If you have never received unemployment benefits, you may not be aware that all 50 states require most claimants to maintain a weekly record of their work search to remain eligible for unemployment benefits. The specifics vary slightly by state, but you generally need to record where and when you have applied and the results of your application. This can be a great way to stay organized and remain motivated in your work search, but it can also present significant challenges.
We talk to job seekers all the time, and one of the biggest complaints during the job search from StartWire users who are unemployed is a concern about completing the work search records required by state unemployment offices.
Everyone wants to find work, but even after applying to numerous positions it can still be difficult to adequately complete a work search record. On the surface, work search reporting might seem like a simple requirement and for many it is, but for some it can become a daunting challenge. Why? In order to verify the work search records, many states require contact information for employers that includes a phone number. In some states, such as Montana, the name and contact information of the hiring manager is required.
When looking at online job postings, this information can be hard to come by. Job seekers are often unsure who will be viewing their application, and don’t know what contact information to put down. Today, we’d like to provide you with a few of our favorite strategies for finding this information. We hope it will make your life easier, and allow you to spend more time finding a job and less time worrying about your work search record.
Where to find contact information for those listings (even if the name and phone number isn’t listed in the job description)
- Google. (We recommend searching company name, city, and “human resources” or HR – you should find a name in the search results)
- Superpages (www.superpages.com), this site is an online phone directory. Try searching the White Pages by company name. You will at least get the main phone line for the company.
- The company voice mail directory. (If you don’t want to talk, call at night and access the departmental directory – once you get transferred to a voicemail, you’ll also frequently get a name.)
- LinkedIn.com (Use the Company pages feature to see employees at a company. Connect your StartWire account to LinkedIn and any related connections to your account will be recommended to you automatically.)
Just a quick reminder – StartWire is not certified to provide legal counsel on these matters, and cannot guarantee that these strategies will provide you with adequate information for your work search record. If you have questions related to your unemployment benefit eligibility status, or creating a work search record that meets your state’s requirements, we urge you to contact your state unemployment office. These are simply suggestions based on our experience to aid you in finding information in your work search.
Use these resources and take heart – we’ve got another new tool coming your way very soon — it should help ease the pain of keeping and submitting these records!
Unemployment: The Challenges No One Talks About
At StartWire, we like to address the pesky problems in job search and unemployment that many sweep under the rug. Here are two of the big problems we’ve already tackled.
- What happened to my job application after I applied?
StartWire provides a way to get updated on the status of your job search at over 7,000 companies.
- Why am I seeing job listings that are six months old?
We’ve streamlined our job listings to only show you jobs that have been posted within the last two weeks.
For the next few weeks, we’re going to pull the rug up, and talk about areas of job search that are rarely discussed—the process of living and searching for work while on unemployment. We’ll be talking about how to deal with unemployment and the unemployment benefits process, with the goal of addressing challenges and issues not often addressed.
3 Ways to Achieve Interview Success
You finally got that coveted interview, and you’re excited about the position and company, but now what?
Despite given the green flag to interview for the position, remember that there is a reason they call it an “interview”. You will need to prove that the job should be yours. The confidence you need to approach the interview is realizing that there is a reason they want you for an interview. Your resume and skills seem promising to them, and there is a high chance that they find you the best match for the position. Now you need to take this assumption on their part, and turn it into a concrete belief.
So how do you make this happen?
1. Be Human
The term “Interview” stands for a discussion, meeting, a DIALOGUE. The most important step is to have a dialogue with the employer. People mistakenly see the interview as a one-way conversation where the employer asks the questions, and the interviewee needs to respond with the “right” answers.
Instead, it’s enlightening to realize that the employer is another person—a very human person who enjoys a good conversation like any other person. When they interview a prospective candidate, they want to see that the candidate is personable and relatable. The interview will be looked back on in a brighter light if the conversation was less about answering questions and more about forming a connection between two people.
2. Research and Prepare
Interviews are like exams. If you walk into an exam unprepared, the chances of failing the exam increase. Similarly, you need to study for an interview as well.
First, do any basic research on the company. What industry are they in? Are there any recent press releases or news related to the company? This may be a great talking point with the interviewer.
Next, your job is to figure out what type of interview will be conducted. By knowing what to expect, you can refine skills suited for that interview type.
Different types of interviews:
- Behavioral Interview– This interview type gauges how you react to or “behave” in situations and will ask you for “real life” examples.
- Case Interview– This interview tests your problem-solving skills and employers want to see how you’ll rationalize and think through a problem.
- Group Interview- The group interview is designed to see how you interact with others, and your ability to make your input heard in a group setting.
- Lunch and Dinner Interview– These interviews show the employer how a candidate behaves in a social setting, and whether they can maintain their professionalism over lunch/dinner. Mainly, these interviews gauge whether you are qualified to hold lunch or dinners with future clients.
- Public Interview– This interview is more casual, but shows the employer how you react in a public setting.
- Panel/Committee Interview– This interview type involves being interviewed by more than one interviewer. There may or may not be other candidates simultaneously being interviewed in the same room. This interview is designed to test your group management and group presentation skills.
- Stress Interview-The stress interview shows the employer how you react under stressful situations. The employer will deliberately react in ways to test how you respond or recover.
After prepping for the appropriate interview type, don’t forget to find out an important piece of information—directions to the interview room!
3. Be Confident, Smile
You can’t convince the employer to be confident in your abilities if you aren’t confident in yourself. Know that every person is different, and your own unique experiences offer something promising to their plate of candidates. Take your strong points, and let them shine.
Hold your head up, smile, and be yourself. Walk into that interview room confident because you have exactly what it takes to make that job yours.
Here are five strategies you can use to prepare for interviews and ensure that you are putting your best foot forward for the job.
1. When invited to interview, ask for details:
Who, what and where will you be meeting? (Just as it’s important to know how to dress for a date, you want a sense of how to get your game up for an interview.)
If you have more than one interview appointment, ask for information and a schedule of who you will meet with and when? This will help you prepare – and provide clues on what’s most important for the job. If, for example, you’re meeting with a team leader for an hour and a CEO for 15 minutes – it’s likely you’d be working more closely with the team leader if you get the job offer. (So you may want to study up on the team leader – check out his or her LinkedIn profile before you head into the interview.)
Make sure you confirm the address and location. If the interview requires driving more than 100 miles, air or train travel, you may want to ask (politely) about whether or not you will be reimbursed for the travel.
Success Tip: Plan your travel arrangements to accommodate any potential scheduling challenges – make sure you can be there at least 30 minutes in advance if travel over public transit or crowded roadways are required. It’s bad form to show up late for a first date; it could cost you a job to show up late for a first interview.
2. Print out and bring extra copies of your resume – and review the job description.
In interviewing as in dating, you always want to be prepared to take an alternative road if the conversation veers in a direction you hadn’t expected. Just as your date may know your long lost cousin, your interviewer may ask you about skills or experience that don’t align with the job title!
Don’t assume the same person who you are interviewing with is the same person that recommended you be invited to interview. Often human resources staff members take care of advance work for hiring managers: Hiring managers may have different perspectives on what’s needed most in the position than HR does, an aspect of the job description that hasn’t come up before may be important to the hiring manager
If you sit down for the interview and the person you are meeting with doesn’t have a copy of your resume, offer to provide them with one on the spot.
3. Anticipate the questions you’ll be asked.
One of the greatest differences between dating and interviewing is the balance of power: While both the job candidate and the interviewer get to make a decision about fit, the interviewer often has more power because they often have a greater number of other potential candidates to consider! (In dating, you are each making the same decision.)
To make sure you interview well, study up on what you may be asked in advance of the hiring process!
Check out Glassdoor.com, a site that provides employee reviews, salary information, and actual interview questions asked by companies.
If you haven’t worked in the type of job that you’re interviewing for before, find a friend (or friend through friends) who does that type of work and inquire about the most important skills and qualities required for the job.
Research the employer as if you are researching an important purchase – check out the company website, take note of any news releases or announcements, compare the website of the company where you are interviewing with other companies in the same field. Understanding the differences between the company you are applying for and competitors in the field, can help you understand challenges or concerns your interviewers may have in mind. Doing your research will better prepare you to demonstrate an understanding of their problems, and how you can help.
4. Be prepared to be as interested as you are interesting.
No matter how one-sided the process feels, interviewing is always a two-way street in dating and job search: you pick your employer and your employer picks you just as you pick who you want to date and they pick you,
Employers at world-renowned companies face the same challenges as some single celebrities do: They want to be with people who want to be with them as they are – not just because of their fame and fortune.
One of the greatest challenges employers face is hiring employees that truly want to work for them – they want to know you’re interested. In fact, they are more likely to hire you if they think it’s quite possible you will say yes when offered the job.
Never go to a job interview without a full list of questions you can ask in the interview. All of the questions should demonstrate your interest in working for the company. Example: If hired for this job, how would I work with you to get work done – and what would my first priority be on the job.
5. Practice your best poker face – and prepare to address any lemons in your background.
In dating as in job search, we often seek out new opportunities because the last experience was less than perfect or ideal. Most people have something in their resume they’d rather not talk about – an unexplained gap in employment, a short period of time, a “former boss” not willing to serve as a reference, etc.
If you’ve been invited in for the interview, chances are good that the interviewing committee may ask you about it – and how you respond will potentially influence whether or not you get the job offer.
A good way to handle questions on awkward topics is to avoid using any adjectives or negative tone of voice. When someone asks you a challenging question, don’t say, “Here’s the stinky situation I was in. My boss was out to get me.” Say “Here’s what happened” and describe only what can be seen: Example, last year the company brought in a new supervisor from Finland. He reorganized the department by cutting 15 jobs and redistributing the workload to 5 people. I left shortly after that happened; I’m told he left two months ago.” Note: This approach works well in both interviews and dates! Just like no first date likes to hear you trash your ex, potential employers don’t need to hear the emotional details of a previous job gone wrong. Stick to the necessary facts and don’t let old resentment ruin a good first impression.
Prepare for the interview using these tips and you’ll be well positioned to receive top consideration for the role.
Want to leave with an even stronger impression? Follow up quickly with a custom thank you email to each participant. Just as you’d thank a good first date for a nice time and you’d like to see them again; it’s important to let your interviewer know that you appreciated the time they took to speak with you and you’re interested in the position. If you have information on their job titles, include a sentence or two that shows you are thinking about how you would interact with them on the job. This is a great opportunity to revisit any particular topics you may not have nailed in the interview — example: You asked my opinion about X; here’s a more complete answer to your question.
If you don’t have email addresses for each participant, Google *@companyname.com — this will show you how companies assign email addresses — you can figure it out from there.
Don’t forget the blind spot — think about whether you want the job the same way you’d decide whether or not to have a second date. Make sure you want it! You may be so focused on answering their questions that you don’t take time to assess whether or not the job is a fit. If you receive an offer — and still haven’t figured out whether the job is a fit or met all the players in person, you can always ask for a second date before you accept!
Good luck!
Despite being given the green flag to interview for the position, remember that there is a reason they call it an “interview”. You need to prove that the job should be yours. The confidence you need to approach the interview is realizing that there is a reason they want you for an interview. Your resume and skills seem promising to them, and there is a good chance that they think you’re best match for the position. Now you need to take this assumption on their part, and turn it into a concrete belief.
So how do you make this happen?
Be prepared! I can’t stress enough the importance of interview preparation. Not only will you be ready to answer the questions you’re asked and ask interesting ones yourself – you will have more confidence knowing that you showed up ready.
Tune in all week for tips on being prepared to ace your big interview!
What to Do in Your Job Search Before the Phone Rings
Choosing the right number to list on your resume can be tricky:
If you are currently employed, never list your work phone number on your resume. Even if the best place to reach you is at work, the impression you will leave is that you are comfortable using your current employer’s resources to look for a job – and that doesn’t sit well with most hiring managers.
Only list your cell number if you experience good reception at least 90% of the time. That sounded like an interesting job but I couldn’t hear what it was through all the static.
Landlines can be great as the reception is always clear, but coach anyone in your household on the way you’d like them to handle a call from a potential employer for you. If a child regularly answers your phone, you may want to use a different number.
Alternative option: Create a Google Voice number that will ring where – and when – you tell it to.
2. Invite people to leave you a voice mail.
You know how it important it is to look good on paper; you also need a great greeting for your voice mail.
If an employer calls you and receives a generic “this party is not available right now – please leave a message” response, they may wonder if they have the right number and choose not to leave a message at all.
Create a simple message with your first and last name. Invite people to leave their contact information, and – ideally – give a window of when they can expect a response.
Example:
“Hi, this is Jane Clarke. I’m not available right now, but please leave me your name, phone number, and your email address and I’ll get back to you within 24 hours. Thanks for calling!”
Make sure your message is clear and that your tone sounds friendly and professional.
3. When the phone rings, don’t be afraid to say you can’t talk.
Even if a hiring manager says, “this isn’t an interview” – all phone conversations are part of the hiring process, and many “first conversations” are also the last.
If you’re in an active job search, don’t answer calls from strangers in sports arenas, bars, or other crowded venues. As soon as you say hello, you need to be able to respond in “hire me” mode – and if you’re not in a position to do this, you need to postpone.
It’s always okay to say, “I’m not in a quiet place right now, can we set up a time to speak?” Make sure you have a pen and paper close at hand to get the details down. Even if your iPhone is amazing, you should never put your potential interviewer on hold so that you can take down details while you are talking!
Give folks the right number, convey your professionalism on the other end of the line, and put our upcoming tips for phone interviews to work – and you’ll be all set to start talking about how you can do the job!
Topic of the Week: Phone Interviews (& How to Ace Them)
If they can’t see me, why should I worry?
***
You tweaked your resume, wrote a cover letter expressing your interests and qualifications, and applied to those jobs. One day, you’re scrolling through your emails or listening to your voicemail (or checking your StartWire application updates!) and find, you’ve received a request to a phone interview!
Pause here and think: what does the phone interview really mean? How is the phone interview different from the in-person interview?
For many, the phone interview seems less formal because they’re not physically meeting the employer. Instead, the phone interview can be done in the comfort of a room or a space which they’re familiar with. You might choose to forgo that suit jacket and pants that you’d wear if you were dressed to impress the interviewer. You don’t even really need to do any personal grooming because… no one will see how you look!
Don’t get too comfortable. It’s important to realize, you should treat the phone interview exactly as you would an in-person interview! Why?
Employers offer the phone interview as a means to determine which candidates are worth the resources for an in-person interview, but it also means that the employers are looking at you and are interested in your potential to be their next hire. Know that if you’ve been offered a phone interview, you’re considered a top-candidate, worthy of conversing with to gauge your fit to the position.
You need to take this just as seriously as if you were sitting in an office, meeting the hiring manager face-to-face. If you drop the ball now, you can be cut from the short list you worked so hard to get on, and not be given that coveted in-person interview. Shine on the phone, and you’ll walk into your interview as a top prospect.
Friday Wrap Up: Make Use of StartWire!
Our 5 part series on “The 5 Habits of Effective Job Seekers” aims to shed light on 5 important habits that will help job seekers become more effective in their job search. Ultimately, StartWire is a tool you can use to adapt these habits.
So to conclude our 5 part series, we’re spending some time on the question: How does StartWire work?
For those who want a better understanding of what StartWire offers, we compiled a visually appealing and easy way to grasp StartWire’s cool functions!
ONE: Application
- Comb through job boards or StartWire’s databases for jobs. Find positions that interest you and apply!
- When you receive that ‘thanks for applying’ email, forward that email to apps@startwire.com.
- Alternatively, you can add a job through the “Track a New Application” bar on our homepage.
TWO: Visual Organization
- Job Search is stressful enough, but disorganization, along with clutter makes it more stressful. We’re here to organize for you. Now you’ll have one place to view all the jobs you’ve applied to!
- Furthermore, it’s color coded to show you your chances of getting the job based on the amount of people who’ve applied to the same position.
- Green indicates better chances, whereas red represents positions with a higher number of applicants. This give you a basis to adjust your expectations on whether you have heavy or light competition.
THREE: Notification
- We’ll constantly be tracking these positions, so that you’ll receive automatic updates on the status of your jobs. You can receive these updates through email, but even through a text if you prefer!
FOUR: Recommendations
- We know that combing through jobs after jobs to find good matches can be very time consuming. So we make this process easier for you by providing actual recommendations! We base these recommendations from positions you’ve applied to and previous positions you’ve searched for.
FIVE: Networking help
- You can find who you know from the companies you’ve applied to. You’ll have an insider in that company you can contact and ask for a referral.
SIX: Jobs
- Since the main focus is jobs, we feature many of them!
We’re here as a service to all of you job seekers. Let us know your thoughts, opinions, and how we can help you anytime you want. Feel free to have a dialogue or join us on Facebook or Twitter. We love talking to you! (And figuring out how we can ease your job search process!) -The StartWire Team
And the fifth habit of highly effective job seekers is (drumroll please)… they use StartWire. Naturally, we say this tongue-in-cheek, as StartWire hosted this series – but we also mean it: We designed StartWire to help you streamline your job search and get found.
Habits by nature are tough to form without structure – research shows that – on average – it takes anywhere from 21 days to 66 days for a habit to become routine. And – as we all know, it’s harder to form a habit without also having the support to make it easy to put that habit into place.
StartWire was designed and built from the ground up – with the intention of providing job seekers with the support they need to form good habits. Here’s a quick overview of how you can use StartWire’s free tools to get support in each of these areas:
Habit #1: Don’t Post & Pray
Apply to jobs that you are qualified for – and seek out a way to get referred or recommended for every job that you apply to. (Don’t apply for lots of jobs and then sit back and wait for the phone to ring.)
The StartWire fix:
Share your information on what you want to do and where you want to work, and StartWire will send you job leads by e-mail through StartWire’s Job Search Planner. And check out our tips on the best way to make sure employers read your resume.
Habit #2: Apply Early
To get to the front of the interviewing line, apply early– or as soon as you see a job opening. (In our study of 6,600 hires –50% of successful applicants applied within one week of the time the job was posted.)
The StartWire fix:
Apply to jobs listed on StartWire. All of the jobs we post on our site have been advertised within the past two weeks.
Habit #3: Get Referred
Your chances of getting hired for a job go up exponentially if you can get a referral in for the job. To get recommended, seek out connections inside the company – and make sure you ask for help privately.
The StartWire fix:
Connect your LinkedIn and Facebook accounts to StartWire and you’ll see icons of friends and connections when you look at jobs. To request a referral from any of these connections, click on the “Get referral” tab inside StartWire. Then follow the links to send a confidential request for an introduction – we even pre-populate your request for assistance. Your invitation will be received – and you can all rest assured that no trace of your request will be posted on the “wall” of any social network. (Need to get a referral from a “friend you haven’t met yet?” Check out these tips.)
Habit #4: Get Found
You can get called to interview for a job even if you haven’t applied. Thousands of employers search for resumes with the right skills everyday.
The StartWire fix: Share your resume with StartWire and we will distribute it to employers on your behalf. To optimize your chance of success, follow these tips to help employers find you.
Habit #5: Let us know how we can help!
Do you have additional suggestions on tools you can use to organize your job search? Share your ideas today, we regularly upgrade StartWire to include user suggestions: startwire.uservoice.com
Put these 5 Habits to Work and let us know how they work for you! We look forward to celebrating your success…
Don’t have a StartWire account yet? Sign up now. It’s free and takes less than five minutes.
We’re at the last part of our 5 part series on “The 5 Habits of Effective Job Seekers”!
The aim of this concluding part of our series is to tie together all the habits we’ve uncovered together in the past weeks. To refresh, the habits of effective job seekers are:
1) They Don’t Post and Pray
2) They Apply Early
3) They Get Referred
4) They Get Found
5) They Make Use of America’s #1 Job Search Organizer
Now that we know the habits necessary for effective job seekers, the important question to ponder is what then does StartWire do to help job seekers adopt and practice these habits (this is the StartWire blog after all!)?
StartWire does in fact offer solutions to these problems. StartWire was built from ground up to make the process of job search more manageable, less stressful and, of course, more effective! What this means is, for each of the habits that we’ve talked about, StartWire has resources in place to help you adopt the habits of an effective job seeker. Some of you may not be aware of all that you can do with StartWire, so we wanted to take some time to highlight how StartWire can help you with these specific and effective habits.
We’re more than just advice here at StartWire News – we’re constantly working to build and improve tools that can help you execute on the advice we give.
StartWire 