I work as a health education specialist for a state agency, where I am responsible for health education programming related to wellness, aging, and parenting. I have held this position for almost 15 years. I found the organization’s website and learned of the opening as a result of conducting a web-based job search. I had earned a master’s degree about a year earlier, and had worked in a part-time grant-funded position at another agency. When that position was eliminated, I sought other work.

It took a little less than a year, about 30 applications and six interviews to land this job. I turned down two offers–one I had accepted previously but then declined because it paid $10,000 less than what I was offered by my current employer, and another because the director and her board were too slow to complete the interview process. In the latter position, the director was ready to hire me; the board, however, wanted me to give them a presentation to prove my skills. The irony of that situation is that the person who accepted the job after I turned down has been recently laid off after working close to 15 years for that organization.

If I were applying for the position I currently work in, I would learn more about the organization, especially the terminology used for various aspects of the work. On my interview, I was asked a question related to needs assessment using terminology that was new to me at the time. I was able to answer the question, and although what I said probably did not make sense to the interviewer, I landed the job. I took a portfolio with documents, letters of appreciation, and photos of previous work accomplishments, so I think that impressed the interviewers. I believe my portfolio helped me stand out from the others that applied–I would definitely use that strategy again.

I currently use email and social networking to connect with colleagues. Although my position is fairly secure at this point, I do not take anything for granted. I have never stopped looking for a job, because I never know when I might be told, “we are sorry to inform you that we no longer need your services.” That is just a fact of life in today’s economy. By continuing to network and use the internet to keep abreast of what is going on in my field, I can stay relevant and ready to compete for another position if needed.

During my job search, one job interview that was a disaster was one I did when I was very sick. I did not realize it at the time, but I was having gall bladder issues. On the day that I interviewed for a position as a rehabilitation counselor, however, I was in such intense pain that I really believed I was having a heart attack. I interviewed with two women who probably wondered if I was under the influence of some substance. I could not concentrate and squirmed in the chair in an effort to find a comfortable position. It seemed that the ordeal would go on forever. This was not a job that I was passionate about and I did not receive an offer. That same day, however, I was contacted about the interview for my current job. Fortunately for me, I was feeling great when I went for that interview. I would encourage anyone to refrain from going for a job interview if you are not feeling your best. Unlike my situation, the job you interview for could turn out to be the perfect position, but you might miss out on a good opportunity if you are not on your “A” game.

The single most important thing I learned from my job interviews is that one should not take anything for granted. I decided to include only what I thought was the most relevant experience on my resume. Later I learned that what I thought was not important experience could have bolstered my pay by at least $3000. I assumed that I would start at the pay rate that was advertised regardless of experience. I actually started at a salary of about $6000 more than I thought I would, yet I could have started at $9000 more!

I did not use the career services office of my undergraduate program, nor my graduate program. I felt that career services at both schools catered more to business majors, rather than education or human services graduates. I would recommend using career services to other students because there are some good resources available. As a person with some level of experience earned prior to my master’s degree, however, I felt that I could find work on my own.

I cannot complain about my job because I have a lot of autonomy and I make a good living. Yet, if I could redo one event from my professional or career past, I would have pursued a master’s degree in an area that requires a license or certification. For example, master’s level therapist jobs that require professional licensing usually pay more, and persons with those credentials are more in demand. This would provide me with more job security. I have also taken some additional graduate courses and I have earned a graduate certificate in an area related to my undergraduate degree. I believe I would have been better off going for a second master’s degree in a area such as health administration, counseling or social work.

Find and apply for hundreds of bilingual jobs at LatPro.com.

Considered working as an Inpatient Accounts Representative and Biller? This interview will take you through the ups and downs you can expect in the position, what it takes to land the job, what you can expect to earn and more.

I’m an Inpatient Accounts Representative and Biller. I work at a mental healthcare facility where we have outpatient and inpatient services. I have held this position for the past 10 years.

My job responsibilities include registering patients as they are being admitted to our hospital. I have to gather all demographic, employment and insurance information from the patient or their families. Quite often this is difficult because great percentages of our mental health patients are homeless and unemployed. Many times they have no family. Unless the patient has been court-ordered to be admitted to the facility, I am required to have them sign an agreement giving us permission to treat them. A roadblock to getting the needed information sometimes is because the patient has been sedated before arrival.

I enter the data I’ve been able to collect from the patient into our registration and billing system. At this point, if the patient has insurance, I verify their eligibility and benefits, as well as what their deductible and co-pay percentages are. If the person has no insurance, I verify their income level and if they fall under the current federal poverty guidelines, file a request with our local mental health and recovery board to bill them for the indigent patient’s hospital stay. After the patient has been released, and all pharmacy and laboratory charges have been keyed into the system, I then create the actual bill which will be forwarded to the appropriate payer for reimbursement. If a claim is denied for some reason, I’m also responsible for finding out why and appealing the denial if necessary.

If I were asked how satisfying my job is on a scale of 1 to 10, I believe I would give it a rating of eight. Although the process is the same for every admission, each case is different because each patient’s story is different. I never get bored with it. Also, this is a position that can really pull at your emotions from time to time. Mental illnesses are every bit as scary as any physical illness or disease, but sometimes much harder to understand. The worst cases for me are the children. I just want to hold them in my arms, hug them and make everything better… but of course, I can’t.

Because I’m alone when I interview psychiatric and mentally unstable patients in my office upon admission, the hospital has taken precautions for my safety. My office is located just outside the locked inpatient unit, arranged in a way that I always have a straight, clear path to my doorway in case I’d need to make a fast exit. I also have a hidden panic button under my desk. If I would happen to be threatened, I only need to press the button and staff within the unit will know to come to my office immediately because I need assistance.

When I began working at the hospital, it was in the capacity of an outpatient insurance biller. In that position, I only had contact with patients if they happened to call in with a billing question or concern. After just a few months, I was promoted to my current job; still responsible for billing claims and taking phone calls, but the face to face interviews added a whole new dimension to my employment that I had not planned. Right away I had to take a course called Nonviolent Crisis Intervention Training. This would help me be prepared for speaking with disgruntled and sometimes paranoid patients. This class taught me ways to attempt to diffuse an escalating situation with a person who is very upset. Calming them down is not only for the safety of the patient, but also the hospital staff.

All the training in the world cannot help or prepare someone for every situation. I found that out a couple of times. I did the paperwork to admit a young lady one day, and she was surprisingly calm and very friendly. When I finished her registration, we left my office, and I escorted her to the inpatient unit. Moments after I put my key in the door lock to enter the unit, I found myself on the floor. The patient decided she wasn’t going to go in, knocked me down and took off running. I had turned my back while unlocking the door, something I shouldn’t have done.

Another time, I was registering a very nervous and upset man. Getting him to answer questions was like pulling teeth. Suddenly he volunteered something: He asked if he should get his gun out of his overnight bag and give it to me! Nobody had ever covered this possibility with me. My thoughts were, if in fact there was a gun in his bag, I’d rather it would stay right there. Thus, I just told him that we’d wait to take it out of the bag until we could make sure the gun was locked up in the unit safe where no one could bother it.

All in all, psychiatric work is very interesting and enjoyable. No special degree or education is required for a position like mine. Being familiar with billing codes would certainly be a plus, but not absolutely necessary. Those can be learned as one perform the work. One should be proficient with a computer, have empathy and enjoy working with people. The salary range for this job is somewhere between $25,000 to $30,000 per year.

This is a true career story as told to JustJobs.com and is one of many available interviews, which among others include a Hypnotherapist and a Sales V.P..

Most schools offer services to help their students get a job, and this Recreation Programmer took advantage of those services and of his personal connections to get the job he wanted. Read other stories of how professionals have gotten their jobs in the hospitality industry from a Night Auditor to a Maintenance Supervisor.

For the past five years, I have worked as a Recreation Programmer at a waterfront recreation center in Florida. I am a city government employee. As a recreation programmer, I am responsible for developing programs and classes that promote wellness in my community. I also facilitate rentals of our banquet room and outdoor park. The facility hosts over 100 weddings and private parties each year.

I first found this job posted online, but I believe I received this position because of my connections within the city. While in college, I worked as a camp counselor for the city one summer. I also worked as an intern in the Parks and Recreation department for one semester of my senior year.
I searched for a job for about six months until a position in the city became available. The city interview process took around two months, so I was searching for employment for a total of eight months.

Once I knew that I would like to work in a specific city, I checked that city’s website every day for new job postings. I also used major job search sites such as Monster and Career Builder to search and apply for jobs online. The internet provided a major benefit in my job search because most of my job search was conducted from another state. I could search for jobs around the country from my house. My employer also offered me a phone interview before an in-person interview, which saved me money on travel expenses.

If I was applying for the same job tomorrow at another location, I would emphasize that my wide variety of job responsibilities set me apart from other applicants. Our recreation center has a small staff. Therefore, I have done everything from scrubbing toilets to running an Easter Egg Hunt for hundreds of children. I believe it is important to be willing to do any task that is necessary to keep the facility running smoothly.

Social networking sites can be helpful during a job search. I have profiles on Facebook and LinkedIn. I use Facebook mainly to connect with my colleagues on a social level, and I use LinkedIn for career networking. I try to maintain as many contacts as possible in my field, since I never know when I might need to be searching for a few job.

While I was job hunting after college, I had one interview that was a disaster. It was one of my first interviews, so I spent a lot of time practicing interview questions and deciding what to wear. I dressed neatly in a shirt and tie, and felt confident walking into the interview. The interviewer was polite, but tough. He asked some pointed questions, and I felt like I was supplying good answers, and at some point during the interview he even let me know that he thought I could be a good fit for the organization. At the end of the interview, he asked for a copy of my resume. I looked in my folder and realized that I had not brought along any copies of my resume. Since I had already included a copy of my resume with my application, I did not think it was necessary. The interviewer then told me that he would not consider me for the job since I did not come to the interview fully prepared. I left the interview feeling embarrassed, but never forgot to take my resume to an interview after that! That interview taught me the importance of carrying multiple copies of my resume, cover letter and recommendations to every job interview.

The most important lesson I learned during my job search was the importance of personal connections and networking in my field. I was at a huge advantage with my current position because I already had personal connections with many city employees. I began making connections through my summer work as a city camp counselor. I was able to form relationships with many of the city administrators during my semester as an unpaid office intern. Some of my most valuable networking connections were formed as a result of playing on a city employees’ softball team.

While I was in college, I utilized the services offered by my school’s Career Services Center. I found several part-time jobs by searching the job postings on the Career Services website. These jobs weren’t glamorous, but they helped pay the bills while I was a student. I also attended a beneficial interviewing seminar and had my resume evaluated by the Career Services Director.
I would encourage all students to take advantage of the helpful, free resources offered by their Career Services Center.

If I could redo one thing in my professional career, I would go back and request a higher salary before I accepted my current job. At the time, I was very worried that I would not find a job before I got married. Therefore, I gave a lower salary requirement than what the position was actually worth. I assumed that I would be offered raises once I did a good job at my position.
I received a yearly raise after my first year of employment. However, no one in my city has received a raise in the last three years due to the downturn in the economy. Therefore, I am still not making an adequate salary for my position and level of education. Others in similar positions to mine are making higher salaries because they requested it before they were hired.

This interview with a sales representative will take you through the pros and cons of working in the retail world.  Read on to learn the best balance between technology and networking that will help to land a job.

I currently work for a company that sells security systems to employers. I found this job through a friend at church. Actually, my friend owns the company, and at the moment, a sales representative had just quit. He knew that I love sales and that I was working in the field. He asked me to interview for the job and offered me a package I just couldn’t refuse.

I didn’t use technology in order to find my current job. In fact, I wasn’t even looking for a job when I was offered the job that I have now. I guess I am really old school in that I prefer more to network instead of using technology to get a job. Granted, technology has its place, but I think that networking with other professionals is more important. I guess you could say that it is ironic–I’m selling technology but I’m old school and don’t prefer to use technology. At least not for job searches anyway. Technology is great when used for security systems!

I do use technology to connect with professionals in the field simply because most people are technologically wired nowadays. However, I don’t text. I just don’t. I have found that the more wired you are, the easier it is for people to reach you which means that you are constantly “on call”. I use email, Skype and Facebook. I did try “tweeting” for a while too. However, it can become overwhelming and you can spend so much time talking with your network that you actually are wasting time that could be used “closing the sale” so to speak. At least I found that this was true for me. The trick is to walk that fine line: to use technology enough to keep up to date with people and not appear aloof, yet not to overdo it so that your work begins to suffer. Remember, sales is all about tangible results. “Networking” and “connecting with other professionals” isn’t a tangible result.

I think that my most recent job interview went exceedingly well. Basically, my friend and I went out for coffee and he offered me the job! That was a great job interview. I think that is one of the benefits of networking with others in your field. In essence, he knew everything about me and there was no need for a job interview. He already knew that I was the sales professional that he wanted for the job. As for a job interview that was a complete disaster–I’m not sure I’ve actually had one of those. Sure, I’ve had job interviews that didn’t go so well I guess and I didn’t get the job. However, I really believe that everything happens for a reason. If a job interview doesn’t go so well, I’d just assume that I really wasn’t meant to have that particular job anyway. Focus on the positive stuff, not the negative stuff or you will never do well in sales! Remember too that all your experiences are just learning opportunities. Learn what you can from each “mistake” or “disaster” and keep on going.

I’ve learned a lot about the professional job search process through my experiences as a salesman over the past 20 years or so. One of the biggest things that I have learned is that most available jobs are never advertised. Companies like to play it safe and hire from within or hire someone that someone knows. The other thing that I’ve learned is that it is important to keep your negative stuff to yourself. People talk and comments that you say can be misconstrued! This could affect your job prospects and your career. As my mother used to say, “if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all”. Remember to speak positively about your former employer and former co-workers. Always focus on the positives! I’ve seen way too many people focus on the negative stuff and it affects their productivity and also their job prospects. No one wants to hire a negative sales expert! In addition, people don’t want to purchase items from a negative sales person either.

If I were to apply for a position with another company tomorrow, I’d make myself stand out from the crowd by being myself! That sounds simplistic, but it is true. We are all unique and we stand out from the crowd–or we can anyway. As humans, we spend a lot of time trying to be just like everyone else. I’ve found out that the best way to stand out and make a positive impression is just to be true to who I am. You can also stand out by being positive too. Think about your own life and the people that you know. Who are the people in your life that stand out from the others? Probably the ones that encourage you and are positive. Those are the people that you want to be around; those people are the ones that stand out from the others. It is the same with a job situation!

If I could re-do one event from my personal life, I’m not sure what I’d do differently. I really believe that everything happens for a reason. If I could re-do what I’ve done I probably wouldn’t be here right now! But for the sake of argument, I probably would choose a different major in college. I majored in Psychology. I guess I probably should have majored in Business. However, I did learn a lot about people by majoring in Psychology and that has been helpful too to me. A Business major would have helped me understand more about business and things like that. However, I learned all of that on the job anyway. See? It is like 6 of one and half a dozen of another. It all works out eventually.

At any rate, I am here now and I like where I am. Do the best you can at the time and make the most of the choices that you make. Don’t look back and think about getting a re-do! Instead, look forward and make the most of what you have today.

Find and apply for your next successful job interview at SalesJobs.org where you’ll find all the jobs in one place.

Ever thought about working as a Chemical Engineer? This interview details exactly what you can expect in the position, what it takes to land the job, what your anticipated salary will be and more.

I’m a chemical engineer and have worked for a large chemical manufacturer for the past 25 years. I’ve only worked for one company since I graduated from college, but I’ve had six different assignments within the company. My current position is manager of the Pilot Plant, which focuses on cellulose ester fiber technology. I’ve worked within the pilot plant for about 2 years now.

I acquired my original job as a co-op in college, after a very formal interview process. I completed five semester assignments and then was offered a full-time job when I graduated. Through this process, there were performance ratings, which factored into the job offer.

Getting my current job was a little different since I was already in the company, but I still had to go through an interview process. I’d just gotten certified as a Six Sigma Black Belt at the same time the Fibers Technology organization was looking for a Black Belt. I met their criteria and they hired me.

Networking is absolutely the single most important thing that helped me get my series of six jobs within the company so I could move up the ladder. I didn’t just focus on networking with people who could directly hire me. I networked with other engineers so I understood their jobs, and this helped me to know what jobs to pursue. Working with many different engineers also helped because they became internal references. Although I don’t do it enough, it’s also important to talk with other engineers who work in other companies. In college, I also networked with anyone I could. Some of the students had older brothers or sisters who were engineers already working in the field.

I’ve found it crucial to understand what I’m good at and like to do so that when a networking situation comes up in one of these areas, I can jump on it. Since college days, I’ve also had a rough blueprint in the back of my mind of the career path I wanted to follow. If you’re following your goals and doing something you’re good at, you’re going to get more opportunities.

Some people think I’ve been lucky to have advanced in the company the way I have. Actually, luck or coincidence only played a small role. Looking back on it, I’ve managed to do three things right over the years.

First, I’ve always exhaustively studied up on a company or department in which I was interested before going on an interview. Before my co-op interview in 1986, I carefully investigated the company and all its products and processes. I looked up what services it offered, how many locations it had, how big it was, and so forth. Then I figured out how it meshed with my academic studies, skills and interests so I could show I was a good fit. For my internal job hunting, I would look up the line-of-management structure and direct reports.

Second, I would talk to one of the direct reports to better understand his or her job. If I knew that person already, I would be able to very informally learn a lot about the organization. Before my technical service assignment in 1998, I visited with an associate who worked there. She took me on a tour, showed me the lab equipment, described her projects, and so forth. It’s a little bit like espionage.

I did this not only to demonstrate my knowledge at an interview but to know whether the job would be a good fit. It’s a two-way street. The most critical piece of information I discovered during my espionage was what kind of a boss I would have, whether he or she knew how to manage.

Third, whenever I go on an interview, I don’t concentrate on myself. Instead, I concentrate on putting the interviewer at ease. When I’m not focusing on making a good impression, my nervousness goes away. I like people anyway, so I just look at the interview as a conversation with a person rather than as a stilted situation where I’m answering questions. I ask the interviewer questions, too, just as you would in a conversation. When I’ve done this, I’ve gotten the job.

As you move up the career ladder, hiring managers look for people skills as well as technical skills. They want to know if you can deal with direct reports and clients in a diplomatic way. My Fibers Technology interview in 2009 went from a formal interview to a more informal conversation as it progressed. That turned out to be a key characteristic that the manager was looking for. He said he was looking for someone with people skills, confidence, and maturity, along with technical and Six Sigma experience. If I’d been nervous, I would have blown it.

I’ve seen how this works from the other side of the desk, too. I’m interviewing someone next week, and if he makes an effort to converse with me and not just sit there stiffly answering questions, he’ll probably get the job.

To condense all of this into the bare basics, I’d say that I extensively network and learn all I can about the company. Then, when I go into an interview, I don’t focus on myself but on how I can make the interviewer comfortable.

If you are an engineer looking for a fulfilling career try Engineering Jobs, where you can find thousands of jobs as well as career related stories, like an interview with a Software and Quality Engineer.

Considered working as a Field Technician? This interview will take you through the ups and downs you can expect in the position, what it takes to land the job, what you can expect to earn and more.

I worked for two and a half years as a field technician for a community-funded mosquito abatement district. I think I did well in the position because I was strong, I loved the outdoors and I was willing to learn.

I am a white woman, and though race was never an issue, gender definitely was. The small community where I worked had some old-school ideas about what kind of work women should do, and hard, outdoor labor with potentially toxic chemicals wasn’t on their list of acceptable employment. It took some time to prove to my fellow employees, as well as the land-owners I had to work with, that I was capable and qualified. It did help that the director of the program was also a woman, though she had only just been appointed a few months before I was hired, and she faced a lot of discrimination herself.

With my fellow employees, what worked best was simply to show up and do the work properly and safely. When they realized that I could keep up with them and never asked for special consideration because of my gender, they began to accept me.

The land owners were another problem. I often had to cross their property while inspecting wet lands and sometimes had to treat bodies of water that they owned. I often found that I received the most respect and cooperation from them simply by bringing a male employee along with me. If they were distrustful of a woman, hearing that the man who was with me had the same opinions and offered the same information often put them at ease.

Mosquito abatement, simply stated, is killing mosquitoes near populated areas so that they will not spread disease to animals or humans. It includes the field-work of testing water samples for larva, draining standing water and spraying insecticides. It also includes vehicle maintenance, lab work, careful record keeping and taking certification classes.

One common misconception about mosquito abatement is that it only entails the use of toxic chemicals. Actually there are many different ways to eliminate mosquitoes, and spraying is really the last line of defense. Prevention is much more important and includes finding ways to get rid of stagnant, standing water as well as educating the public. Most people don’t know that it only takes a few inches of standing water to hatch out a batch of mosquitoes and that most of them breed in neglected backyard buckets and wading pools rather than large bodies of water.

Another misconception is that all forms of mosquito control are toxic. Actually, during certain stages of larval development, environmentally friendly larvicidal oils can be sprayed on ponds and lakes. The oil works by smothering the developing mosquitoes but will not harm plants, livestock or wildlife that use the water.

Mosquito abatement is a very physically demanding job. It requires hours and hours of outdoor work in settings that can be hot, muddy, cold or dangerous. For someone who relishes being outdoors for most of their workday, it can be an ideal job. It also requires a fairly high understanding of math and science. Both are needed to pass the certification courses most states require of employees who use chemicals that could effect humans, livestock and wildlife. As I got older, the physical demands of the job started to outweigh the benefits.

On a scale of one to ten, I would have rated my job satisfaction at about six. I really did enjoy being outside so much of the day. I also felt that the job I was doing was an important one, and I was proud of that. I was helping hundreds, if not thousands, of people avoid dangerous mosquito-borne illnesses, and doing it in a way that had the least possible impact on the environment.

Better compensation would have made the job ultimately more appealing. For the hard, physical labor, uncomfortable working conditions and extra unpaid hours of study it required, the pay was rather low. My hourly wage of $15 was lower than other jobs that were just as physically demanding. As a government employee, however, I did qualify for health insurance and other benefits not usually available to lower-paid workers.

Wildlife biology is a related field that I would have found more interesting, though it would have required more schooling than I had. A career in wildlife biology would have combined my love of nature and the outdoors, while allowing me to more effectively pursue issues that I though were important, like wetlands conservation and pollution control.

I ended up working in mosquito abatement rather by accident. I had just finished earning a two-year college degree and needed a job. A friend knew the newly-appointed director of the program and got me an interview. I believe that she found it refreshing to have another woman apply for the position in her male-dominated field.

One lesson I learned the hard way was to be scrupulously honest with the land owners in our district. I often had to use their property to access the areas I needed to test or treat. Sometimes I actually had to treat their property for mosquito infestations. Early on, one property owner asked me what I was spraying on his pond. It was a virtually harmless larvicidal oil, but it was known to cause diarrhea in animals if they drank it. Worried that he would stop me from doing my job, I told him that it was totally inert. When his sheep did indeed get diarrhea, he showed up at our office in a panic, certain that they had been poisoned. If I had been completely forthcoming with him, he would not have been alarmed by the symptoms that appeared in his animals, and I would not have gotten in trouble with my boss.

Mosquito abatement is a hard, demanding job, and it’s not for everyone. It is, however, an important one and one that needs to be done well.

This is a true career story as told to AllEnviornmentalalJobs.com and is one of many interviews with environmental professionals, which among others include an environmental scientist  and an asbestos estimator .

This Human Relations Specialist clarifies that his job role is more of a problem solver than it is about relating to humans.  Other professionals have also shared their professional stories with AsianHires.com, like a Computer Engineer and a Teacher.

I am a human relations specialist in the Western regional corporate offices of Sears. I have 5 years of experience at this company, and 10 years of total experience in this job specifically.

On a typical day I am communicating with various people from different divisions of the company to solve all types of problems. I am a problem solver. It is my job to make sure that no disagreement goes beyond the two people that it starts with. I am also responsible for hiring and firing new employees, as well as recommending to upper management decisions on the macroemployment issues of each division. I am also responsible for evaluating the performance of management and coming up with solutions for better performance if they are not working up to par.

I am Asian and male. I would say that this has definitely hurt me in many situations with co workers. Many of them seem to not take me seriously, especially when it is my job to evaluate them. I have definitely heard some people express themselves in less than professional ways after evaluation sessions with me. Fortunately I do not have far to go in order to obtain recourse for these actions. I am able to put down any misconduct that I see directly on performance reports, and you would think that this would curb some of the more negative actions of my coworkers. However, it does not for certain people, who have decided that they are not going to like me simply because I’m Asian. When this is the case, there is little else that I can do other than simply avoid that person, because I do not want to be dragged into a personal vendetta in a professional place of employment.

I speak Mandarin Chinese as well as English, which does help me with some of the employees in my division. Also, it seems to be a mark of distinction to be bilingual at all. I do gain some respect simply because I can speak two languages.

I would rate my job satisfaction at about nine. In order to get to a 10, I would definitely need to experience less discrimination and whispering behind my back when it came to the issue of ethnicity. I wish there was more I could do to create a more professional office.

I learned the hard way in this job that human relations is a lot less about relating to humans than I thought. It is more about matching human behavior to a preset value system and weeding out any behavior that does not match that. What allowed me to learn that was when I brought up some changes in the system. Upper management simply refused to listen to those changes, preferring to keep things as they were even though there were obvious holes in the system.

What they didn’t teach me in school that would’ve been helpful to me was how to match psychology with business. I wish that I was better able to incorporate some of the natural human behaviors into the system that the corporate office goes by.

I got started in this line of work through my university career center hosting a job and resume writing event. They had some recruiters from corporations come, and one of those corporations was Sears. I had originally wanted to get a job in the finance department, but none of those jobs were open. However, the recruiter said that he liked me and somehow my resume went over to the human relations department.

The strangest thing that has ever happened to me in this job was a married couple on the telemarketing for actually getting into a personal argument on the job. I had to break up the argument and send them both outside.

When things are going really well, something that makes me feel really good is the smile on someone’s face when they receive a good progress report. I really like telling people that they have done a good job.

When absolutely nothing seems to go right, some of the things that I handle are arguments between employees that can get pretty heated. Many of their concerns are about salaries and benefits, which I have no direct control over. The people who control that are nowhere near my office.

My job is actually quite stressful, which is why I maintain a great work life balance. I talk to no one from the office once I go home, and I make sure to take all of my vacation days every year.

A rough salary range for the position that I hold is between 75,000 and $90,000 a year. I live pretty well off of my salary because my wife makes about the same amount and we live within our means.

The most rewarding moment that I’ve experienced in this job was when I actually got promoted to my current position. There were no Asians in a position that high in my division, and so I really felt like I was representing something positive for my race.

The most challenging moment that I have ever experienced was when I had a group of people come up to me wanting to know why they had not received their paychecks that week. I had to run around to three different offices and stay on the phone all day to get the issue handled.

To get hired in this field it would be good to have psychology classes and a business degree as well as a pretty social attitude.  I would tell a friend that was considering this line of work be ready to argue.  I take four weeks of vacation a year and no it is not nearly enough.  The most common misunderstanding about human relations is that it is not about human relations at all.

This job moves my heart because I do like to be a problem solver and if I could write my own ticket in five years, I would be a vice president at this company.

This interview with a High-school Teacher will take you through the daily expectation in the position, what it takes to nail the interview, what you can expect to earn and more.

I am a high school math teacher working in the education industry. I have been working in this capacity for the past 7 years. While in the United States Air Force, I worked as a Chemical Warfare Defense instructor for 5 years and a mechanic on F4-E aircraft for 5 years. Since I had previous experience as a military instructor, it made the transition to civilian teacher relatively easy. The high school students I teach are not much younger than the personnel I taught in the military, so that is a good fit too.

As a math teacher, I am responsible for teaching high school math to include algebra and geometry. I also teach remedial math to students who need more help catching up. Since the school in which I teach is small, I have also taught history, economics, various sciences, and my second-favorite subject of English. Some people believe that you must not be able to make it in the “outside world” if you teach, but the fact is that the job isn’t for just anyone. A successful teacher is dedicated, selfless, and goes the extra mile for all of her children.

I am so enthusiastic about my job that I would rate it a 12, out of 10! Because it is such an intense, intellectually exhausting job I tried to switch to something else a few years ago. But I’m hooked! I can’t stop teaching and I can’t stop caring, so my hiatus only lasted 3 measly months. Now I’m back where I belong.

There are not enough adjectives to describe how much I love this job and these kids. I watch their parents drop them off in the morning and I can tell what a crummy day they’re probably going to have unless I can make a difference to them. This is absolutely my dream job.

I had one student who was all boy all year long. He was loud, couldn’t sit still, played pranks on everyone including me, and was generally obnoxious most of the year. However, that same year, he shared one class with an autistic student. He was amazing with her! He was quiet, helped her during class time, and shared when he needed to. That is what makes it all worthwhile – seeing a child bloom. Of course, the rest of the day he went back to his normal self. My military background allowed me to share things that struck a chord with him – the phonetic alphabet, shooting an M-16, blowing up a cache of chemical weapons, running trainees through a gas chamber. I could use these experiences to distract him and give him something else to focus on.

Since I work in a Christian school, I’m not sure if I would still enjoy the job as much in the secular world. I am allowed to hug my guys, call them at home, write on their Facebook pages, read their text messages, and generally get more involved with them than most teachers would. Although I’m tough on them, we end up being friends.

Oddly, I wasn’t looking for a job when I began teaching. My son was about to enter 9th grade and when he was around some of his school friends, frankly, he lost all his brain cells. It was nothing serious – just boys being boys – but I was concerned that once high school started, the playfulness would morph into something bad. So I enrolled him in a Christian school, much to his chagrin.

The school needed volunteers to help with various things so I went in a few times to help. Shortly after school began, a teacher had to quit and the school was left in the lurch. Since I had the credentials and obvious rapport with the kids, I was asked to come and work.

I learned the hard way that kids need structure. My approach was rather haphazard to begin with, and that was confusing for them. For instance, during physical science we were studying friction. The text was boring and I spontaneously decided to liven it up. We went to the gym and spent the next two hours sliding on the floor in our socks! Although we had a great time it messed up the schedule for the rest of the day, not to mention other classes and their socks! All they wanted to do the rest of the week was play. I learned to schedule the fun in tiny, workable increments that weren’t so overwhelming.

The most important thing I’ve learned is that your work ethic matters. Students whose parents don’t make them take responsibility for anything suffer in the end. They don’t learn the value of work. They shift the responsibility for their own actions to someone else. Homework didn’t get done because mom didn’t remind them. The science project didn’t get completed because they were out late at a football game. The car got totaled because the highway department didn’t properly bank the curve.

The oddest thing that has happened so far is that there was a mysterious, noxious, fishy odor whose source I could not discover. It turned out that it was sardine juice poured down the air conditioning vent by the aforementioned student. He didn’t confess until the last day and he was laughing the entire time he told me. I can’t believe he kept a straight face while it still smelled.

I go to work every day because I just love it. I feel proud every single graduation day when I see students who probably wouldn’t have been there except for my intervention. I made a difference in their lives.

Some of the challenges are making students live up to my expectations. They are sometimes not used to applying themselves so much, but they generally rise to the mark in the end. The most difficult things to deal with are issues that result from raging hormones. Teenagers are some of the most moody people on the planet and you just have to take a deep breath and remember that you were once in their shoes.

The job can be wildly stressful, but it all balances out. My favorite sound is OHHHH! That means that the concept has finally clicked and it makes me want to celebrate. I love Fridays when I can bribe them to answer questions by tossing them a piece of candy. We have so much fun!

The salary range for a high school teacher is generally around $40,000, give or take. I’m happy with the salary and live well within my means.

One of the benefits of teaching is a 3-month summer vacation. Weekends are always off as are federal holidays and school breaks. By the time you reach the end of the school year, believe me you are ready for a 3-month break! But then when late August or September rolls around, you are ready to jump on the roller coaster again.

To get hired as a teacher, you will need at least 4 years of college with emphasis in education and your chosen specialty. You must pass the Praxis test. You will be successful as long as you remember that they are just kids, not miniature adults. If you have fun with them, you will be richly rewarded. Kids are also very forgiving in the event that you make a mistake.

Anyone who loves children should consider this line of work. If you enjoy sharing information, molding minds, and letting yourself have fun then this is the job for you!

In five years, I still want to be doing exactly what I am doing right now. My military experience has given me the discipline to be successful in writing lesson plans, corralling kids on a field trip, and treating them as part of a team. As a military instructor I learned to be patient while the kids learn. And as an F4-E mechanic I learned the logical steps that help when I am teaching how to build a birdhouse or how to construct a catapult.  As a whole my time in the military greatly prepared me for the multitude of daily experience that I have.

In sum, teaching is a job I absolutely love. I didn’t think I would ever find a job that I loved more than the military, but I have been blessed with this one.

This is a true career story as told to VeteranJobs.net.

Though struggling for months to find a job can be disheartening, this e-commerce business analyst explains that perseverance with networking and practice interviews helped score his dream job.

I work as an e-commerce business analyst for a major exercise equipment manufacturer. My job consists of analyzing the company’s website, sales data, etc, and using the information that I collect to evaluate the effectiveness of our marketing, guide business decisions and recommend improvements to our business methods and procedures. I landed my position through a job fair that was held in San Francisco after looking for employment for a full year. It was a satisfying end to a very grueling and exhausting journey.

I found out about the job fair from a friend on Facebook and followed up by finding information and registering on the website of the hotel that hosted the event. When I arrived, I entered my information into a laptop that was provided for the purpose of collecting job applications. The benefit of using technology is that I was aware of the job fair much faster than I would have been without it and so I had plenty of time to prepare myself. Had I not used the technology of social networking, I may not have found out about the fair at all.

In order to make myself stand out, were I applying for the exact same job tomorrow, all I would have to do is list my current job on my resume and then list all of the qualifications that I picked up as a result of having that job. I now have experience, hands-on training on several different kinds of analytical software, business reporting and marketing experience, etc. I have learned much about my job, all of which would really shine on my application for the same job.

In my field, I most often connect with others using our company e-mail system, although I did set up a Facebook user group for other e-commerce people that I know. As far as helping me find a job, I’d say that social networking is the most effective technology I’d used. As I mentioned previously, it was a Facebook post that led to my finding my job. Other than that, I connect with other professionals through other means, such as by using the telephone, by fax, Twitter, and others.

I once had an interview during which the interviewer kept asking those weird existential questions, like “If you were a tree, what kind would you be?” or “What would I find in your refrigerator right now?” I know that those kinds of questions are meant to test your personality and that usually only one or two will appear in an interview. They asked me at least six of them! I don’t know what they were looking for but I apparently didn’t have it as I didn’t get that job. The lesson that I learned from the experience is that you need to be prepared for some off-the-wall things to come up during a job interview. You can look those questions up online to find out what the company is looking for in your answer. Of course, it’s better to know ahead of time rather than having to come up with something while sitting across from the interviewer!

The most important thing I learned about the professional job search process is that you can never give up. You have to keep applying and hoping to get in the door. It can get frustrating but you have to keep at it until you find something. During my year-long job search, I applied to dozens of jobs and had two or three interviews each week until I found my current position. It was a long, difficult, and frustrating process that had me on the verge of giving up many times. I realized that I had to keep trying if I wanted to land my dream job. It is also very important to make sure you have the qualifications that your prospective employers are looking for. You must have the skill set to do the job you are applying for; otherwise you are just wasting everyone’s time.

I made extensive use of the Career Services program offered by my university, although I ultimately got my job through other means. They helped me by advising me on what my best career options were and how to prepare for them. They even told me what I should major in to get the kind of job I wanted. I think one of the best tools they offer is advice on interviewing for jobs, complete with practice interviews. They are designed to make you feel comfortable during real interviews. They really work; at least they do for me! I was able to refine my interview technique over time and make fewer mistakes until I landed my current job. As a bonus, I am also more comfortable whenever I have to make presentations on the job.

If I could redo one event from my professional past, it would be to go back and decline a job offer I once received that required a transfer to the east coast. It was a promotion within the company that I worked for at that time and at first it was great. However, taking that promotion set off a chain of events that took me to some of the lowest points of my life and caused a lot of harm to my relationship with my wife. On the other hand, if that didn’t happen I would likely still be employed with that company and I wouldn’t be where I am today.

Find and apply for your next successful job interview at ECommerceJobs.org where you’ll find all the jobs in one place.

Faced with a difficult job market, a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist and Psychologist shares the necessary techniques to find a good position, even in this economy. By networking and using already-established contacts, developing a clear strategy for goals and being persistent, the job search will eventually pay off with the perfect job.

After years of school and getting a graduate degree in psychology, I found that I was looking for a job in one of the worst economies in decades. It has been challenging to find work in my field, especially since I work in social services and budget cuts have decimated community social service organizations and county and state offices that provide the services for which I am trained.

What Do I Do?

I have a Master’s degree in counseling psychology and a PhD in clinical psychology and am a licensed Marriage & Family Therapist and a Psychologist. Right now I am working as a youth counselor for a community service organization. We provide individual and group counseling services to troubled teens and their families.

I work closely with the juvenile justice system – juvenile hall and family court – making sure that my clients meet the court mandated requirements for counseling. I facilitate family meetings and group counseling sessions. I also work one-on-one with clients to address the issues that brought them into counseling, whether it be addiction issues, depression, family distress, aggression or abuse, just to name a few of the issues we deal with.

Finding My Job

It took me over a year of searching to find my job. Given the level of budget cuts in recent years, social services has been one of the areas that has been cut the most extensively, even though the need for social services has grown phenomenally.

As part of my degree and licensing requirements, I served several internships in my area of interest, including working at juvenile hall, homeless shelters, schools (elementary through high school) and several different other venues. I networked extensively with other therapists at my internship sites to find out about potential openings and leads for supervisors who might be able to help me find a position in their department or service organization.

I also looked on several job sites, but found that for the most part, there were very few jobs advertised in my field on those venues. I attended job fairs and job networking events, but in the end, my own personal networking was what gave me the lead to finally landing a job. One of my former supervisors had been given a new contract to work directly with the local county juvenile justice program and asked me to come interview for a job at her organization. Since she already knew my skill set and strengths as a counselor and therapist, I had an advantage over other applicants.

Lessons Learned

The number one lesson I learned was to not give up. There were times when I felt like I was never going to find employment and all my years of work and effort at getting my education and licenses had been wasted. I love what I do and am passionate about it, and would find myself getting depressed and discouraged at not being able to do what I wanted. But by not giving up, I am now realizing my dream and making a difference in people’s lives in very tangible ways.

I also learned that it is important to talk about what you do and why you love it. People want and need to know what you are good at and it is important to make an impression on them. The reason I was able to get the job I have is because the supervisor remembered me. I had made an impact on her with my passion and dedication to my job. I was able to demonstrate to her that I knew what I was doing and that I would be an asset to her team – that I could make a difference in the lives of their clients and actually help them learn better methods of coping with life challenges.

Three Pieces of Advice

#1 – Demonstrate your abilities. When I went on job interviews, initially I was surprised at being given an on-the-spot role play scenario where I was asked, “what you you do if ….” I had to demonstrate the full range of my knowledge and experience – everything from how I would assess a situation, to how I would prioritize critical issues, and what interventions I would use to help the client.

#2 – Know what you want. One of the questions I was asked repeatedly is, “what do you see yourself doing long term?” This was initially a very difficult question for me, since I already had my two licenses and degrees and was entirely focused on what I waned right now; which was to get a job in my field. I had to really sit down and assess what I envisioned for myself professionally for the future. What I came up with for myself was that I wanted to eventually be in a leadership position in a community based organization. Once I knew that, then I was actually able to more strategically apply for jobs that would help me eventually reach my goals.

#3 – Be willing to be flexible. The reality is that we do not know exactly what the future will bring us. Initially I was very set on my idea of what I wanted – to work for a department like Child Protective Services doing family assessments. What I found out, ultimately, was that when I was open to new opportunities I expanded my outlook and discovered new skills and abilities. It had not occurred to me that I could be this happy working directly with teens, focusing on keeping their family unit healthy and teaching them better communication and coping skills.