CV 4 Jobs

Many jobseekers fail to land dream jobs because they don’t catch the eye of the reader before their application details are filed in the bin. You have a 10-30 second window to make an impact. I have read thousands Cover Letters and to be honest I would have more fun reading a law journal. Cover Letters play an important part in the job hunting process so. They are even more important if you are not an ideal fit to the job specification. If you are struggling to get called for interviews then push the boat out and get creative.

Handwritten Cover Letters

If you have better writing than your children then try hand writing your cover letter. A decade ago a typed letter stood out from the crowd of hand written cover letters. Nowadays the opposite is actually true. In a world of email, Bebo text and computer hand writing is a rare commodity. This is why a hand written application could bring attention to your application

Show your personality on a Cover Letter

When I read cover letters I lied. I rarely read cover letters because they are all the same boring stuff. I would normally just jump to the CV. Some clients are the same but it is still important to send a Cover Letter and let the client make the decision to read it. Cover letters can provide the opportunity to show your personality so use this opportunity. Use the Cover Letter to tell the employer how much the job means to you and what you can bring to the table. In your Cover Letter write how you feel and not like you are writing a solicitors letter.

Other helpful resources

For additional career advice check out careersandjobs.

For news about jobs in Ireland check out jobsnews.

Would you pin your CV to the side of a public phone box or put it on the notice board of a local supermarket to try and get a job?

Lets face it we are getting lazy when it comes to finding a job. Email a CV to an agency and sit back or post your CV on an online job board and let the employers find you.

If you use these strategies you might take a little more care.

A client (who happens to work in recruitment for a financial services company) told me today that she had recently received spec CV’s from some recruitment companies. What is wrong with this? Well for two of the CV’s it would not have taken a rocket scientist to work out who owned the CV. In relation to jobboards they may not be as safe as you think – read this post.

What problems can arise?

The obvious is that your current employer finds out that you are looking but more importantly CV’s have personal details like name, address and contact details. (Dangerous in wrong hands – fraudster or weirdo)

Solutions

Use reputable agencies or request that your CV is not sent out speculatively. Use established jobboards.

I know this article isn’t about your CV but I will be posting on related topics from time to time. Anyway if you are interested in CV’s you must be job hunting. I was asked yesterday (for the zillionth time) how do you handle the “S” word – Salary. During any interview process it is inevitable that the subject of money will eventually arise. Unfortunately most are not prepared to handle it. Here is my approach:

At interview keep your cards close to your chest

Try your best not to show your hand first and disclose your expectations. This will force the employer to make the initial offer. If asked the question a response like “I am currently on 40k but I am open to salary depending on the role and the company” or answer this interview question with a question such as “what would a role like this pay in your company?”.

I recommend this approach for a number of reasons. Firstly it disguises money motivations. Secondly, putting forward a figure can rule you out of contention – from experience you can negotiate an offer upwards if it doesn’t meet your expectations. The final reason most jobseekers do not consider is that your figure could be lower than the figure the client intended to offer.

Interviews – I want more money

I will point out that if money is a key motivation and the most important factor in your decision feel free to put forward your expectations. Do try to let the client bring up the topic though.