Additionally, you must make sure that you give attention to detail, about you. Your nails, your shoes, the cleanliness of your clothes, all these are things that a potential employer will definitely look at. Like it or not, but your appearance can actually set the tone for the interview in the first few minutes and help the interviewer form an opinion about you, which can enhance or diminish your prospects of getting the job.

According to reliable research, many interviewers make up their minds about you during the first 15-25 seconds of the meeting. Keeping that in mind, here are some do’s and don’ts to consider when going for an interview.

Your Clothes – the first impression

Common sense tells you that the first thing that interviewer is going to note about you when you enter the room is your outfit. It goes without saying that you must dress professionally for an interview and for any other interaction you may have with a potential employer such as training or internship etc. You cannot show up in jeans and a shirt or flip flops; if you give an unserious impression about yourself, then you will be treated in the same manner as well. Make sure your clothes are properly ironed and are clean, free of any stains or marks. Also check to see that none of the shirt buttons are missing and no other repairs are needed. Get the suit ready to be worn, the night before the interview.

Hair & Make up

Your hair should be combed properly, and neatly styled. This goes for both men and women. Women must take special care not to have their hair coming onto their face and into your eyes. It is alright to leave your hair open if you feel that it will stay in  place. However, if you know your hair type tends to get untidy, then its better to tie it in a pony tail. For men, it is important that your hair is combed properly so it doesn’t give an untidy or uncouth impression either.  Men should shave before they come for interviews since that give a neat look in itself.
Make-up for women, although is important, care must be taken that it is not over done. A bit of light eye shade, a neutral lip-gloss or shine along with very little blush on is just perfect to give a good impression.

The appropriate fragrance

Smelling good is very important in giving a positive first impression. However, both men and women must make sure it is not over done. You  must not be reeking in perfume. That might cause a headache for those that are interviewing you and that will definitely work as an instant turnoff. So, it is always better to keep a balanced approached when spraying on perfume.

Shoes

Make special effort to ensure that the shoes you wear are professional, in line with your outfit and clean from top and bottom. Nothing can leave a worse impression than a person wearing dirty shoes to an interview. For ladies, wear comfortable shoes that are also professional. For men wear decent neutral shoes that give the impression that you are serious about working. Wear comfortable yet stylish shoes since you are going to be working for 8 hours straight and you should find yourself being comfortable.

Additional adornment such as jewelry

Simplicity can go a long way when it comes to jewelry and other adornments. Wearing a lot of ornaments makes you look unprofessional and is distracting for the interviewer. Tattoos are a big no no. Overly gaudy watches for men and thick gold bangles etc for women definitely give a negative impression. It is better to simply avoid wearing any jewelry, rather than wearing low quality things that ruin your overall look.

Before you are ready to leave for your interview, give yourself a final check in the mirror to ensure you are all set. Carry yourself as well as you can. Put your best foot forward and see wonderful opportunities open up for you. Best of luck!

I am currently employed in an organization from last two years. Just recently, my organization underwent a change in the higher management. This new management has implemented some new rules and strategies for the employees and company processes. Although, the employees are annoyed by almost every strategy introduced by the new management, however, the one that employees find most annoying are the regular staff meetings. The management requires us to attend regular staff meetings on weekly basis with an objective to discuss the routine matters of the office. These meetings apparently turn out to be boring and fruitless.

Are these regular office meetings of any importance for the productivity of the company and is it really important for the employees to attend such meetings? Please suggest.

Employee

Answer From Career Post Team

Dear Employee,

Your case is very disturbing, however, very common among the professionals all around the world. Weekly or monthly staff meetings are essential for building and maintaining smooth running practices within an organization. The busier the corporate culture, the more the staff meetings are needed, because there is less time to discuss important issues that come up during the day. It is equally important for smaller procedures to devote this time, to organize and discuss ideas for building the practice. Even when it seems like there is nothing new and interest to discuss, matters of importance will always come up once you take the time to sit together.

Following are the areas that are touched upon and hence enhance the importance of regular staff meetings:

• Improving collective performance, encouraging greater productivity and boosting profits
• Strengthening a sense of togetherness, brand-awareness and corporate identity
• Developing good communication skills within internal teams – a valuable skill which will be translated into customer or client interaction
• Motivating staff to help each other succeed, reinforcing their commitment to working towards a common goal
• Teaching managers and senior staff the crucial arts of communication, delegation and leadership
• Discussing matters concerning changes in office routine, such as: change in lunch periods, hours, vacation time, etc.
• Announcing weekly office statistics
• Open discussion on ideas for generating referrals
• Contributing to a sense of oneness among co-workers
• Discouraging feelings of isolation that can develop when staff members are given routine work assignments that allow only minimal interpersonal communication during the day
• Stimulating useful ideas about how to deal with problems and how to improve the handling of routine situations
• Reducing friction by giving staff members an appropriate forum to air their differences and seek resolution
• Ensuring regular and effective communication

Although the significance of regular staff meetings cannot be undermined, the management should also see to it that these meetings do not create boredom among the staff. It is equally important to remember the points discussed in the meetings. Keep a notebook handy during work and write down questions or concerns which may come up during the day; discuss them at the next staff meeting. Well-run staff meetings provide a number of benefits for any organization and its employees. The point is to make the most of these meetings, rather than taking them as a burden.

Good luck!

Career Post Team

I have a serious problem and need help to deal with it efficiently so that I can advance my career without doing any more harm than I probably have done already. I am a web developer and had been working in an IT firm for the last six months. Before that I worked in another firm where the work was good and the pay was mediocre, but the environment was excellent. However, when I shifted to this firm I could immediately see the difference in the attitudes of the people in the two firms. Here no one wants the other to succeed and most of the employees are busy in leg pulling and backbiting. However, the thing that totally drove me crazy was the attitude of my boss. He was an arrogant man who constantly berated be from the day that I walked in and made my life miserable. Any ideas that I gave were immediately rejected by him and he often degraded me for coming up with such ideas. I also noticed that if his favorite employee gave the same idea as min, he would appreciate him immensely. Moreover he never gave me clear guidance and became furious with me if I failed to comprehend some part of the job. Eventually my patience ran out and I walked off in frustration without even giving the two week’s notice. Now I am faced with the dilemma as to how to explain why I left my job without finding another one, during job interviews. I would highly appreciate if you can guide me to the right answers.

Job Seeker

Answer From Career Post Team

Dear Job Seeker,

It is true that explaining to the interviewer why you left your last job can be hard, especially when you do it without even giving notice to the employer. However, your situation is not beyond help and some effective measures can be taken to resolve the issue. Feeling undervalued and unrecognized at work is one of the most common reasons why employees quit their jobs. The only thing you have to do is to make sure that you are prepared to answer the question confidently and truthfully. Keep in mind that you have to appear professional in front of the interviewer. Here are a few tested and tries tips that will help you with the problem.

Be concise:

Make sure that you have thought about the answer to this question and have prepared a response. Give a brief and honest response, not more than two to three sentences. If you start rambling, it may seem that you are trying to justify the reasons or that you are being untruthful. Always be direct and focused while answering such a critical question and try to sound positive.

Don’t badmouth your boss:

Regardless of the reasons you left your job, don’t speak badly or criticize your previous employer. Doing so makes the interviewer wonder if you will be bad-mouthing his company when you leave this job. Sugarcoat everything you say so that the interviewer does not get a bad impression. Try using statements like, “My boss and I had very different opinions on how to do things and found it mutually benefiting if we parted ways”

Take responsibility:

You should be prepared to take responsibility for your part. Blaming everything on the boss and the company leads the interviewer to conclude that you are hiding something since there are always two sides to a story.

Be honest:

You have to keep in mind that you cannot lie about the reasons why you quit your job. The managers might decide to look into the references provided by you and might even get in touch with your previous employers. If it happens and you have lied, you immediately stand to lose the chance of getting the job.

We hope that you will find the suggestions provided above useful in your job search.

Best of luck!
Career Post Team

I have been working in the marketing department of a telecommunications firm for the last four years. During this period I have gained a lot of experience and I enjoy doing my work. Moreover, not only do I finish my work on time and meet the deadlines, I am always prepared to pitch in whenever some extra hand is needed. I have a creative approach towards work and have proved to be very effective in problem solving. My problem is that whenever I come up with a great idea for a campaign, my boss presents it to the superiors and takes all the credit for it rather than acknowledging my contribution. Not only this, I have been regularly putting in extra hours at work, but instead of recognizing my hard work, my boss totally ignores my efforts. I agree that there is nothing wrong with doing extra work and taking initiative, but what are you suppose to do when your immediate boss passes your hard work as his own, rather than at least acknowledging that he was unable to accomplish that task on his own. Watching my boss constantly taking credit for all my hard work is discouraging and I think that I might be losing my motivation. I do not know how to deal with this situation. Should I talk to the boss or should I go to his superiors and tell them about his misconduct? May be I should just leave the job and look for a new one. I am totally confused and need help, please guide me to the right choice.

Employee

Answer from Career Post Team

Dear Employee,

It is totally understandable how frustrated and anguished you must be feeling, since your superior is taking credit for your hard work, but you have to deal with the situation delicately. First of all, going behind your superior’s back and complaining to his bosses is a bad idea since your boss is bound to find out sooner or later and when he does, in all probability he will make the situation even worse. Moreover, the superiors might get the impression that you are not being a team player and want solo credit rather than sharing it with everyone. As far as leaving the job is concerned, it is a rather extreme option that should only be considered after you have exhausted all other options. Here are a few tricks you can try that might help with the situation so that you can stay at the job you love so much.

You should try to talk to the boss in order to find out why he has been doing this. However, keep in mind that while doing so you should be calm and your tone should not be confrontational. The best solution is to go through the back door and ask the boss for feedback on your ideas. You can also ask him if what the superiors thought of the ideas that you had punched in. This way the boss will get the idea that you expect to get acknowledgment for your efforts.

You must keep in mind that it is in your job description to work for the manager i.e., your boss. So even if you are not getting direct credit for your hard work, you can always imply that you expect that the boss will keep in mind his input on the projects and will remember him whenever the time for a bonus or a promotion comes.

Another way to get credit for your work is to keep your ideas to yourself and only speak up when you are in a meeting or there are other people around who are listening to what you have to say. This way your boss will not be able to pass your ideas as his own and even if he does so, a lot of people will know that he is taking credit for your hard work. In the end, the manager will come off looking bad and sooner or later the upper management will find out the truth.
Hopefully these tips will help in tackling the problem you are facing at work.

Best of Luck,
Career Post Team

Job-seeker Query: I am very happy with my job, save one serious problem that is forcing me to think of leaving my current job. Apart from performing my usual duties I am constantly assigned to do other things – things that are not part of my job description. Although I do not have any problem doing the additional work, however I think that it is inappropriate of my employer to ask me to perform tasks that my job description does not entail. For some time I contemplated refusing to do so but failed to muster up the courage. Now, I am considering either asking the company to pay me extra money for the extra duties or resigning from the job and looking up for another one. Please help!

Career Post Team Response: This is a very common problem and complaints are always coming in with regards to it. However you should consider several aspects before deciding either way.

Firstly, try to understand the nature of the tasks that you are assigned to do. For example, are they strictly personal things like taking the boss’s car to be cleaned or picking up dry cleaning? In that case you definitely are facing an unfair situation. In such a case, the best thing to do is politely refuse if it gets over bearing. You are not  hired to do personal chores beyond a certain limit therefore refusing politely might give your boss the hint.

Now, in another situation, if your boss is assigning things to you that he/she feels that other co-workers are unable to do then this might actually work in your favor in the long run. This means that your boss trusts and counts on your capabilities and therefore you are on a better footing to demand a raise or more benefits when the time is right.

Asking the company to pay you for your efforts is fair, but make sure you don’t make out of place demands or don’t move too quickly to give the impression that all you care for is money. It is a very delicate balance that you must know how to maintain. You don’t want to jeopardize your career and job standing for a few extra bucks.

Considering all the pros and cons, if you still feel you are unhappy at your job, it would be smart to find a job before you leave this one.

Best of luck!
Career Post Team

Job-seeker query:

After working in the same field for over seven years, I recently lost my job to down-sizing. It has been a few weeks and I have still not found anything. I am sending my resume to many different companies but have not heard back from anyone. Meanwhile I know that in the near future before I get a job, my new employer will ask for references from my old job.

My question is, how can I ask my previous employers to send an encouraging letter of reference to potential employers?

Career Post Team’s Response:

Dear Job Seeker,

It goes without saying that one of the most important assets for a job-seeker is the professional references. The importance of a good reference cannot be over-stated. A little courtesy and carefulness is called for when you are trying to ensure that your references are prepared to give the best possible recommendation of your abilities.

Here are the things that you should keep in consideration whenever you seek a reference for your resume:

• Ask only those people to write a reference that you know will give a positive and constructive reference about you. Know if your reference writer thinks highly of you and will reach out for you.

. Always take permission and inform the person who will be writing the reference before putting their name in your reference list.If your potential referee does not respond positively and with enthusiasm, you should not add them in your reference list and find someone else to fill the place.

• Get proper permission before naming someone as a reference in your resume. Even if you are sure that the person would agree to refer you, it is still essential to ask his/her permission beforehand.

• Always provide your referee a copy of the position  and its description that you applied for and the latest copy of your resume.

• It is common sense and good mannerism to always thank your referee for letting you add his/her name in the list of references in your resume. Also, always be ready to return the favor in a suitable manner.

• Keep in touch with your referee regarding any progress in your job search. Your reference may be a good guide and may even look out for a good job for you.

All in all, the practice of reference and background checking at the discretion of the owner is in place. Always make sure that you and your reference person agree on your work history and your personal relationship. Letters of recommendation and mentioning of references in the resume can lift up a candidate to a top choice of the potential employer.

Best of Luck in all your endeavors!