing. Let’s move to a swimming pool, then. Are you better than Michael Phelps?

How about a mountain? A skating rink. A luge course. Are you better than the Olympians headed for Vancouver?

Hours and hours of behind-the-scenes work is what turns naturally talented athletes like these into champions. There’s nothing casual about it. Winning doesn’t come without a lot of training and practice.

Serious athletes don't go into competition unprepared, no matter how accomplished they are. These people spend months - years - perfecting their skills. They may have a lot of hardware back home in the trophy case, but still they train. And of course you would, too.

Behind-the-scenes work is also a key component of the “contest” known as the hiring process.

To win consistently, you’ve got to invest in some serious preparation. You've got to "train" just like Federer and Phelps and speed skater Apolo Ohno.

Mind the Gap

That logo, of course, is synonymous with the London Underground (though the phrase, or some variation of it, is now in use by transit systems worldwide). It's a warning to passengers to be aware of the space between the door of the train and the station platform.

There are millions of Americans who need to mind a different kind of gap - in employment.

If you've been out of work for some time, you need to be mindful of the impact that's having on your marketability.

Obviously, you're not alone; many are in the same situation. However, don't take that to mean there's safety in numbers. Gaps on your resume - especially big ones - can be a problem. 

The State of Your Career…Is it Strong, Or Not-So-Much?

Article II Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution requires the President to deliver to Congress information regarding the state of the Union – including recommendations regarding such measures he judges necessary and expedient. Since 1790 those messages (which, by the way, were written reports through 1912) have been delivered at approximately one year intervals.

The latest was presented to Congress last night.

If you watch or listen to these with any regularity, you know that the President often gives a summary statement early in the speech that goes something like this: “The state of the Union is strong,” or “The state of the Union is sound.”

Not always, though.

10 Dangerous Job Search Assumptions

Assumptions can be dangerous, especially in the context of a job search. Below are 10 common notions, any one of which can get you into trouble.

1. I’m a shoo-in for the job.

2. The telephone interview is just a procedure.

3. The hiring company will call me with an update; I’ll wait until I hear from them.

4. I don’t need to prep my references about this opportunity; they know me…whatever they say will be fine.

5. That interview didn’t go well – and it’s the first one of the day. That’ll probably blow me out of the water.

6. My boss is making noise about retiring; I’m finally going to get his job!

7. If I send in enough resumes, I’ll find a job.

8. What a fantastic interview! I knocked it out of the park. They loved me.

9. Cover letters are a waste of time.

10. I’m in the middle of a job search. My co-worker knows about it, but he’s cool.

Assume at your risk.

Jobs: So Long, Farewell...

More than 7 million jobs have been lost since the recession began; that's a lot of ground to make up. Even when the economy is on firm enough footing to where we begin to see net growth on a monthly basis, it'll take years before we return to anything near pre-recession levels of unemployment.

Some jobs will return - while others are gone for good.

Candidates for permanent reductions:

Sectors like finance, manufacturing, construction and information have been particularly hard hit and will be reshaped as a result.

Industries that were already in flux (think print news, photofinishing, and direct mail) and specific jobs that have become vulnerable due to technological advances (such as administrative workers); the recession only served to accelerate job losses in these areas.

Finally, the downturn in many cases forced abrupt workforce reductions on businesses who were already struggling; many of those companies did not - or will not ultimately - survive.

What You Need to Know About Phone Interviews

Particularly when you’re not local and would need to travel for a face-to-face interview, a phone screen is almost always the first step. Even when candidates are located in the same city as the employer, many companies use telephone interviews as a mechanism to narrow the pool to a handful of finalists who will then be asked to interview in person.

Obviously, the initial phone interview may also be with an executive recruiter.

There may be actually be a series of phone interviews – but for today, I’m going to focus on that first conversation.

It’s critically important; this is your first opportunity to make a good impression and to sell yourself – you’ve got to know how to nail it in order to win the invitation to move on to the next round.

But here’s what you need to know about it.

Career Management…Is It Really Worth It?

Especially if you’re in a job you like and things are humming along quite nicely, it may seem like extra work you don’t need right about now.

Things have gone pretty well for you up to now, thank you.

I’m wondering, though…

Do you have homeowner’s insurance?

Or renter’s insurance?

How about auto insurance?

Health?

Maybe some sort of maintenance policy on an expensive piece of equipment?

The house or the car...they're fine right now. And you hope that's how things stay. But you want to be prepared just in case. Career management isn't that different, really. Think of it as a “professional” insurance policy. Preventive maintenance, if you will.

Is the Interviewer Distracted? Here's What to Do About It

Sometimes interviews are extremely challenging not because the interviewer is going out of her way to make you uncomfortable or to grill you…but because she’s not totally tuned in to the conversation.

You don't have her full attention.

She’s got one eye on the clock, or she can’t keep herself from fiddling with her BlackBerry. She interrupts the conversation to take a phone call or two. People knock on the door, poke their heads in, and ask questions.

Whatever it is, she’s obviously not completely focused on you.

You’ll need to do your best to tactfully take control of the conversation and make sure your unique selling proposition is conveyed. If you’re not going to have the interviewer’s undivided consideration, then make it a point to clearly express two or three salient points.

Never Say Die: Sometimes the Underdog Candidate Gets the Job

You think you’re a long-shot candidate with little chance of winning the offer.

You have a feeling they’re interviewing you only to fulfill some sort of requirement.

You don’t start out well; you know your first interview of the day was poor.

You’re up against candidates who are much better known and connected in industry circles than you.

Whatever the specific circumstances, you are the dark horse candidate. The odds are decidedly not in your favor.

So you should just throw in the towel, right?

How Effective is Your Value Proposition?

Can you state it clearly and succinctly?

Do you even have one?

This, of course, is the “elevator speech” concept. All businesses should have a strong value proposition (also known as a unique selling proposition), and so should you.

You need to be able to articulate what’s unique about you…what makes you different from the legions of other candidates out there...and then refine it until you can state it in one sentence. 

Why should the company hire you and not somebody else? You have to be able to show them why you’re the best choice.

You might be a dependable worker – but that doesn’t make you unique.

You’ve got XX years of experience – along with legions of other candidates.

You want the job - not very distinctive.

Think like a business when creating your value proposition. Frame it in terms of the customer (in this case, the hiring company) and what’s “in it” for them.

Once you’ve got it nailed, make sure all your supporting marketing materials (cover letter, resume, thank you notes) either restate or support it.

Jay vs Conan vs NBC: There’s a Career Strategy Lesson Here!

Team Conan. Team Jay. Team Who Cares.

Whichever team you’re on, you know this story has been getting a lot of ink.

Whether or not you even watch late night comedy, you’ve got to admit this soap opera at NBC has been fascinating from an employer/employee perspective. From the outside looking in, it would appear management made some big mistakes back in 2004 which planted the seeds for the debacle now playing out.

There’s a nugget of advice for the average employee in another aspect of the story, though.

How Will You Remember The ‘Great Recession?’

A new Allstate commercial has a memorable summary line: Will you remember this as the great recession – or the recession that made you great?

Interesting thought.

What’s your answer?

One thing I suspect this downturn has taught you (if you didn’t realize it before): navigating successfully through rough economic waters is completely up to you. You’re the captain of your ship.

And that’s a good thing…because sitting around waiting and hoping for somebody to point you in the right direction or rescue you isn’t the formula for success. If you want to get through choppy seas and arrive safely at your destination, you’re the one who has to make it happen.

You’re in charge of your career. You own the product. You control the brand, the messaging, and the product positioning. 

While others allow uncertainty and ambiguousness to paralyze them, you forge ahead with your business plan.

The strategy and the solutions? Yours.

Ironically, it’s possible you’ll come out of this chaotic economy in far better shape than you were going in.

The recession that made you great.

Go get 'em.

Creationism, Washington-Style

It’s been almost a year now since the $787 billion stimulus was passed. You know, the plan that was going to keep unemployment from exceeding 8%?

What a success!

In fact, it’s worked so well the President’s top economist, Christina Romer, says more government stimulus is needed to keep the sputtering economy moving. Romer: “The sense that we need to do more is overwhelming.”

You really can't have too much of a good thing.

Of course, there have been all those pesky reports inconveniently illustrating the fact that government claims of jobs “created or saved” were, ahem, somewhere between exaggeration and complete fabrication.

Are You a “Powerful” and “Compelling” Candidate?

Google “movie review” + powerful + compelling and you’ll end up with quite a list.

Check this out:

Those are the two faces of the movie's powerful and compelling drama, and both are handled expertly…

Powerful war film should contend for Oscar…

A powerful, compelling true story of a woman of courage…

An incredibly gripping, compelling, heartrending story…

Powerful, compelling true story…

Getting Your Head Around the Number 15.3 Million

With the release of the latest jobs data, we now know that 15.3 million Americans are out of work. Stop and think about that number.

It’s big, no doubt. But how big?

Roughly 8.3 million people live in New York City proper. That, of course, is the most populous city in this country.

The largest city center in the world, Mumbai, checks in at just under 14 million.

Only four U.S. states have populations larger than 15 million.

Reach Out and Talk to Someone

Looking for work?

Interested in advancing your career?

The golden lead you’ve been waiting for could be within your reach. Literally…in the form of the person standing next to you.

Are you going to reach out for it?

A piece in the Wall Street Journal that ran at the end of last month (12/29) underscored how often we miss opportunities to interact with others. We choose the gadget over the human being.

This article wasn't addressing career management…but it sure could have been.

Won't Get Fooled Again

The December jobs report, released this morning, brought that classic Who song to mind.

There's nothing in the street
Looks any different to me...

Unemployment remains at 10%.

The pundits I was listening to expressed surprise that job losses for the month (at -85,000) were so high. I was surprised that they were surprised.

Actually, the number would likely have been higher had it not been for holiday workers...and the unemployment rate was flat only because the workforce dropped by some 600,000 people.

Also, the fact that first-time jobless claims have been down recently is, unfortunately, not much of an indicator. At some point, employers run out of people they can cut.

To get a sense for which way the winds are truly blowing, keep your eye on is the U-6 unemployment rate. That number includes those who have been out of work for an extended period of time. It was up in December.

Meet the new boss...same as the old boss.

Out With the Old: Does Your Resume Suffer From “Stale Phrase Syndrome?”

Various tongue-in-cheek articles in the past few weeks have called out 2009’s most overused words and phrases and suggested they be banished from our collective vocabulary in 2010.

In no particular order, some of the winners:

• Transparent
• Shovel-ready
• Czar
• Teachable moment
• Too big to fail
• App
• Staycation
• Fierce
• Tweeps
• Unprecedented

What do you think? Are you sick of any of these?

Show Me the Proof Points!

So…do you want to score an invitation to interview?

Then I’ve got one word for you.

Metrics.

If you want your candidacy to be taken seriously, then you’d better be showing the hiring manager proof points. Meaning you need to demonstrate measurable value.

You can’t expect serious interest from potential employers if your resume reads like an HR-generated job description. Illustrate past performance using measurable criteria and you’ll make your case in a much more compelling way.

Granted, you may not always be able to attach a numerical figure in the traditional sense to each of your contributions. Still – there’s always a way to quantify your work via some sort of metric.

The standard is there. Figure out how to measure it and you’ve got your proof point.

Time to Punish Your Employer?

So this downturn has been going on forever, and you’re tired of what’s going on at your company. They’ve laid people off, there were no raises last year, they won’t get you a new computer, and they’ve lowered the boom on business travel. You know the financials don’t look very good, and they’re trying to get through it. Still….

Maybe your story doesn’t exactly match this one, but you get the sentiment.

Hard times have a way of taking the bloom off the rose. Employees start to see things in a different light.

Three years ago you might have liked your company just fine. Or maybe you were ambivalent. You’d occasionally get aggravated with senior management or your boss or who knows what - but it wasn’t serious enough to upset the apple cart. After all, the money and the perks were pretty good. All in all, things were okay.

Inside the Hiring Process (How to Interview Smarter)

There’s a tendency for people to feel that the interview process is systematic and logical…by answering questions, your abilities will be showcased and ultimately the company will see the merit in hiring you.

Instead, the savvy candidate will go into the process understanding that the people involved are often going to be inexperienced at interviewing, disdainful of interviewing, or busy and distracted. Rather than counting on the interviewer to ask the right questions, you must be extremely proactive about creating opportunities to showcase your abilities and accomplishments and the manner in which you can contribute to the company.

What a Downer Decade – Zero Net Job Creation During the Aughts

“The lost decade” is commonly used to refer to the serious economic problems Japan struggled with throughout the course of the 1990s. The Washington Post the other day used the term to describe the decade just ended in the U.S.

Reporter Neil Irwin: “For most of the past 70 years, the U.S. economy has grown at a steady clip, generating perpetually higher incomes and wealth for American households. But since 2000, the story is starkly different. The past decade was the worst for the U.S. economy in modern times…”

Irwin goes on to report that there has been no net job creation since December of 1999. None – zero – zilch. By comparison, no decade from the 1940s through the 1990s had job growth of less than 20 percent.

Can you say economic stagnation?

To read the article in its entirety: http://bit.ly/7aaUJK

Let's hope the teens perform better.

Job Opportunities in the Decade to Come

As we stand on the cusp of a new decade, it’s a good time to peruse the employment outlook for the next 8-10 years.

While it’s going to take years before the unemployment rate is pushed back down to something more closely approximating “normal,” some sectors will rev up more quickly. Pay attention to areas where robust growth is anticipated.

You already know that health care and education are in good shape; those two areas have made it through the last two years relatively unscathed.

What else is going to be hot…and what trends should you be aware of?

Interviewing Effectively: How Well Are You Selling Yourself?

Sell yourself at all times.

Don’t sit and wait for the interviewer to draw the information out of you – talk about what you have to offer.

Don't wait for the interviewer to ask the "right" questions. She might not. Then what?

Few managers are professional interviewers; they won’t always ask you every question you need to showcase your abilities. Remember to sell your “benefits” rather than your skills alone. The old saying, “People buy holes, not shovels,” applies here.

Rather than telling an interviewer that you’re good at reducing expenses, give specific examples of how you’ve done so in the past and let her know exactly how much money you saved the company.

Think of the interview as a sales call. It doesn’t matter what kind of job you’re seeking: software developer, engineer, internal auditor, supply chain manager…for the time being, you’re a salesperson, too!

The hiring manager is the customer you’re trying to close. It’s incumbent on you to know what the hiring manager wants to “buy,” why she wants to buy it, and to show her the superior benefits of your product (you).

Has Your Job Search Been Unsuccessful? Here’s How to Turn it Around

If you haven’t gotten the kind of results you want out of your search, I have one question for you.

Why not?

That may sound crazy. After all, if you knew why your search wasn’t succeeding, then you’d fix whatever was wrong!

Exactly.

You can’t expect to get where you want to go if you’re stumbling around in the dark. Here’s the thing: it’s up to you to turn on the light.

You have a choice: change things up – or see more of the same frustrating results. I think I know which you’d prefer.