Interview Tips For Your Next Employment Position

Interview Tips: Confidence

Everyone knows that confidence is the key to successful interviews, but that is can easily leave you when you need it. This is because job interviews are notoriously self-effacing. When you walk into a room full of people who are wondering whether or not you can do a job, you start to second guess your abilities, and that shows in your body language and your facial expressions.

The keys to appearing confident when you really don’t feel confident are posture and eye contact. Stand up straight; walk confidently as if you were walking into a room full of your friends. Remember that these people are only looking for the right candidate and are not trying to be harsh; they are just doing their jobs. Now, shake hands with everyone and make eye contact when you do so. When you are asked a question, look the person in the eye when you answer. Finally, smile; friendliness goes a long way in any job.

Interview Tips: “Do you have any questions?”

At the end of most interviews, the interviewer will often ask the interviewee if he or she has any questions to ask about the position or about the company. Many people become afraid to ask a question, fearing that they will either not like the answer or that the interviewer will not like the question.

The thing to remember is that most interviewers like it when interviewees ask questions. This shows them that the interviewee was listening and is genuinely interested in the position. Feel free to ask the hard questions about health insurance benefits like when they begin for a new-hire; ask about the salary; ask about vacation time and sick leave. All of these things should be considered as part of the job package you are being offered. Also, ask about the company and its history. This will prove to the interviewer that you are interested in the company and not just the job.

Sex or Gender Discrimination -Inside and Outside the Office

It is unfortunate that there are so many preconceived notions about gender roles. But these beliefs are established and the only thing that can be done is to prevent them from permeating the workplace.

Some of the gender roles that are common are the belief that women should not work outside the home when they have children.

A good example of this type of gender role-based workplace discrimination involves both of these gender role stereotypes. There was a time when many employers were men; as men, they harbored incorrect thoughts that women with young children should not work outside the home; therefore, these employers would not hire women with children who were under school-age.

Of course, there are still people who believe this, and some of them are women; but these beliefs need to be kept outside the office.

Your Resume as a Reflection of You

Before you hand your resume in to a company do one very important thing. Check it! Your resume is a reflection of you . Look it over for any problems and update it. This usually involves adding your current job and inserting any skills, experiences, and responsibilities gained by that job. You also may need to update your list of references as well. But this is something that almost every job seeker does.

Unfortunately, a lot of people in the job market forget to do the one thing that should be done by rote by everyone who uses a word processing program on their computer: they don’t use spell check.

Spell check and grammar check are in computer programs for a reason – and that reason is not to let you look like a fool in front of your potential employer. So remember to check your spelling and grammar before you turn in your resume.

Applying For a New Job

Work History

Job applications always have a space for your job history. If you are applying for a job where you will also be turning in your resume, make sure that your work history matches what is listed on your resume. If you are not submitting a resume, then bring a detailed list of your past jobs with you so you do not have to guess at phone numbers and dates of employments.

If you have a checkered work history, have been fired from a job, or have quit several jobs, you need to have reasons for these things. If you left a job to go back to school, this is seen as a good reason for leaving a job. If you were fired, however, it may be harder to explain. Never speak badly about your former employer; instead, state that is was not a positive working environment or that your department was downsizing.

Applying For a New Job: Salary Requirements

There is a question on all job application forms (and in most interviews) that makes even the most confident person groan in dismay: “What are your salary requirements?” Answering this question is tricky: if you ask for too little, the company will hire you because you are a bargain and have under-bid their normal salary for the position. If you ask for too much, you may not be considered as a candidate.

The best thing to do is to look at your current position in relation to your potential position. If you are applying for a job with similar responsibilities, ask for approximately the same amount or slightly higher. If you will be taking on a lot more work, ask for a substantially raised salary. Also, research what the job normally pays in same-sized companies, and ask for that approximate pay range.

Age Discrimination, Disparate Impact, and The Law

In the state of California, it was recently found that police officers who had been working for a short amount of time and had little experience on the job were given higher pay raises that those officers who had significant seniority, much more experience, but were over the age of forty.

According the Federal Law Title VII, this is age discrimination. But it was not considered disparate treatment; rather, it was considered disparate impact because the discrimination was the result of police department policy rather than direct, intentional discrimination.

This is important for all employers. Disparate impact, since it is not done with malice, is not as harmful as disparate treatment, but it is still very serious. When an employer is thinking of changing company policies, it is imperative that they check that the policies follow both state and federal employment law.

Are You Self-Employed and Now Need Job Interview Tips?

Those who are self-employed sometimes want to jump back into the job market and find something that will offer benefits and health insurance. This is a great step for some people, but it can also be disconcerting at first. In your interviews, make sure to focus not on your lack of traditional work experience, but rather your self-motivation skills and your ability to solve problems on your own.

With self-employment comes good business sense. Since you need to be able to handle your own invoicing and taxes, you can mention these as skills in an interview. Many bosses look for people who are self-starters and those who do not need a superior looming over them to motivate them to get their work done.

People with self-employment experience are masters of self-motivation: if they aren’t motivated, they don’t get paid. Another thing to focus on is organizational skills: your ability to organize your own business will quickly make you an asset to any company.

Job Interview Tips For Veterans

One thing that many veterans worry about when they go into interviews after their term of service is over is their possible lack of formal education or their lack of a “typical” work history. While this can be an issue for the veteran who wants to get into a specific job market like engineering or medicine, the average job can be obtained easily by a veteran regardless of his or her educational status.

During the interview, veterans would do well to highlight their military service and the skills they learned there that will parlay into the work force. For example, the average veteran has an uncanny ability to follow a task through to completion even under the most intense stress.

Also, veterans can easily identify priorities and can accomplish their priorities despite obstacles. Two of the most important skills the veteran has over the average person are leadership and teamwork skills. Emphasizing these things will benefit any veteran in any job interview.

Disparate Treatment Racial Discrimation In Workplace

There are two basic types of racial discrimination that are common in the workplace; the more common one, disparate treatment, is direct and purposefully harmful to the person. Essentially, disparate treatment means that the person being discriminated against is treated in a way that is deemed unfair or is directly discriminated against by the actions of the employer.

For example, when an Iranian man who is an American citizen is treated poorly by his co-workers or his company because of his race and ancestry, this is considered disparate treatment.

The discrimination is directly and purposefully aimed at the man because he is of a certain race. It would also be considered disparate treatment if the same man was passed over for a job position for which he was entirely qualified simply because he was Iranian or had Arabic ancestry.

For more information on discrimination visit: ‘Employment Discrmination Guide‘

Sex or Gender Discrimination Due To Gender Stereotypes

For both women and men, it is important to be able to be yourself all the time, but most specifically in the workplace.

While certain behaviors like poor language and inappropriate humor should always be left at home, a person’s personal and gender traits cannot be expected to be saved for outside the office. This is why gender stereotypes are prevented in anti-sex or gender discrimination law.

An example of gender stereotypes can be applied to both sexes. If a man is passed over for a job solely because he acts too feminine, this would be considered gender discrimination based on gender stereotypes. If a woman is not given a promotion she deserves because her behavior is considered too masculine, she, too, is a victim of gender discrimination based on gender stereotypes. Of course, this has to be provable before it can successfully go to court.

For more information on employment discrimination, visit our website – ‘Employment Discrimination‘

Your Job Interview Before and After

With so many people seeking employment, how can you make it to an interview? Well, the resume matters, it is the best reflection of how qualified you are for a certain position. In order for you to make it for that job position, you need to equip your self with the weapons to excel over the other applicants. That is, to impress the employer in your job interview. So what must you do?

Before the interview:

• Know the company you are applying for. How could you do this? Research about the facts and figures of that company. With the information you find, you would be ready for whatever questions the interviewer would ask you. You could even associate your answers to facts you have known about the company.

• Expect the questions to be asked and be prepared to answer them. On the other hand, be prepared to ask questions.

• Make sure that you are prepared with how you look. The way you dress will leave impressions to the interviewer. Do not wear too many accessories, you just have to wear something decent, ironed, and your shoes clean. Take note of your teeth too. Clean them so you can smile without distracting the interviewer with an unpleasant display of your last meal.

On the interview:

• Punctuality matters most. There is a need for you to arrive early for the interview. This will be the first impression you make. If you arrive late, this gives your prospective employer a negative impression of you.

• Act as a professional to everyone you get along with or meet. With this approach, you would be able to introduce yourself as someone professional, ready to take the challenges in the arena of others.

• Answer questions with eye contact to your interviewer. Be attentive when he/she asks questions.

After the interview:

• Say thank you to the interviewer. This shows them respect – you have respected their time with you.

• Relax and wait for the results.

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