Civil War Fighting Strategies vs. Job Board Strategies

Civil War Fighting Strategies vs. Job Board Strategies Last week in Virginia I was able to hang out with my sister and her family.  She has one son, the same age as my youngest son, and it was a blast being able to play uncle, since I hardly get to do that. We took some walks in what I consider the sacred and hallowed Civil War battlefields.  As we walked through those thick woods (remember, Im in Utah, which has a very small fraction of the trees they have out in Virginia!) I tried to imagine the soldiers running, hiding, and probably sweating profusely in that hot, muggy climate. I thought of the outdated fighting strategy of lining up in two rows one row would fire (shoot) while the other row would reload.  Then, the other side would do the same thing, and you would have this volley of bullets that went back and forth.  (see more on Wikipedia) I thought about how ineffective that tactic/strategy was, even in the 19th century. I  contrasted that to a more 21st century guerrilla approach, and it made me think about job seekers using job boards. Not that volleys arent effective at all.  They did what they knew, and it kind of worked. Just like job seekers: they do what they know to do (thanks to some popular Super Bowl commercials from a few years ago), and it kind of works. At least, at the end of the day, week, month you can say Ive been in a very active job search you know, applying to ___ jobs in the last month! See how busy Ive been? Im not saying to not use job boards.  That would be like saying dont use bullets in a battle.  Ridiculous. What Im saying is, use job boards the right way. Use them to gather intelligence about an industry, or a company.  Use them to try and find names and contact information (or, formatting on company email addresses).  Use them to find news, trends, patterns. And then go to LinkedIn, and Google, and Spoke, and other resources, to do more research, and figure out how to network in. In the job search you can use the old, outdated, less-effective volley approach, which relies heavily on applying to jobs you find on job boards. OR, you can use the more effective, a little more scary, guerrilla approach. What century are you in? Civil War Fighting Strategies vs. Job Board Strategies Last week in Virginia I was able to hang out with my sister and her family.  She has one son, the same age as my youngest son, and it was a blast being able to play uncle, since I hardly get to do that. We took some walks in what I consider the sacred and hallowed Civil War battlefields.  As we walked through those thick woods (remember, Im in Utah, which has a very small fraction of the trees they have out in Virginia!) I tried to imagine the soldiers running, hiding, and probably sweating profusely in that hot, muggy climate. I thought of the outdated fighting strategy of lining up in two rows one row would fire (shoot) while the other row would reload.  Then, the other side would do the same thing, and you would have this volley of bullets that went back and forth.  (see more on Wikipedia) I thought about how ineffective that tactic/strategy was, even in the 19th century. I  contrasted that to a more 21st century guerrilla approach, and it made me think about job seekers using job boards. Not that volleys arent effective at all.  They did what they knew, and it kind of worked. Just like job seekers: they do what they know to do (thanks to some popular Super Bowl commercials from a few years ago), and it kind of works. At least, at the end of the day, week, month you can say Ive been in a very active job search you know, applying to ___ jobs in the last month! See how busy Ive been? Im not saying to not use job boards.  That would be like saying dont use bullets in a battle.  Ridiculous. What Im saying is, use job boards the right way. Use them to gather intelligence about an industry, or a company.  Use them to try and find names and contact information (or, formatting on company email addresses).  Use them to find news, trends, patterns. And then go to LinkedIn, and Google, and Spoke, and other resources, to do more research, and figure out how to network in. In the job search you can use the old, outdated, less-effective volley approach, which relies heavily on applying to jobs you find on job boards. OR, you can use the more effective, a little more scary, guerrilla approach. What century are you in?

How to Write a Compelling Freshman Resume - Top College Resume Writing Tips

How to Write a Compelling Freshman Resume - Top College Resume Writing TipsIt's difficult to say how much the incoming freshman applicants can help the existing applicants in terms of admissions, since you can't really tell how they might turn out in the first place. A good freshman resume writing helps you determine your true ability and provides your short-listed peers with a reference in case you've had any troubles in the past.Freshmen can start their careers off right by enhancing their resumes. Since their resumes are usually focused on their academic achievement, it's an opportunity for you to not only put your best foot forward but also provide the potential parent applicant some personal touches. In particular, you can highlight the academic excellence by including your GPA in the very first sentence, which is usually the most neglected paragraph on your applications.First and foremost, it's important that you create an outline for freshman resumes. It's not as important to create your resume right away because you can do this at a later date when you've completed college and have already made contact with prospective colleges and universities. Even if you're still in school, you can still use a sample application to sketch your potentials with all the relevant information required.Make sure that you write a full description of the college prep curriculum that you have been exposed to. This includes the top schools, their awards and degrees that you obtained and the syllabus that you completed from there. A sample of your curriculum should also be included so that you can choose what school you'll be applying to in the future.Your freshman applicant's experiences can be a great marketing tool. There's no point in making a generic rookie impression because you won't get any work done. You can provide a lot of information about your past experience by adding some personal anecdotes or how you learned about the business from your family members.Often stud ents struggle to come up with some specific areas they want to cover in their applications. Although some student may have some specialties or achievements they could write a great summary for their application. You can also show them what kind of work they should be preparing for in college as well as some specific areas that would be best in pursue if they decide to attend a specific school.Many parents may wonder how to contact you if they're impressed with your additional information about yourself. You can send a brief email that focuses on your past work experience in the business and some skills that you possess that were taken away from school. You can also provide the name of a friend who attended your school to connect them with you.Nothing is more important than your freshman applicant's letters of recommendation. Your host professor, alumni advisor or the admissions counselor at your college can certainly provide you with helpful advice when it comes to choosing the righ t letters of recommendations. It's a good idea to carefully select the letters you give to ensure they are current and updated.

Does Freelancing Qualify as a Small Business

Does Freelancing Qualify as a Small Business Todays post is by Stephen Cline. There are many questions to ponder when one decides to brave the world as a freelancer; a position free of the entanglements of a nine-to-five job. One of the primary considerations is whether it will be worth the effort in the long run, and, if so, how Uncle Sam will look at your efforts. No, the government won’t be applauding and offering congratulations, nor extending a box of tissues with which to wipe away your tears, in the event of either your success or failure. But your ‘Uncle’ will express interest in the money that freelancing brought to you. Accordingly, it’s important to determine whether your freelancing efforts qualify as a small business, complete with the rights and obligations that that status implies. There are some questions and answers to consider. Do you qualify as a freelancer? If you work independently of another corporation’s guidance what is often referred to as being self-employed â€" and receive check stubs from various companies for the work that you do, you’re a freelancer. You could be a window washer or a computer programmer; the occupation makes little difference. But, as you buy materials with which to operate, you’ll start to accrue expenses. Here’s where the tricky part arrives, because, as a small businessperson, you’re entitled to tax write-offs for both expenses, and losses. Do your activities provide earnings? A freelancer shouldn’t be suffering losses. After all, they get a paycheck, rather than hoping for a profit, as most business owners do. Still, there are mitigating factors. If the expenses involved in being a freelancer overwhelm the meager paychecks, a loss occurs. Few people set out to make a loss, but they do happen, particularly when one is starting out and acquiring business related equipment. And that’s a key phrase: business related equipment. Do you purchase things for use only when you’re freelancing? If, for example, you need to buy ropes, harnesses, motorized platforms, and other specifically window washing-related supplies, you can argue very successfully that you didn’t buy this stuff for personal pleasure related uses, but for your business. (How many times can you ride a motorized platform up and down for fun?) If you’re spending money to make money, you’re in business. If you’re in business, you are a business. And you’re entitled to numerous tax deductions. Do you aim to make a profit? This is the government’s acid test. If your interest is not profit motivated, you may not be in business after all. You may qualify as a non-profit organization, depending on what you’re doing, or you may just be a person with a hobby. If you make a profit, you’re in business. However, if you clean windows for people, but charge nothing because you want people to see the world more clearly, then you’re not running a business. (You may be a bit cuckoo, but that’s another story.) Use the answers that these questions raise to help determine whether your freelancing qualifies as a small business. If it does, you might want some turbotax coupons to help you defray the costs associated with keeping the records straight.

Server Resume Example + Tips and Tricks for Writing The Best Resume

Server Resume Example + Tips and Tricks for Writing The Best Resume Server Resume Example + Tips and Tricks for Writing The Best Resume Working as a server (waiter or waitress) can be an excellent way to make some extra money on the side. You can earn some hefty income if you are hired to a high-end venue. Did you know that staff working at Mario Batalis restaurants are reportedly earning $130,000-$140,000 annually? Servers at Scarpetta, American Cut, or American Cut Midtown restaurant chains in NYC are also said to earn between $75,000-$100,000 per year.   But of course, those six-figure server jobs are competitive. You’ll need to present an outstanding resume to the restaurant manager and pass a series of interviews. In this post, we’ll share some quick writing tips for creating that stellar job application, plus provide a server resume example that you can adapt to your needs.1. Highlight The Right SkillsIt may be tempting to make “people skills” the central focal point of your resume to score some points from the employer. But don’t overdo that. Most employers in the food industry look for candidates who demonstrate strong soft and hard skills at the same time.Some important skills for servers to highlight in their resumes are as follows:Hard Skills:Soft Sales and up-sellsPOS systems and cash registersBasic accounting skillsKnowledge in food safety and food allergies/intoleranceDining room set upBusiness etiquetteWaiting on tablesConflict resolutionSoft Skills:  Positive attitudeGood memoryEnergeticCourteousService-orientedHigh-stress toleranceAttention to detailsStaminaTeamwork2. Write a Catchy Resume SummaryOpt for a short and sweet professional resume summary, over a more corporate resume objective. This one will go on top of your resume, along with your contact information, and should entice the reader to give your application a closer look. Treat a resume summary as an elevator pitch â€" pack your key skills, personal traits and experience in a two-liner. Here’s a quick example of a server resume summary:“Courteous and positive restaurant server with 3 years of expe rience working in cocktail bars and fine dining restaurants. Top people skills, excellent memory, BA in Hospitality Management, waitress of the year 2017 as voted by customers”.  3. Lean Heavier on the NumbersMost employers want to see facts. Don’t tell how good you are with people, show them via examples. If you were one of the more popular waiters in the venue, say so. Earned top tips? Was good at upselling? Was asked to train new personnel? Mention all of these things in your resume, along with some figures.Resume Example For Waiter/Waitress (Word version)Download resume example (.docx)Server Resume Example (text version)Danny Winters 1858 Heron Way Portland, OR 97205 123-456-789 name@email.comExperienced Fine Dining Server Professional full-time server with 5+ years of experience in the food industry. Know the basics of business etiquette, have stellar customer service skills (highest tipped waiter at Lux restaurant), attentive to details. Completed 25-hours of training in d ining room set up and decoration.  Work HistorySenior Server at Hip Fine Dining Restaurant, Portland, OR  (September 2018 â€" present)Prepared and decorated the dining room before the opening. Inspected service during the night:  Managed the front of house team up to 5 people per shift.Trained 7 new serving staff members and supervised their performance.Maintained a detailed knowledge of the seasonal menus (changed four times per year) and ingredient to make accurate recommendations to customers.Was responsible for the entire dining room setup â€" from tables to floral arrangements.Assisted junior staff with conflict resolution to ensure the highest levels of customer satisfaction.Achievements:Was among the top requested waiters for VIP events organized in the venue.Named as “employee of the month” 7 times over two years.Server at Cool Contemporary Casual Joint Portland, OR  (March 2016 â€" September 2018)Greeted and attended guests, waited tables, handled POS and cash register.  Introduced customers to the restaurant concept. Explained the basics of molecular cuisine. Guided the clients through the menu, presented seasonal specials, suggested wine pairings and provided allergy information.Up-sold drinks, tasting menus and dessert-specials. Had a 20% higher table check on average compared to other waiters.Proactively anticipated guest needs, provided friendly conversations and fulfilled all the requests.Prepared checks, collected payments and walked out the guests.Server/Bartender at Local Brewery, Austin, Texas  (December 2014â€"March 2016)Provided friendly table service, handled simple cocktail requests and ensured that every guest had a positive experience.  Worked in a high-paced environment and served a high volume of guests promptly, while ensuring top order accuracy and high guest satisfaction.Constructed a fun and memorable statements describing daily specials that were later taken by other waiters.Exceeded the sales goal within 3 months after hiri ng.Voted as the favorite waiter at the venue during the annual customer survey.EducationAustin Community College, Austin, TXBA in Hospitality ManagementGPA: 3.2Courses CertificationsDining Etiquette SeminarDining Set up and Table Decoration Training Program (25-hours)Food Safety PermitConclusions  The server resume example above is written in a chronological format. It’s the best option for experienced candidates who want to show their career progression. First-time job seekers may want to use a functional resume format instead. In that case, you can draw attention to your soft skills and education, instead of relevant work experience.P.S. If you are still feeling stuck with writing, be sure to browse other resume examples we have created! You can always borrow more ideas for your server resume from other niches such as customer service or bartending! previous article The Minimalisticlean Simple Free Resume Template next article The Strategist A Free Professional Resume Te mplate you might also likeA Model Resume Example That Will Get Results

How To Find Resume Writing Reviews

How To Find Resume Writing ReviewsWhen it comes to your job, you want to have a resume that really stands out among your competitors. You want a resume that will make your new employer proud when they open up the file and see what you can do for their company. In fact, this is the first thing that they will see - what you can do for them. In this article, we are going to take a look at how to find those resume writing reviews.Before you even consider writing a resume for your career, you need to know what other resumes look like. This is where resume writing reviews come in. Resume writing reviews are available on many websites that allow others to post their resumes for others to see. Many of these resume writing reviews are great resources, but you need to know what a good review is before you rush off to write your own.A good review should provide you with important information that you can use as you write your own resume. Many of the reviews include the following information: th e name of the writer of the review, their location, the purpose of the review, and the date the review was posted. This information is often provided on the review by the author's name, if the reviewer wants it to be so.Keep in mind that the information you get from a review will be very biased and that your job application and experience are not the only things they are reviewing. However, you do need to be aware of how this information can affect your job application when you see the things that other people have written about their resumes.Another important thing to know is that the reviewers may not necessarily read everything on your resume and therefore may not know what you can do for the company that they are writing the review for. This means that they may not be familiar with your work history or accomplishments. Thus, before you read your resume, make sure that you read the review and ask questions to see what the writer has to say about your resume.Some of the times, you will find that when you read reviews about other resumes, they may only review a portion of your resume. This may mean that they only took a small piece of your resume and gave a bad review. If they only took a small portion of your resume, it may show on your resume that you are not that fit for the position that you are applying for.Finally, remember that a resume can only be as good as the resume writer. While you can always go and hire someone to write your resume, there is no reason why you cannot research and learn about the writer. Find out how long they have been writing for, do some checking on the writer's history, and see if the writer can back up their writing claims with their own resume. Remember, just because someone else wrote the resume does not mean that they are any better than you are when it comes to writing.There are many ways to find great resumes, so always be on the lookout for writing reviews. A little bit of research can go a long way in finding that perf ect resume for you.

Top 5 Apps for Mobile Recruiting

Top 5 Apps for Mobile Recruiting The mobile era is upon us in full force, and the numbers speak for themselves. According to a 2016comScore report, the use of smartphones increased by nearly 80 percent in just a few short years, but how does this incredible uptick in popularity apply to recruitment?Turns out job seekers have embraced mobile with open arms. In fact,LinkedIn’s Mobile Recruiting Handbookclaims 72 percent of candidates seeking employment have visited at least one company’s mobile site and nearly 50 percent have applied for a position via a mobile device.Photo Credit- Pixabay.comAs an HR professional, the need to embrace mobile is greater than ever before, as it’s become THE way to source, contact, and hire the perfect candidates for the job. From posting job ads and conducting interviews to actually hiring a candidate, these top 5 mobile recruitment apps will allow you to embrace the full potential of mobile, help you hire more candidates, and give you the results you’re looking for.1. LinkedIn RecruiterevalevalLinkedIn has over 400 million active professionals in its network, making it the go-to place to discover new talent. As the primary mobile recruiting app for a number of recruiters, LinkedIn Recruiter gives you access to a sea of potential candidates and allows you to interact with the very best prospects whenever and wherever you want.This dynamic recruiting app keeps you updated with up-to-the-minute developments every time a profile is edited, a new application is saved, and much more. Plus, it has a powerful search engine with the ability to rerun saved searches.You can also use it to directly call or message potential candidates, share candidate profiles, take notes during phone interviews or screenings and save them to a candidate’s profile. The app allows you to conduct lightning fast profile searches, making it the number one app for recruiters everywhere.2. HireVueTaking full advantage of the incredible features and potential of today’s mobile devices, HireVue is a unique mobile interview app allowing recruiters and HR pros to send interview questions directly to the inboxes of candidates.From essay or multiple-choice questions to video responses via the device’s camera, the interview questions and answers can be conducted in many formats. However, video replies are by far the most popular as they allow you to view multiple candidate responses right from your phone anytime you want. You can even rate and share them with employers or other hiring managers.3. Talent XrayevalTalent Xray is a sourcing app enabling recruiters to search multiple social networks for potential candidates from a single easy-to-use platform. Using the app, you can locate ideal candidates from LinkedIn, Google+, and Twitter with all search queries sent via Google and Bing.In addition to being able to use keyword searches to target candidates according to location, skills, or anything else you wish, all searches can be easily saved via the user-friendly int erface.Talent Xray does the work of three assistants and will help you utilize several avenues of access, allow you to source more and better-qualified candidates. This can enable you to develop the ideal recruitment system by reaching candidates who aren’t actively looking for new job opportunities.4. Interview Assistant Pro HDevalA great interview and hiring tool, the Interview Assistant Pro HD mobile app is packed full of features designed to help interviewers organize and prepare their candidate interviews. With no planning or format restrictions, it gives you full flexibility to create an unlimited number of prompts, questions, and interview profiles. It also has 250 questions loaded and ready to use if you’re in need of a creative boost.Interviews aside, this app has you covered in other areas as well. With Dropbox synchronization, the ability to attach any image or file, and a great ‘Careers’ feature for tracking multiple interviews and providing post-interview rating s, you can’t go wrong with this app.eval5. InstaJobDeveloped by CareerCloud, InstaJob is a unique mobile app designed to allow HR professionals to take pictures on their phone and use them to create visual job ads. With this one-of-a-kind app, you can use your creativity to post pictures of employees and the workspace, giving potential candidates an inside look into the company and its culture.Recruiters also really love the ability to embed URLs and make the photos clickable. InstaJob is a must-have tool for capturing the attention spans of today’s mobile users.Final ThoughtsThese top five mobile apps are essential tools for every modern day recruiter or HR professional. From organizing interviews and posting visual job ads to sourcing via social media and beyond, the power to recruit talent is literally in the palm of your hand.The mobile era is here to stay, so embrace it and benefit from the full power of mobile today.

3 Businesses You Can Start Tomorrow - CareerAlley

3 Businesses You Can Start Tomorrow - CareerAlley We may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners. Millennials are starting more businesses these days and leaving the regular office routines behind. As the chances of employment are low and many of us are struggling to make ends meet, young professionals out there might be onto something and they manage to start businesses without having an abundance of savings. Join the entrepreneur forces and become your own boss as well - you will be a lot nicer to yourself than your previous one, thats for sure. Tweet This When growing a business is all about making a profit, you can easily approach the idea of starting your own by saving as much as possible. Even if you dont have much money to save in the first place; these easygoing startup ideas can kick-start you in the right direction without breaking the bank. Join the entrepreneur forces and become your own boss as well you will be a lot nicer to yourself than your previous one, thats for sure. source The Hobby Entrepreneur Do you love to rummage old bookshops for their outdated but oh-so-charming hardcovers? There are many others like you and, while the book industry is contemplating its future, you can take advantage of the bargains and check out Bookscouter to figure out what buyers are willing to pay for used books. Sell them for half the price on Amazon, for example, and watch your income grow. Every middle-class person seems to be head-over-heels in love with organic produce and sustainability. Give them what you want and continue to enjoy your gardening hobbies by selling potted herbs and plants; your selling point is that theyre no longer seeds and this should be enough to win people over. Start by selling them to your neighborhood and expand from there. You can also take it a step further if youre particularly green-thumbed and have some experience with landscaping by offering to landscape your neighbors gardens. Its as easy as drawing up a sketch together with your first clients and agreeing on something they like before getting to work. Have you ever thought of having your own business? It is not as scary as it might seem so long as you go about it the right way, take advice and be prepared to work at it. Going It Alone Starting Your Own Business Anything you enjoy doing can be turned into a business for peanuts. Make homemade soaps and sell them to your community, walk their dogs and offer pet-sitting solutions. Starting a business is relatively easy if you have the interest and time; its spreading the word and increasing your customer base that tends to require some investments. As youd like to get started as soon as possible tomorrow, preferably, you should read up on the most important clauses to include in your contract as well making sure your taxes are in order. Get in touch with tax professional right away if youre not quite up to date on the system; taxpayers have relied on these lawyers to resolve a wide array of complex tax issues, and your new business will be no exception. Photo by Kody Gautier on Unsplash The Practical Service Provider Do you have vast experience with cooking, cleaning, painting or repairing? You can secure a decent income by putting your practical skills to use and offering to do the job regular people dislike. A lot of states will allow you to take on painting projects, for example, without having a specific license and if you start by painting the inside of peoples houses, you dont need too much equipment either. A regular cleaning company can also be started by simply offering your services and stating that the customer must provide the cleaning detergents. Take on window cleaning as well and work your way up cleaning the windows of businesses later on as you need a bit more equipment for this kind of work. The Creative Freelancer If you have some sort of creative talent, you can launch your very own freelance business without investing any money in it at all. You dont need any equipment except for your own good head, a decent computer and a reliable Internet connection if youre as broke as any artist out there, work on your portfolio tonight and try to spread the word tomorrow. Freelancers depend on appearing as professional as possible to land the best kind of clients. If you dont have any client reviews, complete a project for a friend or a family member and include the, hopefully, positive remarks they have on the site youre showcasing your work. Photography, writing, designing, knitting, and painting you can offer any of these services and, with the right amount of talent, you can do it tomorrow. It should come as no surprise that the businesses you can start for next to nothing are found exclusively online. If youve always been dreaming about opening your own store, you can always consider running one from your own home or even from the garage. With time, you might be able to purchase business premises and look forward to opening the doors of your very own shop or continue to develop its presence online. Either way, youll be in control of your own affairs. What's next? Ready to take action? Choose the right tools to help you build your career. Looking for related topics? Find out how to find the opportunities that help you grow your best career. Subscribe and make meaningful progress on your career. It’s about time you focused on your career. Get Educated Contact Us Advertise Copyright 2020 CareerAlley. All Rights Reserved. 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What mistakes do job seekers make Part 2 -

What mistakes do job seekers make Part 2 - Still looking for that job? Are you making these time wasting job-seeker mistakes? Social media is great for crowd sourcing information. Hannah Morgan (@CareerSherpa) and I are lucky to have an amazing network of friends and colleagues from the career coaching, recruiting and careers industries. We hope you will check out their other advice we are showcasing in honor of our upcoming eBook, You Need a Job: 5 Steps to Get One. This is part two of two posts I published this weekend with great information from our colleagues and Hannah has two unique posts filled with more information planned this weekend as well. I told you our colleagues had plenty to share about the subject!   Be sure to check out Hannahs post today. We hope you will learn something new from these responses to the question: What mistakes do job seekers make? Passive job seekers No job seeker can afford to sit back and hope for the best. If you are not driving your own career bus, who is driving it? Job seekers engage in passive searches that put way too much  emphasis  on resumes, cover letters and job boards. ~ Walter Akana, Threshold Consulting Online Info Both Hannah and I are big proponents of using social media and online tools.   Are you giving enough thought to your online presence when it comes to job search? Some job seekers are still failing to clean up their online presence most recruiters and hiring managers will do an online search on each job candidate. ~ Heather Huhman, Come Recommended Create a personal alias and a professional profile online. Use separate emails for both. Youll be glad you did when its time for a background check. ~ Jim Stroud Learn new things One thing that is a guarantee for job seekers â€" the job market, types of positions and the skills you need will continue to change and evolve. Are you keeping up? The job seeker doesnt take the time to learn new skills (e.g., social media) that could add to marketability while expanding their resources. ~ Walter Akana, Threshold Consulting Applying, resumes and interviewing It is amazing how much there is to do and think about before you are ready to think about your resume, job search materials and interview skills! Some tips from our colleagues: Job seekers are in a hurry and rush through writing their resume or having their resume written, which ultimately costs them more time (and money) because they chose speed over quality. ~ Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter, Career Trend Chris Havrilla, Havrilla, LLC, points out these job seeker errors: Not taking control of your resume (dont be generic, treat like a business proposal one size does not fit all) or interview process (making sure Recruiter/Interviewer walks away from the interview with the information they need not just the answers to the questions they ask). Applying for a job for which you are not qualified or for which you cannot add value. Not interviewing the company just letting them interview you. Too often, job seekers stay within what feels like a safe zone for their cover letter and other application materials. Remember that doing something unique and outside the box will help you stand out! ~ Alexis Grant Follow up You applied, so now it’s time to wait and see? Not if you actually want the job! Follow up is important! Applying online only, not following up with company, recruiter or hiring manager directly. ~ Chris Havrilla, Havrilla, LLC The process of applying online and waiting for a call does not work well in this job market. You have to proactively contact people in the organization. A personal connection goes a lot farther than a piece of data coming over the internet. ~ Harry Urschel, e-Executives Other Tips There’s so much more advice! (There is a lot to say our eBook has 29 chapters packed full of it!) Here are some additional, useful tips from our colleagues we didn’t want you to miss: Job seekers spend far too much time listening the media and the doom and gloom brigade. In fact, job seekers dont screw up enough. Resumes, networking and interviewing all improve by making MORE mistakes, not less. ~ Sital Ruparelia Job seekers frequently focus on the “one” thing they can’t do (some new technology) or don’t have (degree) or can’t control (age), using that one factor as a roadblock to a search. They forget the 1027 things they can do and what value they do bring. ~ Dawn Bugni, The Write Solution Do any of these answers make you squirm? Maybe you are the job seeker who isn’t quite as prepared as you should be? Maybe your resume isn’t quite right, or you aren’t following up? Our ebook, You Need a Job: 5 Steps to Get One, which we are so excited about launching TOMORROW, Monday, June 11th, will give you specific advice and information about how to address most of these and many other concerns that prevent job seekers from landing opportunities. It’s 29 chapters of “how to do’s” for job seekers who want to stop looking and start working in their new opportunities. Stay tuned â€" for those who buy the eBook first, we are offering some free bonuses. Keep your eye here tomorrow for details. If you want to read more ideas, dont miss yesterdays post about what not to do when you are looking for a job. Update: the ebook is available. If you want to learn how to find a job, learn more here. photo by  Alan Cleaver