One Word.

If there was just ONE word that best describes you, what would that one word be? This used to be one of my favorite questions, as it really gets people to think, fast, and try to be creative. I will let you in on a little secret. If you choose “nice” as your word you just eliminated yourself. The English language is comprised of thousands of words. Pick one that makes you stand out. There really isn’t any “wrong” words you can pick, but remember if you are being asked these questions, then so is everyone else. Does the manager want to hire a nice team member or a … dynamic, sensational, altruistic, … you see the difference? At the end of the day when all the applications are being reviewed again, along with the telephone notes, there are certainly going to be candidates that shine. Usually what happens is after you give that magical word, the interviewer is going to ask “why?”. So start selling “nice” against your competition.

Also a word of advice, do not swear in an interview. I know you think you and your new HR BFF get along SO well, but … you’re wrong. He/she is not your BFF and once you drop that F bomb, you just eliminated yourself. Yes, candidates have done this, still do this, and will continue to do this. Don’t do it. I’m pretty sure in every single HR book I have ever read, they never tell you to not swear. I swear too, just never in an interview. Not everyone was trained/educated the same. Okay, I am sure that there are some small businesses with 3 employees that talk however they want, but you are not applying for those jobs. So now that you have your word, your goal is to go to 10 people who know you and ask them to give you 10 words. You will be really surprised what they say. Your spouse/SO will have some choice words. Put all the words on one sheet and see which ones come up a lot. Why? Which ones are not so great words? Those are your weaknesses. You will be asked that question too. You also now have 100 words that you can use to incorporate into your action statements. What words describe you? Your personality? Your work ethic? The whole “word” thing was an actual assignment I made my students complete and then write an essay about it. The whole point was that your perception of who you are as a worker, is not always the same as those around you.

So just for fun, since I am writing about jobs and giving advice, I decided to activate a couple of job profiles on some websites. I used LinkedIn.com and Indeed.com, just to see what is out there, what kind of jobs need filled and with LinkedIn you can also see how many people have applied, which tells you a lot about the job. Again, not really looking for a job, and I already have had 4 employers contact me and someone in my personal network who thought of me for a job. So if you didn’t know, LinkedIn is the new Monster.com. In the 90’s and 2000’s everyone used monster. I used it. It was great. I can think of lots of interviews and job offers I received all using monster. But things have changed and now you can put so much more in your profile, including your picture and even testimonials saying how great you are. Your memberships and group affiliations also tell a lot about a candidate, which is something you typically don’t have on a resume. With LinkedIn all you have to do is click a setting that you are open/looking for a new job and all of the sudden you are showing up in employers search results. Your keywords in your profiles/past jobs are going to be instrumental in your success. Depending on how quickly you want to get hired, you might be interested in their pay version, called premium. I think there is a trial version, so you should definitely do it for free while you can.

Unlike my students who I could strike the fear of failure if they didn’t do the exercises, your only motivation is limited to your own personal reality, and hopes of improving it. Believe it or not, but people actually do these things, talk to people and find new jobs/opportunities every single day. Regardless the company, or the situation, employers are always looking for really good people to join them as team members. Have you ever been at a company and someone from the “outside” got hired for a new position and is paid some stupid ridiculous highly paid salary? What about when your company then recruits all his/her buddies from past companies? And then pays them employee referrals? Yeah, it just keeps getting worse,… for you. So why can’t YOU be that person that gets recruited? Oh, you didn’t tell your network you were looking. Okay. Fair enough. Go do it. Today. No one is forcing you to stay in a bad situation, … except you. Got that one word yet?

What Motivates You?

So I thought I would hit on some basic interview questions that you are certainly going to be asked in your interviews. I actually used to ask this question with every single graduating senior when I taught at the college. You would actually be amazed at the answers. I would also phrase it as “What is your motivation for looking for a new job?” There are always issues/problems at current jobs and many times you can identify a problem in a past/current job and prevent it from happening again in this one.

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Example. A hiring manager comes to me as the HR business partner and asks a serious question. “I have a candidate I really like, but she has really big boobs and I am afraid that the guys are going to be a problem. AND she is currently suing her current boss for sexual harassment, because of her boobs. They aren’t real.” Wow. Amazing the things people say in an interview. Well, we all know the professional answer is we have to qualify and screen candidates based on their skills and not their looks. I looked at him and said “Are you crazy? If you hire her and she gets any issues, I will say that you consulted me and against my advisement of potential litigation, my risk management assessment was to find a male candidate. Your hiring was negligent.”

If you haven’t heard it before, I will tell you now, that most employees leave jobs for a couple of reasons. Money. They hate their boss/co-worker(s). Poor management/leadership. It is not in line with their career goals. So, think about those and decide which of those you quit jobs in the past. There is also something that really drives and motivates someone to leave a job. Anger. Something in the job really, really pissed off an employee that he/she will make it a mission in life to get the hell out of there. I know of past employees who held grudges to this day. You might be a careless manager and say something ignorant to an employee and while they may not say anything to your face, trust me, they will slam you in their exit interview. Some employees will be super sweet to your face and then they will make bold face lies about you just to get back at you. I have heard them and usually can see right through to the truth. Sure there are bad managers, we all know that. And those managers get reprimanded and performance managed as well. Even store managers get put on probation. I can think of a ton of managers who got fired. As I have told many customers and employees, everyone … yes, everyone reports to someone, so be careful or you might find yourself in a world of trouble. True story, once I had an attorney personally threaten me at Best Buy. Said he was going to sue the pants off of me because I wouldn’t take his return and give him his money back. Whoa. I took a step back, crossed my arms and said, “Oh really counselor. Can you please tell me your attorney registration number? I am sure the ethics committee will be very interested to hear of this behavior in public. Oh, … how do I know about that? Yeah, I work for the Bar Association and you have rules you have to follow.” He was silent. His eyes wide open and he turned around and walked out, … with his return, with no receipt. I turned to my the employee who called for the manager and said “Fucking attorney. I bet he was bullied in school and try to bully me into doing it.” Like I said, everyone reports to someone.

From an HR perspective it is good to know what motivates an employee so they will perform better. Example. If the team reaches _____ goal/metric, we will all go to a night out at Dave & Busters on the company. Free food and drinks for everyone! For some people that is a great motivator. Others are like, “Meh, show me the money.” Now if you are somewhere at the bottom of organizational chart, you might be motivated by intrinsic items, like a crappy promotion with a shitty office with no window. No money. Title only. Or you might get a window if you are considered a manager, again no money. This is very common, so be prepared. What other “benefits” do you want that will motivate you that are not money. Trust me on this one. If you can negotiate these things in writing from the very beginning you are off to an amazing start. I once asked for one day a quarter as a personal day that I could use for grad school projects. Since I had to travel for work, unpaid, this seemed acceptable. Until the boss realized I basically just got an extra week when you tack it onto a holiday. Bam. Mic drop. Score.

As you created your dream job you should have had a list of things that are part of this imaginary dream job. Office, work from home, gym membership, onsite daycare, 3 weeks vacation, use of the company jet and condos, an obnoxiously overpaid high salary, … you get the idea. Many of these things on the list “might” be one of your motivators. And of course, don’t forget the sappy predictable HR answer, “Recognition”. If you are working on your doctorate, or getting published in a journal this is a terrific answer. Mail room clerk, not so much.

Next weekend is Memorial Day weekend, what are YOU doing now that you are vaccinated? It’s gonna be CRAZY everywhere! Smoking some ribs and baked beans myself. Mmmmm. Ribs. Smoked ribs motivate me.

Resume Achievements

So now that I can quickly disqualify you because you are not a right fit, based on your overview, OR I like what I read and I want to know more. Such as, what are the “things” that you can do that you are most proud? Some people are highly decorated and there are many things that are super impressive about them. But what about you? What have you done in your professional life as well as your personal life that you can share with an employer? Are you on any committees? Part of any other organizations? Do you hold any titles or certifications? Your goal today is to start writing down as many things about your skills that you want to advertise. Software, hardware, communication skills. I’m a publisher, editor (sometimes) writer/author (all the time), and reader. Not everyone has ALL of those skills. Some people literally can’t read. As an older person, I am starting to be one of them. Small text on my phone, beauty products, manuals are sometimes more than challenging. Probably the number one reason I compose in a huge font. I actually use Header4, which makes it this size. Some people, like Trump, don’t know how to click a drop down box and compose in a larger font. Yeah, I know, crazy. If people can’t read it due to size, they won’t even try.

So you really need a section in your resume that highlights your achievements, or your resume bragging/talking points. Remember, you can direct how your interview is going to transpire based upon the things you tell them in your action statements. So, for instance, one of the things that I am proud of, that is not on social media, is the fact that I raised over a thousand dollars in fundraising for the suicide prevention organization and I had to walk 20 miles overnight for their walkathon. Of course this is interesting and something that someone who is reading will want to know more. So your statements need to highlight what you are capable of doing. Human resources will respond to the correct verbiage on your resume. So understand and know your metrics. For some that might be reaching or overachieving your monthly sales goal. Awards from your employer are also key in getting noticed, remembered, and called for an interview. Do not make the mistake of thinking your resume will get you the job. It “might” get you a telephone interview. If you are the ideal/dream candidate, it will get you an in person interview along with a job offer. If you JUST graduated high school then you have all kinds of things to talk about that make you the best candidate. When I reviewed resume for students I would look at it for things that are talking points, things that are impressive and that that are just wasting space on valuable real estate. Use your network and ask people what are your strengths. Ask yourself, what makes you better than 100 other candidates? Keep in mind, the resume is designed to get you the interview. If you already know someone who can get you an introduction then you don’t need a resume. I have been hired in coffee shops talking with my clients about WordPress, and consultants overhear me and inquire wanting to know more. Sometimes just proving you can do the job, like showing your portfolio or websites, can get you hired. No interview required. Artists are hired all the time to paint/create a piece without ever knowing what the final piece will look like. If I said I would work for you for ONE day, what would you have me do? Create a marketing plan? Website? Review your resume and cover letter? Train you to interview? Teach you how to hire and screen the right candidates? Read financial statements? Teach you how to make money with our own set of skills? Review your manuscript? Create a logo? Photograph you for portrait studio pics? There are tons of “things” that can translate into valuable action statements/skills. Remember, your personality is a sellable skill, as are your looks. Television news anchors are hired because of their personality, not how smart they are. They just sit there, look pretty and talk. Wow, what a perfect job, until your looks fade and you are cancelled.

Shout out to Dollar General for a whole bunch of inexpensive fairy garden decorations. I found a bunch of fun stuff for mine. For those who created their own gardens, the fairies are ever so grateful. Cheers! It’s Friday, and those who are vaccinated no longer have to wear masks, according to the CDC. I hate masks. They tickle my goatee and make it annoying.

If you are working on your resume/action statements, do not do it as a resume format. Do it on a blank piece of paper. The formatting part will come later. Start by listing what you do now, what you did in past jobs, and what you can do in the future. This is really important. Think outside the box. Think like a HR screener.