On Fantasy Island, where one’s fantasies will be fulfilled the hiring process is simple, quick and easy - there are no hang ups, glitches or bad behavior. Unfortunately Fantasy Island was a TV show and nothing like reality (except that everything comes for a price!).
In the real world that you and I live in (or maybe just the world I live in who knows?) life isn’t that simple. It’s much easier to screen a candidate out than it is to successfully qualify them for the job.
Like the show “What Not to Wear” I have created a very abbreviated list of resume and interview don’ts - things which should seem obvious (like don’t wear plaid and stripes together) but evidently are not.
- USE SPELL CHECK! If you are asking for 100K for your “skills” then at least know how to spell the technologies you have supposedly utilized.
- If you see a job description online or elsewhere and you can say “I’ve done that,” PUT IT IN YOUR RESUME! Give yourself credit for everything you have done.
- Do not misrepresent yourself. If you have completed 119 out of 122 credits towards your degree - don’t say you have graduated. It is forgivable to be lacking in something, it is unforgivable to lie about it.
- Don’t blow off an interview! If you aren’t interested then don’t schedule it to begin with. If you can’t make it - call or email the recruiter! The industry is smaller and full of more gossip than you know! Bad news spreads much faster than good news!
- Don’t ask your interviewer out. Bottom line. Just don’t do it.
- If you have a phone interview scheduled and you are using a cell phone - MAKE SURE IT IS FULLY CHARGED THE NIGHT BEFORE!
Related Posts
- Interview Anxiety Strikes!
- Soft Skills vs Tech Skills - Which Will Win Out?
- Kris’s Video Resume How-to Project
- Cell Phones, iPods and a Venti Zen tea from Starbucks!!
- Do You Want Fries With That Executive Suite?
Hudson IT
Subscribe to the RSS Feed
And please do not bring your posse to an interview, you should be independent and grown up enough to attend on your own.
Comment by Camille — August 7, 2008 @ 9:25 am
Camille, thank you for your comment. That’s also a good point. From time to time one may see people bringing the entire family or friends with them on an interview. While it is understandable if somebody needs a ride, one certainly doesn’t need a friend or relative to walk them to the door (and if they do that’s a bigger problem in and of itself). Your friends or family can not help you once you are in the interview so they are best left at home.
Comment by Christine Seedholm — August 7, 2008 @ 12:06 pm