4 Questions To Ask “Yourself” If You Can’t Get A Job
Apr 21st, 2008 by Loy Okezie
Photo courtesy of mike sun
Job hunting can be very tasking and frustrating. Jobseekers could easily get tired and give up. If you are reading this post, you might have applied for jobs and didn’t get an interview. Or you had an interview but wasn’t given a job offer. In fact, you’ve tried all you could, but without success.
What should you do?
If you find your job hunting strategies are not working, consider asking yourself these 4 questions that can help you see what areas you need to improve in your job search.
Is my job search targeted?
Most jobseekers look for jobs in every place they find. While this is not a bad strategy, it may make you lose your focus on the key job areas where you can readily find jobs. Or perhaps, you may be looking for jobs in an area that is highly competitive such as the banking industry in Nigeria.
So why not look elsewhere. Focus 80% of your job search efforts on areas where you are certain of getting a job given your skills, experience, etc Then, use the remaining 20% to look in areas where you are less likely to find a job, due to the high demand for jobs in that area.
Is my CV well-structured?
Your CV is your marketing tool for getting an interview. How well you structure it to suit a particular industry or job would determine your success in getting an interview or a job offer. Understand that each job position you apply for is unique and each company or industry has it’s uniqueness.
You need to understand the job description of each position, the culture of each company and the nature of each job industry you are applying to. Make sure you use the relevant qualifications, skills, experiences, etc for the different job postions in the different companies and industries that you apply for. Read more tips in this article
Am I presenting myself well?
Tell you what, the way you present yourself matters a lot in your job search. Employers and interviewers assess you based on your presentation. Now, your presentation could mean the way you present yourself on your CV or the way you handle the job interview. Really, the way you handle email corresspondences and phone calls determines how your would-be employer would see you.
When you apply for jobs with an email address like babafriday@yahoo.com, then you will not be presenting yourself well, as in, professionally. Instead, use your full name for all email correspondences that will send a professional message to recruiters.
Am I ready for the job?
Your competence for any particular job position could be assessed in various ways. Even though you may feel that you have what it takes to get the job, are you convinced that you are ready for the job? Having someone - a friend, family, colleague or an interview expert at a job fair - assess your interview techniques could help you discover if you’re fit enough to fight for that job position with thousands of other job candidates.
When you rehearse your presentation, you can identify areas where you need to make improvements or anyone listening to you can highlight these areas. Ask them these questions: Are my answers too long or too short? Did I ramble? How much did I gesture? Is my body language congruent with my voice pattern? Did I use enough volume and pausing? Was I tensed or relaxed? and more…
If you can think about these questions and find the right answers to them, you may be getting a job interview or a job offer the next time. Just remember to send me a gift, when you do;-)
To your career success!
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Infact i was so impress with those ur guide toward job interview.I have so many thing about job interview;am very greatful and keep it up.