Thursday 30 November 2017

👎 Resume Objective Statements That Cause Recruiters To Reject You

How to know if your resume has an objective statement that helps or hurts.

Resume Objective Statements That Cause Recruiters To Reject You

Photo by Meiying Ng

This is a guest post by Paula R. Stern.

Does your resume have an Objective Statement that starts with something like, “A responsible position allowing me to fully utilize my professional skills and which provides me with an opportunity for professional advancement”?

If it does, consider that you've just asked a potential employer to read 20+ words that say absolutely nothing and risked having that person close your resume rather than learn what you can really do for them. My personal belief is that the fastest way to lose a job before they even read your resume, is to begin it with something like that.

When going through the job-seeking process, it is very important to understand the stages and the roles of the documents that support each stage.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Free bonus: The One Resume Resource You’ll Ever Need is a handy reference to make your resume get you more job interviews. Download it free now

Cover letters that get your resume read

In today’s job hunting environment, most jobs involve emailing your resume to someone.

Too many job seekers fail to realize that the job of the cover letter is to get the recipient to open the attached resume. That’s all. No one gets a job because of a cover letter, but if the recipient opens the resume, the cover letter worked brilliantly.

I receive dozens of emails from people looking for work, maybe even hundreds over the period of a year. If I receive a blank email, I am as likely to delete the email as I am to open the resume. Perhaps even more so. My feeling is best summed up simply be explaining that if you can’t be bothered to write me a brief note, why should I feel obligated to open the resume?

Resumes that open the door for you

Like the cover letter, the role of the resume is not to get you a job. It’s to get you an interview. If you are called and asked to come to a company, your resume worked.

From there, the process goes on, but what is in the resume is critical – every line, every bullet, every section.

  • Your name and address should be placed at the top of the page or file, not on the sides, not on the bottom.
  • The name of the file should include your name; not “resume2011.doc.” I might like what I see, but if I save a file that uses that type of naming, I’ll probably never find it again, never open it, never call you for that important interview. (Here are more samples of resume filenames that recruiters won't respond to.)

Resume Objectives that… attract or repulse?

The next big question I have often been asked to discuss, is what to put in the Objective portion at the top of the resume.

Understand that a manager will glance quickly at a resume and decide in seconds whether to bother reading further. In a sense, the manager is looking more for reasons not to continue reading, rather than trying to gain a true assessment of how you can fit into their company.

Is a resume Objective needed?

Does it add or detract from the resume?

The answer, I believe, is “it depends.”

3 rules to decide if you need an Objective Statement in your resume

Here are a few rules for deciding whether to include it or not.

1) Who will see your resume?

If you apply directly to the person who has advertised the job and is responsible for hiring the ideal candidate, the resume Objective Statement may well be redundant. Even more, it may be distracting.

On the other hand, if you are sending your resume to the Human Resources department or to a general email address within a company, the Objective Statement can be helpful in directing your resume to the proper person within the company.

2) What do you want to accomplish?

If you are applying for a specific job and your resume clearly reflects that direction, the Objective Statement may not be necessary. After all, it is obvious you are a dentist, a technical writer, a translator, etc.

Nothing is gained by stating the obvious and given that you have only seconds to impress the recipient, it is often best that they begin reading your background information, rather than confirming you are looking for the job they are offering. After all, if you weren’t interested in the job, you would not have sent it to them, right?

On the other hand, if you are applying for multiple positions within the company because your goal is to get a job and you hope by seeing your abilities, the recipient will decide you match “one of” the jobs that are available, rather than “the” job that was advertised, a good Objective on your resume may well open additional possibilities.

3) Finally, what should you write in the Objective Statement, if you decide to include it?

It is very important to make the Objective Statement as directed as possible. You can damage your positioning or lower their impression of your abilities by making it too broad.

If I see an Objective Statement that states the person is seeking a position as a technical writer, editor, or translator, my first impression is that they should make up their minds what they want to do. My second thought is to wonder if I offer them the job, will they leave it as soon as their “true” objective is offered somewhere else.

Don’t include a statement of your personal abilities. Though you may be a team player, quick to learn, responsible, etc. these are only words until proven. The proof should be in the sections that follow, in your Experience and Education.

The goal of the resume is to impress the recipient enough to invite you to an interview. If they are so busy reading the Objective Statement, they are delayed in getting to the important sections that follow. Who you are and what you can do, is best represented by the Experience and Education sections.

While there are times that an Objective in a resume is important, even critical, there are often times when it can work against the job seeker. If it is too long, if it is too broad, if it is too obvious or redundant, the damage may be enough to create a lost opportunity.

On the other hand, a resume without an Objective Statement may be lost in the vast network of job seekers. It may not open other doors if the particular door of interest isn’t available to you.

So, should you have an Objective for your resume?

While this is a decision you have to make based on many factors, the most important consideration is what you plan to put into it.

A short, direct, proper, Objective Statement may help you land the job of your dreams; a long and winding Objective Statement may well close doors of opportunity as quickly as the manager will close the resume you sent them.

Like all elements of your resume (and your cover letter), if you choose to include an Objective Statement, spend time reviewing it so that it is concise, clear and relevant.

Other opinions

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About the Author

paula stern portraitPaula R. Stern is the CEO of Writepoint Ltd., a leading technical writing company in Israel providing comprehensive documentation and training services to Israel’s hi-tech companies. WritePoint was founded in 1995 and has been providing quality documentation at affordable prices ever since. Paula can be reached at paula@writepoint.com. Paula is the list owner/moderator of Techshoret and is an Adobe Community Professional.

This article was part of the Over $5000 in Prizes: The 5th Annual JobMob Guest Blogging Contest, which was made possible thanks in large part to our sponsors:

JOBlog Marcus Tandler’s JOBlog is Germany’s oldest blog about job search & careers.
Rabbi Issamar Ginzberg Rabbi Issamar Ginzberg is an internationally acclaimed advisor to successful business owners, known for his small business ideas.

READ NEXT: The Secret “So What?” Method To Resume Writing Success

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Wednesday 22 November 2017

💸 Top Job Search Black Friday Deals (2017)

The best Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals and discounts for job seekers this year.

Top Job Search Black Friday Deals for 2017

Photo by Tim Arterbury

Every year, the hoopla and hype around Black Friday gets bigger and bigger. It's time that job seekers get in on the action.

I compiled this list of special deals into categories to make them easy to browse and compare.

I'll keep adding more deals as I hear about them. Come back here every day through Cyber Monday (November 27th) to see list updates. And if you know of a deal for job seekers that's not yet listed, tell us in the comments.


This Black Friday deals roundup is brought to you by Udemy, who is offering 55,000+ courses for just $10 until November 28th:

Udemy


Job Search Deals, Deals and More Deals

Books

happyabout logo

THiNKaha would like to say “Thank You!” through our Black Friday sale!

For every 5 paperback or hardcover books you order, we will give you 1 additional book for free. What's more exciting is you can either order 5 books of the same title,
or 5 different titles, and you get the chance to choose which book you get for free as long as it is of the same value.

This offer is for a limited time only (November 22-26, 2017).

Check out their wide selection of career and job search-related books. In the past, I've reviewed Jason Alba's book “I’m on Facebook — Now What?

Resumes, Cover Letters and more

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#Thanksgiving is upon us and we want to give thanks to all those we have helped get closer to their career goals with 25% off ALL SERVICES from #BlackFriday through #CyberMonday. Get a discounted #resume package or gift one to a family member or friend this holiday season. Details

 

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BLACK FRIDAY SALE STARTS TODAY:
• PRICE: $97.00
Full Resume MakeOver $ale +plus FREE Cover and Thank You Letter
Details

 

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We're offering a 30% discount on our #ResumeWriting Service from Friday – Sunday (Nov. 23-25). Get yourself a new keyword rich resume for $48.99 at workerhelpdesk.com

 

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BLACK FRIDAY SALE ON NOW… BLACK FRIDAY DEALS!

Mention this website when you contact us: www.awardwinningresumes.biz?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss
Resume, Cover Letter, LinkedIn Summary Section: Regular Fee: $350, Your Fee: $222, from November 21 – 29th, 2017 at 6 pm E.T. Email your information and a job posting to shaneresumes@gmail.com

Coaching

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Madlena Mincheva, founder of WorkItOn.com: You have 7 days to schedule an online career consultation with near 70% discount for only 6$

Courses

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Enroll by Tuesday, November 28th to take advantage of this savings offer! Enroll by phone at 866-250-6851 or enroll online using promo code: BLACKFRIDAY2017. Save 25% on tuition today!

 

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Udemy

Over 55,000 courses are only $10 until Nov. 28 with deal code 17HOLIDAY10.

Some of the top job search and career-related courses available include:

(2017) Career Hacking: Resume, LinkedIn®, Interviewing +More

Coach (or Hack!) Your Own Career: Career Change, Development

2017 Complete Resume Writing CV Course- Land Job Interviews!

The Complete Job, Interview, Resume/LinkedIn & Network Guide

Pass your job interview in English and get your dream job

Get your Java dream job! Beginners interview preparation

How Black Friday Can Prepare You For A Job Interview

Use coupon code YOUTUBE10 to get $10 off WorkItDaily's monthly career support membership.

Question of the article

What's your craziest job search or work-related Black Friday story? Tell us in the comments.

Subscribe to JobMob via RSS or email and follow me on Twitter for Black Friday deals that can change your career.


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Thursday 16 November 2017

📚 3 Things To Prepare For First Job Interviews

How to make a good first impression in your first job interview with an employer.

3 Things To Prepare For First Job Interviews

Photo by Ronald Cuyan

This is a guest post by Debra Wilson. If you’d also like to guest post here on JobMob, follow these guest post guidelines.

Whether you need graduate jobs or already have years of experience, your first interview for a job is your chance to shine.

You can make a great impression, or walk away without a job offer or interest in a second interview.

It's largely up to you.

The key with your first interview is to set yourself apart from other candidates – to make an impact so that the potential employer remembers you positively when going back through resumes and interview notes to decide who to call back.

Free bonus: The One Job Interview Resource You’ll Ever Need is a handy reference to help you prepare for any kind of job interview. Download it free now

If you're wondering how to make a great impression at your first interview, follow these tips:

1) Prepare a work portfolio

A work portfolio used to be something that was only necessary in certain professions, but this is no longer the case.

Bringing a portfolio that can give the interviewer concrete examples of your accomplishments is a fantastic idea in almost all fields.

Some things that you might include in your portfolio are:

  • Transcripts (if you're a recent graduate)
  • Recommendation letters
  • Paper or research synopses
  • Materials you designed (flyers, brochures, posters, etc.)
  • Meeting agendas
  • Statement of Philosophy
  • CD, DVD, or PowerPoint presentation of your work
  • Prints of websites or blogs you created or worked on
  • Licensure or certifications
  • Awards or honors you've received
  • Data sheets (if you helped organize events, raise funds, etc.)
  • Documents showing leadership experience

Obviously, the items in your portfolio will depend on your field and your experience in that field.

A recent college graduate's portfolio will include largely information from school and extra-curricular activities, but if you have more work experience, you can put even more relevant items in your portfolio.

As you're preparing for a job interview, take time to put together an organized, attractive portfolio that will give your interviewers concrete evidence of your accomplishments in school or on the job.

2) Prepare yourself with common job interview questions

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

You don't want to sound like a robot during your interview, but you do want to be prepared.

Don't be completely floored by typical first job interview questions about your greatest strengths and weaknesses, for instance. Instead, look at lists of questions that many potential employers ask, and give some thought as to how you'd answer those questions.

It's especially helpful to think through tricky questions, like that classic one about where you see yourself in 5 years.

Interview over lunch

3) Prepare questions to ask the employer

It's never good to draw a blank when an interviewer asks that inevitable end-of-interview question, “Do you have any questions for me?”

Asking questions doesn't make you seem stupid. Rather, it makes you seem prepared and knowledgeable.

Do your homework about the business you're interviewing with and the position you're interviewing for. Ask questions about how the company works, how the job will work, and how you will fit into the overall structure of the company.

Don't be afraid to ask questions if you're confused during the actual interview, and don't be afraid to write down a list of potential questions to ask so you appear more organized and put-together during this portion of the interview.

 

Not sure what you should ask an interviewer? Here are just a few great questions to ask during an interview:

  • Can you tell me what a typical day and week in this job would look like?
  • What are the responsibilities that go with this job?
  • What sorts of training does the company offer, and how does career advancement work in this position?
  • How many people work in this office/department?
  • How much would I need to travel for this job?
  • Can I answer any other questions for you that will let you know what I can bring to the table?

BONUS: 4) Prepare resume copies to bring with you

Most of the time, the interviewer will probably have your resume in front of him while he's conducting the interview. It helps prompt questions, and allows the potential employer to double-check your information.

However, sometimes this isn't the case, or you may be interviewed by a group of people who are sharing one copy of your resume.

Take along a few extras just in case they're needed. They can also be helpful if you need to fill out a formal paper application after the interview.

Making a good impression

Making a good impression in a job interview is about balancing professionalism and personality. You don't want to be completely bland and forgettable, but you also want to stand out for the right reasons.

Being prepared for the questions that will be asked, putting together a professional portfolio, and asking questions during the interview are all excellent ways to make a good impression during your first interview.

Question of the article

What was the most impressive thing you ever heard of someone doing in a job interview? Tell us in the comments.

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About the author

Debra Wilson is a social media advocate at CreditDonkey. She blogs about many things like how a gas rewards credit card can save job applicants (like you?) money on the next trip to the gas station.

READ NEXT: 7 Company Research Tips Before The Job Interview

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Thursday 2 November 2017

🛑 How To Stop Being Depressed About Job Search

A required job search shouldn't require a job search depression.

How To Stop Being Depressed About Job Search

Photo by Ryan Holloway

If you can recognize the causes of job search depression, you can stop or even prevent job search depression from happening to you altogether.

Free bonus: Download The Job Search Depression Report which contains insights and resources on how to manage if you're too depressed to look for work.

Quick story

Not having a job is depressing, I know.

In the summer of 2001, I resigned from a good tech job in France and moved back to Israel. Less than a year later, I was already wondering if it may have been one of the biggest mistakes of my life.

The next few months were supposed to be for relaxation. However, while I was lounging in the sun, the DotCom Bubble burst and with it disappeared the demand for my web development and managerial skills.

My only consolation, if you can call it that, was that if I hadn't quit I would have been laid off anyway. A very annoying consolation when you realize that by staying on a few more months, I would have received a compensation package instead of leaving empty-handed. Grrr.

10 months, 2 empty job offers, a handful of interviews and countless resume emails later, I finally moved on to my next job.

Did I expect it to take so long?

No.

Was it a frustrating uphill climb day in and day out that felt like it might never end?

After month 3, yes.

The moment you realize that your job search is taking longer than you expected is the moment job search depression begins.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Where does job search depression come from?

A 2002 study at the University of Michigan found that:

… secondary stressors of job loss such as financial strain and loss of personal control are the true culprits that lead to depression. The study also found that elevated levels of depression ‘may reduce the likelihood of reemployment.'

In other words, it's the anxiety and consequences of losing your job that lead to job search depression, not the job loss itself.

It's the consequences of losing your job that lead to job search depression, not the job loss itselfClick To Tweet

15 Causes

As part of a seminal article about his past job search depression, Jason Alba of JibberJobber discussed some of the causes, the first 6 listed here.

1) Loss of control – sudden, traumatic change of having a great job one day and no job the next.

2) Constant uncertainty of not knowing when the job search will end.

3) The ever-continuing quest for acceptance that is a job search.

4) Backlash of commiseration with other job seekers.

5) Feeling of insignificance stemming from a lack of replies to your many cover letters and resumes sent out.

6) Overwhelming ratio of rejection letters to positive replies.

7) The new experience of your first time being unemployed.

8) Being forced into a tough situation with no choice in the matter.

9) The unease of having to do something that you were never taught in school or simply aren't prepared for, i.e. a job search.

10) The strain of managing personal finances after your main source of revenue is gone.

11) Having to support a family or other dependents during a rough moment in your life.

12) The realization that you might be depressed and not knowing how to the depression.

13) The difficult need to deal with these feelings while still seeming upbeat in interviews and while networking.

14) Envying friends and family head out on vacation and enjoying life while you're required to continue the unending search.

15) Unemployment embarrassment – struggling to answer one of the most asked questions: “What do you do?”

What can you do to prevent depression from affecting your job search?

Management guru Peter Drucker once said “what gets measured gets managed.” Keeping track of your worries will help you keep them under control.

Here's how:

  1. Print out the list above or download it. Rate each cause on a scale of 1 to 5 in terms of how much it's likely to affect you or is affecting you already, where 1 is “very little” and 5 is “a lot”. Feel free to add other causes that could apply in your case.
  2. Create priorities by sorting the list in decreasing order so that the 5s – the most worrisome causes – appear at the top.
  3. From the top of the list, try to imagine actions you can take to block each cause. Use my 9 Promising Ways To Deal With Job Search Depression and Anxiety as a list of suggestions.
  4. Follow through with your recommended actions, especially for the top causes on your list.
  5. After each week or month of your job search, take a few minutes to look over the previous date's estimations and understand what's working and what isn't. Then fill in new ratings for the current date, sort, and choose new blocking actions.

What others are saying

Question of the article

Which of the above job search depression causes made you worry most on your most recent job search and why? Tell us in the comments.

Video Bonus: I can't find a job and feel like a loser

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  • 9 Ways To Deal With Job Search Depression

Click the image below to get access to The Job Search Depression Report:

The Job Search Depression Report - wide download button

JobMob Insiders can get this free bonus and other exclusive content in the JobMob Insider Bonuses area. Join now, it's free!

Looking for a job is depressing. Subscribe to JobMob via RSS or email and follow me on Twitter to get help keeping your spirits up while job hunting.


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