Six annoying things recruiters say

Six annoying things recruiters say by Amber Rolfe Always being told you’re overqualified? It might not mean what you think…Whether it’s in a job description, at an interview, or during a follow-up phone call or email, the messages recruiters send can often seem like generic stock phrases. But instead of writing them off completely, why not try and dig deeper and find out what they really mean?To help reassure you, here are six of the most annoying things recruiters say, and what they actually might mean:  â€˜You’re overqualified for this position…’What the candidate hears: ‘We’d rather find someone we can pay less to do the same job’What the recruiter actually means: ‘We want to make sure this job is enough for you’Although this may seem like a negative accusation, that’s not always the case.The employer just wants you to convince them that you’ve really considered the role â€" and that don’t see it as a step down in your career.To help convince them, talk about what really interest s you about the company, along with your career goals, and show you’ve done your research and know what the job entails.Then, you can turn being seen as overqualified, into being a keen, enthusiastic candidate with a range of skills and experience to offer.  â€˜You’re underqualified for this position…’What the candidate hears: ‘We expect you to have gained experience without any experience’ What the recruiter actually means: ‘Prove to us that you’re not’AKA, the phrase that everyone without a long history of relevant work experience hates to hear.Luckily, it’s also a great chance to prove the interviewer wrong.Instead of focusing on the areas you’re lacking experience in, refer the interviewer’s attention to your strong points. Because showing confidence in your abilities to do the job can make all the difference when it comes to whether an employer will consider you or not.And never be tempted to apologise. Sorrys should strictly be reserved for accidental t ripping and falling scenarios.  â€˜We’ll keep your CV on record for future roles…’What the candidate hears: ‘We’re never going to look at your CV again’   What the recruiter actually means: ‘We’ll get back in touch if a suitable vacancy comes up. But we can’t guarantee it will happen’After hearing this, you’re probably left wondering whether they’re telling the truth, or they’re just trying to spare your feelings.Chances are, it could be a bit of both. And although they probably will keep your CV for future reference, this doesn’t mean that another relevant job will ever come up. It also doesn’t mean that they’ll keep it on record forever.You’ll just have to secretly hope the person they hired instead of you turns out to be terrible (no hard feelings though, obvs).  â€˜We’ve got a few more interviews left…’What the candidate hears: ‘We’ll have forgotten about you by the end of the week’   What the recruiter actually means: ‘We want to let you know when you’re likely to hear back’Competition is scary â€" and knowing you’re up against a lot of other candidates can make you feel like you have no chance of standing out.But in reality, this statement isn’t meant to scare you. The interviewer is simply keeping you informed on what the next steps are, and letting you know when you’re likely to hear back (which is likely to be when they’ve finished interviewing).So instead of giving up hope because you were the first to be interviewed, concentrate on how you can stay fresh in their minds. Following up afterwards is a good place to start…  â€˜We work hard, but we also play hard’ (AKA #casualfridays)What the candidate hears: ‘We’re trying so hard to convince you that we aren’t dull’What the recruiter actually means: ‘We have a sociable workplace culture’This phrase could make you think a few things.One being that they don’t have a lot to offer in terms of the role, so they’re distracting you r attention, and another being that they’re just keen on getting you on board so they’re overcompensating.OR, they could just genuinely be trying to tell you that they’re a sociable workplace â€" and want to know if that works for you.And although somewhere where people use hashtags in speech might not be everyone’s idea of a great place to work, at least their openness gives you a better idea of what working there will really be like.  â€˜We have an exciting new opportunity…’What a candidate hears: ‘We have no idea if this opportunity is right for you. But it’s worth a shot’ What the recruiter actually means: ‘We want to learn more about you’Commonly seen in generic emails from recruiters, this expression often leads to immediate dismissal. And as stock phrases go, its up there with the worst.Not only is it vague and rarely combined with information of what the job actually is, it’s also not very personal. But just because the email doesn’t give anything a way, this doesn’t mean the recruiter doesn’t have a job in mind for you.The idea is to grab your attention so they can actually speak to you, then they’ll be able to learn more about what you actually want and can give you suitable options.So don’t be too quick to judge, and find out what the job is before you instantly dismiss it.  Still searching for your perfect position? 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How to Handle Sexual Harassment at Work

How to Handle Sexual Harassment at Work It never feels good to have someone invade your privacy, especially when it’s sexual. If you’re dealing with sexual harassment at work, there are things you can do. You don’t have to continue dealing with it and hope that it goes away. The following tips will help you put an end to the discomfort you’re feeling. Start by Speaking to the Person Seriously While it may have been all fun and games at first, it’s time to stop laughing, smiling and just waving the person away. You need to put your foot down. When the person invades your personal space or makes advancements towards you, simply state that you are not interested in him or her in that way. Let that person know you will not stand for it any longer, and you will take action if necessary. Find Out if Others Are Dealing With the Same Issues Often, people who sexually harass one person will do it to others as well. You can directly ask people you trust in your office, or go to HR to ask if there have been any complaints filed. Since these files are often confidential, you may not be able to find out who has filed the complaint. It’s just good to know that others have experienced what you are, so there is some support to your claims. Report It to Your Supervisor It’s best to go up the chain of command when you start taking action on sexual harassment. This means starting with your manager or supervisor. Your supervisor should immediately let you know what he or she will be doing to rectify the situation. If it seems as though you are not being taken seriously, or if days go by with no response, you will need to take it to the next level. Go to Human Resources If the advances continue after speaking to the person and your supervisor, it’s time to report the situation to human resources. Your HR manager should complete a written report about the situations you’ve had to deal with. You will be informed how the complaint will be handled and receive advice on what to do next. It’s best to stay away from the harasser as much as possible. You should also record each time you are harassed, so you can let your supervisor and HR know that it is still continuing. Notify Senior Managers If the harassment continues, you will have no other choice but to go to the top â€" senior management. You should let that person know you have spoken to the harasser, your supervisor and HR manager. You should also detail everything that you’ve been through, especially after you’ve filed the complaints with the appropriate individuals. The senior manager should take immediate action by contacting your supervisor and HR manager. He or she should then let you know the plan of action for stopping the sexual harassment. If it doesn’t stop, you will need to start pursuing legal action. Reach Out to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) This government agency protects people just like you from sexual harassment in the workplace. It will step in and make sure your employer understands the seriousness of what is going on with you, and this usually gets people to take action on the situation. You will need to provide details to EEOC, such as your employer’s name, the harasser’s name and exactly what has happened. The EEOC representative will let you know what they find out and what is being done to take care of the situation. Consider a Lawsuit The sexual harassment shouldn’t have continued as far as it has, so you may want to consider filing a lawsuit. You may be able to receive compensation for lost wages if you were fired because of your sexual harassment complaints. Words of Encouragement It may seem as though just dealing with the sexual harassment is easier than filing a complaint, but don’t let it continue. The longer you let it go, the more you’ll suffer and that is not fair to you. You should work in a place that makes you feel comfortable and empowered. Some sexual harassment victims believe they are at fault for what is happening to them, but that is completely wrong. You have not done anything to deserve this. Even if you started with laughing and joking around with the person, once you said stop, it should have stopped. You deserve respect, and if you don’t get it, you need to find a way for it to stop by following the tips mentioned above. You do not have to quit your job because of sexual harassment. If it weren’t for the harassment, you would be perfectly happy in your job, right? That’s why when you can get it taken care of, everything will be OK. There’s no reason you should give up everything you’ve worked up to for this person. You deserve the position you’re in, so take advantage of the steps you must take to end the situation. You may receive criticism for complaining about the sexual harassment. Some people may minimize what you’re going through. Don’t let that prevent you from taking action. They may be protecting the person or themselves because they do not want to fall prey to the consequences. You do what you have to do to take care of yourself. Everyone else will do what they have to do to take care of themselves. Practice stress-relief techniques to keep you calm. Sexual harassment is highly stressful. If you don’t take care of your high stress levels, you’ll end up not only suffering mentally from the advances, you’ll also start to feel physically ill. After work, do something that makes you feel at peace such as getting a massage, exercising or engaging in a hobby you enjoy. Sexual harassment is a serious offense. It’s never OK. Do something today. You will be glad you did once it’s all over and you can get back to concentrating on your career again.

My birthday present to myself

My birthday present to myself Its my birthday. So I get to write about anything. I get to indulge. The first thing is that I want to republish a poem that I published a long time ago, when I thought maybe I could get away with publishing poems on my blog. Now I know that for sure, poetry kills traffic. But I like this poem so much: Employed by Beverly Rollwagen She just wants to be employed for eight hours a day. She is not interested in a career; she wants a job with a paycheck and free parking. She does not want to carry a briefcase filled with important papers to read after dinner; she does not want to return phone calls. When she gets home, she wants to kick off her shoes and waltz around her kitchen singing, I am a piece of work. I like it maybe because its me. Sometimes I get tired of having to earn money. I have so many things I want to do, and its so distracting to have to earn money. I could have married someone with a lot of money and then I wouldnt have to worry about earning money, but I didnt choose that. For the record, those dates went terribly. And I think I am most grounded when I am running my own business. I like the process of figuring out how to make money. I think it makes me happy. I think the hardest part of being an adult is making sense of the contradiction that things that make money make me happy and things that dont make money make me happy and how much should I do of each? Some days I do a good job of doing both. Like the day I took my son out of school for a trip to the city (yes, Madison, WI is the city for us now). I did a TV segment for Court TV (some guy with Asperger Syndrome was on trial.) And then we went out to lunch for pizza and played air hockey. Im not sure if this is what I want though. I know I keep talking about how Im lonely on the farm, but I think I might like being alone most of all. Can I earn money if I want to be alone? Im not sure. For example, I am an excellent journalist because I have a sense of what is news before it becomes news. Ori Heffetz, professor of economics at Cornell, sent me some happiness research he was working on. It was not yet published, but I could tell it was going to be big, so I asked him if I could interview him. Then I missed three appointments. I dont know why. I think because I have huge anxiety of picking up the phone. Having to switch from alone time to time with someone else is very hard for me. I really like alone time. See this picture. Its my idea of a great day: Okay. So the problem is that I love being alone and also, I have a really hard time switching tasks (very common for people with Aspergers), and it sometimes feels impossible for me to do a phone interview. So, this is typical for many interviews I do. Ori wrote: Hi Penelope not quite sure how to explain your sudden disappearance but either way, I thought you might be interested in this piece in The Economist that mentions our paper and in general seems aligned with your interests. www.economist.com/node/17578888 So I could have scooped the Economist. But I didnt. So look, just click there. Its a good paper on jobs and happiness, and Ori is onto something. I love being alone, but I worry about being alone. I obsess about happiness research because I am trying to figure out where I fit in in that research. I clearly do not need as many social connections as other people because socializing is completely overwhelming to me . But I do need connections. I had this idea that the farmer would be my one connection in the world. The love of my life. I thought Id be on the farm and just talk to him, and sort of talk to researchers but mostly miss phone calls and life would be great. But its not happening that way. The farmer does not really want that sort of connection. He is not the connecting type. Dont tell me you told me so, okay? Im just trying to figure out what to do. Im trying to figure out what else can make me happy. Happiness research has been a big disappointment to me. For a bazillion reasons. But today the disappointment is that it assumes we have no limits. The most high-functioning, optimistic people assume they control their own environment and they do not blame other people for their problems. Okay. So I am taking control of things. I am going to tell you how I am going to be happy. First, Im going to focus on what I can control. I could link to AA here, but Im going to link to Ben Bernakes commencement address at the University of South Carolina. People who focus on what they cant control are not happy. This is hard for me. I want to feel disappointed about the state of my marriage to the farmer. I know its not good for me. And its my birthday, so I can do it for one more post. But I promise that at the end of today, no more. Next, Im going to do what Im good at. Im good at creating businesses. I should do that. Im good at finding great business partners. I should do that. Right now Im focusing on stuff thats hard for me â€" parenting, budgeting, fitting into a new community. This is not stuff that will give me that feeling of flow. Flow is what makes us feel happy. Or content Or whatever were aiming to feel. Flow is good. I want flow. So I need to build a business again. Somehow. Next, Im going to keep a gratitude journal. The reason this is a good thing to do is because then we dont take things for granted. Heres a post on Marginal Revolution that shows why keeping a gratitude journal is the most effective action you can take, by yourself, to shift your happiness level. I have tried this gratitude journal thing before, and I have stopped after two days, because its too fun to be pissy. But now I have a trick. I got myself to meditate by doing it with my kids. Once I told my kids we were going to meditate because its important for a good life, I was great at making them do it every day. And now Im doing it every day, with them. So I know if I have them do the gratitude journal every day then Ill do it, too. So I guess this post could be about co-dependence as a path to happiness. A free ticket to co-dependence is a great birthday present, I think.

How I Manage My Work Life Balance

How I Manage My Work Life Balance Today I am pleased to have Chip Hanna, from Corporate Sucks share his thoughts on the topic of Work Life Balance. “Im a busy guy”. When someone says this, I usually respond, Are you bragging or complaining? When writing this post, I really had to ask that question to myself. I like to wear my Busy Badge with honor not because I just want to keep busy but because of the things Im accomplishing. I would also like to think right next to my Busy Badge is a Balance Badge. So what do I do to balance my life?: 1. Schedule As Much As Possible. I try and set deadlines for myself, even when there is no one holding me accountable. For example, no one tells me that a blog post over on CorporateSucks.com needs to be made. No one tells me that I need work out. But I need to do both of those things to accomplish my goals (sharing my ideas and being super-human, respectively). I also find fun activities that my friends would like (TCU Football, Go Frogs!) and plan them out in advance. Ill adjust my deadlines to allow me to go to these activities. 2. Say No to the Good Things, So You Can Say Yes to the Great Things. There are a lot of fun activities to do in life and there will never be a shortage of things to do. Facebook will always be there. Twitter will always be there. They are both there to steal your time. Dont get me wrong, I really like Facebook and Twitter, and its a big part of my day job. But, checking whats happening on Facebook for 5 minutes can easily turn into an hour. If you need to check it, only check it a couple of times a day instead of whenever you want to. Youll be amazed at how much time you save. Be careful before making a commitment. I have a friend who came to Fort Worth and said yes to every committee, council and volunteer opportunity she could find. She met a lot of great people, but was also over-extended. Since she learned that, shes been very quick to say no to good things so she can say yes to the great things. 3. Volunteer for something. Many studies have shown that those that volunteer are happier. Who doesn’t want to be happier? Not only does volunteering help your happiness, but it also introduces you to a group of people you would have probably never met otherwise. Just be careful to not overextend yourself (see point two). I volunteer at my church, working with the childrens department. I get to meet amazing actors, people that work at Microsoft and lots of small business owners. Not who you would have thought, eh? 4. Take breaks Take time to relax and spend time away from work, both in action and thought. This is probably the hardest habit for most people to acquire. We are always trying to figure out how we can be more productive in terms of how can we answer more emails or write more blogs posts. However, we should be capable of taking more breaks and being less productive (at least for bits of time). Whens the last time you had a great idea? Most likely, it was when you were in the shower or going to the bathroom. For some reason those are the two places where great ideas come to me. But its because Im not thinking about anything else. My mind needs rest and space to think of great ideas. Whens the last time you watched a movie without checking your phone or having your iPad by your side? Try it. It will open up new ways for your mind to work wonders. 5. Turn Your Phone on Silent When Youre With Friends or Family. Obviously, there are going to be emergencies where the phone needs to be on. This needs to be the exception not the rule. I was at lunch with six colleges the other day. Ironically, the two youngest people there (me and another co-worker) were the only ones NOT on their phone. I made a half-joke, Hey, let me get out my phone so I can ignore everyone else, too. You go out to lunch to escape work for a hour, not bring it with you. See point four. The same thing goes for your family and friends. Its amazing how disruptive one person checking their phone can be. Your Words With Friends game can wait, I promise. Your Turn What work life balance tips do you practice? Share away in the comments below. image courtesy of visionshare

Resume Writing Tips - How to Write Your Resume

Resume Writing Tips - How to Write Your ResumeResume writing is a tough job. It is not only the content of the resume that makes it look like a professional job. The way it is written, the format and even the wording all play important roles in how your resume looks like. You can learn how to write your resume in a professional manner and impress prospective employers.Resume writing skills should start with knowing how to properly format the document. You should know how to structure the resume in a way that the key information flows easily and smoothly. To make it more organized, you can use bullet points, tables and lists in a proper way. You can also use your own information wisely and avoid putting everything in a single page.Also, avoid writing a resume that looks too much like a resume. You need to write it in a professional way that you will not be embarrassed if an employer sees it. A well written resume is easy to read and people will get more impressed if they see how exper tly you have formatted your resume. In resume writing tips, you can learn how to organize your information in a way that it flows naturally.Another resume writing tip to remember is that you need to be careful when writing your resume in formal language. Using formal terms and grammar can give you a professional look but you should still be able to convey your personal message. A resume without emotion will not impress anyone.As you read through the resume writing tips on how to write your resume, you will be surprised how many mistakes are made when writing a resume. Most people tend to skip over the hard part - the content. This is where the most stress is placed. While writing a resume, you should always include all of the relevant information about yourself. You should give the reader a clear picture of your professional skills and experience. Another important resume writing fact to remember is that it is important to always avoid plagiarism. There are many common mistakes made by some writers when they try to copy another author's work. You should never include someone else's information or steal someone else's ideas.There are some specific tips for how to write your resume. First, you should always consider the importance of the information you put in the resume. You need to make sure that the information is relevant to the job opening you are applying for. Also, you should be able to properly format the document so that it flows well and looks professional.Remember, resume writing tips are all you need to know when it comes to how to write your resume. You should always make sure that you know the rules of grammar, punctuation and word usage so that it does not look awkward and you look like you do not have a professional knowledge. Resume writing is a very crucial aspect of how to write a resume. You should practice all of these resume writing tips if you want to impress potential employers.

How to focus better at work and become indispensable - Wolfgang Career Executive Coaching

How to focus better at work and become indispensable - Wolfgang Career Executive Coaching Im working with a client on career development and his situation is fairly common, particularly, with corporate jobs. Hes interested in a promotion but unable to show enough impact to those who would promote him. He works long hours but always seems to be late with his deliverables. Hes frustrated. There is a lot of inner work we have done together to understand internal barriers, roadblocks, etc. The inner work we did will make for a great future blog, but this blog focuses on some of the tactical work we did after addressing the inner work. One of the items we discussed was the number of projects and tasks he was working on. He had 10 substantial projects on his plate and kept a to-do list that fluctuated between 40 and 100 tasks. A few more questions revealed the following: He attended meetings for 50% of his day, including two hours per week of one-on-one calls with his boss. In these one-on-one meetings he was routinely was asked to pull some sales figures or put together a presentation on a topic. Outside of meetings he often had fires to put out on his projects. He receives 50 100 emails per day, 30% of which require action. Do you see where this is heading? My client was clearly an indispensable part of his team he knew how to get all the answers and he was managing many of the big projects. When questions arose, people naturally went to him. But all these tasks piled up and he quickly built quite a backlog. By Wednesday each week, he would have 100 unread emails waiting for him and people clamoring for when they could get information from him. Even his boss was often asking where her requests were at and would get upset if he was late with important ones. Different management styles We discussed his boss management style: His boss looked at him and his team as order takers there to get her any information she needed and take on the new projects she determined were important. Her tasks were mostly reactionary to questions she received from her management or peers. His personal style was to keep his team focused by moving non-urgent, but important projects forward while he took on the ad hoc requests and tasks that werent aligned to his projects. My client came to two conclusions: 1) his boss had to be made aware of the inefficiency that was occurring and why and 2) he needed to make choices about what tasks to accept and when it was appropriate to push back and communicate those choices clearly. Focus on the essential He developed an exercise that would address both of these areas and work with his boss management style. Heres the essence of his plan: Email his boss on Monday morning or Friday afternoon the 5 areas he is focusing on the upcoming week. Ideally, communicating exactly what he will try to deliver. This lets his boss see when he is focusing on items that arent priorities. List the other important requests on his plate that he isnt going to work on. This helps his boss defend a slower turnaround time to those internal team member who submitted requests. At the end of the week, report back on what he accomplished. If something didnt get delivered, state why. If he accomplished other things, he wrote them down. Most importantly, if distractions got in the way, he listed those out. This plan take some time, however, the time he gets back far exceeds it. Here are the benefits he now sees and you can receive from a similar plan that matches your boss management style: Your boss goes to bat for you, telling others that you cant work on other things right now. Your boss realizes how valuable your time is and shows restraint in assigning you more tasks. Your boss sees your contribution and how valuable productive you are. You get to see what you are spending your time on. Are your accomplishments going to get you a promotion? You can clearly explain your priorities to others and let them know why you arent able to help them as soon as they would like. You will have fewer items on your plate which lets you focus on a few and do a better job at them. Better communication with your manager, more focus on your current tasks, working on high priority and visible tasks will get noticed in a positive way.

Creating Your Network on LinkedIn - CareerAlley

Creating Your Network on LinkedIn - CareerAlley We may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners. No one will dispute the fact that LinkedIn is one of the best job search tools on the Internet. But LinkedIn did not start life as purely a job search tool, it started as a networking tool with job search as an afterthought. So if this is your first experience with LinkedIn, or you are now building your network on LinkedIn, follow the 5 basic steps listed below to getting started. The only prerequisite is that youve created your basic profile. Planning: Plan out your list. Who do you want on the list, how will you source their information? The best place to start is friends, family, former high school/college friends, former and current coworkers. Dont add everyone unless you think they will be useful. People you dont like (or who dont like y.ou) should be excluded. Also keep in mind that your connections can see who you are connected to. Start Adding Contacts: Once youve created your plan, hover over the Connections menu item at the top of the page and select add connections. The next page you will see will allow you to import your address book from your email provider. Who You Know- Contacts Once your addresses have been imported, LinkedIn will let you know which of them are already on LinkedIn. You have the option of adding all from your address book (NOT recommended), deselect those you do not want to add by selecting skip this step and then add the remaining contacts. Each one will receive a notice from LinkedIn informing them that you would like to connect with them. Who You Know- Alumni Hover over the Connections menu item at the top of the page again and select Alumni. Now add your college or university, the dates you attended. LinkedIn will now help you. Who You Dont Know Sometimes you will want to add people that you dont know first hand, but attended the same school, worked at the same company, live in the same town, share the same major (you get the picture). More on that below. Invite Contacts or Other LinkedIn Members: You are now ready to send invites to ask those you know (or have a common interest. Heres how: By Name Use the search bar at the top of LinkedIn and start typing a name (first name followed by second name). If that person is on LinkedIn they will show up. Select the person and select the Connect button. That individual will be contacted via email that youve made a connection request. Once that person accepts, you will be notified that you are now connected. By Company -Type in the name of the company and once you find it hit enter. The next page will show people who work (or worked) at the company. You will then have a bunch of options on the left hand side of the page to further refine your search. LinkedIn will also let you know if you know someone through someone else (will have a 2nd next to it). Select Connect next to those you would like to connect with. Advanced Search for Contacts: LinkedIn currently has in excess of 300 Million users, so it can sometimes be difficult to find specific people or people within an industry (or other search filter). LinkedIn has this all worked out: Select Advanced next to the search bar at the top of the page. Use Keywords, names, title, location, etc. to provide additional filters. Additional filters are on the right hand side of the screen, but these require a LinkedIn premium account. Once youve got your search filtered to the desired results, start connecting! Cultivate Your Contacts: There are many ways to cultivate you contacts on LinkedIn. Respond to congratulations notices from LinkedIn (promotions and new jobs) Use the Keep in Touch menu item under Connections (you can use congrats from this page as well) Endorse people for their skills (you will get notices on this). Keep in touch with your contacts Once build your network, you can start leveraging it to build your career, look for a new job, make new friends and learn new things. We are always eager to hear from our readers. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or suggestions regarding CareerAlley content. Good luck in your search,Joey Google+ what where job title, keywords or company city, state or zip jobs by