Interview Responses to Avoid at All Costs

Interview Responses to Avoid at All Costs An interview is your opportunity to sell yourself. Regardless of how much you may look the part, you need to answer the questions correctly to get the job. Interviewers ask key questions and look for certain types of answers. Honesty is always the best policy, but remember that it is okay not to offer information that was not asked. Never bash your former employer. It doesnt matter if your last boss was the Wicked Witch of the Workforce, dont say anything negative about your former employer. Instead of saying that you left your last job to get away from your boss that micromanages like its going out of style, say that you are looking for an employer that wants to utilize your talents and allow you to truly contribute to the company. Instead of saying what you hated about your last employer, focus on what you love about the employer that you are interviewing with. Avoid slang. It doesnt matter if everyone you know uses double negatives and slang, dont use them in your interview responses. Always make sure that you look and sound very intelligent and articulate in an interview. You might be a college graduate from an ivy league school, but if you speak like you dropped out of grade school in your interview, theres a good chance that you wont be getting the job. An interview is the place to be as professional as possible. Always have questions. Almost all interviews end with the interviewer asking you if you have any questions about the position or the company. Be certain to have some questions. However, avoid questions about pay, vacation time, hours, bonuses, and similar things that depend on you actually having the job. Instead, do some research on the company that you are interviewing with and ask a question about something that you read. This shows that you are interested about the company and have done some research. Never say you were fired. When asked why you left your last place of employment, never under any circumstances should you say that you were fired, even if you were. You could say instead that you and your manager agreed that your last position may not have been the best fit. Do not lie about why you left, but avoid using the words fired, terminated, and let go in your explanation of why you are no longer with your previous company. Dont lie. Its better to admit that there is something that you dont know than to lie. If you find yourself put on the spot with a question that you dont know how to answer, it is perfectly acceptable to ask for a moment or two to consider your answer. When you give the interviewer a well thought out response to the question that was posed, you can also make a point of emphasizing that you dont make snap judgments and decisions, but instead prefer to think through how you are going to answer the situation. In many situations, this type of personality trait can be an asset.

The Resume , Small Business Owner , Writing Center Game

The Resume , Small Business Owner , Writing Center Game New Questions About Resume, Small Business Owner, Writing Center The resume sample has a strong ability to keep up a reader's interest over the duration of the full document. You have to create a resume that reassures the reader you're a professional, dependable person along with all the skills required to find the business done. The passive voice gives you the ability to gloss over an unflattering pointbut you ought to use it sparingly. In most instances, the company letter is going to be the very first impression that you make on someone. If you are thinking about how to put small small business owner on resume versions that you're using, there are lots of references online. 1 approach to attain a crystal clear style is to minimize your usage of the passive voice. It can be hard for a business owner to capture the breadth and range of her roles and duties in a title, particularly when the sole proprietor wears many hats, Burdan explained. Principal is another option that demonstrates that you're the prime owner or person responsible for the company, but it might sound somewhat more official than owner. At a corporate job that you're provided a title, but as a business proprietor you are able to assign yourself any title you desire. It's not essential to have your resume mirror the title you're applying for, Burdan explained. The New Fuss About Resume, Small Business Owner, Writing Center Writing a resume for an owner of a company is hard. A little small business owner is a person who starts a business on a little scale. Stick to this guide and write your very own interview-winning small business owner resume! From the above mentioned discussion, here's a sample resume for a little business proprietor. The Fight Against Resume, Small Business Owner, Writing Center Business writing ought to be clear and concise. Writing an effective resume is among the most significant sections of l anding work. Be ready to deal with the matter in a cover letter also, and to answer questions from potential employers about whether you intend to carry on freelancing in the event you accept a full-time position. Resumes ought to be brieftypically a couple of pages. Vital Pieces of Resume, Small Business Owner, Writing Center For technical businesses, technical director can function as a title that suits within your real niche. Within the very first one-third of your resume your intention is to demonstrate exactly why you're the perfect candidate. Other duties the owner of a small company performs include portraying their product to the proper audience through the invention of associate campaign. Whether you're a company owner, operations manager, or just a serial entrepreneur, if you're searching for a job you're going to need a resume. As you're applying for the place of a franchise operator, it's important to mention managerial experience, along with interpersonal skill s which will help you work with other folks. A small small business owner resume is hard to write, but adding online content should help your odds of landing work. As a small business proprietor, you have lots of experience which other people don't have. Instead of merely writing down different responsibilities you had at your organization, you must add in how much value you added. It is hard to quantify all the work and responsibility that's required as an operator. When you've just started a company, you don't have a lengthy list of accomplishments and duties you'll be able to point to when describing your abilities or qualifications. Staying in contact with your clients is among the most important facets to cultivating an active resume-writing enterprise.

Why Do Smart People Ask Dumb Questions - Work It Daily

Why Do Smart People Ask Dumb Questions - Work It Daily I would like to say that nothing in the sometimes strange world of career advice can surprise me, but then I would have to deny how often I am surprised. The most recent surprise was a pair of articles appearing just days apart. The first prompted a very strong “What the heck?” response. However, then it was elevated even beyond that by a second article. Combined, they should provoke some serious thinking on the part of interviewers and force organizations to take a serious look making sure recruiters and hiring managers are properly trained. RELATED: Need some job interview advice? Watch these tutorials! The first article proposed that asking a candidate “Did you make your bed this morning?” is a good way of identifying people who “want to change the world.” The article suggested that making your bed shows: 1) It helps you start the day off right; 2) Happy people make their beds; 3) You’ll sleep better; 4) It helps establish good habits; 5) It can reduce stress; and 6) It just feels good. The article references studies that claim people who make their beds are happier (71%) than those who don’t (38%) and that making your bed is correlated to greater productivity. Unfortunately just a few days later, several articles highlighted that making your bed is not only unnecessary, but it is also healthier. A web search reveals several articles published over the last few years that point out that an unmade bed cuts down on the moisture and that the dryer condition helps prevent dust mites and bed bugs. For several days this “making the bed” as an interview question bothered me. Happier and more productive versus healthier? Moreover, then it got even more confusing. A very popular country music star tweeted: “Good Morning! The last one out of bed makes it â€" that’s me today!” So I realized that a person may not make their bed because someone else does: a spouse, a partner, or a housekeeper! I have written before about bad interview questions. It appears there will be a never ending supply of additional examples for some continued stories. Interviewers ask some of these questions because they think they are clever, or they somehow think that the answers provide deep insights into the quality of a candidate. They claim a “magic bullet” that works perfectly for them. The problem is that the relevancy of these questions is doubtful at best â€" and fairness and legality might even be questioned. My concern over these types of questions elevated to still another level when a friend reported to me about a video screening interview she’d just completed. The 8-minute recorded interview featured three questions, the second and third of which were relevant and appropriate. The first question however, was not in the same category as “did you make your bed?” but it seems to raise some of the same questions. The opening question was “What’s your favorite hobby?” Relevance? The first concern I have about these questions is relevance â€" in official terms validity? Are they really related to performance? Even if there’s some correlation between making your bed and productivity, it appears to be based more on surveys than validated correlations to performance. One thing is, or should be, clear. The best predictor of future performance is past performance. Any other factor is going to have a much higher error rate. In simple terms, there are individuals who have perhaps never made their beds once in their entire life who are outstanding performers, super productive, and happy. They may be extremely neat and particular in other areas of their behaviors, yet believe that making their beds in unhealthy â€" or just a waste of time. Whether or not a person makes his or her bed, or what your favorite hobby is, has nothing to do with your coding skills, or customer service skills, or… Dangerous â€" Or Illegal? The illegality of question is not always a black or white issue. Some questions are clearly illegal and should never be asked. However, what about questions that might be dangerous in that they could lead to discovering information that could then be used to discriminate. It is this context that seriously concerns me about these questions. What if the “making the bed” question reveals (or is even intended to reveal) if the candidate is married or what the candidate’s sexual preferences might be? What if the “favorite hobby” question reveals a controversial personal, political, or religious belief that the HR recruiter or hiring manager disagrees with. It is not hard to think of a dozen or so examples of that in today’s world. The “None Of Your Business” Response A major focus of my advice on bad interview questions is simple: “You’ll be asked bad questions â€" don’t give bad answers!” I’ve taken dozens of bad questions and suggested ways to answer them effectively. At the same time, I’ve enjoyed some authors who have provided sarcastic answers to some of these questions. Daniel Pink, in his outstanding career book, “The Adventures of Johnny Bunko,” even pokes fun at these by highlighting: “What will your biggest weakness be in five years?” I point this out because my first response to the bed making and hobby questions is “it’s none of your business.” I do not recommend giving this answer, but it does highlight how the question just doesn’t fit within the context of a professional interview. Conclusion I stated this in the introduction, but it needs repeating. Recruiters and hiring managers need to be seriously trained in effective interviewing skills. It is not something learned from “I heard about this great question.” It is learned by really understanding how to measure performance and conduct a professional interview that gives the candidate the opportunity to best represent his or her accomplishments. Questions about bed making, hobbies, favorite soups or animals will not be part of those interviews. Related Posts How To Create SMART Goals Set And Achieve SMART Goals Promotion Killers: Weak Goals About the author Jim Schreier is a management consultant with a focus on management, leadership, including performance-based hiring and interviewing skills. Visit his website at www.farcliffs.com.     Disclosure: This post is sponsored by a CAREEREALISM-approved expert. You can learn more about expert posts here. Photo Credit: Shutterstock Have you joined our career growth club?Join Us Today!