Author: Greg Ryan

Hi! Welcome to my Blog. I like to use my experience as both a Certified Résumé Writer and administrator in charge of the candidate selection and interview process for my department to share helpful tips that I have picked up along the way. This blog will be updated frequently. I hope you enjoy it! Positive Testimonials and remembering to “Like” my Facebook page are GREATLY appreciated.

How to Answer 3 Difficult Interview Questions

While specific interview questions vary greatly by industry and role, there are some general questions that consistently pop up during an interview. Even though applicants know they’re coming, far too often do they enter an interview without a plan to answers these effectively. Here, I will list proven ways to properly answer 3 common interview questions.

1. Tell me about yourself. Sounds simple enough. But it often leads to rambling and losing the interest of the interviewers before the interview has even begun. First, be sure to know what is important to the company and align your response accordingly. While you may have enjoyed working at your aunt’s grocery store in high school, that may not be all that interesting when interviewing for an IT Director position. Second, prior to the interview, make a list of what makes you a good fit for the position and address the ones that you are most passionate and confident about. Finally, plan your answer carefully with a clean, coherent beginning and end.
2. What is Your Greatest Weakness? There are two rules that I recommend following here. First, choose something that won’t cast doubt on your ability to fulfill this specific position. For example, if you are interviewing for a teaching position, don’t say that public speaking is your biggest weakness. Second, wrap-up your answer by stating how you are addressing this issue and how you will continue to work on it in the future.
3. Why Should We Hire You? This may seem like a loaded question that can stress you out with doubts of whether or not you answered it correctly. That is why it is important to prepare a response before the interview begins so you know what you are going to say. Be sure to focus your answer on how you will benefit the company/employer instead of simply listing soft skills such as you are hardworking and a people person. Those qualities are fine to mention as well, just use them as part of a statement that relates to specific impact for the company. Next, explain how previous successes will directly tie into your potential new role. This takes out the guess work for the employer and paints a clear picture of how you will be successful. Finally, rehearse this answer multiple times prior to going into the interview so that you are specific and succinct. You don’t want to start rambling and give the impression that you are searching for reasons because you don’t really know why they should hire you.

Visit gregryanresumewriter.com to perfect your Résumé and Cover Letter today!!

Hi! Welcome to my Blog. I like to use my experience as both a Certified Résumé Writer and administrator in charge of the candidate selection and interview process for my department to share helpful tips that I have picked up along the way. This blog will be updated frequently. I hope you enjoy it! Positive Testimonials and remembering to “Like” my Facebook page are GREATLY appreciated.

5 Things To Do Before Your Interview

You were fortunate enough to get a call back for an interview. That’s great news! But also not the time to rest. Your journey is just beginning and smart candidates continue to prepare for success. Now that you know the time & date of the interview, it’s the perfect time to begin ensuring you are fully ready for what lies ahead. Here are 5 things to do before your interview.

1. Triple check résumé. You want everything to be perfect to help you stand out from the other applicants. If it comes down to you and another candidate, a simple typo or oversight may be the difference in the decision. While I obviously believe in the importance of what I do as a Certified Résumé Writer and recommend enlisting in our services for help, this point is critical regardless. Finding the right job is important enough to exhaust all resources and efforts.
2. Conduct a mock interview. Have someone ask you potential interview questions (search for common interview questions to find these) and practice verbalizing your response. It helps to actually say them out loud prior to the interview rather than simply thinking them in your head. If you feel awkward or don’t have anyone to practice with, verbalize your responses in front of the mirror.
3. Have a strong, positive closing remark. Studies have shown that the two most influential points in any conversation are the first moment and the last moment. Your closing remark will be remembered after you leave the room. Reassure them that this is your dream job and you’re prepared to work as hard as necessary to make the team more successful. If it’s intimidating to say that in front of the interview team, practice saying it aloud a few times the night before so it feels more natural.
4. Update your references. References are often an overlooked piece of the interview process. People tend to find quality references initially but forget to continuously update them. There is a good chance that your network has grown, in size and status, since you began your current job. Also, be sure that all e-mail addresses and phone numbers are still accurate. Employers are not going to spend all day trying to track someone down if their contact information isn’t accurate. If possible, give your references a heads up that you are interviewing and listing them as a reference. This way, they can give some thought to what they want to say about you.
5. Prepare relevant questions. This is sometimes easier said than done, but it is best to have at least one relevant question about the position for which you are applying. It also leads to a smoother conclusion to the interview (remember what I said about the last moment being important). If nothing else, you can always reiterate that you are excited for this opportunity and curious about the timeline for moving forward.

Visit gregryanresumewriter.com to perfect your Résumé and Cover Letter today!!

Hi! Welcome to my Blog. I like to use my experience as both a Certified Résumé Writer and administrator in charge of the candidate selection and interview process for my department to share helpful tips that I have picked up along the way. This blog will be updated frequently. I hope you enjoy it! Positive Testimonials and remembering to “Like” my Facebook page are GREATLY appreciated.

Top 4 Things to Considers When Choosing Your Resume Layout

One thing that I have noticed while going through piles of resumes from hopeful applicants is that candidates often do not do themselves any favors with their chosen resume layout. There are certain factors to considers when deciding how to optimize your resume format. Here is a simple list of my top 4 things to consider.

1. What are your strengths? I have written in the past about how research shows that employers will focus most of their time and energy dissecting the top portion of a resume. So make sure that your strengths as a prospective employee are reflected somewhere in the top half of the first page.
2. Experience vs Enter-Level? If your best asset is 20 years of experience increasing company revenue and consistently earning awards, then it’s a good idea to start your resume with your professional experience. Conversely, if you’ve only had random part-time jobs but you do have a Doctorate, two Masters Degrees and a prestigious internship at a nationally recognized company, then highlight your education and how that will benefit you in the job position of interest before getting into your sparse employment.
3. What Sets You Apart? What sets you apart goes one step beyond your strengths. It includes what truly makes you the best candidate for the job. If you are a real estate agent, did you lead the area in property value bought and sold last year? If you are a teacher, did you win Teacher of the Year at your previous district? Make sure that any recognitions are highlighted early and often throughout your resume.
4. Unavoidable Areas That You’d Rather Not Focus On. We all have them at some point in our career. Areas that would raise red flags by leaving off the resume, but may also raise red flags if they become a point of focus. The key is to not make these areas a focus by burying them beneath more positive content and summarizing (without lying!) these experiences/factors when possible. Don’t go out of your way to mention a negative review or a time when you were laid off, and have a plan to respond if it does come up in an interview.

Visit gregryanresumewriter.com to perfect your Résumé and Cover Letter today!!

Hi! Welcome to my Blog. I like to use my experience as both a Certified Résumé Writer and administrator in charge of the candidate selection and interview process for my department to share helpful tips that I have picked up along the way. This blog will be updated frequently. I hope you enjoy it! Positive Testimonials and remembering to “Like” my Facebook page are GREATLY appreciated.

4 Reasons You Must Personalize Your Cover Letter

I hear it all the time. I understand it. I get it. But I just don’t agree with it. The “it” is when people tell me that they are too busy to write a different cover letter for each job application. I fully appreciate how busy and hectic life can get. We all have those days where it seems like we don’t even have a second to think, let alone time to sit down to write an entire cover letter. Still, whether you are hiring a Professional to help or writing your own, I believe a cover letter should be personalized for a particular job posting. Here are 4 reasons that you must personalize your cover letter.

1. Supply vs. Demand. Jobs are in short supply and high demand. Depending on the type of position you are applying for, it’s likely that there are literally hundreds of interested candidates. If you were a hiring manager, would you rather hire someone that clearly has no knowledge about your company and its goal or someone that articulates how they will directly benefit you and your company?
2. Chance to ease concerns. No matter how experienced you are, there are going to be certain roles that you are better qualified for than others. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it can lead to concern on the employer’s end if not properly explained. Résumés do not leave much room explanation. Cover letters are your opportunity to elaborate on why you do meet the specific needs of that company.
3. It’s obvious. Don’t fool yourself. Employers know when a candidate took the time to research the position and company. That shows an initial investment that is appealing to the person in charge of hiring.
4. Highlight why they NEED you. Some accomplishments, honors, awards, etc. are more important to certain people than others. A generic cover letter doesn’t allow you to purposefully choose which areas you highlight. This prohibits you from driving home aspects that will truly impress an employer and best fit their needs.

Visit gregryanresumewriter.com to perfect your Résumé and Cover Letter today!!

Hi! Welcome to my Blog. I like to use my experience as both a Certified Résumé Writer and administrator in charge of the candidate selection and interview process for my department to share helpful tips that I have picked up along the way. This blog will be updated frequently. I hope you enjoy it! Positive Testimonials and remembering to “Like” my Facebook page are GREATLY appreciated.

5 Ways to Determine How Far Back To Go On A Resume

This blog posts is more geared toward seasoned professionals with a lengthy list of past experiences. The questions always comes up as to how far back should a resume go in detailing previous experience. There are a few guidelines that I follow while making this decision because there isn’t one concrete rule since all situations are different. Here are my top 5 things to consider when choosing how far back to go on your resume.

1. FCS Rule of Thumb. Employers Focus on the past 5 years, Consider the last 10 years, Scan anything before that. This would imply that going back 10 years is a good guiding principle to keep in mind.
2. Getting Repetitive. The further back you go and the more positions that you include, the more likely it is that information will become repetitive. One goal of a resume should always be to optimize impact and space by having each bullet point add value. If each of your responsibilities for a position 12 years ago have been mentioned in more recent positions, then there really isn’t a need to provide details for that job.
3. Burying Critical Information. Since the majority of resumes have professional experience near the beginning of the resume, that means that most information will come after. Burying impressive honors, awards, publications, etc. too deeply may cause a potential employer to miss them altogether. This goes back to making sure that everything you include is adding value to your resume.
4. Losing Relevance. Career paths and goals tend to change over long periods of time. If you are going to list detailed information about an older position, make sure that it is still relevant to your current career path.
5. Many job seekers that have been working in the same field for 20+ years believe that there is value in that type of experience. I agree and want to make it clear that I’m not saying that you shouldn’t list those older positions at all, if nothing else they demonstrate that you have been consistently employed. I am simply saying that you don’t need to take up critical space repeating information that can be found in more recent roles. In these cases, I like to incorporate an Early Career Summary section where I still list job titles and companies without including bullet point lists of responsibilities.

Visit gregryanresumewriter.com to perfect your Résumé and Cover Letter today!!