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At some point in time when you are applying to a job vacancy there may be such a large number of applicants for the position that the hiring organization may decide to give you an aptitude test. You may not have been notified in advance about this, but you are interested in the job and there are a number of other applicants there willing to take the test as well. What should you do?

Let’s start in the beginning. You have to be prepared for anything when you go to a job interview, pop quizzes and behavioral questions are tools that are used to weed people out of the hiring process. You should realize this and prepare yourself both mentally and physically for what most people would consider a surprise.

Carry you resume in a leather folder with a calculator enclosed. Having a calculator will make it easier to calculate simple problems and help reduce the anxiety of the surprise test. Get a high school math workbook from you local library if you do not have a child who has one, and review the problems. Most math test questions are geared to the high school level requiring the use of algebra, percentage, and ratio math skills. We both know it has been years since you have had to use any of these skills and this is why you need to practice.

Being prepared is half the battle. Practicing will make you more confident and keep you in the right frame of mind during the test. You do not want you feel like Rowan Atkins in the above video trying to figure out the answers to the test without a clue. You can do it. Have confidence in your abilities, practice and make sure you bring a calculator and any additional tools that you may need to be prepared and successful.

Too many times we get caught up in our daily lives and do not take a moment to stop and be thankful. Thankful for what you might ask. The answer is, thankful for everything. Too many times we over look the little things like, I woke up this morning. The sun was shinning, or it is raining and I will not have to water the lawn. It might be a windy day and you are thankful that your leaves are being blown into you neighbors yard so you will not have to rake them. Or the leaves from your neighbor’s yard are being blown into your yard, but you can walk and have the strength to rake them. Besides, if you spend as much time at the computer as I do you could probably benefit from the exercise.

Why do I mention these things to you? Well if you have just lost your job you may not be in a thankful mood. There is a passage in the bible that says, “In all things give thanks.” This means that even in your darkest times there is an opportunity for gratitude. What it takes is a change in your prospective and your outlook on things.

Having a positive attitude will benefit you in the long run. No one wants to hire Mr. or Ms. Grumpy; they want to hire Mr. or Ms. Happy. This means you have to smile and practice doing it. This can be an impossible task if you are not thankful. My recommendation is to be thankful, smile, and in time you will see everything around you change in your favor. As the singer Bobby McFerrin said “Don’t Worry, Be Happy, Don’t Worry Be Happy Now!”

Many people over look the importance of the format of the resume. Next to including key words in a resume the format is the second most important aspect of your resume. In a previous post (Resume Format – What’s The Objective) I described the need for you to use a professional profile and the title of the position that you are applying to, as opposed to an objective for the job you are seeking. Remember your resume is prime real estate and you want to capture the reader’s attention and encourage them to read more.

Starting at the top of the page you should place your name, e mail and telephone number centered with a line for each item so that is looks like a block. Under this block place the name of the position you are applying for. Skip a line and place your professional profile under the job title. Next center the heading “Professional Experience”, all of your work experience will fall under this heading. Each position that you have held should appear on your resume in reverse chronological order, starting with your current or most recent job.

Each job that you have held should include the name of the employer, the city and state of the employer all on the same line. On the following line place the job title that you held and your years of service, if you currently hold this position then include the month and year you started followed by a dash and the word “Present”. This will inform the reader that you currently hold this position. Give a brief description of this position, followed by Result Oriented Communication (ROC). I will discuss the importance of ROC in a future post.

If you have to use additional pages for your resume include just your name, phone number and the page number of total pages as a heading at the top of any additional pages. This will allow the reader to know how many pages to look for, identify the page as yours and allow the reader to contact you if the first page is misplaced. Any additional on the job education will fall under the heading of “Training”.

You also should include a heading for education. Your education should be in reverse chronological order with the month and year of graduation. If you are currently in school you can enter the degree you expect to achieve, the school you currently are attending followed by the word “candidate” and the year you anticipate graduating.

Leave a 1 to 2 inch border on the sides of the resume. This will allow the interviewer to write notes on your resume when they interview you. Notice I said when, not if they interview you. Using this format will get your resume noticed and increase your chances of being interviewed for that dream job.

If you would like a free copy of a resume using this format written with result oriented communications to use as a guide in developing your resume then click the “Join Us!” tab at the top of this blog located between the “About The Interview Teacher” and the “Suggested Reading” tabs. You can also contact me at Info@InterviewTeacher.com if you have any questions or are interested in obtaining more information.

A number of people ask me why they need to have a business card outside of their normal work business card. Well your work business card is great for business transactions but if you are testing the waters for a new opportunity you may not want a prospective employer calling you on the job. If someone else answers the phone the word might get out that you are looking before you want it to.

I recommend that you have your own personnel business cards made with an e mail and phone number that your prospective employer can contact you. I number of people use their cell phone as their main number of contact. This can be a good and bad idea at the same time. If you decide to use your cell phone as a business contact then you are also making a conscious decision to answer all calls on that phone in a professional manner. More about this subject will be discussed in future posts.

Vista Print is the site that I use for my personnel business cards. You can select to purchase free business cards or premium business cards. If you choose the free cards there are a number of cards themes that you can select from. Remember to select a theme that looks professional, because you will be planning to use this card when networking and on your interview. I normally purchase the premium business card. They sell for $19.99 on sale 50% OFF Premium Business Cards & FREE Return Address Labels
and provide a broader range of themes to select from. You can also select to have the cards printed on a thicker card stock and have it laminated in a glossy finish for an additional charge.

I recommend upgrading to the premium card with a thicker card stock and having them laminated as well. Your business card says something about who you are and it might be the only thing that a person has to remember you by. Having a card that is unique (laminated) and feels good in the person’s hand (thicker card stock) says that you are a person of quality and pay attention to detail. It is a little more expensive to upgrade your business cards but you are well worth the investment.

How big is your imagination? Where do your see yourself in the next 5 years? How do you plan to get there? These three questions are important to your future and you must be willing to spend the time to answer them. Do not rush into it but really reflect and give deep thought to how you will answer them. Write your answers down on a piece of paper. Are you living up to your full potential? Watch this video by Les Brown and give some thought to the potential that lies deep inside you just waiting to be stirred up and put in action.

Les Brown reminds you not to let labels that people place on you or names that they may call you define who you are. “Someone’s opinion of you does not have to become your reality.” A key to discovering your dream is realizing that the dream is possible. You need to take charge of your life. Never give up on yourself. In his book Live Your Dreams Les Brown talks about the need to demonstrate perseverance, when no one is there to encourage us, then we must encourage ourselves.
Listen to the stories that Les Brown tells about his life and discover how we can establish the same principles in our lives and live our dreams.

So many of us are afraid to start a conversation with some one we are meeting for the first time. One of the best ways to conquer your fear is by joining a Toastmasters Club. Toastmaster is an international communication and leadership club. Joining a Toastmasters Club will provide you with a safe environment to practice speaking to people you do not know. In fact you will have the opportunity to write and deliver speeches to an audience. I know that so many of you would rather die than speak in front of a group of people. Do not worry; everyone who has ever joined Toastmasters at some point in their life was afraid to speak in front of a group of people they did not know including me.

You can join Toastmasters by finding a local club. Each club�s culture is different so shop around to find the club who�s culture fits your personality. I like a club culture that offers the opportunity to learn in a fun environment. I have been a member for about 4 years and have entered a number of contests. In fact I won 3rd place in the humorous speech contest in a pool of 250 clubs from New York and New Jersey. If you would like to see a video of my speech just click here and it will take you to my web site.

Can joining Toastmasters help you in your job search? Most definitely, and I will discuss the advantages Toastmasters and your job search in future posts. Check out this video by Keith Ferrazzi on how to be out going and then go join a Toastmasters Club. You will be glad that you did.

From time to time you may have experienced people being less than genuine when they first meet someone new. When I was growing up we called it putting on airs. This is an attempt by some individuals to appear very important or accomplished in an effort to get people to connect with and like them. This is not networking and is the complete opposite of what I recommend that you do.

Be yourself. People are interested in finding out who you are. Not who you would like them to think you are, but who you really are. If you prepare yourself before hand to come to the networking opportunity with information that you may have researched or a topic that is current in the media of interest to the people in this gathering you will find it a lot easier to start a conversation with some one new. Spend the time to focus on one individual. Find out things about them. What things do you have in common? Take the time to expand the conversation and give yourself an opportunity to connect with that person. Do not rush the conversation along, or change the topic of the conversation from one thing to another. This may give the person the impression that you are not interested in talking to them or that you are not being genuine.

What is the risk of not being genuine? Connection, think about it, do you want to spend time with someone who is not genuinely interested in what you have to say? You begin to wonder, what their motive is for speaking with you. This places a barrier of mistrust between the two of you. Once this barrier is raised it is very difficult to overcome. Why place yourself at a disadvantage? Just be yourself. People will like you, if you focus on what is important to them they will want to focus on what is important to you and the connection between both of you is established. Listen to Keith Ferrazzi the author of “Never Eat Alone” provide you with additional tips on how to be a successful networker. Remember, networking is the best way to get you connected with access to the decision maker who is looking for you to fill their job vacancy, and this could be your next dream job.

As you probably know, one of the best ways to discover your next dream job is through networking. If you are not sure what Networking is than you can take a look at the post “The Value of Networking” to find out. So many of us would like to network but do not know where to start. Keith Ferrazzi the author of “Never Eat Alone” offers some how to tips in his video. He suggests that you look for any opportunity that will bring you together with people you do not already know.

The underlying idea is to frequent places that will provide opportunities to meet and collaborate with people who are currently doing what you would like to do or whom you share a common interest.

Volunteering - Provides a perfect opportunity for you to work along side a decision maker in a company or organization. It is also a way to demonstrate your dedication to a cause, or issue in the industry that you would like to work in.

Join a Community Organization - This type of position will provide you visibility to a broad and diverse group of people. You will also be in a position to display your talents and skill in an environment that benefits everyone in the community. What a great way to get your name known.

The most important aspect is to share your passion when networking. When you do you are excited and others around you will share in your excitement and enthusiasm.

Looking for your dream job? We all have dreams, big ones, small ones, and middle size ones but if you are like me, you have a problem getting started to make those dreams a reality. I found a free tool to help you get started. Keith Ferrazzi has developed a free tool to help get you on the road to achieving your dreams. You can go to: www.KeithFerrazzi.com/lifecoachtool and follow the instructions. There are 3 steps to take in completing this tool.

Step 1 � Get Focused - Become clear about what you want to achieve.

Step 2 � Diagnosis - What are the behaviors that prevent you from being a success?

Step 3 � Share � Create your dream Team, a group of dream supports that will help you
in this journey.

Listen to the video, use the free tool and you are on your way to finding your dream job.

One of the best ways for you to get an interview or obtain inside information on a job is through networking. Networking is an integral part of our daily life and you do it all the time, sometimes we are not aware of it. Listen to Keith Ferrazzi the author of the best selling book,“Never Eat Alone” explain the value of networking and help you understand why it is so important.



Where you are in life is a matter of prospective, regardless of your position. Are you a victim of circumstance or are you determined to be a victor and champion your cause? Dr. Eubanks explains how your attitude and prospective makes all the difference in your success. Listen to her message of HOPE.

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Getting ready for an interview is just like a game of war that you might have played with your friends as a child. We both know that you have no chance of winning with out the right ammunition. This means that you must have a business card. Having a business card to share during your interview says something about who you are. You want to make sure that your business card in printed on good quality paper, remember this is something that you will be leaving behind after the interview to be remembered by. I prefer to have my business card laminated as well. It gives a rich feel in the hand of the person you extend it to and they will be more interested in looking at it. Some people will take the easy inexpensive route of printing their business card from their home computer. The disadvantage to this is the quality of the card stock paper that you would use in your home computer can not compare to the quality of card stock used at a printer.

If expense is an issue, you can get your business cards printed free at www.vistaprint.com, you just pay for shipping and handling. That is where I get my cards made. I normally use the premium business cards which run about $20 for 250 cards; a business card is just one piece of ammunition in your interview arsenal. You will find additional tips and strategies that will make you stand out in a crowd in the above video. Please be sure to read the previous posts to discover the other important ammunition you must bring to you next interview. | digg story



Interview Questions are the one thing that you do not want to get caught without during your interview. You need to prepare a set of questions to ask the interviewer about the available position. Why should you write your questions down in advance and bring them with you? During the interview you will be so focused on answering questions that when it comes time for you to ask questions you might be speechless. It is difficult to switch gears from answering questions one after another to asking them.

Preparing a list of questions in advance provides you with the opportunity to ask specific questions about the position that came to your mind when you researched the company. You should also carry a writing pad to take notes and jot down questions that may come to your mind during the interview. Interview questions, if you do not have them now make sure you do before your next interview. | digg story

Resume secrets are revealed in this power packed video that will set you apart from the average job candidate. Tips on paper quality, resume formatting and the magic of using a paper clip are revealed. Let Kevin the interview teacher help you land your dream job.
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Spending a few extra dollars goes a long way when it comes to making a good first impression. With this in mind I recommend that you purchase a resume folder to place your resume in. It makes a good presentation and helps to keep your papers organized. If you notice in the video above I choose a paper stock and resume folder of similar color. This gives a professional presentation when you place it on the table during your interview. You may consider handing your resume in a folder to the interviewer. I am not suggesting that you do this with every interview, but if this is your dream job and you are meeting with the CEO or President of the organization, how much is it worth to you to be the candidate that this person remembers as polished, organized and the one who pays attention to detail? If your answer is more than $5.00 then go ahead and give the folder to the interviewer. The resume folder that I use when I go on interviews and the one in this video I purchased from Staples because they have good prices and high quality supplies. Remember, it may cost you a little more money than you were expecting to spend initially, but this is an investment in yourself, your future. I think you are worth it, don’t you?