YOUR JOB INTERVIEW IS LIKE A BLIND DATE

Written by Ann Baehr


YOUR JOB INTERVIEW IS LIKE A BLIND DATE --it's a meeting between two mutually interested people--

Love is inrepparttar air. You know a little about your date and your date knows a little about you. The description of your blind date seems to be too good to be true – a perfect vision of your ideal partner. They haverepparttar 105062 right physical attributes and personal qualities. Your matchmaking friends are even more excited than you because they’re convinced you are perfect for one another. The date has been set. You can hardly wait!

The night arrives and you see your blind date walk throughrepparttar 105063 door ofrepparttar 105064 restaurant. So far so good. The introductions go very well. They are very attractive and have a great personality. They seem to like you too. You can sense each other’s nerves, and are very careful about sayingrepparttar 105065 wrong thing and turning each other off. After about fifteen minutes of slightly awkward conversation mostly dominated by your friends, your date, who byrepparttar 105066 way is a nurse, says, “So, I hear you’re a successful pharmaceutical sales representative with one ofrepparttar 105067 largest pharmaceutical companies inrepparttar 105068 country. That sounds so exciting. How did you get into pharmaceutical sales? You begin by talking about how you’ve always been interested in medicine, enjoy selling, and never saw yourself at a desk job. You explain how you joinedrepparttar 105069 company when they launched one ofrepparttar 105070 best selling nebulizers onrepparttar 105071 market. As you humbly mention that you grew your sales territory to rank as one ofrepparttar 105072 highest inrepparttar 105073 country,repparttar 105074 waitress interrupts to take your plates and asks if you’d like desert. Wow,repparttar 105075 conversation just flowed. You even forgot you were on a date! Your date was so interested in what you had to say, and they responded so well torepparttar 105076 great questions you asked them about their work and family. Your date can sense you are truly interested in them. Inrepparttar 105077 first half hour, you both realized you have so much in common. Deep down inside you are praying they like you as much as you like them, and hope they aren’t seeing anyone else. Byrepparttar 105078 end ofrepparttar 105079 night, it seems your date feelsrepparttar 105080 same way. You both agree to a second date – this time alone!

Okay, let’s rewindrepparttar 105081 tape. You’re not in pharmaceutical sales yet. But, that is what you want to be. You’ve just graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry with a concentration in Psychology. You’ve had your resume professionally developed and it’s time to send it out. You scour allrepparttar 105082 job boards and classified ads, and talk to everyone in your personal network. Things are looking up. In less than two weeks, you have lined up four promising interviews.

HOW TO WRITE A BETTER RESUME

Written by Ann Baehr


HOW TO WRITE A BETTER RÉSUMÉ

INTRODUCTION

There are as many opinions onrepparttar subject of resumes as there are job seekers! Some ofrepparttar 105060 more popular opinions are centered onrepparttar 105061 use of objectives, summaries, profiles, title headings, keywords, reference statements, personal interests, salary history, dates, graphics, fonts, and of course,repparttar 105062 length ofrepparttar 105063 resume.

Then there isrepparttar 105064 question of format. Shouldrepparttar 105065 style of a resume be chronological, functional or combination? One thing is certain -repparttar 105066 resume should sell a candidate's strengths and qualifications, and answer a hiring manager's question, "How can you solve my problem?" It should also have full contact information, be organized, and provide specific information that a hiring manager needs to decide whether or not a candidate is well suited for a position. Atrepparttar 105067 very least, it should list relevant experience and achievements.

PURPOSE of A Résumé

A resume is a personal marketing document that communicates your career objective and value to a hiring company. A strong resume is carefully planned and developed (not quickly typed up) in an appropriate format (style) designed to showcase your experience and accomplishments in direct relation to a specific position.

BASIC RESUME FORMATTING RULES

· Bold and enlarge your name atrepparttar 105068 top. · Keeprepparttar 105069 sections lined up and consistent. · Use an Arial or Times New Roman font (or similar). · Font size shouldn't be smaller than 11pt or larger than 12pt, except for your Name and Headings. · Do not include pronouns such as "I," company street addresses, salary, or reasons for leaving. · Two-page resume: be sure to fillrepparttar 105070 second page at least halfway downrepparttar 105071 page. · Place “Continued” atrepparttar 105072 bottom of page one, and your name and “Page 2” atrepparttar 105073 top of page two. · Use graphics sparingly unless you are in a creative field. It is safe to use a border and shading. · Leave out personal data, photos, and unrelated hobbies, unless you are an actor/actress or model. · If you spell outrepparttar 105074 state in your address, such as New York, spell outrepparttar 105075 states for your jobs. · Proof, proof, and proof again!

To help you understandrepparttar 105076 main differences between various resume styles,repparttar 105077 following illustratesrepparttar 105078 same resume in chronological, functional, and combination formats. Also provided below is a comprehensive list of common mistakes to avoid and useful tips to help your resume to compete in today's competitive workplace:

CHRONOLOGICAL

This isrepparttar 105079 most commonly used resume format. It is straightforward, and easily traces a candidate's career path and progression in a given field. Experience and accomplishments are listed in reverse chronological order, withrepparttar 105080 most recent job positioned first. Because it leaves little torepparttar 105081 imagination and makes it difficult to hide employment gaps,repparttar 105082 chronological resume isrepparttar 105083 most preferred format of employers and recruiters.

Chronological Format Example:

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Wireless, Inc., Brooklyn, NY 1998 - Present Sales Representative · Prospected and sold communications services to business accounts spanningrepparttar 105084 Northeast and Midwest regions. · Consulted clients onrepparttar 105085 cost-effective advantages of switching over from standing services, resulting in a 15% new market penetration with revenues at $1,850 at close of 2000. Anderson Doors, Bronx, NY 1993 - 1998 Business Development Manager · Conducted competitive analyses on European markets to formulate conceptual strategies that cemented key alliances with distributors throughout Italy and Germany. · Aggressively marketed Anderson's company logo and message in print and television advertising campaigns, heightening brand awareness across U.S. and European consumer markets.

FUNCTIONAL

This is a skills-based, achievement-oriented format. Experience and accomplishments are listed in sections with specific headings that extract and showcase ONLY what is directly applicable torepparttar 105086 targeted position. Because it is somewhat vague sometimes omits dates, it isrepparttar 105087 least preferred resume format of employers and recruiters.

Functional Format Example:

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Sales Management · Prospected and sold communications services to business accounts spanningrepparttar 105088 Northeast and Midwest regions. · Conducted competitive analyses on European markets to formulate conceptual strategies that cemented key alliances with distributors throughout Italy and Germany. Market Penetration · Consulted clients onrepparttar 105089 cost-effective advantages of switching over from standing services, resulting in a 15% new market penetration with revenues at $1,850 at close of 2000. · Aggressively marketed Anderson's company logo and message in print and television advertising campaigns, heightening brand awareness across U.S. and European consumer markets.

COMBINATION

This format combinesrepparttar 105090 chronological and functional formats into one! As withrepparttar 105091 functional format, it lists experience and accomplishments in sections with specific headings directly applicable torepparttar 105092 targeted position. However, it lists employment information under a SEPARATE category (only title, company, location, and dates). Since it easily tellsrepparttar 105093 reader how a candidate is qualified for a position while also providing an employment history, it has fast become a favorite resume format amongst many employers and recruiters.

Combination Format Example:

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Sales Management

· Prospected and sold communications services to business accounts spanning Northeast and Midwest regions. · Conducted competitive analyses on European markets to formulate conceptual strategies that cemented key alliances with distributors throughout Italy and Germany. Market Penetration · Consulted clients onrepparttar 105094 cost-effective advantages of switching over from standing services, resulting in a 15% new market penetration with revenues at $1,850 at close of 2000. · Aggressively marketed Anderson's company logo and message in print and television advertising campaigns, heightening brand awareness across U.S. and European consumer markets.

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