blog

10 Tips to Conquer your Networking Anxiety

Posted on July 28, 2017 by Lisa

If you’ve recently graduated from college and are looking for a job, networking is, by far, the single most effective tool in your job search. Yet many recent grads fear networking and fail to grasp why it’s so important. Understanding why you need to network and how to do it effectively can help you move past your networking anxiety and on your way to finding a great job.

According to a recent study published on LinkedIn, 85% of jobs are found via networking. Career experts agree that the majority of your job search time should be spent networking. In my experience as a career coach, my clients who actively network find jobs in nearly half the time as those who don’t. Continue reading →

Posted in Career Advice, Job Search, Networking | Tagged anxiety, networking | Leave a comment

6 Tips to Create More Effective Cover Letters

Posted on June 27, 2017 by Lisa

Knowing how to write effective cover letters is a mission critical job search skill. I have seen countless cover letters that miss the mark. The worst ones, by far, are the ones that go on, and on, and on. Cover letters are intended to pique the interest of the employer just enough to get them to take a good look at your resume. Here are 6 tips to create more effective cover letters and help you land that all-important interview. Continue reading →

Posted in Job Search, Resumes & Cover Letters | Leave a comment

12 tips for getting the most out of your summer internship

Posted on June 1, 2017 by Lisa

Francois Duhamel/Warner Bros. Pictures

If you were lucky enough to score a summer internship, chances are you are several weeks into your experience. Now is a great time to step back and evaluate how you are doing, and whether you are getting the most from your opportunity. Here are several tips to make sure you maximize your internship experience – for both you and your employer. Continue reading →

Posted in Internships, Job Search | Tagged career advice, internship, summer internship | Leave a comment

The Secret To A Job Offer Is Attitude: 10 Ways To Improve Your Job Interviewing Confidence

Posted on May 11, 2017 by Lisa

Don't Ignore These 5 Critical Job Search Steps

Be So Good They Can’t Ignore You

Job searches, especially unsuccessful ones, are notorious for sucking the confidence out of anyone. Who really enjoys sending endless resumes and cover letters out only to get a computerized rejection letter? After a string of rejections, it’s no wonder that your self-confidence takes a beating.

As a career coach who works primarily with college students and recent graduates, building my clients’ self-confidence is often the most important work that we do together.

Like many of the things that you need to do to get a job, and be successful in the role, gaining confidence is an acquired skill for most people. Self-confidence gives you a positive, but not unrealistic, perception of your ability to tackle challenges, such as a new job. Continue reading →

Posted in Interview Tips, Job Search | Leave a comment

6 Key Skills You Need to Get Hired in Today’s Job Market

Posted on April 24, 2017 by Lisa

If you are graduating this spring and don’t yet have that great job you’ve been dreaming of, these 6 skills will help you land a great job. Of course it also helps if you have a good GPA and a few internships under your belt. But while a good GPA helps open doors, getting a job offer takes more than academic accomplishments. Continue reading →

Posted in Career Advice, Job Search | Leave a comment

Is Your Job Search as Busted as Your March Madness Bracket? 8 tips for getting back in the game.

Posted on April 1, 2017 by Lisa

Photo by Kevin C. Cox

It’s March Madness when everyone becomes a basketball fan, if only for the office bracket pool. If your job search is feeling as busted as your March Madness bracket, take a few lessons from your favorite team to re-ignite your search. Below are 7 tips to help you get back in the game.

Continue reading →

Posted in Career Advice, College Student, Job Search | Tagged college grad, Final Four, job search | Leave a comment

Career-Killing Lessons from the Oscars (and 8 ways to fix them)

Posted on March 1, 2017 by Lisa

Photo by Al Seib of the Los Angeles Times

The 2017 Oscars ceremony likely will be remembered not for who took home the most Oscars (La La Land) but for the potential career-killing blunder that occurred at the end of the awards show. Fans who watched the nearly four hour presentation were as stunned as the audience was when the wrong film was named Best Picture. How could a Steve Harvey Miss Universe moment happen again at one of the most tightly scripted award shows? Continue reading →

Posted in Career Advice, College Student, Job Search | Leave a comment

Maine Movers and Makers: Interview with Ed McKersie, founder of LiveandWorkinMaine.com

Posted on February 2, 2017 by Lisa

This interview with Ed McKersie, is part of my new blog series, Maine Movers and Makers, featuring career insights from Maine’s leading executives. Ed is the President of Pro Search, a recruiting and placement services company focused on connecting talent with Maine based employers. He is also the creative force and founder of LiveandWorkinMaine.com, a website dedicated to making “Vacationland Work for You.”

“Ask good questions.”

This interview has been edited for space and clarity.

Please tell me a bit about your childhood and the influences that helped shape you?

Continue reading →

Posted in Career Advice, College Student, Interview Tips, Job Search | Leave a comment

Converting your interview into a job offer

Posted on January 25, 2017 by Lisa

Converting your interview into a job offer is the goal of all job searches. So how do you do it?

You’ve done the hard work: crafted an outstanding resume, written an engaging cover letters, passed the initial phone screen, aced the interview and then landed the coveted second interview. You are feeling confident that the interviews went well. You can feel that the offer is coming. When you walk out the door, you are not done. Far from it. Now is the time to finish strong and use this key tip for converting your interview into a job offer.

So what’s my proven key tip? Continue reading →

Posted in Career Advice, Interview Tips, Job Search | Leave a comment

How to Keep Your Resume Out of the Application Black Hole

Posted on December 26, 2016 by Lisa

The application black hole. Where resumes go to die.

The application black hole, where resumes go to die. If you are one of over 1.6 million of college seniors looking for their first “real job”, you know it all too well by now. You’ve applied on line and sent in your resume to so many companies that you’ve lost track. And, you hear nothing, from anyone. If you are lucky, the online application process will send you a computer generated email thanking you for applying for the job. And that’s it. Days, weeks, and sometimes even months go by and nothing. So what should you do? Continue reading →

Posted in Career Advice, College Student, Job Search, Resumes & Cover Letters | 2 Comments