Mark Lauterbach, Author at Job Search Accelerator

What You Believe You Will Achieve

Behavioral Scientists Lammers, Dubois, Rucker and Galinsky thought that if you wrote about a time when you felt powerful before you interviewed you would do better and guess what…it worked! In their study the applicants that did this were statistically more likely to move forward and get a job offer. The interviewers were queried about the 3 different groups (one told to write when they felt powerful, one to write when they felt powerless and one control group not told to write anything). The candidates that wrote about feeling powerful were substantially more confident and persuasive in their interviews. You need to . . .

Everyone has a Network that can Help in Their Job Search

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I have talked to a lot of job seekers that make the mistake of only focusing on meeting new people and forgetting about the people they already know. It is extremely important to keep in touch and nurture your current relationships. You need to consistently re-engage with the most important people in your network. Nurturing these relationships in important. As you learn more in your job search, engaging with people you have already talked to may be helpful because your increased knowledge may allow you to circle back and ask additional and better questions.

How Much Does Sending a Thank You Note After a Job Interview Matter?

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You need to send “thank you” emails to everyone that interviewed you. They are as essential as a good resume. They demonstrate your initiative, communication skills, and attention to detail. Always:

Customize each note for everyone on the interview team.
Express genuine interest by adding something you learned when you spent time with that individual.
Send within 24 hours.
Aim for originality to encourage people remembering you.
Keep the notes professional and positive for the best impression.

The speed and quality of your notes can influence your interview outcome.

Do You Have a Job Search Plan?

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Do you feel like you are flitting around working on a lot of different things in your job search? Are you getting telephone interviews and on-site interviews? Are you confident that you are investing your time wisely in your job search to deliver the best results and find the right next step in your career in the shortest time possible?

Pilots have a flight plan; troops have a battle plan; New Product Development Teams have a Project Development Plan – but do you have a detailed, written Job Search Plan that outlines where you should be investing your time? You know you shouldn’t be investing most your time applying for on-line job postings, but at least doing so makes you feel like you are making progress. Once you apply on-line your application often disappears into the black hole of the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) or is immediately rejected based on their keyword matching system. This is maddening!!

Three Myths of Job Hunting

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As a job search architect it is frustrating that these three job search myths are still around and readily believed in today’s job market. Here are 3 of the top job search myths that will kill your job search if you believe them:

Myth #1 – Only Apply Online for Jobs: Yes it is very easy to find a job opening online using a plethora of available resources:

Search Engines: Google, Bing, etc.
Job Posting websites: Indeed, Simply Hired, LinkedIn Jobs, etc.
Company’s website: Many companies have a career page and post their job openings there.

Stay Organized and Stay Sane in Your Job Search

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Most Job Seekers don’t have a system to keep track of all their activities in their job search. This includes networking contacts, job boards that you have posted your resume to, resume submissions, etc. There is nothing more detrimental to your job search than not being organized and keeping track of your activities. This can be done with a spreadsheet, manual folders, on-line with tools such as Evernote; the choices are infinite. Just pick a system and stay with it!

During an On-Site Interview Make Sure You Don’t Fidget

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“It’s not only what you say, it’s how you say it” is absolutely true when you are interviewing in person. Your spoken content only provides 7% of the message the interviewer receives. Your body language delivers 55% and the tone of voice the remaining 38%. Therefore, you need to focus on your body language and voice as well as the words you use in your job interview answers.

The interviewer will often analyze your body language, your mannerisms and facial expressions and if your body language is perceived as negative, this could cost you the job!

When Networking, Why Don’t Most Job Hunters Ask for What They Want?

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When I am at business and tech networking events I quite often run into professionals seeking new positions. They typically have some type of introduction “Elevator Speech” that they deliver, either sounding natural or scripted, which includes their name, skills and accomplishments, but at least 80%+ don’t ask for help. Any introduction from a job seeker should include an “ask” at the end. What is an appropriate “ask”? You should say something like “You can help me by (fill in the blank)”.

Beware What You Post on LinkedIn When You are Looking for a Job

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I am amazed when I open up LinkedIn and read the feed on my home page I always see numerous Job Seekers posting negative comments on their own or in response to what others have posted. Why on earth would a job seeker post anything negative about their job search, treatment by recruiters, failed interviews, etc.?

Quick Tips for Writing a Post to Support Your Job Search Activities – Just Do It

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LinkedIn gives you an incredible platform to share information to millions of LinkedIn users accross the world. This is important as a job seeker because it reaffirms your knowledge and involvement in your field and also boost your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) results in LinkedIn. Both are important in creating VISIBILITY and CREDIBILITY to hiring managers, recruiters and HR professionals!