Three Weekly Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy Job Hunting Tips – July 6, 2015

Lemon Squeezy

Here are three simple job hunting tips for you to begin your week!

1. Before sending out your résumé to employers, have a trusted friend (somebody who will tell you things exactly the way they stand - no B.S.) read over it for accuracy, spelling, and grammar. It's remarkably easy to miss mistakes on your own résumé.
2. While you're at it, have that same trusted friend do the same for your LinkedIn profile.
3. Eat a good meal before your interview. It's tough to concentrate on an empty stomach.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. He is a Human Resources professional and staffing expert with almost two decades of in-house corporate HR and staffing firm experience, and is a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) and Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).

Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

Six Reasons You Can Give Prospective Employers That You're Looking For a New Job

A potential employer will ask you why you're looking for a job. Telling them you're interviewing because "my job sucks" or "my boss is a jerk" is a poor strategy. Not only is it uncouth, it will make your potential employer question whether you're a disgruntled ogre. Here are some suggested reasons to tell that prospective employer you're playing the job market. Pick one that fits.

1. I've heard great things about your company.
2. I'm ready for a new challenge.
3. My current organization is small, and I've reached a ceiling.
4. The commute is too far, I need something closer to home.
5. I've graduated with my Master's degree, I'm looking for something in that new direction.
6. My current position is a temporary assignment, I'm looking for something more permanent.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. He is a Human Resources professional and staffing expert with almost two decades of in-house corporate HR and staffing firm experience, and is a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) and Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).

Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

Four Ways to Let Your LinkedIn Contacts Know You're Looking for a Job Change

Answers to your Questions

Reader question from the mailbag:

Question: What is a good way to let people on LinkedIn know that you are actively looking despite the fact that you have a job?

Answer: Great question! LinkedIn has become kind of the public résumé database. How do you let the world know that you're open and receptive to recruiter inquiries? Let me put a twist on your question, though. Try to think about it this way: "How can I make sure recruiters find me on LinkedIn?" Here are a few ideas:

1. Update your LinkedIn profile to look like a résumé. I don't necessarily mean that you include an objective. However, think of your résumé as a marketing document - its primary goal is to sell you as a candidate. You can transfer a great portion of the data from your résumé to your LinkedIn profile. Fill in your jobs beyond just your job title - What responsibilities did you hold? How many people have you supervised? What quantifiable accomplishments have you accomplished? Don't be modest - include all of these (but be truthful). The more information your profile contains, the more recruiters will see it when they search for candidates.
2. Upgrade your LinkedIn subscription. LinkedIn offers Premium memberships. You're paying for increased visibility of your profile through better promotion as a featured applicant, you can see who's looked at your profile (so you can contact them back to express your interest in their company - a-ha!), and you'll get a few InMails, which enable you to reach people who aren't your direct contacts.
3. Become an Open Networker. This means you accept all invites. Accepting more invitations expands your network. An expanded network means you'll show up in more searches.
4. Be Proactive. Look at what companies of interest are posting scads of jobs. Identify the recruiter at the company. Send them a note to express your interest, along with your résumé.

Good luck!

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. He is a Human Resources professional and staffing expert with almost two decades of in-house corporate HR and staffing firm experience, and is a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) and Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).

Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.