Michigan Job Collaborative

Sign Up to participate 3/28

2010-03-15T14:11:00.001-07:00

We've got a facebook event set up for you to sign up for the real live workshop:

Date/Time: March 28th 1-4 PM
Location: Redford, MI
Address: got to sign up to find out

Sign up on Facebook NOW!

Don't have Facebook? Just leave a comment to let us know you're coming

And read below for what you need to bring to be
successful...

What to Bring to Career Workshop

2010-02-16T20:05:00.001-08:00

Our interactive workshop on March 28th (and the dry run on March 7th) include lots of activities that require you to do some preparation and bring some material about your career search.

Being prepared with the following will ensure your success

Bring 10 copies of your resume (1-2 pages, plain paper is fine).
If you don't have a resume yet, go to the Michigan Talent Bank and create a resume following the Michigan Works format, to print and bring.
Bring 4 copies of a job description you want to interview for
Complete "ask 5 for 5 below". Bring the list of 25 words describing you.
Complete a free personality test like Myers Briggs. Are you an Introvert or Extrovert?
Read through the 3 lists of interview questions below. They will be used in the mock interviews.

If you'd like you can bring business cards with your contact info and career search objective. vistaprint.com will give you 250 business cards free just for the cost of shipping. Otherwise, if you want to bring copies of your resume to use as a take-away for others you meet at the workshop, you can do so.

Interviewing Questions

2010-02-16T18:48:00.000-08:00

At our workshop we'll be doing mock interviews. In these interviews, we'll take questions from the following lists, to ask you about your capability to do a job (you will provide that job description)

You are welcome to prepare for answering these questions by reading:

Top 1o Interview Questions: at Monster
Personality Questions: at Job Bank USA
Illegal Questions: at The Ladders

Another great resource is Common Interview Questions, where you can prepare for questions by field or interview types.

Your Elevator Pitch: use it every day

2010-02-16T18:33:00.000-08:00

One tool in marketing yourself for your next position is verbal.

You will be asked to talk about yourself in Networking events, in Information meetings, and Interviews.

In our workshop we refer to this short verbal spech as an Elavator Pitch: the discussion you could fit into an elavator ride (30 to 60 seconds).

Giving this information about yourself can feel forced, unnatural. The best way to get used to it is to use it every day, when people ask you how you are or when you meet someone in a personal or professional setting.

Here is a great article on developing the answer to a sometimes aggravating question: Tell me about yourself.

Illegal Interview Questions

2010-02-16T17:54:00.001-08:00

When you're interviewing, you may be asked questions that are inapropriate.

Sometimes unwitting, underinformed interviewers make mistakes they don't know are sensitive or even illegal. In such a case you can use that question to answer a more apropriate and interview-specific question.

Or sometimes you get the idea that the interviewer is asking such questions on purpose or repeatedly. In this case, it may be that you decide not to pursue additional interviews with such a company.

Either way, be prepared to answer such questions with grace, see the following
article from The Ladders:

Don’t Answer That Interview Question

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Your Personality and your Career Search

2010-02-15T14:15:00.000-08:00

When you're in search mode...

It's helpful to know yourself

not only the skills and experiences listed on your resume, but your inherent qualities like communication styles and work styles. Knowing your type can help you to understand your interactions with others in networking situations as well.

The most widely used personality type available is the Myers Briggs assessment. This is provided by some search services and full typing can also be completed for a fee.

For a basic start of the type that you may fit into, try this free assessment.

Ask 5 for 5

2009-11-27T15:01:00.000-08:00

Looking for descriptive words to use in your resume? A friend gave me the following advice:

Ask 5 people you know for 5 words that
describe
you.

The career search can be challenging and it may sap you of creative energy. After completing this simple exercise, you'll find that people in your life truly value the unique traits that you bring to a relationship or workplace. Its a great boost to self confidence!

You'll also have a list of 25 words you can use in your resume.

ONE MORE LIST OF 5:
Five Interview Types and how to Ace them

Southeast Michigan Jobs Collaborative

2009-11-11T08:25:00.000-08:00

As part of a local non-profit, I've volunteered to organize the material from my recent job search and share it with you the community in an in-person workshop this year in Southeastern Michigan (Sunday March 28th, 2010).

This is an effort to work together to:

improve networking skills
improve interviewing skills
meet people in the area
review each others' resumes
learn about job seeking methods and techniques
target companies of interest
plan a marketing strategy for your job search

So that the workshop can be as successful as possible I've started this site to ask you to sign up to attend and to develop your materials in advance of the session.