TheJobBored

Unemployment seems stuck at 10% and it’s not getting better very quickly.

One unique feature about this recession seems to be that if you do lose your job, it could take you a long time to find another one. Every day there are more headlines about the long term unemployed and how tough it is out there if you’ve been laid off.

Almost half of those on unemployment have been collecting for over six months or more. As the BLS wrote in its report on April job figures:
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks and over) continued to trend up over the month, reaching 6.7 million. In April, 45.9 percent of unemployed persons had been jobless for 27 weeks or more.

We’ve seen the same thing at ResumeWriters.com. We have clients that are coming to us as a last resort because they’ve been job searching for a solid year and have gotten nowhere.

What do you do if you’re one of the long-term unemployed?

One of my favorite job search tips that I often share with my clients is a simple one.

I’ve told you before that your job search should be organized. Hopefully that includes keeping records (a calendar, diary or journal) of the various places you’ve applied to. It’s important to keep track of who you’ve sent resumes to, when, what the response was, when you interviewed, and what the result might have been. This level of organization is key to an organized, strategic job search.

So, if you find yourself months into a job search and feel like you’re hitting a wall, try something simple:

Cycle back through your early applications!

After all, if it’s been several months since you made contact, things might have changed in the intervening time period. New positions might be open. New people might be in charge with new agendas.

This works even if your application was rejected. Doubling back and expressing interest again is a great way to show your commitment and strong desire to work with that company.

And if you interviewed with the organization (but didn’t get the job) even better! Hopefully they’ll remember you. That might even put your foot in the door a bit because you’ve already been through their hiring process once, so the decision making might be smoother.

So if you’ve got a list of companies you’ve applied to from several months ago, try the following: [Read more →]

I will be one of the geeks on line at the Apple Store, picking up my pre-ordered iPad early Saturday morning.

Part of this is my Apple fanboy-ness and part of it is my desire to remain ahead of the curve.

A lot of job search has moved mobile. So many apps are now out there for mobile job search that it has become a major source of job search traffic and also a major tool in the modern job search.

I just perused the list of iPad launching apps and to the best of my knowledge, there are no job search apps on there yet. What I’d like to do is have us all keep our eyes out for when the first one launches.

Will it be Careerbuilder, an early and heavy user of the iPhone app ecosystem? Will someone make a mashup app for craigslist?

Or will it be more interesting? [Read more →]

Previously, I discussed what fonts are generally acceptable to use for your resume.

But what about font size? What are the font sizes you should use for your resume?

Pretty simple: keep it between 10pt. and 12pt. font. 13pt. maybe. But nothing bigger than that.

If you go smaller than 10pt. it’s probably too small to read comfortably. If you go bigger than 13pt., you’re looking cartoonish, and worse, it might look like you’re trying to make up for not having much of a career history to put on a resume. In other words, if you have crazy big font sizes, that might say to the reader: this guy has so little experience he can’t even fill out one page.

Really, your sweet spot is the 10pt. to 12pt range. Don’t be afraid to try 11pt. if it works! You really just want to adjust the font size to fit the pages as fully as possible. If 10pt. gives you 3/4th of a page of text but 12pt. fills the page, then go with 12pt.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

By 10 – 12pt., the text I’m talking about is the body of your resume. But, and this is important: [Read more →]

In the past, I’ve written about what you should do first if you get fired or laid off.

Over the weekend, over at the WiseBread blog, I saw a new strategy that had never occurred to me before.

Essentially, it boils down to remembering to ask the HR folks if they’ll give you the unvested portion of your 401 (k).

A lot of companies have 401 (k) matching plans. It’s basically free money: they contribute x dollars to match every y dollars you contribute. The catch is, you have to stay with the company long enough for that to “vest.” If you leave too soon, they don’t have to make good on that money.

But if they fire you before the vesting can happen… well, that’s not your fault! [Read more →]

This is from an Ask Brian Question.

Send in your own Ask Brian Question here.

My name is XXXX, and Im 24 years old. Ever since last year i have been applying for different jobs in the field of fashion, I used to work and still do as a Fashion Stylist, which means I do a lot of shoots for tv and print ads etc. I finished my diploma course in Fashion Design last year and i thought i should leave the world of fashion styling behind because it was very difficult to find shoots on your own if you did not know the right people. But i found some young entrepreneurs like me and although work is slow I do have faith it will happen and also i have been very interested in Fashion design which goes hand in hand with styling. ok so here is my question,

A month back I had gone for an interview for the position of Junior Merchandiser, this has nothing to do with designing or creativity, it just a “cut-copy-paste” kind of job. I was very interested because i was desperate to find something to do. anything. but then i started my own label in the desperation and my clothes actually got a decent response. i.e from my friends i havent yet gone out into the market. so should i take a 9 to 7 job, which will barely pay my bills, cuz what i will make ina month is how much i make on a shoot in one day, but this job is now and i have just started networking, or should i have faith in myself and continue with fashion design and styling. please help. very confused.

Short answer for your specific situation:

You say you’ve gotten a response from your friends (great) but nothing yet from the market. Well, give it a go in the market. If you get a response there, then it might be worth going for your dream. [Read more →]

For years now, as social media has proliferated, we’ve been hearing more and more about how what you do online can be viewed and viewed negatively by your boss… or by a prospective boss.

But what about Facebook? After all, can’t you control who sees what on Facebook?

Well, if you’re doing a job search, you’d certainly better hope so.

According to new research by Microsoft, if HR people can check your Facebook page, then they probably will. And what they find there can have an impact on your chances of getting hired. In other words, Facebook can have an impact on your job search.

(via GigaOM)

“…the top online factors for rejecting a job applicant are unsuitable photos/videos, concerns about a candidate’s lifestyle and inappropriate comments written by the candidate.
(…)
The survey also found that not only are HR staffers search for information about job applicants online, most of their companies have made online screening a formal requirement of the hiring process. Recruiters and HR professionals also said that they believe the use of online-reputation information will significantly increase over the next five years. And while the survey found that most consumers manage their reputation at least to some extent, a significant percentage (between 30 and 35 percent depending on nationality) “don’t feel their online reputation affects either their personal or professional life [and] consequently, they are not taking steps to manage their reputations.”

So, obviously, the key takeaway here is that you should be aware of your privacy controls, and definitely make use of them. This article from last week’s New York Times is invaluable: The 3 Facebook Setting Every User Should Check Now.

Because, the other point to keep in mind is, your online profile can actually help your job search in a lot of ways. [Read more →]

What is the best paper to use when printing up your resume to present in an interview?

What is the best paper to use when mailing a resume as part of a job application?

I guess this goes along with my post concerning the best font to use for your resume.

I actually have a very specific answer to this question.

For more than a decade now, we’ve been printing hard copies of people’s resumes as an add-on feature to our resume writing service.

And in all that time, we’ve used the same paper.

I’ll tell you all about it, but first, let me make clear: I’m not getting paid or receiving any other consideration for the endorsement I’m about to make.

Having said that, in the resume writing industry, Southworth is the only paper brand most of us use. You can find a wide range of Southworth paper products at most of the “big box” office supply retailers like Staples or Office Depot.

The specific type of paper I recommend using is Southworth Business Paper, 32lb, 100% Cotton, 8 1/2″x11″ and WHITE.

Here’s why: [Read more →]

Here’s a quick Ask Brian question that has been sitting in my inbox since last week. It’s a short question, but I think I have a short and possibly unpleasant answer. Here goes:

A reader asks:

What does it mean, a week after my interview they say they are still interviewing candidates?

Brian sayz:

Unfortunately, it probably doesn’t mean much good for you.

Not to be too harsh here, but interviewing is like dating. When you’ve found the one, you kind of know it right away.

The long and short of it is, if they thought you were the one, they probably wouldn’t be looking at anyone else.

I can really only think one of two things is going on here: [Read more →]

Interesting article in the New York Times regarding retiree job seekers and the special job search problems facing retirees and those over the age of 65.

…In fact, there are more Americans 65 and older in the job market today than at any time in history, 6.6 million, compared with 4.1 million in 2001.

Less well known, though, is that nearly half a million workers 65 and older want to work but cannot find a job — more than five times the level early this decade and this group’s highest unemployment level since the Great Depression.

(…)

The unemployment rate for older Americans is still much better than for others — 6.7 percent compared with 9.8 percent in the general population. But 6.7 percent is more than double the level of two years ago — and far higher than the minuscule 1.9 percent rate early this decade.

My main job search/interview tip from this article for retiree job seekers is as follows: [Read more →]

An article in Time Magazine suggests that virtual job interviewing, via skype especially, is something jobseekers are seeing more and more of.

This makes tons of sense to me. For out-of-town interviewing, the money savings alone are astronomical. But also, think about how this is more convenient for interviewer and interviewee alike. Less pressure, less procedure… possibly a greater chance of getting down to brass tacks.

My tips for this sort of thing are pretty much along the lines of what the article suggests. You still want to dress up. You still want to be professional (send the crying babies and barking dogs far away). And try to take it just as seriously as a real interview. It might feel informal, but keep the proceedings as formal as you can to show you understand the situation.

But I’d also recommend YOU be the one to suggest this sort of interview. If you think they’re techy enough to go for it, it’s a win-win-win for you: You’re being proactive. You’re offering to save them money. You’re also showing that you’re tech savvy.

Are you the first person they’ve ever encountered who’s offered to do a virtual interview for them? That shows initiative.