Job Search Diary

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(No Transcript)
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A short book created by specialists of Resume
Writing Lab with tips for job seekers and
freebies that will help to keep everything under
control
Table of Contents
Setting Aims Planning Resume Writing Tips Cover
Letter Writing Tips E?ective LinkedIn Pro?le
Free Sheets for Job Seekers Job Application
Record Job Interview Tracker
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Nothing can stop the man with the right mental
attitude from achieving his goal nothing on
earth can help the man with the wrong mental
attitude. Thomas Je?erson You have already
understood that job search should be started
with the right attitude, because there are no
techniques or tips that can help you, if you are
depressed or pessimistic during seeking for a
new job. Probably, it will be di?cult to change
the mood and attitude just like you switch TV
channel, but nobody can do it instead of you,
though this diary can be really helpful. So,
lets forget about regrets and start thinking
about aims you want to gain and life you want to
have. Spend several minutes to visualize your
dream job, think about every detail, place,
people, salary, how you start your day and why
you really enjoy this job. Now write all your
thoughts here
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Now, when you know what you want to get, you have
to make the plan how to achieve this aim. Check
this instruction and add your own steps.
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Create/Improve Your Resume and Cover Letter As
the ?rst step is creating resume, we o?er to
follow these tops and avoid mistakes
12 Rules to Create A Successful Resume
A good resume is a job candidate's ?rst
opportunity to make a strong impression on future
employers. A resume that is not up to par will
not convince hiring managers
to invite you for an interview. Thus, it is
critical that you put your best foot forward and
sometimes applying to resume decision. The
following tips will to create a successful
resume.
writers online is a good help you understand
how
1. Be Honest The golden rule of all resume tips
is to be honest about your job experience,
education, and the assessment of your skills. In
the computer age, it is easy for any hiring
manager to verify the information you present.
If something seems ?shy, it will immediately
eliminate you from the hiring process.
Don't
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waste your time, or that of the human resources
department, by submitting questionable
information.
2. Drop the Objective Most resume templates
include
an objective section at

• the beginning which brie?y describes the position
  the candidate is seeking. This practice is
  unnecessary. In the modern world of internet
  based job applications, uploading
• a resume for a particular position already
  noti?es hiring managers that you want a certain
  job. Therefore, it is unnecessary to waste
  valuable resume space to restate the obvious.
• Be Succinct
• Most HR departments are ?ooded with applications
  every time they post a new position. Aside from
  reviewing resumes, they are also busy handling
  daily workforce management duties for the
  company. Thus, the typical hiring manager doesn't
  have a lot of time to sift through a long
  resume. Keep yours short and to the point to
  make it more likely that it will get reviewed.
• Learn also how to deal with references on resume.
• Choose E-mail Service Wisely
• Every job candidate should have a professional
  looking e-mail address. Do not use an address
  that describes your hobbies or other personal
  preferences. Try to create an address with your

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• name and combine it with a few numbers if
  necessary. Also, use a modern e-mail provider,
  such as Gmail, to show that you are in touch
  with technology.
• Combine Files
• If you are one of the few people who need a
  two-page resume, or you will be sending other
  documents with your resume (i.e. references),
  put everything in one document.
• You can do this by creating everything in the
  same word processing ?le, or by converting
  multiple pages into one PDF ?le. This will allow
  the HR team to quickly view your information
  without having to open various ?les.
• Be Accomplished
• A good resume does not merely list your previous
  jobs and duties. It should thoroughly explain
  what you accomplished for past employers, and
  how you contributed to the success of the
  company. You can list awards you received, major
  projects you completed, and how you helped
  increase sales or productivity numbers.

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• Be Careful With Margins
• Readability is the main factor in attracting the
  eyes of hiring managers. Su?cient margin space
  increases readability and makes the resume
  appear to be well-organized. Do not go beyond
  quarter inch margins to keep your resume
  readable.
• Sans Serif Is Your Friend
• When choosing a font for your resume, keep it
  simple. Sans Serif fonts look clean and are the
  easiest to read. Creativity in formatting is
  abhorred by most hiring managers, so stick to
  the basics.

9. Take The Time To Convert Word processing
documents to translate from one program resume
in word processing
are notoriously di?cult to another. Sending your
format means you run
a substantial risk that your organization and
proper resume formatting will be lost when the
company opens the ?le. Avoid sending a garbled
mess by converting the ?le to a PDF document.
The PDF will look exactly like the document on
your end, and cannot be altered by the opening
process. 10. Don't Overdo Bullet Points A good
resume isn't overladen with bullet points. Use of
bullet points or arrows should be limited to
things that deserve highlighting, such as
impressive accomplishments or computer
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• language skills. Aim for a maximum of 4 bullet
  points after you describe your previous
  positions.
• Leave Out The Personal Touch
• E?ective resumes focus o n t h e c a n d i d a t
  e ' s professional persona. Talk of hobbies or
  other personal inter ests that are irrelevant
  and space consuming. Keep you resume focused
  on
• things that directly relate to the job
  you are seeking.
• Ask Resume Writing Lab for help, in case you
  don't know how to do it.
• Use A Second Pair Of Eyes
• No one can create a good resume on their own.
  What you think is understandable may not be so
  for another person. Therefore, it is important
  to have your resume reviewed by other people to
  make sure it conveys the information you desire.

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Top 5 Glaring Mistakes In Your Cover Letter
During job search process, when messing with
our resumes, we kind of forget about the other
documents. Your perfectly polished CV is
wonderful, but it wouldnt guarantee you a job
if your cover letter is a total mess. In fact,
co ver letter writing can be as important as
your resume. What if you unconsciously make
several serious blunders without even knowing
it? Hence, if youre wondering how to write a
great cover letter, you must know about some
mistakes. ResumeWritingLab experts ?gured out
which glaring mistakes are inexcusable and must
be avoided in a cover letter. Being Too
Exacting Remember once and for all your employer
has no interest in knowing how you could bene?t
from his company. So, there is no need to write
a whole paragraph about it. Instead, he wants
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to know how you, as a potential employee, can
contribute to the companys growth and
development. In this case, the employer has the
upper hand and you, as a job seeker, have to
deal with it. You should demonstrate why you
would be more useful to the company, than any
other applicant. And, if you manage to prove it,
your chances to get hired would rise
signi?cantly. Keep in mind that if you have a
hard time putting yourself in a favorable light
you can always attract attention with a resume
headline and make your application stand
out. Getting Desperate If you want to put
pressure on the pity, do it, but not in any of
your application documents, including a cover
letter. Writing your cover letter with an
I-am-ready-for-any-job manner, wont be a great
decision remember that you wont get a job just
because you desperately need it. Why do
employers avoid hiring people, who are totally
desperate? Any employer wants his workers to work
for his company, not because of a good salary,
but rather because he wants to start his career
particularly at this place, not anywhere
else. Writing Odd Information Of course,
everyone likes to talk about his hobbies,
interests and the way he spends his free time
with family or friends. If
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youre an active community activist, all-around
person, its great, but all the things above
have nothing to do with your professional
quali?cations. The thing is, your cover
letters goal is bearing an interest to read your
actual resume. And the only things the employer
is interested in are your professional skills,
knowledge and personal qualities, but only if
theyre somehow related to the job. Making
Mistakes If you havent thoroughly proofread and
spellchecked your document, then be ready for a
refusal once your HR manager notices a couple of
those while hes reading it. Why so strict?
Well, what employer would like the fact that his
employee skipped rereading a cover letter? It
would only show that you dont care whether you
get a position or not. Too Short or Too Long R e
c r u i t e r s f a c e hundreds of resumes and
cover letters each day, but some of those
application documents tend to catch their
attention easily. No, its not about
elaborate and ?awless resumes, but rather about
too long or too short
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letters. And its seriously crazy some of those
are only 1 sentence long, meanwhile, others get
over 1,000 words. Keep in mind going over 700
words makes no sense, you would only ?ll your
cover letter with super?uous info. Furthermore,
which HR manager would want to read a lengthy
novella, trying to ?gure out if he really wants
to see the applicants resume after this? If
you are unsure how to shorten your application
pay attention to things to leave o? a resume.
The optimal length would be no more than 3 or 4
paragraphs of proper information. Save the part
about your broad life history for the interview.
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Create/Update Your LinkedIn Pro?le The second
step is improving LinkedIn pro?le, though
creating account is not enough
Why Creating LinkedIn Pro?le Is Not
Enough LinkedIn is a must have for todays job
seekers but is joining it enough?
Unfortunately, no. This i r r e p l a c e a b l
e t o o l accomplishes a set of i m p o r t a n
t t a s k s and w i l l d e ? n i t e l y e n h
a n c e y o u r j o b hunt but only if you
know how to use it. Simply joining LinkedIn and
observing others wont bring you a promising
position. Having a LinkedIn pro?le is about
presenting your personality and standing out from
the crowd. Professional LinkedIn pro?le writers
provided us with several priceless tips on how
to use this job hunting tool 100.
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Make a Substantial Presentation of
Yourself Finding empty and abandoned LinkedIn
pro?les is weird. But ?nding empty and active
pro?les is stupid. Most of the recruiters cant
get the reason job seekers join LinkedIn, use it
but dont provide any information (or provide
unclear data). Two reasons they have nothing to
write or truly dont understand the purpose and
the aim of this service. The solution of the
?rst problem is simple keep on gaining
experience. The solution of the second problem is
even simpler keep on reading this article. In
fact, the goal of such services as LinkedIn is to
help job seekers ?nd jobs and recruiters - ?nd
suitable employers. How could they notice your
page, if it has nothing catchy, exciting,
suitable for their position? You can check
unusual ways to get a job if attracting
attention is not your strongest
point. Therefore, provide exact information
about your professional and personal skills,
employment history, and abilities. Use keywords
that can draw the attention of your potential
recruiters. Accept and Create Invitations Buildin
g connections is another goal of LinkedIn. Whats
the bene?t? Any RIGHT connections will make you
closer to the company and surroundings you would
like to join. You wont be judged for creating
di?erent events or misunderstood for inviting
people you, actually, dont know.
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Make sure that expansion of your network is
your number one goal and its the goal of other
LinkedIn users as well. Creating di?erent events
is your key to success you meet the right
people, get closer to your dream position, gain
popularity, become reputable, of course, if you
manage to choose the right approach. Be
Sociable Join Groups Each user has an
opportunity to join up to 50 groups but, in
fact, it doesnt exceed 7. Being a member of the
RIGHT groups is essential as,
?rstly, it helps to priceless connections
build that
can change your career! If you are active and
make a good impression, you gain credibility and
respect. Furthermore, you are aware of the
latest news in your professional ?eld, events,
changes, new job ads. Its an irreplaceable
resource of information! Groups that are
targeted to your location, occupation or wishes
will help you to ?nd a job or, at least, expand
your network much faster. Therefore, join those
groups that are the most relevant to your goals
and directions. Though, before becoming visible,
make sure that you've managed to choose good
LinkedIn pro?le photo.
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Give a Feedback Creating a ?awless pro?le isnt
enough for a promising job seeker and we have
just proved that. Thus, always give a f e e d b
a c k . H a v e g o t an invitation to a
particular event? Accept it. Even if it
isnt really connected with your occupation or
preferences, you are a job seeker and you
probably have enough spare time. Thus, accept
the invitation just to meet new people. The Earth
is round you will de?nitely ?nd someone
working in your dream company (or someone, who
has his best friend working in your dream
company). Carefully ask about recommending you
to the CEO, for instance, and it's a
cinch! Again, remember that observing the
activity of others is observing your life
passing by. Therefore, be resourceful and
active. Stand out of the crowd! If you are out if
ideas, look through easy ways to refresh your
LinkedIn page. As you can see, using LinkedIn
isnt about chilling at home with your laptop.
Its about creating an image, building your own
network and reminding about yourself. Selling
your skills and abilities is a di?cult thing,
especially nowadays when the proposal is lower
than demand. Thus, use this amazing tool right
and get an impressing outcome!
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Sending Application Documents The third and the
fourth steps are posting or sending application
documents.
This stage is rather monotonous but rather
rewarding. You have to treat job search like a
job. It takes time to gain success and it
demands proper organization. Applying to
hundreds companies and websites is useless if you
dont track your e?orts. Thats why we o?er
this Job Application Record
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Interviews and Networking
Hopefully you will have lots of interviews and
here is Job Interview Tracker that will help you
to be organized and send post-interview letters
and emails timely