Job INTERVIEW MISTAKES!

Job INTERVIEW MISTAKES!
You WILL NOT GET HIRED if you continue to make certain
mistakes before, during or after your job interviews.

Most of the time, the problem is not the number of jobs
available, or the industry you work in, the problem is YOU!

There are certain common interviewing mistakes that
everyone knows to avoid. Some of the common mistakes we
all know about include giving a great handshake and
maintaining good eye contact, etc. However, those mistakes
are NOT the primary reasons job seekers aren't getting job
offers or promotions.

In 16 years of job development and recruitment, I can't
think of one single person who did not get hired because he
gave a poor handshake.

Here are 3 of my 25 INTERVIEW MISTAKES to AVOID:

1. Before Your Interview: Make sure you do not arrive at
your interview 1-2 hours before the scheduled time without
getting permission from the hiring manager. When you
arrive at an interview 1-2 hours early, you are getting off
to a bad start!

Here's Why: You are forcing the hiring manager to change
his schedule to accommodate you. Think about this, no one
wants to have someone sitting in their lobby for hours
waiting to be interviewed.

Also, arriving this early could be misunderstood as having
poor time management skills. The last thing you will want
the hiring manager to think is that you do not have good
time management skills. Pay careful attention to this if
you are applying for a management position.

2. During Your Interview: For the most part, people tend to
hire who they like. If you are able to get the interviewer
to really like you, and enjoy talking with you, you will
greatly increase your chances of getting hired.

Avoid talking too much, being arrogant or boring. Engage in
a conversation with the interviewer, and if you feel
comfortable enough, ask him questions about his work
history or his feelings about his company. You can gain a
lot of valuable information by doing this.

3. After Your Interview: Did you know that it is perfectly
fine for you to check your own references? That's right!
Call your references and ask them what they are going to
say about you.

People like to believe that everyone will have something
great to say about them. Believe it or not, almost 20% of
job offers are either retracted or not extended at all
because of bad references!

Take heed! Even though employers are required to only
verify employment, they say and do a lot more! So, check
your references and make proper adjustments.

What's the point of going on interviews if you are going to
continue to mess up? There are a series of different
mistakes made by job seekers in professional and
non-professional categories.

The professionals or executive level job seekers struggle
quite a bit with interview mistakes involving personality
issues, arrogance, and a lack of effort on their part to
set up interviews for themselves.

The non-professionals tend to make interview mistakes
centered around their appearance, ability to sell
themselves, poor follow up, and yes... not setting up
interviews for themselves.

4. BONUS Interview Tip: One of the most effective
strategies to getting a job fast is arranging your own job
interviews. It is so important for job seekers to be aware
that they have to take the initiative and learn how to set
up interviews for themselves. At all times, always be open
to getting help during your job hunting process and seek
counsel from experienced professionals who care about your
success.

Be wise when deciding which recruitment firm to use, and
which career counselors to take advice from. It's time to
learn from others' mistakes and get hired or promoted in
record time!

Unlocking Greatness...

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Zenja Glass is the VP of a staffing firm and Career Author
of 25 Reasons Why THEY Won't Hire You! recently featured on
ABC news and FOX news.
http://www.Interview-Mistakes.com

Follow-Up After The Job Interview - To Send or Not to Send a Letter

Follow-Up After The Job Interview - To Send or Not to Send a Letter
Your letter could be the tiebreaker between you and two, or
even three, candidates so put some thought and effort
behind what you say. Even if it doesn't get you the job,
what do you have to lose – the cost of a postage
stamp? Hedge your bet it could land you a job.

To send or not to send - will it really make a difference?

Catherine was looking for a business analyst for a position
that had been vacant for four weeks. She was eager to hire,
but wanted the right person in the job. She had narrowed
the field to three candidates, Jim, Kelly, and Steven.

She had promised to call them by Friday, and on Wednesday
afternoon she was still vacillating. Each had a strength
she was looking for, but each also had some issues that had
made her stand back and be objective. Jim had held several
jobs in the last few years. Would he stick around for the
tough times ahead? Kelly was ambitious, but didn't have the
depth of experience interacting with difficult people. And,
Steven was the quiet type who didn't reveal himself enough
for her to get to know what he could offer, particularly
interfacing with other departments and working under
pressure.

When Catherine opened her email that morning she had 42
emails. She had glanced over them and thought she had seen
Jim's name among the many, but hadn't taken the time to
read it. She had 17 voice mails and there was a one from
Kelly, but she only listened long enough to hear that she
was thanking her for the interview. She hadn't heard from
Jim.

That afternoon, Catherine closed her door. She was going to
catch up and then work on her decision regarding the
business analyst position. The first thing she did was open
her mail. Among the mail was a letter from Steven. It
caught her attention because of the depth she could see he
had gone to. She stopped and read the letter.

Dear Catherine:

Choosing the right candidate is not an easy task and I want
you to know I have been in your shoes before.

Based on our interview, I have done some thinking about the
position and how I could bring added value to your
organization and support some of the problems you discussed
in during the interview...

What followed was a spreadsheet with the issues Steven had
picked up during the interview. He not only identified some
of the problems, but also showed how he could be the
solution based on past experience. As Catherine read the
letter she became intrigued, and liked what she read. This
guy not only heard the issues, but he had given them some
thought and did some analysis - looked beyond what was
said. This was a trait she was seeking. She wanted to talk
to him again.

The follow-up, thank you, letter is more than a nice "thank
you for the interview." It is one more chance for you to
sell yourself, and to tell them what you can do for them.
Don't assume the interviewer remembers everything you said.
When three candidates are interviewed and compared, some of
the highlights you hoped would be considered, got lost or
forgotten. Remind them of what you can do for them –
not what they can do for you.

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Carole Martin, America's #1 Interview Expert and Coach, can
give you interviewing tips like no one else can. Get a copy
of her FREE 9-part "Interview Success Tips" report by
visiting Carole on the web at http://www.interviewcoach.com

How to Market to Wealthy Women

How to Market to Wealthy Women
Women are the sole or primary decision makers for as many
as 80% of all purchasing decisions. Women make the choice
on new bank accounts 89% of the time, in DIY 80%, in cars
60% and in choice of holiday, 92% of the decisions are made
by women. Women's wealth is growing ' between 1970 and
1998 men's median income rose by 0.6 percent while women's
median income rose by 63%.

The importance of developing products and services that
meet women's needs cannot be overstated. When purchasing
financial products, wealthy women have particular needs and
concerns which are quite different to those of men.
Understanding why and how women create wealth, where they
invest and why is critical to those who wish to sell
financial service products to this potentially huge and
poorly catered for group.

In 1998 the average male millionaire in the UK was worth
£2.7 m (US$5.42m), while the average female
millionaire owned just £1.28 m (US$2.56m). By 2006,
women had caught up considerably, with the average female
millionaire worth £1.97 (US$3.94m) compared with
£2.96 m (US$5.92m) for men.

The increase in female wealth has not been limited to
developed countries. In 2006, the female paper tycoon
Zhang Yin was listed by the Hunan Report as the wealthiest
person in China with an estimated US$3.4 bn.

So how are women creating this wealth? The traditional
sources of wealth for women have been inheritance from
their parents or their deceased husbands or financial gain
from the divorce of a wealthy husband. Whilst these
methods for achieving wealth are still evident, an
increasing number of women have created their wealth
through their job or through the ownership of a business.

Whilst men's major motivation for starting a business is
financial gain, women tend to cite flexibility, freedom
(from corporate structures and politics) and financial gain
as the main reasons for setting up on their own. Holly
Sargent, Senior Associate Dean for Advancement and Senior
Director for University Women's Studies at Harvard
University points out that when women start a business it
often does not have the sole purpose of generating wealth.
"The businesses are more likely to be family orientated,
less commercial and more socially or more 'gap in the
market based'....A lot of innovative products are created
around female-oriented gaps in the market."

Income from investments has become an important source of
wealth for wealthy women. Up to 38% high net worth women
in Asia cited income from investments as one of their three
most important sources of wealth. In Europe, this was
lower at 24% with 64.6% stating income from their job as
one of the three most important sources of income. Whether
income comes from investments, ownership of a business or
through a salary, women are creating their own wealth,
independent of their husband or family.

Motivations for amassing and protecting wealth are almost
identical for men and women. Financial security in
retirement is seen as the main priority followed by a
better personal lifestyle and enjoyment of the finer things
in life. In other words the goals appear to be neatly
divided between spending on the present and saving for the
future. More intangible factors such as status and the
sheer enjoyment of making money, come much further down the
list.

Women create wealth in order to enjoy a better lifestyle.
They spend their leisure time and disposable income on
holidays and home improvements, just like men. The only
significant difference in spending is that men are likely
to spend a greater proportion of their disposable income on
cars and gadgets whilst women focus on clothes, jewellery
and watches ' so far the cliché holds true.

However, women do invest quite differently to men. Women
are far less likely to take risks with their money, whether
in their personal finance or business affairs. Research
suggests that more men than women invest in financial
products that are considered to be at the riskier end of
the financial spectrum such as hedge funds, private equity,
structured products and derivates.

Women take longer to come to a decision about what to
invest in and are less likely to go to a third party for
advice than men. Men are more likely to consult tax
specialists, accountants, private banks, brokers and the
media. The only source of advice that is more widely used
by women than men is the high street bank.

This does not mean they are less successful or able
investors than men. In Tom Peters book ReImagine! he
quotes the National Association of Investors on the returns
of investment clubs. Whilst men only clubs delivered 15.6
percent returns, women only clubs delivered 17.9 percent.

Wealthy men are more likely to use personal trainers,
chauffeurs, chefs, alternative health practitioners,
property search agencies, lawyers and private banks than
women. However, wealthy women are more likely to use what
may be considered 'lifestyle' services such as personal
concierge and shopping services, life coaches, personal
stylists, bodyguards and private doctors.

Women tend to invest to reach a particular goal, for
instance, a college fund, retirement, a major holiday.
Once the investment goal has been reached, women are more
likely to 'protect' the fund rather than put it at risk
through further investment.

So what are the conclusions that can be drawn about
marketing financial products and services to high net worth
women:

1. Whilst products do not have to be marketed as a 'women
only' product, they do need to provide clear, comprehensive
information from which the individual can make an informed
choice. As many of the women will be making investment
choices without the benefit of advice from independent
advisors or tax specialists, everything produced must be
jargon free and in plain English. To support research,
information gathering and decision making processes,
provide an on line help desk or information line.
2. Build a relationship through education. Educate women
about financial matters that may concern them depending on
their age or lifestyle.
3. Develop products 'themed' around issues such as
'wedding', 'college fund', 'retirement' Encourage
continuing investment in multiple closed end funds
4. Women do hire personal trainers and are prepared to pay
for the personal touch. A 'financial coach' may be the
incentive a woman needs to invest in a particular product
or organisation.

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Pam Kennett and Crispin White are Directors of Chiswick
Consulting Limited, a management consultancy which provides
advice and direction to clients in marketing and human
resources. They have particular expertise working with
professional service companies. Contact them at
crispin@chiswickconsulting.com or
pam@chiswickconsulting.com or visit
http://www.chiswickconsulting.com for more information.