Career Tip: Job Board Aggregators versus Job Boards in Your Job Search

Like them or not, job boards are not going away, and continue to be a popular way for people to search for new positions being advertised.  They can come with a few issues such as reverse spamming (you join and put your resume on one site, and now it’s on 50 partner sites too), fake ads and job scams, and just like any other site, occasionally someone may hack them, but they do provide a good service.  The reason for this post is to learn a better way to use the job boards while protecting yourself from the above-mentioned issues. 

I am big promoter of Job Board Aggregators.  They still allow the jobseeker to use the job boards, but in a different way.  Instead of searching dozens of different job boards for potential positions, you can now use an aggregator to search hundreds, if not, thousands of job boards at a time.  Think of them like a database gathering the jobs posted on all the sites it searches and stores information from, and then allowing you to do ONE search.  Like in hospitality industry aggregator ads on TV, and I quote, “search one and done.”

So, here are two recommendations:  www.Indeed.com,  and www.Linkup.com.  Indeed.com is the number one job board aggregator online, and acts as a job board as well.  My suggestion is you use it as an aggregator only and then go direct to the company advertising and post your resume on their site.  To be more effective in your search use multiple job titles for the same job for which you are searching, such as:  Administrative Assistant, Administrative Coordinator, Secretary, Office Manager, Office Coordinator, Office Assistant, and Executive Assistant.  If you use only one title, you will limit your search significantly.  All of the above titles will fit in the search bar, and you can then sign up at the bottom of the first page with your email only for daily updates of the new jobs posted.  The other type of aggregator I listed is Linkup.com which actually aggregates company job boards.  If the company job board doesn’t require you to sign up before seeing the jobs they offer, then it will aggregate their content.  It works the same as a job board aggregator, you can sign up for the same type of daily digest email, but it is just for company-specific job boards like H&R Block, Sprint and Garmin.  I counsel jobseekers to use at least one job board aggregator and Linkup.com as there will be some different returns.

I hope this helps you refine both your job search, and saves a lot of time in your overall searching online.  Any time that is saved can be used to network, personalize your resume and cover letter for specific job applications, apply for jobs, and practice interviewing skills. 

Why Us?

I’ve interviewed a lot of people over the years. One of the issues I frequently see is how people answer the question of “Why do you want to work for us?”  Unfortunately, way too often, the answer isn’t about the benefits of working for the given organization or what the organization does specifically to help others, but about the interviewee.  Here are some of the following answers I have had given to me:

“I am moving here to get away from the city.”

“My parents are elderly and I need to move nearby to help take care of them.”

“The company I work for doesn’t treat me well so I am looking for a change.”

Not one of these answers tells me a reason to hire the individual, instead it shows me a problem that the interviewee is having and also tells me that problem may interfere with their work.  Research the company well before interviewing, and craft an answer ahead of the interview that demonstrates a variety of reasons you want to work for that organization.  Try including tasks you will be doing in the job and why you like them, great things you have read about the company, and how excited you are to work for them based on all of your research.  Give real reasons that display genuine enthusiasm, and express pertinent knowledge you possess about the company.  To your job search success!

Job Search Quotes of the Week

"I will prepare and someday my chance will come." – Abraham Lincoln

“Never bend your head. Always hold it high. Look the world straight in the face.” – Helen Keller

Keep Going...

I have definitely covered how delaying your job search during the summer or the holidays can be problematic, but there is one other time that can challenge a jobseeker – back to school.  It is so easy when the children go back to school or the young adults go back to college to take time off of your job search.  The problem is, it is hard to get your search started again any time you take time off.  While all the back to school shopping, and meetings, and upcoming events that start right after school begins can take up your time, you still want to make the time to search.  Even though your job search may be a little bit more abbreviated as you ready youngsters for school, don’t stop, keep going, the reward of a consistent job search is that bright, shiny new job.  To your job search success! 

Career Tip: Don't Let Summertime Stop Your Job Search

The kids are out of school, it's 95 degrees outdoors, there are tons of summer activities wanting your attention, and you feel that most companies aren't bothering to hire during the Summer so you can put off your job search until Fall.  Wrong!  Not only do companies hire during the summer, but applications you filled out in the Applicant Tracking Systems in June, may actually have interviews starting as late as September or October.  If you weren't actively job seeking, you missed out.

Searching for a job is a job, and should be treated as such.  Just like your boss still expects you to be giving 100% every day your are at your job, you should give 100% to your job search regardless of the season.  Whether holiday time or summertime, keep your job search going, it will pay great dividends in the end.  To your job search success!

Career Tip: Get a Professional Opinion

People tell you all manner of false information in a job search, including "resumes are dead," "you only need a one page resume," "LinkedIn is just like Facebook," "a cover letter isn't important," and "if you apply to enough jobs online through job boards you will get a job."  Listen to real experts in a job search, not friend, family and acquaintance opinions.  While the aforementioned are well-meaning, they will make your job search longer, more frustrating, and potentially unsuccessful.  Get the facts from an experienced career professional if you have questions.  To your job search success!

Keep Your Resume Updated

Unfortunately, the main reason we update or even prepare from scratch, a resume is because of a career emergency.  Fear of lay-offs, surprise downsizing, company closure, company merger or acquisition, or being dismissed are all reasons people will need an updated resume quickly.  However, waiting until the emergency happens is a very bad idea. 

Think of your resume as your personal marketing brochure.  Just like a company’s marketing brochure, your resume needs to be continually modified with new information, have older information revamped or eliminated, and be read and re-read for errors.  Delaying the task of keeping your resume updated, whether actually inserting new information into an existing document, or maintaining a list of projects worked on, documents development, clients work with, sales numbers, inventory managed, computer applications utilized, etc., can leave you flustered during a career crisis and result in a lackluster document. 

Why have to remember this information at a time when you are upset about an impending or recent job loss, nervous about the future, and feeling a great deal of pressure to get a new job.  Your thinking is clearer and your ability to remember important information for your resume and for the interview is stronger during a time when you aren’t highly stressed. 

Take the time today to sit down and write out recent happenings in your career.  If it has been some time, say five or more years since you have taken on this task, try carving time out weekly for a few weeks to think back on your career and give yourself a better opportunity for recall of material suitable for a resume.  You should always have more information than necessary, and that surplus material can offer you some additional support of your experience in an interview.  Update your resume today.  To your career success!

What NOT To Do If You Get Fired

People are fired every day; it is a fact of life.  Most of us will experience at least once in our career.  However, there are a few things that you shouldn’t do if you are fired, and here are the top seven.  So, don’t…

1)      Storm out of the building cussing, crying, screaming, or doing anything that doesn’t show a professional manner.  Yes, you are upset, but acting out in front of your coworkers and superiors will not help the situation, and can backfire when you ask for references.

2)      Forget to ask for a reference letter or two.  You will be surprised how many supervisors and other colleagues will write you a letter of reference, even it is more of a personal reference.   

3)      Hesitate to ask why?  If you are being fired, you have a right to know why.  This is particularly important if your supervisor has not followed company protocols, which could buy you additional time in your job, or even save your job, after petitioning Human Resources.

4)      Be pressured into making a decision on the spot if the company gives you the choice of resignation versus termination.  You could be giving up your rights to unemployment insurance and severance.  Read everything carefully and consult an employment attorney if necessary.  

5)      Thoughtlessly criticize your manager, coworkers, employees, etc., either as you leave, or on social media.  Those comments can come back to haunt you later.

6)      Post news of your firing on social media immediately, asking everyone you know for help and appearing desperate.  Get your resume, LinkedIn and job search act together over the next few of days before involving others in your job search.

7)      Devalue you.  When you are fired it is easy to assume there must be something wrong with you, that you will never get another job, or envision the worst possible outcomes from the dismissal.  By funneling your energy into a job search, and empowering yourself, you will find a new job quicker, and keep many of those worries at bay.

While being fired is upsetting, it can also be a new beginning.  Look at your job search as an journey, not a problem.  As Helen Keller once said:  “Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadows.”  To your career and job search success!

Job Search Quotes of the Week

"Rome wasn't built in a day, but they still worked on it every day!" ~ Unknown

Success depends upon previous preparation, and without such preparation there is sure to be failure. ~ Confucius

You Can Never Cross The Ocean Unless You Have The Courage To Lose Sight Of The Shore. ~ Christopher Columbus

Keep Going Even When the Job Search Takes Longer Than Expected

Sometimes that job you are waiting for just doesn’t come as quickly as you hoped in your job search.  It seems like you have spent hours at the computer and applied for 100’s of positions, have had phone and in-person interviews that went well, and still no job.  Don’t give up, that next application, networking contact or referral could be the job you have waited for all this time.  Often you have to go through many “no’s” to get to the yes’s.  A job search is like sales, not everyone will buy, but there is always a customer for a good product.  To your job search success!

Job Search Quotes of the Week!

“Opportunity follows struggle. It follows effort. It follows hard work. It doesn't come before.” ~ Shelby Steele

“The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person's determination.” ~ Tommy Lasorda

Job Search Quotes of the Week!

"A goal should scare you a little and excite you a lot."

Joe Vitale

"The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on 

fighting the old, but on building the new."

Socrates

Career Tip: Ask and You May Receive…

Always end your cover letter, just like any marketing letter, by asking for the sale.  In this case you want to ask for an interview.  Consider using something like “Please contact me at your earliest convenience concerning the Sales Executive position at ABC Company.”  You not only requested an interview, you personalized with the specific job title and company name.  Let them know you want the position and that you pay attention to the details.  To your job search success!

Career Tip: Topics to Avoid at Work (and on Social Media)

It’s almost unavoidable in the workplace and incredibly tempting to take part in when it happens:  the political, religious, or related social issue conversations.  We have all been there, and tried to avoid the conversation, but been sucked in anyway.  So, how do you avoid these topics? 

First, walk away from that inappropriate work conversation, or if it is occurring near your desk, tell people you appreciate their opinion but work probably is not the place to share their current discussion.   While it may be difficult to say this to your colleagues, remember, their conversation, and your involvement can cause trouble for you too!  Being respectful, but letting people know that the conversation is not suitable for the workplace is usually enough to put a stop to the issue.  Second, don’t be the one to bring up these subjects.  We all have opinions, but those opinions can be shared in private conversations offsite from work and away from social media.  You can, and must resist, as the impact on your career or others involved can be dramatic – again, share in private.

Third, is dealing with social media and avoiding the temptation there as well.  Your posts are never private and I don’t care what the privacy policy says, people who know how to access this info can and will do it, and some of them may be your company’s HR personnel (or your future company).  This warning also extends to your “friends” who just can’t seem to help themselves.  You may have to unfriend them or caution them about the problems they can cause with unfiltered and spontaneous posts and let them know you will delete the connection to them if the posts continue.

Lastly, I want to be sure readers understand that you can say you have a belief in a higher power, that you attended a religious service, or take your voting rights seriously at work or online, but keep the interaction very limited.  Remember, if in doubt, don’t say anything.  For social media, you can also leave that post in a Word document for 24 hours, and then review it and see if there is anything you might not want to see, or want someone who holds sway over your career to see at a later date.  Better to be safe in your postings and work dialogue, than sorry and demoted, looked over for promotion, not hired, or fired.  To your career and job search success.      

Why You Should Ask Questions Targeted to Your Potential New Manager in an Interview

Sometimes an interviewee is hesitant to ask questions about their potential new manager, thinking that this will somehow look bad or make the interviewer angry.  Asking questions though will not only help you to look good to the manager, but to find out some very important information that may help you determine whether the job will be right for you.  What should ask?  Here are a few questions to use in your next interview:

Can you describe your management style and give me three examples?  This question can help identify a micromanager, as no one ever thinks they are a micromanager, but will often give an example that will clue you in to the truth.

Can you describe a typical workday for me?  Always ask the question with you being on the job in mind.  Give them the vision of you already working there and also find out if the “boss” knows what your job really entails.

What brought you to this organization? 

What do you like best about working here?

Why do you stay with this organization?

Yes, sometimes for the last three questions above you will get the “B.S.” answer, but more often than not you will surprise them with good questions and get a truthful answer.  One of the major complaints of interviewers is a candidate who does not ask any questions.  Be the interviewee that asks great questions, and increase your chances of getting that job.  To your job search success!

Job Search Quotes of the Week!

“Let no feeling of discouragement prey upon you, and in the end you are sure to succeed.” ~ Abraham Lincoln

Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment. ~ Jim Rohn

Don’t Give Up On Your Job Search During The Holidays

Every year around Halloween I start hearing those individuals pursuing a job, whether currently employed or unemployed say the following:  “I think I will take a break on the job search over the holiday season.”  This is the very last thing you should do. 

People use a litany of excuses for this annual trend, including:

--No one interviews during the holiday season.

--No one hires during the holiday season.

--No one is really working until January 2nd

--Everyone else job seeking is taking off for the holiday season.

--My friends, family, or other people I know said "blah, blah, blah" about the holidays and a job search.

--Only part time, temporary holiday jobs are available during this time of year.

--Companies don’t have any money to spend on new employees during the end of the year.

All of the above reasons are patently false.  Here is the truth:

First, many companies have an established budget for hiring year round, and their fiscal year may or may not be the same as a calendar year, and regardless of timing, they often need to spend that money or lose it for the next year – so they will hire people year round.  

Second, companies do not have time or money for endless holiday parties and fluff time.  In fact, more organizations are short staffed and they work just as much or more overtime during the holiday season trying to keep up with work and hire additional staff. 

Third, not all companies may hire, but they will interview to make those decisions in January and if you aren’t in the mix, you won’t get the job. 

Fourth, your friends, family and acquaintances don’t know what most companies do and most likely don’t know what the company they work for does in hiring,  stop listening to amateurs.   

Fifth, let other jobseekers take the holidays off and lose out on job opportunities.  Remember what your parents used to say:  “If all your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump off too?”  We are not concerned about what other jobseekers are doing; we are concerned about getting a new job. 

Sixth, actually the trend is a boost in both part time and full time hiring at the end of each year, including a Career Builder article for 2014 citing the following results of a survey on permanent hiring for fourth quarter in 2014:

Company size	Permanent hiring in Q4	Seasonal hiring in Q4
50 or fewer employees	16%	17%
51 to 250 employees	34%	27%
251 to 500 employees	36%	27%
More than 500 employees	35%	31%

So, get out there and job hunt and take advantage of a period that so many people ignore as a prime time for a jobseeker.  To your job search success!

Job Search Quotes of the Week!

A man is not finished when he is defeated. He is finished when he quits. ~Richard Nixon

There are no mistakes, no coincidences. All events are blessings given to us to learn from. ~Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, M.D. 

Let a man lose everything else in the world but his enthusiasm and he will come through again to success. ~Unknown

Job Search Quotes of the Week!

"People who wonder whether the glass is half empty or half full miss the point. The glass is refillable."   - Author Unknown

"I can accept failure. Everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying." - Michael Jordan

Hire a Veteran!

On this Veteran’s Day, and as a veteran myself, I wanted to take the time to encourage companies to incorporate more veterans into their workforce.  Many companies have already started an initiative to bring these incredibly talented and dedicated individuals into their organizations, including General Electric (GE), Amazon, Google, Paychex, FedEx, Canon, Cintas, BNSF Railway, Dollar General, Northrup Grumman, Sears/Kmart, Waste Management, Inc., Barnes & Noble, Bayer, Bank of America, Humana, Sodexo, Burns & McDonnell, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Teva Pharmaceuticals, Comcast, United Health Group, and Zurich.  

Let go of the thought that veterans might be too regimented or not fit into your organization due to their time in the military world – these are old, outmoded myths.  Also, learn about veterans with PTSD or injuries and what they can also bring to your team so as not to shy away from hiring them.  With a veteran or guardsman you get an employee that is highly trained, disciplined (they will show up early and leave late), a leader, tenacious, flexible and adaptable, teamwork oriented, and technologically savvy. 

Acquire a few skills yourself in translating military jargon, there are many tools available on the Internet to help, and find the veterans that are the right fit for your company. If you truly want to thank a veteran who has given so much for our freedom – give them a job!

Top 35 Veteran Employers: http://www.military.com/veteran-jobs/career-advice/job-hunting/top-35-veteran-employers.html

Companies that actively hire veterans:  http://vetcentral.us.jobs/veteransmembers.asp

Skills Veterans Bring to the Workforce: http://www.siop.org/Media/News/veterans.aspx