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How to Say Thank You to Your References

By Job Journey on Wednesday, November 9, 2016

If you’ve recently landed a new job, you probably didn’t get there by yourself. After all, your resume doesn’t impress without references willing to verify your experience, expertise, and talents.

So, it’s very important to say thank you to your references. However, the type of thank you depends on your relationship with the reference and the company culture they work in.

While email has become a very accepted form of communication, it also takes little or no effort. To really show your appreciation, you might want to go a step further.

Consider the Relationship

A Corporate Connection – If your reference is a former manager or mentor who works in a traditional environment, consider a typed, personal letter on your professional stationery.

Be sure to say “thank you” as opposed to the more casual “thanks.”

A Colleague and Friend – If your reference is a friend as well as former colleague—a part of your “work family”— consider sending a greeting card. Cards make the recipient feel special. Your message should be as warm and familiar as your friendship.

High Tech Connections – If your reference works for a very modern company that runs everything on the cloud, your thank you should reflect that culture. An app like Thank You Pro (App Store for iOS) or Thank You Messages (Google Play for Android) makes it easy to create a digital expression of your gratitude.

Finally, make sure your message includes the following:

A genuine expression of appreciation
Your new job title and business contact information
A reminder that you would like to stay in touch

In an age when the average worker stays in a job for fewer than five years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, you can never have too many professional contacts or references.

Uncategorized

Headed to a Job Interview? Don’t Do This!

By Job Journey on Friday, November 13, 2015

Do you have a job interview soon? Have you prepared for the big day by reviewing popular interview questions, researching the company, cleaning up your resume, and gathering your references? All of those steps are important parts of ensuring a successful interview. But, what should you avoid once you’re in the job interview?

Survey Reveals Mistakes
In a new survey from Express Employment Professionals, business owners shared several real-life mistakes job seekers have made in interviews. These examples include:

Answering the phone
Asking to step out for a smoke break
Asking at the end of the interview, “What am I interviewing for?”
Badmouthing their former employer
Bringing a baby, pet, or parent
Chewing tobacco and/or vaping
Falling asleep
Wearing pajamas
Listing their own cell phone number and pretending to be their own reference
Listening to headphones

Among those employers, 61% agree that the worst thing an interviewee can do is answer a phone call during the interview. Other answers included arriving late, drinking alcohol, or lying about their experience.

“Your interviewer should have your undivided attention,” said Bob Funk, CEO of Express. “If you can’t make it through an interview without answering a phone, texting a friend, or smoking a cigarette, I can pretty much guarantee you that you won’t be landing the job.”

Clever Tricks From Interviewees
The survey also revealed the most clever ways job seekers have submitted resumes and attempted to land jobs. Those responses include:

Typing the resume like a movie script, menu, radio commercial, or video presentation
Delivering the resume with a box of doughnuts
Delivering the resume in a box via a mail carrier
Bringing a portfolio and giving a presentation of their work
Creating a business plan
Providing referrals from someone known to the employer
Bringing lists of potential clients and ideas for the position

According to Bob Funk, “When you’re competing to win a new job, it can pay to be creative. The ability to stand out can be the difference between a job offer and a rejection, provided you’re standing out for the right reasons.”

What are some clever ways you’ve landed the job? Let us know in the comments section below!

Movin’ On Up is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals.

Career Options

Need a Job? Seasonal Work Is Here

By Job Journey on Monday, September 14, 2015

The holiday season may still seem far off, but now is the time to start looking for work if you plan to find a seasonal job this year. Every year, the holiday season helps put millions of people to work in jobs that may begin as temporary employment, but often turn into permanent employment.

There are many benefits to finding a seasonal job. In addition to the extra income around the holidays, seasonal jobs are also a great way to add experience to your resume and network with people who may be able to help your career in the future. Even though your job may start out as a temporary one, it could lead to permanent, full-time employment.

Take Your Job Seriously
According to Bob Funk, CEO of Express Employment Professionals, “Employers will look at their temporary employees this holiday season to see which ones merit a full-time, permanent position.”

If you want to better your odds of landing a permanent job after the holidays, remember to treat your seasonal job like an extended interview. Take advantage of the opportunity to show you’re hard-working, committed, and have a positive attitude. When you go above and beyond at your temporary job, you better your chances of being noticed by potential employers.

Don’t Limit Your Options
Holiday jobs may seem like they’re limited to Christmas or other winter holidays, but don’t forget about the entire holiday season. Halloween, for example, can be an avenue for temporary work because of large costume superstores that open for the season. Additionally, party stores may need extra help around New Year’s Eve.

Start Now
Stop by any department store and you’re likely to see holiday items already stocked on the shelves. If businesses are already thinking about the holidays, you should be too. Brainstorm places you would like to apply for seasonal work and get started on applications. Don’t wait until November or December, because most employers want their seasonal staff trained and working before the shopping rush begins.

Call a Staffing Agency
When companies want to hire multiple new employees for the holiday season, they often go to a staffing company for assistance. Since staffing providers are usually better equipped to find, screen, and hire large numbers of workers, they can be a great resource for you. Do your homework before you apply and make sure the staffing company is a reputable one, like Express Employment Professionals.

Make Sure You’re Prepared
In a recent poll on Movin’ On Up, we asked if our readers plan on looking for seasonal work this year. An astonishing 84% of responders said that they do plan to look for seasonal work. Since so many people want to find work this holiday season, you need to make sure you’re prepared to beat the competition. Clean up your resume, brush up on your interview skills, make a list of references, research the companies you want to work for, and know the skills that employers want to see. When you’re prepared for a job opportunity, you stand a better chance of landing the job.

Have you worked a seasonal job? Did your seasonal job turn into a permanent one? Share your tips with us in the comments section below!

Movin’ On Up is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals.

Job Interviews

Build Your Power Team of References

By Job Journey on Wednesday, September 9, 2015

If a potential employer reaches the point where they ask for your references, be happy. Checking references takes time and effort, so usually only candidates who are serious contenders for the position make it to the references stage.

References are people who can speak knowledgeably about your skills, experience, and work habits. Because references have the power to make or break your chances at landing the job, having a list of strong references is very important. Do you have a powerful list of references?

Because pulling together a strong group of references at the last minute can be difficult, let’s take some time and see how you can start developing your “power reference group” right now.

Who You Should List As References
Power references shouldn’t be your mom, a family member, or your best friend. Instead, they should be people you have worked with, worked for, or know professionally. It’s important that your references also have strong qualifications, character, and reputation.

To identify good candidates for your power list, consider:

Co-workers at all levels. Don’t just stick with those in management, but also consider your peers as well.
Customers or clients you’ve worked closely with in a previous job.
Professors, if you are right out of college.
Supervisors at an internship or apprenticeship.
Leaders you’ve had contact with through avenues like volunteer activities.

How To Build Your List
Now it’s time to select and build your reference list. Following these steps can help you get your list in shape:

Select at least three top references.
Contact each one to ask if they can be included on your reference list.
Let them know what types of jobs you are applying for, or, if you have the job listing, which skills you’d particularly like them to emphasize.
Provide them with your resume, awards, and other career material so they can speak intelligently about your accomplishments.
Do not ask them to lie.

Keep Multiple Lists
Another thing to consider is having a different list of references for different jobs. While a community leader or professor may have more pull with a nonprofit, using a former employer, public figure, or company executive may work better for a larger company.

Also, make sure to rotate your references so they don’t get burned out by too many reference calls.

Once you’ve qualified your references and have a good idea of which to use, create a document that includes each person’s name, title, company, email address, phone number, and your relationship to him or her.

Lastly, don’t forget to send a thank-you note to all your references who have agreed to help you land the job.

Do you have any tips on how to find quality references? Share your stories with us in the comments section below!

Movin’ On Up is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals.

Job Interviews

Are You a Job Search Zombie? Bring Your Job Search Back to Life

By Job Journey on Monday, October 13, 2014

The fifth season debut of The Walking Dead has everyone talking, showing that the popularity of all things zombie is not going away anytime soon. And with Halloween right around the corner, the undead will be a popular choice for anyone dressing up for a costume party or a night of trick or treating.

Here are three job search lessons you can learn from the undead, and three reasons you want your efforts to find work to be full of life and anything other than zombie-like.

What Zombies Can Teach You

1. Move in packs
While zombies can be managed fairly easily one on one, when they arrive in large groups, they can use their numbers to have a greater impact. And when you utilize your network of friends and family, you’ll start to see a big difference in the life of your job search.

2. Never be satisfied
The undead just can’t seem to get enough, and neither should you. If you recently found a great job you’d like to apply for, t’s now time to put in the hard work of researching the company and developing your resume and cover letter to fit the specifics of the job description.

Maybe you just wrapped up a solid job interview and are ready to get back home and sit lifelessly on the couch. Resist the urge to zone out, and start writing your thank you note to those who you interviewed you. It will likely put you one step ahead of your competition.

3. No pain, no gain
How many times have we seen survivors of the zombie apocalypse make the mistake of attacking a zombie somewhere other than their brain? It’s well-known rule that a body-blow does nothing but slow down “walkers.”

Treat your job search the same way. Getting a “no” is bound to happen, and you’ll likely get several of them before you finally get a job offer. Don’t let the disappointment of not getting a job kill your job search. Susan P. Joyce of the Work Coach Café blog believes that a job rejection can be a move in the right direction. “Try to think of every rejection as bringing you one step closer to that better job that is waiting for you, just around the corner.”

Lessons for Keeping Your Search Alive

1. Zombies don’t require vital systems to survive
The undead are exactly that: dead. Other than the desire to feed on those lucky enough to be alive, they don’t have brain activity or a beating heart. Your search will take every part of you to be successful. When you put your knowledge, talent, and connections to work, you’ll have a great chance at finding your next job.

2. They have limited mobility
In most zombie apocalypse stories, the undead move very slowly and with a limp. If your most recent job search efforts sound anything like that, it’s time to change up what you’re doing.

Check out one of these five great job preparation interview apps available on most smart phones, or begin volunteering with a local charity and you’ll start to see your job search move much faster.

3. The undead don’t think critically
How many zombies have you seen walking around checking their Facebook or LinkedIn to see what‘s going on with their friends? Zero would be our guess. Put your healthy and functioning brain to work and think about the ways you can use technology to your advantage during your job search.

Avoid being a mindless, wandering job search zombie and use some job search tools you may not have thought about yet.

What else can the characteristics of zombies teach us about a job search? Let us know in the comments section below.

Movin’ On Up is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals.

Networking

4 Summer Blockbusters that Can Help In Your Job Search

By Job Journey on Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Summer brings the big hits to the box office, and this year’s selection of action movies were full of lessons that job seekers can take away. In fact, most of the heroes in big movies have traits you need while you’re looking for that perfect career – courage, creativity, an open mind, and a positive attitude. Like movie heroes, you’re facing a big conflict or a villain (in this case, unemployment), but you also have the traits to overcome and win in the end.

So, let’s take a look at this summer’s blockbusters and how they can help you land a job.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Asking for Help
An action-packed, epic space adventure, Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” can teach you a thing or two about networking and unlikely alliances.

When adventurer Peter Quill becomes a hunted man after stealing a mysterious orb coveted by a powerful villain, he has to team up with a group of misfits—Rocket, a gun-happy raccoon; Groot, a tree-like creature; the deadly and mysterious Gamora; and the revenge-driven Drax the Destroyer. Together, this group must make a desperate last stand to save the galaxy’s fate.

Okay, so you aren’t saving the galaxy, but you are saving your career and future happiness. What “Guardians of the Galaxy” says about networking and getting some help from your friends can apply to your job search as well.

Enlist your network of people by asking them to refer you to job openings, introduce you to people they know, and use them as references. Don’t discount anyone – your hairdresser, gym trainer, or even the family doctor may know of job opportunities that could be perfect for you.

Taking a team approach to job seeking is helpful. It never hurts to have somebody else to share ideas and progress with on a regular basis.

How to Train Your Dragon 2: Hidden Possibilities
This family-favorite blockbuster has a lot to say about discovering something special where you least expect it. Five years after Hiccup and Toothless united the dragons and Vikings of Berk, the two have charted the island’s unmapped territories. When they find a secret cave that houses hundreds of wild dragons, they also find themselves at the center of a battle to protect Berk from a power-hungry warrior named Drago.

You too can find hidden job leads in places you normally wouldn’t look, but you have to be as tenacious and adventurous as Hiccup and Toothless. Upward of 80% of jobs are obtained through networking, so try beefing up your networking efforts. Your secret caves of social media can be a goldmine of connections.

For instance, how many Facebook friends do you have? How many have jobs? How many of your LinkedIn connections work in your field? Start asking them about employment opportunities or if they know other people to connect with.

Look for opportunities to network in places you normally wouldn’t. That unadvertised job opening might be hidden in plain sight.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes: Correcting Past Mistakes
This summer movie is a lesson in past mistakes, and how they can catch up to you if you aren’t careful. A population of genetically evolved apes comes head to head with human survivors of a devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. Though a truce is declared, both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth’s dominant species.

The rise of the apes was due to an experiment led by humans, and now that mistake has all but wiped out the human race. So, don’t let your past mistakes wipe out your job future! If you’re searching for a career, take time to clean up your online profile. When it comes to potential employers, it’s important to make sure that what they see online represents who you are.

Google your name and find out what pops up. Remove distasteful or offensive posts from your social media, and while you are at it, set your Facebook posts to private.

If you find offensive results on Google, Google has a process for removing them. For more tips on making your online reputation shine, check out this blog post.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Staying Positive
Having a good attitude is everything, and these pizza-loving turtles have plenty of that. The teenage terrapins Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael live in the sewers beneath New York City, but the brothers can’t stand by while evil Shredder and his minions harm the city.

Our intrepid heroes never let anything get them down, even when their plans seem to go awry. They just dust themselves off and get back to saving the city. Attitude and optimism are just as important if you are unemployed, too.

Regardless of how tough your job search is, it’s absolutely vital to keep a positive attitude during your job search. Some great tips to maintain that attitude are to take charge by being present, accountable, and ready; talking positively about yourself and your abilities; exercising to relieve stress; and making a job search schedule and sticking to it.

Few people score the very first job they apply to. So, instead of seeing job rejection as a personal attack, look at it as an opportunity to grow and learn more about yourself.

What job search tips did you take away from your favorite summer movies? Let us know in the comments section below!

Movin’ On Up is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals.

Workplace Relationships

I RESIGN – The Best Way to Quit Your Job

By Job Journey on Friday, August 1, 2014

Giving your resignation to your boss is never an easy thing to do.

You may not get along with your boss or you may dislike your job, but it’s still important to quit your job professionally and with tact. If you’re preparing to resign from a job, plan it out and handle it as carefully as you would any other business decision. Don’t burn your bridges, because you never know when a former employer will come in handy for as an ever-important reference.

If you are absolutely certain that it’s time for you to resign from your job, here are some tips to make quitting a little easier and more professional.

Always give notice.
Chances are, your employee handbook spells out how much notice you should give. If it does, then abide by it or offer at least two weeks of notice. If you absolutely cannot stay a minute longer, here are some acceptable reasons for not giving notice.

Stick to your guns.
Sometimes, your boss might ask you to stay a little longer than two weeks. You have no obligation to stay, but the decision is ultimately up to you. Offer to help your previous employer by training someone during your two weeks or answering questions that may be emailed to you in the coming weeks.

Write a formal resignation letter.
Be professional in the letter, submit it, and tell your immediate supervisors about your decision. Need tips on how to write a resignation letter? Check out these tips.

Keep it short and sweet.
Emphasize the positive things you gained at the company, but be firm about your decision to leave. Offer to help during the transition, and try to keep negativity out of the letter. You may have great reasons for leaving, but there’s no point in hashing it out – you’re leaving anyway, so make sure you leave on good terms.

Ask for a reference.
Always ask for a written letter of recommendation for future employers.

The devil is in the details.
Before leaving, get your employee benefits, unused vacation, sick pay, and retirement funds all in order. Some great tips about employee benefits are available here.

Don’t take what doesn’t belong to you.
Sure, this may seem like common sense, but even your email list might fall under this category. Before you leave, return important documents, property like cell phones, keys, and anything else that you didn’t personally buy.

Stay present.
It’s easy to check out that final week of work, but keep doing your best. Being professional up to the very end will pay off.

Leaving a job and turning in a resignation is a stressful transition. Take time to decompress and renew your spirit to make sure you have the right state of mind to hit the ground running at your new job.

Have you ever resigned from your job? How did you handle it? Share with us in the comments section below.

Movin’ On Up is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals.