What Should I Include?

“I’m confused. What’s more important to include in a resume: an objective or a summary? Is it better to include references or say they’re available upon request? Is it smarter to name prominent people (I know a few) as my references or list people who really know me? It is wiser to include all my years of experience or just my best years?”

No wonder you’re confused, you’re all options and no answers. Let’s sort through the possibilities one at a time.

Include an objective. It’s the lead story on your resume. It states the name of the job you seek. You don’t need to include a summary. It’s redundant: your resume is a summary.

Don’t attach a list of references to your resume. If you’re asked to provide references, immediately comply, and just as quickly, call your references with a heads-up description of the job you’re seeking, the name of the company, and the person likely to call.

About those references who just happen to be “prominent people”: Include them if you have reported directly to them, they valued your work, and they agreed to serve as references for you. Employers are interested in your skill sets and strengths; what you’ve accomplished that is relevant to what they need you to do for them. Your most effective references are those best suited to realistically describe your abilities: when, where, and under what circumstances you’ve been successful. Your least effective references are those who don’t have first hand knowledge of your abilities but support your candidacy as a personal or professional favor. Before providing names, be sure you have your references’ permission; be sure they fully understand the job you seek and are supportive of your ability to get it done.

When writing a resume, should you include all your years or your best years? Like them or not, highlight the last fifteen years of your work experience, focus on your most recent responsibilities and bullet point and quantify your accomplishments. No matter how memorable your earlier achievements, they’re history to a prospective employer. State them but don’t elaborate upon them.

“Should my objective be specific or general? And which resume format is better, the reverse chronological or the functional?”

Be specific when responding to a posting or want ad and be sure that your experience and your accomplishments warrant your application.

There are three types of resumes: Chronological, Functional, and Targeted. Chronological resumes begin with your most recent work history, and in reverse order highlight up to fifteen years of work experience. Functional resumes focus on skills and strengths rather than chronology. Targeted resumes are customized and highlight specific experiences relevant to the job to which you are applying. Employers prefer targeted/reverse chronological resumes because they clearly present what you’ve done, when you’ve done it and how successful you were at it.

“Should I follow up with employers after I’ve forwarded my resume or wait to hear from them? Should I follow up with employers after I’ve interviewed or wait to hear from them? And what should I say?”

If employers have requested your resume it’s appropriate to call and confirm they have received it; to ask if they need additional information and to answer any preliminary questions they may have of you.

It is appropriate to follow an interview with a call thanking employers for the opportunity to meet, to reinforce your interest in the job, and to ask if there are any additional questions they have of you or information they need from you. One good follow up call and you’re a strategist. More than one and you’re a nuisance.

The Best of Intentions

The best of intentions can result in unintended consequences. For example:

Mister Fixer: You may be their manager but they think of you as the company handyman. You encourage them to come to you with their problems because you can fix anything. You wear your tool belt to work, at home, and in public gatherings. No matter the situation, you have the solution. What can go wrong? It’s not much fun when your co-workers, friends, and neighbors start handing all their work to you, assuming you want to do it for them. They’ll stop shirking responsibility when you stop inviting them to.

You’re everyone’s shrink. You’re the warmest, most comforting listener in the business. Your eyes mist over as you hear your employees’ woes and worries, hopes and desires. You really, really, really want to be there for them. What can go wrong? You can’t get a lick of work done for all that listening. If the situation isn’t an emergency, and it seldom is, defer the conversation to a more suitable time. And don’t be surprised or disappointed when that needy employee finds someone else to talk to.

You can’t say, “No” You have an endless capacity to do for others. You also have an endless need to be approved by others. Instead of saying “no” when your plate’s spilling over, you’re answering with the emotional equivalent of “pile it on, I’ll get a bigger platter.” What can go wrong? You get buried in other people’s projects and you’re still at work long after they’ve gone home. Get a life! You’ll be more productive and so will they.

You don’t ask questions. You figure that if you keep your eyes open and your mouth shut no one will know what you don’t know and you’ll keep your job. What can go wrong? Employers want employees who speak up and let them know when there’s trouble afoot. Be bold, step out of your shadow, ask questions, get answers, and be a visible, audible, stand up member of your team.

You can’t be bothered. You’re busy doing your job and you can’t be bothered with other people’s problems. What can go wrong? This one has “blindside” written all over it. Take time, every day, to find out what’s going on around you so you’ll know if you need to be part of the solution, instead of part of the problem.

“I’m smarter than you are”. You have a habit of letting everyone know you’re the smartest person in the room. What can go wrong? No one cares if you’re smart when you make everyone else feel dumb.  Since the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, and you’re just one of the parts, learn how to bring out the best parts in others.

“I didn’t know it was due today and I don’t know how to do it so will you do it for me?” You’ve turned helpless irresponsibility into a virtue only you value. What can go wrong? Your future. If you don’t know how to do something, find out, learn how, practice it, and teach it to someone else. If you’re the last one to discover what everyone else knows, meet with your boss, talk with your co-workers; ask questions, confirm assumptions, and share ideas.

“That’s not my job.” This is my job. That’s your job. Don’t touch my job with your job ‘cause you’ll mess up my job. I get paid to do my job. I don’t get paid to do your job. What is your job? Don’t tell me, I don’t want to know. What can go wrong? What part of TEAM don’t you understand?

I Can’t Leave — Part 2

Last week’s column focused on an unhappy, conflicted employee who feels unappreciated and undervalued. She wants to quit her current job, hoping to get more of what she needs somewhere else and she’s afraid that if she leaves, she won’t succeed.

She dislikes being invisible even as she stands in the shadows. She wants more pay and promotions yet is satisfied with a no-risk job in a low risk setting because it allows her to “not have to do any more than I want to.”

Her self-perception is that she’s a strong contributor who adds value. Others experience her as doing as little as possible and getting by as best she can. They see no reason for her to advance or to pay her more to do what is seen as average effort. They are willing to continue her employment because she doesn’t cause problems and doesn’t generate complaints.

Why bother to tell the story? Because she, like many others, are at the cusp of being shocked by a rude awakening. Being average, middling, run of the mill, is not going to be good enough. There are too many employees and soon-to-be’s who are willing and wanting to do more and learn more, challenge and be challenged, and they’re elbowing out change-resisting sub-par performers who will have difficulty finding other jobs that pay as well, benefits that do as much, and employers as willing to pay for yesterday’s performance on today’s jobs.

She says that all she wants is that “people miss me when I’m away, smile when I return, and say ‘thank you’ at the end of the day.” She wants to know “is that asking too much?”

It’s not asking too much unless she’s asking that the workplace replace the security of family, co-workers provide the intimacy of friendship, and courtesy continue as the coin of the realm. She may be disappointed about the first two. The third, courtesy, should be an expectation that continues to be extended and met, consistently, and over time, by everyone, no matter the job, the workplace, or the employer.

She asks for employers who will “tell me what to do, tell me I’m doing it well, and tell me I’m appreciated for it.”

Today’s employers need to set specific expectations, offer specialized training, provide semi-annual performance reviews and give just in time feedback. These employers also need to step back and allow the employee time to demonstrate competency in order to objectively determine if the employee is progressing, developing, and readying him or herself for this and the next opportunity.

Employees need to ask for and be open to feedback. They need to challenge themselves to do more than just enough; to learn more than what’s adequate; and to develop in areas that will be strategic assets not just tactical improvements.

Employees who want pay increases demonstrate their ability to add value. Employees who want promotions demonstrate their ability and desire to manage calculated risks, lead change, and accept accountability for the results.

As difficult as it may be to hear, “What have you done for me lately? ” is the mantra of most employers. What you did yesterday, last week, or last year, is history. What you can do for me today, tomorrow, and six months from now is the currency that’s in demand.

Nice is good. Nice people fit in. Nice people achieve and advance when they combine their good will, respectful responses, and team-oriented behaviors with tactical know-how, strategic insights, and action- to- goal focus that results in wins for the company and for all stakeholders invested in the outcome.

I Can’t Leave – Part 1

“I’ve had it with this company. They don’t appreciate me. This may be a dumb thing to do because I don’t have another job to go to, but I’m leaving here and everyone knows why.”

It may be a dumb thing to do. Before you get all riled up at my response, I didn’t say you’re dumb. I’m just repeating what you said to me. Here’s what else I heard you say: You give considerably more than you get. You’re tired of waiting for acknowledgment and you want to leave. You’re so frustrated you’ll take the leap without knowing where you’ll land and you’ve made that clear to a number of people. Did I get all that right?

“That sounds stronger than I meant it to be. I’m not really leaving. I’m just thinking about it. “

And you’ve told many people how you feel?

“Maybe a few. Or more. But I don’t think they take me seriously. At least I hope not! I’ve been talking like this for a long time but I’ve never done anything about it.”

What have you told them you want from your company?
“I want to be taken seriously. I want my boss to say I make a difference and I’m worth more than he pays me. I’m tired of being invisible.”

What will you do to become more visible and taken more seriously at another company? How will you ensure that you are appropriately valued and compensated?

“I don’t know. I haven’t thought about it. I just know it’s not happening here. I get minimal increases and no promotions. I’ve been here a long time. I’m reporting to people I’ve trained. People with half my experience are getting paid twice as much as I am. I’m being taken advantage of and everyone here knows it. They even ask me why I stay.”

What do you say?

“ I don’t know. Maybe I’m comfortable and I’ve been here a long time and the people are nice. Maybe it’s because I know my job, I can work from home if I need to and I don’t have to do more than I want to.

You just described why you stay; yet you want to leave. Why don’t you?

“I don’t want to start over. I don’t want to compete with younger people and sharp elbows, I don’t want managers who want to advance more than they want to fit in, managers who put pressure on employees to do things differently even though we’re comfortable doing it the old way.

I want someone to tell me what to do, tell me I’m doing it well, and tell me I’m appreciated. Then I want them leave me alone to get my job done. That’s all I want.”

What do you want to be appreciated for having done?

“I don’t cause problems and I don’t waste time. I don’t ask others to do my job for me and I’m not out for myself. I don’t gossip, I don’t use bad language, I don’t speak harshly about my co-workers to their face or behind their backs.”

It sounds like you’re a nice person doing an average job in an average way. You want to feel like you belong and you have a future with your company. Do you deserve that raise and do you want that promotion?

“It would be nice. But I don’t want that promotion…too much responsibility. I just want people to miss me when I’m gone, smile when I ‘m back and say thank you. Is that asking too much?”

That’s a good question. Let’s talk more about it next week…

Focus on What Works

When preparing for interviews, focus on what works:

Research works. Going on line, reviewing web sites, learning content, outlining questions, works. Reading business news and trade papers, learning who’s expanding and consolidating, hiring and firing, competing and winning or falling behind are essential need-to know because research works.

Practice works. Field questions from anyone willing to help. Answer questions that come out of left field. Answer out loud, from your head and your gut, and tell a truth that’s as succinct as it is straightforward. Ask questions because there’s more to learn than what you know; find out what it is. You’re the expert of what you do best; they’re expert on what they need most. Tell your story and ask about theirs.

Positive attitudes work. Enlist the support of friends and family who are as positive about your abilities as they are optimistic about your future. Volunteer where you believe in the value of what you do and your ability to make a difference. Socialize with people who have an abundance mentality that builds others up and believe that it’s possible to succeed.

Healthy minds and bodies work. Exercise. Eat what’s good for you; drink what nourishes you; learn what expands you; and teach what invigorates you.

Focus works: Clear your mind, your desk, and your life of minor distractions, clutter, and static, and find true north by identifying what it is you like to do and do well. Then keep doing it.

Align what you think with how you act. Think positively and your body language will go along for the ride: Smile, initiate, invite, include, encourage and enable the best in others by looking and acting like you mean it.

Align what you say with what you think. Remember the carpenter’s rule and measure twice, cut once. Figure out what you want to say before you say it. If you believe you can do a job, because you have in the past, you like doing it, and you do it well, say so. If you believe that you can do more than you have in the past, say so, and say what that means for the employer willing to hire you.

Networking works. Get out there and talk to people about your job search. Tell them what you’re looking for and be specific. Talk about how you can make a difference for the company that hires you, and be specific. Go to leads meetings, job search networking meetings, Chamber meetings, Merchants Association meetings, and after work networking meetings. When your networking is focused and intentional, it works and so will you.

A focused resume works. A good resume begins with an objective that clearly states the job you want and follows with a reverse chronological outline of fact based, quantifiable, historical information that supports your objective. A good resume offers evidence of your competence in succinct and well chosen words that demonstrate you can do the job you seek and you can do it very, very well.

Good references work. Contact people you’ve worked for and describe the specific job you want. Ask for their perspective on the direction you’re taking. If they’re in full agreement, positive, and enthusiastic, sign them up. They’ll be good references and strong links in your job search network. On the flip side, if they’re non-committal or hesitant in their responses, probe to learn why. They may see something you’re missing or miss something you’re saying. Take note and adjust accordingly. If you have to step back and reassess, do it. Focus on what works.

She’s the Best

Want to be the best at what you do?

“She’s the best boss I’ve had because she’s as open-minded as she is clear about expectations. I always know where I stand with her because she’s willing to tell me the truth in ways that I understand. She’s never hurtful, always constructive, and trusts my ability to learn and grow on the job.”

“He’s the best manager I’ve had because he keeps us informed and encourages us to do the same with him. We don’t have to be concerned about personal agendas or blindsiding when working with him; it’s always about what’s best for the organization, and because of that, we get on board quickly when transitioning through change.”

“She’s one of the best leaders I’ve had the pleasure to follow. Change is the name of the game here, and we know that whatever direction we head, she’ll be focused on the end-in-mind. Because of that, and her sure-footedness, we’re lined up with her.”

“He’s a great supervisor. He knows what he knows and as importantly, he knows what he doesn’t know, and empowers those of us with complementary capacities to step up, close the gap, and work together to move us toward successful outcomes.”

“He’s really a youngster when compared to the rest of us on his work team, but he can teach us old war-horses a thing or two when it comes to optimism, energy, and a can-do attitude. He’s a great team builder, respectful of the intelligence and wisdom of his seniors and at the same time able to motivate us to achieve more than we have or thought ourselves capable. He makes us feel hopeful about the future. I wish he were my grandson, that’s how proud I am of him.”

“She’s a natural leader. She’s honest and respectful; she can see the big picture and at the same time can help us to see what it takes to achieve it. She knows when to be hands on and when to be hand-off. She understands what the people around her need to get their jobs done and she provides it. Sometimes that translates to getting us the physical and financial resources we need. Other times it’s encouragement and a well placed kick in the derriere. Whatever the situation, she’s pitch perfect in her delivery. “

“Sometimes the best leaders are the most humble. Our manager is one of those. He’s understated in his manner yet so clear in his commitment to excellence and in his belief in our ability to perform at the highest levels of excellence, that he motivates us to consistently give our best.”

“We’re going through enormous change in our organization and as we all know, change can create stress. I won’t kid you, we’re stressed here, but we’re able to keep it together because of our boss. She’s capable, calm, and considerate and because of that, we’re able to behave in ways that emulate her spirit. I’ve worked in other businesses where change equated to high turnover. Not here. Thanks in large part to our boss’s sure and steady hand.”

“I don’t know if you’d call our supervisor a leader or a top notch manager. I just know I’d always want to have him next to me in a fire-fight. I’ve never seen anyone as able to quickly anticipate what’s required and quickly respond with resources that meet the need. He’s a great trouble shooter, knows which fires are apt to turn into conflagrations and which will burn out on their own accord. He makes change exciting and preventive maintenance a talent worth rewarding.”

More Questions from Readers

Q: I’ve heard that I’m supposed to send a thank you note after every interview. I think that’s nonsense. Interviewers don’t give me anything so why should I thank them?

A: You’re not the only one who questions the notion of sending thank you letters to prospective employers, so this is a good opportunity to reframe the issue. The purpose of the letter is to move the interview process forward. Open with a “thank you for seeing me this past Wednesday afternoon to discuss my candidacy for your open position in materials management” then move on to the intention of the letter, which is to emphasize your ability to do the job and your desire to work for their company. Close with a “looking forward to our next conversation”; sign, seal, stamp it, and you’re done. That wasn’t so bad, was it?

Q: I’ve sent out hundreds of resumes and cover letters and haven’t received a single response. I’m an English major, confident about my writing style and have been told I write very well. I’ll send you samples and hope you’ll tell me what I’m doing wrong.

A: I read your samples and yes, you do write well. The problem isn’t with your style, spelling, or sentence structure. It’s with your lack of specificity. Your resume and cover letter highlight variety and breadth, not specificity or depth. Your objective indicates what you want instead of what you can do. Resumes that hit the mark begin with, and focus on, a clear objective: what you can do for the company that hires you. They outline job experiences and accomplishments that prove the point: clearly stated, quantifiable ways you’ve benefited past employers by driving top line or protecting bottom line.

Q: A friend of mine suggests that my habit of “eye rolling” might explain why I’m never called back for second interviews or made job offers. I know I do it when I hear things I think are absurd, but I’ve never considered that I could be doing it on job interviews. Now I wonder if I can stop myself. Any ideas?

A: I’d start by asking friends for more real-time feedback, so you can identify the stimuli that cause your responses, and work hard to eliminate them. If you’re concerned that eye rolls, grimaces, shrugs, and sighs of exasperation might escape your attention but not that of an interviewer, pay attention to your internal response to the conversation. If the person says something with which you disagree or take issue, probe for better understanding and probe respectfully. Here are examples of safe yet honest replies: “I’m surprised by what you just said, tell me more…” Or “I’m interested in your comments, tell me more”; “Your reaction surprises me… tell me more.” “I’d like to hear more about why you say that, so please, tell me more.”

Q: Company A has made me an offer. I’m also interviewing with Company B. I would rather work for B. How can I keep my options open and not kill my chances with both companies?

A: When employers make an offer they want an answer, and at minimum they want to know when they will get one. Therefore, thank Company A for the offer; indicate that you’re very interested; and promise they’ll have your answer in 72 hours. Call Company B; tell them you have been made an offer and that you have 48 hours to respond. Ask them what choice they would make, were they in your shoes and knowing what they know about your chances with their company. If they tell you to accept the offer in hand, you have your answer.

Sticky Interviews

In Made to Stick, Chip and Dan Health tell us that memorable stories, stories that stick, are simple, unexpected, concrete, credible, and emotional. The Heath brothers may not have consciously applied that perspective to the art of interviewing, but its well worth the effort.

An interview that works is memorable. It is complexity simplified; a conversation between equals that is grounded by unexpected clarity and purpose. It’s concrete; the speaker succinctly describing a learning experience in definable, quantifiable ways.

Simply told stories from experience evoke emotion, combine credibility with integrity and tell the truth about making a difference. They are straightforward, easily understood and easily remembered.

The employers’ predictable question, “Tell me about yourself”, invites the applicant to tell a story. Employers want to know what it is about you, what you do and how you do it, that can add value to what they need and why they need it. They want to know how you think and what motivates you to behave as you do. Your values are the underpinning of your actions and drive your behavior. Your behavior is the structure of your story. Have the courage, the insight, and the self- awareness to tell it.

As a career coach I’ve worked with people who want to find jobs, leave jobs, keep jobs, and change jobs. Those who find their way with the fewest energy draining detours are those who are open to possibility: possibility that there is more instead of less, that mistakes are opportunities to learn; that learning opportunities can be painful but the pain is time limited and the wisdom that’s accrued is worth the effort it takes to get there.

Those who succeed in what they do are satisfied with who they are yet want to be more than they have been. They are, among other things, curious. They ask themselves and others, “why?” Not just to challenge assumptions but to explore their world and expand their minds; to find answers, discover problems, and find answers to solve them. They want to learn because they know that it is there, attainable, and they want to understand it, learn from it, and grow from it.

Those who struggle, consistently struggle in their careers see life as a series of contests to be lost, closed doors and shuttered opportunities. Their world is limited by their view of it; rules, regulations, and policies that define not what they can, but what they cannot, dare not, do. They have adopted a scarcity mentality and communicate its negative philosophy at work, at home, and in the interviewer’s office. Their story is one of endings with no beginnings; a story the interviewer would rather forget than remember.

Interviewers don’t want to hear stories of can’t, won’t, don’t, he did it to me and she made me do it. They don’t want testimony from the helpless and hopeless. They don’t want to hire followers unless they’re willing to learn how to manage and lead others.

They want to know that potential employees trust and are trustworthy. That potential employees believe development is what enables and empowers others to achieve, that it benefits those with whom they work, who work for them, the customers they serve and the employer who invests in each employee with each pay- check and each opportunity.

They want you to tell them your story, your way, so they can remember it and tell others that you’re the one who can make a difference because you can, because you want to, because you’ve done it before and you want to do it again. For them.

More Q&A

Q: What’s the best way to answer the “tell me about yourself” question? Should I start with where I’m from? Where I went to school? Or what my work experience has been?

A: Answer with how you can make a difference to the employer who’s sitting in front of you. . That’s what she wants to know. If she wants something more or something else she’ll promptly say so.

Q: I get the feeling that I’m boring or that I talk too much. Interviewers shuffle their papers, clear their throats, even had one open his mail right in the middle of one of my answers. Are they rude or am I taking too much of their time?

A: It could be a combination of both. If it happens more than once (and it sounds like it does) get some real-time candid feedback from family and friends on your conversational style. Be sure to tell them why it’s important and ask that they signal when you’ve provided adequate information when discussing a topic or answering a question. With practice you’ll find the rhythm that works for you and your conversation partners.

Q: I’m a person of few words. Too few, it appears. I’m getting first interviews but no follow-ons. My wife thinks I don’t talk enough. I don’t want to state the obvious, so I don’t. How can I find the right balance?

A: Match the style, tempo, and conversational content of the interviewer. If she’s verbose and you give answers that could fit atop the head of a pin, that’s not enough. If she’s succinct and you go on and on in your response, that‘s too much.

Q: I do fine when I answer interviewers’ questions. I draw a blank when they ask me to ask them questions. I feel like they’ve told me all I need to know. Is it all right to just tell them that, and not respond further?

A: By answering all that you are asked you demonstrate an ability and desire to respond to requests and a willingness to do as you are told. When you ask questions you demonstrate an ability to listen, retain information, and build on that information. Do both. Good examples of probing questions that get deeper into issues and challenges at hand, that anticipate consequences and follow through on conclusions are those that ask the interviewer to “tell me more…”

Q: I’m a job seeker. I have a good education and excellent work experience. I get really perturbed when employers do not return my phone calls. To whom should I complain? I’ve called their home office, have left word on their voice mail (Don’t get me started on that) and have emailed the CEO of the corporation. That’s how angry it makes me! What else can I do?

A: It sounds like you have lots of passion and a strong desire to pursue an outcome. You might enjoy work in customer service, credit and collections, even consumer advocacy. In the meantime, consider re-applying all that energy to your job search and prospective employers who appreciate that degree of drive and determination.

Q: My son is a college graduate who’s been out of school for three years, living with us and on us, his parents. He’s making no apparent effort to get a full time job (he’s a sometime waiter and part time bartender at his old college hang-outs) and my husband and I want to get on with our lives. We love him, but we want him to move on so we can. What do you suggest?

A: Move on, dear people, move on. Give junior a move out by date, 30 days notice, and stick with it.

Questions from Readers

Thanks for your calls, emails, and the questions you’re asking. Here are a few examples:

Q: I have a question about my resume. I’ve worked for many companies, held both hourly and salaried positions, volunteered for countless committees, and traveled to every state in the US. Because I’ve accomplished so much I can’t possibly include it all in a two- page resume. I figure it’ll take about five pages if I use small type. How many pages am I allowed?

A: If you were writing an autobiography, you could pen all the pages your heart desires. But you’re not. You’re writing a two- page resume in readable type that spells out the value you offer an employer by specifying and quantifying your work related accomplishments and connecting them to your clearly stated objective. If you have content that’s off topic, take it off the resume. Most resume readers, on average, review a resume in 20 seconds and make a determination: it’s in or it’s out. The more focused and succinct your written presentation, the greater your likelihood of making it to the in box.

Q: When I go to work sites or on line to fill in applications I notice that I’ve already answered most of the questions on my resume. Is it OK to just attach the resume to the application instead of wasting time copying one to the other?

A: If you are asked to complete an application, do it. If you think it’s optional, it isn’t. Do it. Print your answer to each question, fill in each line, check each box, and print legibly. The application form will ask that you provide a list of professional references and contact information, provide it. And now for the good news: after you’ve completed that assignment you can hand it in, along with a copy of your resume.

Q: How many on-line or newspaper openings should I pursue at one time? I think I should go one at a time and not proceed with a new application with until I know if I have the job. What do you think?

A: I think you should pursue every opportunity you can chase down and everyone that comes your way. A successful job hunt is a numbers game that requires long-haul energy, optimism, and self-confidence. There’s a direct correlation between improved odds and optimism/confidence. The more you have going for you, the greater the odds you’ll land something.

Q: I notice that some interviewers spend the entire time talking and don’t ask any questions. What should I, as the applicant, do in that circumstance? I don’t want to interrupt but how else will the employer know what I have to offer?

A: Some interviewers are naturally gregarious. Once they get going they can be hard to stop. Some are naturally excited about their companies and go on at great length about possibilities and potential. Your job as the applicant is, from the moment you are introduced, to demonstrate your energy, your interest, and your ability to add value to the discussion and to the company.

Q: I have a tough time with interviewers who don’t acknowledge what I’m saying to them. They just ask one question after the other, and don’t give a clue about what they’re thinking. How am I supposed to know where I stand if they don’t tell me?

A: Focus on each question and answer it to the best of your ability. Periodically ask the interviewer if he/she would like more or different information than what you are providing. Bottom line, you won’t know where you stand until you get a call back for another interview or are made an offer.

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