For job seekers
TOP 5 JOB SEARCH MISTAKES
Karol Durdle, our former senior employment counselor, has a Building Your Brand worksheet on which jobseekers list their attributes. In a nutshell, consider:
- Not having a business card: Not having a business card shows you are unprepared and not taking the job search seriously, which becomes evident to others. Further, cards with too little information are almost worse, again signaling that you are not thorough. List your areas of expertise on the card.
- Leaving off 15 years of work experience on your resume to appear much younger: You can leave off your first job if it was 25–30 years ago. However, eventually a company will know your age, so you are not fooling any9one. Instead, explain why and how your years of experience are valuable to the employer.
- Not using your phone to make connections: Although many connections can be made via email, using the phone is much faster. Plus, you are able to communicate passion and excitement using y9our voice which is not apparent in an email. Connections are often made faster using the phone.
- Not asking enough questions in an interview: During an interview it's your job to find out as much information as you can about your potential boss and company. You need to determine if you are a good fit. Cut down on lengthy answers to questions and instead do more listening. Plus, asking insightful questions is a great way to demonstrate your knowledge better than attempting to explain it.
- Focusing on your desire to go back in time: This is one of the biggest blockers to landing your next job. Job requirements and tasks are changing rapidly. You can't go back—even to the same type of company, because companies are rapidly changing. If you keep looking back you miss out on the potential opportunities that are coming toward you.
Karol Durdle, our former senior employment counselor, has a Building Your Brand worksheet on which jobseekers list their attributes. In a nutshell, consider:
- My top brand attributes/strengths/key competencies are:
- When people compliment me, they tend to focus on:
- I am most fulfilled in my work when I am:
- My passion/work purpose is:
- My top brand attributes would best be leveraged in the following types of organizations: