Land Your Dream Job: A Practical Guide
Are you standing at a career crossroads, feeling that inner pull toward something new but unsure which path to take? You're not alone. So many clients tell us that changing careers feels overwhelming, and they don’t know where to start. Let us inspire you to shift your perspective and see this as an exciting opportunity to reimagine your professional future and create a work-life that truly reflects who you are.
11 Compelling Reasons to Create a Career Portfolio
A traditional resume highlighting your awesomeness is mandatory when looking for a job or changing careers. But depending on your situation, developing a career portfolio in addition to providing your resume might tip the scales in your favor.
Why both? The resume and career portfolio have different purposes and unique benefits.
What Do You Want to Be When You Grow Up?
With the average job-seeker experiencing multiple career changes in their lifetime, having a clear understanding of the skills and qualifications needed for a specific role is crucial. This post highlights the importance of professional help in achieving career clarity, including career exploration coaching and career assessments. By gaining a better understanding of one's values, interests, and skills, individuals can better articulate their unique values and stand out in a competitive job market.
Job Interviews: Best & Worst Times
When is the best time to schedule your interview? The easy answer is whenever it works for the interviewer! After all, that’s the goal — to get the interview and the job offer.
But what if you are offered a choice of dates and times for the interview? Is it better to be the first person interviewed? Or to be one of the final candidates considered? Should you schedule your interview for the morning? Or the afternoon? And, if you’re offered the option of a virtual interview or meeting in person, which should you choose?
Here are the pros and cons of being towards the front of the pack, one of the last, or somewhere in the middle.
Your Resume: Refresh or Start Fresh?
If you have a resume, at some point, you’re faced with a dilemma: Should I update my existing resume, or is it time to start over?
When you have a great resume — especially one created by a professional resume writer — it can be difficult to imagine starting over again. But even the best formats become outdated as technology changes. And if you are dreaming about making a career pivot, what worked in one profession may not be appropriate in another. But how do you know when you should refresh — or start fresh?
Can You Explain Why You Left Your Last Job?
Hiring new employees is expensive. There’s the time and effort in attracting candidates, screening them, and conducting interviews. It takes time to set the person up in the human resources and benefits system, and it costs money to onboard and train the new hire. These expenses can add up to hundreds — or even thousands — of dollars. As a result, hiring managers want to ensure that the candidate will be a good fit. Questions asked during the interview will help determine if a prospective employee is a good match for the company and role.
One question you’re likely to be asked in an interview is why you left your last job (or why you want to leave your current position).
Change Jobs or Careers: What to Consider
The basic question remains—do you want to change the company you work for or change your career path entirely? Ask yourself if changing to a new company would fix the issue or issues you identified. Or are they issues embedded within the industry itself and would only be fixed if you changed industries entirely?
Also, think about how you feel about the actual work you’re doing. Do you still have a passion for your work, but maybe not in this work environment? If that’s the case, changing jobs could improve your situation. You might not need to change careers.
Is It Time to Change Jobs or Careers?
There’s a saying in the career industry that you’ll know it’s time to make a job or career change when you ask yourself if it’s time to make a change.
While there is truth to that, there’s more to making your decision. This guide will help you identify why you may want to make a job or career change and give you practical strategies and tips to help you with your decision.
Are You Making these Job Search Mistakes?
Are you unknowingly making some of these mistakes in your job search? Chances are, you’re making several — if not more! Go through this checklist, mark which mistakes you’re making — and then learn how to get back on track.
Help Your References Help You
Great news! Someone has agreed to be a reference for you! Now, what’s the next step?
Life Working® career coaches suggest preparing a reference page that you can give to a prospective employer. It should match your resume's format, font style, and font size with the same contact information.
Use this format for each reference:
Myths About Employment References
Do companies need your permission before contacting your references? Yes, they should. But keep in mind that providing contact information for references may be construed as permission to contact in many cases. Some companies will require you to sign a release form. Read it carefully, as it may authorize the company to contact unnamed references as well (people not on your “preferred” reference list — sometimes called “back door” references).
Selecting Your References
Generally, a potential employer will want at least two of your references to be former employers. The advantage of preparing your references in advance is that you can take the upper hand, identify the “best” references, and control whom you offer the employer as your references. You will want to select three to seven individuals to be your “preferred” references.
Reference checks are necessary for both job seekers and employers. References allow employers to confirm the information they learned from your resume and the interview and decide whether to hire you or not to extend a job offer…
Great References Seal the Deal
“Resumes win interviews, but references win job offers,” says Martin Yate, author of the “Knock ‘Em Dead” series of career books.
Reference checks are necessary for both job seekers and employers. References allow employers to confirm the information they learned from your resume and the interview and decide whether to hire you or not to extend a job offer…
Dispelling the One-Page Resume Myth
There is no “rule” that a resume should be only one page. In fact, there are many cases when a multi-page resume is not only appropriate but also expected.
Even though the length is not the only consideration for a resume’s effectiveness, the one-page resume myth persists. Jobseekers are being misled to think that recruiters, hiring managers, and HR professionals won’t read a resume that is longer than one page. That’s simply not true.
Resumes are Challenging - Get it Right
Okay, maybe you procrastinated writing your resume, but now you’re ready to start. How do you ensure that your accomplishments stand out from the crowd? Are you worried you’re not creative, smart, or gifted enough to write a resume that gets passed on rather than thrown out?