6 Smart Ways to Get the Job!

I can’t tell you how many job candidates look great on paper, then totally blow it. Life is competitive enough – don’t get in your OWN way!

80% Of Getting the Job is Just Not Being an Idiot

I’m being serious. You would be shocked at the number of people who lose a job opportunity without even knowing it. Not because their resumes are less impressive, or they’re less qualified than their peers.

To the contrary – their actual resume might be super impressive and go to the very top of the stack with “call this one” written on it! They may have every qualification the employer is looking for – so why don’t they get the job? Or even an in-person interview?

The reason: Unforced errors.

An unforced error is a missed opportunity, completely the result of your own blunder – not because someone else was better or more qualified. In short, it’s shooting yourself in the foot with a dumb-ass mistake.

Be smart! Know how to compete to get what you want. Trust me – a lot of your peers don’t know basic interviewing skills. I want you to maximize your opportunities & capitalize on their errors! I know – but it’s a dog-eat-dog-world and ya can’t wear MilkBone underwear.

Stack the deck in your favor! 6 ways to increase your chances of getting the job you want!

6 interview DO’s and DON’Ts

Stick to the DO’s and you’ll (probably) land the job!

RESUMES

DO: Spell & grammar check…twice. Next, send the resume to yourself first – before anyone else. This lets you see what a potential employer will see – meaning make sure that your resume is properly formatted!

DON’T: Misspelled words, poor grammar, text out of alignment because the doc wasn’t properly formatted or saved as a PDF. It’s basic – I know. But I see it all the time, from people who are otherwise pretty qualified.

YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS

DO: Set up a separate, neutral, professional email address for job seeking. For example: I’d probably use smpelly@…. It’s my initials & last name. From an organizational standpoint, a separate email is clean, efficient & it’ll really help keep you organized. I once had a woman candidate whose email address started with “sugargirl.” No bueno, sweets.

DON’T: If your email address is something like YoBitchezz@gmail, please… don’t use it to correspond with potential employers. You’re wasting your time and energy job-seeking because chances are pretty fricking high that the resume is getting tossed. Sad face.

EMAIL ETIQUETTE

DO: When emailing with a potential employer, err on the side of formality! You’ll want to say “Good Morning Ms. Smith,” – point is, addressing them as Mr. or Ms. End emails with “thank you” or something along those lines. Believe me – you will stand out in a good way. Most always they’ll say, “Please call me Joan” – or whatever. BUT, you will have really scored points!

DON’T: Be too familiar or casual at this stage. Don’t start an email with “Hey Joan”, or end with “See Ya Soon” or whatever. If I liked a resume, I emailed the person to request a phone interview. I did this to gauge their level of professionalism in written correspondence. For me, it spoke to their judgement and how they may interact with our customers!

Meowing & pretending it’s your cat on a voicemail greeting – Super funny to friends, weird to an employer. Keep it neutral!! Meow.

YOUR VOICEMAIL

DO: Make sure that your voicemail greeting is simple, friendly and professional.

DON’T: Meowing and pretending it’s your cat on the greeting is funny to your friends, weird to an employer. Keep everything neutral while interviewing.

PHONE SKILLS

DO: When you’re job seeking and an unknown call comes through – assume it’s an employer! Answer upbeat, friendly and professionally: “Good morning this is Shelli.”

DON’T: Do not answer “yeah,” “yo” or even “hello???” (like you’re seriously shocked to get a phone call). It’s just weird. Especially if the call is coming through at the exact time you have a phone interview scheduled! I’ve called people for a scheduled phone-screen, and they literally sounded like they were still in bed answering with a groggy . . . “Yeah?” When that happened, I ended the interview within 3-4 minutes. Done.

DRESS LIKE A BOSS!

DO: An employer looks at you through the eyes of “would she make a good impression on our clients OR reflect well on the company.” Always err on the side of dressing more formally than not! Even if the company is super casual – still, dress 1-2 steps up. It’s truly a sign of respect and it will be noticed in a good way. Keep skirts to the knee – seriously, it’s just good judgement.

DON’T: When I was 19 & working at Nordstrom, I got sent home 5x for my skirts being too short, lol. Don’t do that 😉

Clean up your social media accounts. The death defying keg-stand from last weekend? Totally impressive. Probably not landing ya the job.

YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA PAGES

DO: Here’s the deal – before offering you the job, most hiring manager’s will check out your social media accounts on the DL! What you post tells them a lot more about you, then an interview! Be sure to go through them with an objective eye – and take down anything that you think may be questionable.

A “DON’T” Funny True Story: So….My husband was considering hiring another lawyer for his Firm. They went through the whole ordeal – you know, multiple interviews, background checks – blah blah blah. The guy was pretty much about to get a job offer, when the thought popped into my head – “Did you check out his FB page”.

I pull it up, and start cracking up hysterically! The guy was at a house party – drunk as crap, stripping – waiving his shirt over his head, dropping F-Bombs while chugging whiskey from a 5th…. then the coupe de gras…..he starts “Flossing” the shirt back and forth in between his legs, grinding his butt into the camera – and the crowd goes wild! OMG – I was laughing SO HARD I almost peed my pants!!!

He didn’t get hired but he sure as hell looked like a fun guy – haha!

In the end, it’s all about doing the basics. You’d really be amazed at how many people – seemingly smart and well-qualified, screw it up completely on their own, with silly mistakes or just poor judgement. Be aware of these 6 things and I promise – you’re already heads and tails above your competitors!