7 Interview Questions that will Blow Employers Away

7 Interview Questions that will Blow Employers Away A common mistake that many job hunters make is to assume that the interview process is a one-sided conversation its not. Instead of just being prepared to answer tricky questions for an hour or so, the interviewee should have some questions of their own up their sleeve. Its almost certainly going to be frowned upon if the candidate has nothing but a blank expression when asked, do you have any questions? Dont ask about flexible working and salary (at least not in the first interview) but do ask some or all of these seven interview questions which will blow employers away.   What do you expect me to accomplish in the first six to 12 months here and what is the one thing I cant fail at in the first year? This question should give you an immediate picture of what the job entails and how your performance will be judged as soon as you step through the door. Its a real eye-opener for the candidate: how tough is this role going to be? Are you taking on something akin to Mission Impossible? At this stage do you have any doubts about my suitability for this role? This can be an absolute killer of a question if its answered candidly by the hiring manager. Of course, they might brush it aside and prefer to keep their thoughts private but if they do open up and tell you what (if anything) theyre unsure about then you have the chance, there and then, to address those concerns and further state your case. If that happens you can leave the room knowing you really have done as much as you can to put yourself in the driving seat. Whats the history of this position? Is this is a new role, created due to work demand, or a fresh direction by the company? If it is, is the commitment there to develop it, is there a long term budget behind it? You may also be able to discuss performance of the position and the department it sits within: historically, how has this role contributed to the overall success of the business? What are the top 3 characteristics of your superstars at this company? Taken from this article on CBS News this is a smart question. By asking about the qualities of the star performers at the company it demonstrates the level at which you are setting your own goals high. Not just aiming to do the job competently, but to storm it and emulate the best individuals. Thats how you value yourself. What happened to the last two people who had this role? A bit too inquisitive? Perhaps, but as youre applying for this particular role you have a right to know the experiences of your predecessors. The answer could be revealing, and what it is will probably lead on to another. Were they promoted within the company (if so, thats promising to see performance rewarded)? Did they leave the company to go elsewhere (if so, why did they find their progress hampered here?) If they were dismissed, was that because they failed to meet certain expectations? It might be that expectations are too high. What plans will be in place for my training and development? As suggested here. Remember, this isnt just about you working your socks off for the company, its a reciprocal partnership where they invest in you and nurture your training and development as an individual. You want to grow and mature your skills with this company. If you get an unsatisfactory answer here it may give pause for thought. What are the next steps in the interview process? Perfect to conclude with, so that you know where you stand in terms of the timeframe involved. Theres no point in fretting and losing sleep because you havent heard anything in a week if the person leading the recruitment process has first interviews spanning three weeks and then a fortnights holiday before contacting candidates. Get an idea of when second interviews might be scheduled and final decisions made.

Website For Resume Writing - Learn the Secrets to Writing a Successful Resume

Website For Resume Writing - Learn the Secrets to Writing a Successful ResumeWebsite for resume writing is an art, and if you will take a little time to study how to write your resume, you will learn that it is not an easy task. However, the one thing that you can be sure of is that you will learn it if you have the dedication and the desire to learn.The most important thing about writing a resume is to know what you want to convey to the employer. If you are writing a resume for a job opening at a popular department store, you might want to focus on things such as educational background, experience, skills, skills and education that you have acquired.You will also need to look at what you want to accomplish with the resume and if the resume is in chronological order. This will help you determine what will appear on the cover page of the resume and that job will be listed first. By knowing what is important to you, you will be able to write the resume in such a way that you create th e impression that you are the most appropriate candidate for the position.Once you know what kind of resume you want to create, you need to start the writing process. You will need to find some samples of resumes that others have created. Try to look at as many as you can.These will give you an idea of what you should include and how you should make it appear. You also will need to make sure that the resume is formatted properly and you use the fonts that you need. Also, the spelling and grammar should be correct so that it does not look amateurish.There are many internet forums that you can join in order to find people who have had the same experience as you. Often, you will find that they have created a website for resume writing because they were not getting the results that they wanted. By going to these forums, you will be able to find out what other writers are doing to improve their own resumes.There are a lot of websites that can be found through the internet that will be a wonderful resource for you to use. Some of them will give you step by step instructions on how to write a resume. Many of these websites can also be found through the search engines as well.In summary, using a great website for resume writing is one of the best ways to begin the process of creating a great resume. However, if you want to get as much information on how to write a resume as possible, you should do a search on the internet. There are many free websites that you can use and they will give you the information that you are looking for.

Questions to help you evaluate 2013 - Margaret Buj - Interview Coach

Questions to help you evaluate 2013 Every year in December, I review my personal progress for the year. Would you like to play along? Here are some examples of questions I ask myself: What did I do that worked well? What am I grateful for? What did I attempt that didn’t work? Did I meet my goals? If not why? What could I do better with a little tweaking? What should I stop doing so I can do other things? Where is my time most being wasted? What discipline do I most need to implement into my day? What was the single best thing that happened in 2013? What drains my energy just to think about doing again? What changes do I need to make? Once you’ve written down your answers,  start visualizing 2014. 1. Write your vision in the present tense, as if it is already happening. Where do you want to be in your life a year from now in terms of your career, relationships, finances, spirituality, physical wellness etc? 2. Write down 3 main goals you’d like to accomplish in 2014 3. Write down 3 steps you can take this week to begin planting the seeds for 2014 Please feel free to share your accomplishments and wins for 2013 below… and your intentions and vision for 2014. If you need any help with your goals (especially career goals) for 2014, I offer complimentary discovery sessions. Simply answer a few questions onwww.talkwithmargaret.com  and Ill be in touch shortly to schedule your session. Warm regards   Margaret Buj Interview Career Acceleration Coach ____________________________________________________________ Margaret Buj  is an  Interview Coach  who’s helped hundreds of professionals across Europe and the US to get the jobs and promotions they really wanted. Margaret also has 9 years of experience recruiting for a variety of positions at all levels across Europe and in the US, primarily in technology and e-commerce sectors. If you want to find out how recruiters read resumes, why you are not getting hired, how to sell yourself successfully in a job interview, and how to negotiate your best salary yet, you can download her  FREE “You’re HIRED!” video course.

Book feedback - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

Book feedback - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog This post is for all the people who signed up to review a chapter of my book Happy Hour is 9 to 5. First of all: Thank you very much for your generosity! Im so glad youre willing to help me on this. I have emailed you guys the entire book as a pdf, and you now have a chance to tell me what you think. There are a few instructions in the feedback file I also emailed you. Please read that, write your feedback and write it as a comment to this post. Thanks again for doing this, and Im not at all happy, nervous and totally fracking excited about this. At all :o) Thanks for visiting my blog. If you're new here, you should check out this list of my 10 most popular articles. And if you want more great tips and ideas you should check out our newsletter about happiness at work. It's great and it's free :-)Share this:LinkedInFacebookTwitterRedditPinterest Related

How to Prepare to Leave Your Job (in 3 easy steps) - AND a free class! - When I Grow Up

How to Prepare to Leave Your Job (in 3 easy steps) - AND a free class! - When I Grow Up Thats it! You’ve had enough of your job and are planning to escape from the golden handcuffs. You mightve written your resignation letter and are waiting for the day you get to give it to your manager with a triumphant smile. You mightve told your spouse that youre gonna give your notice by such-and-such an important date (the holidays, your next birthday, after your annual bonus, etc). You mightve started taking action on your dream career and are trying to supplement your income  now. But what can you  do to prepare to leave your job in order to work on your creative biz? (No, rolling your eyes and/or complaining doesnt count.) STEP 1: Take a long, hard look at your finances. Ive never worked with a client where money didnt come into the picture. We often use it as a fear-based roadblock, saying well never save or make enough (or we have to save or make too much!). Whadda convenient excuse to not take action, huh? Well, knock it off!  Block out an hour on your calendar right now for a finance date, and jot down what you need to make every month to cover your bills, feed yourself and have at least a bit of a life. Write down that monthly number and times it by however many months itll take for you to breathe easy about whats in the bank.  If youre having trouble,   you can, instead, think of your financial cushion in terms of the number you’re already familiar with: your current salary. I personally looked at it that way because I knew the paycheck I was making covered the bills and then some, and I was able to figure out pretty easily that my five months’ severance could last for eight or so if I wasn’t going nutso in the buttso with my spending.  ( And yes, Im trying to make nutso in the buttso a thing feel free to use it.) STEP 2: Open a separate savings account for your business and make it automatic. You can open a free account at Capital One 360, and set up an automatic transfer to build up your financial cushion. Want to save $20,000 and have a target date to give your notice as November 2016? Then youll need $1100/month in that account (or maybe $500/month + bonuses + birthday money + client work?). Whatever you can put away, set it up to happen weekly, biweekly or monthly without you having to do a thing. STEP 3: Get clear on your Phase One, and take action on it every day. What are the non-money things that are non-negotiables for you to  start and/or launch your biz? For me, it was a professionally designed website (I didnt have one for the first 2ish years of my business), a secure sense that people in the world knew who I was (I wouldve done better with a measurable goal, i.e. 3 consultation calls and 2 new clients/month), and becoming an LLC. For you, it might be a high-quality printer, $100/month in sales, and an Etsy shop with 5 products. To get to your Phase One pieces, jot down what you feel you need, want, and/or should have and only keep the non-negotiable needs! Everything else can come later. Then, do something every day to move forward with your Phase One so the finish line becomes tangible! I know that these steps seem big, but you can map this out (I like to call it a SNAP Safety Net Action Plan) in  just a few hours, and theyll keep you on target for the weeks, months, or years to come. Then, when its time to hand in that resignation letter youve keep hidden, youll feel comfortable and confident that youve built a strong foundation for a successful business! Im thrilled to officially announce that Ill be at CreativeLive next month to teach ya how to  Ditch Your Day Job! If you need help with your Breathe Easy number, Phase One, support systems, and more, you can watch it live for free June 11-12th  by RSVPing  right here! And if you want personalized attention and can join me in  the Seattle studio,  were currently accepting applications for my intimate studio audience!  

Kaplans Resume Writing Tip - Writing a Successful Resume For Your Career

Kaplan's Resume Writing Tip - Writing a Successful Resume For Your CareerWhat is Kaplan's resume writing tip? They say: 'When it comes to writing your resume, there are no rules. Everything is up to you.'I know this is a thought that strikes fear into the hearts of many writers, but it is true. When you are not a writer, you are still an editor, and it is the job of the editor to ensure that the resume that is written remains an accurate reflection of the skills and experiences of the person that has created it.The first thing to keep in mind is that this is a career objective, and it should reflect your personal career goals. As we know, people who have the skills and experience will usually get better salaries than those without the same. As a resume writer, it is your job to ensure that you document your skills and accomplishments in a manner that is relevant to your prospective employer. It is not enough to simply list them, but to clearly define what they are, and to make the em ployer understand what these skills mean to you.The second thing to keep in mind when you are writing your resume is that all writers are copywriters at Kaplan. No one else has the 'creative' abilities of copywriters, or the 'original' research skills that will ensure that you go from a first to a successful career. Your resume will have to make sense, and you need to be able to communicate clearly about what your skills and interests are. For this reason, it is the job of the resume writer to be patient with his client.Once you've captured the reader's attention and gained his interest, the whole purpose of the resume is to help him determine whether you can deliver on the promises he is looking for in his company. You've got to meet or exceed his expectations, and if you don't do this, the resume is simply a waste of time.In many cases, writing a resume for Kaplan will only take up about 5 minutes of your time, and Kaplan will create a great resume for you. This means that you don 't need to waste any more time, money, or energy just to get a job at a particular company.So if you've been writing resumes for Kaplan for some time now and have never received any positive feedback from your clients, it is probably time for you to write another one. If you really want to be successful in your career, you need to find your own way of writing a resume, and then develop your skills to the point where the resume you send out today will be in demand.

5 Career Insights From Millionaire Business Owners

5 Career Insights From Millionaire Business Owners Recently, U.S. Trust (which is a part of Bank of America) released the results of their latest survey of 242 high-net-worth business owners, all of whom have at least $3 million in investable assets. The surprise? Many came from humbler backgrounds than you’d expect. If you want to be a success, there’s a lot you can learn from these millionaire business owners about risk, reward, and professional values. Here are a few of the most interesting takeaways from the survey. Most don’t come from money and privilege. The majority (about two-thirds) of those surveyed came from middle class or poor backgrounds. Eighty-seven percent of respondents said they came from a family that “valued discipline,” 78 percent said their families encouraged their talents, and 60 percent reported “early work participation.” While entrepreneurs don’t necessarily come from privileged backgrounds, the roots of their ambition and drive are generally evident in some capacity. Read More: Why the ‘Lifestyle Career’ Is About More Than Work-Life Balance It’s often a family affair. A lot of successful business owners work with family. Roughly 40 percent of those surveyed said that they work with family members, and most see their involvement as helping to give them “a competitive advantage.” There are upsides and downsides to working with family. But, when someone is really committed to their business, as these owners are, it’s a pretty natural fit. “Entrepreneurs tend to think of their business as an extension of themselves and their family, often their greatest source of motivation and strength so characteristic of successful owners,” Keith Banks, president of U.S. Trust, said in a press release. “The hard work and sacrifices needed to create and build a business make being an entrepreneur very much a family affair.” Read More: Do You Need More Autonomy at Work? They prefer to work this way, even though they think it’s harder. Despite the fact that the majority (74%) of the business owners surveyed said that working for themselves was harder than working for someone else, 8 out of 10 of them would still prefer to own their own business. These entrepreneurs are motivated and driven toward propelling their own successes. …but it’s not really about the money. You might think that millionaire business owners would be motivated to start their own companies by a desire to drive up their bottom line, but actually that’s not the case. In fact, the majority of those surveyed said they were motivated by an interest in controlling their own fates and pursuing their passions, not by a desire to earn more money. Although, 83 percent reported that they feel that business owners ultimately earn more than they would if they worked for someone else. Read More: 4 Tips for Finding a New Job After 40 They are taking risks, but they don’t think about it that way very often. A very large percentage (49%) of respondents said that most of their assets and income are tied to their business. Still though, 63 percent said that they don’t have an exit plan. Be sure to check out the full survey results from U.S. Trust for more information.