Job Search Guide - Job Search Tips for New Graduates

Join in the battle, but make sure you're equipped with the right weapons for the big fight. Looking for jobs is a job in itself. It takes time, dedication and, often, money. For example, travelling up and down the country or state for interviews which may not amount to anything, are often necessary evils. However, this article is going to focus on the most economical ways graduates can look for a job.

1.Visualize where you would like to work. Transport and relocating for USA jobs can be extremely expensive and draining. Make sure you know where you want to work - research the area if it's a new place, or cross out jobs that are located in placed you definitely won't want to work. This should cut back on costs spent on travelling for interviews and graduate forums. Graduate fairs also tend to be local so if you find an advert for one that is far away then don't think about splashing out the cash to get there. Wait and research whether or not there's an equivalent fair in your nearest city. Use job listing sites that allow you to filter by area.

2.Make use of your career center. The career center is free and should be either on or near campus. You should make good use of it because the people there are trained and employed to help kick start your career. They make connections with companies locally, nationally and internationally and so have a plethora of suggestions. Therefore, go more than once! You're recommended to go every 6-8 weeks to and discuss your career prospects with your careers counselor, build up a rapport and log your progress - you may find you change your mind on what you want to do.

3.Research. Before going in for an interview or before applying, research the company at its fullest. Get a good grasp of their aims so that you know for yourself whether or not you want to work for them, and to show them that you've done your homework and can add a personal touch to your reasons for applying. An HR agent will be able to tell if you've picked their company out of a hat and are just applying wherever there's an advert. When researching, it's important to review the company's policy, executive biographies, and the 'About Us' section.

4.Don't wait around for a company to contact you. You could save yourself some time and money by cold calling a company you're really interested in, rather than waiting for an advert to pop up. If you have a job in mind at a certain company, but their website doesn't reveal any information about internships or graduate schemes, simply call them up and ask for the internship coordinator. Be polite and professional - the receptionist may not give you any joy but it won't hurt to try. This may be cheaper and easier than physically going into the company building itself and asking for careers information (even though it may make a good and enthusiastic impression, travelling to companies just for an impromptu visit may get pricey).

5.Basically, there's no need to stick your neck out when looking for jobs. Yes, sacrifices and compromises need to be made and you should be enthusiastic with applications for USA jobs, but don't set yourself up for a fall. Careful planning, both financially and mentally, can help cut down unnecessary costs. When good opportunities arise, prioritize where you want to put your money. If there is a once in a life time careers fair which hosts a bunch of companies you're interested in, make sure it'd really be worth it. Will the fair simply be handing out information you can get on their website? Or will they be hosting spot-interviews and can actually lead towards a job? Prioritize.

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3 Questions To Ask During A Job Interview - Jobs Interview Guide

3 Questions To Ask During A Job Interview 

Not asking questions during a job interview just might make you look distracted, or even worse, clueless, and for sure it will make the job interviewer consider that you lack interest towards that particular position. However, it's really important that you should ask the right questions at the right time.

In this post, as the title of this post suggests it, I will tell you 3 questions that you should ask during a job interview. Before that though, I want to clarify a few aspects.

• During a job interview, you should ask questions only when you need a clarification over a certain aspect;
• During a job interview you must only ask questions that have a certain weight, regarding the company or the position you're applying for. In other words, don't ask unrelated questions;
• Save YOUR OWN questions for the end of the interview, and once the interviewer has finished their part, ask for permission to ask your questions

Now, here are 3 questions that you should ask during a job interview.

1. How would you define the best candidate for this position?

Obviously, you should ask it at the end of the interview, so the interviewer's answer will help you make an idea how far or close you are to the position you're aiming to get. This question will give you the possibility to polish your image in the eyes of the interviewer, to make yourself shinier. However, it's a bold question, it will actually put your interviewer to work and they might not like that. You should only ask this question if you see that the interviewer has an open personality. After the interviewer's answer is complete, it's your chance to grab some parts of the answer (actually it's quite important to do that) and underline the fact that you have most of the qualities that the interviewer has just mentioned.

2. What training program does the company have for a person like me, applying for this position?

This question will make you look even more interested. However, it will make you look a bit insecure or worried that you might not have what it takes to occupy that certain position. So, you have to bring a bit of a strengthening argument to the question, saying that you're asking this question because you want to be 100% valuable for the company.

3. What activity sector of your company could use improvement?

This is the question that should be the ace up your sleeve. Of course, you should already know all the possible answers that the interviewer could give you, and have a couple of solution of improvement ready to put on the table. If you can pull this off, not only that you prove that you're interested on working there, you also prove that you will be a valuable asset to the company. Therefore, if they won't give you the job right away, you'll be pretty darn close to it.

Important Tip:

Asking the interviewer about the salary is a double-edged question. Some say you should never bring it up, some say that it should be one of the questions that you must definitely ask. First of all, it could make the interviewer think that your only interest is money, you don't really care about the company, and you haven't done your homework properly. On the other hand, if you ask this question with confidence, it will look that you really mean business, that you value your own working capacities, and this may enable your interviewer to value you more. In the end, it's up to you to decide whether you ask this or not.

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How To Generate Targeted Leads In Construction Marketing

Targeted lead generation is the life blood of construction marketing. But how can we populate that crucial database with contacts that will deliver?

Business development can become a set of nice theories written by desk bound business gurus that have very little to do with the real world of making money and growing your business! The bottom line is that you have to find business opportunities from your current client base and develop new business outside of your "comfort zone." This need not be an unpleasant task or a huge struggle if you remember that lead generation is about finding people for whom you can solve problems. When you've identified a potential solution for a potential client who has actually expressed a viable interest, you've got a "hot lead."

Here are some places to look for problems to solve.

Who is currently doing work for the client prospect as a contractor, and when does their contract end? Try to identify all of the contractors working in your territory. Find out what their scope of work is, and how many staff they have. You can usually find out when their contract ends by asking the contracting officer. You may also be able to find out about any future procurement plans and what the criteria is for selecting contractors. Keep in mind, other contractors are not just competitors, they are also potential partners. They might not like you snooping around, even though they'll be doing it too, but may not mind high-level queries aimed at identifying partnering potential. A good source of information of course, would be company websites.

Once you are clear about the kind of work you are targeting, you need to identify what companies could potentially give you that work or be prepared to partner with you in a joint venture. Investigate company budgets, forecasts, and strategic plans. Many clients publish them and you can normally find this information on their web site. If you can't find the information, ask. That way you'll know what they want to do and how much they are preparing to spend on it.

Build an organisation chart of your target company which should include projects as well as staffing, and then begin an investigation to fill in the details. Talk to people. What are they working on? What do they want to see happen? Play dumb. Ask them how things are supposed to work. Try not to be a burden. Be helpful. Show interest, and let them do the talking.

Companies that are seeking to partner with each other are often prepared to share their contact base, as long as there are no conflicts of interest. It helps to know people at other companies and to talk about teaming potential, so when opportunities come up, you can pass leads back-and-forth. This is a great way to build trust and loyalty which are the foundations for good partnering.

In the USA construction market, the Federal Government website has some useful links and information that can deliver good leads for your to contact. However, to have a competitive advantage, you have to be doing your research before the announcement hits the Fed Gov site.Bid Locator Services is another useful location for lead generation. These have similarities with the Fed Gov site, but may have better coverage of state and local procurements and may cover certain private sector industries. Just like the Fed Biz Opps government site, you shouldn't rely too heavily on a locator service. You need to do your homework before opportunities are officially announced.

In the UK construction markets there are a number of useful outlets for generating leads. Tenders Direct, BIP Solutions, Emap Glenigan, Barbour ABI Building Data and Builders conference.

All these are good sources for construction leads. However, to have a real competitive advantage, keep your ear to the ground. A good source of information would be through your in house database system which would include all your previous clients. Keep in touch with them!

You need to think through some critical questions before contacting your potential clients:

Why should they choose your company?

Does your client have a section criteria and do you know what their expectation is?

Is there enough perceived benefit that offers unique solutions to meet the requirements of your client?

Have you researched your potential client's website to discover what their core business is and what are their strategic aims?

Are you offer a solutions based service that will tick the boxes for this client?

Does your corporate culture fall in line with the those and aims of your client's company?

Developing a database with key contacts is absolutely indispensable to your business growth.

However you need to remain focused and targeted and avoid the dreaded scatter gun approach.

Once you have populated your database with good contacts, they need to be qualified through careful and consistent contact and then sorted into hot, warm and cold leads.

Schedule recalls in your diary and keep on the case.

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How to Continuously Build Confidence and Have a Positive Outlook

How to Build Self Confidence

I have two things I want to share with you that I have done myself to stay up on a bad day.

"When you consistently build confidence and have a positive outlook you attract more clients."

1. Start a Gratitude Success Journal

At the end of each day, look for five things to be grateful for that happened that day. Look for the success you have achieved, even the little things. Sometimes you may write, "Woohoo! I got a new client!" Or it could be a new ezine subscriber or a new networking contact. Take note of every success along the way and feel good about what is going your way. I want you to actually write the word "woohoo" so you can feel the energy of your gratitude and celebration of your success.

When you do this, you set an intention to look for the good in your life. This new habit makes you notice the successes in each day. Not only that, but you'll have a record to look back at, which is very powerful if you start feeling low. Rereading your gratitude success journal lifts your energy big time. When your energy is high, you are open and positive about your ability to attract more clients.

This is a key piece of the metaphysical and spiritual part of the client attraction system. The more you focus on the successes you have, the more the Universe or your subconscious mind will give you more. Consistently doing this will raise your vibration. You can see why it works to focus on the positive rather than dwell on what is not working for you, right?

2. Create a Kind Words Folder

Any time anyone says anything nice, put a copy of it in your kind words folder. If you get a thank you note from a satisfied client or a testimonial, into the folder it goes, as well as any kind of mention in the press. Wouldn't you want to attract more clients like these by you celebrating their successes?

In the beginning, here's what I did when I was having a bad day or felt down. I would read my client testimonials in the morning and the evening to remind myself, "Ah, clients like what I do for them, even though one cranky person wants a refund or said it wasn't worth it." It helped me realize it wasn't about me and even though I can always improve on what I'm doing, the client's reaction wasn't my problem, It's his or her problem. And this person wasn't my ideal client.

Keeping the kind words file, reading the testimonials and tracking your successes powerfully changes your mindset in a very short period of time, especially if you do this daily.

Your Client Attraction Assignment

Do you have a gratitude success journal or kind words file? If not, get started today. You will be amazed at how much this boosts your confidence and gives you a positive outlook. Consistency is key, so be dedicated to the system because it works!

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System, the proven step-by-step program that shows you exactly how to attract more clients, in record time... guaranteed. To get your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and receive her weekly marketing & success mindset articles on attracting more high-paying clients and dramatically increasing your income

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