I just thought I’d write a short post about an article that a fellow blogger who writes Work Shouldn’t Suck shared with me this morning.  The article is called 50 Worst of the Worst (And Most Common) Job Interview Mistakes.

Karen Burns hits the nail on the head with her list of the worst, here are a few of my favorites from this list.

• Arriving late.
• Lighting up a cigarette, or smelling like a cigarette.
• Bad-mouthing your last boss.
• Forgetting the name of the person you’re interviewing with.
• Wearing a Bluetooth earpiece.
• Failing to research the employer in advance.
• Talking about salary requirements too soon.
• Being unable to explain how your strengths and abilities apply to the job in question.
• Asking no questions at all.
• Failing to listen carefully to what the interviewer is saying.
• Chewing gum, tobacco, your pen, your hair.
• Speaking rudely to the receptionist.
• Being too familiar and jokey.
• Sounding desperate.
• Oversharing.

These are just a few from Karen’s list, check the article out yourself.  It’s always good to prepare for an interview so take the time to do your research and ask a friend or peer if they can assist with a mock interview.  You’ll have a better chance of landing that position you really want and will be a success at standing out from other candidates.

Have a great day and good luck with your job search!

I love Twitter! I truly wish I had more time to “tweet” but it’s difficult. Yes, there are tools that allow you to schedule tweets but I’m kind of old school and like to “tweet by the seat of my pants”. Twitter is a fabulous web tool for networking and expanding your contacts base.

Job searchers can use Twitter to learn about new opportunities and get the word out about their interest in a new opportunity and their background. Here are a few Twitter tips that I’ve compiled, some may work for you some may not but there’s tons of opportunities to use Twitter to your advantage.

We’ve all heard about “branding”. Companies have a team of marketing folks that focus their energy on the brand and how that brand represents their company. Do the same for yourself.

Make sure your online brand is focused, clean and effective.

• Use your real name.  No need to use your full name but your real name.  And don’t create a Twitter identity that leaves folks questioning whether or not you are a real person.
• Create an easy to remember Twitter name.  Just like a bad email address if it’s too silly or offensive employers will not take you seriously.
• Add a link to your website or blog to your Twitter profile. This could feature some of your past work, creative efforts and a portfolio.
• Do not post inappropriately.
• Avoid spamming your followers.  It’s all about content, tweeting every 5 minutes just to tweet will make others want to “un-follow” you.
• I love this one and read it somewhere but can’t for the life of me find the source.  “Tween, then follow.”  Don’t just follow people just because. Have something to say before you start following.  I really try to reciprocate “following” but if a follower doesn’t have much to say than it’s not worth my time.
• Twitter allows you to network with so much more than those in your circle of friends.  Facebook is the place for that. Search for people with similar interests and people in your industry or locale.
• Remember to stay involved so that your Followers don’t forget about you.
• Follow people back; you don’t have to follow everyone who follows you but you should try to follow those that are interesting and who offer information that could help in your job search.
• Pay it forward!  Tweet about other people’s blog posts and links.  This will help catch the attention of new readers that you might not have considered before.
• Promote your site or blog. Don’t be afraid to promote yourself but remember that it’s about quality not quantity.
• Include those you truly follow in a conversation by using @ and then their Twitter name.
• This one is very new to me but I’ve seen lots of folks talk about these.  Suggest a Twitter happy hour or meet up (Tweetup) to meet your local Twitter friends and extend your networking opportunities.
• Use Twitter appropriately to find jobs and contacts.
• Try your hardest to use correct grammar and spelling.
• You only have 140 characters make sure you use the right ones.
• Sense of urgency is important when it comes to replies.  Reply to friends who message you directly or retweet something you have posted. It’s all about courtesy in the Twitter arena.
• Don’t get too casual: Twitter is meant to be an informal way to spread information, but like e-mail it’s becoming a popular way to connect.
• Avoid profanity!  This may offend others and makes you look UNPROFESSIONAL.

I’m an HR Generalist by day and blogger, well whenever I get the chance. I am not a strong writer, I truly just write from my heart and what I know. I participated in an interesting interview yesterday. We are hiring folks for our Distribution Center; shipping, receiving, putaway and pulling. These positions do not require a great deal of experience but you have to be willing to walk, stand, bend, lift heavy items and do quite a bit of repetitive work. The candidate we were interviewing listed the warehouse as her preference but when we got into the interview she never once talked about the position. She talked about getting into the company and hopefully moving into a role that would best utilize her talents and abilities.

What were her talents and abilities you ask? She had a varied background and her past jobs were in volunteer work, marketing and administrative work. She went on throughout the interview about her marketing experience, was vague about her past roles and responsibilities, her reasons for leaving and her accomplishments. She tried to wow us with large words, and went on about her existing relationship with past clients. I guess I don’t have to say we didn’t hire her. We might have considered her for a marketing position if she had wowed us but her interview didn’t give us what we needed to determine if she was worth pursuing.

I truly wish that I could tell each candidate what they do right and wrong. The thing is I can’t and even when I call them and let them know we are not moving forward they don’t ask. It’s like they don’t care. I’d hate to think that our economy has turned our pool of candidates into a dark, dreary pool. I know there are lots of folks in need of work and a pay check, but it’s still important to consider that you have to be truly interested and passionate about your work.

Are you looking for a new position, do you feel like you’ve seen the same jobs on Monster and Careerbuilder?

Check out Beyond.com!

Bored with your Job? Click here to find a new Job today.

So you’ve been out of work for a while, you’re wondering what do I do while I’m searching for a job I need an income.  I’ve come across a great opportunity and it’s free to join.  You are probably spending alot of time searching the web for jobs, networking online with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, using email to send resumes right?

So why not get paid to do this while you are searching for a job?  Facebook, and MySpace get paid for all the ads they run on their sites, why not get apiece of that action.

Click on the link below to learn more.

Finding the best job that suits your personality and your lifestyle is never easy.  To better understand your needs and increase your chance of finding the best job for you, you need to conduct a personal evaluation.

Is this the career you want?   Is there room for growth?  Are the salary and benefits good?

You can’t really evaluate a position unless you do the research.  From a recent survey in the U.S., graduate degree holders earn an average of 35 to 50 percent more than just bachelor’s degree holders. This is a reason why more and more are going on to complete  their Masters degree.

Know what you want

Knowing what kind of personality you have and your interests gives you a better idea of how you would like to spend your day on a job.  The activities you’d like to get involved in plays a major factor in keeping you motivated.  You could make a list of the kinds of people you would like to be working with. Say, people who like being told what to do or authoritative types; how about loud people or quiet types; and would you like a place where people love socializing or not? There are different sizes of companies as well, there are small, medium, large, overseas, local, and regional.

The Internet is a valuable tool that assists online job seekers in looking for a job they could fit in. Trim down the choices depending on your needs and wants to gain more choices companies and opportunities.

Your major strengths and weaknesses will help indicate how well you will perform in the work you have chosen. Your progress dictates your maturity and enthusiasm at work. Finding the best job for you should be very important. It requires time and passion to get positive results. No matter what you choose, it should always be a place where you can identify yourself and remain happy.

Remember you have to get up every day and go to work, you might as well enjoy the work, company and the culture of the company.  It’s sometimes hard to identify and find all three that may work for you but in order to create a long term and beneficial relationship figure out what you are looking for by asking yourself the right questions as mentioned earlier in this post.

I understand the current economic situation in the world is tough.  It’s getting more and more difficult to find a job.  Many of the candidates I talk to lately are frustrated beyond belief and I feel bad that I can’t help them.  Even my significant other who has been unemployed for quite a while and it seems the longer he’s out of work the more stressed he has become.  It makes for a tense home life.

It’s extremely impossible to predict if there will be an end insight with more and more people losing their jobs and joining the unemployment line.  Finances are tight for those that are expected to take furloughs as well.

So, what do we do if the loss of the job happens to us? Some are taking action and asking for help from friends, relatives, acquaintances, etc.  Some are getting up off the ground, dusting themselves off and learning that there are opportunities in a situation like this.   Here’s a few ideas that could lead to wealth and freedom.

1. Direct Selling- Start your own business selling products made by other companies. Some examples: Tupperware, AVON, Scentsy Candles, Partylite.  These types have companies have allowed many folks to start their own businesses with very little investment.  They allow flexibility, freedom and the power to build their business however they want.
2. Blogging- This is very new to me but this little blog has already made me a little bit of money.  How?  Affiliate marketing and Google ad-sense.  It hasn’t allowed me to quit my day job yet but it’s paid for itself (hosting, domain, etc.)
3. Social Networking- Yes you can earn money by networking online by using Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn.  There are many companies out there paying people like me to “tweet” or “post” about their products and services.  Again I’ve only made a little bit here but it’s still something.  I truly think that if someone can devote more time they could make a pretty good living.
4. Start a business- quite a few folks effected by lay offs have made a living out of doing things they love.  Some examples, dog walking, day care, running errands for others, virtual assistants, free lance writers, jewelry making, and lots of other great businesses.  These cost very little to start and you have control over how things get done.

Remember even if you have lost your job do not let it get you down, try to think of some things that you can do to stay busy and possibly earn you some cash.   Pleasant events are usually followed by something positive, and it may be just the stimulus to change your life for the better.

I know I’m a little late adding my Stumble Saturday post.  Here goes.

I stumbled upon a site called Smosh.com- the post was  called “Metal Miley will eat your mind”

It’s pretty funny watching Miley aka Hannah Montana screamin’ Metal.  Check it out.

With the number of job boards available to job seekers why would you pay for a site that claims to offer “exclusivity”?

I was conducting a little bit of research on some sites that offer resume reviews; The Ladders popped up several times.  So I decided to research their site.  The Ladders site claims that you will secure a $100k job by utilizing their site.  I’m telling you now, you should beware of The Ladders.   The site states that they will screen every job and every Recruiter to make sure it’s a legit posting.  (Really?  I haven’t received a call from them yet and  I have hired a few folks making over that.)  So the site says in order to enjoy their benefits you must sign up and select a membership package.  Here they are:

BASIC MEMBERSHIP (Free)
Search for $100K+ jobs to see what’s available in your field.

So for the “free” membership you get to see what’s available.  Really you just get to see it?  Do you get to apply to these positions?  Looks like that is a no unless you are a paying member.

PREMIUM MEMBERSHIP ($35 for 1 month, $75 for 3 months)
Apply to over 58,307 hand-screened $100K+ jobs and receive a complimentary resume critique.

The “premium” membership states that you get to apply to 58,307 hand-screened $100K + jobs and you get a resume critique.  This is what I found when I did a search on The Ladders Scam regarding their resume critique:

This is from a post from JibberJobber- “Here’s the situation: You send a resume to The Ladders for their free critique.  Then you get back a letter telling you what all the problems with your resume is, and for a fee they will get you a new one.  Last I remember the fee is around $700.  Remember, we are usually talking about resumes for executives.

The biggest red flag I’ve read is that the critiques are form letters.  They will even critique their own, The Ladders generated, resumes!  It’s a simple process that a salesperson goes through to make a sale, not a real resume critique that a professional resume writer would give.

In other words, it seems they hardly even look at the resume… they just get you back a scary letter saying how bad your resume sucks, and that they can make it shine like new.  Scare tactics.  I’m sure it’s done well for them.”

JibberJobber even shares a copy of the form letters that were received for the resume review and honestly it’s sounds a little scary and intimidating.  If I were a job seeker, possibly unemployed or have been searching for quite a while possibly feeling a bit overwhelmed and stressed this would just make me feel worse.

Nick Corcodilos (love his name) from Ask The Headhunter has written several posts on The Ladders scam, he truly believes the whole system is a scam; I agree.

It seems that The Ladders hasn’t been honest about their actual postings too.  This article again by Ask the Headhunter discusses how they “qualify” positions and candidates.

I believe that if you are seeking a new position whether it’s $100K or not, it’s wise to steer clear from The Ladders.  Keep your money and utilize traditional job boards even if they are not my favorite or best return when it comes to posting positions.  As far as resume review go, there are very many credible sites out there to assist with resume review or resume writing for fractions of the cost of the Ladders membership. And really you should go with a certified resume writing professional if you are going to invest any money on a professional resume.

The whole site seems like a fraud, and honestly sites like this should be shut down.

I have been watching Conan lately on Late Night, I honestly like Conan as a host.  He’s definitely an interesting cat.  He’s got a strange hairstyle, an odd face and he’s funny.  All the things that make Conan.  But over the last week his remarks and statements got me to thinking.  What if we all had a venue like this to rant and rave about our current employers.  Oh right we do, it’s called the internet.  Seriously though, it’s all fine and dandy to think the things he’s saying (and I understand why he’s irritated) but it’s career suicide for a regular joe like you and me to do these things.  Trash talking will get you…well no where!

It’s a bad situation for Conan and I’m sure many of us have experienced a situation that didn’t work out well in the end but remember that it’s a small world and what you say can and will be held against you.  Ok enough of the clichés, let’s talk about why trash talking your employer will hurt you.

1.       It will ruin your credibility with a future employer. They will think you are a whiney cry baby and that you will end up trash talking them.

2.       A resignation is just a resignation. Telling an employer what you really think abut them is going to bite you in the ….well you know.  It can ruin your chances of receiving a good reference from them. We all know these days that employers hands are held when it comes to references, but I’d rather have “eligible for rehire” over “not eligible”  anytime.

3. You want to leave the company gracefully. It’s always better to leave on a high note and feel that you did the right thing than to leave feeling miserable.  If you spent 5 or 10 years at your previous company why taint those years with one bad moment.  Act professional and it will show that you are.

Face it we don’t have the luxury of walking away from a job or even making our currently employer look bad.  Instead of wasting time and energy on something that will only return bad karma be positive and leave gracefully with your dignity still in tact.  It will pay off in the long run.