================================================== "Achieve Your Dreams" - Volume 16, March 2006 ================================================== Greetings! Welcome to "Achieve Your Dreams", a bi-monthly newsletter for people with a dream - - whether it's accelerating a career, changing careers, building a business, securing a new job, achieving that long-desired goal, or discovering a new life vision and direction. Each newsletter will offer 1-2 noteworthy articles, a section on "Office Happenings" and "Helpful Resources", and some favorite quotes and sayings to motivate and inspire you. In this issue: 1. "When Bad Interviews Happen to Good People" 2. Office Happenings (Richard Bolles – Keynote Speaker) 3. Helpful Resources (Fast Company's 25 Top Jobs for 2006) 4. Favorite Quotes Feel free to forward this to those you believe would find it useful. Feedback is encouraged and appreciated. If there is a specific topic you'd like covered, please send the suggestion to me via the e-mail address below. Enjoy ... ============================================= When Bad Interviews Happen to Good Candidates ============================================= Going through the motions of a bad interview is like peeling back the layers of an onion. Jennifer learned this lesson the hard way during an interview that should have been a piece of cake. Jennifer had applied for a position that fit her qualifications perfectly. When she received an invitation to interview, she was thrilled and believed she was a shoo-in for the job. Feeling confident, she approached the interview in a laidback manner. After all, she's good at talking with people and "winging it", so she didn't spend much time preparing and prematurely celebrated an offer she was convinced would be extended. On the day of the interview, Jennifer was surprised by the level of anxiety she felt. Her apprehension began to build and she decided to do a little homework at the last minute. She was surprised by how much there was to do to prepare, and by the time she arrived at the interview, she was visibly shaken. LESSON LEARNED: Adequately preparing for an interview takes more time than most candidates think. To ensure your success on an interview, you'll want to do your research and collect your thoughts well in advance of the interview, not on your way to it. If you arrive at an interview flustered and anxious, it may be difficult to regain your composure and you may not do as well as you could have. And, the recruiter or hiring manager may take notice, which won't help get things off to a good start. The interviewer entered the waiting area and introduced himself. To ease the tension, he asked a common icebreaker question, "Did you have trouble finding us?" Jennifer has never been a smooth talker under pressure and she answered the question candidly. She confided that she doesn't have a good sense of direction, and coupled with the fact that she was anxious, she passed the building entrance quite a few times. The interviewer smiled politely and proceeded to walk towards the interview room. Realizing she goofed, Jennifer hesitantly followed him. LESSON LEARNED: Believe it or not, everything you say and do during an interview is scrutinized, from the instant you walk in, to the moment you walk out. An innocent question doesn't exist during an interview and a careless misstep is seldom forgotten. Learning to maintain composure and answering even the most innocent of questions positively and with enthusiasm is a key element to succeeding on an interview. When Jennifer was escorted to the interview room, she was surprised to see a panel of interviewers. She was only familiar with the "it's just you and me, kid" type of interview – the one-on-one. At the start of the interview, she quickly realized that it was going to be a challenge to manage the situation and wasn't quite sure how she should proceed. LESSON LEARNED: Interviews can be unpredictable. One never knows the broad range of topics that will be covered and the type of formats that may be utilized. To ace an interview, you'll want to familiarize yourself with all the different types of interview settings and formats and prepare for how you'll handle each one. Because she wasn't ready for the types of questions the interviewers asked, Jennifer tripped over her answers. Some of the questions surprised her. One interviewer asked about work she had done at a position she held over 8 years ago. How could she remember that far back? Another person asked about her experience with a certain technology (a question she had hoped wouldn't be asked) which she had to tell him honestly she didn't have. And yet another interviewer asked her to explain how she would solve a certain problem, which, to her, didn't seem relevant to the job. She found herself rambling and focusing on issues that weren't relevant. She sensed that she was providing little pertinent information and that she wasn't selling herself as well as she could have. LESSON LEARNED: Although you can't anticipate every question that will be asked on an interview, it's useful to think through your answers to the most commonly asked questions ahead of time. In addition, it's important to understand the ins and outs of the job you're applying for and the common problems associated with that job. That way, the questions you are asked don't come as a surprise. Finally, you'll want to prepare your "success stories" ahead of time so you can enthusiastically articulate how you will help the company solve those problems, thus, "selling" your skills and expertise to the interviewers. Sensing that she was interviewing poorly, Sally began to lose patience with the process. She failed to maintain eye contact and began to fidget. The enthusiasm she felt for the position and the company slowly diminished as she witnessed the blank looks on the faces of the panelists. She withdrew mentally from the interview, and as a result, appeared disinterested. LESSON LEARNED: Most interviewers expect candidates to be nervous during an interview and they will forgive some stumbling and mumbling as candidates get comfortable answering questions. However, they will rarely forgive you if you fail to demonstrate a sincere interest in doing the job you're interviewing for. Most hiring decisions are based on your ability to convincingly exhibit how you can meet the requirements of the open position AND whether the interviewer feels a connection to you. The failure to "sell" yourself and establish a bond is usually beyond repair. After the interview Sally realized that the questions she had been asked were not difficult. She had been overconfident prior to the interview, and then overwhelmed by nervousness as the interview drew nearer. And that had clouded her ability to present herself professionally and effectively communicate why she would be the best person for the job. LESSON LEARNED: Even if you feel confident in yourself and have the "right stuff," nothing is guaranteed when it comes to interviewing. And nothing takes the place of lots of preparation and practice. So the next time you're called for an interview, vow that you won't get caught off guard like Jennifer was. Promise yourself that you'll do your homework ahead of time, that you'll anticipate and practice the answers to the tough interview questions, and that you'll be knowledgeable about how your background fits with the requirements of the position so you can confidently and articulately "sell" your skills and expertise to the hiring manager. ================= Office Happenings ================= From May 3 - 6 I will be attending the Career Masters Institute's annual conference in San Francisco. Richard Nelson Bolles, author of "What Color is Your Parachute" will be the keynote speaker and will share his insights on "The Bridge to Career Success." Other speakers include Laura Berman Fortgang, author of "Now What? 90 Days to a New Life Direction," and John Krumboltz, PhD, speaking on "Life is No Accident: Making the Most of Happenstance in Your Life and Career." In addition, Lynn Guillory, VP of Human Resources for Foxworth Galbraith Lumber Company, an industry leader with one billion in annual sales, will speak on the trends anticipated in employment, recruiting, and retention. I'm excited about attending this conference and will share my learnings in the next issue of this newsletter. ================= Helpful Resources ================= Top jobs for 2006: Fast Company has released its listing of top jobs for this year for business and professional occupations and those in creative fields. Using figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and projected job-growth data through 2014, the report reflects jobs that will be in high demand, offer excellent potential salaries, and typically require some level of higher education. Fast Company's analysis also revealed a number of appealing jobs in other burgeoning fields, which were included in their list of top jobs. Some of Fast Company's top 25 jobs for 2006 include: - Lawyer - Personal Financial Advisor - Computer and Information Systems Manager - Chiropractor - Computer Software Engineer - Dentist - Market Research Analyst - Medical Scientist - Public Relations Manager - Wholesales and Manufacturing Sales Representative - Clinical, Counseling and School Psychologist - Producers and Directors - Post Secondary Education Administrator The entire article with the complete list of the top 25 jobs for 2006 can be found at: http://fastcompany.com/articles/2006/01/top-jobs-main.html =============== Favorite Quotes =============== "Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt." -- The Special Olympics Oath "You don't get to choose how you're going to die. Or when. You can only decide how you're going to live. Now." -- Joan Baez "Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough." -- Oprah Winfrey "The moment you let avoiding failure become your motivator, you're down the path of inactivity." -- Roberto Goizueta In support of you, Jeanne ****************************** Jeanne Knight, JCTC, CCMC Career and Job Search Coach jeanne@careerdesigns.biz www.careerdesigns.biz 617-968-7747 Office Hours: M-TH 8:30am - 5:00pm FRI 8:30am - 12:00noon ** If you would like someone added to this newsletter distribu- tion list, please forward their name and e-mail address to me. They will be added promptly. ** If you would like to be removed from this list, please reply to me via this e-mail address. I will remove your name promptly.