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Tips For a New Graduates Looking For Nursing Jobs

Posted on May 16, 2010
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As a new nursing graduate you are now ready to enter into the exciting career of nursing. A new grad has several choices to choose from when it comes to nursing jobs. Before you start your search for jobs, there a few thing to consider first. As a new grad, you need to carefully choose the jobs that you apply for. To ensure that you apply for the type of position that will suit you, you need to take into consideration your personality and interests.

If your interests are being around children, as a new grad you may want to find a position in pediatrics. As a new grad, taking the time to locate the jobs that match with your personality and interests can help ensure a long and happy career in the nursing field. Getting burned out or overwhelmed to quickly is a problem that some new nurses encounter in their first couple of years of working as a nurse.

This is why you want to match yourself with the jobs that best fit you. As a new grad looking for nursing roles, you should also keep in mind your long term career goals. Most people that want a long term career in the nursing field look for jobs that are in hospitals. Hospitals have several different nursing positions and as well as nursing supervisory positions. As a new grad, you would probably start off with basic patient care, but as you gain experience hospitals allow you to move up to emergency room and trauma room positions. Hospitals also have surgical nurses, rehabilitation nurses and pediatrics nurses.

It is not only common, but expected that a new grad is anxious to start to working as a nurse.

There are several ways to find exciting nursing jobs. Some nursing schools provide job placement services for their new grad students. Job directory websites are also very popular. Job directories not only allow you the option to search for local nursing jobs that are in your area, but they also allow you to search nationally for nursing jobs.

This makes find nursing jobs much easier, if relocating is an option for a new grad. Most all hospitals and medical facilities have there own website. A new grad can browse their available nursing jobs and in some cases you can even apply online. Of course the traditional methods of finding nursing jobs are still popular such as looking through local newspapers for nursing jobs and visiting medical facilities and hospitals in person.

As a new grad looking for nursing jobs, you may find more opportunities if you are flexible and open to the idea of relocating. With the nursing shortage that many states are experiencing, major hospitals are offering new nurses incentives to come work at their hospital. Some offer a sign-on bonus, while others may offer to pay the moving expenses if you agree to relocate. Nursing jobs for a new grad are available to fit most any interests and all personalities all across the United States.

If you’re ready to start your CNA Training & Certification, we have more great tools and resources on our website http://www.yourcnatrainingguide.com

Telephone Interview Tips: How to Get Your Foot in the Door

Posted on May 15, 2010
Filed Under Career | 1 Comment

As job seekers broaden their horizons to include positions far from their home town, and human resources departments try to deal with the deluge of job applications brought on by the recession, telephone interviews have become much more popular. Here are some telephone interview tips that will help you get your foot in the door – and keep it there. Although this is a guide to help you prepare for a phone interview, you’ll discover some handy job interview tips that will help you, whether you’re on the phone or not.

Be Spontaneous

The trouble with a phone interview is that your potential employer can spring one on you at any time, so you must be prepared for the possibility. Here are some telephone interview tips that can prepare you for a spontaneous interview:

Keep Your Resume Handy: You may need to recall key points at a moment’s notice. Ideally, you’d memorize them, but if that’s not possible, be sure your resume is within easy reach.

Know Your Stuff: If this is a job you’re really interested in, one of the first things you should do is commit to memory the key facts about the company and the requirements of the job you’re after.

Keep a Pen in Your Pocket: It’s always a good idea to have a pen and paper handy, just in case you hear something you’ll need to know in the future.

Keep Your Cool: Remember, your questioner knows they’re putting you on the spot. If you’re not sure of an answer, or you need to get your thoughts together, don’t be afraid to take a few deep breaths. It’s better than umm-ing or uhh-ing your way through the interview. This is sound advice for a scheduled phone interview as well.

Be Prepared

If you’ve got some time to prepare, in addition to the above telephone interview tips, try to:

Keep Hydrated: Phone interviews can be lengthy. You don’t want your voice giving out on you at a critical moment.

Control Your Environment: If you’re at home, make sure there’s no obnoxious background noise. If you like to walk and talk, make sure you’re not going to encounter a chain saw on your route.

Dress for Success: Yes, even for a phone interview. How you dress can affect how you act. Dressing nicely will help you to project confidence over the phone.

Remember to Smile: Just as dressing can help your confidence, smiling can help your disposition. Keeping a smile on your face will come through in your voice, even if you don’t notice it.

These are some job interview tips that are uniquely tailored to a telephone interview, but you can apply most of them to an ordinary job interview as well. As with any interview, phone interview questions can be all over the map, so be prepared to answer everything from why you’re looking for a job to how you would respond to a challenge.

If you have time to prepare for a job interview, it’s a good idea to take a few minutes to think about how you envision the interview proceeding. Come up with a pitch that sells yourself and presents your unique qualifications for the job. If there are items on your resume that you don’t want to dwell on, think about how you can transition to a positive aspect of your skill set. Remember, if someone referred you to this position, it never hurts to drop a name.

It takes days to prepare for a job interview, but a phone interview sometimes doesn’t give you that luxury. Hopefully, these telephone interview tips will allow you to avoid potential pitfalls and put your best foot forward during your next phone interview.

Cecile Peterkin is a Certified Career, Life Coach and Speaker. Feeling stuck in middle management or mid career? Claim your FR-EE Assessment and complimentary career guidance coaching session at: http://www.CosmicCoachingCentre.com/careercoach.html

How to Recover From a Bad Job Interview and Get the Job

Posted on May 15, 2010
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It can happen to anyone. For one reason or another – a late arrival, botching answers to key questions, failing to show knowledge about the company – you had a bad job interview. Although the proverb is true, you never get a second chance to make a first impression, you do have an opportunity to make up some of what you lost in your bad job interview.

Was It as Bad as You Thought?

First of all, let’s make sure it really was a bad interview. Often, people are their own worst critics, and this is by and large a good thing. But when it comes to a job interview, you might be seeing things that weren’t actually there, or, at least, that weren’t nearly as bad as you perceived them to be. Give yourself some time. Take a walk, and clear your head. Try to put the interview into perspective. Obviously, things like arriving late are indeed negatives that will count against you, but others are less clear cut. Did you really stutter your way through the most important questions, or are you remembering it to be worse than it was? Were you really caught flat-footed by one of the interviewer’s questions? If you were, did it show? Did you fail to impress your interviewer with your knowledge of the company? Are there several things that were on the tip of your tongue that you were never able to express? Answer these questions, and you’ll be able to tell yourself whether the interview was as bad as you first thought.

Is The Job Really for You?

Even if you’ve had a bad job interview, it might be a blessing in disguise. Did you feel like you weren’t able to connect with the interviewer? Did you feel out of place in the office? Were the questions exceedingly simple and not a challenge to you? Or were they largely over your head?

If you feel you’ve had a bad job interview, you need to ask yourself whether it’s a symptom of you being ill-suited for the job in the first place. Sometimes job interviews convince the perspective employee that they wouldn’t be right for the job, rather than the other way around, and there’s no shame in that. If you think this might have been the case, don’t be afraid to tell the employer so. Thank them for their time, and tell them that, based on the interview, you don’t believe you’d be a good fit for the job at the present time, and explain why. This will let the employer know where they stand and allow them to correct the record if you misunderstood something in the interview.

It Was a Bad Interview, and You Want the Job. Now What?

If you’ve carefully considered what occurred in the interview, and you’ve come to the conclusion that you did indeed perform badly, and further, that you’re still very interested in the job, it’s time to go to work. The first thing to do is to analyze what went wrong.

Ideally, you would have recorded the interview, so you can go back and check your responses to each question. If you don’t have the luxury of a recording, you’ll have to do your best to remember, with the aid of any notes you took. Go back over the questions you answered, and write down all the things you wish you’d said in response to each question. For example, if you were asked to describe one project where you took charge and completed the work in a unique or outstanding way, and you weren’t able to remember the specifics, take the time to write down everything you can remember, now that you’re not under the gun. Go back through your records and come up with stats to back up your answers. If you feel you need third-party materials, such as a note from your old boss talking about that particular project and what they thought of your work, don’t hesitate to ask for them.

Once you’ve got everything assembled, it’s time to write a thank you/recovery note. This is a way to follow up your bad job interview with concrete examples to back up your less than stellar answers to the interview questions. If the interviewer was otherwise impressed with you but was under whelmed by your answers to a few of the questions, this is your chance to set the record straight and take back the initiative. Put together a concise, hard-hitting letter, using verifiable facts to back up your case wherever you can. When your prospective employer receives the letter, they will know, even if you didn’t show it in the interview, that you very much want the job and further, that you’re uniquely qualified for it.

There are any number of reasons why you can have a bad job interview. Often, it’s not as bad as you thought, and equally often, the interview gives you additional information that convinces you that the job isn’t for you after all. But if you have a bad job interview for a job you really want, writing a timely, fact-filled and enthusiastic recovery letter can show the employer yet again that you are the best person for the job.

How to Have a Good Phone Interview For a Telecommuting Position

Posted on May 15, 2010
Filed Under Career | Leave a Comment

Phone Interviews are necessary in the world of work-at-home individuals. There are tips in handling the very stressful phone interview. With these tips any potential new hire can relax, knowing they are prepared.

Telecommuting is defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as, “…to work at home by the use of an electronic linkup with a central office.” There are many telecommuting jobs online. These jobs are actual employment and not Independent Contractor positions. They offer benefits and paid time off. However to actually be hired by a business offering a telecommuting position, you may have to endure the dreaded phone interview. This interview will be more successful for you if equipped with knowledge.

Tips for a Successful Interview

- Rehearse what you might say before your interview. Get a family member to practice with you. Practice sample questions like, “Why do you want to work from home?” or “What attracts you to our company?”

- Have your resume in hand before the interview begins. Be prepared by also having a pen and paper to jot notes on during the interview.

- Make sure you allow yourself plenty of un-interrupted time for the interview. An hour should be enough time. You want to be in a quiet room where there is no noise.

- When the interviewer calls, stand up and talk with him. Your voice sounds stronger when you stand. Also, throughout the phone conversation, try and remember to smile. A smile can be heard on your voice.

- Be professional, courteous, and mannerly. Avoid speaking negatively about your former employer.

- Present yourself to be a good communicator.

- Speak in a clear voice, void of colloquialisms, such as, “Yeah… Uh-huh…you betcha…”

- Avoid yes/no answers and instead give answers in full complete sentences.

- Avoid mental pauses, such as, “Uh… um…”or the dreaded silence or dead air time.

- Do repeat or re-phrase questions or word choices. This lets the interviewer know you have listened to them while it also gives you a moment to think about your answer.

- Ask questions. Write down all questions you may have before the interview when you are not nervous. Check off each question as it is answered during the course of the interview. Ask any un-answered questions following the interview.

- Don’t ask any questions about payment until the final stages of the interview process.

- Follow-up the interview with a thank you card. Make sure you thank them for taking time out of their schedule to speak with you over the phone. You may want to write something in the card which will jog their memory of your conversation.

Conclusion

Telecommuting is the act of working at home. Telecommuting phone interviews are much like face-to-face interviews in the fact that it gives the future employer a chance to get an impression of their potential employee. However, with a phone interview you do not have the chance to dress to impress or use facial expressions. You have to work harder in a phone interview to convey proper communication. Equip yourself with knowledge of interview skills to help you have a successful phone interview.

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