Jeff Bettinger's blog

I attended a career fair this week.  It was a great event, however candidate after candidate came to our booth completely lacking focus.  They seemed to come saying.  . "I'll take anything, what do you have?"  This is the wrong approach.  You have to act as though that company has exactly what you are looking for and that your research on the company has only increased your desire be part of their team.  Here is an example:

I encounter people regularly in my work that want to advance their careers dramatically.  They may have experience in on field then think they can switch disciplines and hold the same rank.  One example is a manager in electrical engineering, that has spent a career in aviation and now wants to switch to industrial construction.  They want to keep the same rank and pay as they achieved in their previous position. 

Preparation is half of the battle when it comes to a job search. 

People ask me all of the time, "How do I deal with gaps in my employment history?"  The answer is simple.  .straight on.

Be careful of companies that promise to get your resume into the hands of hundreds or thousands of recruiters.  During my professional career in a Fortune 500 company, I have watched thousands of resumes not even be looked at because they were submitted by one of these broadcast methods.  They come across the recruiters desk as junk email, or fax machine as trash. 

The best way to shop a resume is to put it in the hands of a trusted friend or associate with access in a targeted company.  This is how most positions are filled.

Many career books tell candidates to not wear any types of colognes or perfumes.  I disagree.  It is more important as you prepare for an interview to be yourself.  Just be cautious.  Don't overdo it.  Make sure you have enough to smell attractive, but not so much that you stink pretty.  Most importantly know who your audience will be and make sure you wear the appropriate smell. 

Last night I worked a career fair.  I had so many people that wanted a job from my company that didn’t have the most necessary thing, a degree.  No matter the cost, a degree opens doors.  My conversations with non-degreed people lasted 1 minute or less.  For many of the degreed people the conversation turned into a job interview.  Today several resumes were handed off to hiring managers and soon second interviews will happen.  Why???

The price of a degree!