Good Evening!

While going to the Career Center, I’ve written down some good points to consider. Things I didn’t personally think about or thought would be worth noting to remind myself. No matter how polished you are, you can always forget something.

• Call before filling out the application.

This has a few benefits. First, you may save gas in driving there. Second, some places will interview you after you fill out an application. If you can setup an appointment, they will have time to do so. If you just show up, they may not. Of course if they say, “No calls,” then don’t call them.

• No cell phone.

I personally don’t like cell phones but after a near miss with a job I wanted, I got one. I thought this would be good to have and have taken to carrying it with me at all times. The problem is, leave it in the car. Even if you are just filling out an application, check your messages when you get back to the car.

• Know your bottom line.

Don’t even bother with a job if you need more money. I know that seems obvious, but it’s also true. Odds are good they won’t hire you anyway. And you don’t want to be trapped in a low paying job you have to leave later.

• Mention how you were referred to the job in your cover letter.

Where it was listed, like a newspaper. This makes sense. It tells the employer which ads are working and helps them decide where to spend money on want ads. It’s a courtesy.

• Ask for a contact.

Most places will not give you any contact info for their HR department. Makes follow ups and thank you letters hard to write or send doesn’t it? Here’s a thought though, if you are not dealing with the hiring manager directly, ask who you should address a cover letter to. Of course you might want to write a cover letter. Still it could be a good way to get a contact person with little hassle. If they say no, well that’s ok too, don’t argue the point.

• Don’t answer your phone on the go.

This is one I’ve done myself, like I said I’m not used to cell phone etiquette. If you are on the go or even on the walk, don’t answer the phone when an employer calls, let them leave a message. Then once you have a chance, pull over, park, sit down or whatever and call them back. Make sure you can talk and are giving them your full attention. As I’ve read, phone calls should be taken as seriously as interviews, in some cases they are.

That’s my lecture for the day. Hope you enjoyed. There was more in the book and handouts they gave us in the “class” but these were some of the most interesting points. I’ll try to post more useful info as I continue this blog.

But for now,

Goodnight.

Good Morning.

I ask only that you read the Hobbit and note how many meanings good morning could have. Don’t worry, it’s near the start of the book.

Well where to begin;

Ever have one of those nights where you just can’t sleep? Last night was one of them for me. I just had this feeling like I needed to be doing something but I didn’t know what it was. Finally, I made it to sleep for ~4 hours. When I woke up, I got ready to go and couldn’t find my car keys! Which does tend to happen when you are really tired. I don’t know about you but I have a set place for keys, wallet and alike. Of course my keys were on a counter under the want ads from Sunday’s paper. So that cost me 12 minutes of looking.

I arrived at the Career Center 4 minutes late but clocks all lie so it turned out it wasn’t really late. Still this is a bad way to start your week. Now I feel like I’m a late zombie. This is why it’s always a good idea to give yourself extra, extra time to get to any appointment. At least 15 minutes more then you need. Anyway, I had to skip coffee and grabbed a cup there. However, after hearing a girl on the phone talk about how deathly ill she was, I really regretted it.

Despite the rough start, I went on with the Job Seeker class. Some interesting points were covered but first I wanted to pose a “Did you know?”. They had a woman there from Integrity Home Care, as part of the Job Club that they do every Monday morning. She said something I found odd, she claimed state law prohibited them from hiring anyone who didn’t have a previous employer who would rehire them. That it was required for people who worked as an in-home care giver.

Of course this was an interesting chance to pick the brain of an HR person. Now here’s the thing though, she said it herself, she was the only person in the office. So, she basically closed the HR office for the morning? Hmm, don’t call on Mondays. I also had a chance to ask her a question in front of the group. However when she wasn’t making eye contact, I stopped in mid-sentience until she was aware and looked directly at me. I thought it was rather sad that someone who conducts interviews doesn’t even behave according to their own standards.

I also thought it curious when she was talking about things that would hinder people during an interview she mentioned perfume. That in itself doesn’t seem odd, I don’t like strong perfume either, who does? What was odd was her description, thinking that she “just had to make it through the half hour” and trying to remember to “breath” rather then paying attention to the person she was interviewing. Which lead me to another question I asked her, “If you know you are not going to hire someone because of this, then why continue the interview?” To which she replied, “Oh I don’t, I tell them right away.” Eh? You just said you tried to “just get through the half hour.”

Well I guess it’s a good thing I wasn’t interviewing her, but she also mentioned in response to another question that it helps to know people. She did.

Well, I don’t know about you but that felt good. I’ll be going over my notes on the rest of the class later this evening in another post.

GOOD MORNING!