Why the Job Market and Job Search Is Broken

Why the Job Market and Job Search Is Broken In 2007 Ben Yoskovitz was involved in the job market, and he wrote a post titled 9 Signs the Online Job Market is Broken. His 9 reasons are below, click to his page and see his reasoning as well as over 60 comments.  Not much has changed. When people ask me about the broken job search, job market, dumb interviewing and hiring practices, etc., I have one answer: it is broken because its all based on people.  People who, by nature, are flawed.  We hire the person with the better smile, or the right skin color, or the person who dressed better (whatever that means), or the person who is more like us (in age, religion, etc.).  We arent supposed to discriminate, but we do.  As long as there are people involved, it will be flawed. It will be unfair.  It will be unpredictable.  And sometimes, it just wont make sense. Im not suggesting that we should get people out of it, and have applicant tracking systems and artificial intelligence take over. Weve already seen how messed up that is.  All Im saying is that these processes will always seem broken, because they are, and its all due to our flawed human nature.  Even people with the best intentions will make mistakes. So thats my answer.  Here are Bens 9 reasons, with my commentary: Companies can’t differentiate themselves. Bens company (now defunct, hes moved on) was about employer branding. so that explains #1 here.  But there are consultants around the world helping companies stand out still an issue, but not sure if thats why the job market is broken. Job sites like Monster.com are loaded with too much spam. Yup, not much has changed.  Although, people do get hired from monster and other job boards. Realize that there are different reasons for fake job postings on job boards none of them help the job seeker. Jobster.com now offers  free job postings.  Jobster went the way of the dodo bird, but the message here was that free meant more spam and junk and phishing. Niche job boards don’t offer enough. I think niche is a good idea, and a good response to the one-size-fits-all that isnt working. The best candidates aren’t surfing job sites looking for work.  I absolutely, 1,000% disagree with this.  The premise, and what Ben says, is The top talent doesn’t spend time surfing job websites for fun. They’ve already got jobs. They’re busy.  This, my friends, is discrimination and ignorance. Sorry. I meet many highly talented people when I speak, and through JibberJobber, who are best candidates.  They might be overlooked because they are overqualified, or because their resume wasnt targeted enough to pass through the ATS, or because a hiring manager is intimidated by them, or because of crazy industry or market circumstances the employed are not necessarily the best, and the unemployed arent necessarily the worst.  Ben continues: And even if they find themselves unemployed, you can be sure they don’t spend much time surfing for work. They know how to stand out, and they’re busy making that clear through referrals and their network of contacts. Sorry, but this is also flawed.  What about the best candidate who has been working, heads down, for 30 years? Hes an expert in his field, but not an expert in networking or job search? Just because a person knows how to stand out, and work referrals, and network, does not mean they are the best candidate it just means they are a really good job seeker. It’s too easy for candidates to apply.  Yes, its ridiculously hard for people to apply for jobs. It’s too hard for employers to assess talent. I agree employers are not necessarily trained to assess talent (unless that is their job, but many hiring managers arent trained deep enough, so they default to discriminatory thoughts, like do I like this person, or are they too different from me?). Again, the human issue. Companies use the services because they’re there, not because they work. Agreed. Lots of money and time is going into the online job market space.  Yes, but that isnt  a reason why the job market is broken. My purpose of sharing Bens post wasnt to disparage his writing and opinion, but to show that 10 years ago there were problems, and frustrations, and today there are still problems and frustrations.  I dont see that changing any time soon. I dont think it will ever change. I hope this gives you a different insight into why things are so hard, as a job seeker. Heres my parting though: if it is so bad because of human nature, what could YOU do to make it better (as a job seeker)?  Theres actually a pretty good answer to that question. Why the Job Market and Job Search Is Broken In 2007 Ben Yoskovitz was involved in the job market, and he wrote a post titled 9 Signs the Online Job Market is Broken. His 9 reasons are below, click to his page and see his reasoning as well as over 60 comments.  Not much has changed. When people ask me about the broken job search, job market, dumb interviewing and hiring practices, etc., I have one answer: it is broken because its all based on people.  People who, by nature, are flawed.  We hire the person with the better smile, or the right skin color, or the person who dressed better (whatever that means), or the person who is more like us (in age, religion, etc.).  We arent supposed to discriminate, but we do.  As long as there are people involved, it will be flawed. It will be unfair.  It will be unpredictable.  And sometimes, it just wont make sense. Im not suggesting that we should get people out of it, and have applicant tracking systems and artificial intelligence take over. Weve already seen how messed up that is.  All Im saying is that these processes will always seem broken, because they are, and its all due to our flawed human nature.  Even people with the best intentions will make mistakes. So thats my answer.  Here are Bens 9 reasons, with my commentary: Companies can’t differentiate themselves. Bens company (now defunct, hes moved on) was about employer branding. so that explains #1 here.  But there are consultants around the world helping companies stand out still an issue, but not sure if thats why the job market is broken. Job sites like Monster.com are loaded with too much spam. Yup, not much has changed.  Although, people do get hired from monster and other job boards. Realize that there are different reasons for fake job postings on job boards none of them help the job seeker. Jobster.com now offers  free job postings.  Jobster went the way of the dodo bird, but the message here was that free meant more spam and junk and phishing. Niche job boards don’t offer enough. I think niche is a good idea, and a good response to the one-size-fits-all that isnt working. The best candidates aren’t surfing job sites looking for work.  I absolutely, 1,000% disagree with this.  The premise, and what Ben says, is The top talent doesn’t spend time surfing job websites for fun. They’ve already got jobs. They’re busy.  This, my friends, is discrimination and ignorance. Sorry. I meet many highly talented people when I speak, and through JibberJobber, who are best candidates.  They might be overlooked because they are overqualified, or because their resume wasnt targeted enough to pass through the ATS, or because a hiring manager is intimidated by them, or because of crazy industry or market circumstances the employed are not necessarily the best, and the unemployed arent necessarily the worst.  Ben continues: And even if they find themselves unemployed, you can be sure they don’t spend much time surfing for work. They know how to stand out, and they’re busy making that clear through referrals and their network of contacts. Sorry, but this is also flawed.  What about the best candidate who has been working, heads down, for 30 years? Hes an expert in his field, but not an expert in networking or job search? Just because a person knows how to stand out, and work referrals, and network, does not mean they are the best candidate it just means they are a really good job seeker. It’s too easy for candidates to apply.  Yes, its ridiculously hard for people to apply for jobs. It’s too hard for employers to assess talent. I agree employers are not necessarily trained to assess talent (unless that is their job, but many hiring managers arent trained deep enough, so they default to discriminatory thoughts, like do I like this person, or are they too different from me?). Again, the human issue. Companies use the services because they’re there, not because they work. Agreed. Lots of money and time is going into the online job market space.  Yes, but that isnt  a reason why the job market is broken. My purpose of sharing Bens post wasnt to disparage his writing and opinion, but to show that 10 years ago there were problems, and frustrations, and today there are still problems and frustrations.  I dont see that changing any time soon. I dont think it will ever change. I hope this gives you a different insight into why things are so hard, as a job seeker. Heres my parting though: if it is so bad because of human nature, what could YOU do to make it better (as a job seeker)?  Theres actually a pretty good answer to that question. Why the Job Market and Job Search Is Broken In 2007 Ben Yoskovitz was involved in the job market, and he wrote a post titled 9 Signs the Online Job Market is Broken. His 9 reasons are below, click to his page and see his reasoning as well as over 60 comments.  Not much has changed. When people ask me about the broken job search, job market, dumb interviewing and hiring practices, etc., I have one answer: it is broken because its all based on people.  People who, by nature, are flawed.  We hire the person with the better smile, or the right skin color, or the person who dressed better (whatever that means), or the person who is more like us (in age, religion, etc.).  We arent supposed to discriminate, but we do.  As long as there are people involved, it will be flawed. It will be unfair.  It will be unpredictable.  And sometimes, it just wont make sense. Im not suggesting that we should get people out of it, and have applicant tracking systems and artificial intelligence take over. Weve already seen how messed up that is.  All Im saying is that these processes will always seem broken, because they are, and its all due to our flawed human nature.  Even people with the best intentions will make mistakes. So thats my answer.  Here are Bens 9 reasons, with my commentary: Companies can’t differentiate themselves. Bens company (now defunct, hes moved on) was about employer branding. so that explains #1 here.  But there are consultants around the world helping companies stand out still an issue, but not sure if thats why the job market is broken. Job sites like Monster.com are loaded with too much spam. Yup, not much has changed.  Although, people do get hired from monster and other job boards. Realize that there are different reasons for fake job postings on job boards none of them help the job seeker. Jobster.com now offers  free job postings.  Jobster went the way of the dodo bird, but the message here was that free meant more spam and junk and phishing. Niche job boards don’t offer enough. I think niche is a good idea, and a good response to the one-size-fits-all that isnt working. The best candidates aren’t surfing job sites looking for work.  I absolutely, 1,000% disagree with this.  The premise, and what Ben says, is The top talent doesn’t spend time surfing job websites for fun. They’ve already got jobs. They’re busy.  This, my friends, is discrimination and ignorance. Sorry. I meet many highly talented people when I speak, and through JibberJobber, who are best candidates.  They might be overlooked because they are overqualified, or because their resume wasnt targeted enough to pass through the ATS, or because a hiring manager is intimidated by them, or because of crazy industry or market circumstances the employed are not necessarily the best, and the unemployed arent necessarily the worst.  Ben continues: And even if they find themselves unemployed, you can be sure they don’t spend much time surfing for work. They know how to stand out, and they’re busy making that clear through referrals and their network of contacts. Sorry, but this is also flawed.  What about the best candidate who has been working, heads down, for 30 years? Hes an expert in his field, but not an expert in networking or job search? Just because a person knows how to stand out, and work referrals, and network, does not mean they are the best candidate it just means they are a really good job seeker. It’s too easy for candidates to apply.  Yes, its ridiculously hard for people to apply for jobs. It’s too hard for employers to assess talent. I agree employers are not necessarily trained to assess talent (unless that is their job, but many hiring managers arent trained deep enough, so they default to discriminatory thoughts, like do I like this person, or are they too different from me?). Again, the human issue. Companies use the services because they’re there, not because they work. Agreed. Lots of money and time is going into the online job market space.  Yes, but that isnt  a reason why the job market is broken. My purpose of sharing Bens post wasnt to disparage his writing and opinion, but to show that 10 years ago there were problems, and frustrations, and today there are still problems and frustrations.  I dont see that changing any time soon. I dont think it will ever change. I hope this gives you a different insight into why things are so hard, as a job seeker. Heres my parting though: if it is so bad because of human nature, what could YOU do to make it better (as a job seeker)?  Theres actually a pretty good answer to that question.

How to Master Business Presentations

How to Master Business Presentations Some people make it look like a walk in the park. For others, its the most nerve-wracking thing of their lives.    This sums up business presentations in a nutshell. They are something that most people have to go through, yet those initial days can be tough. To make matters worse, the landscape is constantly changing. While we may have all been taught basic PowerPoint presentation skills back in school, it goes without saying that this isnt going to pass anymore. Instead, there are a whole host of modern techniques to make a striking impression when it comes to presentations. Through todays guide, we will take a look at some of the most impactful. Your clothes make a difference Believe it or not, technology isnt the be-all and end-all when it comes to presentations. Something a little easier to master for many of us is our appearance. This should stand to reason. Lets not forget that first impressions are made within seven seconds so when it comes to presentations this tends to be before you have even opened your mouth. Bearing this in mind, don your best dress, buy a pair of shoes from headoverheels.co.uk and paint a smile on your face. It will get you off to the best possible start. Always focus on your audiences needs Something that is very easy to do through a presentation is to fall into a rabbit hole. In other words, you start one slide, and soon realize that it leads onto something else. The effect keeps multiplying with the end result being a deck that is all over the place. This is why it is crucial to always focus on the needs of your audience. Always ask yourself what they are looking to get out of your slides, so that you dont fill your presentation up with unnecessary waffle. Be wary of the mid-presentation dip A lot of emphasis is always placed on starting strong in presentations, and rightly so. Another important point to note surrounds the middle sections of them. It has been scientifically proven that the midpoint of a presentation (or a lecture for that matter), is where people start to lose interest. For the purposes of preventing this, make sure that you make extra effort to grab attention during this period. Otherwise, theres a risk that your audience will be lost for the remainder of your deck. Death by PowerPoint Well end with one of the most infamous phrases of all, Death by PowerPoint.   Suffice to say, this is something that you should be looking to avoid. Contrary to popular opinion, this doesnt mean that you should send this piece of software to the scrap pile. Instead, its about using it wisely. It means that you shouldnt be overusing it; being savvy with graphics and the amount of text that you are using. You need to remember that you are doing the presentation; you should not just be reading from the slides and hoping for the best.

How Do I Quit My Own Startup or Side Hustle

How Do I Quit My Own Startup or Side Hustle For some Founders, their job at their startup isnt necessarily something they want to keep. There can be a ton of factors at play, whether its I cant afford to do this any longer or Im more passionate about something else.    No matter what the reason, it is in fact possible to quit our own startup. There are just some creative ways we need to approach it. Today’s Advice Sponsored by  Divvy If I quit, who runs this thing? Depending on the size of the company, there may be quite a few people who are interested in our jobs. For example, if its a 10 person company thats doing OK (not great), our CEO job might be something were totally over but someone else in the company may find it as an incredible opportunity to be the CEO for once. That same opportunity may come from the outside world, where someone else with fresh legs would jump at the chance to be the CEO. Remember, most people arent getting CEO opportunities daily, so this is a job search like any other. I still need money. What happens there? If we quit, we need to do so with the intention that were going to replace that income somewhere else. Which is often a job. If we own the whole company and there is enough money to pay a CEO salary AND a distribution back to us â€" wonderful. But thats often not the case. We have to be pragmatic in realizing that if we arent going to contribute to the company on a go-forward basis, the company probably cant afford to pay us. In that case, we have to rely on the value of our equity as the payoff. Can anyone prevent me from quitting? Nope. We may have some investors that get really upset about it, but in fact, no one can prevent us from walking out the door. We may have some provisions in our contracts that create some monetary loss (like unvested stock) but beyond that, were an at-will employee like anyone else. If its time to hand ourselves our walking papers, we can absolutely do it.    You CAN quit our own startup.   We just need to look at our role like an employment decision where one person steps out, and another person gets recruited back in.

How to Take Control of Your Money with Belinda Rosenblum (PODCAST) - Classy Career Girl

How to Take Control of Your Money with Belinda Rosenblum (PODCAST) One of your top goals. I know what it is. Its either getting out of debt or growing your income. Am I right? Well, I know those are two of my big goals. Years ago, getting out of debt was a huge goal for my husband and I. It felt incredible when we were out and now, growing our income is a big focus which is why I had so much fun talking with my friend, Belinda  Rosenblum, about how to take control of your money and own it. I think you are going to love this one. Belinda Rosenblum, CPA President of OwnYourMoney.com www.OwnYourMoney.com How to Take Control of Your Money with Belinda Rosenblum Belinda  Rosenblum  is a CPA and Wealth Expert who helps you take the worry and fear out of money.  Most  people  want off the stressful month to month financial hamster wheel but don’t know where to start to  take control of their money.  Belinda and her company  OwnYourMoney.com  offer a 4-step proven system with the doable financial guidance youve been needing, so you never have to worry about where the money will come from for the next bill or even retirement. Belinda is the creator of the  Money Makers Academy  and the coauthor of  SELF-WORTH TO NET WORTH: 12 Keys to Creating Wealth Inside and Out, both offering a step-by-step approach to help you build your financial self-esteem and manage your own financial life. If she’s not talking about financial freedom, Belinda is likely enjoying the sunshine and chasing after her marathon-running husband, teenage stepdaughter, and 2 spirited  toddlers. Subscribe  on  your favorite platform below: iTunes Google Play Music Stitcher Radio TuneIn iHeartRadio Sound Cloud Some questions I asked: What about the mindset of someone who is working a side hustle and wants to start a business. What is important here? How much savings would you say is required to quit your day job and pursue your business dreams? How can we get over this fear and build confidence in our careers and businesses? What advice would you give to our listeners who are feeling under financial stress or struggling with bills/debt? What is the Big Money Lie people are facing? What are the biggest mistakes you see new business owners making? In This Episode, You Will Learn: How go have the right mindset to create the financial independence you want. You may also like these episodes: How to Know If Your Business Idea Is Profitable 5 Money Mindsets You Need For Career Success Episode Resources: Ever wish someone would give you the STEP-BY-STEP PLAN to get your money in order?  Join Belinda for her brand new money personality quiz and video series to get the exact 4-step system to managing money thats created a collective $4 million in earnings and savings for her clients at www.ownyourmoney.com/classy!

How to List Experience on Resume

How to List Experience on ResumeIt is not easy to write how to list experience when it comes to a resume. But the important thing is that you should be aware of the fact that what you write is really of value and should be a good help to someone who is hiring for a job. So as a guide, here are a few tips on how to list experience in a resume.When you write about how to list experience in a resume, you have to go for an extensive research on the topic. The first thing that you need to do is gather information about the type of work you have done and what kind of education you have got. You will find that the information available on the internet is good enough to get you started. But you have to be careful in your search because there is one key fact that some people are not even aware of. If the candidate has worked for an organization that has a lot of experience, then the employer will think that the candidate is qualified for the job even though he may have been out of college for a long time.A key tip on how to list experience on resume is that you have to use your academic records and make sure that it is absolutely accurate. Make sure that you put all the information on the websites that display the academic records of the candidates. When the employer gets the idea that you had successfully passed out of college, then they will believe that you are worthy to have the job.Always use different types of keywords to come up with a resume that is unique from the rest. This is one way of getting around the issue of how to list experience on resume.Sometimes, employers will want to see some of the previous assignments that the candidate has done. Try to come up with some resumes that show all the work that you have done, including the people you have worked with. Before you ask for an interview, it is better to send out a cover letter that is interesting to the interviewer and introduces you to them about your new career. You can also show them some sample resu mes that are different from the usual resume. The employer may notice these samples and it will give him the confidence to ask you for an interview.Another way of how to list experience on resume is to write an essay or a few short paragraphs. It is the best way to introduce yourself to the employer as the employer can read your resume and read your essays. This will help him get to know more about you so that he can understand the type of work that you are going to be doing for him.Now that you have read this article on how to list experience on resume, you have learned the basics of how to do it. There are many other tips that you can follow along with to help you with the process. But as a final note, make sure that you always focus on your work and not on the writing of your resume.

Small Business Saturday The Who Where and When of Social Media Sharing

Small Business Saturday The Who Where and When of Social Media Sharing Not every business is going to succeed on every social networking site. And yes, there are many variables to success. This is my attempt to simplify the who, where, and when of sharing for the improved probability of  results! Whos Your Audience/Customer Who are you trying to reach? You cant get too far without answering this question. In general terms, you are more likely to reach certain demographics on certain social networks. Pew Research is one strong source of information on this: Pew Research on Social Networks. Missing from Pews most recent research was LinkedIn demographics. The data available from Pew is for 2008-2011 and is too old to reference IMO. However, this infograhic does include LinkedIn information. When Are the Best Times to Share a Post? Here ya go! In order to schedule the posts you share at these optimal times, you will need to use Hootsuite or Tweetdeck. If you are using Buffer to share updates, it can automatically send your update/post at the best time for your followers. (Careful trusting this without testing your individual results to be sure!) Got questions? What do you want to know next?

3 Reasons Not to Panic About Your Job

3 Reasons Not to Panic About Your Job We have nothing to fear but fear itself. Franklin Delano RooseveltYouve heard those words before but what does it really mean to your career? Why shouldnt you be panicking right now?1)For starters, panic never helped anyone think clearly or make rational decisions. If youre frantic over whats happening on Wall Street (and yes there are some serious economic challenges occurring) you may be putting your career at risk. Heres what I mean when you start to operate from a place of panic and fear at work, youre more apt to second guess yourself, miss details and ultimately make more mistakes the very things you want to avoid right now. So calm down. Take a walk, play a game with your kids, go see a movie and by all means, dont panic.-2) Value is what creates opportunity. Now is the perfect time to examine the work you do and the value it provides. Who benefits from your efforts and how? Are there ways you can be of even more service to your clients, customers and your boss? Focus on wh at you can control your own performance on the job.-3)See the current turmoil as your chance to shine. Its the best captains who can navigate in rough seas. With all the economic challenges facing companies, governments, nonprofits, now is the perfect time for you to step up and really demonstrate the creative, innovative ideas you have that can help. Dont just sit back and let everyone else take care of it. Pitch in. Play your part in the best way you know how. It will demonstrate not only your abilities but your integrity as well.If you are having trouble seeing the opportunities for yourself, register for my free one hour webinar next Tues, October 14th at 12pm eastern entitled Getting on the Path to Career Happiness. Youll be able to define your personal career mission statement, vision statement and a practical career path to thrive not just survive todays economic challenges.How are you doing? Are you panicking? Do you have reasons why panicking isnt a good idea? Share them. We are all in this together!