| There are twenty-four hours in a day and you will, on | | | | optimum of that which they were capable. |
| average, spend about 8 of them asleep. Of the other | | | | There is in our society today the gold-rush-like |
| 16 it pays to ask yourself the simple question... "what | | | | stampede to stun the world with qualifications and |
| am I doing with my life?" This should be done on a | | | | knowledge gained in the education system. But this |
| regular basis to ensure you're on track and just | | | | simply fails to impress in any shape or form when the |
| exactly where you wish to be. To keep you a | | | | criteria at that last short-list interview are so different |
| happy-chappie... or chappess! | | | | from the ones that got you there in the first place. |
| And the biggest answer for the majority of us, during | | | | What is new can only be summarised briefly here and |
| the week anyway, is "I work for a living". So it's easy | | | | it is not a skill gained overnight even if you do know |
| to see that after you subtract three or four hours for | | | | the facts. But it will lead you to the right course of |
| all chores,including commuting then the time you spend | | | | action... or your career will be certain to be the poorer |
| at "work" IS your life! By 'chores' incidentally, I mean all | | | | for the lack of it. Here are three for starters, explained |
| the things we need to do that we'd be pretty | | | | in brief. And incidentally, the interviewer, him/herself, |
| uncomfortable without doing them... e.g. showering, food | | | | may not even be aware or be able to articulate the |
| preparation, routine domestic duties, dog-walking, | | | | criteria. It may be a subconscious gut-feel that is |
| car-washing, shaving, applying make-up... all that 'stuff' | | | | uncomfortable to him/her, leading to a rejection. |
| that, frankly, isn't a great challenge... about three to four | | | | First, the prospective employer will need to know that |
| hours a day when it's all added up. | | | | you fit into the specific department or division. This will |
| So if life is work, at least in the first thirty or forty | | | | already contain certain individuals whose personalities |
| years of adult life, then it's certain that to get most out | | | | are probably unknown to you. You must therefore |
| of life is to get most out of work. And in order to do | | | | project at all times throughout the interviewing |
| this it means we have to set ourselves a goal of being | | | | sequence an air of easy-going, tolerant, uncontentious, |
| happy, stress-low and yet stretched in our careers in | | | | non-boat-rocking conviviality. This doesn't mean you |
| work. | | | | touch your forelock at every sentence, but it does |
| There is an ever-growing number of alternatives in the | | | | mean you don't present as in any way awkward or |
| market-place today. Everyone is getting more and | | | | argumentative or intransigent. |
| more specialised and thus putting themselves in | | | | Secondly, and of over-riding importance is that you |
| demand as an expert in their field. You aim for | | | | need to convince the decision-maker that you will |
| qualifications to prove yourself. You aim and achieve | | | | transfer your loyalty from your previous employer |
| experience and knowledge levels so that your price is | | | | (who may well be a competitor) without question and |
| higher and you can gain more responsibility and even | | | | with total allegiance. There can be nothing left to doubt |
| more experience. This takes time, serious endeavour in | | | | here. You are either on board or you are not! The idea |
| some cases and a level of application that has to be | | | | that an individual slopes into a company and slopes out |
| admired. Your schooling and education sometimes | | | | again only to return to the original with all the "secrets" |
| makes one dizzy with the string of degrees and | | | | is totally irksome for the new employer. |
| certificates that adorn your walls... and why?... well, | | | | Thirdly, you must actively demonstrate unequivocally |
| because you know that improving marketability is to | | | | that you will justify, through all means at your |
| improve demand and money earning capacity. | | | | command, your overhead cost and that you or your |
| But there's something missing... and something | | | | profit centre's surplus is in more than fair part down to |
| absolutely crucial to your progress. | | | | your specific efforts. If you can't justify throughout your |
| If you were to spend (say) ten/twenty/thirty years | | | | time with the company that you are going to be |
| inventing, designing, improving, testing, enhancing a | | | | profitable then why, on this earth, would any sane |
| product to take to market what would be the very | | | | person employ you. Thus you MUST sell your worth |
| next thing to do? Simple! MARKET IT! | | | | hard. |
| Every single successful product (e,g,coke) /service (e.g. | | | | These are but a few of the elements to consider as |
| medicine) /skill (e.g. professional sportsmen) would | | | | you develop your interview skills. I have seen very high |
| have made far less progress without a full marketing | | | | percentages of short-lists containing the most worthy |
| advertising function, even if it's outsourced. | | | | of candidates (who, let's face it, we knew better than |
| And what every successful employee needs is a way | | | | the client, in our niche area having spent, on average |
| of promoting their abilities to the outside world so that | | | | about 8/9 hours at each career-move) who came |
| they are recognised and constantly in demand. This | | | | second or third to a less well-qualified or less |
| doesn't mean anything traditionally associated with | | | | experienced person, who was better able to sell |
| "promotions"... it's the way that you must have to | | | | themselves honestly and fairly. And even the good |
| represent and communicate your abilities and past | | | | interviewee will appeal more with more striking |
| experience to the prospective employers... at | | | | interview skills. He/she will get a better offer, better |
| INTERVIEW! | | | | working conditions and will start off with an even |
| This vital skill is so overlooked that a very large | | | | bigger welcome. |
| percentage of the working population make far less | | | | Take my word for it, the skill of the top-class |
| progress in their work than they are capable of. And | | | | interviewee, combined with basic work-experience, is |
| those that are good at it can invariably be better. It is | | | | one that will see him/ her to the top with ease... for |
| one of the most over-looked elements of promoting | | | | remember, these skills will come to the fore in ANY |
| your own persona,l hard-earned capital. | | | | meeting, presentation, conference... even in telephone |
| Having spent nearly thirty years in the head-hunting | | | | calls... and a resume cannot talk! |
| industry where I interviewed (and coached) over ten | | | | Interviewing skills become a self-fulfilling prophesy. |
| thousand candidates I can tell you that not one of | | | | They are learnable. Ignore learning them at your peril. |
| those 10,000 conducted themselves even at an | | | | |