High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: Incredibly Successful and Happy People Consistently Do These 6 Things

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

• Incredibly Successful and Happy People Consistently Do These 6 Things: "Most people are scared to attach their identity to their performance. High performers are willing to put themselves out there and place their identities on the line."

• 6 Mistakes Job Hunters Make While Employed: "Tell your friends about your job hunt one-on-one or over the phone, and emphasize the confidential nature of your search."

• 5 Tips for Building an Online Presence that Employers Love: "It also helps to build a website with your name in the domain. This way, when they search your name, they will find your optimized website where you can include your current resume and a portfolio of your work."

• Go to the Gym and Become a Better Boss: "It may sound obvious that effective managers need to cultivate that one-on-one mind-set, but it’s easy to lose sight of as your team grows and your responsibilities threaten to divide your attention. A little bit of individualized focus goes a long way."
• 9 Phrases Smart People Never Use In Conversation: "there are some phrases that emotionally intelligent people are careful to avoid in casual conversation. The following phrases are nine of the worst offenders. Avoid them at all costs."

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: Mentors, Communication Skills, and More

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share these every weekend so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

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• Want the Best Mentor? One Thing to Know: "The best mentors have no answers. They have only questions, frameworks, multiple open choices, a light to shine and an open mind. They are listeners first and foremost and they bring encouragement, compassion and a soft voice."

• Why Well-Thought-Out Career Choices Still Sometimes Don't Work: "A very common complaint I hear from my clients is that they accepted a job believing it was one thing but it turned out to be another. You have to do your due diligence in the interview process and be skeptical."                                                      
• 6 Tips to Become a Master Communicator at Work: "Be mindful of how you communicate and how your body language and persona either invite or push away people at work. Ultimately, the better your communication skills, the more likely you are to succeed in any workplace, so don't underestimate their importance."


• 8 Crippling Mistakes Job Seekers Make: "A mass email announcing your unfortunate layoff or asking to keep an eye out for a job opportunity will almost guarantee you won't get a response."


• The Most Effective Ways to Make It Right When You Screw Up: "In the modern workplace, we often operate as teams. So when you fail to meet an important deadline, chances are it's not just your boss that's affected—it's your whole team, and possibly your whole organization." 

The Definition of Job Search Insanity

Albert Einstein said the definition of insanity is doing the same thing again and again and expecting different results. The same concept applies to the job search process. You must be willing to adapt and modify your job search methods if what you are doing is not working for you.

I was told the story today of a military veteran who is having some difficulty with finding a position now that they have separated. The person who told me the story is a trainer that teaches career development skills. They reviewed the service member's resume and recommended some major changes to the resume so that their search would be more effective.

Unfortunately, the service member refused to make the necessary changes. Their comment was that their resume"is good enough." If your goal is to land a job, then a resume or job search effort that is not leading to job interviews is not "good enough."

As you progress in your job search, you must be willing to continually evaluate your efforts so that you can make changes, modifications, or adaptations to optimize your results. It is always best to take a multi-pronged approach to your job search and use a wide variety of search methods. Looking for a job is like navigating a trip on a road map. There are multiple routes you can use to reach your destination, you just need to find the one that is most efficient and works best for you. Here are some alternatives that you might want to try as you explore the best job search methods for you and your goal.

• Network with friends, relatives, professors, former co-workers, and former supervisors
• Job search networking events and Chamber of Commerce mixers
• Internet job boards
• Research companies in your industry using online resources
• State Workforce/Career One Stop Center
• Job fairs and hiring expos
• Employment agencies
• College or University career placement centers
• Unions or trade organizations
• Professional organizations in your industry

Are You Making One of These 3 Critical Job Search Errors?

You have a great resume, you have purchased the perfect interview suit, and you have practiced all your interview responses. You are ready and your job search is foolproof, right? Not so fast! If you are making one of these three errors, you just may be sabotaging your own success.

Failure to Add Networking to Your Job Search
You already know that your applications are all made online - usually through a company's website or an online job search engine. However, if your only means of looking for open jobs is surfing the web for openings, you are missing out.

I spoke recently to a global recruiter that told me 80% of the positions she fills are never even posted. She searches LinkedIn, asks her existing staff for referrals, and reaches out to her network to find candidates before she even considers posting a job. Don't discount networking - both social networking and in-person networking - as a critical factor in your job search success.

Failure to Use a Cover Letter
The cover letter is a professional introduction to the resume and is still expected by hiring managers and human resources professionals. The cover letter will most likely not make or break whether you get an interview. However, not sending a cover letter is definitely a strike against you.

Human Resources may not read the cover letter during the screening process. However, they will pass your letter along to the hiring manager who uses this tool to get to know a little about you, your personality, and communication style before the interview.

Failure to Focus Your Search
There is no such thing as an effective generic resume. In order to do its job well, the resume must be focused to a specific job, industry, and company. Don't make the HR person work to see how you will fit in their company. Chances are, if you don't make your targeted presentation of how you fit in within the top third of the resume, you will never even get close to an interview.

The Importance of Common Sense in the Job Search

Yesterday, I was teaching a class about resume writing to military veterans. Interestingly, when I asked the class what qualities they thought you needed to effectively market yourself in the job search, one of the responses was common sense. In all the years I have taught that class, I have not had anyone else point this out. However, it made me realize that common sense really is critical to success in the job search process.

We have all read those articles about the crazy things job seekers say or do during an interview. In fact, earlier this week, I wrote a post that detailed the most common interview mistakes and most of those common mistakes defied common sense. Here are some mistakes that job seekers make that could be avoided if common sense was employed.

• Turn off your cell phone before going into an interview. Should you forget to silence the phone and it rings, do not answer it. Apologize profusely and silence the phone before returning your attention to the interviewer.
• Don't chew gum, eat, or drink during the interview unless you are at an interview lunch or dinner meeting. If the interview involves eating at a restaurant, think about what you are ordering and how messy it will be before ordering.
• Go to the interview alone. This may sound like a no-brainer, but I have had candidates show up to interviews holding hands with their boyfriend, pushing kids in strollers, and even had a candidate show up for an interview with a bird on their shoulder!
• Your email address must be professional. Keep your fun, silly, or racy email address for communicating with friends. The email listed on your resume must be simple and professional - first name and last name or first initial and last name only.
• Always look in a mirror before entering an interview. Check your zipper, check your teeth, ensure all your buttons are done, and ensure there is no food stuck in your mustache. 
• Be polite to everyone you meet, from the minute you enter the company's property. A very high percentage of companies ask the receptionist how you treated them before making a hiring decision. Remember to treat everyone - including the parking attendant - as a potential co-worker.