For the full Inc.com article: “Inc 500…

Positive factors included:

• support from family and friends
• positive thinking
• career changes and retraining
• part-time or temporary work
• job search support groups
• vocational counseling
• initial job search activities
• making job contacts
• physical activity

Negative factors were:

• job rejections
• financial pressures
• contacts with government agencies
• unknown or negative future
• ineffective job search activities
• negative thinking
• spouse or family problems

The negative factors certainly reflect the stress of job search, and one’s  re-evaluation of self-worth associated with being unemployed, and strained relationships. The positive factors focus on relationships and meaningful activities.

After weeks, maybe months, of submitting resumes, following up and hearing, “We’re just not hiring right now,” landing an interview can make you feel as good as, well, landing the job. But the road doesn’t end there and that’s precisely when the nerves start to set in. The idea of your potential employer sizing up how well you’ll mesh with the company, let alone your confidence, can be quite intimidating. How are you supposed to wow your potential employer with your fabulous self in 20 minutes or less? Follow these ten tips and your phone will be ringing off the hook as they follow up with you.

Like to blog or comment on blogs? The online pastime may lead to a new job — or derail your chances of getting one you want.

Many corporate recruiters now search blogs, or Web journals, to vet candidates and check for digital dirt. They say blogs offer insights that can’t be gained from resumes or interviews, such as the ability to think critically.

Last year, Brian Balfour’s blog, SocialDegree.com, inspired an unsolicited offer for a product-manager job from an executive at Zoom Information. “I was impressed by the points Brian was making and the way he was making them,” says Russell Glass, vice president of products and marketing at the Waltham, Mass., technology firm.

The blog also offered details about Mr. Balfour’s work history and education. “It was a no-brainer to give him a call and see if he’d be interested,” Mr. Glass says.

Mr. Balfour was intrigued. “I was just coming off selling a business and looking for where I would head next,” he says. Three months later, the 24-year-old got the job.

Some job seekers call recruiters’ attention to their blogs as a way to boost their candidacy.

In an interview for a public-relations job in late 2004, Kevin Dugan told recruiters at Cincinnati-based FRCH Design Worldwide that he had been writing a blog for two years. “Blogging was a way for me to build credibility,” he says. “It was a way to show my writing skills pretty easily, as well as my knowledge of blogging and the public-relations industry.”
Wall Street Journal

Pinpoint Your Goal

Before you begin, ask yourself these questions. Are you:

* Making a lateral move?

* Seeking a promotion?

* Career transitioning?

* Pursuing admission into an academic program?

For numbers one through three above, the most effective way to begin targeting your resume is to search openings that appeal to you on job boards (Monster®, Yahoo! Hot Jobs®, CareerBuilderTM, etc.), internal company postings, or newspaper classifieds.

Match Yourself to the Job

When you look at a job listing, highlight the qualifications that are required and the duties that you would be expected to assume. Every match in terms of required qualifications and your experience should serve as a keyword in your resume.

Knowing how you match up to a potential position will provide focus, so that your resume can be tailored to your targeted audience. The more closely the content of your resume matches the content of these postings, the more likely you will be asked to interview. Be careful, though, not to simply repeat phrases found in a job listing. Your goal is to demonstrate your understanding of the role and your applicable experience.

A Note on Academic Resumes

Resumes provided to admission officers showcase your skills, professional experience, accomplishments, and academic history in much the same way as “job” resumes. The difference is that an admission resume will focus on what transitions well to the classroom, not to the workplace.

Keywords

Keywords can include industry-specific jargon or acronyms, such as the following:

* Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), for accountants

* Series 7 licensing, for brokers

* Initial public offering (IPO), for investment bankers

* At-risk child, for social workers

* Level 2 Training, for physicians

* Intellectual property law, for attorneys

* Triage, for nurses

You should employ other nouns or phrases that indicate your qualifications and knowledge of required tasks. Such words might include:

* General ledger, word processing, contract negotiations, benefits, payroll, closing (for sales people)

* Catering services, new menu items, capacity planning (for chefs)

* Logistics, quality assurance, advertising campaigns, product launches, staffing, training, orientations (for a marketing position)

Companies that employ scanners require a set number of hits on keywords before the hiring manager will personally review a resume. For that reason, it is always wise to incorporate as many keywords as possible into your resume.

Michael Fleischner is the Managing Director of ResumeEdge.com which provides Resume Writing Services and Sample Resumes.

There are many types of interviews: screening interviews, designed to whittle the applicant pool; longer second and third interviews, intended to help employers make final selections; and telephone and video conferencing interviews, arranged to capitalize on available technology. Although these interviews often have different purposes, they all require basic interviewing skills. Read on for advice about what to do before, during, and after a job interview. [ Occupational Outlook Quarterly ]

Job Interview Advice

If you can?t answer yes to most of these questions, your elevator pitch is not working.

Imagine if you will, you are in an elevator with the CIO of a company for which you want to work. As luck would have it, you have exactly three floors together and you have to generate enough interest to merit a request for your card, a meeting or an invitation to step out of the elevator to continue the discussion. The whole idea of the elevator pitch is to communicate very quickly why they want to learn more.

Simply stated, the Elevator Pitch is your most powerful and important tool to gain the attention of a person who will offer you leads, an opportunity to interview or introduce you to others who will provide them.

Whether you are talking to an old friend or a new acquaintance, you want the individual to have a clear snapshot of what you do, why it is important and what distinguishes you from others who do the same thing. Your strategy is to make them so interested in your story they ask questions to learn more. It is always a mistake to assume that because you have known someone for a long time that they know what you do. Thus, the elevator pitches for old friends and new acquaintances have the same objective; generate leads, introductions and interviews.

The tactic you use is to relate what you do to what they do. Understand your client. If, for example, you are talking to a financial person and you are an IT professional, you probably don?t want to stress the latest technologies you implemented in record time. You do want to stress how what you did affected the bottom line or the impact your work had on the stock or upcoming IPO.

Critical to this conversation is your own understanding of what you do, what makes you unique and why anyone would care. It must be clear, succinct and interesting. This is your opportunity to convey your passion for what you do and the importance of the outcomes. A few ideas to get you started.

Say what you do first, your title is not especially important.

• I bring new products to market.? Or, ?I am a marketing professional who brings new products to market.?

Say what you do that is different from other marketing professionals.

• I bring new products to market on time and on budget.?

Say why that is important, or the benefit.

• I bring new products to market on time and on budget which contributed to my employer being profitable in their last three quarters.?

Say how you do this.

• My ability to keep communications open between the development staff, sales and marketing means there are no surprises and we handle any thing that comes up.?

You may want to conclude your pitch with a request. Depending on your audience that request can be for introductions, leads or advice on who might point you in the right direction. The key is to convey your excitement that what you do is important and unique.

The last and perhaps most important part of the pitch is the ?take-away.? What is the one thing you want the listener to take away from the conversation? To determine if your message is working, give the pitch to a teenager. If they listen and can tell you what you do, you are on the right track.

OK, that ’s the theory of the Elevator pitch, here?s reality. In all my years working with Technology Professionals and Executives, I’ve rarely found anyone who has their pitch down cold. It is difficult to see our own image. Yes everyone knows what to do, few do it very well. Often, the pitch is lukewarm and the words just stumble out because the job seeker isn?t comfortable with it. Or worse, it sounds canned and doesn?t change with the audience. My advice? Practice, Practice, Practice.

About the Author

Author: Rita Ashley, Job Search Coach

Better Control, Faster Results. Highly Targeted Job Search Solutions. Purchase “Job Search Debugged, Insider ’s Guide to Job Search for Executives and Technology Professionals,” read blogs and contact the Coach .

I. Finding a job is the easy part but finding the right job is much more difficult. You are trying to be “selective.”

II. Have you ever thought of leaving your present position before? If yes, what do you think kept you there?

Challenge is what kept you in your current position but it is not there anymore. Any other time you considered leaving it was due to lack of challenge and growth.

III. What do you think of your boss?

This is a question that can make or break an interview every time. The person talking to you might be your boss either today or in the future and does not want to hear you trash your current or past boss/employer. NEVER talk negatively about this and always try and stay as positive as possible.

IV. Describe a situation in which your work was criticized.

Make sure the example you give is a positive one, meaning that even though there might have been a problem with a certain task or project you were involved in, you came away from it and learned something. Always be positive.

V. What other types of jobs or companies are you considering?

If you are going to talk about this subject then make sure that you mention ONLY jobs related to this field or industry. Interviewers do NOT want to hear that you are thinking of becoming an accountant when you are applying for a Web designer position. It tells them that you might not be as serious about staying a web designer. Nobody wants to hire someone that is already interested in changing careers before the position is even accepted.

VI.Where would you like to be 5 years or 10 years from now?

This is a tough question unless you have otherworldly powers. Your answer should reflect what you want the interviewer to know about you. Example: ” I see myself continuing to learn and grow and take on new challenges.” This tells the interviewer that you are interested in moving forward in your career and want to build upon previous success.

VII.What are your weaknesses?

This is a very common question. If you say you have no weaknesses then you come off looking arrogant. If you try and use humor then you may appear too dismissive. This is a difficult question and the interviewer wants to see how you handle it. Use a weakness that can otherwise be seen as a strength. Never fall into the trap of seeing the interviewer as mother/father/confessor and offer up something that is important to the job

A good example can be, “One of my weaknesses is that I can sometimes take on to much work and it can get me into trouble meeting deadlines but luckily I have learned to manage my time and commitments much better by utilizing a task manager and budgeting my time more accurately.”

VIII. If I spoke with your previous boss, what would they say is your greatest strength and weakness?

Emphasize your strong job related skills and turn your weakness into a positive.

Example: “My boss would say my strengths are my ability to problem solve and manage a project through to completion. He would then tell you that my weaknesses are that I have had trouble budgeting my time and saying ‘No’ to coworkers but that I learned to better manage my time once he pointed this out to me.”

IX. How much are you looking for?

This is when your pre-interview research comes in handy. Take a look at salary guides for the particular position in your region. These should provide accurate ranges for you to go by. Do not name a specific number but do state that, “The research I have done shows that a person with my experience is usually paid in the X range for a job such as this one.” If you are unsure of what the range is then an answer of “I care much more about getting myself the right opportunity then a certain dollar amount” should get you through this question.

X. What important trends do you see in our industry?

Keep your answer to just a few examples. Do not go into any longwinded explanations about why you think that something is inevitable in the industry. Since you do not know what the interviewer believes to be the trends or what direction the company believes the trends will go keep all answers in a positive tone.

Returning to the workforce after a long absence? It’s not easy. Whether you’ve been a stay at home parent, were temporarily disabled, deployed, or experienced a long period of unemployment, we’ve put together a list of 10 tips to help move you out of the house and into your dream job.

1. BE HONEST with potential employers. Don’t exaggerate or fabricate your work history. Remember, if you have to lie to get the job, it’s probably not going to be the one you want.
2. BE HONEST with yourself. While you’ve been home or away, have your career ambitions changed? Ambivalence may be getting in your way. Take the time to discover your true passions and you’ll be more likely to find a job you want to keep.
3. Don’t say too much, either. A simple “I took two years off after my daughter was born.” in your cover letter will do. Explain, but don’t go into too much detail. Save the details for the interview, if asked.
4. Emphasize volunteer/unpaid work. Chances are, you’ve been doing something with your time. If you’ve been involved in community, nonprofit, or school organizations, list those projects in which you took a leadership role or made a substantial time commitment.
5. Build your resume. Don’t have those volunteer experiences? Seek them out now while you have the time. Volunteering is a great way to try out new skills and add those months of experience employers are looking for. At the same time, make it clear to your volunteer supervisor that you are in need of and actively looking for paid work.
6. Emphasize skills over work history. No matter how impressive your last job, its value on the job market will depreciate after a few years outside of the work force. Make sure your resume highlights your skill set and de-emphasizes dates.
7. Think about who you know NOW. Those old references are still valuable, but supplement them with at least one or two recent additions. Be creative, think beyond paid work and consider contacts you may have made in your community. References who may know or be recognizable to the employer can be of great help.
8. Don’t undersell yourself. It’s hard to get your confidence back and put yourself out there in the job market, but confidence is key in job hunting. Ask for what others in the position would make, don’t discount your abilities.
9. Go out and appreciate your day life now. Treasure every second of your free time and you’ll feel and look less desperate when you talk to employers.
10. Go back to work now. Don’t wait for someone to hire you. Get your wardrobe in order, get your resume, references, and other materials ready, and treat job-hunting like a job. Get used to the rhythm of the 9 to 5 day and the feel of your work environment, and walk into the interview like you already work there.

Resources:

Returning to Work After Maternity Leave – From the Mayo Clinic. Good advice for all stay at home moms returning to the workforce, whatever the age of their children.

Returning to Work: A Career Crossroads – Advice for parents returning to work, from About.com

Returning to the Workforce Following Military Duty – Advice from the Airforce Office of Special Investigations.

Returning to Work After Disability: What You Should Know – From TheBody.com.

Blogher.com: Business, Career, and Finance.

Working Mother Magazine

PeopleResources.org – Disability Job Bank

RecruitMilitary.com – Jobs for veterans.