Company Rejection Letters A Hair-Pulling, Teeth-Gnashing Job Search Pet Peeve

Company Rejection Letters A Hair-Pulling, Teeth-Gnashing Job Search Pet Peeve 2 No one enjoys being rejected by company after company. However, there is a certain type of rejection that I find particularly irritating. “A pet peeve (or pet hate) is a minor annoyance that can instill extreme frustration in an individual. Typically each person has several pet peeves that aggravate her or him more than the average person. Another person may not react as negatively or at all to the same circumstance.” â€"Wikipedia Rejection by Snail Mail How many times has this happened to you? You submit a CV to a company for a job opening via email, written job application, whatever. You may get a confirmation email but often not. A few months later, a letter arrives via the post office thanking you for your interest but acknowledging that your candidacy doesn't meet the company's present needs. What is wrong with this? Your skills may have met the company's needs at the time that you applied, but that's a foregone conclusion now that someone else has the position. So much time has passed since you submitted your resume that you probably gave up hope and may have even found a job in the meantime. I've had a few Israeli hitech companies reject me this way in the past, and I was always surprised when the letter appeared in my mailbox, not even knowing that my submission had been looked at. The letter will almost always be some sort of template, impersonal in every way. For-profit organizations should only do things that make business sense. What can a company gain by taking so long to reject you? Even if the mail is automatically-generated, this process still costs money and the chances of leaving a positive impression on you are slim by this point. The icing on the cake is when the rejection letter tells you that your resume will be conserved in the company's database for future considerations. At this point, it's likely that you don't even want to work for them anymore (it does feel as if they've been toying with you somewhat). It rings hollow but you may be surprised to find out that companies will act on your old CV. Companies should just stop this practice. I'd rather get a rejection letter that's sincere but definite than a letter that's open-ended and meaningless. Have you had this happen to you? What are your job search pet peeves?eval If you liked this article, you'll love The Funniest Rejection Letter Ever. Gnashed teeth?

Good Active Verbs For Resume Writing

Good Active Verbs For Resume WritingIn resume writing, it is easy to find good active verbs such as 'decided', 'placed'completed'. However, you will encounter a lot of interesting passive verbs in resumes.What does 'shocked' mean in English? It means 'unfamiliar'strange'. A person shocked by a big fall on his business dealings in the stock market is not familiar with the market, hence the word 'unfamiliar'. On the other hand, an insurance broker shocked by his high rate of interest will be familiar with the interest rate.The great news is that, in English, the active is allowed to replace the passive. Thus, there are many good active verbs for resume writing. However, not all employ the same standard usage. Some writers may choose more active verbs and some may choose more passive verbs.The writer must consider the way he or she type is arranged in relation to the rest of the sentences in the resume. It may be said that a person typing can use any sentence structure he or she wants i n order to find the right construction. But, if he or she only uses the capital letters, the document will not be read and understood. A professional will create the type, use sentence structure and punctuation according to the meaning of the sentence.In resume writing, the writer should try to incorporate his or her understanding about the type of document into the words. He or she should type on the correct type of word processor. If he or she is not the type of person who likes to type the names of people in the document, then it will be a mistake to type the name of the person in the document. It is an error to type something that does not make sense to the reader.Writing the resume also includes taking multiple choice questions to form the content. The first impression in writing a resume is the one given by the type of questions asked. When the interviewer goes over the resume, he or she will get the right impression based on the type of questions that were asked. A profession al writer tries to avoid ambiguous or illogical questions.Errors of grammar in resume writing are very common. While some errors are innocent or are made for certain reasons, they may be considered careless errors when there are mistakes of grammar and spelling. These mistakes may be corrected and reformatted in the resume.Resume writing cannot be done effectively by reading books. It is a complex subject which involves context, tone, sentence structure, and application of knowledge to prepare the resume.

The Fine Line Between Saving Face and Authenticity for Your Personal Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

The Fine Line Between Saving Face and Authenticity for Your Personal Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Authenticity is one of the foremost buzz words in the personal branding world. It means being true to yourself and those around you by displaying the real you, instead of managing your image. Image management is about constant manipulation to position yourself as favorable in various situations. My feelings are that in the short-term you may be successful by being someone that you are not and people do get away with it. If you are looking for a long-term career and life success strategy, you MUST be authentic. Present the real you, the one that doesnt wear a mask. When you discover your brand, you should be proud of who you are and what value you can contribute to others. The real you, doesnt need to hide behind a cubicle or a blog. You need to become visible to be mentioned or thought of in peoples evoked set. An evoked set is a grouping of the top of mind brands in a certain category. Without that visibility, you will have to waste precious hours in proactive cold call pitches to clients or management. When conducting business or in personal situations, you are faced with the major obstacle of saving face versus remaining authentic. Ive been pondering for the past few months. Saving Face Sometimes you are faced with situations that call for abrasive or non-intrusive actions. If your manager asks you to perform a task that you deem to be a mistake or something that you shouldnt be involved in, then you must resort to making a decision. If youve seen the movie Dogma, then you probably remember that there is a devil and an angel side to everyone. The angel does the right thing, while the devil is a trouble maker. Option A (Devil): I want to please my manager, so I will do absolutely anything in my power to accomplish the task asked of me. I want to get a bonus, raise, promotion or attention from him or her, so I feel that by listening and initiating a course of action of his or her request will help me reach that goal. Even if this goes against my best judgment, I know I have to do it to survive in this job. Option B (Angel): This project doesnt make sense from an operational perspective nor for my current position. I simply dont have time, the expertise or confidence to make this happen. My brand and that of the company will take a hit if I accept this project. I will tell my manager that I will pass. This may also happen with your social life. Say your talking to a member of the opposite sex and want to impress them. If you tell them your superman, but your really Clark Kent, then you arent being authentic. In this way, you are managing your image to appear as a good catch or someone worthy of their time. Lying may get you a few more dates, but if you ever make it to a relationship, then the truth will come out. Option A (Devil): For work, I run my own business, with 30 employees and gross $1 million in revenue each year from my house. On weekends I go to nightclubs with VIP access and have drinks with some hometown celebrities. Option B (Angel): I work at a small advertising firm, where Im involved in creative design and execution. On weekends, I tend to go to movies and go to nearby bars. Option A sounds better, but the perceived expectations will increase, as well as your failure to take the conversation much further. Brown-nosing / Kissing-up I dont know anyone who hasnt nodded their head, smiled or said great idea to a person they may not like or disagree with in one way or another. Are we not being authentic if we are purposely agreeing with someone, when we want to disagree? What if being nice to this person will help your career? Everyone has fell victim to the idea of brown-nosing because they are forced into a situation where they must be considerate in order to be stable. I think you have to be careful who you talk to. On one hand, your audience may enjoy an argument or another point of view, while on the other, they may fire you based on your stance on a topic. A lot of this is about ego. You can damage someones ego or you can pat it on the back. This is based on the person you are speaking with and their status level in an organization. If you want to be authentic in every situation, it might get you in trouble, but if you dont it might too. Ethics and Remaining Authentic Ive had a few friends that have been asked to do things that are unethical by managers. If the ask goes against your brand and what you stand for, then I would say to back away from it. Dont let anyone force you to do something you dont think it ethical. Business ethics are really important these days and firms, such as Enron, have been put out of business due to bad practice. The last thing you want to do is to portray your personal brand as unethical. If for some reason, you value compensation over ethics, then at some point you will be caught and wont be able to get another job. To be ethical means learning how to say no.

4 Weight-loss tips from my month in the mental ward

4 Weight-loss tips from my month in the mental ward Most people who are overweight blame their job for their inability to eat right and get enough exercise. Too much work, too tired after work, too much travel. The list is endless. But losing weight is so important for you career that you should go so far as to cut back on your work-officially or furtively in order to lose the weight. Because beware: Heavier people do worse at work than everyone else, employers discriminate against overweight people, and its even legal to do. (via Management Line). So stop putting your work before your weight. Miss deadlines, cut corners, and disappear if need be. Do whatever you require to lose the weight because no amount of workplace genius can overcome being overweight people subconsciously underestimate the quality of work a fat person is doing. Now I want to address all the people who are going to say that its not fair to pick on fat people, and that Im obsessed with fat, etc. It is true that I am obsessed with fat. It started freshman year of college when I was under lots of stress from being a straight-A student (it was a miracle because Im not the school success type) and from going on the kind of dates where girls take their clothes off (yes, believe it or not, I didnt do that in high school.) It was too much for me. So I hung out at the buffet to calm myself down. And I am a smart girl; It didnt take me long to realize that I could take refuge in the buffet for hours and hours as long as I threw up at the end. I did that all of freshman year. And I became an evangelist. Yep. You can do that if youre a girl in college. You can talk with your friends about how handy throwing up is. Some people said, You are messed up. Most people said, Can you show me how to do it? Of course I had it down to a science. You have to drink something milky first, or eat something really mushy, like pudding, so that everything comes up easier. After all, I was throwing up to decrease stress, not increase it, and nothing made me more anxious than eating something I couldnt throw up. So I learned really fast what wont work. (I dont want this to be a primer for the uninitiated, but I know youre curious. So heres one: Plain, uncooked bagel. Very difficult.) Heres what happened the summer between my junior and senior year of college. I had a Ford Foundation grant to research mass movements in colonial America. I kept skipping out on the voting records in Salem, Massachusetts archives in order to throw up in the Salem Witch museum (very private bathroom there) and my research was going to be late. Very late. I went to my parents house to gear up for what was supposed to be a summer of catching up on research, and my first night there, I ate pretty much everything in the refrigerator. And threw it up, of course. My mom woke up and said, Wheres the bread? and Wheres the ice cream? I told her I threw it up. I told my parents I was throwing up about five times a day and I was dying to stop but I couldnt. They checked me into a hospital a mental ward masquerading as an eating disorder clinic. There were not many eating disorder clinics back then, but I grew up in a really rich community where eating disorders are fashionable, and the place was filled with anorexics and bulimics. 1. Understand that any weight problem is an emotional problem I learned a lot in that clinic. I learned that people who throw up or starve themselves treat food the same way as people who are obese: Obsessive patterns of trying to calm oneself down with food. I had to learn coping skills that did not hurt my health. But the first thing I did was worry that my research on mass movements wasnt getting done. I told everyone in the hospital that the Ford Foundation would be after me and Id lose all my money. I also panicked that my professor who was holding a chapter in her book for my reports on seventeenth-century town records in Marblehead Massachusetts would kill me. Or at least not recommend me for graduate programs in history. I went on and on about how my life as an historian would be ruined if I didnt get out of the mental ward and go back to Marblehead. And this is how I know that you should stop working in order to deal with overeating: Because my work improved once I better understood my relationship to food. 2. Take time off so you can change bad patterns The mental ward turned out to be one of my favorite places ever. It was so peaceful. No kidding. I spent most of my time with spritely vixens seducing young doctors (Yes, I dated one. Trust me. Its common.) The hospital was a haven from all the stuff we distracted ourselves with. I couldnt focus on food (it was regulated) or my professor (she couldnt reach me) so I focused on all that was left: Myself. And it worked. I started to understand why I was eating and how I could change my patterns. And once I changed my patterns with food, other things that require self-discipline improved as well. This phenomena is supported by lots of research we want to change a lot of things in our life. For example, I wanted to stop thinking about food all the time and I wanted to work faster on the grant. Trying to do everything at once was overwhelming. But changing how I dealt with food had a positive ripple effect throughout my life. 3. Dont be a snob To be sure, I was not the worst off in the mental ward. There was shock therapy. There was suicide watch. I was surely one of the highest functioning patients: I was writing up my research at a brisk pace, I stopped wanting to throw up, and I got day passes from my shrink to date one of my ex-doctors. But I learned quickly that there is no point in being high and mighty. We each have problems, and the only way to solve them is to face them. You might be fifteen pounds overweight, or fifty, or ten pounds underweight, its all the same. Its all about getting to know yourself so you can take care of yourself more effectively and you can start reaching your real dreams the stuff that really matters to you. 4. Stop using your job as an excuse I knew as early as my sophomore year that I needed to get serious help. I knew I wanted to stop throwing up but I wasnt stopping myself. What I focused on was the idea that I needed to graduate on time. I couldnt let people know I had a big problem or Id never fit in. My teachers would dump me. I wanted the problem to go away. But the truth is that I was not really fitting in anyway, because I had to hide so much of my eating life. And my professor did dump me eventually, but it wasnt because I didnt get the work done. I did. It was just late and on hospital letterhead. She dumped me because after I stopped focusing on food and focused on myself instead, we both realized that being a historian was not right for me. Taking a big pause in my work in order to deal with my issues around food was crucial to getting to know myself and creating stability in my life. So Im telling anyone with an eating problem if you are overweight or underweight work can wait. Stop kidding yourself that doing your work is more important. People are always worrying that they will mess up their career by stopping their work to fix themselves. But the worst job is the job that you use to avoid your personal life.

Learn to Be a Good Listener With Customer Service Resume Examples

Learn to Be a Good Listener With Customer Service Resume ExamplesWhether you are searching for a job or not, it is always advisable to be a good listener. When I first started looking for a job, I was not a good listener because I wanted the company to tell me everything I needed to know. It got to the point where people could easily say what they wanted and I had no way of learning anything new.I wanted to be a business person. I wanted to do what they did. Even though I was hired for one of the initial interviews I was not a sales person. I did not have the slightest clue how to make an appointment with the CEO of the company.Today, I learned all I could about good listening by doing customer service resume examples. When a person came in to fill out a resume or an application, I would give them their information, hand them the forms and wait patiently. Then, the person would fill out their information, sign the forms and return them to me. By then, I knew I had an appointment.Now, when a new company comes into my store, I am well versed in their industry. I can answer their questions, get their information and take care of them when they come in. I know exactly what questions they need answered and what information they need, so they can relax and let me take care of them.The old way of doing things will get you nowhere. Sooner or later, your body will be stiff, your arms will feel tired and your back will ache from the weight. Your mind may wonder where the time went, but your body will never thank you for listening.It seems like everybody in this world has the need for a new way of doing things. We all want to be able to be 'on top of things' when something goes wrong.I use customer service resume examples when I speak to a client. I will tell them what the situation is so that they know exactly what to expect. They can then go about working on solving the problem they have been given.If you are not patient enough to listen to a problem, you can still bene fit from some customer service resume examples. No matter how quickly you are or how impatient you may be, you can still learn to listen to a person and be a good listener.

Resume With Picture Template

Resume With Picture TemplateWhen your resume is produced by a computer software program, it is essentially worthless unless you add a photo to it. Your picture is the key to any impression that you make on the interviewer. So before the interviewer even looks at your resume, he must first see your picture.Most of the job applicants out there do not use a picture because they are afraid of the approval from their previous employers that they did not use a photo. Now, if your employer never had photos on their resumes, this may be true but the ones who still have pictures have no problem about using them.They know that most interviewers can't resist having a picture when they read your resume. In fact, they may actually say it makes their job easier. So they are just going to let you keep your picture on your resume as long as you give them some specific instructions.To help you with the instructions, I have written this article so that you do not have to search for a picture template in a certain site. I will start off by asking you to consider these points first: the color of your shirt, your hair style, and the kind of clothing you are wearing. These are three things that are usually noticed on resumes. They can be considered as the main elements of your picture.You should remember that if you already have a photo, then there is no need to think about changing it into a traditional photograph. People look at photographs more than they look at resumes. Most of the time, resume is a collection of your achievements and work history. A picture is an object that can be appraised according to its value.When choosing a picture, you have to consider that it should reflect what you want to convey about yourself. If you have a hobby and you are doing something like picture framing, you don't have to worry about your picture being approved or rejected. But if you are an image maker and you already have a portfolio, then you better invest on it so that you can use it for future opportunities.The pictures that you choose to use in your resume should be original or at least, they should not have already been used in other companies. It should be something that is fresh and eye-catching. It is also a good idea to check out other people's portfolios to see if there are any samples available for your use.Once you have a few pictures ready, you can add them to your resume. For example, you could put a picture of you holding a pen or a pencil. It will give a clean and clear look to your resume without giving it a hazy look.

How to Attract Top Talent in a Competitive Market

How to Attract Top Talent in a Competitive Market 81 Flares 81 Flares Recruiting exceptional talent for your business can be tough at the best of times, but if you’re in an industry where the competition for super-stars is fierce, you really need to be proactive in your approach. Gone are the days of simply posting an advertisement and hoping for the best â€" now it’s time to get creative with your hiring strategies, if you want to secure the best employees for each job. Never mind the big wigs In the United States, one start-up founder is competing with the likes of Google and Facebook to attract top talent to his business. New Zealand born Anthony Smith, founder and CEO of customer relationship-management software firm,  Insightly, is utilising innovative strategies to more than double his work force this year. According to Smith, business owners and CEOs of smaller companies should leverage their business size. Although working for the big industry players can have upsides, there are plenty of perks to working for a firm that is small and nimble. He suggest companies emphasise the fact that in boutique-sized companies there is less bureaucratic red tape for staff to get through, plus more opportunity to have their ideas heard. In addition, Smith says to put forward the idea that they are more likely to make a difference in their work at a small firm.   People love it when they can help others, or even lead the course of a company over time. As a result, this is an ideal feature to sell prospects on. It’s all about the perks There are plenty of other creative ways to recruit top talent as well. One of the best is to offer the right kind of perks. After all, you can’t expect to be able to compete for the best candidates if you don’t offer the type, and level, of compensation that potential hires value. While many CEOs and business owners may think it’s all about salary levels, in actual fact, all-star candidates can often be lured with other types of perks. A case in point is to consider creative benefits such as stock options or equity in the business; health benefits; time off for voluntary work, or matched donations; and support of professional or personal development through coaching, mentoring, or further education. Seek professional advice It is also helpful to hire a recruitment company to maximise your chances of finding the right talent. Specialist recruitment firms have the tools and the industry knowledge to help locate the best person for the job, and can make the process easier and less stressful. Andrew Brushfield, Director â€" Victoria and New Zealand at  Robert Half  says that, “If you want to hire the very best talent, you need to make sure that they are finding out about the job. Advertising a position doesn’t necessarily mean that the right people will see it. Recruiters, on the other hand, have a large database to mine, and can target and contact people who are appropriate for the role.” Similarly, it’s important to project the image of the company correctly in order to attract top talent. If your job ads are bland and boring, candidates will assume that the company is too. This is another way in which recruitment firms can excel. “You need to be able to grab the attention of potential hires in the first few seconds that they read a job ad,” says Brushfield. “As recruiters, writing advertisements day in and day out, we have a much better grasp on the type of language and format needed to be used in order to be noticed”. Consider taking advantage of some of these ideas next time you need to hire the “best-of-the-best” candidates. After all, the most critical element in any business is its staff, so don’t take it lightly.

Dont Wait Until All the Berries Are Picked! -

Dont Wait Until All the Berries Are Picked! - photo by captpiper Have you ever wanted to do something but waited too long and it was too late? This happened to me this week. I had planned (by planned, I really mean thought about it and decided it would be fun) to go strawberry picking with my boys. Although it would be hot (really hot), the idea of having a productive day in the sun, resulting in lots of juicy, not-overly expensive strawberries seemed like a great idea. To make a long story short, I waited too long. The strawberries are all picked over. Its not even worth going now. But, blueberries are in season soon! You can bet that Im not going to miss out this time. Ive already penciled in a blueberry picking time right as the season starts. photo by eltjoport Even the best intended plans sometimes go astray. My problem? I didnt focus on my goal (mmmstrawberry shortcake, strawberry shakes, strawberries and cream) and my idea never actually became a plan. When a job hunt is at stake, the results are more important than a lack of strawberry treats. A new job isnt going to come knocking on your door any more than a bale of berries was going to start growing in my yard. You need to plant the seeds make a plan to get things moving in the right direction for your career. Are you someone who planned for a new career for a new year back when the ball dropped and 2007 turned to 2008? If you are, I hope you arent letting someone else pick all of your berries! Its hard to believe, but 2008 is almost 1/2 over. If you havent focused on your hunt, youll be right where you started when 2008 becomes 2009. What is holding you back from making a positive change in your life? Even if the strawberries are all gone, you still owe it to yourself to make sure you have a fruitful career! Keppie Careers can help by walking you through every step of your job hunt, from writing your resume to negotiating the offer: