If I wanted to get a job interview within one week, here's what I would do as a 20-year career coaching veteran who has helped thousands of people get new, better-paying jobs. Step-By-Step Guide: How To Get A Job Interview In 1 Week! The first thing I would do is find 10 jobs for which I am 100% qualified and a good fit. Not overqualified or underqualified—100% qualified. It would take me a little while to research jobs on various job boards that fit that criteria, but once I do, I would not apply on the job boards. The second thing I would do is find the companies' career pages and make su ..read more

Have you ever been asked, "How do you rate yourself?" in a job interview? The qualifier could be "as a professional," "as an employee," or maybe as the holder of a certain skill set. In most cases, they want you to give them an answer between 1 and 10 in order to get some concrete idea of where you and your skills are. This is a tough question to answer. You will find advice that you should always rank yourself as a 10, or even higher. They say that anything less makes it look like you don’t have confidence in yourself or that you’re admitting a weakness. In my opinion, automatically rating ..read more

We all put a lot of thought and effort into how to answer questions about times we failed so that we don’t look bad in the interview, but how much thought do we put into choosing stories to answer softball questions like, “Tell me about a time you went above and beyond the call of duty?” Even though this is a positive question, it’s very important to carefully choose a good story to answer it well. You should always have a story or two to tell about times you went above and beyond at work. It points out that not only did you meet the expectations of your employer, you exceeded them. That sho ..read more

As a kid, I remember thinking teachers had great jobs because they got to take summers off. I didn't quite grasp the challenges of the position nor did I understand that, unlike their students, teachers do not spend the summer at sleep-away camp or catching up on video games. I still think that teachers have great jobs, although for entirely different reasons. They get to play a meaningful role in the lives of their students, they solve new problems every day, and they are constantly challenged and constantly learning. While very few teachers have the privilege of taking summers off, their u ..read more

In most cases, people don't realize their job is in jeopardy or that it's time to move on to something else. However, I understand that changing jobs can be scary, especially in the current economy. But at times, it's necessary because you can be happy and fulfilled one day, then laid off and depressed the next. Nothing can be worse than holding on to a job that will give you a headache in the end. Here are three signs you should look for a new job. 1. You're Underpaid The main reason why you seek employment is to get paid to be able to pay your bills and meet other basic needs. Moreover ..read more

Is your resume generating offers to interview? If not, it’s time to make some changes. The number one resume improvement any job seeker in any field can make is simple. Quantification Quantification means to describe your accomplishments in terms of numbers, dollars, and percentages. For instance… “Led accounting team for division” is less effective than “Led team of 14 accountants in a $34M division” “Increased efficiency” isn't as strong and specific as “Increased efficiency by 50% in 2 years” “Won awards” is good but “Won #1 spot in sales team 3 years in a row” is better Numbers are at ..read more

Quitting. It's a huge decision. It's also something all of us have considered at least once. Are you thinking about quitting your job? Before you make any rash decisions, you need to ask yourself a few very important questions. The last thing you want to do is regret a major life move like quitting your job. So, here are five things you should consider before quitting your job. 1. Have You Worked In That Job For Two Years? What the heck is the two-year rule, and why does it matter? Well, typically, it takes a few months to train and get comfortable in a position. However, most people aren ..read more

No matter how talented, skilled, or educated you are, if you're an introvert, you're at a bit of a disadvantage in a job search. I am not an introvert, but I speak to a lot of them, coaching them through the process of getting a new job. The vast majority of them are amazing, highly qualified people who do their jobs extremely well—but they have a lot of trouble when it comes time to get hired. There's one piece of advice I give that introverts almost universally step back from or even sneer at. Here's what it is…are you ready? The job search is a sales process, and you need to "sell yoursel ..read more

There's no such thing as an ATS-friendly resume. I'm going to dispel that myth right now. I do not want you wasting your time on scams that tell you they're going to make your resume ATS-friendly or that you're going to get past the ATS with their technique. There are over a hundred different applicant tracking systems (ATS) and they all parse your resume in a different way. So the idea that any single resume can game the system for all 100 of these applicant tracking platforms is just not true. More importantly, so many people are using tools like ChatGPT to create fake resumes that compani ..read more

You sent out the resume. You think you're a perfect fit. And yet no one calls. Sound familiar? In fact, the majority of candidates today do not receive a response on a submitted resume. So, the big question is, “When is it appropriate to follow up with an employer on my submission and how do I do it?" There is no answer that will fit every scenario, but there are some good rules you should follow when following up on your resume submission. 1. Use The 1-2 Week Rule Hiring managers and recruiters are busy and they can't acknowledge every resume and cover letter, even if they wanted to, becau ..read more