5 Ways to Stand Out When Looking for a New Job

Finding a new job can feel like a daunting task. When you have few opportunities at your fingertips, it is important that you know how to make yourself stand out so that you can snag the best job offers. You must learn how to market your best skills while knowing how you will handle your weaknesses. When you take all these things into consideration, you can look forward to landing your dream job. It just takes some patience, time and effort, but in the end, it is worth it.

Update Your Resume

Your resume is the first glance that your employers get of you, so you want to make the right impression. You do not want your resume to be the same as every other one in the stack of papers. It is important to differentiate yourself in some way. Make sure that you have a well-designed resume. If you are not sure where to start, consider hiring someone with more experience to do one for you. You may also choose to purchase an online template to use as a starting point.

Highlight Your Best Skills

If you have exceptional sales skills, make sure that you make that clear on your resume and in interviews. You need to list examples that show what great sales skills you have instead of just talking about them. A potential employer will be much more impressed by statistics that you can present about your sales experience instead of hearing about it. Everyone will try to talk well of themselves; make sure that you have evidence to back it up. For example, if you won an award or contest at your previous company for outstanding sales in a month, make sure to list this on your resume as one of your accolades.

Provide Ample References

References give you credibility, even if the potential employer never follows through with contacting them. You can provide both personal and business references. For example, you may want to provide the name of your clergyman who can vouch that you are an upstanding person. You may also want to list former employers with whom you had a good relationship. Before listing anyone on your resume, make sure that you give him or her a heads up. This is the courteous thing to do, and it lets you know if he or she is ok with being a source of referral.

Drop Off Your Resume in Person

If you send your resume by fax, regular mail or e-mail, you do not have much of an opportunity to make an impression. Instead, drop your resume off in person. This makes you more credible, and you are more likely to get a phone call. This allows the business owner to lay eyes on you, and you will already stand out from competition. Taking the time to drop off your credentials in person also shows that you respect the company and its time.

Research Companies Before Interviewing

At a job interview, the interviewee will likely ask you what you know about the company you are applying for. You should do ample research before applying for any positions. Not only do you look more credible in your interview, but you also get the opportunity to decide if it is a good fit for your career goals. If you already see that you will not be happy with the job requirements or feel that you could not reasonably do them, then perhaps it is better to move on in your search.

Being on the lookout for a new job can be an overwhelming experience, but it can be beneficial for you when you take the right steps. When you find a job that is suited to your career goals, you can thrive in your position. The company gets a valuable employee, and you get a job at which you can excel.