Guerrilla Job Hunting

First-hand Experience

2012-01-23T19:38:57-05:00

All around you the people who have the character and courage you admire most in life have gone through pivotal moments in their lives. Times where they’ve pushed forward and won against all odds.

Whether it was a job loss, a death in the family, a health problem, or something as “simple” as getting through university, you admire them for it.

That experience gave them resiliency and transformed them into winners. From that moment forward winning becomes habitual for them – and their resiliency permeates everything they do.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

Interview questions: How do you define success?

2012-01-23T09:57:00-05:00

With reference to the definition of success, how successful have you been so far?

Relate your answers to your career accomplishments. Be prepared to define success and where you believe you are in relation to your career plan.

Map your successes to their requirements for the job. Re-read the job posting before you go in the interview. Remember, they want to hire you because they think you've got the experience they need and they made that assessment form the information they pulled form your resume.

If the employer can't put 2&2 together you better make sure you can.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

The 3 R’s of successful job-hunting: Resiliency

2012-01-17T15:21:00-05:00

If the last few years have taught me anything it’s this: the one thing you will need more than anything else – more than even proper research and interview preparation - is resiliency. Resiliency is the winner’s edge in this, or any market.

“Winning is not a sometime thing; it’s an all the time thing. You don’t win once in a while; you don’t do things right once in a while; you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit”, so says Vincent Lombardi, football’s winningest coach.

Resiliency – the Winner’s Edge

Winners share one special quality - resiliency. As defined by The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language:

re·sil·ien·cy –The act of resiling, springing back, or rebounding; as, the resilience of a ball.

For our purposes, resiliency quite simply is the ability to take disappointment or “take a hit” as Vince Lombardi would say, and get up, and keep going.

You know full well that if you were at work and you ran into an obstacle that prevented you from launching a new product or reaching a key client for information that was going to help you be more successful on the job, you’d find a way around it or through it.

Put another way, if you found out you had the winning lottery ticket in your hand with fifteen minutes left to claim the $2 million you’d find a way to do it – even if you had to walk up hill in a snow storm – both ways - with a leg cast on!

Your job search is no different and no less lucrative (40 yrs x 50K = $2 million). This is your life. Take complete charge of it. Develop your plan and then start implementing it with resiliency. Parlay your series of jobs into a purposeful career.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

Interview Questions: Do you generally speak to people before they speak to you?

2012-01-16T10:01:00-05:00

The interviewer probably needs to know if you're introverted or extraverted with this kind of question You're best off answering " It depends on the circumstances." Let them explain more and put your answer in context with the position. Are you being interviewed for a sales position or executive secretary.... it matters.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics , go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

The 3 R’s of successful job-hunting: Relevancy

2012-01-10T15:19:00-05:00

In grade school we learned the 3 Rs of Reading, wRriting and aRithmetic. Those were our most important lessons [ok so I’m dating myself here]. For job-hunters it is Research, Relevancy, and Resiliency that will deliver an A+ interview.

Relevancy

Your offer [skills] have to fit their needs. It has to solve the employer’s issues, not yours. It’s not about you. At the core employers only want to know three things about you:

♦ Can you make me money?

♦ Can you save me money? and/or

♦ Can you increase our efficiencies?

As global competitiveness increases, employers will be looking for all three. In the book we will show you how to express your relevancy – Value – to an employer.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

Interview question: Greatest Strengths and weaknesses?

2012-01-09T09:55:00-05:00

If I spoke with your previous boss, what would he or she say are your greatest strengths and weaknesses? First of all.. you better have expected this question. If you didn't shame on you. If you did I hope you asked your previous boss this question --- after you left the job so they'll tell the truth --- that way there will not be any mistakes or inconsistencies. So you forgot or your ex boss was the moron brother of the owner. Now what? Be consistent with what you think they would say as a reference. Always turn a negative into a positive. Cite an example of a minor weakness and how you have overcome it or are currently working on it. This is no time to be honest about your compulsive pencil stealing habit.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

The 3 R’s of successful job-hunting: Research

2012-01-03T15:17:00-05:00

Research

As a job-hunter you need to research and determine:

♦ which are your marketable skills;

♦ which industries/companies you should target that use those skills;

♦ what are the specific needs of each company in your target market;

♦ who’s in a position to hire you in those companies; and

♦ what’s the best way to approach them?

The way you approach people will be determined by your research. We’ll talk a great deal more about research specifically in the book.

For now understand that your research will help you determine what your going to sell to whom - with YOU as the product. It may sound silly or even daughnting if you don't have any formal slaes trainging but really it's very straight forward. I can do this and so can you!

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

Qualify your prospects.

2012-01-03T08:08:00-05:00

Like any good sales person, before you start job hunting you need to know what a qualified prospect for YOU looks like. Here's how to do that:

1^st, Choose the selling cycle that suits you best. [what type of firm gets you excited?]

2^nd, Ascertain where you can best leverage your rolodex. [ which comapnies will pay the most to have you?]

3^rd, Match your style to the market. [are you a Hunter, Farmer or Commando?]

Line up all three elements successfully in one job and you’ll triple your income. Try using the One Minute Resume as your calling card.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

Interview Questions: What do you know about our company?

2012-01-02T09:11:00-05:00

Do your investigative homework before the interview! Take a look at the Internet for information or at the library researching the company. Research as much information as possible including products, history, size, financial status, reputation, image, management talent, people, and philosophy. You will want to be excited about the company and project that to the interviewer. Go beyond everyone else and find their competitors too. Use Alexa or Hoovers or just call your favorite librarian and ask. AND don't forget to send a box of chocolates at Xmas. It'll be remembered. Lastly, let the interviewer tell you about the company from their perspective. Simply say, "I would love to know more --- particularly from your point of view. Do we have time to cover that now?"

7 Habits of Highly Effective Consultants « Transform Consulting

2012-01-01T20:52:05-05:00

As we look back over 2011, we can acknowledge the widely predicted continuing increase in short-term, assignment-based contract work in both large and small organizations as they struggle to adapt to the changing global economy.

via jennyokonkwo.wordpress.com

This is a must read for all consultants from Jenny Okonkwo

PR for Job Hunters: Managing Your Public Image

2011-12-27T15:13:00-05:00

Networking is about who knows you – so be visible and cultivate a powerful public image. Make sure your promotions and major sales wins are noted in the trade press and visible through LinkedIn and ZoomInfo. People judge you by the company you keep… that’s especially helpful for you when it’s a high profile account potential employers may covet.

Go to both sites now and join. Fill out your profiles and makes sure you use them in your emails. Make sure you know what people are going to find and make the necessary corrections to ensure they find "you" and you understand what they find. If you click on the link to my LinkedIn profile you'll see that you read what I want you to read while at ZoomInfo I've been mistaken for my evil twin who's with the Canadian Tax Foundation [actually they're the good guys - they defend the public].

But the point is it's not me, so I need to go in and correct that. Go check out your public image now.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

Job Hunting Prep

2011-12-27T08:06:00-05:00

Over prepare. An interview IS the ultimate sales call. YOU’RE the product! You not only need to understand your product, you must understand the employer's needs. Prepare a T-account on yourself and the opportunity AND then overlay it on the company’s competitors as well as the industry. Position yourself relative to the industry not just the company you are interviewing with.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

Interview Questions: Why should we hire you over another candidate?

2011-12-26T08:46:00-05:00

Obviously if you're being interviewed it's because the company sees you as a solution to a problem they have identified.
Relate past experiences that show you've had success in solving problem(s) that may be similar to the ones they are currently facing. Succinctly tell them what you bring to the table. What sets you apart from your competitors.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

Last Minute Christmas Gift Ideas for Job Hunters and Those Who Care About Them

2011-12-23T17:24:01-05:00

On December 15^th, 1998, I rushed my baby daughter to the hospital. She had gone in to heart arrest. This would be the 4^th time in as many months, but this time as I handed her to the emergency room nurse I said, “It’s time. She’s old enough now. Please do the heart surgery.”

Shannon was now 4 and half months old. This time traffic was heavy and we cut in close. We couldn’t use an ambulance because we live on the border between two provinces and the ‘children’s hospital’ was on the other side. The ambulance wasn’t allowed to drive her there.

Thankfully, each time she had gone into heart arrest it happened at night. On a good night I could make it to the hospital in about 8 minutes. We had roughly 13 minutes to travel the 19.2 kilometers before brain damage would start to set in, so we had to leave as soon as we heard her stop breathing. Because of the urgency we had to leave our other 3 children at home alone. To make sure they were safe, we had enlisted a mini army of volunteers who were on the ready – for up to 6 months – to get to our house if their phone rang in the middle of the night. They knew it was us calling – and we’d already left before they’d had time to answer the phone. Why we had to drive our daughter ourselves, is due more to politics than the health-care system.

Our good fortune saw us able to take her home on the 20^th in time for Christmas. And it was a joyous Christmas indeed. To thank our friends and neighbour’s and the army of volunteers who watch over our other 3 children when we decide to have a New Year’s Eve party.

I really thought my ‘gift’ had been the safe return of my baby daughter. I would soon discover that Shannon’s return was just the beginning of a gift that would last more than 13 years and likely until my death 56 years from now.

Here’s where this story really begins.

It was a big party. We had very little furniture in our house at the time so it wasn’t hard to fit the 100+ adults and children. That night I learned that several of the people I really thought I knew well, where out of work. I was shocked to hear both had been out of work for quite a while and hadn’t said anything to anyone. In fact the only reason I found out was because one of them had thanked me profusely for inviting his entire family, accidently confessing they hadn’t eaten like this in months…. which lead to my discovery of his being in between opportunities. (I helped fix that quickly in the New Year.)

I admit I was shocked. Shocked I didn’t know how bad things were for him and his family: shocked that he hadn’t said anything. Disappointed at myself because I hadn’t paid closer attention. And humbled that he and his family – who were in such a terrible situation – took the time to help us with our baby when he could have/should have been pounding the pavement looking for work.

That night Anita and I started what has become a tradition amongst our friends, old and new.

Every year we have a Christmas party. I know a lot of people. We invited old friends, new friends and many of our clients who live in Ottawa. It often takes Anita up to 3 days to prep ear for it and we all have a good time.

No one has ever known - until just now – one of the side benefits of the party… that several of our friends miraculously seem to find new ‘career opportunities’ talking with someone at the party.

Now, I understand that not everyone has the time or energy to arrange a party to help their unemployed friends find a job. And in fact if people knew what you were doing they likely wouldn’t attend out of misplaced pride – however I know you can still make a huge impact on someone you know AND not have to worry about their ego getting in the way and destroying the friendship.

Here are a few ideas we’ve done over the years:

Make a mortgage payment or pay their property taxes for them.
Order a cord of wood or pay for a delivery of oil for their furnace.
Slip a gift card for groceries or a department store anonymously in their mail box.
Pay their Internet or their subscription to the newspaper [both of which are essential to job hunters and ironically are often the first to be cut from the family budget].
Pay their utility bill.

Use your imagination. [None of the above are guaranteed to be easy to do in your area of the world.]

Do it quietly and expect nothing in return. Never tell them. Never admit to it. If they find out you risk losing your friendship, not strengthening it, so be anonymous no matter if they hint about it later because pride is a funny thing. Just keep emotions out of it and do the right thing.

We’ve done this every year since 1998 – and not just at Christmas. Shannon’s safe return was not the only ‘gift’ I received that Christmas. I discovered how to give back in a meaningful way and feel good about privately – that was my Christmas bonus in 1998. bonus.

So why am I writing about this now? Because the last 10 years has dramatically changed the world around us. Economic uncertainty and change are now the only constant and many people have no idea how to cope with the change. Many have lost hope as their lives spiral out of control. All jobs are temporary now and unemployment and foreclosure is only a handful of paychecks away for most people. For me, Christmas and Hanuka signify hope, and hope is all that many job hunters have right now. so today I'm letting you know about ways to help others that you might not have considered before. That's it.

So if you have a job I invite you to to enjoy the gift of giving.

And if you're looking for work right now I implore you to let your friends and family know how they can best help. Consider this - wouldn't you help them if you knew they were in trouble? Give us the same opportunity today. We may need your help tomorrow. letting us help is a great gift.

God bless - Happy Hanuka and Merry Christmas

The Force Multiplier Affect - A Guerrilla Job search success story

2011-12-20T15:11:00-05:00

There's an old sales adage that applies to job hunting which goes something like this: "success is 98% just showing up". I want to expand on the use of technology and how to apply it to your job search.

The new rules of modern job hunting change daily as does the technology and counter-technology companies use. Because of that, a traditional staple in the job-hunter's arsenal is coming back into vogue - FAX. Guerrillas know that often the best weapon is "old reliable". I wrote an article for California Job Journal on the use of fax technology as an effective alternative to email, snail mail and web forms. It's well worth reading. On the Guerrilla Marketing for Job Hunters site there's a free trial offer as well. With Fax your document cuts through all the technology barriers in your way.

Fax was pivotal in a successful marketing campaign I ran to place two candidates as a team [no easy feat]. Fax was the KEY distribution tool for the launch which also consisted of direct mail, web site and blog - along with a direct marketing campaign lead by me - to leverage the full power of the Force Multiplier Effect. Without the initial traction from MyFax, it's very likely I would have worked a lot harder to schedule the 39 interviews. With it I simply zeroed in on who had opened the fax as the hottest prospects.

The two candidates where successful in closing on 38 offers from the initial round of 39 meetings. Their progress was tracked - in near real time - and podcasted on LandedFM in 3 segments over a 6 week period. Part 1 Part 2 Part 3. As far as tools go it's also worth while looking at the web site he designed and the accompanying Blog. Using one tool in isolation will increase your ability to penetrate the companies you want. Using several of them in tandem has an exponential impact.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

Guest blog: Socratic Selling For Job Seekers

2011-12-20T08:03:00-05:00

This weeks guest Blog is compliments of George Blomgren, author of the not so cleverly named For Job Seekers"blog. George likes it when job candidates take control of interviews and start asking questions. Here's why.

Here's my favorite thing about Guerilla Marketing for Job Hunters: it clearly acknowledges that job hunting is an exercise in sales & marketing. Job seekers who recognize this and act accordingly

create a huge competitive advantage for themselves.

In this posting, I want to focus on one particular aspect of this powerful. As a job candidate investigating a job opportunity, you are a salesperson exploring a potential customer's needs. In fact, you are in an extraordinary sales situation: generally, your prospect has signaled that they are in "buying mode," and (through the job posting, for example) they have provided a lot of clues about what they are looking for. Sales people rarely find themselves in such a sweet situation.

However, many candidates fail to leverage this sweet situation. Some candidates present themselves with what I can best describe as a "here I am, here are my credentials, hire me" kind of attitude. From a sales standpoint, this is akin to setting the your product in front of a prospect without any effective attempt to sell it. Not a terrible approach, especially when your product's value and benefits are exceptional and self evident (again, said product being you), but you're leaving a lot to chance.

Some candidates, recognizing the need for more, promptly jump into a sales presentation. This can be worse than sitting back and letting the customer (the employer) draw their own conclusions. After all, if interviewers draw their own conclusions, at least they are drawing conclusions that are 1) relevant to their situation, and 2) are credible (people generally believe what they tell themselves).

Instead, take a cue from really good sales people. Rather than jumping directly into sales presentations, they ask questions. Questions that ferret out hidden needs and establish credibility. Here's an important insight: your initial understanding of the job, probably drawn from a job description, may very well be out of date or incomplete. Your efforts to determine what the job really entails will set you apart as a thoughtful, intelligent job seeker. Moreover, merely asking good questions will help you start to position yourself.

If you do this well, you will distinguish yourself from most of your competition. But, you can take this even further, again by using advanced sales techniques. What you really want to do is ask questions that lead the interviewer to the conclusion that you are the answer to their needs -- leading questions. Here's an example, somewhat exaggerated to emphasize the tactics:

(Let's assume that the interviewer has just finished asking you questions that have established you as a veteran project manager.)

You: A few minutes ago, you mentioned that the individual in this position previously wasn't especially effective?

Interviewer: That's correct.

You: May I ask why?

Interviewer: She just couldn't really seem to get the job done.

You: Sounds like the problem may have involved her project management skills?

Interviewer: Yes, project management skills -- I guess that's pretty much what we need here.

Woot! Handle this well, and you may even see the light bulb actually appear over the interviewer's head. Be careful, though -- your question should gently lead interviewers, not push, pull or otherwise manhandle them.

(By the way, if you are a student of sales -- or philosophy -- you may recognize this technique as Socratic. I met a "sales guru" once who claimed to have invented the Socratic technique. I asked him "what about Socrates?" He said, "who?")

Anyway, quick summary. One, recognize that a job interview is a sales opportunity. Two, use questions to get at the real underlying needs your "customer" faces. And three, for extra credit (and lots of it) use questions that lead the interviewer to draw their own conclusions about why you are the right candidate for the job.

Interview questions:Why should we hire you over another candidate?

2011-12-19T08:44:00-05:00

Relate past experiences that show you've had success in solving problem(s) that may be similar to the ones they are currently facing. Succinctly tell them what you bring to the table. What sets you apart from your competitors. Don't be a bragard --- just the facts!

[That's it. Now it goes without saying that how you sum your life should have something to do with why you're qualified to do the job they're interested interviewing you for.]

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

6 job-hunting tricks for a Web 2.0 world - Computerworld

2011-12-19T08:02:09-05:00

Computerworld - If you're sitting in your office right now, take a glance at the co-worker on your left and then at the co-worker on your right. Chances are one of them is looking to leave the company. Or perhaps it's you.

via www.computerworld.com

this is a terrific article that really cuts through the clutter.

5 Email Rules for Job Hunters

2011-12-13T15:09:00-05:00

Just like any other direct marketing piece, you only have 3 seconds to make an impression. Here are the rules for effective use of email:

0. Direct your email to a specific person by name – sir, recruiter, hiring manager, etc aren’t acceptable. Bob Smith, Suzy Brown or David Perry are.

1. Use an inviting subject line – “To whom it may concern” needs to be replaced with – Ms. Brown [use the name of a colleague if you can] suggested we should meet and talk about [X].

2. Your opening paragraph must capture the reader’s attention – Tell the reader what’s in it for them. For example: “Dear Mr. Perry: I know that your firm handles searches for finance executives. My goal is a senior finance role with a broker/dealer, mutual fund company, or investment advisor. My background would also … “

3. Tell the reader how to get hold of you – give the reader instructions on how to get hold of you in the message. Don’t make them look in your resume for it or open another document to get it. Make it easy.

4. Cut and paste your resume into your email message – Word documents and PDFs can get lost or deleted before they get to their intended designation so I suggest you embed a plain text copy of your resume in the body of the message and send a snail-mail version at the same time. If they get both versions there’s no harm.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.

Guest blog- G-Man Takes On 3 Guerilla Headhunter Posts

2011-12-13T08:01:00-05:00

EventsEye - has many thousands of events listed now and in the future, searchable by name, country, theme, date and keyword

ExpoWeb - is the portal/trade association for conference/expo organizers, and articles like this will give you tips on what organizers seek for conference content

ConferenceGuru - lists a smorgasbord of industry events, and offers discount registration to attend them

You can find professional associations in places like: IPL's Associations on the Net

Yahoo's professional associations directoryand a list from the recruiting industry's own Peter Weddle , among many othersYou can also try a targeted search string like (association OR conference) "Your Industry Name" on your favorite search engine.

2) On Gautam Ghosh's Job Hunting - Considered India? , I fear that US job-seekers are going to be in for more than culture shock in applying for jobs there. You think your compensation will remain level or rise, and the cost of living will be cheap, so your savings will skyrocket during your tenure. Not likely, because most companies pay local rates. An engineer making around $60K in the US gets under $6K in India . According to a recent article in eWeek , the wage inflation for IT jobs in India is rapid (3x the rate of U.S. compensation rise) but it won't be until 2032 that the rates equalize.

China is likely to become the next offshore powerhouse from a comp perspective, but Frank Mulligan deftly explained why landing a job there is no easy feat. However, other factors are pushing many companies to outsource to Russia so maybe that's worth another look.

3) And finally, regarding David's Retiring Baby Boomers and job hunting I don't think the key jobs question is to figure out which jobs won't be offshored as the baby boomers retire yet the US economy continues growing. Even if you could get the seniors retrained, give them flex schedules, and/or let them consult at their old companies, that's not how most of the domestic jobs-reshuffling is going to be settled. The key is to figure out what new twists on current businesses will need to emerge in order to serve an economy with that demographic mix. Elder care, real estate and recruiting are just a few of many industries that will undergo enormous upheaval. The winners will be entrepreneurs who stake a claim in that space by testing models today with niche markets where the demographic shift is already demonstrating pain points. By starting pilot programs now to see what works and optimizing them, they'll be in a position to profit handsomely as the demographic trend goes full force in the years to come. And the rest of us can work for them without moving overseas!

Glenn Gutmacher is a Recruiting Researcher for Microsoft Corporation and creator of Recruiting-Online.com one of the world's first online sourcing courses in 1997. His blog was voted the #2 recruiting research blog for 2005 in Recruiting.com's annual competition, which answers Internet sourcing questions submitted by real recruiters and researchers. Visit Glenn's blog to read the Q&A or submit your question for possible inclusion.

Compliments of David E Perry and Kevin Donlin. For more creative job search tactics, go to the Guerrilla Marketing for job hunters blog and download the free audio CD.