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I admit I’m guilty of missing more than a few thank you cards for gifts received over the years. Here it is, almost March, and my daughter’s thank you picture (she can’t write yet) to Grandma is still sitting on my desk waiting for me to put it in the mail. It will probably be there when the next Christmas gift shows up. I’m horrible role model when it comes to thank you letter etiquette.

Except in a career context.  

When it comes to managing a career I’m an etiquette convert, a lover of hand-written note cards, and a believer in the power of saying a proper thank you.

Hypocrisy? Maybe. I prefer to think of it as strategy.

In an age when you have to struggle to stand out and get noticed by employers, the best advice I can give you is to see where the herd is going and head the other direction. If everybody is looking online for jobs, focus your energy on finding opportunities through the people in your network. If “nobody” is writing thank you letters, the easiest way to stand out is to be the one who does.  In fact, the employers who attended the Career Fair this week told us:  “Follow up is key,” that students should “Always send a thank you,” and that it was vital to send that thank you promptly.

As you go through your college experience you will have many opportunities to stand out from the crowd by sending a brief, sincere, and hand-written thank you.  If you would like to be remembered by someone you interact with, sending a thank you card/note/letter will help you stick in their memory. A career fair employer you have a great conversation with deserves a thank you, as does a speaker who comes to your class that you really enjoyed. Anyone that you interview with or who gives you even a few minutes of their time to help you with your career direction should be thanked appropriately. It’s good practice, and if you do it regularly it gets easier and easier to come up with the right words.

Once students are convinced of the need for thank you letters there is always a discussion about e-mail vs. typed letters vs. the handwritten letter. There is a hierarchy to them, and I think you can guess which fits where. The hand-written note takes the most care, provides an opportunity to showcase personal style, and makes the longest lasting impression. I have a drawer full of thank you cards from students and professionals I’ve worked with over the years, and I remember every single one of their names. E-mails? Not so much. My recommendation is to think about whether expediency trumps the need to stand out. Sometimes speed is of the essence. But even a speedy e-mail can be followed by a proper hand-written note.

Resumes: Content Matters

The most common resume mistakes that I see on a daily basis are all related to content. Structure and format hang people up a lot, too, but even the most beautifully laid out resume in the world is useless without the content that makes an employer pay attention.

What can you do to ensure an employer wants to call you? Two things: show the employer you have the skills through the tasks you performed, and prove your abilities through the accomplishments you achieved.

I’ll show you what I mean.

Responsible for answering phones and filing.

A sentence like the above example doesn’t provide any context to understand the role you played in the organization. Passive phrasing like “responsible for” is too vague and doesn’t tell a story. What exactly did you do? What skills did you use? What can you do as a result of this experience that could translate to the next one? These are the kinds of things an employer wants to know.

Often I’ll ask a few questions about a student’s experience and find they did far more than answer phones and file, which generates multiple statements to showcase skills and accomplishments:

–Managed front desk operations for a busy office, handling multi-line phone system and calendars for four senior leaders
–Coordinated travel arrangements and tracked expenses using Excel
–Revamped filing system to improve efficiency and prevent lost client data

Passive phrases encourage you to merely list the duties of your position, rather than explain the skills gained as a result of that position (see also: Assisted with, helped with, and worked with). Students often use these phrases when they didn’t have sole responsibility over a task or project. You’ll need to reframe how you’re thinking about your experiences to get past this mindset:

–Think about what you can do now that you couldn’t do before you started that position.
–Consider the actions you took and the results of those actions.
–Describe your experiences so that they tell the story of your time with that organization and focus on the skills that the new employer is hiring for.

Don’t fear the action verbs! They jump off the page in a more dynamic way than passive, humdrum phrases like “responsible for.” The CES resume packet has a list of action verbs to help jump start your thinking about the tasks you did in your roles.

Do you need some help taking your “blah” language and making it more dynamic? CES offers resume critique appointments 5 days a week, with quick drop-in advising from 2-4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Bring your resume in and we can work with you to make it as strong as possible!

Ah, Spring. It’s coming! From the small strip of daylight allowing a peek at the mountains during my morning commute to the sight of students back on campus wearing t-shirts to celebrate the stretch of near-50 degree weather, the signs are everywhere. This is a time to celebrate, to rejoice, and to spruce things up.

For graduating seniors, it’s time to get focused and start thinking about what happens next.

We have some book suggestions to help you get started on a job search. The following are some of the best books we’ve found about conducting a job search in the current market, and all are available to check out in the CES Career Resource Library (in case you’d like your own copy, we’ve provided the links for purchase). Each has different strengths, but all provide solid guidance on conducting a search for a first professional position:

Get the Job You Want Even When No One’s Hiring

Publisher’s description: “Today’s job market is the toughest in recent history, and the challenges are here to stay. Even so, you CAN get the job you want – IF you discard conventional approaches to the search. Get the Job You Want, Even When No One’s Hiring is the ONLY career book that:

• Explains the special strategies necessary to land a job during an economic crisis
• Integrates comprehensive, practical tips on job search and career management
• Provides an extensive online “Job Search Survival Toolkit” to augment the book
• Addresses the realities of this job market with real-world, actionable steps
• Positions the downturn in the economy as an opportunity to develop a better career

In Get the Job You Want, Even When No One’s Hiring, career expert Ford R. Myers maps the new world of job search and reveals essential strategies for your success. You’ll learn how to seize opportunities that aren’t posted yet…how to make yourself an instant asset to potential employers…how to clearly stand-out as the best candidate…and how to leverage social media, blogs, and other Web tools.”

Can I Wear My Nose Ring to the Interview?

Publisher’s description: “A witty, friendly, unexpected job hunter’s bible that finally answers the real questions. Yes, if you’re wedded to your nose ring, wear it to the interview. No, you shouldn’t be e-mailing out hundreds of résumés. Writing with enormous authority and a compelling, lively voice, Ellen Reeves brings together her lifetime of experience of hiring, counseling, and résumé-doctoring into an essential guide for young job seekers.”

You Majored in What?

Publisher’s description: “In You Majored In What?, nationally known career counselor Dr. Katharine Brooks dispels the myths and the old-fashioned thinking that can make your transition to the “real world” so daunting and chaotic. Developed from more than twenty years of teaching and guiding students to successful careers, her Wise Wanderings career coaching system helps you mine your academic and life experiences for career gold through creative yet practical techniques including visual mapping, storytelling, and experimenting. Thanks to the Wise Wanderings system, you can forget what you’ve been told about the job search. You don’t have to know where you’ll be in ten years. You don’t have to have picked the perfect major. The job-finding process doesn’t have to be one more burden on your already overburdened schedule. All you have to do is pay attention. Embrace the chaos. Think. Create maps. Construct small experiments. Celebrate your education. Consider possible lives. Tell stories. And start wandering. Wisely, of course. You’ll be amazed at what’s waiting out there for you.”

Like any big project you do in college, gathering research materials is a great place to start. Feeling overwhelmed by the entire process? Check in with a career advisor to help you gain some perspective and get started on your professional job search.

Sometimes the best networking happens when you least expect it.

Saturday morning I was at a coffee shop in Gig Harbor looking for a spot to set up my laptop. Though not crowded, all of the “good” spots were taken – the comfy armchairs with the side tables to hold your coffee, away from the sun’s glare that renders the screen unreadable. The only spots left were at the bar facing the window that looked out on the street. Even with the sun obscured by cloud cover it was still too bright to read. Feeling defeated, I was thinking about leaving to find a dark, dank Starbucks.

A woman sitting at a small table in the corner saw me waffling and offered me a spot at her table saying she would be leaving soon anyway. I sat down gratefully and while setting up my techie gear we chatted. It turned out she was just laid off from her job the day before. She asked me what I do, and I enjoyed telling her, “I help people find jobs.” I explained my role here at Puget Sound working with college students. After being surprised by the absolute serendipity of our meeting, she asked me a million questions about things that were burning in her mind.

Her first question was pretty typical: did I know of any jobs in her field? I didn’t, of course – I work with students looking for entry-level positions, and she was at a senior career level. But she didn’t end our conversation there, as most people would have. She continued to ask questions about things someone in my role might know. What was going on in the job market? How had job search techniques changed? What advice did I have for someone looking for work in this economy? I couldn’t point her to specific openings, unfortunately, but I was able to help her with all of her other questions and our conversation ended on a very positive note. We exchanged cards, and even though I may not know of positions in her field, if I do hear of something, I will certainly contact her. After all – she gave me a seat at her table.

There were three things this woman did that made me want to help her:

• She showed genuine interest in me and the conversation was natural
• She didn’t stop the conversation when I didn’t have an answer to her first question
• She asked for the opportunity to stay connected by asking for my card

Students: keep this in mind as you go about your daily lives. There are times to be very deliberate about networking, say at an event like ASK Night, but more often than not, opportunities just present themselves at random moments. Networking happens every day, and an opportunity can crop up anywhere to make a new connection. You never know who you’re going to meet!

Not sure if you’re ready to attend ASK Night? You are! Here are some typical students we encourage to come to the event and some tips for success:

Which type sounds more like you?

I-Don’t-Have-A-Clue: This could be a first year student or a graduating senior, and they worry that they have to have made some clear decisions about their career path in order to start networking with people. But networking is a great tool for discovering what you want to do with your life, and what better place to start than with a group of people whose sole mission for the evening is to talk to students about the kind of work they do. A great opening line for these students? “I’m still gathering information about different career paths – what did you do to learn about different options?”

I-Can’t-Make-Up-My-Mind: This student has done some exploring and has some areas of interest, but can’t pick between them. That’s quite all right – many alumni can definitely relate! A great question for these students to ask? “I’m debating between a few different directions – how did you decide the right path for you?”

I’m-Scared-To-Talk-To-People: For these students an event like ASK Night is the perfect place to start. Consider it networking with training wheels. This is the only kind of networking event where the entire room of professionals is there simply to help students. Because they are alumni there is an automatic connection. Plus, CES staff will be on hand to help make introductions. A great tip for these students? Research beforehand and know who you’d like to meet, and then ask a CES staff member to help you approach them.

I’m-Ready! Let-Me-At-’Em: These students certainly know what they want! But often we see these same eager students walk away disappointed. Why? “There was nobody there representing my field/my target professional didn’t make it to the event.” We remind these students that networking is about making connections with a broad group of people because it’s not necessarily about what these folks do, but who they know.

Each person has a personal network of contacts and every interaction is an opportunity to tap into that group. For example, the Computer Science student who ends up talking to a Religion major might be surprised to find out that her husband’s sister works for a technology company. Also, all alumni have been in the same spot current students are – they can share their stories of navigating a job search. A great suggestion for these students? Talk to everybody, show sincere interest in them as people, and let them know what your goals are.

Actually, all of these tactics are useful no matter where you are in your career search. Whether you’re still trying to figure out what your options are, or you are actively engaged in a job search, you can get something of value from ASK Night. We hope to see you there!

What is networking? The basic definition, in a professional context, explains networking as any interaction that connects you with others.  It is the most important tool in your professional toolbox, and developing connections has the best return on investment of any career-related activity. Despite that, many people resist networking because they feel uncomfortable asking people for help. To combat this discomfort, the best strategy is to develop your network before you need it:

Networking is not something you do when you need a new job or promotion or new client. It is not something you can buy, beg, borrow, or steal when you need it. It must be part of your life and activities as an ambitious, success-oriented young person. You can’t build strong relationships overnight.
~Lindsey Pollak, Getting From College To Career

There are three key parts of networking:

1.  Making connections:  You can network anywhere and there are opportunities at every turn to meet people who might be helpful for your career. There are many ways to find these people, such as attending events on campus where alumni are present (ASK Night, Health Professions Night, etcetera) or using tools like LinkedIn and other social networking sites.

2. Building relationships: The next step in networking is to deepen a relationship by connecting with professionals in person on a one-on-one level. Informational interviews are an excellent way to accomplish this goal.

3. Maintaining relationships: Take this beyond merely sending a thank you card after an informational interview, but also work on maintaining that connection over time. This is where the give and take of the relationship comes in, and is what will transform someone from a casual acquaintance to someone who is a reliable part of your network.

Watch for future posts where we’ll break down each part of networking into easy steps.

Could you explain who you are and what you have to offer to an employer in just 15 seconds? Have you ever had to introduce yourself to a stranger and found yourself stumbling through the process? Welcome to the club – many people find this intimidating. It’s natural to be nervous.

And yet, it’s a skill we all need to learn. Even the most silver-tongued of people have difficulty talking about themselves off the cuff in professional situations without preparation and practice. 

For years people have been talking about the “elevator pitch,” a term that came into vogue when the internet was new and web development companies were searching for capital. Companies that could explain themselves in a simple pitch were more likely to get funding. The best pitches were those that explained their business during a short elevator ride with potential investors. Essentially, these companies had to describe and sell an idea in 30-seconds or less. The same concept is applied to careers when meeting potential employers or networking contacts. 

There are a variety of situations where you could use an elevator pitch. Career Fairs and networking events are obvious places, but the “pitch” is useful almost anytime you need to introduce yourself to a stranger, like at a conference, a meeting, or even standing in line at the grocery store. The key is adjusting your pitch to your audience.  For instance, imagine you’re at the Career Fair and you have an interest in a particular field. You might try introducing yourself like this: 

Hello, my name is ______ and I’m a junior Comparative Sociology major. I’m interested in building on my experience and interest in environmental sustainability with an internship in an environmentally-friendly organization. I noticed that the summary about your organization in the Career Fair booklet mentions that you are focused on conservation with an emphasis on the Pacific Northwest. Can you tell me a little bit more about that?

Or, say you meet an alumna at an event on campus who works at an organization you find interesting. You might try this:

Hello, my name is _____ and I’m a senior Theater Arts major. I’ve been involved with Student Theater Productions for two years and I’m interested in learning more about professional roles in organizations that support the arts. What do you enjoy about the work that you do for ______ organization?

See? It’s just a conversation starter, but one most people would struggle to get out effectively when on the spot. With a small amount of preparation and practice, you too can impress the potential employers and networking contacts you meet.

Not sure how to get started? There is a solution! Below is a great tool to help you develop a coherent pitch in just five minutes. The 15-Second Pitch will walk you through the steps to create a brief pitch you can use at the career fair or tailor for any kind of situation.

Appearance is the one thing you have complete control over in a job interview. While facial jewelry is more common these days, it still isn’t universally accepted, so wearing anything outside of the norm is taking a risk. Some employers will react negatively; some won’t even notice. Only you can decide if it is worth the risk.

So how do you decide? It all boils down to knowing your audience. Research the organization you’re interviewing with: Do they have a dress code policy on their website? What image do they project to the public? Do you know people who work there who you could ask about appropriate interview attire? Organizations who deal directly with the public tend to be more concerned about the image projected, and therefore more concerned with what their employees wear.

If in doubt about a visible piercing, consider removing it for the first-round interview and see if you get a second interview. If it’s that important to you, ask if it would be acceptable in the organization’s culture. If it isn’t, you’ll have the opportunity to weigh that piece of information in your decision-making process without getting yourself eliminated for a superficial reason up front.

Still have questions about what to wear (or what not to wear) to an interview or the Career Fair? “Is my beard too long?”  “Is my skirt too short?” Experts say that for most interview situations “dressing for success” still means presenting a traditionally acceptable (conservative) appearance. For more tips on this topic visit the CES Guide to Professional Style.

Also, CES can give you personalized advice about your outfit from an interviewer’s point of view. Call 253.879.3161 and make an appointment to wear (or bring) your outfit and have it critiqued.

Still looking for a job this fall? Despite what you hear in the news, there are jobs to be had. One of the challenges is that employers may not advertise the opportunities in ways that many students traditionally think to look for them. The Part-Time Job Board resource located outside the CES office and online job boards are great places to start, but don’t stop there – dig deeper!

What businesses do you frequent? They might be hiring. Do you hang out at Farrelli’s? Shop at the Tacoma Mall or Target? Buy your toilet paper at Costco? If you’re new to the area check out the business directories for the neighborhoods closest to campus: 6th Avenue, Proctor District, Downtown Tacoma, and Old Town.

Don’t just wait for a position to appear on an organization’s website, be proactive. Go down and talk to somebody in person!  When you go in, ask for the manager or the hiring authority. Bring a resume and be prepared to fill out an application on-site (bring a list of your employment history with supervisor contact information and pay rates). Put your most professional foot forward by dressing neatly (clean, pressed, and shined) and showing confidence and enthusiasm.

There is a lot of competition out there, but opportunities do exist. You’ll just have to dig deeper to find them. At CES we keep our part-time job board stocked with opportunities we receive from employers and through our own digging, but making an in-person connection might alert you to opportunities that haven’t been advertised. For more tips, check out our resource on finding part-time, summer and seasonal jobs.

Good luck, and know that CES is here to help you with every step in the process, from brainstorming places that might use your skills to developing a great resume – and get ready to roll up your sleeves and dig!

True confession time:  my first resume was awful.

I used a Word template (like millions of others – not exactly a way to stand out), my job descriptions were vague (“assisted with…”, “responsible for…”), and I had massive amounts of white space because I thought I could only include paid experience. When I look at it now I have to fight the urge to take out the red pen and edit. I’ve kept every draft of my resumes over the years, partly because it’s kind of funny to see how bad they were, but mostly to see how they’ve improved.

A resume isn’t a static document that you can check off a list and say “whew – that’s done!” The document will always be in a state of flux because it’s not meant to be a history of your experience. A resume is a marketing tool, a representation of what you have to offer an employer right now. What you include on your resume will vary because you need to tailor your experience towards the requirements of the individual job you are applying for.

Everybody’s resume has to start somewhere.  Just like with any paper you want to do well on, you need to write a draft to get your ideas out. Think of your first attempts at writing a resume as a rough draft. It will get better, and stronger, as you flesh out statements and learn how to format and organize the document according to a commonly accepted set of basic standards. This is part of the learning process. CES has a thorough resume guide to help you get started, but you will need to go through several rounds of reviewing and gathering feedback before your resume becomes the tool that will best represent you to prospective employers.

The Career Fair is at the end of the month and provides a perfect excuse to get started on crafting a resume.  Here at CES we have daily drop in hours from 2-4 p.m., and appointments are available from 8-5 p.m., five days a week. We can help you take your basic resume and turn it into one that is far from awful, and just might impress employers!