As the world migrates to a digital business community, resume writing has begun to lag behind, sticking to the more staid resume conventions featuring lengthy objective statements and overly flowery language that perhaps lacks real substance.  The ‘meat’ would be left for the interview.  In the last 12 months however, things have begun to evolve rapidly.  More and more candidates are finding that dusting off a resume from 10, 5 or even 2 years ago and simply adding in their most recent job description does not pull in the career opportunities. Employers in today’s market receive so many applicants that your worth must be instantly identifiable. In any job market, but especially in a depressed economy, it is crucial to spend time focusing on the true function of the resume – namely scoring that important interview.

So what does attract an employer?

It’s less about what you want and more about what they need.  So, throw out the summary explaining what your objectives are – and replace it with a company-focused value proposition, with one or two well-written sentences about what you bring to the table for your potential employer.

Then, most importantly, you need to get down to the real business of selling yourself.  Marketing your own self-worth is not within many people’s comfort zones – but that’s exactly what it takes to land an interview in today’s market.  Just as, if you’re a company doing business in 2011 without a website to back up your proposition you will lack credibility, it just doesn’t pay to be a job seeker these days without the whole package. An attention-grabbing resume and well-written cover letter is no longer enough – an active online presence in the form of a social media profile is imperative.

Resume’s worth their salt right now – and going forward – include links to professional networking and self-marketing sites such as LinkedIn and Google+.  But if you choose to include a link on your resume to your LinkedIn profile, you have to spend time getting it right.  A potential employer taking the trouble to visit your LinkedIn site isn’t going to want to see a bare profile, or an insignificant assortment of connections to your friends.  They want to see solid and relevant associations, personal references, a great portfolio and in short – a professional reflection of you and how others perceive you. A good rule of thumb would be 3 or 4 recommendations for every 100 contacts.  Be relevant and be thorough.  Cover every base; showcasing your public info where hiring authority’s can find you is more important than ever. Don’t forget to update your profiles regularly.

One further trend that we are beginning to see used occasionally in resume-writing is infographics.  A dashboard view of your skills and experience at a glance, infographics can be an attention-grabbing demonstration of your capabilities.  The resume examples at mostcreativeresumes.com are a case-in-point, showing how graphic designers have managed to get noticed.  Sites such as visualize.me and cvgram.me will guide you in that direction.  Adding a QR code can help differentiate you as well. This interesting visual representation of you can be incredibly valuable but it must be used carefully.  Be cautious in ensuring your resume still has substance (you still need a value proposition).  If your career has jumped around all over the place it’ll simply look like a gimmick, but if your infographic shows steady progression or demonstrates experience in a multitude of areas that the position you are applying for requires, then an infographic is a perfect way to stand out from the crowd.

Video resumes or personal video presentations are becoming more popular as well – but proceed with caution.  Yes, a great idea for an aerobics instructor or a public speaker, but for a shipping manager?  You’d better do it well or you’ll fall flat on your face. Rather than getting the interview, you’ll be standing out for the wrong reasons.

It’s worth keeping an element of control in mind with tools like Skype.  It can be easy to sign up to all manner of communication tools, advertise your connectivity and then promptly forget about ever joining, never mind keeping up with yet another profile.  If you join and add your Skype contact to LinkedIn, you must ensure you at least have a professional picture, keep Skype open and pick up your messages.

In summary, job seeking trends are following just one step behind the digital evolution.  Exploit all the new tools you can, but make sure your online persona is substantial and well thought out, with strict attention to detail.  Abide to the old adage – do it properly or not at all!

So will your profile eventually evolve into a sophisticated per-programmed hologram that can interview live anytime?

Is the standard resumé on its way out? What does the resume of the future look like?

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Well, I hate to be the barer of bad news, but people judge you based off of the clothes you wear. I don’t care if you’re walking down the street, or sitting in a business meeting; people are constantly looking at what you’re wearing.

Over the past 10 years I’ve dressed like a bum, worn decent clothes, and dressed like a boss. I must admit, there is a huge ROI in wearing nice clothes… especially in the business world.

The Bum Years

When I first started out as an entrepreneur I didn’t have much money. So whenever I went out to networking events I either wore baggy jeans that looked like I had poop in my pants or slacks and a shirt that typically didn’t match. Most of my threads were from Target.

As you can probably already guess, half the issue was that I had no sense of style and the other half was that I didn’t want to spend too much money.

Whenever I walked into meetings or went to a conference people wouldn’t really give me the time of the day until they got to know me. Once they learned I was somewhat smart they were willing to listen to me and potentially work with me. The issue was, it took people a while to warm up to me because no one wanted to waste their time talking with someone who looked like a chump.

After a few years of going through this, a friend of mine kindly suggested that I spend a bit more money on my wardrobe, pay more than 10 bucks for a haircut, and get a decent pair of shoes.

I invested two thousand dollars in making myself over. And boy, it made a huge difference…

Note: During this phase of my life, my hourly consulting rate was under $100.

My big break through

With my new clothes, a somewhat decent haircut, and nice pair of black shoes I made a break through. At first I noticed that people were more willing to talk to me when I went to conferences. I also noticed that during my business meetings people took me more serious.

However, none of those things really mattered because they weren’t big break throughs. What was a big break through was that people assumed that I was somewhat well off because I was dressing much better. When I starting talking to potential customers they naturally assumed that I was successful and my services were costly because I was better dressed.

So when it came down to locking in new deals these potential customers started offering me more money. As I got a taste of money making, I wanted more, so I decided to take things up a new level with my wardrobe.

Note: During this phase of my life, my hourly consulting rate went up to $250.

The Boss Years

From Gucci suits, to designer shoes, to 5 figure watches, I stepped up my appearance as much as I could within my financial constraints. And boy, not only was there a huge ROI, but it was a much bigger difference than I ever experienced between my bum and normal stage.

By dressing to impress, successful business owners started to flock to me when I attended networking events and people listened when I spoke in business meetings. In addition to that I was praised for wearing rare watches that other business owners wanted, but didn’t have.

This experience taught me that successful people like to hang around with other successful people as they tend to feel comfortable around themselves. Now, by no means am I saying that all successful people dress nice, but the chances are if someone comes up to you and they are wearing a 5 figure watch, they have money.

And when you start talking about business with these successful people, they know that if they do business with you, it’s going to be costly for the following reasons:

• You have an expensive lifestyle – if people realize you have money, they know that they are going to have to pay a pretty penny to work with you. They know that if you throw around small amounts of cash in front of you, you just won’t care.
• It has to move your needle – in business there is saying that if it doesn’t move your needle, it’s not worth doing. So if the amount someone is willing to offer you isn’t life changing, there is a much greater chance that you won’t accept it. Due to this business owners will throw out much larger amounts if they want to work with you.

By dressing like a “boss” my credibility went through the roof with other business owners and I was able to do things like close 7 figure business deals.

Note: During this phase of my life, my hourly consulting rate was above 4 figures.

Conclusion

Although you should dress to impress because there is an ROI, there are a few caveats that you ought to know about.

The first is that if you aren’t clever dressing to impress won’t work well for you. People will see right through it and you won’t build any valuable business relationships. So before you go out and start spending money on clothes and watches, make sure you know what you’re talking about.

The second thing that you need to know is that after you have “made it” and people know you’re successful, it doesn’t matter how you dress. Although I still feel I have a long ways to go in my career, most people see me as being successful. These days I wear sneakers, cheap t-shirts, and I don’t really sport fancy watches because I want to focus on work. That stuff was never me, and although I used it to get further in my career, I still prefer shopping at Target over Nordstroms.

In the short run, dressing to impress is definitely worth it, but you also have to make sure that it doesn’t get to your head. You can quickly start spending thousands of dollars on clothes and after a certain point, there really isn’t a big difference between a thousand dollars on a suit versus spending five thousand.

Now that you have heard my story, do you think it’s worth dressing to impress?

Original Source: QuickSprout.com

There’s a lot of saturation in the job market these days. The attention span of hiring managers has dropped from 20 seconds to around 9 seconds. As such it’s increasingly harder to get their attention – in a good way, that is.

Acquiring the services of a professional career strategist or a dedicated resume writer might be the answer. They can give you an objective analysis of your resume and how it stands out, and they know how to best position yourself to get further along in the hiring process.

Nowadays, there are plenty of professional services out there to serve the struggling and the gainfully employed career hunter. Here are some of them:

• Professional resume writing

We all know they’re the make or break portion of the application process. They need to market yourself; they need to highlight what you can bring to the table; and they need to do this in one to three pages. But a professional resume writer should be your first call. If you can – DON’T write your own resume from scratch.  It’s very difficult to stay objective when you write your professional bio (and resume standards have evolved more then you might think). Even more, there are resume writers who specialize in almost every industry. They know and understand the buzzwords, terminologies, jargon and key words used. They will help you tailor your resume to the specific industry or position you’re pursuing.

• Cover letter prep

While cover letters may be not always be essential, it’s still important to keep them in your arsenal as an accompaniment to your resume. They need to be personalized, simple and compelling. Professional resume writers will help you write a top-quality cover letter that serves to introduce yourself through a value proposition to the hiring authority.

• Resume distribution (Tapping into the hidden job market)

What good is it helping you fix your car and not being able to see you take it for a spin? Not only can you get help crafting your resume, you can also get help distributing it as well. Agency and third party recruiters can also make sure your resume gets sent to specific and carefully selected organizations within your industry and geographic location.

• Personal Branding

Having trouble selling yourself? You’re not alone. Many job applicants have trouble with marketing themselves. It’s not in our nature to self promote. We are often too modest when it comes to our achievements. Overselling yourself can also be a problem. A professional career expert can help you identify key leadership traits, transferable skills and innate talents that you can showcase and bring to the table to help you stand out from your competition.

• LinkedIn profile optimization

LinkedIn is like Facebook, but for professionals only. That’s how we describe it to our clients. This popular professional (and sometimes social) networking tool has become a significant part of a job search strategy in 2011. So, it’s important to optimize your profile as much as you can in order to build your network and sell yourself within the network. LinkedIn profile writing is an art (and part science) – just remember not to over-brand yourself.

• Interview coaching

The resume is only part one of the process. If you’ve enticed them enough, you’ll earn a face-to-face – or phone – interview. And there’s a difference between reading about someone on a piece of paper and meeting them for the first time. Talking to an interview coach can allow you to anticipate questions, plan on how to answer them, and think about what to wear,  as well as your etiquette and body language techniques. By working with a coach, you can get ready to meet with a company for a one-on-one interview, panel interview and behavioural interview

Keep in mind you want to do to the best you can to stand out in your industry. From writing your resume to developing your LinkedIn profile to going in for an interview, it’s all one big process. Everything counts and getting professional career help will give you an unfair advantage over other candidates applying for your next career opportunity.

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And so, there are a lot of helpful tips out there on what kind of questions to expect, how best to answer them, as well as how you should dress. So, we’ve decided to offer further assistance with some tips that are often overlooked by job hunters. But, in reality, they can sometimes make all the difference.

• Do your homework on the organization!

We recommend looking up on three things in particular about the company:

i)                    Read their annual report. Understand the keywords they use in how they present themselves to the market. It’s highly effective to replicate those keywords while presenting yourself in the interview. If it’s a character trait that represents their company culture you should know it.

ii)                  Research the leadership team and who will be interviewing you. Scope them out on LinkedIn or Google them. Know their background and interests. If they went to the same alma mater as you, or they enjoy golf, wind-sailing, or if they enjoy curling just as much as you do, it would make for a good ice-breaker.

iii)                Leaf through the company’s most recent press releases and the news for any mention of them. If they recently expanded their business (or lost some of it), be aware of it or any new initiatives they have.

Based on what you find out, come prepared to the interview with a list of 10 questions. And then choose the top three to ask when you summarize your interest.

• Get a good amount of sleep the night before.

Remember to be well-rested, especially if you have a morning interview. You don’t want to appear groggy or half-asleep in the interview. And we suggest you to try to avoid coffee. A stimulant, coffee can make you jittery. So, if anything, we suggest Gatorade.

• Acquaint yourself via the receptionist.

Receptionists are the eyes and ears of any organization. So, it’s always a good idea to acquaint yourself with the company via the receptionist or the first person to greet you as you walk into the office. The hiring authority may even ask them for their opinion of you. If you were even slightly rude or brash to the receptionist, the hiring manager might find about it. So, remember to give a good first impression with the company’s receptionist.

• Take your jacket off and put your bag down (if you have one).

Like I said, some of these tips may seem minor and silly, but they can make all the difference in how the hiring manager perceives you. Taking off your jacket and removing your bag gives the impression that you’re relaxed, that you’re comfortable and that you’re happy to be there. You don’t want to sit down in the interview with the impression that you’re ready to leave already.

• Maintain eye contact and pay attention to your body language.

Both of these are critical. It’s important to look your interviewer directly in the eye, as you’re talking to them and as they’re talking to you. But don’t stare. And keeping eye contact doesn’t necessarily mean looking the same way non-stop. Keep eye contact, but move your eyes around. If you have more than one interviewer, alternate between them. And this may sound weird but remember to blink.

Also keep in mind your body language. Between 30 and 60 per cent of an interview is influenced by body language. It can either give off the impression that you’re interested in the position and the organization, or that you don’t want to be there.

• Have a closing statement at the end of the interview.

This allows you to reaffirm your interest in the position and sum up what you can bring to the table. But, as far as closing statements go, it depends on which of these three options you fall under:

i)                    You’re heavily interested in the position,

ii)                  You aren’t that interested in the position,

iii)                Or you’re uncertain, but would like to continue on in the interview process.

• Always follow up with a thank you note.

This too can make all the difference. It leaves a positive impression in the hiring manager’s mind. It also helps to reaffirm your interest in working with their organization and remain memorable to the hiring authorities. Remember to keep your thank you note short and sweet. And keep in mind that you don’t necessarily have to say thank you. Reaffirming your interest in the position is more important.

Also, if you had a morning interview, mail the note five hours later at the most. If your interview was in the late afternoon or early evening, try for a seven a.m. note.

The fact remains that job interviews are often about perception. Anything can happen that can lead the hiring authorities to judging you negatively. So, don’t give them a reason to.

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But this first step isn’t over yet. You still need to write and send a thank you note to your interviewer. However minor it may sound, this simple note helps to reaffirm your interest in the position and the organization, and it leaves a lasting impression in the hiring authority’s mind.

So, let’s go through several tips on how to write a top-notch thank you note and things to keep in mind when sending it.

• Follow-up almost immediately after your interview.

If you’ve had a morning interview, send a thank you note at most four-five hours later. If your interview was held in the late afternoon or early evening, send a note in the next morning at around 7 am. This way, when the hiring manager gets into the office, you’re one of the first things on their mind.

• Remember you don’t actually have to say the words “thank you.”

It’s funny that we call it a thank you note, but saying thank you isn’t actually the most essential part of your message. Keep in mind that merely thanking the hiring manager for their time isn’t enough. It’s even more important to reaffirm your interest in continuing on with your candidacy and inquire about next steps in the process.

• Keep it short and sweet.

In terms of the writing style, it’s best to keep it short and sweet. Sure, you want to tell them again that you’re interested in the position and you want to know about the next steps in the application process, but you don’t want to oversell yourself or pad up the note with extraneous details to try to make yourself look good. That’s what the resume and interview were for. Now, you just want to write a simple little paragraph summing up your interest and keeping yourself on top of their minds.

• What’s that? It doesn’t even need to be hand-written?

It’s true that hand-written notes are deemed more personal. But in this case, handwriting your “thank you” note isn’t necessary. In fact, when you have a late interview and you’re trying to send them a note early the next morning, a quick email might be best to get something out as soon as possible. Also, if you’re like me and find your handwriting can pass for a monkey’s, email would also be better.

• Personalize it!

This is an absolute given. Like all letters, it needs to be personally addressed to the hiring authority who interviewed. If you were interviewed by more than one person, you should consider sending a note to each one. If you do have multiple interviewers, it would also depend on whether the interview went well and if you’re developed rapports with anyone specific. Use judgment, however. You may not know who in the group makes the ultimate hiring decision. It’s also a good idea to highlight a key part of your interview to make yourself more memorable to the hiring authority.

• Proofread it!

You think just because it’s a thank you note that it doesn’t matter if there’s a typo? Wrong! Making a typo on a thank you note is easily in the same ballpark as making a typo on your resume. So make sure you edit it carefully before sending it out.

More than 60% of job seekers don’t send a thank you note. And more than 80% don’t send a thank you note to the person who got them the interview. Remember thank you notes need to go out to the person who got you in the door, that could mean a friend or acquaintance or even an agency recruiter. Keep in mind that you want to brief but compelling in your thank you note. And don’t underestimate its usefulness, its the best way to stay top of mind.

Sending your interviewer a compelling thank you note immediately after the interview will further help you stand out from the competition.

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Have you ever had to leave your job for an interview at another company? It happens, and it’s a tricky situation to be in. You want to show up for the interview at the time your potential employer requests, but you also don’t want to upset your current employer.

It is possible to attend job interviews while at work, but you have to be careful! Here are a few ways that you can sneak out for an hour or two without risking your current position.

* Some ways to tell your employer you have to take an interview include:

1. Family Emergency – Say that one of your family members is sick and has to be taken to the hospital. Tell your boss that you must accompany them and that you’ll be back as soon as you can. This way, there’s time for you to attend the interview you planned for ahead of time. Be confident and tell your boss you’ll be back as soon as possible.
2. Sick Leave – If you aren’t feeling well or if you think you need to take a break, let your boss know. Tell them that you have a bad case of diarrhea, which always works, or you can just say that you caught something contagious and it’s starting to spread. Sneezing and coughing obnoxiously always works.
3. Allergy Alert – Say you accidently ate something you’re allergic to and you’re going to start swelling up and breaking out in hives if you don’t get out of there. There’s always a chance you ate something bad and is experiencing stomach cramps, so you can make the excuse that you caught an allergy from the peanuts you ate or the iced tea you drank during lunch. Or if you’re feeling nauseous and is having a bad headache, you could use that as an excuse to leave work.
4. Memorial Service – This should only be used in desperate situations, but if you have to use it, it should always work. You should know about the interview a day or two in advance, so mention you’ll be heading to a funeral. In the worst possible situation you can say that you have a memorial service to attend and that you just learned about it during the day. You have to act like you’re desperate in order to convince the boss that you genuinely need to go. Note: This is not a good excuse to make so don’t use it unless you are sure you can pull it off.
5. House Fire – Everyone can understand that. Say you left your iron/curling iron/stove/water on and you have to run back for an hour before your house combusts. It should get you enough time for an interview. Again, this is not a good idea but if you are truly desperate about that interview, you can tell your boss that you left the water running or the stove on and it is burning as you speak. This will sure convince the boss that you need to go and anyone can sympathize with this critical issue.
6. Pet Emergency – People love pets. If you say your dog is locked in a closet or your cat slipped out of the door when the kids left for school and now everyone is crying, it should buy you an hour or two. Even if you don’t own a pet, you can say that your dog locked itself in the basement or your cat has gone missing and one of your neighbours called that they found it lost in the backyard of your house. This may not work, but you can always try it and see how it goes down.
7. Traffic Ticket – Say you have a court date to fight a traffic ticket. If you are running out of excuses, there’s always the speeding ticket excuse. Say that you ran over a red light on accident in the morning and you have to go to traffic school to get it settled. There’s nothing more important than making sure your traffic record is clean. You can go even further and say that you got a police report and that you must attend a court hearing later in the day or your points will be taken off.
8. Tax Bill Error – If worse come to worse and you’re running out of ideas, say that your tax return bill has an error and you must fix it because the due date is near. Perhaps you have an accountant to do the tax bill for you but he or she made some clerical errors and it needs to be audited. The point is not to make the accountant look guilty but to convince the boss you have to rectify the situation.
9. Work from Home – If you are really not feeling well or you are stuck with a sick child at home, you can tell your boss about it and hope that he or she can sympathize with your situation. You can call your boss from home and have a live conference with him, or you can e-mail him directly about your absence and hope for the best. Make sure you tell him you took all your work home and that you’re completing the tasks as you speak.
10. Doctor’s Appointment – And finally, if you can’t come up with any other excuse, pull the easy card and say that you scheduled an appointment with your family doctor and that you have to attend it during work. It’s the most common excuse workers use but that doesn’t mean you can’t spin it in another direction and say that you haven’t been to the doctor in months and you’re in really bad physical shape.

If this long list of excuse ideas doesn’t impress you, you can always come up with your own. But at least they can get you started on thinking about excuses to leave work if you really need to at some point. Going to an interview during work is not easy, especially if your boss is really demanding, but if you have no other choice, you have to come up with a convincing idea to leave for that interview or you may miss your chance to get hired in a higher level of profession.

Lastly, don’t let your fear of being fired hold you down, as long as you build really tight relationships with your bosses and tell them beforehand of the meeting you scheduled; they may let you go for the day. It’s not easy making up excuses to go to an interview during work, but when opportunity strikes, you can’t just let the chance pass you by.

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ABRACADABRA! Getting hired or headhunted is not a magic trick  – all it takes is hard work and the right formula to position yourself as a candidate in demand. In my six years of headhunting top talent through LinkedIn, I found that not only does the professional network allow me to connect with amazing market leaders and industry players, but the referrals are also exceptional. Practice good LinkedIn etiquette and you too can be a Harry Houdini of job offers, opening doors of opportunity!

In the present economy, it is easier to keep a tab on jobs lost than jobs found. It is also not difficult to find people who have been applying for jobs, as many as ten jobs a day on an average, but to no avail. If you are looking for work, the secret to getting hired might just be a click away.

Lets face it, in the 21st century, it is not possible to avoid technology. Even if you are not active in the virtual world, chances are that you have an account on Facebook and/or Twitter. But, with a clear emphasis on professional networking, LinkedIn is different. LinkedIn is an online community of thousands of employers, large and small, recruiters, job seekers and those who are simply on the website to network with industry professionals. LinkedIn has more than 90 million members in over 200 countries around the globe and a new member joins LinkedIn approximately every second.

Meet Stephen Weinstein. Based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Stephen has over 25 years of professional corporate communications and public relations experience with large scale enterprises and Fortune 500 companies. Stephen joined LinkedIn about five years ago after doing extensive research to establish the credibility of the website. Soon after registering, Stephen saw that LinkedIn was a lot more than a tool to reconnect with friends from school and former colleagues. “After realizing that the site was a legitimate social and professional networking site, the actual experience of setting up my LinkedIn account was painless and somewhat introspective. I had to remember and describe my professional past, had to find a photo which I wanted to use to represent myself to my connections and others, had to start the process of social networking – asking others to join my network, and, as I became more comfortable, asked people for professional recommendations. I quickly formed groups which I still manage, and find groups which I wanted to join,” says Stephen. At the time, however, Stephen was comfortable in his job as a Public Relations Manager. Stephen remembers getting a phone call from a recruiter who came across his profile while scanning LinkedIn. “I wondered if I knew of anyone who may be interested in a position she was looking to fill. I told her that I had a pretty broad network, and would be willing to pass the job description around for her, if she would send it to me… I opened the document, and as I scanned it, it read like my dream job.” A week later Stephen called her back and began the interview process. “Six interviews, three months and one psychological evaluation later, I was hired, all thanks to social networking.”

Still not convinced? Meet Jill Gaynor, a recruiter from New York City. Jill started using LinkedIn to tap into a new candidate pool and to reach passive candidates. “On the job boards and with internal databases, you tend to come across a lot of the same candidates but on LinkedIn, you can find the exact candidates you are looking for. LinkedIn is more about building relationships, whereas other outlets it’s purely about sourcing,” according to Jill. If you are looking for a job, it would be in your best interest to understand the difference between LinkedIn and job boards, such as Monster or CareerBuilder. “With job boards you know that everyone who is on there is actively looking, so it’s a matter of picking up the phone, calling that individual and assessing their viability. With LinkedIn, you need to take a totally different approach. You need to connect to people from a networking stand point. Something that my company prides itself on is never invasively recruiting, so when I am approaching someone about a position, I state that upfront and let them make the call whether they want to pursue or not,” says Jill.

So, if you are looking for a job, know that unlike job boards, LinkedIn comes with a level of credibility and professional camaraderie. Both Jill and Stephen agree that the most important advice they can offer is to have a complete profile on LinkedIn, irrespective of whether or not you are job hunting. According to Stephen, “Network. It’s the most valuable asset you have. In times like this, it is certainly not WHAT you know, but WHO you know that will do you the most good. Conduct informational interviews, look at LinkedIn for potential contacts, arrange lunch dates and morning coffees with acquaintances. Ask for referrals – “Who else do you know that I might be able to call and who might be willing to talk with me about my search.”

Remember, when back in the 90s the Online Career Center was launched as a non-profit organization, backed by 40 major corporations as a system for job hunters to store their resumes within the databases as well as for recruiters to post job openings to the database? It revolutionized the whole process of job hunting. Similarly, according to Jill, “LinkedIn is the new rage and every recruiter is trying it out and excited to make new connects… Every company is using LinkedIn to post jobs these days, especially to groups because it’s free.  And, I can say from my own experience, we don’t get a ton of replies, so when we do, every response stands out.”

So, if you are one of those people who feel overwhelmed by technology and have inactive accounts on Facebook and Twitter, it may be time to have just one active account on LinkedIn. Executives from all Fortune 500 companies are LinkedIn members. LinkedIn can help you get a job, if you are looking for one, but if you are already employed, you may want to join simply to network and keep up with the professionals in your industry.

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Instead of feeling crushed by the negative experience, Earl began updating his portfolio, which included getting his cover letter and resume done professionally. He decided to build a blog, customized it to his personality and posted his resume, cover letter, and samples of his work on his blog. Earl knew building a blog is one thing, “but getting people to read it is another.”

Earl began searching his favorite social media sites for groups, fan pages, and notable people in his industry.  He approached social media as he would an interaction at a coffee shop – a polite introduction, honest and respectful conversation, and above all authenticity.  By researching people’s online profiles, Earl felt encouraged by the fact that even the top CEOs once started further down on the ladder.

E‌arl followed not just CEOs, but also the people the CEOs followed. This at times ended up being staff members and crew, who gave very helpful advice to everyone about making it in the industry. Earl took their advice, and every month updated his blog with a new project he had started. With multiple projects on the go, Earl was updating every day. Thanks to his good sense of blog organization, he kept the projects grouped together.

Earl also changed the way he used Facebook and Twitter. Earl knew potential employers were watching.  He changed his online profile to reflect a more professional look. Earl updated his Facebook and Twitter status whenever he posted to his blog.  He would receive re-tweets and shared links galore. Earl enjoyed being engaged with this online community.

What Earl didn’t realize just yet was the magnitude of his network. With his blog, Facebook and Twitter accounts, he had made quality connections with people in his industry and one day caught the eye of a recruiter at Google.  Referred by Earl’s friend from school, Marcus, the recruiter called and requested to meet Earl over coffee to discuss his blog.  Earl thought he was going to meet a student or a teacher from his school to discuss his projects.

The coffee date was more formal then Earl had expected. He was asked a wide variety of questions about his projects and career goals. Earl answered all questions in a definitive manner and spoke honestly. If something did not go right, he admitted to it and explained the solution that he was working on to fix the problem. Earl was genuinely surprised when the “student” offered him valuable solutions to some of the challenges. However, the true shock came when Earl learned that his new friend represented Google, and he had just passed his first interview. Earl was then invited for a  follow up interview.

Why was Earl shocked when he found himself in a job interview with Google?

Earl did not directly follow this person on Twitter nor did he know he existed in the capacity of a recruiter. However Earl’s friend Marcus retweeted Earl’s work constantly, and it so happened that the recruiter followed Marcus on Twitter.

Earl arrived early to the second interview and was promptly taken to meet the project manager Eric. Eric liked to hold his interviews over games of chance in order to gauge a person’s character and interpersonal skills. Much like the recruiter, Eric submitted to Earl a series of problems and asked him  how he would go on to build solutions.

Earl felt lost as he had never been in what was an informal interview with behavioral  questions.  At first, he felt unsure, but managed to calm down quickly as was instructed by his  interview coach in interview review exercises. Eric was impressed by Earl’s composure and integrity and asked Earl to follow him to a conference room. Inside the conference room was a large screen displaying a Google executive.

Earl described what followed as surreal. He was asked one technical question to which he knew the answer. However, then the big wig floored him with a question he did not expect, “Who would win in a fight: Han Solo or Indiana Jones?”  Earl was taken back and answered honestly, he did not know. The big wig smiled and asked Earl to turn to Eric. Eric presented Earl with Non-Disclosure Agreements and an offer of employment.

What happened to Earl can certainly happen to you. 85% percent of Fortune 500 companies have Twitter accounts and update them daily. That is double from 2009. While LinkedIn is a newer company in comparison to the big job boards, its close to 100 million members are there to do business and that business includes hiring top talent.

It’s easy to forget but in the 21st Century, old fashioned courtesy and manners still play a pivotal role in how you are viewed in the eyes of potential employers. Earl had friends review his work, his updates, and especially his resume and cover letter. A good rule of thumb for him was to update his resume quarterly, and update his blog and Twitter accounts daily. He also posed questions every other day to Facebook and Linkedin groups. While it may seem like all Earl did was surf the net, the truth is that he spent about three hours a day implementing a unique career strategy, which eventually paid off.

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It’s normal to be nervous during the day of the job interview, but you should not let your jittery nerves get the best of you. Of course you’ve heard of horror stories happening in the interview room and if you’re not careful enough you may have your own horror story to tell.

Tip number #1: Don’t give the interviewer an idea that the job you’re applying for is an alternative or second option. If the interviewer has selected you for a preliminary interview, implying that the position is an alternative will discourage the interviewer from hiring you. Why settle for someone who’s not fully dedicated to the task because it’s not his or her first priority?

Tip number #2: It pays to be well informed. Sometimes it’s better to give less information than more. If you think you did something that may affect you getting hired, do not mention it to anybody and keep that thought to yourself. Any slight awkwardness may give the interviewer a negative impression of you.

Tip number #3: Prepare, prepare and prepare. No matter how boring or repetitive or irritating it may be when you read this word in job interview tips or articles, it is never given without proof. Any wardrobe and accessories you intend to wear should be planned out the night before so that you can focus on the interview and not on yourself.

Tip number #4: Not too much Caffeine. Coffee, tea or even a redbull is a stimulant that can temporarily ward off drowsiness and restore alertness, but can also make you jittery and have you going to the bathroom. Before you interview don’t drink anything with too much caffeine, if you are going to drink something have a touch of fruit juice.

Avoid making interviewing mistakes by brushing up on the dos and don’ts of job interviewing and remember to always keep a relaxed and confident attitude during the whole interview.

My best advice to you: Be Enthusiastic!

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Need help developing your job search strategy? We can help. Get a Free Comprehensive Resume & Job Search Strategy Analysis, click here: http://www.resumetarget.com/resume_review.php

You might have a social network more sinuous than a spider’s web and an online presence that would impress Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg.

But when it comes to landing a job, the old-fashioned resume still trumps all.

That’s the opinion of three experts in the recruitment and job-seeking field nationwide. “Until we come up with a way where we can send a hologram of a person,” says Amos Tayts, a Toronto-based former recruiter with offices across Canada and the U.S. helping people looking for work, “the resume is the only way that people will know who you are, and what you bring to the table.”

Although there is industry talk of a ’resume 2.0’ comprising video profiles in which candidates speak about their impact on increasing sales at a company or reducing costs, for instance, the familiar resume is still expected by anyone hiring or recruiters.

“It’s the standby — like the old pair of jeans that people are comfortable with,” says Jeff Aplin, who recruits out of Calgary. He says the importance of a resume cannot be overstated. “It means everything to get to the next step, such as the phone or face-to-face interview.”

Vancouver-based executive search consultant Shaun Carpenter brands a resume the “quintessential jumping-off point.” He says there was speculation it might become redundant with the rise of online sites such as LinkedIn, which lists your career and recommendations among numerous features. “But I don’t believe it will,” adds the associate partner at Pinton Forrest & Madden. “There’s a holistic approach to getting a job. In terms of social media and resumes, one goes with another. The network helps to get your resume seen by the right people, but a resume is still the key starting point.”

Carpenter says most employers want to see no more than two pages, and all want to see them tailored to their corporation and culture. He advises thinking in terms of a full day’s worth of research: Look at everything online on the potential employer and download its financial reports and any news stories about the company.

Those hiring want to see that candidates recognize what the organization is currently going through and the significance of its business. “The resume needs to really prove that you understand what you are looking at and be speaking to the cogent points that are identified in an advertisement,” says Carpenter. “Pull out points and address issues. It really has to be customized — use your knowledge, intuition and research ability — and avoid using formulaic vocabulary, such as ‘team player’ or ‘highly motivated.’ These will not cut it.”

When describing the assets you bring to a job, make sure it is backed up by your working life. “You want to highlight different dimensions of your experience to be congruent with that organization and that specific job,” says Aplin, the COO at David Aplin Recruiting. “Ensure there are no empty words.”

A resume can be a way to show your personality, he suggests. Include a few aspects that are unique to you such as a health or community initiative with which you were involved, for example, if appropriate to the job. “If a typical HR person is filtering through a high volume of resumes, you might be able to add colour or zing to your resume to make it more interesting to read,” he says.

In explaining your career, adds Carpenter, never put the onus on the reader to do further research. “I can’t stand when I get a resume and they have the company name but nothing about size, scope, nature of business, reporting structure, revenue,” he says. “You should be able to look at the resume and get all the information you need to make a decision.”

Employers find it hard to resist “compelling” resumes, according to Tayts. “In order to stand out and get to the top 10 per cent of the talent pool, you need to have a resume that is able to articulate value very quickly,” says the founder of ResumeTarget Inc. He estimates it takes around nine seconds for a hiring manager to propel the applicant to the next stage.

Enlisting professional advice in writing your resume is often the best approach, according to Aplin. “It’s a good thing to polish or make the writing more attractive or engaging,” he says. Carpenter, however, stresses the need for resumes to remain personal to the applicant. “I don’t want resumes to look like they have all been written the same way,” he says, adding: “If you believe this is your dream job, you should be putting in a lot of effort.”