By Andrew C. Abraham

I was always very ambivalent to the advantages of entering into a sales position upon graduation, but I soon realised how these skills are applicable to all aspects of my life. I remember shortly after being promoted to sales manager, I was training a group of newbies on the sales methodology of our company, citing different non-professional life situations where sales acumen was advantageous to succeed – picking up the opposite sex in a bar, meeting your in-laws for the first time, negotiating a pay rise, pitching to investors…the list is endless. Job hunting is no different, and job-seekers can learn many qualities that successful salespeople possess.

1.   Salespeople create value: If you were to ask many people what they believe to be the most important characteristic of a salesperson, they might say “persuasion” or the “gift of the gab” or “persistence”. While these are important, the fundamental ingredient is creating value for the client. A great salesperson creates a perceived value that justifies purchasing their product or service. Job-seekers need to do the same and demonstrate they can add value to a company that outweighs the cost of purchasing their labor. After all, a position is available so the company can solve a problem, not because they want to increase their headcount.

2.   Salespeople focus on benefits, not features: Creating value therefore switches the focus from yourself to the employer. The product that I used to sell was a media monitoring service that helped companies track press mentions online. The software came with some fancy analysis and distribution tools that were useful also. One of my colleagues was a master salesman. He consistently exceeded his monthly targets and appeared in the top ten list of salespeople within the company globally. If you ever listened to him on the phone, you’d understand why so many clients had bought from him. He never focused on the myriad of great features, but rather the benefits that one or two of them would add to the client’s operation. As a job-seeker it’s important you don’t just list your achievements to future employers, but focus on a specialized skill-set that will unequivocally benefit them.

3.   Salespeople handle objections: I don’t recall one sale I ever made where everything ran completely smoothly and the customer didn’t require any convincing whatsoever – “Yes Sir, your product is great, don’t bother about telling me the rest, I’m sold”. If only life was so simple. The truth is that in every sale and every interview, you’ll face objections. The customer is always looking for reasons not to purchase something and the best salespeople overcome these objections resoundingly. Objections should not be viewed as a negative sign though! Oh no, on the contrary, objections are a “buying signal.” It usually means that the customer is considering your offer but needs to be assured before proceeding. Therefore, if your interviewer ever confronts you about your lack of experience, or apparent job hopping, be ready to smash the objection back over the net!

Currently, the U.S. unemployment rate is at 9.5% and thousands of job seekers are in search for jobs.  Even if you currently have a job, you may be thinking that now might be the time to start looking again.  I have been interviewing candidates for the past two years for my company and have seen job applicants do the right things and the wrong things.  Here is my best advice on how to ace your next interview:

1. Prepare: Be early, know exactly how to get to the interview and make sure you allow enough time for traffic.  Arrive calm, relaxed and don’t forget to eat beforehand!  My first interview lasted 4 hours because I had to interview with 5 different groups of people.  I had no idea it would take that long and I was famished at the end!
2. Be Confident: Walk into the interview like you will get the job.  Imagine a scale of a 1-10 and walk in feeling like an 8-10. Show enthusiasm and interest about the job and let them know that you want it.  It is a red flag to the interviewer if you don’t seem interested.
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By Phil Rosenberg

Most job seekers leave their recommendations up to chance when careful planning can help you tell the most important parts of your story to a potential employer.

The extent of most candidates’ reference planning stops at asking prior bosses, peers and clients to give a reference. While it’s polite to ask your reference first, it’s just not enough.

Do you know exactly what the reference is going to say to a potential employer? Since this is something you can control, why leave it up to chance?

Why Manage References?

Most candidates leave the content of their references up to chance because they don’t know what their references are saying… placing their faith that it will be something “positive.”

Just because a reference is positive, doesn’t mean it provides the help (or the right type of help) that you may need.

1. ”Positive” references come in many flavors: Will your reference give you just an OK ref, a good ref, or a truly great reference? The difference between these types of “positive” references can be communicated by tone, pacing, enthusiasm, and word choice. Do you know how “positive” of a reference you are being given (may not correlate to the positive reviews you got)?
2. References each tell a part of your story: A “positive” reference may naturally talk about the same aspect of your performance as the rest of your references. On one hand, it’s nice that everyone says the same thing, but it limits the outside corroboration that references provide your personal story. You’re typically better represented if each reference focuses on a different skill that you bring to an employer. Often the references you choose truly want to help, but don’t know what to say that will help you.
3. Reference doesn’t know what’s important to the company: Will your reference choose to talk about what a great team player you were, not realizing you are interviewing for a role where individual contribution is more important than collaboration? Will your well-meaning reference talk about the great job you did as a generalist, when your prospective employer is looking for specific subject matter expertise?

Most candidates leave these types of issues with references up to chance. Since there is so much out of your control in job search, isn’t it in a candidate’s best interest to actively manage the things they can control?

Now that you realize some of the risks of unmanaged references, let’s talk about how to manage your references.

Every day, millions of Americans feel unhappy and stuck in their present job situation. Are you one of these individuals? It may feel overwhelming at first, but keep your hopes up – there are other job opportunities available for you out there! If you put in the right efforts for your job search, you’ll find the right job. After all, both you AND your employer deserve to be happy! So what can you do to get a start on your new job hunt?

Here are some tips to help you get out of your rut and help you find a job that you really want:

1. Keep your current job and your job search 100% separate of each other. Your current employer is still paying you, so do not look for work while you’re at work. This may sound obvious to some of you, but you’d be surprised how many people spend their time in the office job searching. Instead, use your own time, such as breaks, lunch hours or time at home, to do anything related to your job search. Along those same lines, do not discuss your job search with co-workers. Use your personal e-mail when sending out resumes and applications and if you receive any job search related phone calls while you’re at work, take them away from the office to avoid someone overhearing you.

2. Build up a network. Networking is important when finding a new job. Where can you start? Consider joining professional organizations, attending luncheons or community meetings. You may also want to consider joining professional networking sites like LinkedIn.com, which can provide easy opportunities to network with other professionals in your industry. Be careful what you post online, though. If you’re connected to your co-workers, it’s best to refrain from posting any negative comments about your current job situation or commenting about your job search at all.

Criticism can be tough to swallow, even for the most humble individuals out there. It’s never easy to receive any form of criticism, whether it’s constructive or not, but sometimes you just need to bite the bullet and try to make the most of it.

We spend hours upon hours with our coworkers, partners, bosses and customers each week. These individuals get to know us well and can learn quite a lot about us over time. Sometimes, they may offer their opinion on how you could improve your performance, also known as constructive criticism. What you do with these suggestions, and how you go about handling them, can have a massive impact on your career and relationships in the workplace.

The first step to handling criticism at work involves opening up your ears and really listening. You might have an inclination to consider this constructive criticism as complaining or whining, but just take a moment and really try to listen to what the other person is telling you. What is it about? Is there any truth to it? Many times, this criticism is coming from someone who wants to help you, so try not to get defensive or begin to justify your actions. Instead, consider the nature of the criticism. Is the person telling you how to do your job, or are they just genuinely making an attempt to help you improve? 

Second, try not to take this criticism to heart. It’s not something to be used personally against you and it’s not something meant to demean you or your job. Remember, you’re in a professional setting where the quality of your work is regularly supervised and criticism is a normal part of getting feedback. Therefore, try not to get your emotions tangled up in these kinds of comments. Instead, remember that this is about your career, so you need to remain objective.