You shined in your interviews and landed a new job!  The interviews you went on were your first and only time to make a great first impression on important people at the company.  Since you were offered the job, they clearly had a great first impression of you!  Now it’s important that you maintain that.

Here are some tips for a successful first day:

-Get a good night’s sleep!  You want to have a clear mind because you are going to be learning a lot of new things and meeting a lot of new people.  You will want to be well rested!

-Make sure you leave your house with plenty of time to spare in case there is heavy traffic or an accident.  Nothing looks worse than showing up late on your very first day.  Here is good piece of advice to live by about being on time: Being early is on time, being on time is late, and being late is unacceptable.  Try to stick to this, not only your first day, but every day.

- Dress professionally and if you are not sure what to wear…ask!  There is nothing worse than walking in on your first day underdressed.  You want to make sure you fit in.  Take that first week or two to notice what everyone else wears and what is acceptable.

-Ask questions and ask for help!  It’s your first day; you’re not going to know how to do everything!  It might seem a bit overwhelming, which is understandable.  Make sure to be patient and take notes on everything.  Your trainer will understand what you are going through and how you feel, they have been in your shoes before.

-Smile, be polite, and make eye contact when you introduce yourself to your co-workers.  Try to remember their names.

-Learn as much as you can and more.  Read up on the industry and topics relating to your position.  It is important to stay on top and gain as much knowledge as much as you can.  There might be something new you learn that you can bring to the table.

The first day of work can be intimidating.  Each day will get easier and hopefully these tips will help you feel more relaxed and prepared for your first day!

On Monday morning, I woke up to a text message from a close friend who made me feel as if I were the Rachel Zoe of the business fashion world. She asked, “If you wear a black skirt to an interview, do you have to wear a black blazer with it?” I thought my eyes were fooling me (I’m not necessarily known as the most fashionable of the bunch), so I rubbed them a bit and yes, the words were still there… at 7:30 in the morning on a vacation day. Turns out, my friend was doing some Labor Day shopping (both online and in stores) for a job interview coming up during the week. I guess I have to say I was flattered that she (also my elder) was coming to me for career wardrobe advice. I know this question may seem silly to some of you, but I’m curious to know… is it something you can say you’ve actually considered? I like to tell myself I know every single “do” and “don’t’” for interview and career attire, but the truth is, there are still some things I’ve never even really thought about (this scenario being one of those things).

It’s been said time and time again that carefully constructing the perfect interview outfit is worth the effort because it can be a deciding factor in whether or not you land the job. In fact, appearance isn’t just critical to first impressions during interviewing, it’s also important throughout your entire career! For example, have you ever noticed people dress up a little more at networking events or social events after work hours? That’s because they recognize that what you wear can be what defines you when you first meet new people (similar to that of an interview), so you need to make the best first impression possible. It’s just the plain truth. Once you recognize this (if you haven’t already), you may find that your career could be suffering a closet crisis and now is the time to get help!

Going back to the original story at hand… I thought to myself, well, can you wear a different a blazer and bottom that don’t match? Honestly, many of us out there probably can’t rattle off a list of exact dress-code rules for job interviews and your career other than just knowing the everlasting rule that you need to dress “professional.”

It seems that we all might have our own slightly different perceptions of what’s considered the “right” thing to wear to a job interview. So how can you play it safe? I did some research and I’ve compiled a list of rules that are generally accepted as what to wear and what not to wear to a job interview and throughout your career (including the answer to the suit question!). Take a look below, you may actually find some you didn’t know about.

For women:

1. Bring a basic handbag in neutral or dark color.
2. Wear neutral hose with a skirt! Do not go bare legged in a skirt.
3. Use appropriate accessories such as small classic styled earrings, a thin necklace or strand of pearls, no more than one ring per hand. No tongue, nose or eyebrow pierced jewelry. Avoid noisy or chunky jewelry as it could be considered distracting.
4. Don’t put on too much makeup.
5. Avoid sleeveless tops and dresses as well as skirts that are too short (above the knee).
6. Leave the heavy perfume at home and stick to body splash or small dabs of regular perfume.
7. Make sure to wear close toed heels. Do not show up in open toe shoes, flip flops or sandals!
8. Make sure that the hairstyle you choose holds back any stray hairs from falling on your face. You do not want to play with your hair or have to touch it very much while speaking about yourself.
9. Avoid anything ruffled, frilly or lacy, along with accessories on shirts in the form of extra buttons or bows. You want to be classy, not cute.

For men:

1. Polish or clean your shoes – no scuff marks.

1. Be careful with cologne and aftershave! Most likely, your interview will take place in a small interviewing room with just yourself and the interviewer. You may want to consider using none at all.
2. Remember to trim your facial hair! If worn, it should be well-groomed. Observe men in your industry if you are unsure what’s appropriate.
3. Hair should be clean and well kept. Shorter hair is generally considered to be favorable.
   1. Do not wear too much jewelry. No more than one ring per hand. Wear a watch with a leather or metal band. If you wear cuff links, choose a classic style.

For both:

1. Stick to basic, conservative colors and fabric: Navy, dark gray and black work for suit colors. Button down shirts and blouses should be reserved to basic colors, avoid patterns. Wool and wool blends are generally the best fabrics in all seasons. Avoid acetate / rayon blends. Remember that simple, classic styles will save you money in the long run because they never go out of style.
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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.

Special note: To our male readers, we haven’t forgotten about you! Stay tuned for our special Father’s Day blog post in June.

Charlotte, Miranda, Samantha, and of course… Carrie. It seems that talk about Sex and the City is EVERYWHERE lately… TV commercials, radio interviews, Facebook pages, magazine ads… you name it! With the release of the new Sex and the City movie, I thought this would be a great time to talk about just why we love these characters so much. Each of these women embodies four distinct roles of which every woman in the country can relate to. Behind those roles, they are strong, motivated and ambitious – qualities women across the world have come to admire.

When it comes to their careers, the SATC women have got it all. Whether working as a famous columnist and book author, a manager of an art gallery (formerly), a career-minded lawyer or an independent businesswoman with a career in public relations, three of the four main SATC characters has never failed to show prowess when it comes to workplace aspirations (for the sake of focusing on the careers in the workplace, we’re excluding Charlotte on this one because she chose motherhood as a full-time job!). I mean, after all, how do you expect any of these women to buy a pair of extravagant Christian Louboutin shoes without some success on the job?!

Today, more women are graduating from college than men. Women have come a long way as successful professionals and an increasing number continue to make a greater impact on various industries and professions. According to the Department of Labor, women are expected to comprise 46.5 percent of the estimated 164.2 million persons of the labor force in 2016.

So, as the number of women in the workplace continues to grow, it’s more important now than ever to make sure you’re comfortable being a strong woman if you want to succeed and move up in ranks. If your favorite Sex and the City characters could give you advice on how to feel empowered in the workplace, what do you think they’d say?

I’ll admit it: I’m probably somewhere in the running to becoming LinkedIn’s #1 Fan. I’ve even been known to call LinkedIn “my new best friend” from time to time. Why? In the professional world, LinkedIn can open up a wide range of opportunities. Whether you want to make new connections or just get your name out there, LinkedIn seems to be the best place to do it.

Let me start by saying that there are over 65 MILLION people on LinkedIn. That number includes job seekers, recruiters, hiring managers, executives and regular ol’ joe schmoe’s like me and you. There are tons, and tons, AND TONS of amazing professional opportunities and resources available on LinkedIn.

So, I’ve written this blog post and I dedicate it to all of you out there who may not know, or understand, the power behind a LinkedIn account in your job search. Whether you’re new to the site or a self-proclaimed LinkedIn aficionado, this post is for you.

How can you shine like an Olympian during your job search in 2010? Olympic athletes may have four years to prepare for the intense competitions they face during the Olympic Games, but you only need these four steps to go for the gold in your job search and beat out the competition!

© VANOC/COVAN

How can you prepare yourself to top the competition during your job search? In order to succeed, you need to create a strategy that works for you.

It’s a Tuesday afternoon and you’re still swamped with work to do. You’ve looked at your task list and notice you’re about half way through when you realize – it can’t be! – it’s already 5 p.m. How did the time go by so quickly? You’re nowhere near where you wanted to be. This situation has happened to all of us at one time or another and the feeling is never good. So what can you do to fix this problem?

We’ve compiled a list of productivity tips that will help you get the most out of your week with more work completed and less time wasted. Here are some everyday tips to help:

• Set Daily goals. Set targets for each day in advance, have a clear focus and avoid distractions. Set a deadline for task completion and use it as a point to stay on goal. You can get a lot more done if you know exactly what the goal is for the day.

• Set up mini-goals by identifying the targets you must reach. Try giving yourself a fixed time period to get a chunk of your work done. Break complex projects into smaller, well-defined tasks.  Focus on completing one task at a time.

• Get your worst done first. Tackle your most unpleasant task first thing in the morning instead of waiting until later.

• Use your peak times to get work done. Identify your peak cycles, and schedule your most important tasks for those times.

• Group and combine similar tasks. Phone calls or errands can be grouped into a single chunk to knock them out in one session.

• Create your best working atmosphere. Reduce stress by creating relaxing, clutter-free space.

• Once you begin a task, don’t switch in the middle. It’s easy to go way overboard with multitasking. Try to focus on one thing at a time as much as possible and eliminate other distractions.

• Go computer-less for a few hours each day. Avoid email, Twitter, Facebook and other distractions and it can really work well for your productivity.

Utilizing some of these productivity tips in your everyday schedule will help you reach your full potential and create a more effective and efficient way to use your time. If you want more career tips like these, sign up for our weekly “StormStaff Career Tips & Tricks” newsletter by clicking here.

So, you’ve got an interview coming up. You’re strapped for cash, and you’ve searched through every hanger and drawer in your closet but don’t know what to wear. Not to worry! You can still build an ideal interview outfit right from your very own wardrobe. Here are a few tips for picking the perfect interview attire on a budget.

The bare necessities checklist – no job seeker should be without these!

Suit: One of the pricier pieces of your interview wardrobe can be a well-fitted suit.

Affordable Women's Suit from JCPenney

Designer suits can be pretty expensive, but I found a versatile, four-piece women’s set at JCPenney which comes out to less than $100 and several men’s seperates at JCPenney as well.

If a suit still isn’t in your budget, consider a classic white button down shirt with dark slacks. A white top or dress shirt with long sleeves can be a conservative and fail-proof approach at a professional look. Fitted white shirts can be modestly-priced at most stores, like this Merona men’s fitted shirt or women’s button down top from Target. Some department stores even offer shirt-and-tie sets at a cheaper price than separates.

Accessories: Accessories can put a final touch on any outfit but they don’t have to be expensive! You can save money on some of the expendable accessories in your wardrobe, such as pantyhose and dress socks, which can be purchased at wholesale prices.

Hair and hygiene: Sleek and sophisticated looks always make a statement for both men and women. Gentlemen, remember to shave! It is also recommended to skip on the perfumes and colognes altogether to avoid stirring up any allergies.

Dry cleaning: If you have some extra cash to play around with, you’ll definitely want to consider dry cleaning your outfit a few days before your interview. While this is an extra cost, it will create a crisp, clean finish to your look.

Integrating these tips into your wardrobe selection will save you time and money when deciding what to wear for that next big interview. While interviewing for a job can be nerve-racking, choosing an outfit doesn’t have to be!

Do you have any tips for interview attire? What has worked for you in the past and what hasn’t?