Be confident & Believe in yourself!
Thought of the Day!
Did you know that children attending NYC public schools are no longer taught how to write in cursive or how to spell common words? Apparently the Board of ED doesn’t think these 2 things amongst many others are important so when these children end up with misspelled words on their resumes & unsigned job applications will it be the BOE that hires them when no one else will? Just wondering because I won’t and I know most of you won’t either!
Reasons to Smile
A smile can sometimes be the most powerful weapon you have. It shows a winning attitude and one who smiles is one who is content and happy with themselves which exactly what every employer is looking for!
Five reasons why you should smile all the time:
Smiling is a natural drug
Smiling releases endorphins and serotonin in our bodies which are known to help us feel good naturally. You are way more productive when you feel good
Smiling keeps you young
Stress is known to cause wrinkles. When we frown, there is a higher probability that we will develop wrinkles and small lines on our faces that make us look older. Everyone always wants to look their best and you usually look best when smiling.
Smiling can make others happy
Smiling is a free way to brighten up someone else’s day. If everyone around you is happy they are more likely to make you happier.
Smiling makes you appear confident
Confident people are usually happy people because they are content with themselves and almost everything around them. A person smiling is usually a successful person and you can’t have success without confidence.
Smiling can help you land a job.
An optimistic is more likely to get hired than a pessimist. So next time you are on your way to an interview make sure to wear your smile and really be dressed for success.
Smile…You never know
It was a typical Friday morning in New York City, not too cold yet definitely not warm enough to be planning any outdoor activities for the weekend so I walked into Starbucks trying to come up with a plan and couldn’t help but to get distracted by this man in front of me on the line. He was leaning on the counter while slouching and huffing and puffing as he placed his order. All I could think was “why was he so miserable, doesn’t he know it’s Friday?” The barista handed him his bag and when he turned around and made slight eye contact with me I couldn’t help myself so I said “Smile its Friday!” Just as I suspected he ran out of the store with this look of disgust on his face. Hey at least I tried.
Anyhow I went about my day as usual and then the front desk had made me aware that my 10am appointment had arrived so I went down to the lobby to greet him and to my surprise guess who it was. Mr. Miserable! Only now he had that deer in headlights look on his face. I couldn’t help but to giggle and just carry on with the interview. In spite of the awkward moment in the morning we went along with things and as it turned out he was actually quite knowledgeable and definitely qualified for the position however I couldn’t help but to watch his mannerisms and his body language. It was awful! It didn’t matter what he was saying his demeanor was all wrong so for now I am putting him in the maybe pile which is really a shame due to his qualifications.
The moral of the story is that you never know who’s watching so you should always be aware of what type of impression you are leaving on those around you. Fifty percent of our communications are non verbal and our body language plays a huge role in how we are perceived. It is very difficult to approach someone who isn’t smiling so as a jobseeker those who are optimistic and appear to be thinking positively are more likely to be successful as opposed to one who is clearly negative and pessimistic.
Who knows, had Mr. Miserable been smiling when I first came across him he may now be smiling all the way to his new office at his new job because a smile is sometimes the most powerful weapon a person can have.
Improve your Resume while Saving the Earth…No more Trash
Here are 5 quick ways to ensure your resume doesn’t end up in the trash before it’s even fully read:
- Typos
Always check for grammatical and spelling errors. With spell check and every other online resource that exists these days there is absolutely no excuse when sending out a resume with these common mistakes. This is definitely the quickest and stupidest way to get tossed aside.
- The Saga Resume
Short and sweet is best! No one wants to know your relationship status, whether or not you are on a diet, or that references are available upon request because that should already be a given. Your resume should have your most relevant experience on it and that’s it! Employers give you 30 seconds or less to impress them and if you’ve bored them by having to waste time turning too many pages you won’t even get your full 30 seconds.
- The Wrong Title
The Prince of Egypt, Director of the Backyard, or whatever else you wish to call yourself is all fine however if it isn’t something significant and relevant to the job post you are applying for you don’t have a chance. Clearly a cashier cannot be hired as an Accountant and Hairdresser will not be hired as the Director of Operations. I’m all for being optimistic but you need to be realistic as well.
- Lacking Qualifications
If an accomplishment is not listed on your resume there is no way to know that you are qualified to do a specific job. Resumes are often scanned electronically for key words and if that certain word that is being looked for isn’t on your resume you’re out of luck. Pay close attention to postings, if there is a specific requirement listed on the job post and you have it make sure you highlight it so potential employers can see it.
- Incorrect or No Contact Information
This is the second quickest and stupidest reason for your resume to end up in the trash. Even if you are the Harvard Graduate with a 4.0 GPA and a resume to die for there is no employer out there that is going to hire a private detective to go out and find you. If it’s not simple it’s not happening so if you want to be contacted always make sure to have the correct contact information listed.
Why didn’t I get Hired???
Ever go on an interview and wonder why you didn’t get hired? In a nutshell, these five simple reasons are most likely the answer. Working on these issues may be all you need to get hired.
- You lack confidence
- Your communication skills leave something to be desired
- You’re applying for jobs that you’re clearly not qualified for
- You were late or didn’t show up at all for an interview
- You really don’t want to work & it shows!
I’m Late, I’m Late, I’m Late
Stuff happens! It rains, there’s traffic, your babysitter doesn’t show up, the NYC subway system isn’t running the way it should, the list could go on and on, however the fact of the matter is that being late to an interview is probably by far the worst thing you could do to hurt your chances of getting the position.
First impressions are everything so the last thing you need is to be remembered as the one who showed up late and more or less end your interview before it even happens. When you’re late to an interview numerous things go through employers heads. He’ll be late for work all the time, if he really wanted the job he would have been here, and I can’t believe I gave this person an opportunity and they are wasting my time by being late. These are some of the worst possible things that you would want scribbled in the margins of your resume so do your best to avoid it from happening.
Everyone knows that there are extenuating circumstances that may cause you to be late however planning ahead and having back up plans is always a good idea. No matter how organized you are, life is life and things happen so be prepared. Plan a second travel route, hire a back up babysitter, and do whatever else you need to do to ensure that extenuating circumstances do not affect your chances of doing well on an interview. Being early is always better than being late!
When all else fails the least you can do is pick up the phone and let your interviewer know that you are going to be late. It may not always help your situation but you have a much better chance of rescheduling an interview from this point rather than when you show up late unannounced. Common courtesy goes a long way.
In a nutshell, don’t ever be late for an Interview!
Are there Jobs in NYC?
Each day as I ride the subway home from work I listen to someone give a speech as to why they are unemployed and why they are now asking for donations. Then I continue to listen to others speak about how bad it is out there and how lucky they are, which in a sense is true however from where I sit I see things very differently. Despite what you may all think there are most definitely jobs in New York City. Actually as far as I’m concerned there are more available jobs than there are available and qualified applicants. There may be a lot of people out there that need a job but not half as many that want a job and want to work. Day in and day out I sift through resumes of applicants that for the life of me I can’t figure out why they applied to certain postings. Hint: You are not going to get hired simply because you applied! You have to be qualified. Furthermore when I schedule ten interviews and only five of them show up, I’m left wondering are we really in a recession? Where are all the poor souls who lost their jobs after years and years of employment that were supposedly such great workers? Well I know we most definitely are in a recession but nonetheless there are jobs out there and for those of you who really do want one. If you play your cards right, interview well and really show that you are both qualified as well as interested in a position you may be lucky enough to land a really amazing spot. Others may have to settle for now because many of the available positions may not be your dream jobs however you’ll have a much better chance of eventually landing that dream job if you are employed as opposed to unemployed for a very long time. Take what you can get for now it’s…Sad but true!
On a positive note there are jobs out there! If you want to work and are able to sell yourself you will find a job because employers are ready and willing to hire good employees for numerous reasons. For those of you who need a little help in the selling department getting a good recruiter in your corner can definitely improve your chances of getting hired.
Good Luck! Everyone wants a Job but no one really seems to want to work”
