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1. Not Using Standard Business-Letter Format The student's cover letter looked more like a cut-and-paste email than a business letter. It had no recipient information, no return address and no date. The letter screamed unprofessional. What's YOUR Cover Letter IQ? Be sure your cover letter uses a standard business letter format. It should include the date, the recipient's mailing address and ...

What Are Your Weaknesses? This is the most dreaded question of all. Handle it by minimizing your weakness and emphasizing your strengths.Stay away from personal qualities and concentrate on professional traits: "I am always working on improving my communication skills to be a more effective presenter. I recently joined Toastmasters, which I find very helpful." NEXT QUESTION [page] Why Should ...

Do you enjoy writing resume cover letters about as much as you relish root canals? Dread isn't uncommon when it comes to resume cover letters. "It's an area where job-seekers could do the most to improve, because it does require a certain amount of heavy lifting," said Anna Ivey, a career counselor based in the Boston area. "Most people just write ...

[photo:30946] Brown-Forman Corporation Jack Daniel’s, Southern Comfort, Finlandia, Sonoma-Cutrer, Korbel and 31 other alcohol brands Brown-Forman employs 4,440 people worldwide with about 1,300 located in Louisville. Brown-Forman, one of the largest American-owned spirits and wine companies and among the top 10 largest global spirits companies, sells its brands in more than 135 countries and has offices in cities across the globe. ...

#1: Stick to a One-Page Resume Another bit of advice after a somewhat helpful review of my resume was to shorten it to one page. This piece of input really had me flummoxed. Having had a logical and progressive 20-year work-life, suddenly squishing it all down to one page seemed to be a disservice to any firm considering employing me ...

Need-Based Contact Imagine you have a friend or relative that you only hear from when he needs money. Do you take their calls? Do you look forward to hearing from him? Very quickly, you have no desire to do anything to help him. The same goes for networking. If you only get in touch with a contact when you need ...

By now we all know Monster.com and LinkedIn, but practically every day new Web sites launch that aim to help you find jobs, stay on top of your industry, improve your career prospects or otherwise help you along in your work life. We sifted through the latest offerings and compiled the following list of sites that are worth a click. BRAZEN ...

Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, devised a series of rules that describe our reactions to technology at different stages of our lives. They state: anything that is in the world when you're born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works; anything that's invented between when you're 15 ...

Too many job seekers stumble through interviews as if the questions are coming out of left field. But many interview questions are to be expected. Study this list and plan your answers ahead of time so you’ll be ready to deliver them with confidence. First Question→

1. Non-words Filler words such as "um," "ah," "you know," "OK" or "like" tell the interviewer you're not prepared and make you sound like a Valley Girl (or Boy). A better strategy is to think before you speak, taking pauses and breaths when you lose your train of thought. Everybody utters an occasional "um," but don't let it start every sentence. ...

When you are looking to make the Big Leap—the one that puts you closer to the power centers of a business or organization—the interview process will likely be different from what you've experienced before. The more senior the person or people you're interviewing with, the more definite their ideas are likely to be about what they're looking for. They know that ...

#1: Trying Too Hard to Be Similar Research has found that people not only like people similar to them but that they will project their positive traits onto those they are perceiving. It's a two step process. First, interviewers assess whether or not you are similar to them. Once that is established, they project their positive personality traits onto you. ...

When you think of psychology, do asylums and psychopaths come to mind? Well, so should job interviewers…and not because some may seem like sadistic psychopaths. A recent study from two psychologists, Thomas Hillard and Therese McCan, in The Journal of Psychology reveals a lot about what goes through interviewers' minds and how job seekers can use that to their advantage. An ...

The biggest obstacle to getting a new job may be the plate of spaghetti that falls on your lap. Even in these days of shrinking expense accounts, prospective employers often take job candidates out to eat as a step in the interview process. The breakfast/lunch/dinner interview makes sense for employers for several reasons, says Jill Zoromski, senior vice president and director ...

Professional writers often worry that their work is unnecessary. After all, can't anyone with even a basic education write? The answer: no, they can't. Even college graduates don't seem to be learning composition basics. Of course not everyone is going to be the next Mark Twain, but career success does depend on not looking stupid. Sure, some clients, coworkers, or resume ...

1. Why do you want to work in this industry? Bad answer: “I love to shop. Even as a kid, I spent hours flipping through catalogues.” Don’t just say you like it. Anyone can do that. Focus instead on your history with that particular industry and, if you can, tell a success story. Good answer: “I've always loved shopping, but my ...

Your cover letter is the first thing employers see when they open your materials. Avoid these 10 mistakes, and make your first impression a good and lasting one. Mistake #1: Don't Overuse "I" Your cover letter is not your autobiography. The focus should be on how you meet an employer's needs, not on your life story. Avoid the perception of being ...

Accomplishments. In sales, there is an old expression that says if you can't prove it, don't say it. This usually refers to the dialogue between a sales person and a prospect, but it is also applicable for a resume. As a hiring manager, you are well within your rights to ask candidates for documentation of the accomplishments they list on their ...

While there are as many different possible interview questions as there are interviewers, it always helps to be ready for anything. So we've prepared a list of 100 potential interview questions. Will you face them all? We pray no interviewer would be that cruel. Will you face a few? Probably. Will you be well-served by being ready even if you're not ...

When asked a traditional question like, "What would you do if you had a customer who wasn't interested in buying the product?" you can make up a story. But when you're asked behavioral questions, the interviewer is listening for specific examples of how you have handled situations or problems in the past. When presented with behavioral questions beginning with phrases like, ...