Recently, I was refining the resume of a client who was having a hard time finding a job.
During our phone interview to go over questions that I had about work history and experience, I immediately felt turned off by his attitude.
He was flippant and disconnected from what we were doing.
For example, I asked him to double check a date for one of his past jobs, and he said that he could not remember.
He did not put forth any effort try to find out or to verify the information.
I remember thinking that I could understand why he was having a hard time getting a job, because his attitude stunk and his energy was negative.
Here I am spending my time trying to help him by fixing his poorly drafted resume and he acted as if he did not care.
You will be amazed at how your attitude can show up on your resume and in an interview.
If you are negative, you will probably be careless and rush while drafting your resume.
Your attitude may reveal itself in the form of having a negative tone, through typos, errors, plain and boring statements, and poor formatting.
It also shows when you are interviewing or speaking to recruiters over the phone.
The person that interviews you may detect that something is wrong, and he or she will likely want to move on to the next candidate.
When I was in college, I worked as a phone customer service agent in an upscale hotel.
We were trained to always smile before answering the phone, that way if you were mad, down, or frustrated the customers or guests would not detect a negative tone in your voice.
When you smile it affects your tone and how you come across over the phone (whether you are happy or not).
In a recent article, Fred Coon, chairman and CEO of Stewart, Cooper, and Cone, an executive search firm, said "One of the worst killers of a good job search is attitude.
People can sense "attitude" and nobody who interviews you will tell you what they sense from you.
" It is up to you to be positive and leave that impression.
" (Garone, 2009, The Wall Street Journal).
I know that it is difficult to stay motivated when the bills are piling up and you just can't get a break.
Your situation will not change until you do something about it.
You will not find a job unless you go out there and convince an employer that you are the right person for the job.
What are your chances of doing that when you have a sloppy resume, you show up late for interviews, and you have a poor attitude when speaking to the hiring manager? Job searching is a full-time job that requires your best efforts in marketing yourself to prospective employers.
Employers are like consumers, who are looking for quality products, goods, and services for their companies.
In a hiring situation, you are the goods, so you need to show them how good you are and make the best impression.
You can do this by having well written self-marketing materials - cover letter, resume or biography.
Also, do your best to sound enthusiastic over the phone and in person.
Remember, hiring managers want to feel good about the person they select for a position.
You will increase your chances of making a good impression which can lead to landing a job, if you have the right attitude.
During our phone interview to go over questions that I had about work history and experience, I immediately felt turned off by his attitude.
He was flippant and disconnected from what we were doing.
For example, I asked him to double check a date for one of his past jobs, and he said that he could not remember.
He did not put forth any effort try to find out or to verify the information.
I remember thinking that I could understand why he was having a hard time getting a job, because his attitude stunk and his energy was negative.
Here I am spending my time trying to help him by fixing his poorly drafted resume and he acted as if he did not care.
You will be amazed at how your attitude can show up on your resume and in an interview.
If you are negative, you will probably be careless and rush while drafting your resume.
Your attitude may reveal itself in the form of having a negative tone, through typos, errors, plain and boring statements, and poor formatting.
It also shows when you are interviewing or speaking to recruiters over the phone.
The person that interviews you may detect that something is wrong, and he or she will likely want to move on to the next candidate.
When I was in college, I worked as a phone customer service agent in an upscale hotel.
We were trained to always smile before answering the phone, that way if you were mad, down, or frustrated the customers or guests would not detect a negative tone in your voice.
When you smile it affects your tone and how you come across over the phone (whether you are happy or not).
In a recent article, Fred Coon, chairman and CEO of Stewart, Cooper, and Cone, an executive search firm, said "One of the worst killers of a good job search is attitude.
People can sense "attitude" and nobody who interviews you will tell you what they sense from you.
" It is up to you to be positive and leave that impression.
" (Garone, 2009, The Wall Street Journal).
I know that it is difficult to stay motivated when the bills are piling up and you just can't get a break.
Your situation will not change until you do something about it.
You will not find a job unless you go out there and convince an employer that you are the right person for the job.
What are your chances of doing that when you have a sloppy resume, you show up late for interviews, and you have a poor attitude when speaking to the hiring manager? Job searching is a full-time job that requires your best efforts in marketing yourself to prospective employers.
Employers are like consumers, who are looking for quality products, goods, and services for their companies.
In a hiring situation, you are the goods, so you need to show them how good you are and make the best impression.
You can do this by having well written self-marketing materials - cover letter, resume or biography.
Also, do your best to sound enthusiastic over the phone and in person.
Remember, hiring managers want to feel good about the person they select for a position.
You will increase your chances of making a good impression which can lead to landing a job, if you have the right attitude.
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