Three Career Reality Checks

As a pro résumé writer, I am constantly working with people in various stages of career transition. They range from the employed who are just starting to consider making a change to the long-term unemployed, people who have been out of work for a year or more and with few to no prospects for a new job. In every case, these people are in a reflective posture, considering their careers and how to make the next step. Here are a few common discussion points.

Career Velocity. Those doing the same work for years at a time, showing no advancement in their roles and responsibilities, are understandably nervous. They are concerned that the field may be passing them, and they are often right.

The Fix: Step forward and ask for new assignments. Take a class or earn a certification that will make you more valuable to your current and future employers. If employed, explore tuition reimbursement programs. You will still have to do the time and the work, but at least someone else can write the check.

Professional Network. Is your LinkedIn account a reflection of your real network, or is it just a bunch of names and faces, people you don’t really know? Here is a good test: If you called these people on the phone, how many would speak with you? If the number is smaller than you would like, get to work!

The Fix: Start contacting the people in your network. Reach out and say, “Hi!” Share something of value. Let them know what you are working on. Ask them what they are doing. Revitalize the network and make it more valuable.

Your Résumé. Is it current? You should view your résumé as a living document, something that is always current and ready to go in case of emergency. Are you an active job seeker? Are you getting calls for interviews? If not, a poorly written résumé could be hurting you.

The Fix: Invest your time and/or money into this critical piece of your career management strategy. If you don’t have the time or interest in writing it yourself, pay for help. If you do it yourself, review it quarterly and keep it fresh. If you don’t have anything new to add, ask yourself, “Why?”

Spend some time this week reviewing these points and how you are doing. I small investment in time actively managing your career could make a big difference in your long-term success.

Are You Leaking Jobs?

Spend six minutes in sales and you will hear that selling is a numbers game. You need to speak to a certain number of people each day and keep the pipeline or funnel full as prospects will leak out. A contact becomes a prospect and goes through the process until a sale is made or the prospect is written off and eliminated from the call list.

A job search shares a lot in common. The product being sold is the job seeker. The prospects are the potential employers that might hire the candidate. Simple stuff.

I spoke with a person recently whose story had me thinking about this. She had applied to over 200 jobs and had six or seven phone interviews, and not a single face-to-face interview or anything else beyond TBNT (thanks, but no thanks). Here are some points to consider about these numbers and what might be wrong.

Applications to Phone Screens Ratio: The APS ration is what percentage of your applications are generating calls. If the number is low (6 for 200 qualifies), there might be a problem. What does the résumé look like? Does it have obvious defects? Are there obstacles in the candidate’s career history that need to be handled more effectively? Second, is the candidate applying for jobs that s/he is not qualified for or for which the résumé needs an adjustment? It is more work to customize the résumé for every job, but it’s worth it.

Phone Screen to Face-to-Face Ratios: The P-to-F ratio (yes, I am making this up) is critical. Most phone screen interviews are simple and offer the candidate the advantage of being unseen by the interviewer. Notes and scripts should be ready to go and easily anticipated questions should be considered. Prepare answers. If less than half of the phone screens are resulting in interviews, it’s time for a tune up and practice.

You get the idea. Look at each point that could derail a candidacy and work to reduce the chance of a negative outcome. Notes, practice and awareness of the critical nature of each interaction can make a big difference.

Fix the leaks and land that next gig.

Question 4: When Have You Failed?

Here is the question that everyone loves to hate. It has many variations. Tell me about a time a project did not work out? What are you not good at? They are all getting to the same thing: some point in your career when everything – including maybe you – was not perfect. What should you do?

Let’s start with what not to do. Do not talk about a failure with no “but”. “I screwed up the Johnson account” is not enough, unless you want the interview to end quickly. Every story that you tell in this scenario has to have a “but”. This horrible thing happen, but I learned this from the experience. This plan did not turn out the way we had thought, but I and the rest of my team learned…

The point is that your interviewer wants to understand how you think. Can you admit the need for improvement and development, a trait that we all share? Do you learn from mistakes? This is your opportunity to show some humility and to demonstrate the wisdom that comes with experience.

Here is the formula. First, pick a story that describes a challenging scenario that shows that you were stretched. Second, give some detail to illustrate the complexity of the situation. Finally, explain the outcome and the learning.

Now, here’s an example. “I was asked to lead the Alpha project, something that had been in the planning stages for over a year but had not progressed. We knew that it would be challenging because the company had never worked on something like this before. We delivered 30 days late, but as a result I was able to identify some organizational limitations that had previously not been recognized. We took that failure and converted it into a success with the Delta project three months later.”

Keep it simple. Think about something that could have gone better, what you learned from the experience, and finally how you applied what you learned in that experience to a future project. If you have two or three of these stories ready to go, you will nail this tough question. Let your competition forget about but.

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If you found this helpful, see some other stories to help you deal with common interview questions.

Question 1: Tell Me About Yourself

Question 2: Why Do You Want to Work Here?

Question 3: Tell Me About Your Greatest Accomplishment

What If There’s Just One Question?

Three Reactions to No

Not all news is great in career searches. A seeker will feel that the résumé is perfect, the cover letter compelling, and the job requirements a perfect match for her experience. The call comes, the interview is scheduled and completed, and she waits for the offer. Instead, rejection follows. It happens. What is next is completely up to the seeker. Here are three potential reactions.

Assume the fetal position and whine. Alright, maybe not literally, but in every other way. Job seekers take the rejection at the most personal level and retract into their shells, unable or unwilling to see that the opportunity may not have been as perfect as first thought. Or it’s possible that there was some bad chemistry between the candidate and the interviewer. Or there was an equally strong candidate willing to do the job for a lower salary. Or, or, or. No means no, but nothing more than that. Unless Connie Candidate had a total meltdown in the interview or committed some egregious faux pas, the reason for the decision will likely never be known. Move on before the rejection kills confidence.

Get mad. Much like the “Woe is me!” reaction above, this is just another inappropriate emotion for something that is not entirely in the seeker’s control. Anger and the accompanying reactions – denial, obstinacy and bitterness – will not serve the seeker well. The job search is, in part, a numbers game. There may be one job and 10 qualified candidates, or 100. While anger can offer some emotional fuel, too much can lead to irrational and damaging decisions.

Learn from it. This is the best option by far. A detailed self-debriefing can pay huge dividends, especially if it is done immediately after the interview. Thoughts on which to reflect could include the following. Which questions caused me the most grief? Which questions allowed me to give my strongest answers? How could I have told my stories more effectively and concisely? If I could go back and answer one question again, which one would it be and what would I say differently?

Rejection will come to all but the most fortunate job hunters. Prepare yourself for it and give yourself a pep talk on what you will do when it happens. Which will describe you when it happens: quivering mess, ball of rage, or wiser and smarter professional? Your reaction is up to you and one of the only parts of the process that you control.

Easy Interview Tips: A Baker’s Dozen

I recently presented a class to a group of students to help them prepare for job and college interviews. Students are not the only candidates who can benefit from this pointers.

Understand the Company/Organization. Before you go for your interview, do your research. If applying to a college, read about the school and understand its mission and culture. If you are applying for a specific program, understand all you can about it so you can bring prepared, focused questions. If you are applying for a job, research the company online or talk with current employees. Start online with the company’s website.

Prepare the Night Before. Get everything ready so you will not have to be stressed in the morning. Have your clothes, directions, questions, pen and paper, résumé/application and everything else you need ready for the day.

Plan to Arrive Early. Give yourself time to get there, accounting for potential transportation problems. If you have a cell phone, have the contact’s number programmed in the event of a delay. Traffic happens, and a quick phone call will show professionalism and consideration. Of course, it’s a lot better if you just arrive early.

But Not Too Early. Recruiters and admissions officers have busy schedules. Present yourself five to 10 minutes before your appointment. If you are there earlier than that, find a quiet place (lobby, lounge, etc.) to review your notes. Too early could lead to an annoyed interviewer, or thoughts that you got the appointment time wrong.

You Turned off Your Cell Phone, Right? Vibrate is not good enough. Off! Ringtones and interviews don’t mix.

Be Ready to Say, “Hi!” When you present yourself to whomever you were told to meet, be confident and direct. Stand up straight, make eye contact, speak clearly and say, “Hello, my name is Sue Jones and I have a 9AM appointment with Ms. Weaver.” Every impression with every person is important. They will talk about you.

The Handshake Moment. Pretend you have announced yourself to an office receptionist. You may be told to take a seat while you wait a few moments for Ms. Weaver (remember, you arrived five to 10 minutes early). When Ms. Weaver comes out to see you, introduce yourself again (“Good morning, Ms. Weaver. I am Sue Jones.”) and offer a handshake as appropriate.

Starting the Interview. As you are getting settled, offer a clean hardcopy of your résumé/application. Take out your pen and paper to take notes and to have your prepared questions ready.

“Tell me About Yourself.” You will likely hear this from Ms. Weaver. It’s almost guaranteed. Be ready to talk for 30 to 60 seconds about yourself. Key points: your name, your purpose, one to three impressive facts about yourself, and why you are in Ms. Weaver’s office (why you want the job, why you want to be a student). Be concise.

Have Stories Ready. Think about your accomplishments and contributions. Maybe you have been in clubs, study groups, volunteered in the community or have had another job. Think about how you made a difference and tell your stories. It’s OK to brag about yourself. Nobody else is going to tell Ms. Weaver about you.

Have a Few Questions Ready. Most interviews will end with an invitation to ask questions. Have two or three good ones ready that show how you want to contribute. Great job interview question: “What advice would you give me to be successful here?” Take notes as Ms. Weaver gives you the answer.

Get Business Cards/Contact Info. That way you can follow up with a sincere “Thank you!”

Closing. Ask about next steps and what you should expect from Ms. Weaver. “When will I hear from you?” “What are our next steps in the process?” Make eye contact, offer a handshake one more time, thank Ms. Weaver for her time and say good bye.

Question 3: Tell Me About Your Greatest Accomplishment

If your interviewer asks you this one, you should be happy. This is your opportunity to talk about your accomplishments, but like every other interview question it could hurt you. If your story is not relevant or does not seem valuable to your interviewer and the company that is considering you, you lose. If the story is too low in scope or complexity, you lose. If your answer doesn’t strike the right chord concerning teamwork, tenacity or other attribute valued by this potential employer…yes, you lose. Here is how to handle it so you win.

You have to know that researching an organization is an essential part of your job search. The more you learn about a company and its culture – its work style, rewards system, and other quirks – the better you will be able to make a decision about its fit for your style. By doing this research, you can understand more about the tone you should use in delivering your answers.

Here is an example from my own experience. I worked as a financial advisor for a large firm for a period of time. Their model is one built on the single broker office, and to be successful you must follow their system to the letter. Freestyle is not encouraged. One quote that I remember from training is telling: “If you have a recipe to follow with Betty Crocker, why would you want to try to make a cake from scratch?” Translation: We need hard working people who will follow our system. Answers for this company should focus on following a system and digging deep on the tough days to make a difference.

Other companies will have a strong team focus. Some live and die by the customer. What is important to your next employer? If you don’t know, you had better find out. Once you know, work on your answers so that you can tell stories from your past employment that are of sufficient scope and that generated significant results using tactics that will be valued at your next employer.

By the way, don’t forget to tell CAR stories – condition, action, result. This is what was happening, this is what I did, and this was the outcome. Stories structured like this and that incorporate the proper scope and cultural elements as discussed above will come across as professional and well-considered.

This blog post is one in an ongoing series discussing employment interview questions. Do you have a question that has stumped you? Comment and ask about it and we can discuss it in a future post.

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Question 1: Tell Me About Yourself

Question 2: Why Do You Want to Work Here?

Question 4: When Have You Failed?

What If There’s Just One Question?

Question 2: Why Do You Want To Work Here?

Every recruiter will want to know why you have gone to the effort of applying for a position with the organization. It is a natural question and one for which you need solid answers. If you sound uncertain and unconvincing, that could be the end of the road for this job prospect. Be ready with a great answer and you could engage your interviewer in a great discussion and a chance for the prize. The following are some tips to consider as you plan your answer.

  1. Include something about the employer. This is a terrific chance to demonstrate that you have done your research about the company. If you know your stuff, you can help the recruiter appreciate that you want to be there badly enough to have done your homework.
  2. Discuss how your skills will make a difference. This is the next logical step in your answer. After you have talked about the company, talk about how your skills are well suited to the organization and its mission.
  3. If you know somebody on the inside, talk about it. This can also help in that the recruiter will know that you have a better understanding of the company than someone without that relationship. Here are two words of caution about this point, though. Be sure that your insider knows that you will mention her name. Second, think about your insider’s reputation within the company. If you are endorsed by and have a relationship with someone who is not well respected, your candidacy could take a hit.

Here is a simple example of how you could handle this. Watch for points one and two.

“While researching career opportunities, it was important for me to find a position with a company that feels as strongly about great customer service as I do. I reviewed national service rankings and narrowed my target list down to just a few companies, including this one. I want my next position to be with a company that will best benefit from my superior customer service skills and where I can have the opportunity to demonstrate that skill every day.”

With an answer like this, you have shown an awareness of the company, your critical thinking skills about your job search process, and an understanding about how your skills match the organization’s priorities and culture. You could do a lot worse than this in answering this interview question in just a few sentences.

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Question 1: Tell Me About Yourself

Question 3: Tell Me About Your Greatest Accomplishment

Question 4: When Have You Failed?

What If There’s Just One Question?

Question 1: Tell Me About Yourself

Welcome to the first in a new series addressing common interview questions and how you can prepare. If you have ever been stumped by a question, please share it in the comments and we can discuss it.

“Tell me about yourself.” This is the most common way that many interviewers begin, allowing the two of you to get comfortable with each other and to see what you have to say about yourself in an unstructured format. There may be variations, with the interviewer asking for something specific in the introduction, but you should never be challenged by this one.

Your answer should be one-half elevator speech and one-half “why I will be a great employee.” It is your opportunity to say what you want about yourself while also helping the interviewer know from the beginning why you are sitting in her chair and taking her time. If you combine those two elements, you will be off to a good start.

Here is an answer that uses the 50/50 formula: “My name is Jane Smith, and I am a career banker with a history of delivering top customer service scores and strong business results since I started in my career at Bank of America after completing my MBA at the University of Rhode Island. I hope that we can talk about how I can become a leader and important part of the team at Wells Fargo as you consider me for this new role.”

An answer like this is concise, clear and delivers on both parts of the formula. It tells why you are great and why you are interested in this job.

You will get this question, or one like it, so be ready. If you are interviewing over the phone, write it down and read it if you have to. If it is a live interview, practice giving your answer, asking a friend to critique your performance. Your first answer and first impressions will set the tone for the whole interview session, so don’t blow it – especially when you know it’s coming.

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Question 2: Why Do You Want to Work Here?

Question 3: Tell Me About Your Greatest Accomplishment

Question 4: When Have You Failed?

What If There’s Just One Question?

Why Are You Really Calling?

Every organization that sells something, whether it is a tangible product, a service, or just an idea (think non-profits and politicians), has to reach out to its customers, and active existing customers are the best bets. After all, if I have purchased something from you or donated before, I may buy again. Anyone in business who has had any success has likely spent time and money cultivating existing relationships for additional sales and referrals. Why? It works.

Can we get real about the sales call, though, and avoid pretending that the call is about something that it isn’t? My family has a subscription to a famous magazine, one with a long history, filled with pictures and featuring a yellow-bordered cover. You know the one. They called every day last week at about 10 AM. The phone would ring, I would look at the caller ID, say, “Oh, it’s them,” and ignore it. The answering machine would kick in and the caller would hang up.

On the fifth day, I finally broke down and answered. The person on the other end of the call started by stating, “Hello, Mister Florin, this is Matt from the yellow covered magazine, and we are calling to say thank you for being a loyal subscriber. We are also going to send you a free gift – a world map poster – that is yours to keep just for previewing the blah-blah-blah DVD.” The call didn’t get much further than that, and I am pretty sure that they will not call again soon.

Why do telemarketers feel like they have to start their calls with false pretenses? The thank you was not sincere, of course. It was just a way to keep me on the phone for a few seconds. Maybe there are people in the telemarketing industry who know better than I, but I can’t be the only one who finds the hollow thank you approach irritating.

Here’s a better idea: Be direct! You know that we have subscribed to your mag for years. We sometimes watch TV shows on your cable channel. We like you – or did until the telemarketing blitz. Why not say, “Mister Florin, this is Matt at the yellow covered magazine. Since you enjoy the magazine, we thought you would like to preview this incredible new blah-blah-blah DVD. Just say yes and you can be enjoying it by next week, and if you don’t love it, send it back at no charge.”

As business owners and leaders, don’t we have the obligation to be clear with our customers? Matt wasn’t calling to say thank you. He was calling to sell me something that I might enjoy. The next time you call your customers, be clear, concise and purposeful. I know I appreciate the direct approach, and they will too.

Slamming the Door in Your Customer’s Face

Getting to the airport early is the first rule of travel, right? That, at least, is what the TSA pounds into our heads. Wanting to do right by the federal employees who have the authority to pat me down when I don’t want that particular experience, I always get there with plenty of time to spare. It’s important that they have time to count and scrutinize my three-ounce bottles. Last week was no different, and I had lots of time to sit, watch and listen.

If you have ever been in the Westchester County Airport (NY), you know that it is small. When waiting, travelers are sitting just feet from the gates, leaving lots of opportunity to observe airline employee behavior. Here is what happened.

Airline Gate Agent (talking into two-way radio, annoyed and impatient): “I need to close out this flight. Is the passenger almost through security?”

Voice on the Radio: “Yes, she is almost done, but she is kind of snotty.”

AGA (picking up and talking on telephone): “Go ahead and close the doors. I’m not letting her on. She is snotty and giving TSA a hard time.”

Seconds later, I could see the cargo door on the commuter jet closing. Ms. Snotty Passenger arrives after her 20 second, 30 yard journey from security screening. She quietly asks, “Am I on time to get on this flight?”

AGA, taking the opportunity to deliver a lecture, lets her have it. “Ma’am, you gave up your seat on this flight as you did not get here 10 minutes before departure time. We had to give your seat away. Please sit down and you will be on the next flight in three hours. Remember in the future that you must get here at least 10 minutes before departure.”

Ms. Not-so-Snotty Passenger accepted this answer, turned and sought out the seat that she would fill for a good portion of that afternoon. She would never know that her delay was so heavily determined by this single airline employee. Her seat had not been filled; the agent simply did not want her in it.

So what’s the point? If you own or manage a business that employs people, your best efforts at advertising and systematic customer service excellence can be snuffed out by your AGAs. What are the values that you work to teach and demonstrate, hoping that your team will make the right choices?

If you work in a service role yourself, you decide how you will behave, the actions you will take and the service you will provide. Think about what that gate agent could have done for the passenger and her company’s reputation had she said, “Ms. Passenger, please hurry. I told them to keep the door open for you so you could make it to your destination on time. In the future, be sure to get here earlier.”

Whether you work solo or in a large organization, finding ways to stretch and serve internal and external customers can make the difference between success and failure. That decision to slam the door on that one passenger was more than an inconvenience. It was a demonstration of the culture of that airline, something that will not be undone by advertising and other efforts to tell me how great that airline is. One person can make all the difference. Yes, come on board, or no, go sit down and wait.