Tuesday, April 24, 2012

All's Fair in Job Fairs

http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/outside-voices-careers/2012/03/28/10-steps-for-flourishing-at-a-job-fair

From U.S. News & World Report, here is a great article on job fairs. It’s not enough to show up in your best suit with a smile, a shoe-shine, and copies of resumes in hand. Everyone else will have those “plus factors” too. What is your “wow” factor?

If you go to a large event, you need to distinguish yourself from the competition. This means making a memorable impression (a positive memorable impression, rather than a negative one). This means, among other things:

  • Having your “elevator speech” well honed and practiced. “Tell me about yourself” should not elicit a deer-in-the-headlights stare, or an incident involving spilled coffee.
  • Knowing what kind of employment you are seeking, and what your qualifications reasonably suit you for. “I’ll take anything from rocket science to pushing broom!” sounds wayyyy to desperate, and probably indicates that you’re qualified for neither job.
  • Researching the companies represented at the event will help you make solid connections. A job fair is not the time to be asking “now, what was the name of your company? how do you spell that? and what do they do?”
For 20 extra bonus points, what famous work of drama, winner of the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and a Tony for Best Play, did I allude to in the second sentence of this posting?

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.