Interviewing and Career Fair Tips

Whether you are looking for an internship, part-time job, or your first job out of college, your first impression to a Human Resource Representative or a Recruiter is everything.  At my previous job, I would assist our HR Department with Career Fairs.  A horrible first impression from a potential candidate would result in the word “Trash” written on the back of their resume.  But do not worry.  It is very easy to make a great first impression during an interview or at a career fair.  Just follow these simple rules:

1.)  Have A Good Resume.  Not having a resume when looking for a job is like Burger King not having any burgers.  This is an absolute disappointment for employers.  On the internet, there are hundreds of examples of great resumes; hundreds of great resume writing tips; and many resume writers (for a fee).  Therefore, there is no excuse.  You can write a “Chronological” resume, which will highlight your past work experience in timeframe order.  If you do not have any work experience, you can write a “Functional” or “Targeted” resume, which will highlight your relevant skills or knowledge needed for that specific job, such as typing, computer skills, classes, scholarships, or community/volunteer involvement.  A “Combination” resume accomplishes all of the above.

2.)  Show Confidence.  Whether you are confident or not, it does not matter if you are not at least portraying this characteristic.  Exemplify confidence by introducing yourself with a greeting and your full name; give a firm handshake; and always make eye contact.  In addition, utilize the representative’s name frequently when speaking.  This will always keep their attention (e.g. “Yes Janice.  I always believed that...”).

3.) Use Specific Examples When Answering Questions.  Defining success by stating your future goals is a good response.  However, defining success by also providing one or two specific examples of how you had to push yourself to obtain previous goals is great and impressive.  As long as these examples are relevant, they could be either business related or even personal.   Remember, you are trying to convince the representative that they should hire you. Carefully thought out examples and details provide lots of convincing within a short time frame.

4.)  Wear Proper Business Attire.  Employers are always scoping out potential candidates’ attire.  So always dress to impress; and when in doubt keep it conservative.  If by chance you cannot afford such attire, do not be afraid to borrow from a friend or relative.  Also, even a little cash goes a long way at the Goodwill or a local consignment shop.  These stores typically have good quality merchandise at a very cheap price.

With the current high unemployment rate, many individuals are heavily competing for available jobs.  Therefore, make sure you are doing everything you can to separate and distinguish yourself from the rest.  Flinkey wishes you the best!


Next Topic:  Time Management in College

Make Money While in College - Part II: Need Cash Now!

Okay, during the last blog we mentioned a few ways that you can make money while in college.  Now for the most part, the suggestions in that blog combined making money with long term success ideas.  But in reality, sometimes you just NEED CASH NOW!  We’ve been there and fully understand that times can be hard.  Therefore, here are a few ways that you can make a few bucks within a very short time frame.

1.)    DONATE PLASMA:  If you have never done this before, it can be quite uncomfortable.  However, this is a guaranteed way, as long as you medically qualify, to get a few extra bucks in your pocket immediately.  Compensation can range anywhere from $10 - $60 per donation.  Just set up an appointment with a local clinic (who usually advertise for donors) and get paid with hard cash right after donation. 

  

2.)    PARTICIPATE IN A STUDY:  Many universities and their respective departments, especially Psychology and other medical fields conduct research studies that need willing participants.  A lot of these studies will offer pay in exchange for your time.  Typically, the more time needed from you the higher the pay.

3.)    FIND A DAY TEMP AGENCY:  There are many local day temp agencies, such as “Labor Ready”, which have immediate positions open for that same day.  The process is easy.  Call in advance and/or show up that morning, work that day, and get paid when you are done.  These jobs can range anywhere from grounds keeping to construction to catering to light clerical work.  This is a good way to get money without making a long term commitment.

4.)    SELL PERSONAL ITEMS:  For immediate cash, you can always take personal items, such as gold, electronics, and sporting items, to a pawn shop.  You will not get top dollar for your items, but you will walk out the door with more money in your pocket than when you walked in.  Just remember, real quality jewelry and rare items always generate the most cash back.  If there are already 50 ipods in one of the cases, most likely you will not get a lot for yours.  You can also list your items on the internet with sites such as ebay and Craigslist.  This will create a longer wait time and definitely more effort on your part.  However, you will most likely generate cash back closer to market value for your items.

5.)    GET FAMILY AND FRIENDS TO SIGN UP TO FLINKEY:  Family and Friends, especially distant ones, are more willing to give you money for food and books if they: 1.) have an easy way to do it; and 2.) know what you are doing in college (major/minor, activities, experiences…etc.).  Flinkey does just that.  Collect college donations from your profile page, collect donations for your group or organization, or sell personal items with Flinkey’s marketplace.  Join the many others who have collected donations from family and friends just from being on this free site.

Next Topic: Interviewing and Job Fair Preparation Tips!   

Make Money While in College - Part I

Being in college typically means that you are most likely financially strapped or flat out broke.  But you are okay with it, because you believe that, with your education, there will be a high paying job waiting for you.  Wouldn’t that be nice?  However, a lot of times this is far from reality.  Now your degree will significantly increase your chances of getting a better job.  But, this is not always a guarantee, especially depending on the competitiveness of your field.  When comparing candidates, most companies will give the competitive edge to the individual with the most experience.  Therefore, you must constantly look for ways to increase your value.  One of the ways you can do this, and get money at the same time, is get real work experience now.   This can be accomplished many different ways, but here are three:

1)  Get an Internship.  An internship is an on the job training program for college course credit.  Not only will this be experience to add to your resume, but the credits will help you graduate slightly sooner (typically from 3 – 9 credits), you will gain another reference or contact to use when you apply for another job; and you may potentially get a little income if it is a paid internship.

2)  Get a Summer or Part-Time Job.   Even if you do not do an internship, you still should strongly consider getting a job, whether in your field or not.  Not only will this provide you with income, but when you graduate, you will find that companies will most likely hire you if they see that someone else was willing to hire you, especially if that employment worked out great.  This is due to the fact that they know that “general” work experience (following directions, working with others, dealing with customers…etc.) is just as valuable as specific job training.

3)  Start a Business!  Okay this initially sounds very hard to do.  However, with the internet and the many available and free social media platforms, this can be easier than you think.  We all know the story of Facebook, and how one college student’s idea turned into billions of dollars.  But did you know that there are hundreds of successful examples of students who started their own business while in college?  Inc. Magazine (www.inc.com) just recently released their 2011 “America’s Coolest College Start-Ups” report (http://www.inc.com/coolest-college-start-ups-2011/index.html).  With host services and packaged sites such as, Hostgator, GoDaddy, Social Engine, Rsitez, Wix, and Blogger, you could have your own company up in running within 30 days and for a cost of anywhere from $0 - $5,000.  That’s right $0.00!  So why wait?  If your business fails, you at least have another thing to put on your resume, plus a story to tell.  If it succeeds, you may just become a millionaire.  If you do become a millionaire, just remember to thank Flinkey for the motivation.

Next Topic:    Make Money While in College (Part II)

Change: A new life in College?

At least a few mornings in your lifetime, you will wake up wishing that you had another life...maybe more popular...maybe richer...or maybe even less popular because of the demands or current expectations of your family and friends.  I was always told that the first day of college is one of the few times in your life when you have a chance to reinvent yourself.  Since the majority of students never meet you before, you could finally be more outgoing, if you were always shy, you could dress more risque, if your apperance was always reserve, you could even choose new friends who fit your true or desired personality, and maybe get rid of some of the old ones.  Conversely, you could become less outgoing, more reserve, or even get closer with the old friends that you may have previously taken for granted.  But the truth is, we have the ability to do when we wake up every morning.  Each day is a new day to reinvent yourself.  The primary reason why we don't do this is because of fear.  We are not only scared of how our family and friends will view this drastic change; we are also afraid of finding out who we truly are, or most importantly who we are not.  We are unsatisfied with our lives, but we are more scared of the unknown results that change will bring.  But "if you continue to think what you have always thought, you will continue to do what you have always done, if you continue to do what you have always done, you will continue to get what you have always gotten."  What are you willling to do to not remain the same person that you were today, and not just get a copy of someone else's life, but to reinvent yours?  Can you reinvent yourself?  If so, who do you want to be when you wake up tomorrow?