Choose Internship Programs Well

Almost all companies have internships for teens, but it is up to you to decide on which internship will be best for you. There are many reasons to take on internships, and one of them will be to earn money, but it is highly advisable that you look at the merits of the program, not just the financial rewards.

When choosing internship programs, enlist for one that is in line with your targeted career so that you maximize your learning experience. Not everything you need to know about your profession can be found in books and classrooms, so it will be good to be exposed in a real-life office within the industry. “Tricks of the trade” are learnt in these internships and connections to the proper authorities are established, as well.

Starting Early With Internships

Not a few internships blossom into a part-time American jobs for teenagers, or even full-time, job. Authorities who hire in the companies would always choose someone they are familiar with than someone they have never met before, and whose performance they are not yet sure of. This saves them the resources in interviewing job applicants, and it also shortens the adjustment period for both the company and the new hire. So make sure that you make the right impression in your internship, that you stand out for a good reason, and you can be almost sure that you already have an advantage over other job seekers.

Volunteering type jobs for teens give them the opportunity to be exposed to a multi-disciplinary environment. They will learn a lot from observing how other workers (volunteers or otherwise) behave and perform their day to day tasks, and they can apply the knowledge in their future jobs. Most importantly, voluntary employment can lead to a part-time or even a full-time paying jobs.

Make A Lasting Impression

Treat volunteer jobs as a real job, because it is. Get to work on time, all the time, and do not be mindful of the hours you need to keep. Participate in office activities, whether within or outside the office. If there are tasks that need to be done that require some extra time, take the chance to help and show that you are someone who can be relied upon with a sense of urgency. As much as you can, try to connect with all levels of staff and managers in the workplace without being intrusive.  Be sure to be on topic and relevant every time when in discussions and maintain a strict focus to inform them you are listening and very interested in ther opinions.

The Right Time To Solicit For A Full-Time Job

Chances are, you will be offered a full-time job before your volunteer work term is finished. But if that does not happen, you can politely ask to be considered for a full-time job just before you leave the company.

Do not expect a guaranteed job right away, but you can be sure that if any job opening comes up, your name will be at the top of your boss’ mind.

Always remember that if you don’t always get a job at the end of you duration always take volunteering as a task you engaged in to gain the experience. Employers can take your job but they will never be able to take away the experience you have acquired.

Job interviews give future employers the opportunity to measure up job applicants, and most professionals who have been conducting job interviews for a long time develop an instinct on assessing job applicants based on person-to-person interviews. That is why it is ever so important to make a first good impression in your job interviews.

Your worst enemy during any interview is your nerves. So take to heart these job interview tips and master those nerves.

Practice Makes Perfect

During an interview, a question that is not anticipated can throw you off balance, and this in return might make you give incomplete answers, or worse, it may leave you dumbfounded. This can easily be prevented by being diligent and practicing for that job interview, the same way you would practice for a competition.

Make The Mirror Your Friend

Practicing in front of a mirror may seem silly but this is probably one of the best job interview tips you should listen to. When in front of a mirror, be critical of your facial expressions and the way you speak. Make sure that you are not drooling, frowning, or smirking, or giving out any inappropriate gestures or expressions. You can also practice keeping eye contact in front of a mirror.

Have A Good Support System

Your family and friends can greatly help you for your job interview practice. You can ask them to pose as the interviewer, encourage them to ask any questions they can think of. This will help you anticipate random questions and also practice you to expect the unexpected. Always take notes of their comments and keep them handy in a notepad so that you can run your list in your mind prior to your interview.

These job interview tips have worked for many, and they can work for you, too.

A Phone Interview Is Still A Job Interview

Do not forget that a phone interview is still a job interview and you are still being assessed and evaluated by your interviewer. Aside from the fact that you are not face to face with your interviewer and you cannot shake hands at the end of the interview, the purpose and consequences of a phone interview are the same as a conventional person-to-person interview. So, prepare for a job interview the same way as you would for an interview that requires a personal appearance.

Practice Always Makes Perfect

Perhaps the disadvantage of a phone interview is that it may come anytime, and it can catch you when you are most unprepared. You may be having coffee with a friend or laughing your head off over a joke when your potential employer calls you. Some interview preparation advice would be to compose yourself quickly to be able to answer the questions properly. To simulate this, engage your friends and relatives to help you. Ask them to call you anytime of the day, even in the most ungodly hours, and instruct them to ask you questions, as if they were interviewing you. You can give them a set of questions to ask but they should add their own questions. This way, you will be able to practice how to regain your composure and get into the mood quickly for a phone interview.

Thinking Different

Whoa what are you talking about? Is this really possible, its not rocket science that doing the same thing that everyone else does will not be beneficial as we see today in the short as well as the long run. Stop what you are doing and evaluate the methods of which you put forth to perform you employment search.

Understanding that there are hundreds even thousands of competitors applying for the positions you are may make you feel a little down, you may have even stopped looking.  You need to think outside of the box in order to stand out of the crowd and reach the employer strong enough to keep your name in the back of their mind. A very good book draws a parallel to these earth shattering techniques called the “Purple Cow” by Seth Godin.

Doing things the same as your competitors will only cause yourself to be lost in the shuffle and crowd of fellow competitors which may work against you thus making it harder to gain any traction in today’s employment market.

Below is a listing of techniques and advice you can use in your employment search of which the general competition is not thinking about and or performing which will put you in the top of future employers minds and keep you from having to go through the agony of competing against others looking for the same job.

Like a hidden gem of techniques known only to few here is the list:

Search Techniques

1. The Top 10, 50, 100 Companies
   Search for the top 10, top 50, top 100 companies are within your field of interest and record them in a manageable document.
   The best way is to run a search in your favorite search engine for the keywords “Top 50 IT Companies – America”. Of course this phrase can be changes and tweaked to fit any country and industry. The word companies can also be interchanged with “organizations”. Remember that every search engine is not the same so these phrases should be ran through many different search engines such as (Google, Yahoo, Ask, Bing).
2. What about competing organizations?
   Use others to send you names of their competition and known organizations they are aware of with similar services.
   Asking friends family members who are in the industry your interested in will know of a handful of other organizations which will have similar positions. Even noting down the names of competitors will ensure you have a robust listing.
3. Colleges and Universities Also Hire
   Find all of the colleges and university websites and record their “career services” and “job board” sections from their websites in order to get openings.

   Goto your favorite search engines and search for a listing of colleges or universities within a certain area such as “Universities in (your city)”. Some institutions actually have positions on campus which are open to the public which means you don’t necessarily need to be a student on campus to work on campus.

4. Use the business directory in your area and record all of the organizations which may seem to have the department which holds your role specific position.
5. Professional Industry Monthly Networking Meetings
   Attend professional monthly meetings and record all of the organizations which sponsor them and or support their efforts.  Also try to get as many business cards as possible from the participants and visitors there in order to broaden your organization listing.

   Always ask if a guest list is available by the moderators or organizers in order to get a members listing. Most times there will be company names the professional are employed by which can be added to your targeted list of companies to apply to!

6. Goto Your Church
   Go to all of the religious churches and ask to see their listing of supporting organizations as well as their bulletin boards and record all of the organizations related to you field of interest.

   There are many organizations who will be noted or referenced by advertising media posted on the church bulletin boards and or websites which can bring some awareness. Don’t forget any sponsors. If the sponsors are willing to sponsor, they must be doing well.

7. Goto the Library
   Go to all of the libraries in your area as well as online and attain any affiliated or supporting organizations and record them.

   Check out the bulletin boards at the library as well as all of the books and magazines which reference your specific role or industry of interest. The will reference businesses you may be interested in applying in.

8. Local Chamber of Commerce
   Record all of the chambers of commerce in an around your city and record businesses mentioned there.

   It would be best if you could visit them directly and ask for a listing of business which have been registered by industry.

9. Attend Industry Specific Trade Shows
   Attend trade shows and record all of the organizations which are participating. (Listing can also be provided for free if asked from their websites/brochures.)
10. Partnering Companies
    Goto the top companies in your list and visit each of their websites then look for any partnering organizations which provide services or technology to your company of interest. Their companies may also have the same type of role your looking for. Sometimes even calling up their customer support center may also give you a method to obtain this information sometimes quicker if their website does not contain this information.
11. Supporting Companies
    Visit all websites at the end and go to their “supporters”, “donors” and “partners” pages and record all of those company names.

    These companies should be kept in a different list than your main list due to the risk of them not being that related to your industry of interest. They can be used as a backup after you have completed applying to your main list.

12. Similar Competing Businesses
    Find out who the competitors are for the recorded organizations as they may have very similar departments and roles. If there is a need for a specific role in an industry, than believe that other similar organizations are looking for the same type of person with the skillset to fill in the same role.
13. Human Resources
    Every city has a city hall and also Human Resources. (Record and print off all of the relevant job openings from their free to use systems.)
14. Targeted Searches
    Go to all of the search engines and run a search for all government(.gov) and education(.edu) job boards using “search engine search operators”.

    These will ensure you have maximum control over your searches when performing them in search engines.

15. Search Refinement
    Search for job titles which may be different, use search keywords which may be present in the descriptions and or industry specific jargon in order to isolate and filter your search result even further. This is one step your competition will not do thus giving your a competitive edge.

Actions

16. Make relatively easily achievable smaller milestones
17. Track your progress using organized methods such as a spreadsheet
18. Write a compelling resume cover letter which is universal enough to insert any employers name yet targeted enough to disclose your skill set appropriately. (Hire a “creative writer” if you need to)
19. Write a compelling and memorable follow up letter to send out. (use a writer if you need to.)
20. Be sure to send out follow up emails/letters to organizations once you apply. (a good time period is one week)
21. Manage how much time you put in to each application and pace yourself steadily
22. Organize which companies you will apply to in-person starting from the closest then the most distant. (Start with the most distant as your competitors will not.)
23. Go to all of the companies which are hiring for your position and apply to them in-person with a basket of chocolates with your resume on special days. (There are hundreds of holidays and or special days such as St. Patrick’s day, family day etc..)
24. In search engines find blogs discussing about the professional names in your field and leave helpful and insightful comments making sure to link back to your personal online resume or indicating that you’re looking for an exciting opportunity. (Professional names only attract the most interested and knowledgeable individuals who will see your comment and may be higher up within their own organizations to even make an impact if referred.)

Market Yourself

25. Create business card sized info cards about yourself and what you are looking for in order to hand out at any time. (Make this professional and very good quality)
26. Place your business cards in related topical books and magazines at the library or bookstore in order to gain interest of on looking professionals
27. Take your resumes and portfolios to conferences/seminars and monthly meetings about your profession in order to share and give out
28. Accumulate all of the popular social networking websites online and create profiles of yourself on these sites. (Hire others if it’s overwhelming)
29. Create an online resume incorporating your industry specific keywords and start using social bookmarking websites to bookmark it (there are hundreds of social bookmarking websites)
30. Offer something for free on your personal online resume such as industry specific tips and generate buzz using social bookmarking websites. (This will draw in readers and get some to look at your resume)
31. Place advertisements in local newspapers and career magazines (use a writer to write a professional excerpt which doesn’t look like your desperate yet just offering your services.)
32. Participate in question and answer websites in order to show that you have industry knowledge then be sure to fill in your profile on these websites. (When potential employers search your name online they will see these answers and it will help build trust and confidence)
33. Discuss with all of the delis, coffee shops in the bottom of buildings and ask to promote yourself if they hear anything and or place your business cards near the checkout. (Employers and human resources do get lunch)
34. Put up a compelling advertisement in local library and church websites and bulletin boards stating that your seeking a position in your field of interest.

Leverage Others

35. Use researchers to find seminars, conferences, trade shows, professional meet up groups holding discussions about your particular industry.
36. Use researchers to find open positions online using many different search engines. (every search engine will retrieve different results thus giving you a wide spread net of results.  Using different people will amplify it a bit further as everyone uses different words to search for positions online)  Leveraging Resources – link to tutorial
37. If you can hire researchers or get friends and family members to help out by handing in your resume to open positions
38. Get family and friends to send you a listing of the companies they know of around where they work which may have the type of department which holds the type of position you’re looking for.

Discussions

39. Talk to previous school teachers/professors for advice on where to start looking for open positions within your field of interest.
40. Talk to family and friends for honest feedback on understanding your drive
41. Participate and volunteer your time in attending and helping out in professional monthly meeting about your profession or profession of interest
42. Go to larger conferences and seminars in order to gain an understanding of what’s in demand in your profession
43. Talk to individuals at seminars, groups meetings, conferences and retain their contact details
44. Follow up with contacts on a regular basis and share ideas and information about potentially new organizations and projects
45. Follow up with your previous managers/peers from previous places of employment on a regular monthly basis in order to retain their attention
46. Go to all of the universities and colleges you know of within your area and make appointments with the career services department and ask about a listing of well known companies and when they start hiring.
47. Go to the coffee shops on the first floor and lunch floor of some of the office buildings and ask the owner/operators about if they have heard of any company in the building hiring. (Usually they do as many interviewers and HR personnel vet out the is information on lunch breaks)
48. Get trusted family members to book some time for you with their managers or HR personnel in order to discuss career paths.  (This will keep your name in the back of their minds when they do think about hiring.)
49. Communicate with part time professors at universities and colleges who teach a subject in your field. (It’s best to sit down with them and have a one on one talk about your current skill set and what they think would be a good direction for you.  This will not only compliment them indirectly but it helps you in two ways, one being career/education direction if needed and two keeps you in the back of their mind when they know of open positions)

The Last Tip

50. Don’t follow where the crowd or majority of the individuals are looking for a job, instead look at it from a different angle and ask yourself how you can achieve the same end result but from a different approach, this way you will be sure to not run into a large competitive pool of potential candidates and it will become very easy to find positions which haven’t been applied to hundreds of times thus giving you’re a better chance for an interview call.

Hope you had enjoyed this listing of the top 50 different ways in which can be used in order to start your job search in order for it to be the most effective while keeping the pressure of competition at bay.

Almost all businesses have labor as one of their top operation expenses. Because of this, when there is a need to decrease operation expenses, all eyes turn to labor expenses and as a result, job cuts occur.

When the economy starts to crumble, efficiency becomes the name of the game. The more output one can produce in less resources, the better. Machineries, equipment, material may also be reduced but it may take a longer time, and the results to the bottom line may not be as drastic. On the other hand, staffing can be reduced without affecting output, and it will yield a high decrease in expenses.

This is the sad truth and you should arm yourself well in these trying times so as to reduce the possibility of being laid off as we had seen in the so called bloody Monday job loss which hit.

What To Do When Jobs Are Being Cut

Companies can afford to lay off employees because they have discovered that the same output can be sustained with fewer resources. Redundant positions are the primary targets in job cuts, and those who are multi-skilled get an advantage over other, more specialized, colleagues.

In order for you to be valuable to your company, make sure that you are very, very good at what you do, and that you bring other things to the table. Gone are the days when you do one task alone day in and day out. If you are an engineer, learn how to sell or market your products as well, to your stakeholders. If you are a customer service assistant, can you also do teller jobs?

Also, make sure that your work record is impeccable – no tardiness issues, no absenteeism, and most of all, no insubordination issues. Remember that the competition is getting tougher by the minute, and it is not enough that you are qualified for the job. You need to be highly qualified and you need a superb track record and personality to stay.

Sprint Nextel Corp, though fairly young, holds the honor of being one of the three largest telecommunications company in the United States. It serves close to 50 million customers, and is listed in the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

More recently, however, the corporation enjoys publicity due to the massive layoffs happening in the company. It is said to lay off about 8,000 employees and that the job cut will be done across the board. With about 56,000 employees, this 15% layoff was a cause of worry, most especially for those who had be included in the job cuts during the period of which was named the bloody Monday job loss period.

Life After Sprint Nextel Corp

While being laid off from a job is an unfortunate event, it is not the end of the world. There will be other things to pursue after the retrenchment. Of course, it will require a lot of diligence, patience and a little luck. Searching jobs always take time, and because of the state of the global economy, it has become even harder. But getting hired is possible, and here are some ideas on where and how to look for new jobs:

• Local job search engines
• Join local meet up groups, conferences and seminars where information on latest job openings can be found
• Look in unusual job boards such as government websites, billboards of churches, libraries and local communities

Multiskilling And Upskilling Work Best

The skills gained during employment at Sprint Nextel Corp will most likely be related to information technology (IT) and telecommunications, and almost all companies will have one or two jobs related to these. So, when looking for a new job, do not just target another telecommunication company.

Also, while waiting for the next employment, do self-improvement works to gain more skills or upgrade already existing skills. This will serve as an advantage when looking for a new job.

Writing thank you notes after interviews are very important, because it gives you the chance to do a lot of things. First, you can stress out some important items you may have forgotten to mention during the interview. Or, you can emphasize your suitability to the job requirements. You can also politely remind the interviewer of the things he or she has admired about you. Be that as it may, it is very important to be very careful in wording thank you notes.

Getting The Right Tone For The Thank You Note

When wording thank you notes, try to come up with a good mix of words that will show just the right combination of enthusiasm and confidence. You do not want to sound over-eager, as this may turn off some potential employers, and may portray lack of belief in your capabilities. At the same time, you do not want to sound over-confident since this may also signal arrogance – and arrogance has no place in job applications.

How To Compose A Good Thank You Note

A good thank you note should immediately start with a paragraph of thanks for the opportunity to be considered for the job. You may choose on what to emphasize in your letter’s main body so make sure that you have one or two points maximum to stress out. Keep your letter short, one page is the acceptable length of a good thank you note, and make sure that there are no grammatical or typographical errors in your note. Ask a friend to read it, and make sure that it is understandable.

Thank You Notes May Seal The Deal

Thank you notes allow you the chance to “reintroduce” yourself to the interviewer. It reminds them of who you are, and why you are right for the job. Spend a lot of time in wording thank you notes. After all, it may be your secret weapon to landing that job.

Thank you letters are ideally sent at most one day after the interview. This is when the interviewer’s memory of your encounter is still fresh, and whatever message you want to emphasize on your thank you letter will certainly be appreciated. Thank you letters should vary according to how well (or bad) the interview went.

You may stress a point on why you are the best candidate for the job, or you may add some vital information about you that was not mentioned in the interview. At the same time, thank you letters can also be used as a “firefighting” technique – to correct a potentially disastrous interview by clarifying points of conflict. At all times, however, a thank you letter has to be formal.

How To Write Formal Thank You Letters

Formal thank you letters convey respect to the company, and professionalism. Whether delivered through the traditional mail system, hand carried, or emailed, formal thank you letters should be written in the same manner – with absolute care.

Formal thank you letters should appear as a proper letter, it should contain all necessary parts of a letter:

• Heading
• inside address
• salutation
• body
• the complimentary closing, and of course
• the signature or in the case of an email, the sender’s identification or name.

Sealing The Deal With A Formal Thank You Letter

Your thank you letter should always end and close with a word of thanks to the interviewer for the opportunity to be considered for the position. The tone should be professional and formal, as if being sent from one business colleague to another. No slang terms should be present, and professional jargon should be observed at all times.

Lastly, check for typographical and grammatical errors before sending the thank you notes after interviews. It can make or break your job application so make sure that it is one that will work towards your advantage.