Author: Michael Mayher

First, let’s talk about what does not constitute a good cover letter; unnecessarily lengthy, monotonous, uninspiring, generic form letters, virtual autobiographies that put people to sleep before they even get to your resume. Many people have the false impression they need to assemble a cover letter to go with their resume, as though it is a part of the hiring ritual – however, it is not. A cover letter can be helpful, and if you have reason to do so go for it, but in most cases I think it is just fluff. For over 20 years I have been recruiting, representing and placing middle-senior professionals and specialists including lawyers, directors, VPs, specialists of many stripes and rarely was there a cover letter used. Also, when a cover letter was used it never made much difference. As a follow up

(Cont’d) Employment dates Another item that attracts negative attention is your chronology of dates connecting your work experience. If you show only the years and not month/years there is an automatic assumption among many that you are hiding a break in your employment history. Always post the month and year you began a job and the month and year during which you concluded it. If you have a period of time between jobs, ‘fess up and be prepared to explain it. Any assumption that you are being less than completely honest will have consequences for you. This is yet another example of how perception is reality and it falls upon you to be transparent and forthcoming. This is all about connecting the dots and removing doubt. It is also another reason for why I suggested in the previous blog entry that

You should have, or are developing, your own personal presentation so that anytime you might have the occasion, by chance or through intention to speak to a hiring manager, you can speak with purpose and confidence. The result we’ve sought is so that you’ll be more impactful and, as an applicant, more formidable than your contemporaries, who are also trying to get noticed but who only bother to limit their focus to online resume submissions and solicitations. Can you begin to recognize how you are already starting to separate yourself from most others in both mindset and action? Now, let’s go back to what we were discussing a couple weeks ago, when we were talking about gate keepers and getting the name of a hiring manager. By the way, I’ve been utilizing this same methodology for more than 20 years. If

What you say and do during the interview process matters much more than a piece of paper, but you’ve first got to get noticed and get through the door to have that chance. Think of your resume as a product brochure. it should list information in a manner that will generate interest and attract people to investigate further. So what does your resume say about you? You can agonize over the content, the length, etc. but any potential employer must be able to connect the dots and be able to follow your career progress in order to determine if he or she wants to consider you further. Often it is the small things that can make a difference about whether or not you 'll get an opportunity to demonstrate how you might be their best choice, so let me share a few items for

There are two kinds of job seekers: those looking for jobs and those who will be looking for jobs – at one time or another. It’s inevitable. What’s a secure job anymore? Remember when the post office was as secure and safe as you could get? Many people, who find themselves having more free time on their hands, may convince themselves they will take some time off for a few weeks and then they will kick it back into gear and look for a new job; this is rarely a good idea. A few weeks can turn into a few months, 7 and then 8… You may tell yourself you want to clear your head a bit, take a break and maybe do a little traveling, or get some reading done before you jump back into that rat race. But I’m

Okay, I am ready to share with you the magic dance steps to this little jig I’m suggesting. Sorry for all the suspense but there’s a reason. For the sake of clarity, I seek to leave little room for argument, covering as many different angles as I can. Notice, nobody posts comments contesting my claims. It isn’t because nobody’s reading this blog, actually considering I’ve only been posting since October of last year, readership has grown fast with more and more people all the time. Just lately there are a few employment-related bloggers suggesting people should do more than just email resumes, but they offer no suggestions nor any real advice. I suggest people are starving for the kind of non-standard advice I offer and, frankly, I see no one else offering more than the same old pabulum you can

People love their routines, and HR staffers are no different. Too often they promote bureaucracy for the sake of the bureaucracy. Never mind that occasionally their processes don’t result in what is best for their company, their policies must be followed because, well, just because! I work with HR and have developed good-working relationships with senior-level human resource pros built on mutual respect, professional courtesy and shared risk. But I don’t work for them, I work with them and that makes a big difference. When I call into a company for the first time to inquire about their needs and, sometimes, their wish list, logically that means I should be speaking with those in the know, the hiring managers; HR is my second choice. Now, I want you to go back, go baaaack in time to my previous blog entries discussing Gate

When you are seeking a new job, Human Resources is the most likely first stop for the majority of job seekers, regardless of whether they apply indirectly online, or proactively with a phone call or a visit. It is to where you will always be directed and, for most people, that’s just fine. But I want you to think about the process with which you are engaging when you have interest in a job – according to the standard template. Resumes are routed through HR, who in turn, file and review them for further consideration. They then go through a sieve and filtering process, and it is at this point when they disappear into a deep black hole, leaving applicants hoping, wondering and waiting for a positive reply, but most often getting an automated response informing them that their resume

You’re already using these questions, but it’s likely you haven’t had any reason to consider their significance. If you seek to be a better communicator and, as a result, a better negotiator, then this is something worthy of  attention and being conscious of. We've just finished discussing buying signs, watching for them and being prepared to react accordingly. But this does not mean you should limit yourself only to being reactive. Interviews are a two-way, interactive event; they are not a one-sided interrogation. Indeed, as an applicant you are seeking admission; yes, more pressure is on you to hopefully meet and ideally surpass their expectations, but you should be every bit as proactive in learning about the opportunity during the process in which you are engaged. So, not only understanding and identifying the difference between open-ended and close-ended questions, but employing

If you’ve been following my previous entries, identifying buying signs is important to your job-hunting efforts as you begin to speak with potential employers. But if you are just discovering my blog, you’ll have to go back a few entries to gain some perspective. Knowing what are, and how to identify, buying signs is critical to your efforts. Sometimes they are clear and hit you in the face or they can be subtle, communicated by an off-hand comment or revealed in a tone or inflection of voice. It is always better to speak directly with individuals whenever possible because these things are just too hard to pick up in written communications unless they are literally spelled out. Everything I discuss on my blog is linked in some way to helping people widen their scope of possibilities; casting your net ever wider, so