The thought of actively looking for another job can be daunting. So often people wait until a redundancy before they make a change, because it’s been forced upon them. While it may be easier to stay where you are, if you are in an organisation that’s making structural changes or it’s difficult to progress your career with your current employer, then this article is for you.

When you are actively in ‘job search’ mode, there are many factors that can influence your success. Here are 7 steps to achieve success in your job search:

1. Cover Letter

Your cover letter is the number one tool that will help you get invited to an interview. Many people often overlook crafting a cover letter, yet it is the first piece of information a potential employer or recruiter will look at. It will assist the employer or recruiter to evaluate your suitability for the advertised role. When I work with clients on writing their cover letters for their job applications, we can spend as much time on the cover letter as the resume to ensure we get it right!

In this article I explore how to write a cover letter that gets you to the job interview.

2. Killer Resume

Recruiters and hiring managers see LOTS of resumes. What can you do to develop a killer resume? You must focus on developing a resume that powerfully demonstrates your suitability for the advertised position. This means tailoring the resume to every new opportunity you apply for. There are some protocols to follow when writing your resume, one of which is what to cover in the Professional Experience section.

For each role you must provide the following key points:

• Role title
• Name of organisation you worked for
• Dates of employment
• Key Responsibilities
• Key Achievements
• Scope / breadth of role (e.g. how many people reported to you, what geographic area did you cover, etc)
• Value of Budget or P&L you managed (if relevant)

3. LinkedIn Profile

Your LinkedIn Profile is how you will get found by recruiters on LinkedIn.  Make sure you have updated your career interests on your profile’s private dashboard, letting recruiters know you are open to being contacted. Your LinkedIn profile must contain information that is consistent with your job search goals. Provide readers with a sense of your areas of expertise, experience and professional approach.

When in active job search, the key area to focus on with your LinkedIn Profile include:

• Photo
• Summary
• Headline
• Experience
• Recommendations
• Skills
• Career Interests

Importantly, writing your LinkedIn profile is not as simple as cutting and pasting the professional summary, experience and education sections of your resume.

In this article you can learn more about the difference between a LinkedIn profile and your resume.

4. Interview

You should expect to be invited to a variety of different interview types as part of the job application process. This may include group settings, with a hiring panel, online, face to face, informal or formal interviews. The STAR interview method helps you answer interview questions by providing concrete examples or proof that you possess the experience and skills required for the job you are applying for.

STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action, Result. This method is particularly helpful in response to competency-focused questions, which typically start out with phrases such as “Tell us about a time when…” and “Share an example of a situation where…”

For many of my clients the interview is the part of the job search they fear the most. I support them with Interview Coaching which includes practice interviews where we develop the types of questions they may be asked for a particular job they’ve applied for, and we prepare and practice their answers.

In this article I share some tips on how you can stand out at your next job interview.

5. Networking

Networking has also changed considerably in the last few years. We have become more accustomed to online networking through a variety of platforms and more recently have returned to face-to-face networking. No matter which form of networking you are participating in, always follow up with connections you meet to form stronger relationships. Some ways you can do this include connecting via LinkedIn, sending an email or following up with a phone call to make a memorable impression.

With online tools such as LinkedIn and offline tools such as professional networking events, there are many ways to leverage your networks to help you during your job search.  It’s essential you develop a networking plan, and have practised how you describe where you are at and the types of roles you are looking for. You also need to be brave enough to seek the advice of other professionals who can assist you in achieving your career goals.

6. Recruiters

Recruiters are an important gatekeeper for some of the roles you will apply for during your job search. Importantly, most recruiters are not your career advisor (that’s what I am here for) and so you need to be sure that you meet with recruiters that are aligned to your values and have roles in the sector you wish to work in.  Ask trusted friends and colleagues in your industry (who may have recently changed jobs) which recruiters they would recommend you speak with.

In this article I explore what you need to know about a Career Coach vs a Recruiter.

7. Mindset

A positive mindset is essential when you are in active job search. The reason many people stay where they are, despite being unhappy and wanting to make a change in jobs, is because the job search process can be difficult. You are likely to receive some rejection emails or phone calls and sometimes absolutely no response at all. These can affect your confidence and mindset. You need to be mentally strong to overcome the negatives. Analyse the negative experiences and learn from them – what went wrong, what responses could you have used, what were you not prepared for, how could you have better prepared yourself?

You need to put yourself out there and be willing to experience setbacks. DO NOT GIVE UP! There is some work required to keep you in a positive state of mind, which I welcome the opportunity to explore further with you. Book a 15 minute Career Chat if you need some guidance in your job search.

If you are feeling stuck, here’s an article to help you get moving and take action!

Marina Pitisano

I am a passionate Career Coach who works with individuals in the explore and search phase of their career journey, helping you realise your strengths through my career coaching and training programs. I enjoy showing people the path to greater career satisfaction and providing insight and tools to help you make your next career move.

The post 7 Steps to Achieve Job Search Success appeared first on Letz Create.

Your Cover Letter is the Key to Job Interview Success

How is your cover letter looking? Have you spent hours on updating your resume / CV, but no time on your cover letter? This is very common, and when I first meet most of my clients, and review their cover letter (the ones who have actually prepared one), I find they have written the following.

“I am loyal, energetic and wonderful and think I’d be really good for the job.”

Unfortunately, this is not going to get you to the interview and is perhaps the faster way to get you on to the ‘reject’ pile.

Your cover letter can be your secret weapon versus other candidates. How well you share your experience on the first page is critical to whether you are invited to interview. If your cover letter is thorough, the hiring manager or recruiter will use this as a handy guide to mark you against their check list, and then briefly glance over your CV or resume to ensure you’ve provided the more detailed evidence you referenced so clearly in your cover letter. Their mind will process you as tick, tick, tick and you will be placed on the ‘let’s meet this person for an interview’ pile.

My clients, hiring managers and recruiters love my cover letter format because it makes everyone’s life really easy! When the employer is having to process hundreds of applications for roles, and they are on a tight schedule to recruit, a well written cover letter is your secret weapon.

How to Approach Responding to the Key Selection Criteria

When I work with my clients I am always intrigued by how men and women approach applying for jobs differently.

Please let me explain.

When you are job hunting and actively applying for jobs and, assuming you have set up relevant search filters via the LinkedIn and SEEK search functions, for role, geographic location and salary range, one of the first steps when deciding if you will apply for the job is whether you meet the key selection criteria.

In my experience, men apply for roles when they only meet 75% of the key selection criteria, whereas many women will not apply for the role if they do not meet 100% of the key selection criteria. The key selection criteria is the list of either mandatory / required or desirable, but non mandatory, requirements included in a job advertisement in relation to the type of candidate the organisation is looking for.

As long as you meet the main 3 requirements, or at least three quarters of the listed mandatory requirements, I would encourage you to apply for the role.

How to Write a Cover Letter that Gets You to the Job Interview

I understand that you may find a cover letter difficult to write, because you do not know what to put in it and do not know how to capture your experience in a summary format.

I normally draw this information from your CV or resume and then ask you to tell me the story of each role and your experience. I will ask you to give me bullet points, which I use to write your cover letter for you. I will then train you on how to do it, because I generally find you will have 3 cover letters that tell different versions of your experience and story dependent on the role you are applying for. As you actively apply for roles using this format, you write the cover letter and send it back to me for review.

Let’s look at a real life example of one of my clients who was applying for a role in finance. The key requirements for the role were:

1. Financial Analysis
2. Financial Reporting
3. Corporate Governance
4. Risk Mitigation

In this case, my client did have proven experience in the top 3 areas and the necessary qualifications to do the job. So our focus was on providing evidence of how many years my client had worked for financial organisations (in this case NAB and ANZ) and finding a story about how they have managed risk in some capacity.

Many of my clients do not look at the key selection criteria properly and are too ‘black and white’ in their thinking. When it comes to tackling qualifications, which you may or may not have, it is essential to tell your story as it relates to the number of years’ experience in similar roles and achievements delivered in those roles.

What is important here is building a story with enough evidence and experience to achieve the tick, tick, tick action that gets my clients to interview! Once you do get invited to a job interview, be sure to read my article How to Stand Out at Your Job Interview and learn my 5 key success factors to help you stand out.

How I Help

To encourage you to use your cover letter more effectively as a tool to help you get invited to more job interviews, I am available for Career Coaching. These sessions are designed to help you be prepared for your job search and I will work alongside you until you land your dream job.

To learn more about the secret weapon I have shared with you today, book a 15 minute Career Chat with me. You may also like to access my Career Success Podcasts to hear inspiring stories from clients I have worked with who have found their career success.

Marina Pitisano

I am a passionate Career Coach who works with individuals in the explore and search phase of their career journey, helping you realise your strengths through my career coaching and training programs. I enjoy showing people the path to greater career satisfaction and providing insight and tools to help you make your next career move.

The post Your Secret Weapon to Getting a Job Interview appeared first on Letz Create.

In fact, your cover letter is an essential tool when applying for advertised roles. It is the first point of contact with the hiring manager, whether that be a recruiter or the decision maker recruiting on behalf of their department or organisation. It has the power to determine your fate and whether you get your dream job. I know this sounds dramatic, but it’s true! The quality of your cover letter can influence whether your job application is placed in the YES pile or the NO pile.

The good news is that my proven approach to writing cover letters gets all of my clients invited to the all important job interview. So let’s go through the key factors you need to consider when writing your cover letter so we can make sure this powerful piece can get more recruiters and hiring managers putting you in the YES pile when they read your next job application!

Letz Create’s Proven Cover Letter Checklist

Every single role you apply for must have a cover letter tailored to that role, with the letter to a person rather than just the general Sir/Madam. This means you need to take the time to research the role and company, or the recruiter who may be representing the company, and do your best to find the name of the key point of contact who will be reviewing the job applications.

Key information to include when you set out your cover letter is:

• Your address and contact details usually on the right side at the top
• The employer’s (or recruiter’s) name and address usually on the left side
• The date
• Dear (insert Name)
• Personalised and relevant information
• Address all key selection criteria in a table
• Mention resume and sign off.

1. Highlight the Right Information

Make sure your cover letter is highlighting the right information so that a potential employer gives you the big tick for the interview.  I suggest you put yourself in the hiring manager’s seat. Make your cover letter easy to read and respond specifically to the requirements of the role, in summary form.

2. Respond to all Key Selection Criteria

There is a lot of advice on how to provide a snap shot of relevant skills, qualifications and experience. The proven formula I have used that’s led to success with my clients, is to address all Key Selection Criteria ‘head on’ in a table that highlights how your experience, educations and skills meets the requirements for the role.

With this approach you actively demonstrate that you understand what they are looking for and how you meet the criteria. It is tailored, to the point and easy for the prospective employer to put you in the YES pile.

3. Reference your Resume and Finish with a Call to Action

Then mention that your resume is attached and finish with a call-to-action such as requesting an interview or asking to meet before signing off politely.

Take Action…

If you wish to learn more about my proven approach, please contact me for a 15 minute complimentary Career Chat to discuss how to get the big tick and on to more YES piles. Click here to book a time today,

Looking for more? 

You may also be interested in viewing my free webinar, Job Search is More than a Resume. In this webinar, I take you through the steps on how to prepare for a successful job search, including:

• How to prepare a stand out Resume
• Writing a winning Cover Letter
• Interview secrets explained
• The importance of LinkedIn
• Networking online and offline
• Jump Start Your Career

Click here to access the free Job Search is More than a Resume webinar.

Marina Pitisano

I am a passionate Career Coach who works with individuals in the explore and search phase of their career journey, helping you realise your strengths through my career coaching and training programs. I enjoy showing people the path to greater career satisfaction and providing insight and tools to help you make your next career move.

The post How to Get A Big Tick When Applying for Jobs appeared first on Letz Create.