Job Tips, Articles and Career Ideas

Resume Mistakes to Avoid

March 3, 2009 By Terry Leave a Comment

Looking for a part time job, your first job or ready to start a new career, your resume speaks volumes about you. If your resume doesn’t make it past the first cut, you’re doomed; no matter how qualified you are. Below are ten common mistakes to avoid when putting your resume together. Remember, you only get one chance to make a good first impression.

1. Multiple pages – You need to be concise. Keep it to one page and one page only. If you can’t highlight your talents on one page, you’re giving the message that you are unorganized and tend to go on and on.

2. Fancy paper – If your skills don’t speak for themselves, then your fancy paper isn’t going to make a bit of difference.

3. Fancy font – Same as above. Don’t try to set yourself apart with a different font on your resume. Set yourself apart by being uniquely qualified.

4. Irrelevant info – No one really cares that you were a singing waiter if you’re applying for an accountant job.

5. Outdated information – Does it matter than you had a newspaper route and were on the high school cheer leading squad 24 years ago? No, not in the least. Leave it off.

6. Typos and misspellings – You would think this is an obvious one, but you’d be amazed at the number of resumes received with big blaring mistakes.

7. Falsified information –Greatly elaborated credentials are the same as lies. Do not list diplomas, certifications, affiliations or awards that you did not earn. Just don’t do it. It’ll come back to bite you in the butt.

8. Attachments – At the resume stage do not send any attachments, whatsoever. If you are granted an interview, at that time you could bring in whatever it is you’re so hot to get into the selecting official’s hands. The person accepting the resumes will likely just throw it in the round file.

9. Elaborating too much – Place of employment, job title and brief, very brief description of job responsibilities are all you need. Don’t complete a whole paragraph for each job you’ve held.

10. No cover letter – Writing a good cover letter is a bit of an art. However, any cover letter is better than none. Just keep the same principles in mind with your letter: Brevity, relevant and free from typos.

If you can avoid these simple ten resume mistakes, you’re more than half way there to getting an interview. Once you have your foot in the door you can really shine for the boss. If you don’t make it past the first cut, due to any of the above fatal mistakes, your beautiful resume will be used to wipe up coffee spills or will be added to the recycle pile! Don’t let that happen to you. And if you would like some professional help along the way you might want to check out ResumeEdge. ResumeEdge Resume Builder now only $29.99

Job articles for teens and students

Job Search Tips on Entry-Level Jobs

March 1, 2009 By Terry Leave a Comment

For many adults, aiming for a higher position at once is the key to their job search success. However, for some people to succeed in the job market, they have to start from scratch. This is especially true when a young adult is just starting out or a teen is seeking their first job. This means that people who want to grow positively in the working world need to first learn the basics and fundamental principles of working.

Because of its nature, entry-level jobs are often characterized by lower salary, require physical work, and sometimes need field work. More often than not entry-level jobs pay a lower hourly rate and the job may or may not include benefits such as vacation time and medical insurance. While these added benefits are nice each of us must start somewhere and this is especially true when speaking of jobs for teens.

What’s more, most entry-level jobs are on a part-time basis. Examples of entry-level jobs are receptionist, apprenticeship, those who are working in a fast food restaurant, customer service, cashiers, etc.

Contrary to popular belief, entry-level jobs should not be ignored. What people do not realize is that entry-level jobs offer more than just low wages. These jobs are the foundation of all other positions available in the job market.

In most cases, people who start to work on higher positions right after they graduate from college are easily bored from their work. What is even worse, there is no room available for personal growth and career advancement.

Entry-level jobs are the stepping-stone to success in careers. So, for people who wish to grow and be promoted to a higher position, here are some tips that they can use:

1. Workers who are in the entry-level position should show enthusiasm, efficiency, caring, and love for his work.

2. They should master their skills and hone their craft.

3. They should be an expert on customer service.

4. They should know how to impress a customer who happens to be seeking an employee who knows optimum customer service.

These are just a few of the qualities that must be employed by an entry-level worker in order to advance to a higher position. And once he reaches the top, he knows that work is definitely something worth valuing for.

Job articles for teens and students

Filed Under: Job Tips, Articles and Career Ideas Tagged With: entry level, job search, jobs, jobs for teens, teens jobs

Tips on Jobs for Teens

February 28, 2009 By Terry Leave a Comment

If, like most teens, you’re looking for a little extra cash for the movies, dating or shopping at the mall – or for something larger like a car or college – you’ve probably thought about getting a job. Getting a job as a teen can be a great way to build up your resume and demonstrate your reliability and dependability to colleges and future employers. But before you embark on the glamorous lifestyle of hairnets and fast food, take the time to learn about the process of getting a job and decide whether or not it’s right for you.

Before you start looking for a job, you’ve got to find out if you can legally work as a teen. Every state has child labor laws, which may limit the jobs you can do, based on your age, and the number of hours you can work during the school year or summer break. In most cases, you’ll be required to fill out a student work permit in order to work as a teen. Check with your school or local government office for more information.

You’ve also got to consider whether or not you can handle a job on top of your regular commitments. It’s hard to work as a teen. When you get a job, you’re expected to show up for your shifts, whether you’ve got a big exam the next day or a big date scheduled for the same night. You’ve got to go to work when you don’t feel like it, and you’ve got to keep up with your nightly homework on top of everything. Be realistic with yourself – if you’re already struggling to keep your grades up, a part-time job probably isn’t best for you.

If you’re state laws allow you to legally work, it’s time to start looking for a job. If you’ve got friends who are already working, ask them which employers are good to work for and which ones aren’t. Search your local newspaper for part-time listings or walk into your favorite businesses and ask if they’re hiring. It’s best to apply for lots of jobs, including ones you want and ones you’d just be okay with, since you won’t get every job you apply for. Always look your best and be polite with everyone you talk to when you’re applying for jobs.

If an employer is interested in you, you may be called in for an interview. Interviews can be scary, but you can do a little preparation ahead of time to be ready. Most employers will want to know what you think are your strengths and weaknesses, what interests you in the position and what kind of schedule you’ll be able to keep. Never, ever lie to the interviewer, but be realistic with your answers. Remember, the goal of the interview is to find out if you’re a good match for the job.

If you’re offered a job, you’ll probably also talk about your schedule and the amount of money you’ll be paid. You’ll get an introduction to the business and be briefed on what your responsibilities will be. Pay close attention during your training and speak up if you have any questions. If there’s anything you feel uncomfortable with, let your manager know – you may be able to take on other tasks instead.

Check in with yourself regularly once you start working. If you feel overwhelmed, talk to your manager and see if you can reduce your hours or change the nights that you work. However, you’ve got to respect that your manager has his/her own needs in running the business and may not be able to accommodate you. If not, you may need to find another job. If your grades are slipping, it’s time to seriously consider whether you should be working or not. You can always make a little extra money with odd jobs like babysitting and yard work that you can do on your own time.

And speaking of the extra money, why not put some of it into a savings account? Sure, spend a little on a new pair of jeans, but by setting a little aside for more important things, you’ll be developing financial skills that will help you tremendously as an adult.

Job articles for teens and students

Filed Under: Job Tips, Articles and Career Ideas Tagged With: job search, jobs for teens, teens jobs

Writing an Entry Level Resume

February 25, 2009 By Terry Leave a Comment

Are you a teen or young person searching for your first job or perhaps a new job? Then you will need a resume. A resume is nothing more than a statement about your past skills and knowledge, but formatted into an easy to read way.

Just as for adults in your search for teens jobs a resume is your personal business card. A resume gives you the chances to write everything good about yourself – this may be one of the only few times socially it is acceptable to brag.

Skip using the pre-formatted templates in Microsoft Word or any other kind of desktop publishing software suite. These resumes focus too much just on what you ‘did’ at work versus what you can do.

You want your resume to be a complete reflection about you. A lot of times these resumes in Word leave very little room for you to talk about your outside personal life. What other kinds of activities do you spend a lot of time in? This helps expand upon what you really know and does not just define the kinds of technical tasks you did at your last place of employment.

Here is an incomplete list of tips you can use to create a quick effective resume without pulling your hair out.

Top 1. Put your name in bold and in 16 point font in the very top of the page and center it. Your name is your headline like in a newspaper.

Tip 2. Put your contact information right your name including an email address now. Many employers or recruiters rely on email to send information or request resumes.

Tip 3. Write an objective. This area seems to be one of the toughest for people to wrap their minds around. Your objective should be about a simple 10-word sentence or less. What kind of job are you applying for? Are you applying for a teaching assistant at your local school district? Then just write: “Position as a teaching assistant at Wilson Elementary.”

This lets the employer know you are specifically seeking employment with them and also it personalizes your resume. It is specific to them. They are not on some mailing list of 100 other places you sent your resume out to. That is known as a broadcast mailing.

Tip 4. Open up a clean Word document. Now, begin brainstorming everything and anything you have ever done in the past including jobs, volunteer opportunities, vacations, schools, classes, and so on.

You are looking for certain skills that may be useful to your potential new employer through your various experiences. Your experiences are proof that, yes, you can do such and such.

Previous Experience: You played the piano for 7 years while a kid and now want to get a job as an executive assistant.

Skill: You learned how to type in grade school at the same time and have the ability to move your fingers rapidly across the keywords. You can type 75 words per minute. This is a skill backed by proof through experience that you can do what you say you can.

Tip 5. Spell check, spell check, spell check. There’s nothing worse off than sending a resume to an employer without combing through your resume with a fine-tooth-comb.

Ask 3 or 4 friends and relatives to read over it. Also, take a break from your resume mentally for two or three days. When you take a break and look back at it later, there are many things that will jump right out at you that you wouldn’t have noticed before. Maybe you need to change the way something sounds or you think of new ideas to add.

Your resume is a living, working document. When it comes to job hunting, look at the description of the job. Is there a skill you can honestly perform that is listed in the description? Write that into your resume and use a few of their words. By using their language you are giving them exactly what they want and your chances of getting the job are higher.

If you would would like some professional help in writing that resume ResumeEdge has a special offer that you might want to check out. ResumeEdge Resume Builder now only $29.99

Filed Under: Resume Writing Tagged With: entry level, job search, resume, Resume Writing

Apprenticeships A Great Way To Learn

February 25, 2009 By Terry Leave a Comment

As teens and young adults just starting out in the job world we soon discover that learning a new, highly skilled profession requires an in-depth, hands-on, committed training experience. This is where the process of apprenticeship occurs. It fills-in the training gap in those places where supervision is needed and provides hands-on help and a solid understanding of how a specific process works. Apprenticeship is one of the most successful methods any person can use to develop new skills, especially in a highly technical craft.

For example, you don’t become an electrician by pulling a few wires off your remote control car and hooking them up to the light switch in your house. Instead, you apprentice under an electrical expert to learn the most valuable, safest method for working with electricity.

So what is apprenticeship? It generally includes full-time, on-the-job experience where you actually learn to do “a job” while performing the required tasks. In this “hands-on” environment, you are placed under the oversight of a skilled trainer or journey-worker. A big benefit of on-the-job apprenticeship is having an income while you learn. At the same time you can also receive detailed training by taking specific, technical classes that are directly related to your new occupation. This training is often in-addition to your normal job duties, so be prepared for a large time investment.

By focusing heavily on hands-on work experience and detailed classroom study, long term success is the usual result for anyone truly dedicated to their occupation. Apprenticeship programs create some of the most highly-skilled, highly-paid individuals who work at their jobs anywhere in the world.

In fact, this method of training may be the oldest form of learning anywhere. Certainly it was used even by early Americans, including George Washington (surveyor), Benjamin Franklin (printer), and Paul Revere (silversmith). Actually, Congress enacted the National Apprenticeship Act in 1937. They did this to recognize the importance of apprenticeship in developing highly skilled workers in various trades, including manufacturing, public utilities, and construction. Later apprenticeship grew to include fire, police, safety, and other emergency related occupations.

Today, there are hundreds of different occupational apprenticeship programs and categories in and around the United States. Each state oversees and administers the specifics of their own program, but they are federally approved. Once you complete an apprenticeship training program, you will get an apprenticeship certificate which is recognized nationwide. It is also the credential you will find the most useful and portable within most industries around the country.

But apprenticeship isn’t for the faint of heart. Even before your job and classroom training, you will have to apply, and you may have to wait until positions and opportunities are available. In fact, some programs may have waiting lists or they may only accept new applicants at specific times throughout the year.

Although apprenticeship is a fantastic occupational learning opportunity, it is not an option to be pursued lightly. Weigh your options and make an educated decision about the time and other commitments, before you jump into an apprenticeship program.

Job articles for teens and students

Filed Under: Job Tips, Articles and Career Ideas Tagged With: apprenticeships, job search, job training

Helping the Teen or Young Adult Find a Job

February 25, 2009 By Terry Leave a Comment

If you’re the parent of a pre-teen or teenager, helping them get their first job is one of the first steps toward maturity and personal responsibility. Here are seven ways you can ensure that their job hunt is a rewarding one.

1. First, work with your teen to come up with a list of personal strengths and things they enjoy doing. If they enjoy working with children and animals or love the outdoors, make a note of those items. Any seemingly small and insignificant item can lead to ideas for potential jobs.

2. Take your child’s schedule and commitments into consideration. How will your teen get to and from their workplace? What other school activities are they involved with? Will they have enough time to study, work AND socialize? (Yes parents’, socializing is a natural and necessary part of being a teen – you know what they say about all work and no play!)

3. Make sure your child is aware of all the finer points of a successful job application. Good personal grooming and hygiene, as well as clear communication skills and a firm handshake, can go a long way in making a good first impression.

4. Check out the free information at Job Search Teens or invest in a good job-hunting guide that includes résumé examples and potential interview questions. Role-play the part of the interviewer with your teen and give them tips on how to answer specific questions that a prospective employer might ask. Even though this is their first job application, work with them to create a professional-looking résumé. You can (and are encouraged to) include items such as academic or athletic awards they’ve won, special honors, extracurricular activities and relevant skills and interests. Employers know that not everyone, especially a teenager, has a résumé overflowing with job experience, which is where after school activities, clubs and special skills come in.

5. Work with your child to come up with a list of potential job contacts. Do you know anyone in your workplace that could use some summer or entry-level help? Does your child have friends whose parents work in a particular business? Look through the newspaper classifieds for specific jobs that might appeal to a teen such as babysitting, lawn care, dog walking and so on.

6. If your teen has a marked interest in a specific activity or pastime, see if that fondness can be incorporated into a job somewhere. For example, if your teen loves to cook, encourage them to apply for a position as an entry-level chef. If they enjoy computers, consider nudging them in the direction of a clerical/office or computer sales and service job.

7. After making an inventory of skills and possible contacts, have your child call to inquire about potential job openings. After the interview, have them follow up with a “thank you” note or a call if they don’t hear anything from the prospective employer within a week or so.

Search for jobs in your area on SnagAJob.com

If you keep these tips in mind, you’ll ensure that your teen not only has a successful job hunting experience, but also receives the confidence, encouragement and skills necessary to take that all-important first step into the working world. Good luck!

Job articles for teens and students

Filed Under: Parents Guide to Helping Teen Tagged With: helping.teen, job search, jobs for teens, jobs young adults, parents, teens jobs, young adult