Job Hunting For Dummies E-Book

Max Messmer

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 536

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2011

Beschreibung

Whether you're a recent high school or college grad or anestablished workforce veteran, changing jobs can be a scaryexperience. Let Job Hunting For Dummies, 2nd Edition, be your guideto pushing your career forward. Author Max Messmer, Chairman andCEO of Robert Half International (the world's largest specializedstaffing firm), has used his job search expertise to create thiscutting-edge guide to job hunting. Messmer offers the kind offriendly advice and insider's tips that can enhance your job searchfrom start to finish. Get yourself off on the right foot. First, organize your supplies;then, organize your search. Target your search in the job market ofyour choice; then, give yourself the tools that you need in orderto break in to that market. Find out what separates bad resumesfrom resumes that get results. Discover the secrets of drumming upjob leads, from researching online to using your own networks orworking with a recruiter. After you're in, you'll be ready to shinewith Messmer's complete list of the do's and don'ts of giving greatinterviews; and you'll be confident when the interview ends,knowing that you possess the keys to successfully closing aninterview. Don't wait another day. Find the job you want with Job Hunting ForDummies, 2nd Edition.

Leseprobe

Job Hunting For Dummies®, 2nd Edition

by Max Messmer

Foreword by Robert Half

Job Hunting For Dummies®, 2nd Edition

Published byWiley Publishing, Inc.111 River St.Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774www.wiley.com

Copyright © 1999 Robert Half International Inc.

Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

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Library of Congress Catalog Card No.: 99-63201

ISBN-13: 978-0-7645-5163-5

ISBN-10: 0-7645-5163-9

Manufactured in the United States of America

15 14 13 12 11

2O/TR/QR/QY/IN

About the Author

Max Messmer’s mother once told him to start pulling his own weight and get a job. So at age 11, he began making ladies’ hand-crafted bracelets. He sold scores of them to her friends, neighbors, students, and even teachers. He enjoyed selling them so much it created a stir at school and took him away from his studies. His mom then put him out of business, forcing him back to basic homework.

He learned something, though. Nothing happens until you make a sale. The job hunting process is no exception. No one will know your capabilities until you become an expert at selling them. (And if you saw these bracelets today, you’d know what a sales job it was, he says.) Inability to sell one’s skills is one of the most frequent failings of job candidates, according to Messmer.

Today, Max Messmer is chairman and CEO of Robert Half International Inc. (RHI), the world’s largest specialized staffing firm, and one of the foremost experts on job searching and career management.

Messmer has written several critically acclaimed books, including Human Resources Kit For Dummies (Wiley, 1999), The Fast Forward MBA in Hiring (John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1998), 50 Ways to Get Hired (William Morrow & Co., Inc., 1994), and Staffing Europe (Acropolis Books Ltd., 1991). Messmer’s expertise has been featured in major business publications such as Fortune, Forbes, and The Wall Street Journal, and he has also written hundreds of bylined articles and columns on job seeking, employment, and management topics.

Robert Half International (NYSE symbol: RHI), a Fortune 1000 firm, ranked in the top 1 percent of all firms actively traded on the New York Stock Exchange, based on returns to investors for the five-year period ended 1 2/31/98. Messmer’s company is the only staffing firm included in this top ranking. RHI was also one of only 31 companies to be included on The Wall Street Journal’s 1998 “Honor Roll” for its stock market returns to investors for the previous one-, three-, five-, and ten-year periods ended 1 2/31/97 and recently ranked number one in the temporary staffing industry on Fortune magazine’s list of “America’s Most Admired Companies.”

Founded in 1948, the company’s specialized temporary, project, and full-time staffing services include Accountemps, Robert Half, and RHI Management Resources, for accounting and finance; RHI Consulting, for information technology; OfficeTeam, for highly skilled office support; The Affiliates, for legal staffing; and The Creative Group, for project staffing in the advertising, marketing, and Web design fields. The company serves its clients and candidates through more than 240 offices worldwide and through online job search services at its divisional Web sites, all of which can be accessed at www.rhii.com.

Messmer has been ranked by Chief Executive magazine among the top 100 CEOs in the nation for the past four consecutive years. He is a member of the board of directors of a number of major corporations, including Airborne Freight Corporation, Health Care Property Investors, Inc., and Spieker Properties, Inc. Previously, Messmer served on the boards of First Interstate, NationsBank (of North Carolina), Pacific Enterprises, and Southern California Gas Company, among others. During the Reagan administration, he served on the President’s Advisory Committee on Trade Negotiations. Valedictorian of his graduating class at Loyola University, Messmer also graduated cum laude from the New York University School of Law.

Dedication

To my wife, Marcia, who has provided endless support throughout my career — even when I told her I wanted to leave the security of corporate management for entrepreneurship (she didn’t even call me a Dummy — not to my face, anyway). And to my two sons, Michael and Matthew, for whom I am so grateful.

Author’s Acknowledgments

A number of very talented and dedicated people have helped make Job Hunting For Dummies, 2nd Edition, a reality. Special thanks go to Barry Tarshis, who provided invaluable research, insight, and assistance; Lynn Taylor, vice president and director of research at Robert Half International, for her excellent advice throughout; members of Lynn’s staff, including Reesa McCoy Staten, Leslie Chamberlain, Laurel Goddard, Joel Dibble, and Jessica Wheeler; Kathy Welton, vice president and publisher at Wiley, who saw the need for this book; and my very capable editors, Pam Mourouzis and Diane Smith.

I would also like to acknowledge Mr. Robert Half, a great friend and colleague, who for many years has distinguished himself as a world-class career authority. He became a pioneer in specialized personnel services in 1948, when he founded our company — and his name has become synonymous with ethics and professionalism in the staffing field.

If you’ve lost your job, remember that you are not alone. Most people have been let go more than once in their career. It no longer carries the stigma it once did, especially with the series of mergers and downsizings that have transformed today’s workplace. In the grand scheme of things, this time will be relatively short.

Best of luck in your search!

— Max Messmer

P. S. As for the reference to Dummies, I think we all know that the only dumb question is the one that’s never asked. So you deserve praise for taking charge of your career and seeking answers!

Publisher’s Acknowledgments

We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our online registration form located at www.dummies.com/register

Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:

Acquisitions and Editorial

Senior Project Editor: Pamela Mourouzis

Senior Acquisitions Editor: Mark Butler

Senior Copy Editor: Susan Diane Smith

Editorial Coordinator: Maureen Kelly

Editorial Manager: Rev Mengle

Editorial Assistants: Paul E. Kuzmic, Alison Walthall

Composition Services

Project Coordinator: E. Shawn Aylsworth

Layout and Graphics: Angie Hunckler, Dave McKelvey, Barry Offringa, Brent Savage, Brian Torwelle, Dan Whetstine

Proofreaders: Christine Berman, Marianne Santy, Susan Sims

Indexer: Infodex Indexing Services, Inc.

Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies

Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher, Consumer Dummies

Joyce Pepple, Acquisitions Director, Consumer Dummies

Kristin A. Cocks, Product Development Director, Consumer Dummies

Michael Spring, Vice President and Publisher, Travel

Brice Gosnell, Publishing Director, Travel

Suzanne Jannetta, Editorial Director, Travel

Publishing for Technology Dummies

Richard Swadley, Vice President and Executive Group Publisher

Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher

Composition Services

Gerry Fahey, Vice President of Production Services

Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services

Foreword

Looking for a new job probably wasn’t on your list of fun things to do this year.

And job hunting is probably one skill that most people don’t care to become really good at. With one exception. I once received a resume from an innovative job candidate who had virtually no work history. His entire resume was based on his job search experience, including product development (identifying his strengths); communication (resume writing); telemarketing (calls to employers); sales presentations (interviewing); budgeting (tracking job search expenses); and so on.

While I wouldn’t recommend this approach, you can’t help but give this job seeker some credit for trying to put his best foot forward. Job hunting takes courage, persistence, and faith.

My first “job” was a paid internship as a junior accountant at a small CPA firm in the early 1940s. The income was, well, embarrassing — $4 a week (that’s not a typo, so please keep it between us). However, I needed the experience to eventually qualify as a CPA and realized that many internships offered no pay at all. So I viewed the money as a token. After the internship, my boss proudly announced that he was offering me “real” pay . . . $8a week! Based on my reaction, he replied straight-faced, “What’s wrong, why would you want to leave? You’re doubling your salary in six months!” I left. I was even able to find a higher paying job, and six years later, I founded Robert Half International.

As you conduct your search, keep in mind that with every call you make and letter you send, you’re getting closer to the finish line. And the more knowledge you gain, the faster you’ll get there.

Job Hunting For Dummies, 2nd Edition,is an up-to-date, easy-to-follow reference book that you shouldn’t be without. You’ll probably find more material jam-packed in here than you will in any other single job hunting source. It’s also entertaining, which is both refreshing and necessary at times like this. Max Messmer has an insider’s view of what works and what doesn’t for job candidates — he heads what has become the world’s largest and fastest growing specialized staffing firm.

When Max approached me about selling my company in 1986, it was the farthest thing from my mind. But 17 days later, I sold the business to him. His sensitivity to people and business savvy were extraordinary. I knew he was someone to whom I could entrust my business of 40 years.

Similarly, I know you can trust him for invaluable job hunting advice — you’re already one step closer to career success.

Robert Half, Founder, Robert Half International Inc.

Contents

Title

Introduction

Who This Book Is For

What You’ll Gain from This Book

What You Won’t Gain from This Book

How This Book Is Organized

How to Get the Most from This Book

Icons Used in This Book

Part I : Getting a Handle on the Process

Chapter 1: Getting Off on the Right Foot

Has Anybody around Here Seen a Traditional Job?

Sometimes They Even Give Us Sundays Off

Nerds ‘R’ Us

Common Job Hunting Myths

Keeping Things in Perspective

Chapter 2: Getting Organized

Setting Up Your Job Hunt Headquarters

Tooling Up: A Guide to Basic Job Search Gear

Eight Keys to Job Search Productivity

Part II : Setting Your Targets

Chapter 3: What Are You Looking for, Anyway?

Taking Stock: Figuring Out What You Like to Do

Finding Out What You’re Good At

Narrowing Your Focus

Career Counselors: Can They Help You?

Chapter 4: Scoping Out the Market

Strategic Targeting Defined

Job versus Career: Which Should You Be Pursuing?

Finding Out What’s Out There

Exploring a Target: What to Ask When You Get the Chance

Staying on Track When Targets Don’t Pan Out

Getting Yourself “Market-Ready”

Part III : The Writes (And Wrongs) of Resume Writing

Chapter 5: Resume Basics

Great Expectations: What a Resume Can and Can’t Do

How Screening Works

The 12 Cardinal Sins of Resume Writing

Chapter 6: Deciding Which Resume Style Is for You

The Chronological Resume: By the Numbers

The Functional Resume: Use with Care

The Combination Resume: A Good Mix

Chapter 7: Writing Your Resume

Sentence Surgery: Five Tips for Better Resume Writing

Section by Section: How Resumes Are Organized

Taking a Closer Look at Each Section

Making Your Resume Computer-Friendly

Multiple Resumes: Are They Worth the Effort?

Handling Delicate Situations

Chapter 8: Getting Your Resume into Print

A Crash Course in Resume Formatting

Choosing a Basic Resume Format

Selecting the Typeface

A Folio of Resume Formats

The Final Stretch: Things to Do before You Go to Print

Chapter 9: Making Your Cover Letter Count

Developing a Cover Letter Strategy

Looking at the Basics

Covering the Right Bases

A Folio of Cover Letters

Part IV : Drumming Up Job Leads

Chapter 10: Going Online: The Basics

Online 101: A Crash Course

What’s in It for You: A Closer Look at the Benefits

Gearing Up and Gaining Internet Access

Handling Yourself Online

E-mail: Not Just for Breakfast Anymore

Chapter 11: Digging Up Information: The Basics of Effective Research

Being a Smart Researcher

Search Engines and Portals

Career Search Sites

Company Research

Online Discussion Groups/ Chats/Message Boards

Newsgroups (Usenet)

Periodicals

Trade Publications

Community Newspapers and Publications

Directories

Chapter 12: Networking 101

What Networking Really Is, and Why You Can’t Afford Not to Do It

Understanding the “Pyramiding” Factor

Networking Isn’t as Difficult as You Think — You Just Have to Do It

Identifying the Three Most Self-Defeating Myths of Networking

Getting Started with the Networking Process

Putting a List Together

Prioritizing Your Contact List

Setting Up a Networking Database

Chapter 13: Getting the Most Out of Networking

Developing Your Basic Sales Pitch

Getting the Word Out

Writing the Letter

Lining Up People to Give You Help

Dealing with Voice Mail

Getting the Most from a Networking Meeting

Getting Help from Perfect Strangers

Chapter 14: Creative Reading: Scouring Want Ads

Remembering That It’s Not a “Numbers Game”

Knowing Where to Look

The Art of Reading Want Ads

Deciding Which Ads to Answer

Responding to an Ad

Red Flags: Ads to Think Twice about before Answering

Chapter 15: Jobs by Mail: Conducting a Targeted Direct-Mail Campaign

What Is a Targeted Mailing, Anyway?

Recognizing the Hidden Benefits of Targeted Mailings

Identifying Target Companies

Finding Out Whom to Contact

Getting Your Contact to Take Notice

Writing the Letter

Following Up with a Call

Chapter 16: The Recruiting Game: Getting Outside Help

Looking Inside the Recruiting Industry

What You Can Expect from Recruiters

What If You’re Unemployed?

Locating Recruiters on the Internet

Contacting Recruiters by E-mail

When the Recruiter Calls

Meeting the Recruiter

Working Productively with Recruiters

Some Final Thoughts about Recruiters

Chapter 17: Temporary Work as a Way to Get Discovered

The Benefits of Temporary Work

How Things Work in the Temporary Employment Business

Choosing a Service That’s Right for You

Signing Up with a Temporary Service

Doing Your Best on Assignment

Juggling Your Temporary Job and Your Job Search

Part V : Answering the Call: Keys to Successful Interviewing

Chapter 18: Getting Ready for Show Time

A Heart-to-Heart Chat about “Selling Yourself”

What Interviewers Care About

The Basics of Interview Preparation

Preparing for Specific Interviews

Gearing Up for Interview Questions

Interview Questions You’ll Hear Over and Over

Chapter 19: Winning Ways: How to Handle Yourself During the Interview

Making Sure That You Look Your Best

Controlling the Pre-Interview Jitters

Arrival Advice: What to Do When You Get There

Getting Off to a Good Start with Your Interviewer

Executing Your Interview Strategy

The Art of Effective Answering

Body Language: How Not to Send the Wrong Message

What to Do When It’s Your Turn to Ask Questions

Chapter 20: Staying in Control: When Bad Things Happen to Good Interviewees

Dealing with Difficult Interviewers

Groupthink: When You’re Interviewed by More Than One Person

When an Interview Takes Place during a Meal

Recognizing Questions That Are Improper

Testing 1, 2, 3: What You Should Know about Pre-Employment Tests

Chapter 21: End Game: Closing the Interview on a Winning Note

Reading Between the Lines

Knowing What Not to Do

Writing a Follow-Up Letter

Managing Your References

Knowing What to Do When the Phone Doesn’t Ring

Learning from the Experience

Chapter 22: Nailing Down the Offer

First Response: What to Do When the Offer Comes In

Knowing When to Say No

Assessing a Job Offer

Getting More Out of the Offer

Negotiating More Effectively

Part VI : The Part of Tens

Chapter 23: Ten Ways to Get Started on the Right Foot in Your New Job

Chapter 24: Ten Ways to Keep Up Your Morale

Chapter 25: Ten Bold Interviewing Tactics to Make You Stand Out from the Crowd

Chapter 26: The Ten Most Valuable Resources in Your Job Search

Chapter 27: Ten Questions Frequently Asked by Job Hunters

Appendix: Resources

Career Planning and Job Targeting

Introduction

Welcome to Job Hunting For Dummies, 2nd Edition, a book written with one overriding purpose in mind: to give you an edge in today’s competitive job market.

Because there isn’t exactly a shortage of job and career books on the market today, you may wonder whether this book has anything to say about this subject that you haven’t already read or heard dozens of times before.

The answer is yes. The ammunition that this book gives you comes in the form of job hunting advice and guidance that is insightful, detailed, comprehensive, up-to-date, and real-world — all of it presented in a clear, no-nonsense, easily accessible manner.

This is a book to take with you into the trenches. It’s practical and hands-on and tells you what you need to know to help ensure a successful job search — including how to get yourself in gear so that you can gain an edge. And because this book looks at the job hunting process from start to finish, you can get a lot out of it, regardless of your current situation.