You apply to a great role that appears to match your skill-set. You breeze through a phone screening, and then you have an interview with the hiring Manager and maybe their boss. Everything tells you that it went well, but no phone call with an offer comes, or if you’re lucky, the recruiter does contact you but tells you they “went with another candidate.” It’s tough when this happens once, but it’s tough to take when this seems to be happening more than just once. What could be causing this? After all, the company knew my skills and experience, or they wouldn’t have taken the time to interview me!

One area where job candidates may be missing the mark and, therefore, not receiving job offers after what felt like a solid interview is the fact that the candidate didn’t deliver a strong personal value proposition to the interviewer. A personal value proposition is a great way to demonstrate what makes you a unique candidate and how you can add value to a company. The value proposition could be delivered at the very beginning of the interview as part of the candidates’ introduction or more likely at the close of the interview. Ending without giving the interviewer a sense that they feel that they want to know more about the candidate is probably a frequent contributor to not getting a job offer.

NVA Career Coaching feels this can be remedied by A) working through the process of developing a strong value prop with a Career Coach and B) practicing interview scenarios where the candidate can very naturally deliver the value proposition under conditions presented by various types of interviewers.

Creating your value proposition is one of the most effective ways to give yourself an advantage in the hiring process. It works when used on your resume and or articulated during the interview because:

·       It sets you apart from the competition

·       It focuses on the benefits that you offer to the employer

·       It clarifies and deepens your understanding of the recruiting equation

·       What employers want and what you have to offer

Remember, the best value proposition is clear and straight to the point. If your value proposition makes recruiters think “what??”, you’re doing it wrong. If they have to read a lot of text to understand your offering, you’re doing it wrong. NVA Career Coaching can help you get it right!

Often, we overlook the significance of small “things” and the resulting positive impacts they can have on your life and career.

My Grandfather never lost his job during the Great Depression. He was an immigrant from Ireland and was processed through Ellis Island, ending up in New York City. He became an auto mechanic apprentice and soon was a very solid mechanic in a car dealership that had several mechanics on staff.

The owner took a liking to my Grandfather because of his skill, and when the Depression hit the dealership hard, he pulled my grandfather aside and told him he would be keeping him on despite the hardship. My grandfather graciously thanked the owner but asked why he was being kept on while others, more senior, were being let go.

The owner smiled and said, “Peter, you are a fine mechanic, but I noticed how well-groomed you always are. It is clear that you take pride in your personal appearance even though you work in a dirty garage all day. If you take that much pride in your appearance, then surely you will take pride in all of your work. That’s why I’m keeping you on!”

You see, my grandfather had a thick brush of hair that he kept immaculately trimmed. Every Sunday night without fail, my grandmother Alice, would sit him down in the kitchen with a towel around his shoulders and trim his hair. Long after he retired the same attention to his appearance continued and he was lucky enough to have his full head of thick hair his entire life.

So, the next interview you find yourself going to, put on the tie, shine your shoes, greet the interviewer with a firm handshake and look them in the eye, because sometimes it’s the little things that can make the biggest difference!

I have recently become a regular viewer of the show, Storage Wars…I especially like to watch one of the regular buyers – Darrel Sheets…When Darrel makes a particularly good find he will emphatically state- “Now that’s the WOW factor!”…

It made me think about hiring managers and candidate resumes…just how often do you think they have viewed your resume and had the same reaction as Darrel?

Take a good hard look at what you are telling a prospective employer with your current resume…re-evaluate your work and life experience and try to find those WOW factors that will differentiate you from the pack…

A story does what facts and statistics never can: it inspires and it motivates.

An American master in the art of storytelling was Ernest Hemingway. His best work, as he once said, was a story he wrote in just six words: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”

You don’t have to be a literary master but you must be able to pack a meaningful punch with your profile statement on your resume. When the average hiring manager reads resumes from a candidate database, which contains hundreds of resumes for each posted position, you must instantly stand out. No one reads long paragraphs outlining your career objectives and the type of company you want to work for. Hiring managers don’t care about what you want, they want to know who you are and how you can help them solve a problem they have.

Period.