1. Devote XX amount of time each week to your brand
2. Commit to brand-promoting activities both within and outside of the workplace
3. Be conscious of your appearance
4. Involve yourself in workplace activities related to your personal brand
5. Don’t compromise your brand for your new employer

Go ahead and read the full post.

If you your online reputation is in a bit of a bad shape and needs to undertake some triage you could also try the Wired Wiki recommendations to un-Google yourself.

You may believe you only need a single sample cover letter, but it is actually worthwhile to consider writing a few different cover letters samples. It's best to have a variety of samples to help you apply for the jobs that interest you more quickly. Samples can be created to represent a few different scenarios.

When you write your cover letter samples, write one for a position similar to your current job and another letter for a position that would be an upward move for you. Although you might think it is something you do not want to take into consideration, you should also create a sample for jobs below your current level. With all these samples at your disposal, you can apply for various types of positions with ease.

You're going to want cover letter samples that include positions relatively comparable to the job you have now, as well as samples for jobs that are one step up from where you are now. You may even think about creating a letter sample for a position you are actually overqualified for. Taking this approach insures that you're prepared for lots more kinds of positions that may come along. When you start the process of writing a letter sample for a job or career that you might consider to be a lateral move, emphasize your current job responsibilities. Construct the sample so that it clearly discusses the specific functions you are responsible for in your current job. I would also suggest you avoid mentioning job duties you currently perform that might be thought of as being below your skill level.

When you write cover letter samples for a position you consider to be above your current situation, try to include job responsibilities which are outside of your normal scope of work. Including this information should help to make it clear you are ready to take on more responsibility.

You should also avoid not having a sample of a cover letter for a position lower than yours. Maybe right now you think you would never apply for such a job, but you simply don't know what the future may bring. In certain cases, the large employers actually pay for the lower level employees moreso than your current employer might be paying you, or you could find yourself in a layoff situation.

Having examined and analyzed the job advertised, you should now be in a position to determine how to write a resume or CV specifically for the job you are applying for.

Fundamental requirements of a CV or resume

The letters “CV” stand for Curriculum Vitae, which derives from Latin. Translated, this means “the way your life has run”. Correspondingly, the CV is a personal statement, which demonstrates to the employer the way your life has run. The CV will usually start from your early education and progress through to higher education and chronicle your employment. It will also chronicle your personal interests. The end product should present a well-rounded picture of you.

A CV serves several basic requirements. Firstly, it highlights your potential value to an employer. It also provides a framework within which an interview can be guided and acts as a record of the interview, or its substance.

Many people find they encounter a mental blockage when required to formulate a CV. It's not the easiest task in the world. Time and effort plus creativity are key components of the task. The most important point to remember at the outset is that the resume should be concise and easy to read. All of the relevant and most important facts should be present.

The layout of the ideal resume

Before any information has been entered onto the CV, consideration needs to be given to the layout. By layout, I mean the actual design of the visual presentation.

Remember that a better impression will be made if the person reading the CV feels comfortable with what they are reading. Effective visual design reflects neatness, and the end product should be easy on the eyes and immediately give an impression of orderliness, which will go a long way to impress the reader.

Although the ultimate decisions on who to recruit are made on a combination of factors and not just visual presentation, the manner in which your information is presented and assembled makes that very important first impression, and could very easily make all the difference between your potential future employers being attracted to take the time with your resume or deciding to drop it and move along to the others in their pile.

Make sure also when you are typing the information that you use all of the features of the Word Processor (assuming that you are using a WP). Make sure that you have clean margins and that you are consistent when presenting your information. For example, you might want to ensure that your work is not right hand justified as this lends a certain uniformity to a CV. Maybe it is better to leave it unjustified or “ragged right” as it is known.

Searching for a new job is a lot of work. Making it through the initial screening process and being granted an interview is a significant step. It is now time to show them what you’ve got. The organization has a need, and your job is to convince the interviewer that you are the one to fill it. Follow the fundamentals below to increase your chances of success.

1. Research the company. This is such a simple thing to do, yet so few candidates take the hour or so that it takes to learn about the hiring organization. Interviewers want to know why you want to work for their company. To convince them of your interest, you must find out about it - the size, markets, competitors, etc. There is so much information available via the web. Yahoo and/or Google finance are great sources for publicly traded companies. LinkedIn is also a good source.

Try to find out about the position and the hiring manager too (likes, dislikes, pain points, goals, management styles). Information gathered will help frame your questions and responses during the interview.

2. Rehearse the typically asked questions. Most companies use behavioral interviewing questions. The gist is that past behavior is a predictor of future behavior, so interviewers will ask you how you handled situations in the past, in order to gain insight into how you might handle them in the future.

Here are a couple of samples…

Tell me about a time you had to confront an obstacle.Tell me about a time you had to deal with a difficult customer.

Keep your answers brief (1-2 minutes). Try to use examples that are related to the opportunity if possible.

Other common questions you should be prepared to answer include…

Tell me about yourself.What are your strengths?What are your weaknesses?

With these questions, the interviewer is trying to get a sense for how well you communicate. Keep your answers short for these as well. Provide a brief career summary for the first question. For the strengths, let the interviewer know how your strengths can help with the new opportunity. For development areas, concentrate on what you have done to improve.

Practice. Time yourself. Record your responses. If you don’t have a recording device, practice in front of a mirror. Remember to make eye contact.

In general when asking/answering questions, the focus should always be on how you will help fill the need(s).

3. Come up with a list of questions to ask the interviewers. Write them down. Bring them with you to the meeting. Don’t be afraid to reference the list. It will show that you took time to think about the position and to prepare. Obviously you’ll want to alter the questions based on any new information you learn during the meeting.

4. Dress to impress. Wear a business suit. Be clean, and presentable.

5. Be yourself. Don’t alter your personality during an interview and don’t lie or exaggerate.

6. Avoid discussing salary requirements. If asked, explain that you’d prefer to find out more about the position first. If pressed, you can ask for a range and let the interviewer know if you fit within it. Negotiating compensation and discussing benefits should occur after an offer is made.

7. Say thank you. Make sure to shake hands firmly and confidently and thank interviewers for their time. Don’t leave without getting business cards. Within 24 hours of the interview send out thank you notes in email. Make sure to relay what appeals to you about the position and how you can help fill the need.

Interviews are tough to come by. Don’t squander the opportunities. Observe the tips above and land that new job.

Nick McCormick is a Principal with Be Good Ventures, LLC — a management consulting firm. He is author of the book, Lead Well and Prosper: 15 Successful Strategies for Becoming a Good Manager. Get a FREE download of 5″x7″ training cards based on the book at http://BeGoodVentures.com/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nick_McCormick
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Most of this site is dedicated to helping you find a job. But what about setting up your own business? Heading into the Christmas period is the right time to look at starting a Christmas light installation business, think of it as your Christmas job.

In some parts of the country Christmas light installation is a high demand, luxury service. This means that you can demand top dollar for your services and you will find many of clients are willing to spend $3000… $6000… or even $10000 and many large commercial clients will spend upwards of $30,000 each year on their lighting displays. Here is one such client!

Here at JobSeekr we have found a quick online course to get your Christmas light installation business going. Your Christmas job will then allow youtime to do other things during the year.

Your job Interview attire is extremely important and can go along way towards determining your Interview success and failure. It helps the interviewer to create their initial impression of you and you want to create the right one! If you don't take the time to make yourself presentable for an interview, will you take time over your work to make sure its to the right standard.

These are the sort of questions Interviewers will be asking themselves based on your job Interview attire. Therefor its important to get your Job Interview attire correct. We are going to cover seven tips to make sure your Job Interview attire is creating the right impression.

Tip 1: Wear a neat, tailored suit or dress.

Assuming its appropriate for the position you are applying for a suit or dress is the best way to go, if you are buying a new suit (first time buying a suit) its a good idea to take someone else with you to give you their opinion on how it fits.

Tip 2: Wear solid, conservative colours.

You don't want to wear multicoloured clothes as they can distract the employer and while you may like the way it looks a lot of people won't, you are better off going with grey, black etc. as the are neutral colours.

Tip 3: Go easy on jewellery.

A nice watch, ring, one pair of earrings (if you're a woman) is more than sufficient.

Tip 4: Women - go light on makeup, perfume and hairspray.

Ladies don't go overboard with makeup etc. It can be perceived that this is done to compensate for a lack of skills or experience.

Tip 5: Men - go light on cologne, and after-shave.

There is nothing worse when the smell of a mans aftershave is overpowering, even if the rest of your Job Interview attire is sport on it can be a major put off as Interviewers will have to bare their other employees in mind.

Tip 6: Overdress rather than under dress

If you're unsur of how smart you should go in for your Interview its always better to over dress as supposed to under dress! The impression created when someone attends over dressed is far better than when someone attends under dressed.

Tip 7: Wear a smile!!

Smiling can make a big difference in your Interview success, it makes you appear more approachable and confident, your voice also has a far nicer tone to it when you are smiling.

If you follow those Job Interview attire tips your Job Interview attire will most certainly work towards creating that good first impression.

Learn the secrets to Land that Job: http://www.land-that-job.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=James_P_Grant
http://EzineArticles.com/?Job-Interview-Attire—7-Tips-to-Look-Your-Best-Dressed-in-a-Job-Interview&id=2689443

We have collected some of the best resources available on Amazon so you do not need to do the searching. The resources have then been allocated a category:

• Job Interviews
• Job Search
• Networking
• Personal Branding
• Recruiters
• Resumes

Enjoy.

Here are five easy to implement tips from Employment Digest on how to pimp your resume so it really stands out!

Tip #1: Focus on the Employer
Tip #2: Try an Executive Summary
Try #3: Narrow Down the Positions You Mention
Tip #4: Emphasize Accomplishments AND Education
Tip #5: Don’t Forget Your White Space

And tip #6 from Jobseekr is to make sure your resume is formatted in an easy to read and use fashion.