Looking for a job
 

I'm sure everyone of you will have to endure this period or already has. Writing CV's and doing interviews.

I myself am searching for a job for 4 months already, have done at least 10 interviews, countless IQ tests and personal tests, but none of them gave me a contract.

These were my problems:

1) I showed too less of emotion, enthousiasm.
2) I didn't really know what I was after, no focus.
3) Some huge mistakes like: coming an hour too early, asking stupid questions
4) At first I didn't wear a costume.
5) Didn't sound professional enough.
6) Mumbling, no articulation, bad communication skills, no structure in message transfer.
7) Didn't have good answers to questions like: what are 3 bad points of your personality.

What are your experiences? I want to learn more. You can also tell us what you did in the mean time while doing interviews. Sitting home doing nothing, working part time, playing games and all.

I don't know if you experienced it, but I also got racist questions threwn at me... I'm not white, but living in a white world, aiming for a high position.

I went to a job unprepared by not knowing the company well enough. Made a stupid statement about other programs when the interviewer said "We only focus on xyz programs". Whoops.

My first job went smoothly. I don't even remember the interview. I just got the job. Of course, it was a fast food place so....yeah.

My next place I remember filling out the applications, then applying. A few days later, the woman simpily asked me why I wanted to work there instead of my first job. My answer was the remarkably convincing, "Because...I want to work here.". Somehow, I did get the job. Again though, it was fast food.

THose are a few of my experiences. Overall, the higher profile the job, the more ways they will test you mentally (at least).

What.

Seriously, that's a stupid reason to not get hired no matter what industry it is.

I usually make it a point to be exactly on time whereever I go (I'll even go so far as to wait around the corner, haha), but the expression is "to be on time is to be too late" for a reason.

Anyway, as a freelancer I get to go apply to a lot of jobs, and not all work out, sometimes you just never hear back, sometimes you're in the race with 60 others, and sometimes work comes to you.

It's a kinda crazy life.

My biggest problems with interviews are always the phone interviews because I find it very hard to talk on the phone, always have. Being in the Netherlands and since there are almost no jobs in my field here, I have had to get used to phone interviews, but I haven't really quite "gotten it" yet. There were jobs that I was practically overqualified for but I blew it on the phone interview. Well, more and more interviews seem to go via MSN these days which is a boon to me, but phone interviews are still really awkward for me.

When I'm out of work, I usually just try to work on one of my many "private" projects, or catch up on gaming. Sometimes I have so much work that I'll be working 14 hours a day and still barely make the deadline, and then other months I'll have absolutely zilch to do.

As far as formal interviews go, I really recommend going to lots of them. Think of it as interview-training. It doesn't really cost you anything to go to them, and the more you do, the better you get at them. They all ask the same questions anyway.

Oh they really do cost: transportation! I agree doing many interviews will get yourself more and more mature and you'll know yourself better.

And I have never ever heard of an msn interview! What kind of job is this I wonder... :)

Forget MSN interviews...

what kind of job are you applying for? :eye:


Anyway, you're getting the interviews, so you know your resume/cover letter is doing it's job. And you know what your problems are. Come up with some pre-prepared enthusiasm and focus (anticipate questions), dress well, and show up 15 minutes early. Have a coffee near the place if you're that worried about being late. Have questions ready, because it makes you look interested, and if the interviewing is talking you can just nod and look interested. Send a thank-you note after each interview and each rejection.

You don't have to answer racist/sexist/discriminatory questions, at least where I live. Gracefully dodge the question or decline to answer if you want.

About this thank you letter, only 10% of the people write this. Isn't it easier to just say thank you for the interview at the end of the interview?

It's considered more polite to write a thank you letter after the interview's over. It's not as commonplace as it used to be, but most people I've talked to that do recruiting say it's still seen as a positive.

This is exactly why I hate job interviews. I wish there was some other alternative. It's enough trouble as it is to assemble a nice cover letter with a nice resume, while having fingers crossed hoping one will get the job. Then when the time finally arrives, a fuck-up or two throws it all out the window. Then, it's back to the gas station for another few months.

I doubt that's the reason why he wasn't considered. Employers are under no obligation to give you a reason why you were passed over for a job.

My recommendation is that you have a professional go over your resume, and also take at least one mock interview for practice. Of course that will only go so far as to tune your mind to your speaking habits and body language, it won't help you when it comes to your actual knowlege of the subject.

It was suggested that you know the company you're interviewing for, and although that's very good advice, you should also know what sort of job this is. That's more important.

I'm not saying that you don't know your field, but it sounds like from your first post that you're not very focused on what you want to do in your field so your knowlege about the specifics they may be looking for could be too thin on the ground for their needs. If you got any friends in the field, ask them what their employers/team looks for in terms of specifics.

Additional Spam:
Depends entirely on who's hiring you. If it's HR or a group of people who don't know the subject, than that is very much true. In my office, people from the department in question do the hiring, so they don't really care about stuttering problems as they care about technical competence.

Yeah, I think that's how it should be (in terms of broadening opportunities) in most cases. In general, eliminating someone by being too picky and overlooking their stature that spells asset in technical competence for the betterment of the company can be a shameful disposal.

Any assessment experiences here? I got one next tuesday for the Total company.

I actually used a book called "knock 'em dead", to prepare for my interviews. They have the typical questions an interviewer will ask, and what they're looking for in your answers, and other useful hints.

And you may want to try one of those job workshops, if they offer it anywhere, to have a mock interview, as lurker mentioned. It sounds you just go right into the interview w/o practicing and doing research(I did this..and I've encountered the same problems). And I used some of my job interviews as practice, like surasshu mentioned--do that only if you can afford that luxury (I had 20 odd interviews in 3 months, but it drained the crap out of me.)

But the book, and the practice helped me nail some job offers (some I wanted--auditing, and not doing god damn brainless bookkeeping). And I know two other college friends who got jobs, because of the book; they're the ones who recommended the book to me=P

Also, when you do your thank you letter, state why they should hire you--like pointing out your specific skills that will complement the position, etc.

If you're going for a sales job the INSTANT WIN here is saying you're an impulse shopper.

Or you say "if I told you I was a pathological liar as my first bad point would you believe my next two?" If they dont laugh say you make lame jokes too often.

I've never had a job interview where I didn't get the job but whatever, I'm a suckhole. Just be a suckhole.

Well I'm really too serious, I'm not a joke person.

That book you suggested gives me inspiration, I'll read some books on google about assessment and the one you mentioned. I think everything is about good communication skills, being to the point and have structure in what you are saying. Making sure the person knows what you are talking about.

You have to make the impression you're a professional speaker, someone who can represent the company. They have to believe they can depend on you. You should also show off about being a team player, which I'm not, but I can fake it.

So you're aiming for a PR position or something?

No I'm going all technical, not commercial or management. But even then you need to speak with researchers, operators, managers, distributors, maintenance. I will have to maintain a good relationship with all of them, make a good impression. Ultimately I will have to delegate tasks to them, so I could be seen as a manager.

Based on my experiences with Special K Corp and Lucky Charms Inc. I'd say just to not milk it any more than you have to.

A nice tip I picked up while interviewing was to take a red bull like an hour before an interview to help with the enthusiasm.

It also helped when I shifted focus from answering their questions to telling them what I could do with them. They'll still ask questions, and you'll still answer them, but the goal in answering them is bragging about all of your accomplishments.

Also keep in mind, if they're hiring, then they've got a problem, and they need a solution. If you can match your skillset to their problems, that scores major points too.

I'm incredibly incredibly shy, but I know how to "act" outgoing and personable. Lean forward, nod your head when listening, ask questions whenever possible, don't fidget, eye contact, seem interested, smile when appropriate, I even can make my voice less sarcastic sounding.

Reflect on your past experiences, good ones and bad ones. What sort of conflicts did you experience? What did you do to solve these conflicts? What are some examples when you made the wrong choice, what would you have done differently? Thats the kind of stuff you need to think about before you go in. What are some good qualities and bad (make this cleverly disguised good qualities).

Like someone else said, get a book with common interview questions, just to give you an idea of what you'll need to think about before you interview.

Make yourself interesting! What sort of cool things can you do? Theyre not going to choose someone boring, so don't be afraid to refer to your horrible tentacle hentai collection as your "profound interest in eastern culture." Probably want to leave out any possible fursuting though

It should be noted that a perfectly fair question to ask is whether there is a job opening at all.

Sometimes Human Resources employees are obligated to conduct interviews, even when there are no available jobs, simply because upper management doesn't want them sitting around doing nothing all day.

When this happens, they're simply wasting your time and falsely getting your hopes up. Theoretically, if you really impress them, they'll keep you on file, but that's a longshot.

This practice is far more common in white collar businesses that offer pay above minimum wage. If you're being interviewed at a bookstore or supermarket, you can be certain they need someone immediately. But if it's a building full of cubicles, there's a chance you're being strung along simply because there's a quota.

Don't be afraid to ask.

I've always found interviews to be immensly positive experiences. There's plenty of tips out there, but I'll focus on the two most important ones.

1. Get lots of sleep. You'll think faster, speak faster, and solve faster. You'll be funnier, more professional and better postured. Force yourself if you have to, but sleep.

2. Why do you want this job? Take five hours and think this through. Why do you want it? Are you good at it? Do you want the money? Are you desperate? Do you just want to pay the bills? Do you even care about what this company does? Why should these people listen to you? WHAT IS THE PROBLEM?
Find the source of the problem and you're 85% done. So, why do you want this job? Why are you going to this interview? Why do you not have a job already? What are you looking to gain? Are you looking to cheat someone? Are you confident of your skills? Why are you lying? Why are you selling yourself short? Why are you trying to become someone you're not? Why would you even care if you get a job? What are you happy doing? Why don't you pursue your dreams and do whatever it is you like doing better than this?


Once you have your motivations sorted, the other stuff just falls into place. You're not dumb: enthusiasm, professionalism, attentiveness etc. all those fall into place if you have your motives and enough sleep.

To reinforce what neus said, employers in my experience like people who have firm goals and plans to achieve them. If you can develop a career path and then fit the job in that, it tells the interviewer that not only do you have goals, but it explains to them that the job provides you intangible benefits beyond the salary which makes you less of a risk to hire.

I'm shocked that "race" came into the discussion. Wow, either you gave some impression to steer things that way or the employer is somebody who is sensitive for some reason.

I walk into an interview like a salesman. I am their friend who has the goods they are looking for.
I'll chit chat like I have know them for years all the while showing the gloss of my capacity. I figure basically what they want is somebody who they can trust.
What they can trust is somebody who is straight with them who can look em' in the eyes and not flinch.

Get yourself a buch of interviews if you have the time. Get them even with places you don't want to work for. Put yourself in the environment often enough to where you get comfortable.

I did the assessment for Total and there is one thing I'm shocked about!

I did test for banks previously: ING, Dexia, Fortis.
And to my surprise these tests were exactly the same as the tests I did for Total petrochemicals. So I got some experience in it, and I knew how to answer them correctly. I'm pretty sure I got 40/40 on the abstract test.

The other tests were:

1) interview: give an example of this, give an example of that, and another example and another one... irritating...

She asked: 'can you give an example of a decision you just made not too long ago?' - I couldn't think of anything so I said that I was deciding if I would go to the assessment by train or by car.

2) a bunch of emails and you make your agenda for the first week, = stress...

3) some employee who is pissed about his job and I have to find a solution, think of it as an RPG but then in real life.

4) write your ambitions on one piece of paper, this was quite difficult for me, because I have no ambitions at the moment. I just graduated, I just want some experience first.

5) 500 questions about your personality

This day lasted 10 hours, I'm glad it's over. Waiting for feedback now.

Be glad they didn't give you a personality test and then not tell you what it meant. We do that. It is a good indicator of what kind of person they are and whether they fit what we are looking for.