Its Interview Questions Answers Time!

Its Interview Questions Answers Time! During the interview, you will be asked to demonstrate your suitability for the job. Why have they asked you this particular question? What are they trying to find out? Below are some of the more commonly asked questions, and some simple suggested responses. Q: Tell me about yourself? A: They want you to open up to them. Tell them about your qualifications, career history and range of skills. You may even want to tell them a little about your hobbies and interests it shows what motivates you. Q: What has been your greatest achievement so far? A: This doesnt have to be work related. The interviewer is trying to find out if you are an achiever. Demonstrate how you achieved and how it has benefited you. Do you still use those skills? Q: What are your strengths? A: We all have them, its just acknowledging them in a proficient manner. Try to look at personal attributes such as Im a team player, or I have great attention to detail, then demonstrate how they could be a benefit to an employer. Q: What are your weaknesses? A: The interviewer wants to see how self-aware you are. Dont use personal weaknesses such as I find it hard to get out of bed in the morning. A weakness can also be considered a strength. Use a professional weakness such as lack of experience (training can always overcome that) or one that can be turned around into a strength such as Im very focused at work, so sometimes people think Im ignoring them. Q: How would your family/friends/spouse describe you? A: Another way of asking how you perceive yourself. Choose three or four adjectives that show the positive side of your personality, such as they would say Im outgoing, reliable and loyal. Q: Why do you think youre suitable for this role? A: If you havent done your research, youll not be able to give an answer with substance. Use your prepared list and match your skills and personal attributes. By this stage, the interviewer should have told you about the role. If they havent, ask them to explain it fully, then give them your answer. You cannot tell them youre the perfect candidate if you dont know what the job is. Q: Where do you see yourself in five years time? A: Do not be tempted to respond in an arrogant manner i.e. in your chair. The interviewer wants to know your motivation and career aspirations. Whilst wanting to progress is a natural desire, dont let this overshadow the job you are being interviewed for. Try not to give a specific job title, but more what you will be gaining from a role and environment. Such as I see myself in a role that allows me to be autonomous, and one that is both challenging and rewarding. Final points to bear in mind: The interview is a two way process. You will have a chance to ask questions, but make sure they are relevant to the role and company.  Do not get involved in discussing money at this stage unless the interviewer asks you. Remember that the questions you ask tell the interviewer more about you than some of the answers you give. RELATED: 17 Ways to Interview Like a Pro Image: Shutterstock

Why you should consider a medical career

Why you should consider a medical career If you wanted to become a doctor but didnt secure a place on a medical degree, its not too late. There is a graduate entry route to medical school  and although some institutions require a health or science related degree, some consider graduates from any degree discipline. University of Warwick 3rd year Chemistry student Kayvon Taee here recalls his motivation and the experiences that influenced him in his decision to pursue a career that he is passionate about.   Hello everyone. I would like to share my “origin story” with you for my passion for medicine. I hope that it not only will it inspire you to pursue a medical career but also that it may motivate you to work on your career aspirations too (Also, bonus points if you get the chemistry references!) The initiation. When I was 9, I remember watching a bunch of different animations with my father and one of them was titled “The fight for life” which detailed how the body reacts to crisis using really cool schematics and real life case studies (with slight dramatization for added effect). One particular scene from the “The Final Years” showed a blood clot and how it forms. Seeing all of the imagery amazed me, especially how platelets are so sticky! At the same time, it would not clot under normal conditions. It made me want to read more about how the body works. That same year, I received two books as a Christmas presents: “The Human Body” and “Open Me Up” The first one was very difficult for 9-year-old me to understand but I could pick up some bits based on the diagrams. However, the other one was very accessible and I got immediately hooked! Some of the science was more geared to secondary school (like translation and transcription of DNA for example) but I was in constant awe of the body’s delicate machinery. It also depicted how everything was connected in the body’s networks and I only had scratched the surface â€" I became enthused with a strong passion for human anatomy! The propagation. Fast forward to this summer, where I began to question myself and doubt my passion. Many people put me down with statements like  â€œYou will never become a doctor”. It was then I decided to undertake some work experience. It was extremely difficult due to the lack of connections (alas, a story for another day!) but ultimately I secured three placements to gain experience: 3 days shadowing in cardiology at George Eliot Hospital, 2 months (paid) as a dementia care assistant and 1 day shadowing in radiology. Working in a care home was, without a doubt, one of the hardest jobs I have ever done. The added responsibility for well-being and personal care of the residents was quite daunting at first, especially when communication can be an issue. However, even when it was busy, it was also one of the most rewarding jobs I have ever done. Interestingly, my shadowing placements demonstrated that that the skills I had gained in the care sector were being used by doctors! It was very inspiring to see that the additional responsibility, the amount of tenacity you need and teamwork skills that I was using as a care assistant were  directly applicable to a medical career. Furthermore, the technology and thought processes the doctors used on my placements were similar to my degree. For instance, seeing a MRI scan in action reminded me when I analysed compounds using NMR, the same concepts as MRI were utilised but in different contexts. The thought process of piecing information together that I had to do when determining structure was also being used by the doctors, such as when diagnosing a patient â€" it confirmed that my passion was not misplaced. The chain termination. The skills I have developed throughout my degree, the work experience I have gain combined with my passion for science, has really given me very strong motivation to keep pursing my dream to be a doctor. Despite the minor setback before summer, my interest and motivation were sparked once again. My passion for medicine has continued to increase and I am certain that when I (eventually) reach medical school it shall grow even more so! I hope that, even if it is just a little, I have inspired you to pursue your dreams that you may or not thought possible or perhaps like me, a career in medicine.

What Do Your Google Results Say About You - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

What Do Your Google Results Say About You - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career I spoke with Paul Dunay last night, who is the Global Director of Integrated Marketing at Bearing Point, as well as a B2B technology marketing blogger. During our call, we talked about peoples Google results and what that says about them. Our conversation sparked this post, which deals with identifying your current Google results situation and deciding what you want to show up for your personal brand. There are a few main reasons why you should pay attention to your Google results: Journalists are Googleing topics to find sources for their articles. Managers are Googleing your name to ensure you are legitimate and as an evaluation of your skills. Bloggers are Googleing your name (or your topic) to either find out more about you or to link to one of your posts. Admissions officers are Googleing your name to verify that you dont have digital dirt. Parents are Googleing your name because they love their children and to see if their childrens friend (possibly you) isnt a convict. Teachers are Googleing your name to see if youre a good resource to speak to their class. HR is Googleing your name to ensure youre writing doesnt go against company policy. Coworkers are Googleing your name, when they should be working on projects! Males/females are Googleing your name before and after your first date to see if they should go on the next. YOU are Googleing your name because you love yourself too much ?? Analysis of my/Pauls Google results If you Google my name, you will see a page that represents me quite well. Ive purposely arranged my Google results to best reflect my brand. Frankly, I have to do this, in order to show everyone else how to do it and because Id lose credibility if my results were flawed. My blog ranks #1, which shouldnt surprise you because of the amount of links and content. The other results reflect my professional resume (LinkedIn), as well as the Fast Company article that put me on the map and my other websites: the magazine and my branded homepage. If you Google Pauls name, you get his popular blog first, which has a lot of links and content. Then you get his main page or, as we call it, personal brand page. This page contains Pauls entire life and is blessed with many social media elements. Aside from that, you get his LinkedIn resume and a few contributing articles hes written for various publications. Basically, the results match him perfectly. So what does your Google results say about you? Are you happy with them? Google yourself right now!

Meditation vs. Medication

Meditation vs. Medication Sometimes people ask me how I get ideas for blog posts. Really, the question is how do I find enough time to let everyone know about everything that bugs me? For example, here are photos Ive been holding onto for a while. Its a series of the dumbest engagement photos ever. But wait. Before you click Im going to tell you that they are actually someones real engagement photos. And if you thought it was too mean to call out David Dellifield for being an asshole to me, then you are probably not going to like that Im linking to real-life photos to dis them. So if you feel high and mighty, dont click. Really, though, I encourage you to click. Because first of all, these people liked their photos enough to let their photographer put them on her blog. But also, these photos are part of a trend where people do completely stupid, out-of-the-ordinary things for their engagement photos, so they feel that they will have a special, extraordinary life. But newsflash to all you newlyweds spending too much money on engagement photos: You will not have even an ordinary life. But you will wish you did. You will dream of an easy family life, and easy marriage, and a dog that is housetrained even when youre gone the whole day. You will not get that. No one does. And everyone wants it. So the engagement photo trend is terrible. Horrible. And the corollary to that trend is the tablescape trend. Maria Killam, who is great, and who picked out all the colors for my house that I love, came to my house to visit and started talking about tablescapes. She said they are a huge right now and I need them. As far as I can tell, they are tsotskes draped all over the surfaces in ones house. They are arrangements of objects that could not withstand normal family life, for people who do not have a normal family life. Tablescapes look like wishscapes â€" that is, a melange of junk that someone thinks expresses why they are special. (Country Living is full of this stuff, overpriced New York custom-made furniture capped with farm-fetish crap to give a room a rich-but-down-to-earth feel.) The whole trend reeks of fakery. Just like the staged engagement photos. I often get on my high horse about fakery. I call everyone out on it because I think Im the queen of coming clean about everything. But the people closest to me are able to call me out on my own fakery. For instance, Ill use Xanax for my problems, but I cant do Xanax all the time or Id be a narcotic addict. And anyway, I have to save Xanax for when the Farmer wants sex and Im stuck, curled up in a ball. Dont tell me I shouldnt take a Xanax to have sex, okay? Im still very fun after just one pill, and I dont even know if the Farmer can tell the difference. And dont tell me to meditate instead, because the best meditating I ever do is when Im on Xanax. Time really goes by fast that way. I can really sit still. So Im trying to decide how to manage my problems best: Meditation or medication? I have tried a wide range of medication, but I miss having a mind that races. Do you know how many blog post ideas I have in one day? Ten. Twenty if you count the bad ones. Its just that Im too scattered to write one every day. In hindsight, my racing brain is a big reason I moved from New York City to a farm. Heres what I took a photo of the last time I went to New York City: Its me trying to get visual peace so I can think. I think I chose to have calmness around me on a farm so I can focus on the craziness in my head. You can say that this is not functional, but I think this is how most people have wild success in their career. By letting their brain be wild. Its a choice. But the people around me might be getting sick of it. And I have had enough comments on this blog from kids whose parents were crazy for me to know that no kid wants a parent whose mind is racing about stuff that is not the kids. But its so hard to give up having a brain that goes nonstop through rants and tirades and ten hours of work in ten minutes. Its hard to give that up to be a medicated, normal, kind, accommodating, person. And now, we come full circle. Because Im telling you that I like being different. Like the people in the engagement photos. I dont really want that; anyone who thinks they are special is on the road to hell. Because feeling special is just a way to avoid doing the things that most people do to fix the problems that you have. One way to get ideas about how to do what others do to fix your problems is to find a coach. The New Yorker has a great article about how everyone needs coaching. Its a surgeon writing about how weird it is that surgeons dont have coaches and what he does in order to find one for himself. (I honestly feel like the undertone of the article is that, like most surgeons, he has too big an ego to get coaching, and what he really wants is a writing coach, because like most surgeons, he wants to be great at everything.) But the article is instructive in that we each need a coach in order to get what we want. He has good evidence about that. And I can see that when I coach people its so easy to see what they should be doing, so I can understand how I should have a coach for myself, as well. If I were my own coach, Id look at the discrepancy between what I say I want and what Im doing.    I say I want to be calm, but what Im doing is getting worked up about engagement photos and making a living linking to stuff I hate. This is not really the action of someone who wants to be calm. I want to be calm for my kids but not so calm that the rest of my life is boring. You must be wondering what Im learning in couples therapy. I mean, we go there twice a week. We must be learning something, right? What we are learning is how to calm ourselves down in the moment. The guy is Don Ferguson, and he wrote this book, and one of his specialties is couples who have some sort of post-traumatic stress disorder attached to them. I think we have that. Probably in both of us. I mean, the Farmer worked on his parents farm for 40 years and then they gave their farm to their daughters kids instead of the Farmer. While he was still working on the farm. I think thats a sign that he has had a hard time for a long time. So, in our therapy, we learn how to calm ourselves down in the middle of whatever we are doing. And while I like to think that the Farmer is emotionally retarded and Im just going to couples therapy for him to get his shit together, the truth is that I have a lot of the same problems he does. One of   which is that I can get worked up about anything. Because I think its interesting. But I need to be able to stop it quickly if the people around me dont like it. So I am choosing meditation over medication. I like the idea of being able to calm down for people I love, but to be not calm for me. I have had my head racing for so long that its sort of my comfort zone.

Google Docs Resumes Templates

Google Docs Resumes TemplatesGoogle Docs offers a free solution for creating your resume. You can now create a resume that is accessible by all in the company. In most cases it is very cost effective to have the resume on your own Google Doc.There is many Google Docs that you can choose from. When searching for the best fit Google provides the following criteria for its product. They must be easy to use, cross browser compatible, and of course provide the options to add other files. These criteria are in place to prevent any one employee from being able to steal or damage the resume.The main purpose of this type of resume template is to create a fresh resume for every new employees. At first glance it may appear that this is more costly than having the resume on paper. However, the services are free, and the savings will more than make up for the cost.The documents created using the document templates are mobile friendly. The entire document can be read online as well as being printe d out for employers to review. This will take some time and effort for the person in charge of the resume to review the document; however with the help of a web-based system the paperwork will be done within minutes.If you spend some time searching the Internet you will find dozens of companies offering these services. They all promise to do a great job, but none of them will be able to provide a permanent solution. When you search Google Docs does not go through all of the hundreds of online companies in the first search. The first three pages are the ones with the Google Docs addresses.Instead of trying out the many companies that are offered to you for free to find one that meets your requirements. Once you find a company that meets your needs then you will need to pay for the service. A very cheap solution is to find several companies and have a free trial, especially if you know you will need a service from the company for a long time. They will also allow you to test the custo mer service aspect of the company.If you choose to purchase the service, you will be asked to pay the full amount before the free trial period expires. The rest of the service will be provided in advance. It is imperative that you are able to access the service from the same location from which you purchased the product. If you move your computer the product could be broken. Thus it is very important that you do not lose your information by using different computers.With the information technology changing so rapidly there are always going to be new ways to keep up with the regulations that are necessary in the present day business world. When you purchase a Google Docs template you will never have to worry about losing information. The system is extremely secure and very easy to use.

Light the Fire Under Your Job Search

Light the Fire Under Your Job Search Its time to light the fire under your job search in get it in high gear! When do you feel you need to put the pedal to the metal and zoom into full speed? When are you going to treat your job search as a race? It is tempting to take some time off. DONT! Summer can be one of the best times to network and catch people at work.   In order to make the most of your time and efforts and to be able to feel productive, youll want to think about deploying some of these strategies. Act With A Sense of Urgency Lets face it, it is so easy to say, well, she never called me back or Ive been meaning to contact him, Ive just been so busy. No more excuses. Act with a sense of urgency! Set deadlines for yourself, just like you had to do at work. Here are some thoughts on how to do this: Self impose deadlines for activities such as setting up specific networking meetings, followup after an interview or meeting, increasing your LinkedIn connections or adding more target companies to your list. Assign a due date to every task helps hold you accountable. It also can provide a greater sense of ownership. If you are looking for a list of job search activities that need deadlines, here are some  Job Finding Activities Attend Seminars and Workshops Create a Marketing Plan Explore new career opportunities Read Newspapers/Publications Attend Networking Events Use local One-Stop Contact College/University Alumi Office or Career Services Office Contact People In Target Companies and Jobs Online Networking (LinkedIn, etc) Create Interviewing Preparation Folder Conduct Mock Interviews Draft Thank You letters and Cover letters Attend Job Club Check Job Posting Boards (create alerts) Research Companies Conduct Informational Interviews Contact Search Firms, Contract Houses, Agencies Add More Companies To Target List Attend Job Fairs Networking Events Apply to Jobs Start a Blog Attend Professional association meetings and volunteer Participate in Religious groups Volunteer with Organizations Manage Your Time The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change by Stephen Covey discusses the four quadrants of time management. The goal is to disperse your time appropriately.   I like this model because it helps us see where you SHOULD be spending more time (quadrants I II), however, we get lured into quadrants III IV way too often. Move Your job search isnt a paid vacation. Keep yourself moving forward. Do things that challenge you and feel uncomfortable. Set your plan into action and work it. Or as the Nike motto says: Just Do It.   Back in November when the government was adding extensions to unemployment benefits I wrote this post: Are You Determined to Get A Job or Ride Out Unemployment. You have what it takes to get a new job. This is just a small test and chances are very good that you will get a job sooner or later. Hopefully sooner. Career Collective I am honored to be part of Career Collective, a  community of extremely talented resume writers and career coaches. This post is one of many responses to “heating up your job search. I encourage you to visit other members responses linked below.  Please follow our hashtag on Twitter: #careercollective.   I  want to thank Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter, MRW, CPRW, CEIP (www.careertrend.net) and Miriam Salpeter (www.keppiecareers.com) for bringing this team of experts together. Dont miss the expert advice below! Turn Off The Computer, Tune Into What’s Happening, Heat Up the Job Search, @chandlee Heating up the Job Search-How to Stay Motivated During the Summer, @erinkennedycprw Cool Job Seekers Heat Up Their Search in the Summer, @barbarasafani Some assembly required, @DawnBugni Summertime, Sluggish Economy Provide Strong Motivation for an Updated Resume, @KatCareerGal Upping Your Job Search Flame; Be Needed, Not Needy, @ValueIntoWords Put some sizzle in your job hunt how to find a job now, @keppie_careers Summertime and the Job Search Aint Easy, @KCCareerCoach Heating up your job search. 5 ways to dismiss those winter blues, @GayleHoward Hot Tips for a Summer Job Search, @MartinBuckland @EliteResumes Heat Up Your Job Search: Avoid Job Boards, @JobHuntOrg Treasure Huntâ€"Yo-ho-ho! Heat Up Your Job Search, @resumeservice

Worst LinkedIn Headline For Job Seekers

Worst LinkedIn Headline For Job Seekers Worst LinkedIn Headline For Job Seekers Job Search / LinkedIn / LinkedIn Profiles Your LinkedIn Professional Headline is very valuable real estate. It’s the first line people see when they view your profile.   It’s also the first line people see when they do a LinkedIn search. (That includes recruiters who are trying to fill open positions.) So it’s in your best interest to make it count. Unfortunately, most people don’t use LinkedIn’s Professional Headline to their best advantage. By Default If left alone your LinkedIn headline will default to the title of your current position. This may or may not work to your advantage. If you’re a marketing manager who wants to remain a marketing manager allowing your LinkedIn profile to default to your current position probably won’t hurt you. Providing you have a robust, optimized profile recruiters trying to fill a marketing manager position may find you. Still, leaving your headline in default mode won’t do much to help you either. Marketing Manager, ABC Company is not exactly inspiring. It doesn’t give a clue as to what you may bring to the table. Worst Headline Hoping to attract recruiters many job seekers change their LinkedIn profile to “Open to New Opportunities” or “Looking for New Opportunities.” This is a huge mistake. Here are three ways this headline can work against you. First, it doesn’t tell anyone looking at your profile in a search anything about you. What do you do? What kind of opportunity are you looking for? What do you have to offer? Second, it wastes valuable LinkedIn real estate that might be used to sell you to recruiters and hiring managers who may stumble across your LinkedIn profile. Third, and probably the worst reason, recruiters who are combing LinkedIn trying to fill open positions are NOT including “Looking for New Opportunities” in their search criteria. To make better use of your LinkedIn headline include your title, if you’re unemployed this can be your target title. You can follow this with a few of your top skills, for example, Business Development | New Market Development, etc., and/or a brief blurb about what you do. Maybe, Developing New Markets to Drive Business Growth. Remember LinkedIn allows a certain amount of characters for each section. The allowance for your professional headline is 120 characters. Don’t waste them.