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How To Shine During an Interview

The biggest mistakes that you can make in an interview are lying and not being yourself. Yes, your qualifications matter. But they don’t matter near as much as your authenticity. If you want to shine during an interview, you need to know and do these things.

Research:

We’ve said it before, and we will say it until the end of time. Do your research before you go into an interview. Research the company, its history, purpose, management, etc. Look up recent news articles about them and any press releases. Knowing your facts and being able to showcase that in the interview will give you so much confidence and help you put your best foot forward.

Practice

There are several common interview questions that you need to be prepared to answer. Those include things like “Tell me about yourself,” “What are your strengths and weaknesses?” and “Why do you want to work here?”

Practice your answers to these questions so that you aren’t spending the entire interview trying to think of answers. Just be careful not to over practice so that you sound like you’re reading from a script.

Be honest

While an interview is meant for you and the recruiter to get to know each other better, the recruiter did their research on you just like you did on the company. They performed reference checks and reviewed your resume. If they haven’t done that before your interview, you can bet they will after, so don’t lie. Don’t embellish your work experience or qualifications. They will find out and it will not be good for you.

Be yourself

You were called to the interview because the recruiter wants to get to know YOU. Not the person you think they want to see. The most important thing you can do to shine during an interview is to be yourself.

Do you have any more tips on how to shine during an interview? Drop them in the comments!

Benefits of Hiring Through a Staffing Agency

Lisa Yannett Companies Comments Off

There are many benefits of using a staffing agency. A staffing agency is inherently designed to benefit companies who hire new employees frequently or are constantly searching for specifically qualified candidates.

Staffing agencies typically have a niche or specialty that they exclusively hire for. For example, Horizon Staffing, located in Atlanta and Savannah, Georgia, specializes in light industrial positions. That means that if you need to hire for your distribution center, you should consider giving them a call, but if you’re a hospital looking for nurses, they probably won’t be able to connect you to the right candidates.

No matter the company, location, or position there is a staffing agency that can help connect your company with qualified candidates.

What do staffing agencies do?

Staffing agencies build a database of candidates. After meeting with a new client (hiring company) to get the specifics of what candidate the company is looking for and descriptions of the positions that need to be filled, the staffing agency then combs their database for candidates who match these specifications.

If one is not found, the recruiters then advertise the position to receive new applications. These new applicants undergo a screening process to determine their qualifications, skills, and eligibility to work.

During this entire process, the client does not have to do anything. When the staffing agency locates a qualified candidate, they then send them to the client for either a second interview or to start work immediately.

If you’re looking for more information about staffing agencies, check out the American Staffing Association for current statistics, trends, and news regarding staffing agencies.

Benefits of a Staffing Agency

1. Time:

Staffing agencies have spent years building their database of candidates. They have access to significantly more candidates than you will find with a simple job search. Where it could take you weeks to locate a qualified candidate, staffing agencies could have the right person sitting in their database.

Not to mention, all of the paperwork that comes with a new employee would be handled by the staffing agency. Not only are you saving time finding the candidate, but also after they are hired.

2. Expertise:

Another benefit of using a staffing agency is their expertise.

While you know best what candidate you need, staffing agencies know best how to find them. Because their sole job is to search through applications and locate qualified candidates, they know the market and trends. Even though staffing agencies have specific niches, they come into contact with more than one type of group of people, unlike a company’s human resource department.

Not to mention, your HR department probably has other responsibilities and can’t dedicate 8 hours a day to searching for a new employee. Staffing agencies can.

3. Cost:

This goes hand in hand with saving you time. If your HR department doesn’t have to dedicate the time to find a new employee, you don’t have to allocate the money to pay them for it. Also, costs related to marketing the open position would fall to the staffing agency instead of you.

4. Network:

It’s already been said, but let’s say it again. Staffing agencies have built an extensive database of job seekers. They have access to a larger network of candidates than the average HR department. While some positions will need to marketed, many positions are filled with existing candidates within the staffing agency’s database.

5. Retention:

There is a reason staffing agencies are commonly known as temp agencies, but it probably isn’t what you think. They aren’t called ‘temp agencies’ because their turnover rate is high. Rather, the name comes from the fact that most employees hired through staffing agencies start as a temporary employee.

After a trial period where they are able to learn the process, company, and position before they are offered a permanent position. When you hire through a staffing agency, the employee is on the staffing agency’s payroll, not yours, until they become a permanent employee. This means that if the employee quits before becoming a permanent employee, this doesn’t affect your turnover rate.

6. Providing resources and guidance:

Staffing agencies have experienced recruiters who know the ins and outs of the hiring process. They provide resources and guidance to job seekers including resume and cover letter tips and dressing for an interview.

Learn more about the benefits of using a staffing agency for job seekers here.

Unspoken Office Rules You NEED to Know

Lisa Yannett Office Comments Off

Every office culture is different, but there are some unspoken office rules you need to know.

1. No loud music

It may seem obvious, but you’d be surprised how many people crank up the tunes in the middle of a quiet office. If you want to listen to music while you work, invest in some head phones and keep the volume low enough that your coworkers can’t hear it.

2. Label your food

In many offices, a lot of items, such as coffee, food, and snacks, are provided for employees to share. For this reason, label anything you don’t want others to touch. Along with this, respect other people’s labels. Just because theirs looks better doesn’t mean you should help yourself.

3. Avoid strong smells

This goes for food and perfumes. Avoid bringing anything that has a very strong smell. Not everyone wants to smell you heat up the salmon you cooked last night. On the other side, strong perfumes can cause headaches. Don’t be that person

4. Don’t get too personal

It’s great to make connections with your coworkers. I mean, you almost spend more time with them than you do with your family, but make sure you set healthy boundaries and avoid getting too personal. Remember, you’re in a professional environment with other professionals.

5. Don’t discuss salaries

You’ve probably heard this one before, but let me break it down for you. People have different backgrounds, qualifications, job requirements and time with the company. All of those things go into deciding a salary for an employee. Don’t discuss your salary with your coworkers because it will inevitably lead to someone getting upset with their rate or how much you make. If you want to talk salary, meet with your supervisor.

Do you know of other unspoken office rules you wish you had known before you broke them? Share them in the comments!

Posts like this one: 5 Questions You Need to Ask on Your First Day

3 Productivity Killers When Working From Home

Lisa Yannett Uncategorized 1 Comment

When you’re working from home, you don’t have the focused environment that the office provides. Understandably, you could be killing your productivity by making these easy mistakes. Don’t worry though. If you identify these mistakes in your daily routine, we’re going to tell you just how to fix them.

Social Media

One of the biggest killers of productivity is social media. When you’re working from a computer, and especially your phone, social media can be a deadly temptress. What starts as a 5-minute break can easily turn into an hour of meaningless scrolling, a.k.a. wasted time.

The great thing is there is an easy solution to this problem (unless you have to be on social media for you job) – log out.

If you struggle to stay off of Facebook or Snapchat while you’re working, logout of those accounts when you’re on the clock. It’s easy to open an app or pull up a browser that you’re already logged into. By logging out, you’re adding another step and hopefully a deterrent to your distraction.

Children

While you can’t just get rid of your children when you have to work from home, there are ways to limit the distractions that come with having to parent while you work.

Distractions: Supply your children with ample things to keep them distracted while you’re working. Whether it be toys, movies or crafts, find things they can manage with little supervision that will keep them distracted for pockets of time.
Meal prep: Kids have to eat, but that doesn’t mean you have to spend excessive amounts of time cooking their meals and feeding it to them. In the evenings, prepare easy to cook or ready to serve meals that they can feed to themselves. Obviously this won’t be of much help if you have a young child that still needs supervision while eating or is bottle/breastfed, but it is a great way to save time with the older ones.
Separate: An easy way to eliminate the distractions that come from working at home with children is to have a designated workspace and play area. It may seem logical to work in the same room as the children so you can keep better supervision of them, but if you use solutions 1 and 2, number 3 will be much easier. Have an area toy-free that you can focus on work, and help your kids learn to play in another area. Get more advice on setting up an office at home here.

Netflix

Now this doesn’t specifically target Netflix as a productivity killer, but rather your TV and anything you put on it. Some people swear by having a movie or TV show playing in the background while they work, but this can actually limit your ability to focus on work, even if you don’t realize it.

Just like with social media, there is an easy fix to this. Don’t have a TV where you work. Avoid the temptation of turning on your favorite show by eliminating the medium. No TV – No temptation.

Instead of turning the TV on, consider listening to one of these playlists to help you focus.

Have you found other ways of staying productive while working from home? Share them in the comments!

5 Questions You Need to Ask on Your First Day on the Job

Lisa Yannett Jobs Comments Off

Your first day on the job can be exciting and nerve-wracking. Even if you’ve worked in a similar position before, there are bound to be differences between how your previous company operated compared to the new one. Make sure you ask these important questions to make your transition and smooth and successful one.

1. Who do I report to?

No matter what your role or the company’s purpose, there will be some form of a chain of command. Make sure you understand your place and who you should report to with questions and completed tasks. Make sure you ask who you report to if your direct supervisor it out, too.

2. What are the key things you want me to focus on this week?

You may already have experience in your new role, but it’s best to ask what your supervisor wants you to focus on to make sure you are working towards the same goal.

3. Where is the bathroom?

It’s a natural need, we know. Don’t get lost on your first day because you’re embarrassed to ask where the bathroom is. If you don’t want to ask your supervisor, ask a coworker.

4. When (and how long) is lunch?

Don’t assume that because you’ve always had an hour for lunch from noon to 1 p.m. that this company operates the same way. Ask before you’re starving when lunch time is.

5. What’s your name?

Get to know the people you will be working around. Find out who handles what aspects of the business and who you will need to contact for what information. Your coworkers should be your team, so make an effort to connect with them.

For interview tips to get you to that first day on the job, check out these 2 great blog posts.

How to Calm Interview Nerves in 2 Easy Steps

The Key to a Successful Interview: Leave Something Behind