Your Job Blog

A lot of people are applying for blog jobs these days but only a few have success in this field. That is because not everyone takes blogging as a profession seriously and there are more people than jobs in the field. There are however a few things you can do to improve your chances of getting a job online.

What you should do is to act quickly. There are ads put up all the time and the response time to them is very short. You should reply to ads asking for people within 24 hours so that they understand that you’re enthusiastic and interested in the job.

Then many applications are very specific about what they want. They want your resume a certain way and the articles to be written a certain way. So just stick to what they want and give it to them. If you go wrong in the very beginning it isn’t going to set a very good first impression on your prospective employers.

Another thing I have been stressing on repeatedly is to sell yourself. It is very important to project yourself along with your qualifications and expertise. Tell them what you’re good at and why you’re the perfect choice for the job.

Give them examples of your work which highlight your expertise and show why you should be picked. You could send them a sample article on the topics on which they want you to write so that your comfort and knowledge of the topic is well established.

It is also important that you don’t apply randomly for everything but only for things about which you have a knowledge base. Writing about everything and doing a bad job is bad for you because it injures the reputation you have created for yourself.

Go beyond the standards you have set for yourself and it will pay off.

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Do you know how much you are worth in the job market or how much another company would be willing to pay for your services? Do you feel your salary adequately reflects your contribution to the organization?  Most people are underpaid and that is because they do not bargain or project themselves when it comes to fixing salaries.

The first way to protect yourself from being underpaid is to determine how much you’re worth. Before entering into any discussion about your salary know your worth. For this you will have to do some research before you find out how much money your work commands.

Your objective over here should be to determine how much someone from your background with similar educational qualifications and experience is getting.

You can use the internet where there are many web sites which offer details on salaries. There are also sites which offer statistics about the current compensation.

There are books available which list salaries according to your occupation, what type of employer you work under and your geographic region. One such book which could provide such information is the Occupational Outlook Handbook, published by the federal government.       

You could also find out directly from employment recruiters on the net or over the phone how much they pay to recruit a person who is in the same position as you are. Also contact other people working in the same field and ask for their opinions regarding the salary for a person with your credentials.

Try asking your previous employer if you are on good terms with him and maybe he will be willing to share this information with you. This will give you a good idea. State employment services may also have some information on salaries.

Do all this, find out your worth in the market and demand a salary.

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When you’re trying to get selected for a job, remember it isn’t only about you. There is someone who has to pick you in the first place. How you come across to the recruiter in a recruitment interview is very important because that’s what decided whether you are going to get the job or not. There is a lot you can get out of an interaction with a recruiter and move closer to the goal of getting the job.

People often look at recruiters as money-hungry and in many cases rude but their role in providing people with jobs and companies with personnel often goes unnoticed. Recruiters work for the company and they do their best to find the best possible person for the job. It is important to recognize the importance of the role that they play.

Very often recruiters make comments, remarks and give feedback about the people they have interviewed. If you are a smart candidate you will use this feedback. Recruiters notice everything; your appearance, the clothes you wear, your body language, attitude etc. So it is important to heed what they say so that you can improve on it and make yourself the first choice for every recruiter.

When you sit for an interview before a recruiter respect him. Know that you have to be at your very best before him and cannot make any loose conversation. You are being evaluated for every minute you spend with the recruiter and hence be sure not to let anything slip. The relationship between a recruiter and a candidate is very important and both are looking for the best. The recruiter wants the best possible person for the job and the candidate wants the best company possible. Thus there are certain things that need to be remembered if you take part in a recruitment process.

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Very few people pay attention to cover letters.  They think of it as a trivial thing that is sent along just as a formality. This however should not be the case as a cover letter is extremely important. If you write your cover letter properly it will really open up avenues for you and people will keep you in mind next time they are interviewing someone for a job.

A very well drafted cover letter is essential so that you get noticed among the thousands of applications that come in. Employees get hundreds of letters in response to a job opening and usually the ones without cover letters are ignored completely.  Here are a few pointers which will help you get yours just right:

Avoid using titles like Mrs. or Miss. using simply Ms. as a greeting.  Also do not use salutations such a Dear Sirs as it is generally frowned upon. When in doubt address the person with the full name such as Mr. John Doe.

Get to the point in your first paragraph itself. Don’t beat around the bush. State your purpose so that the employers realize why it is you whom they should recruit.  Your letter should be aggressive. You need to market yourself, to sell yourself so that they have no doubts when they come to picking the right person for the job.

In the next paragraph write about all your achievements, skills and qualifications. Avoid using words like ‘I’, ‘me’ and’ my’ because it looks very amateurish. If you have a high number of achievements list them in bullet format. Be sure to type them out because otherwise you could come off as lazy.

In the closing paragraph you need to ask to be given an interview. Provide a contact number and also salary requirements if any.  To show interest say that you will telephone within a week.

To sum up a cover letter is a great way to get you noticed.

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After you’ve sent letters to an employer you’re always at a loose end. Most job seekers wonder what to do after sending their resumes. After sending your resume to a prospective employer it is very important to send a follow up letter so that the employer’s memory of you is refreshed and he thinks of you to when he’s picking someone to fill a post.

Where most people face a problem is when to send a follow up letter. There is a very fine line between being enthusiastic and becoming a pain for the employer and it is something you have to tread very carefully.

A week is a reasonable time to wait for the letter to come from the person in charge of the recruitment. After around a week you can send an e-mail as a follow up. It is better to avoid phone calls because they tend to be an intrusion. When you write a follow up it is necessary to include the following aspects:

It is of utmost important to ask if the spot has been filed up. After than stress on how you are interested in filling the spot. Express your interest in working for the company. This is important because in the event the position is filled, they will remember you when vacancies occur in the future. Ask that you be granted some time to meet them in person. A personal interaction is always useful in forming a positive opinion. Give them your phone number and other contact details so that you can be contacted immediately by them. Don’t forget to thank them for their time and efforts.

Also do attach your resume so that they are reminded. This will show that you are interested and they might give you another look. Also this will prompt them to reply to you whatever their decision.

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Self employment refers to a situation where a person works for himself or by himself and runs his own business, organisation etc instead of working for someone else.  These days another extremely popular method of self employment is working online. Many people earn thousands of dollars per months online, but there are more who are dissatisfied with their experiences at working online.

Most people are adverse to online jobs because of the up front payment that is asked for and so many people have been cheated of this that they are highly skeptical of online business and money making.

Affiliate marketing is an increasingly popular and also reasonably rewarding opportunity to make money. It involves marketing the commodity of another producer on your own website. In order to make money from this people spend long hours and painstakingly create professional websites with competent content.

Another way people make money online is by filling out survey forms for many online companies. These are highly tedious and very mechanical but it pays good money while sitting in the comfort of your homes.

Once people have made a certain amount of money on the internet they try to expand on their own. Many people launch their own websites and earn through marketing revenue. Most sites on the internet have at least half a dozen advertisements on them. The higher the traffic on a site, the more advertising revenue the owner gets.

Another very popular method is where people submit articles to online article and knowledge resources. People get paid for the content on the website and as a person becomes experienced and his rating improves, his earnings go higher.

Making money online is not that hard. There are ways that it can be done and provide you with a good level of income. Initially however it requires you to invest a certain amount of money in it.

A cover letter is something that is sent to a company that you are applying for along with your resume or C.V. The purpose of a cover letter is to introduce yourself and also make it known that you know a good deal about the company, the work it does etc. If a cover letter is not drafted well it makes a bad impression on the employer as it may send signals that a person is uninterested or has poor drafting and writing skills.

A cover letter should explain what you are looking for; whether it is employment or merely an internship opportunity, you should explain how you came to know of the availability of the post you applied for and should also draw attention to the things that you intend to highlight.  It should reflect your personality, attitude, qualification and communication skills and should also answer any questions which may have been asked in the advertisement but not specifically referred to in your resume.

It should put across what you intend to convey to the employers and make you seem like the best option for the job. The purpose of a covering letter is to state your purpose and make your case strong.

Cover letters are also used as marketing tools which perform the function of drawing the reader’s attention to certain details, summarize the content of the other documents attached and in general make arguments that support your being considered for the job.

It is important that you do some research about the company or organization you are applying to so that they know you are serious and interested in your job. Try to portray your awareness about what they do, what your job will entail you do and all such relevant information that relate to the position you are seeking.

Interviews aren’t necessarily as intimidating as they are made out to be. Most people approach interviews with dread and that is the reason they flounder at the interview and do not manage to impress the recruiters or selectors. There is a simple way to approach interviews and to just approach them as things that happen in the usual course of events.

When people walk in for an interview with a reputed company or firm they have it firmly established in their minds that the selectors will get tough on them. That however is merely a perception we have with no truth in it. Selectors hold interviews with the sole intention of finding the best candidate for a job. Their only purpose during the interview is to decide whether you will be able to handle the demands and rigors of the job or whether someone else could do it better. When they ask you a tough question the intention is not to grill you but merely to see if you have a solution to a problem or whether you can tackle tricky situations.

There is no need to make an extra effort to impress the selectors. It will suffice to give them pertinent and to the point answers to every question they throw to you. It is unnecessary to add extra information to show off your qualifications and expertise. If you are able and knowledgeable at your job it is sufficient to make a good impression.

Another area which needs to be given some attention during interviews is your appearance. It will not do to look scruffy and shabby. There is no need to be extremely fashionable, it is however desirable to dress in a slightly conservative and formal manner. Let neither your clothes nor you manners do the talking for you.

Therefore if you are backed by expertise and know your job there is no need to dread an interview. It is natural to be anxious or nervous but if you are good enough for your job there is no need to be worried.

The secret to impressing your future boss is by writing your resume in a manner that makes you seem more qualified than you probably are. For example many people I know appear less accomplished because of the way their resumes are filled and the opposite is also true for many.

The key is to focus on your strong points and draw attention away from what you feel are your weak areas. For example your CGPA is not your strong point whereas your papers are publications are. In your academic achievements field first list all the papers you have written and where they have been published. Or if you have previously worked or been associated with big firms and companies emphasize on that.

Or in the alternative if your scores are your assets while you may not have had much work experience or publications. Stress on the fact that you scored X grade point and that you secured X rank in your year and so on.

The purpose of a CV is to showcase your achievements and not to showcase what you have not achieved. So if you have a grade point of 5 or so but instead have achieved a lot in various competitions, you could omit your grade from your CV or if it is required do mention it later after you’ve mentioned all your other achievements.

Another very important thing about your CV is the formatting. Choose a format that is appropriate for your profession and post. There are a variety of resume formats both on the internet as well as with Microsoft Word.  The resume should be simple and not too fancy and also formatted in a clear, consistent method. It should draw attention to what you want it to through the clever use of bold alphabets and italics.

A good resume is as much about the way it is compiled as about what goes inside it.