Looking for a new job? Best Ways to Stand out

As a job seeker the path to finding new employment can be challenging and at times, frustrating.  It is important that you do all you can to stand out from other job seekers. Here are some tips to help ensure you get noticed:

1. Create, practice and perfect your 30 second “elevator pitch” so that you can articulately and concisely convey to others exactly what your value proposition is to a potential employer or networking contact. Tweak your pitch based on your audience.
2. When you receive a call from a company about your application/resume submission give the call your full attention. If the recruiter has reached you at a bad time, ask if you can call the person back.  As a busy job seeker, you may be applying to many jobs.  Feel free to ask the person contacting you to remind you about which job opening they are calling.
3. Be sure you are fully preparing for each interview (phone or in-person).
   • Research the organization and people you are going to meet with (and others on their team). Read the company website, press releases, blog articles, LinkedIn profiles, twitter feeds, etc.
   • Make notes about what interests you about the firm and the people with whom you will be meeting.
   • Come prepared with questions, some more generic and some based on the research you conducted.
   • For in-person interviews, be sure you arrive to the company location for interviews at least 10 to 15 minutes early. Then enter the company offices 5 minutes prior to your interview time.
4. Be sure you send thank you notes to people. Situations where a thank you note is appropriate—after a conversation with a recruiter, to a person with whom you interview, a networking contact who has helped you make a connection, a friend who refers you for a job opening, etc.  Your thank you note can be handwritten or sent via email.  Personalize the note and if you interview with multiple people within the same organization, customize each note.

By following these fairly simple and straight-forward tips, you increase your chances of grabbing the attention of potential employers and networking contacts, thus increasing your odds of landing the job you are seeking.