The first step is to create the right resume. (Resume bucket can help.)

Second, treat the day as if you were going to work. Get up, shower, shave, brush your teeth, eat breakfast, get dressed and have a place in your home that is “work.” Read the paper to keep yourself up-to-date with current events. During a future interview, the casual chat prior to the formal meeting might just mention the turmoil in Libya or whether the Lakers will have a good team this year.

If you want to take a break and surf the latest golf scores or play some online games, ensure you complete a significant amount of work first. Use the breaks as rewards for accomplishing something. Set a quota of jobs you will apply for in the week. There are several different approaches to applying for jobs, but I will mention only two here. The first is similar to fishing with a net. You throw out the net and troll and wait and hope. You are indiscriminate with what you catch and will throw out what you don’t want. Job hunting can be like fishing with a net. You send out the same resume and cover letter to many, many (many) locations. Likely, the job is lower skilled and you are hoping that your resume just happens to be at the top of the pile when the employer is looking.

The second approach is spear fishing. You have one shot and you wait for the perfect condition and the absolutely right fish. You try to make the perfect shot to get the perfect fish. Job hunting can be like this, too. You make sure your resume is tailor-made for each specific job. You leave off aspects of your work experience that don’t apply; you conduct significant research on the company and the specific position. You know the salary range, who the immediate supervisor is and where he or she went to University (web searches help). You invest significant time and energy for each individual application.

My suggestion is to have a combination of both approaches in the week. Send out several each day – the feeling of accomplishment you get when you’ve sent out a resume cannot be beat. But balance that with one or two “star” applications. Reach above where you think can. Aim high but take the time to do it right.

Now go fish.

Graham Addley has a wide variety of senior administrative and leadership experience – Cabinet Minister, Regional Development Manager, President of a Financial Institution, Board member of numerous organizations including a national literary festival and currently serves as Director with a Health Promotion Foundation. In 2009, Addley lived in Australia for a year where he wrote short stories and fulfilled his dream of being a radio DJ.

The job market is still tough out there, even for college graduates.

Some studies show an increase in employment for college graduates, but studies that take into account under-employment or “true unemployment” reveal the true problem to be persistent.

Only about half of college graduates are getting a job that requires a degree, fewer still are getting jobs that require their degree. Most recent college graduates are either unemployed, working a temporary job just to get by, or working part-time when they’d rather be working full time.
While a lot of young people’s time and talent out there is going unused, the more innovative ones have found other ways to use their energy and advance themselves.

Improving hire-ability

While many college graduates remain unemployed or under-employed, they continue to try and land better jobs. One way is by continually polishing their résumés to make them unique, professional, and impressive. A second way is by going to different career websites or temp offices to try and develop professional profiles and get hooked up with employers. A great way to develop a professional persona and do some networking is ResumeBucket.com. Of course, the prevalence of these career sites has greatly increased the amount of applicants for the average job.

Starting a company

The bravest and most risky thing that recent college graduates are doing is making their own startup companies. With success stories like Mark Zuckerberg out there, it is clear that anyone out there with good web skills and a brilliant vision is a potential billionaire. With no more-stable options to shoot for, many young people are shooting for the stars. The problem with this is that, of course, the vast majority of these brilliant ideas don’t “make it,” and their founders wind up in even worse financial situations than they started.

Re-thinking living situations

Social norms in the US seem to be changing. No longer are children moving out and getting their own place the moment they turn 18. The new generation is known as “the Peter Pan” generation for their resistance to “growing up.” It is increasingly prevalent for children to stay with their parents well into their 20s. As people need more and more education just to get a decent job, they become dependent on their parents for longer and longer. When students do finally get their degree, they are finding themselves under-employed and saddled with student debt, and they still can’t afford to get out of the nest.

Young people that don’t stay with their parents are instead living together with friends in larger and larger groups. With the limited income available, even to many college graduates, it just makes the best financial sense to split rent and utilities bills up as many ways as possible. Living in a large group is vastly more economically-viable than having a whole apartment for one person or one couple.

Charity Work

The millennial generation is notoriously civic-minded and notoriously under-employed. Naturally, young, underemployed college graduates are finding a lot of time to volunteer for charity. With the organizing power of the internet, charities are getting a lot more volunteers than they used to.
Charity work is also a wise move on college graduate’s part because it looks good on their résumé or Curriculum Vitae. An excellent record of service can often make the difference between candidates when competition for a job is tight.

Travel

Those graduates that can afford to are simply taking some time off of the job market to explore the world. This is a great opportunity for the graduate to get to know their self, and hopefully by the time they need to apply for a job, the market will be at least a little bit better.

Thomas Stone began a relationship with his present, primary employer, while he continues to freelance.  He currently works with employers, who now need applicant tracking software, as job-seekers need to apply for more and more jobs before expecting to get hired.

The team here got together to think of how we could celebrate the milestone.  Our initial idea was to give a job away, to which our legal guy said we couldn’t technically do that.  But we still wanted to try.  So we designed a giveaway package that we feel will get someone a job, we just can’t guarantee it.

Once our user count hits one million, one lucky ResumeBucket user will win the prize package.  The person will be picked at random from those that enter.  And all you have to do to enter is go to the official contest page and enter your ResumeBucket resume URL:

http://www.resumebucket.com/promotion

If you don’t have a ResumeBucket account, know that it is free to sign up, and even if you don’t win the contest, we have thousands of employers searching through our users resumes every day.

You can read all about the contest on the contest page.  If you have any questions, leave a comment here and I’ll respond to it as quickly as I can.

Good luck!

Knowing this could make some candidates feel so afraid that they don’t even want to apply for jobs. Don’t feel afraid, though. Instead, take a look at four things to know about background checks:

Employers Need Permission to Conduct One

Employers need your permission to have third-party agencies conduct background searches, according to the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. Because most don’t have their own background screening capabilities, you will have to sign a form granting them permission. But if you have made it through the interviewing process and haven’t been asked to sign a form, it’s not a bad idea—for your own knowledge—to ask the employer outright if they plan to conduct a check.

Severity of a Crime is Often a Factor

If you have a criminal history, it’s important to note this information on your job application if asked—especially since it will likely pop up during a background check. But it’s good to also note that many employers take a subjective approach to a criminal history. They may look at the severity and timeframe of the crime (DUI in college vs. three DUIs in the past two years) to decide whether to hire you.

Background Check Could Occur After an Employment Offer

One thing to note is that some employers don’t stop their background checks after you’ve been offered a job. You might learn that your new employer is known for conducting frequent and random checks, especially if you are ever considered for a promotion.

Employers Need Permission Only Once

Keep in mind that once you’ve given an employer permission to conduct a background check, they typically don’t need your permission again if they’re conducting the same type of check and it’s within the same company.

A background check can sound like a scary process, especially if you have made mistakes in the past. But if you’re honest, upfront, and are prepared to explain blemishes, you may be surprised by how understanding an employer could be.

1. Times where you either made money or saved money for your current or previous company

2. A crisis in your life or job and how you responded or recovered from it.

3. A time where you functioned as part of a team and what your contribution was.

4. A time in your career or job where you had to overcome stress.

5. A time in your job where you provided successful leadership or sense of direction.

6. A failure that occurred in your job and how you overcame it.

7. Any seminal events that happened during your career to cause you to change direction and how that worked out.

Remember the interviewer is not only looking for great answers but also a good first impression. Make them feel comfortable by being professional yet casual. Interviewing is also stressful for them and understanding that will help take some of their power away creating a much more friendly environment.

Billboards in video games

The SIS (Secret Intelligence Service) which is the equivalent to the CIA in the United States contacted the production studio of a popular military based video game and put up billboards and other simulation real world advertisements in the games environment in an attempt to target their prime recruiting demographic.

Mathematical equation phone number

An engineering firm put these flyers on local college campuses. The tear-off phone number is a complex mathematical equation that turns into a nine digit phone number when correctly solved. Those who are unable to solve it correctly are likely not qualified for the open position.

Unique Ad placement

The Transportation Security Administration, or the TSA as they are better known, thought that they could grab the attention of job seekers more effectively by placing their employment opportunities in unique places. In the above picture they’ve chosen a to place their ad on a pizza box.

“How technical are you?”

A cell phone engineering company sent out this package to technical schools across the nation with a note inside asking, “How technical are you?” If the student correctly assembled the phone and powered it on, a message would appear saying “Hi! You seem to be technical. Call us at +1-987-448-2323″

Sneaky coffee mugs

A company somehow managed to sneak in coffee mugs into their competitors break room. While the cups looked the same, once the liquid was gone a message was revealed saying “The Coffee is highly recommended elsewhere.” Further inspection of the mug had the contact information of the rival company on the bottom. A clever way to poach your competition!

Sandwich Board Job Seeker

Job seeker Paul Nawrocki was down on his luck so he took to the streets of New York city armed only with a sandwich board and a resume. Well, his resume was written on the sandwich board. The amazing thing about this story is that Paul walked around Manhattan for over a year before someone offered him a job. Talk about dedication.

Unconventional but Creative Resume

Graphic designers have more leeway than most when it comes to creating creative resume’s. This example is from designer Chuck De Lay who used a 1960s phone book throw back style to grab the readers attention. Unfortunatly resumes like this probably would only hurt your chances of getting a call back in more ’serious’ industries.

Put Your Resume On A T-Shirt

What to job search even when you are out running errands? Head over to DamnINeedaJob.com and you can get your resume printed onto the back of your t-shirt. Now waiting in line at the grocery story could land you a job!

Send A Singing Telegram

What better way to get the attention of your desired employer by sending a singing telegram into their office. You might think this is a joke but in 2009 this actually landed job seeker Phillip Burkozi a job. Warning: this may actually annoy most employers.

Pay Someone to Find a Job For You

Michael Checkoway needed a new job but didn’t want to do any of that pesky and tedious job hunting, so he set up a website http://www.michaelcheckoway.com/and offered to send people on luxurious vacations if they found him a job. He even made different tiers of destinations based on the salary he would be getting at the offered job. In May 2010 Mr Checkoway got a job and sent one lucky job hunter on a very expensive vacation to Cancun.

Research the company you are applying for

Heading into an interview armed with information about the company that you can tie into your responses and parallel your experience to not only helps you become more fluid and relevant with your answers, it shows the interviewer that you are a prepared individual. Being able to noticeably impress a hiring manager will immediately boost your confidence and ease up some of the anxiety in the room. If you’re able to steer the interview to something that more resembles a conversation you’ll find yourself in a much more comfortable position, making an excellent first impression.

Practice makes perfect

While it may be a bit silly, practicing in front of a mirror or with a friend will help you fine tune your responses. This trick is used by people who need assistance overcoming their fear of public speaking (the #1 cause of fear in the United States) and public speaking ins’t so different than interviewing. Both are high pressure, high anxiety situations where the speaker is looking to convey a specific point and make a good impression. Verbalizing the clutter in your mind is a proven way of sorting everything out into a more clear and concise manner.

Brush up on current industry trends and common interview questions

It’s likely that you are not switching industries but that doesn’t mean you are 100% caught up with the current trends. With the economy slowly emerging from this past recession it’s not business as usual anymore. Many businesses have changed the way things are done across the board and you need to be caught up with all of it. It’s very likely that you’ll be asked questions about these new changes and it’s up to you to impress the interviewer with your replies. Remember, the more prepared you are the better. Take this time to brush up on the common interview questions such as “Where do you see yourself in 5 years” and “What assets can you as an individual bring to this company”. Google.com is your friend in this situation. Many HR managers and recruiters now have industry specific blogs where they talk about the answers to all the questions you may potentially get asked.

Memorize your resume

This may seem like a no-brainer but it’s vital that you review your resume and read in-between the lines. If you have any gaps in your work history you will be asked about them and you need to be prepared with an answer that won’t get you into hot water. Being able to read your resume without looking down is a great start. Be ready to expand in detail on even the smallest bullet point in your work history along with knowing each one of the skills you’ve listed inside outside and backwards. Failure to do this will get you raised eyebrows and likely cost you a job. Remember, the resume is the only reason you got in the door.

Be presentable

Look sharp for the interview. Studies have shown that feeling good about the way you look radiates confidence and hiring managers are looking for confidence. Depending on how important the interview is for you it might be worthwhile to invest in some brand new clothes. Remember to smile, but not so much that it’s creepy (there is a fine line). Come prepared with a hard copy of your resume and any other materials you may be asked to bring such as a portfolio. Don’t just throw these in cardboard folder or a manila envelope, put the extra effort into making yourself look professional and the rest will follow.

Interviewing can be an unpleasant process but keep yourself in a positive mindset and put the extra effort in and you’ll see your anxiety, stress, and fears lower. Remember your resume got you in the door, the interview will get you the job, and it’s really just a small formality in the grand scheme of your career.

Any specific interview question should go in the comments. We are prompt to respond!

Disney Interactive Media Group

Currently seeking:
Senior Software Engineer
Load Performance Engineer/Architect

American Red Cross

Currently seeking:
Regional Cheif Development Officer
Account Representative (Preparedness Health & Safety Services)

Major League Softball

Currently seeking:
Director of Communications, Media & Public Relations
Director of Marketing
Director of Franchise (Club) Sales

AT&T

Currently seeking:
Customer Service Representative – Austin, TX
Bilingual Relay Associate – San Antonio, TX
Bilingual Relay Associate – Augusta, GA
Telesales Representative – Plano, TX
Bilingual Sales Consultant – Miami, FL
Leveraged Service Representative – Lubbock, TX

Wines for Humanity

Currently seeking:
Wine Advisor for Charity

The hardest part of the job search process is staying motivated in your current job. Many job seekers loose drive and focus once they have decided to look for a job. There is no guarantee on the length of time it will take to find a new job. In the mean time you will need to maintain you current roles and responsibilities with the company you are currently employed by. In order to do so ResumeBucket.com recommends that you prepare a strict time schedule to stick to. By assigning a specific time in which to run your job searches will encourage a positive job search attitude. Not only will you have allocated time according to your time management schedule to job hunt, but you will also remain focused in your current role.

Set a Time Limit to Your Job Search Sessions.

Stay motivated during your job search by assigning a set time limit in which to process your job searches. It is one thing to leave no stone unturned when looking for a new job, but don’t exhaust all of your resources in one sitting. Set a time limit in which to run job searches during for example an hour or two hours a day to run searches. It is not in quantity of job searches where you will find your dream job, but rather through quality job searches. Stay motivated and avoid job search burn out by running quality job searches during a focused time period.

Follow Up with Recruiters for Further Encouragement.

Once you have applied to a position the one thing sure to squash your job search motivation is wondering about your results. In order to avoid having all focus removed from your job search drive, after five working days from application follow up with the recruiter. Send a courteous and polite e-mail expressing further interest in the job you have applied to. Request constructive feedback regarding the result of your CV application. Also, suggest a possible date when you would be available to meet the employer for a job interview. By practicing a follow up strategy with all of your job applications, you are guaranteed to maintain your job search motivation.

Manage Your Job Search Stress Levels.

Job hunting is not an easy task for any job seeker. Staying motivated during this time is probably the hardest part of the job search process. Stress and motivation is like oil and water; they just don’t mix. In order to maintain any form of drive focus and motivation, you stress levels need to be managed. When trying to maintain a positive outlook when searching for a job, you need to eliminate stress from your vocabulary. By exercising, a healthy diet and a reliable form of stress outlet, you will maintain the motivation required to keep hunting for a great job. Once stress has possessed you, a positive attitude and sustained job search drive is impossible. Eliminate unnecessary stress and as quoted by the book, “don’t sweat the small stuff”.

Use Your Job Applications To Keep You Motivated.

Keep a record of each job application you make when looking for a new job. Use this list of leads as a motivator during your job search. By referring back to the leads you have pursued, not only will you be motivated by your effort, but you will also have a comprehensive list to refer to when contacted.

The following is a step by step instructions and a few creative ways to have more people view your resume. The guide assumes you utilize the larger business minded social media tools on the Internet such as LinkedIn and Twitter. We recommend you familiarize yourself on those websites to assist in increasing your visibility online.

LinkedIn.com FAQ page

Twitter.com FAQ page

1. Head to Linkedin.com and edit your profile. Add your Unique ResumeBucket.com Link to your profile.

* Log in to your account and on the left hand side, click on “Edit Your Profile”.

Under Websites, Click Edit.

Select “Other” and label it “My Resume” then activate the link by placing your custom ResumeBucket link (http://www.resumebucket.com/YOUR USER NAME) i.e. http://www.resumebucket.com/JoshStomel

Then SAVE CHANGES at the bottom and you are done.

2. Edit your Twitter Profile to have your ResumeBucket.com link displayed, prominently.

* Log in to your Twitter account at http://www.twitter.com

* Click Settings;

* Then change the “More Info URL” to your Unique ResumeBucket.com Link, i.e.  (http://www.resumebucket.com/JoshStomel)

3. Take your ResumeBucket.com badges and place them on your Blog or anything that accepts HTML

* Log in to your ResumeBucket.com account, or click here to go straight to the Promote Page;

Link: http://www.resumebucket.com/members/promote

* You can put this HTML code on your Blog, Myspace Profile or ANYWHERE ELSE that accepts HTML.

4. Add your ResumeBucket.com link to your email signature.

* You can use the above section to access our images & logos; http://www.resumebucket.com/members/promote or by clicking here;

* Right Click on the Images, and save the image.

* In your email client, add the Image in to your signature, then right click the image and make it a LINK, then add your unique Link to the image.

5. Share your ResumeBucket link EVERYWHERE, by DOING THIS!

* Go to your ResumeBucket page i.e. ResumeBucket.com/JoshStomel

* In top right of the resume, you will see the following bar.

* Hover your mouse over the SHARE Button.

* You should see all your favorite social-sharing sites listed such as Twitter, Linkedin, Digg, Myspace, and Facebook.

Integrating the above profiles into your ResumeBucket.com profile will significantly increase your chances of having your business profiles come up first on all the major search engines when a prospective employer searches for your full name. Your resume should be immediately accessible by anyone online because you never know where opportunities are going to come from. Being prepared is the best offense.

If you have any ideas, suggestions, tips please contacts us at info@resumebucket.com

We put out a press release today announcing the 1 millionth message between users.  A message can mean an job hunter applying for one of the jobs they found through our job search tool or it could be an employer asking a potential employee for an interview or more information after finding their resume on the site.

We’ve hit a lot of great milestones here at ResumeBucket, but the number ‘one million’ just seems like something worth noting.

We also learned the news today that we have been nominated for About.com’s Reader’s Choice Awards in the category of Best Career Resource Website.  Now I’m not saying that you HAVE to vote for us, but we’d greatly appreciate it.  We will keep you posted of the results when they announce the winners on March 15th.

The goal of your resume is to get you the interview, not the job.

Compare getting an interview to getting that first date with someone you’re attracted too. You’ll do everything in your power to get a foot inside the door, and essentially this is what all applicants do when they submit their resume to a hiring manager. How are you going to outmatch all the other suitors fighting for the same position?

Initially don’t come on too strong yet give away enough information so that you make yourself attractive to your subject. This is done simply by explaining what value you have in a few concise sentences. If you start rambling on about every single point of experience and detail from your past not only are you going to immediately bore the subject but they will have no desire to interview after you’ve already put everything on the table. Leave something to the imagination.

The goal is the gather the greatest amount of interest in the shortest and quickest possible way.

The following is an real life example of what NOT to do.

Customer Service Representative

• Answered phone calls for people needing help
• Assisted customers with with various problems
• Lead a team of 6 other reps
• Communicated issues with the sales team
• Quicker learner
• People person, love to work with others
• Self starter

Notice how there is no juicy information in there to peak a hiring managers interest. In fact most of those points could be inferred just by knowing what a customer service reps job was and if you’re a applying for a similar position it’s best to assume the person looking at your resume knows the ins and outs of the position you are applying for. Another common mistake is shoving a bunch of useless information into each job heading like the bottom three in the above example. Those are all qualities that can be assumed and likely figured out by the hiring manager during the interview. The people reading your resume see dozens a day at the very least so putting that extra effort in already gives you a leg up on your competition. The following is a much better example.

Customer Service Representative

• Responsible for customer service and new accounts in the Southern California area.
• Duties included but not limited to handling all customer complaints and interactions between the customer, contractors, and the head office.
• Directly oversaw the daily duties and projects of six entry level representatives.
• Coordinated the interactions between my team and the sales staff to facilitate a more professional and friendly environment for our customers.

Now you’ve given the hiring manager a lot of useful information elaborate on during the interview which greatly enhances the chances of getting that initial call back. Not only that but the second example is much more professional. You’ve told the reader exactly what you do without giving every single detail away. It’s okay to be a tease.

Too many people think that the purpose of a resume is to demonstrate that they are the best person for the job by packing it full of information that isn’t useful for getting an interview. Know who you are giving your resume to and play the game they want to play, after all they call the shots.

ResumeBucket's Last Business Meeting

ResumeBucket is a remote work environment. We all work from home offices across the country, but there are several of us in the greater Los Angeles area. We try to get together 3 or 4 times a month to discuss our current projects, initiatives, and throw down some serious BBQ.  They’re all great people and I love them to death. We all started this company together. We were drawn together because we all saw something of ourselves in one another – intelligent, driven, entrepreneurial, and internet-savvy. A lot of us share common friends and interests in music, sports, and favorite brands of whiskey.

But does our comraderie really make us more effective as business owners? It’s so easy for us to segway into non-productive conversations, and the fact that we’re all friends makes it more difficult for us to discipline and manage one another when someone makes a bad decision or stops pulling their weight.

I started thinking back on previous work relationships where my colleagues were brought together by circumstances outside of our direct control – i.e. a typical business environment where managers and executives determine who is hired and who works who whom. I see a lot of power in that non-personal relationship. The number of factors required to work together is reduced: say the company just tries to hire for intelligence instead of who gets along with whom. In these scenarios I’ve had much less in common with my co-worker, and oftentimes we only share 1 common interest – our continued employment. It makes it so much easier to focus on the task at hand when you’re both good at your job and you’re forced to respect one another’s different cultures and lifestyles.

Just something to chew on. When choosing who to work with, whether you’re building your own team or looking for the proper fit in the workplace – try to focus on an individual’s professional abilities before anything else.

Getting in front of prospective employers can often times be more difficult than the jobs you are applying for! There are thousands of ways to get in to a new job, both standard and unique.

The most important aspect of a job search is understanding the different tools at your disposal and maximizing your exposure. You need to be networking with everyone. You never know when Aunt May’s next door neighbor is the sister of an Executive at a company hiring for your dream job. Here are some tools and tips from the ResumeBucket team to help you get the most out of your job search.

• Networking
  • Facebook – Don’t listen to anyone who tells you Facebook isn’t relevant for job posting: it is. Your own personal network is probably bigger than you think it is. We recommend sharing your Resume to your friends and family about once a month – just to remind them to keep their ears open for new possibilities for you. You’d be astonished at how effective this can be.
  • Networking Events – More specifically, get out there! Your community is a big one. Pay attention to local gatherings in your industry, and also try to get more familiar with your community through events sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce, Kiwanis or other social voluntier organisation, or even the local Jogging group. The more people you know, the higher your chances of finding a job that works for you.
• Stand Out! Brand your Email Address
  • You’re going to be applying for jobs and sending a lot of emails. You want those emails to be simple, effective, and professional. A link to your resume in every email you send effectively demonstrates your willingness to work without having to attach a bulky Word or PDF document. It also makes you stand out from others applying to those same jobs. When recruiters have sometimes hundreds of resumes to review, a little something different can go a long way!
  • We recommend WiseStamp for creating a professional email signature: http://wisestamp.com/goodies/add-social-services/resumebucket/
  • 
• Apply, apply, apply
  • We know it’s frustrating, but it must be done. We recommend using ResumeBucket’s job search tool every day when searching for a job. Thousands of new jobs are posted every day, and being one of the first applicants can be a huge deciding factor in getting an interview. The search bar is right at the top of this page. Try to search only a few words at a time to get the most of out of your search.
• Groups and Communities
  • There are tens of thousands of online communitites that talk to one another every day about their professional interests. Most of these communities are very open to newcomers. Find forums and groups that fit your job interests and get involved! And be sure to include a link to your professional resume whenever you get a chance. This is often how recruiters can find top notch candidates – if recruiters are looking for you there, you’ll want to make it easy for them to get in touch with you.

Every Friday everyone here at Resume Bucket will nominate the best employment articles of the week.  And every Friday we’ll put them up here for you to read.  We know you have more important things to do like submitting your resume and going on interviews to be scouring the web for the information you need.  Luckily, this is our job.

The Key to a Successful Career Transition
from Career Rocketeer

A short, sweet article that addresses something that many people struggle with.  Most people understand that you want to progress in your career, but it is important to consider your motivations behind a move.

Is this Interview Question Legal?
from Careerealism

A helpful article for recent graduates or anyone worried about age discrimination in the interview process.

Interview Follow-Up
from Employment Digest

This may be one of the most asked questions we get.  Employment Digest lays out a pretty comprehensive article for exactly how to behave after the interview is over.

What to Say When the Interviewer Asks How Much You Make
from US News

Here is another great guide for one of the most asked questions related to the interview.  Andrew from Jobacle lays out a simple to follow step by step guide on how to negotiate the salary you really want.

Ways to Make Your Boss Love You
from Jobacle

Here is another great article from Andrew.  The title may seem a bit light, but the advice he gives can really help you win over your employer.

1. Abraham Lincoln: Ferryboat Operator

Sure, I can see it. Leading a boat across a river over and over again is just like running a country… right? He also used to be the postmaster – that may make more sense if you consider the time period of his presidency. Postmasters were pretty important back in Lincoln’s time, and I’m sure Honest Abe had the integrity it took for such a position. I just can’t imagine the guy wearing anything other than a top hat!

2. William Harrison – Clerk of Hamilton County
Not a very exciting job… but how did President Harrison go from that role DIRECTLY to President of the United States? Man… that must have been some serious campaigning.

3. Zachary Taylor – Soldier
But here’s the thing – President Taylor was only a soldier. That’s it. Soldier, and President. I think that’s awesome – talk about serving your country your entire life! I’ve got a lot of respect for our armed forces, and talk about a great career move. I’ve got a few friends in the military, emergency city services (i.e. Firefighters) and the Coast Guard, and I can tell you they’re the friends losing the least amount of their hair during this recession.

4. Gerald Ford – Busboy, Male Model
Wait. Gerald Ford. Male Model? Are you kidding me? No seriously. Look at that guy. Although I suppose physical charisma goes a long way towards being our country’s leader. Although I personally think Clinton deserves to rot in hell, Tim Ferriss has a great article on what made Clinton great.

5. Harry Truman – Haberdasher
I just love the name “Haberdasher” Truman was actually one of several presidents who came from clothing and tailoring, since the industry was such a huge boon to our young Country. I just didn’t see any of the others referred to as “Haberdasher” – awesome.

6. Jimmy Carter – Peanut Farmer
I didn’t know Georgia was where Peanuts were grown. It must have been passed down from his family. Farmers have long term residual income that can sustain a family for generations. I’ve always been an admirer of this lifestyle – you earn what you grow. It’s as simple as that (if you’re a farmer, please don’t write me an angry email. I know it’s not that simple).

7. Ronald Reagan – Actor, Lifeguard, Radio Announcer

This is an easy one. Reagan holds arguably the most well-known former professions out of all our illustrious Presidents. Again… it’s all in the charisma. If you can sell an audience, you can sell a country. It’s not Voodoo. Get it? Yeah… sorry.

8. James Garfield – Carpenter, Janitor

Wait. Janitor? This one just doesn’t make much sense. I can’t see how anything relates to Presidential duties… oh, except for cleaning up other people’s messes, of course. I imagine our next President will certainly have his fair share of cleaning up to do!

9. Herbert Hoover – Geologist
Worrying about the earth… to worrying about the earth! Total natural transition.. right?

10. Calvin Coolidge – Toymaker

I’m pretty sure Calvin Coolidge produced Indian Bats – and that makes him the coolest President of them all.

My friend got very upset with me (and, in retrospect, he had good reason to do so). He claimed it wasn’t that easy – that his father had performed a niche manufacturing job for over 35 years, and it wasn’t that simple to transfer that skill set to another industry overnight – especially in Pittsburgh, where any job at all was hard to come by.

That’s why I think it’s a good idea when selecting a job (or, more importantly, a career) to consider not just what jobs are available now, but what jobs will be available for the rest of your working years.

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, labor projections are predicted to have steady growth in several niche industries. Of the 21 million new jobs expected in 2012, more than 20 million will be in the service-providing industries, while 1 million will be in goods producing industries. That’s a good starting ground for considering your career – Americans of the future will be expected to provide trained service, as opposed to manufacturing (and everything that goes around manufacturing, such as managing a toothpaste packing company).

The largest area of growing industries seems to be Health Services, and for good reason, as the baby boomer generation is beginning to reach retirement age. Think about how many more diabetic needles and heart monitoring technology this country will need to develop and produce over the next decade!

On the opposite end of the spectrum, child care services will also rise dramatically. The number of children under the age of 5 is growing, as is the number of two-income families. That means a large increase in child care services. So, if you’re looking to be a nurse or a nanny, you’ve made the right decision.

Not into taking care of other people? Fear not… technology is also on the rise, to no surprise. Computer systems design and related services will look to grow 55% over the next year. That’s… a lot. Can’t go wrong there – you might want to sharpen up your HTML and Photoshop skills!

While these industries are growing, of course there are other industries starting to wilt away. At the top of the list is the manufacturing field, expected to be hit hard next year with a decrease of 245,000 jobs (a decrease of 69%). Face it… manufacturing is going overseas. If you want to stay in this industry, you may consider following the work to India or China in order to train that industry’s new workers.

LOS ANGELES–Nov. 1, 2010 — ResumeBucket.com, the fastest growing free online employment service, today announced a new suite of Premium Services for employers to find top tier job candidates. Incorporating advanced search tools, bookmarking capabilities and embeddable job widgets, these new features enhance the resources available to HR managers and recruiters. Building on the existing free tools, the new services give companies more effective access to thousands of qualified candidates and to post open employment opportunities.

“In the current climate each and every hire an HR manager makes has to be that much more effective and they have to get the most ROI on each and every candidate,” said Ted Hekman, CEO, ResumeBucket. “With ResumeBucket’s new Premium Services it’s now even easier for an employer to find the best possible candidate for the roles they are looking to fill.”

To further refine search efforts using ResumeBucket, employers can now also take advantage of the new Premium Services. At a fraction of the cost of competitive services, the new offerings, available for only $19.99, make it easy to review and manage qualified candidates’ resumes, including:

• Advanced Search

HR managers and recruiters can now mine the ResumeBucket database like never before, with the ability to search by name, company, experience, core skills, job title and a variety of other parameters.

• Track and comment

Employers can create their own database and make personal comments on candidate resumes, or simply bookmark candidates for future follow-up.

• Job Widget

Employers can now also add a new widget on their own website, making it easy to create a recruitment portal from their ResumeBucket job postings.

ResumeBucket’s current free services are accessed by thousands of employers – ranging from Fortune 100s to smaller, local businesses across a range of industries – to fill their HR needs. Companies including Proctor & Gamble, Accenture, CBS, Dell, Ford/Mercury, GE Healthcare, Intel and countless other employers continue to leverage ResumeBucket’s service to search for and review qualified candidates. Additionally, employers currently send thousands of messages every day to qualified candidates regarding potential opportunities using ResumeBucket.

ResumeBucket continues to lead the way in the employment services market, working closely with its more than 1800 employer partners to conduct research on the state of employment. A recent HR survey revealed that 93.5% of respondents are looking to hire in the current quarter (Q4 2010).

ResumeBucket also empowers candidates to build their personal brand, get noticed and better represent themselves to future employers by providing a free personal website where they can quickly upload, edit, publish, share and track views of their resume online.

Anyone looking to take advantage of the online services can register now by visiting www.ResumeBucket.com.

About Resume Bucket

ResumeBucket is the fastest growing free online employment service. Helping job seekers build a personal brand and better represent themselves to future employers, ResumeBucket provides each candidate their own website where they can easily post, edit, share and track their resume online. Nearly 400,000 people have already taken advantage and published their resume using the free service.

ResumeBucket is also a resource, accessed by more than 1000 top employers to regularly search qualified resumes and post open positions for free and to manage their searches using premium services. ResumeBucket is currently used by companies of all sizes, from SMBs to Fortune 100s, including Proctor & Gamble, Accenture, CBS, Dell, Ford/Mercury, GE Healthcare, Intel, Sears Holdings, Time Warner, Twitter, Waste Management and Yahoo!

For more information, please visit www.ResumeBucket.com.

When I was a recruiter, I thrived on these relationships. Friend, co-worker, Joe’s Aunt Sally, it didn’t matter. Any referral was a good referral. As a recruiter, I spent so much time developing this network, it became a valuable asset that I was able to charge hiring managers tens of thousands of dollars for access into my exclusive club of “friends”. Who is hiring who? How can I get an introduction to Asif the Technology Guru (whom I know is hiring) through my buddy who works in their Accounting department?

The reason good recruiters leverage their networks like this is because it’s VALUABLE. As a job seeker, I don’t see why you should do things any different.  Don’t just try to reach out to companies through job boards and emails with your resume (in PDF and DOC, just in case!) in hopes that they will select you out of the other 100 people applying to the same position and having to jump through the same opening hurdle (AKA the in house recruiter who really doesn’t give a shit and is only going to go through those resumes until she finds 3 she likes – then she’s going to the break room for twinkies).

Ask your friends through social networking. Remind them once a week with a quick Facebook update (you could do it through ResumeBucket if you like, and cut out the need for those messy .doc resumes). Be more active on blog sites of interest to you and get THOSE people into your network of friends, and remind them what you can do, too!

Make a point of going out with people you haven’t seen in awhile once a week. I did this as a recruiter like it was my religion – you always come up with new ideas, ways to work together, “oh, you know, you should actually talk to so-and-so, I think they were looking for someone like that…” – see what I’m saying?

Get out there. Referrals are HUGE. Huge! People pay attention when Johnny in accounting knows you (oftentimes even if they don’t like Johnny very much), and you’ll instantly get through one of the hardest hurdles in the job hunting business – the front door.

LOS ANGELES – Oct. 13, 2010 – ResumeBucket, the fastest-growing free online employment service, today announced the results of a study revealing what recruiters were searching for in the third quarter of 2010 (Q3). Compiled from a two-part study, ResumeBucket first reviewed the top 100 typed keywords most searched by recruiters looking for candidates. The top keywords and the industries they relate to were then categorized as follows:

Armed with the keyword results and top industries, the second half of the study included a survey sent to 1,500 HR managers and recruiters of the employers that currently use ResumeBucket’s services. The 10 question survey sampled recruiters’ plans for hiring in Q4 and into 2011; what stands out in a resume; and what tools they use to find candidates. Some of the key findings include:

• 93.5% of respondents plan on hiring in Q4 2010
  • 46% of those looking to hire 1-5 employees
  • 41.4% looking for 10 or more employees.
  • 51.6% of employers said that “Results stated in the candidate’s experience” was the most eye-catching aspect they looked for on a resume – several times the second most common result, the list of Previous Employers, at 17.6%, and the third most common, tailored content for the job, at 13.2%.
  • Only 2.2% of employers identified a candidate’s school as the most important area of a resume.
  • 87.4% of our employers primarily search for candidates on online Job Boards, as opposed to newspapers (4.6%), Trade Publications (2.3%), and professional recruiting or staffing services (5.7%).
  • 15% of Employers had made a hire through ResumeBucket within the past 3 months.

For more information about the study, or for a detailed results breakdown, contact ResumeBucket at info@resumebucket.com.

About Resume Bucket

ResumeBucket is the fastest growing free online employment service. Helping job seekers build a personal brand and better represent themselves to future employers, ResumeBucket provides each candidate their own website where they can easily post, edit, share and track their resume online. Nearly 300,000 people have already taken advantage and published their resume using the free service.

ResumeBucket is also a resource, accessed for free, by more than 1000 top employers to regularly search qualified resumes and post open positions. ResumeBucket is currently used by companies of all sizes, from SMBs to Fortune 100s, including Accenture, CBS, Dell, Ford/Mercury, GE Healthcare, Intel, Sears Holdings, Time Warner, Twitter, Waste Management and Yahoo!

For more information, please visit www.ResumeBucket.com.

If you need more help creating a resume, I strongly suggest you use our Resume Writing Services. Our writers are top notch and very affordable.

Notable changes include:

1. You may now link your Facebook and/or Twitter account to your ResumeBucket account in order to log in faster.
2. In the same vein, you may share your resume with all of your Facebook friends via the “Share” button on your user homepage. Your friends and colleagues are a great first step when networking for a new job, and you’ll now have the convenience of sharing your resume(and your interest in new work) with your network with the click of a button.
3. We really like our Resume Builder a lot, and we wanted to share it with everyone, so we’ve made it available to the public instead of just members only(although signing up is free, so why wouldn’t you?)
4. We gave our resume writing services a much-needed facelift, and expanded our staff in that department as well. We’ve seen great success so far with our Resume Writing Services, and still haven’t received a single complaint from a customer. In addition to being the cheapest on the market right now, we think that’s pretty good, so we gave it some TLC.

Hope you are all enjoying our service! We’ve seen huge growth this year, with over two thousand employers coming on board and almost 60,000 new members per month.

Good luck, happy hunting, and as always, let me know if you need any help!

Ted Hekman

ResumeBucket Co-Founder

There are many reasons why it is important to have your resume written by one of our Professional Resume Writers.  In the current economic climate, there is a surplus of candidates vying for each position that is advertised, which is why it is SO important to have your resume reviewed and revised by a professional.  Our resume writers have been making people look good on paper for a number of years already.  With their experience, they KNOW what a recruiter wants to see and will tailor your resume to make you look that much better.  Here are some valuable points to consider:

Here are our Top 5 Reasons to Use a Resume Writer

1. Your resume’s first ½ page needs to make a strong impression.

Recruiters and HR Professionals spend an average of 30-45 seconds reviewing each resume.  You have to make sure your resume makes a significant impression in this short amount of time.

2. Your resume has to be error-free.

Did you miss a typo?  Don’t depend on the spell checker.  Common mistakes often occur (example manger instead of manager).  It is better to have a professional review your resume.

3. Does your resume look good on screen?

The majority of resumes are now read on screen; resume writers know how to make your resume POP!

4. Core Qualifications

Entering core qualification on your resume is critical.  However, words need to be carefully chosen to match your key job skills appropriately.

5. What should you include in your Employment History?

Our resume writers will analyze your work history, responsibilities, and achievements.  They will know what and how to include the critical information employers are looking for.

Get in touch with one of our EXPERIENCED RESUME WRITERS by clicking here.  Our services start at just $85 / resume, which is guaranteed to be the lowest price anywhere.  Not only that, you can add a cover letter for only $40!  Don’t settle for any other company to write your resume- trust the source, trust ResumeBucket.

Just because you feel reluctant that you have received a job offer in this economy does not mean you should take the back seat when it comes to filling out your prospective salary. People who have been offered jobs  are asking for salaries that are well below their expectations only because they feel relieved that they have been hired in this rough economy. This can be a burden because when the economy strengthens, you will continue to be under-paid while others with the same job are being paid more just because they were hired later.

When accepting a job, you do not want to tell your employer the salary you are expecting. Typically, the first person to speak loses. For instance, you can run into the dilemma where you give a number that is below the employer’s expectations and the employer will accept your number with open arms. If the employer gives a number first that is too low, you have the ability to negotiate for a higher number. Do not be scared to negotiate, your employer selected you to take the job because he or she felt that you were the most qualified person for the job, and they want you!  Just a reminder; try and leave that salary line on the job application blank.

Before accepting a job offer, do some salary research on your prospective job to gain information on how much you think you should be paid. It will do no help if you accept a job offer with no knowledge on how much you should be paid.

ResumeBucketBlog.com celebrated it’s first birthday on Novemeber 27th, 2009! Not only are we still quite alive and kicking but it’s amazing to think how far we’ve come… And we are just getting warmed up! We want to thank every single one of our readers and subscribers for the positive e-mails, especially the ones about getting that call-back after applying the no-B.S. tips our blog has been providing for free over this past year. Those of you new to our site should definitely check out our archived blog posts for quality tips and information about the job hunt.

As some of you know ResumeBucket.com works closely with one of the top recruiting companies in California, so close in fact that I can bank a paper ball off the CEOs head and into the trashcan! This puts us on the cutting edge enabling us to monitor industry trends in real-time, like what do hiring managers and recruiters really look at on your resume? Or, Resume Writing Tips and How to Interview – just to name a few. These are all questions with constantly changing answers. For instance cover letters are dying fast (to the joy of HR departments everywhere). Unless you are explicitly asked to write one, save your time and some trees (You’ll make Al Gore proud). Use the time you would have been spending on the cover letter to build out an excellent Linkedin.com profile (which we will explaining soon!). It’s 2009! Social Media is your friend, but be sure to use it correctly, another upcoming “How To” blog to look forward too.

Stay tuned. Bookmark us. To celebrate our one year we will be rolling out some major changes to the format and content to make ResumeBucketBlog.com, evolving us to an even more efficient resource!  We’ll be leaking out these changes over the course of this week so stay tuned, and as always, we want to hear from you! What would you like to see here? What type of brick walls have you ran into during your job search? Remember – ResumeBucket.com is all about us helping you for free! It may not be the most profitable business model but we haven’t had a complaint yet!

Heartfelt Thanks from the ResumeBucket team to You,

Upcoming blogs this week:

“Following Up After an Interview”
“Following Up After Submitting a Resume”
“How to Write a Resume version 2.0 – The most detailed crash course online”
“2009 Job Industry Wrap Up: What Have We Learned?”

#1 Introduction
You can show your level of interest as well as self-confidence using handshakes, and you could provide a decent initial opinion too, however there’s instances in which starting a handshake may make you seem overconfident. Extend your arm and point your hand downwards, your palm should be able to touch the palm of your interviewer. When you shake hands, make sure you make eye contact, but not longer than 3 seconds.

#2 Posture
Don’t slouch, no matter if you’re sitting or you’re standing still, as slouching will give the idea of laziness or a lack of confidence. Don’t position on the edge of the chair this will indicate that you’re too tense – just relax into your chair and place your hands upon your lap. Crossing the legs is okay as long as the focus of your body is towards the interviewer.

#3 Expressive
Eye contact is important within a job interview because that shows that you’re honest, sincere, and even confident since a lack of eye contact might indicate that you’re lying or you feel uneasy. When responding, make use of your hands, showing your palm while describing a thing indicates that you are being relaxed, trustworthy, and even assured, plus the interviewer will believe that you know what you are talking about.

#4 Listen
You may display your interest and that you are listening attentively to your interviewer using head motions, nodding is a display that you comprehended or even agreed to what he or she has stated. While there are ideas that you will most likely dislike, nodding is still better rather than arguing and the latter might be the grounds for why you don’t get the job.

#5 Do-not
Avoid placing your hands into your pockets because this can underline your nerves, or can give the interviewer the impression that you might be hiding something from him, or you’re disinterested in getting the position. You can utilize hand movements while speaking, though do not use them frequently since too many movements can distract your interviewer from hearing your answers.

Body language does not always display what you intend to convey or really feel. But, it is an advantage that you understand the gestures that you must utilize or stay away from during a job interview to give a decent impression for that phrase that you long to hear: “Good News, you have got the position!”

Numbers show that the majority of people change careers five to ten times during their lives. Once the initial excitement wears off most employees tend to burn themselves out and go through what’s called a “Midcareer Crisis.”

“Midlife crisis” may be many things — depression, a reassessment,
dissatisfaction, or unease — but a key contributor can be career
issues.”

Other factors such as location, layoffs, and personal issues influence may also impact this decision. While sometimes it is necessary to ‘reinvent’ yourself.. tread carefully because it’s easy to harm relationships, burn  bridges, kill-off networking opportunities, and emp you down the line with a resume which has no specific industry focus and short employment histories.

If you fall into this category you need to focus on presenting yourself to hiring managers as an asset that can fill the role just as well as your competition, most of whom have had experience in tyour potential field for years. The key is being able to associate your past employment history, skills, and qualifications into your new venture.

Four Tips To Transitioning

1. Identify your accomplishments, skills, and expertise that your new venture will expect you to have. Knowing these traits will be your best resource in transferring into a new industry.

2. Extensively research the ins and outs of any new opportunity. Running into an interview blind will fail nine out of ten times. If you don’t have someone in the space to pull information, the Internet is your next and best resource.
3. Combine the the first and second steps above to identify the vital skills and competence you’ll bring to this next opportunity. Establish yourself as confident and valuable resource.

4. Formulate your resume around this information and be ready to elaborate on it during the interview. You will be grilled on it. This is your chance to prove your worth, and where all the above steps come into play.

1. Minimalism is key

Just because Microsoft Word lets you use Clip Art and Symbols doesn’t mean you should. The NUMBER ONE thing that should be in your mind during the creation process is “Is this easy to read?” Employers want to be able find what they are looking for in seconds. Keep it clear, keep it concise, keep it simple.

2. Keywords are your friend

When employers and recruiters are using job search engines to browse resumes they use specific keywords to locate potential candidates. If you list yourself as a software engineer on your resume, but an employer is using the search term ’software developer’ you may get overlooked. A viable solution for these types of jobs (graphic designer/graphic artist) is to pick the most common term and insert the other relevant terms at the very bottom in small text.

3. No one cares about your objectives

You objective is to get a job. Plain and simple. Writing out a paragraph about your future goals and previous life story is almost always looked over. To often a resume gets tossed out because their objectives are a turn off or intimidating; for instance “I want to manage people” or “Eventually I wish to run my own company”. Employers are looking for experience not wishes and dreams, or people who want to use them as a stepping stone. Keep them to yourself.

4. Lead with your most recent job

This is the most important part of your resume and 95% of what the reader cares about. Since you aren’t leading with objective or education (we’ll get to that next) put down your current employment or most recent. The first question you’ll be asked is “Why do you want to leave?” or “Why did you leave?” Save the employer time and answer these questions but be careful, if you are currently employed it may not be the best idea to put your resume online with this information explaining why you no longer want to work for them.

5. Education and Time lines are not for everyone

The only time you should lead with education is if you are still in school or just graduated. The exception here is if you have a Master or PhD from a top tier school. Putting down a junior college or state college you attended fifteen years ago will never help you.
Employment time lines often harm more than help. If you were employed for six months or even two years you will be passed over or at the very least grilled by the interviewer as to why. However this really is determined on a case-to-case basis but more often than not it’s a good idea to leave exclude information.

Your diploma, unfortunatly, isn’t a ‘get a job free’ card. All to often graduates have no clue what to include on your resume and cover letter. Unless you have a few extra-curricular activities under your belt, the only things you can list are common part time jobs which most likely involved absolutely nothing relevant to the position you want.

Often the question that comes up is if you are applying for a full time career position, how do you create a resume for a full time career if your only previous experience in the workforce was at a clothing store or fast food joint? It shows you have experience but is it the experience they are looking for? Follow the quick three step guide in this first installment of Student Week at ResumeBucket.

1. Make the layout professional

• Don’t go overboard with fancy fonts, graphics, or a confusing structure. While you may think this makes you look good, it’s painful to read for the employer.
• Keep it simple and easy to read. You can find resume layout examples in our database of sample resumes.

2. Content is key

• Employers and Recruiters don’t care about any part type job you had in high school or college. Unless you moved up to a management/supervisor position, omit this information.
• Instead include any type of extra-curricular activities you may have been involved in on campus, this includes sports, clubs, student body government. Anything to show you were more than just a body who showed up to class then left.
• Write a 2-3 short and concise introduction about yourself and your goals, be careful and don’t make it to wordy. Tailor this to suit the job you are applying for.
• Finish it with any references you have. Many people lie here and get caught. Employers DO check. Make sure to use reputable people and not friends or family remembers.

3. Clean up

• Keep it to a one page. Employers who are looking at a fresh resume don’t expect you to have that much experience in the work force. Padding your resume with trivial information is a turn off to hiring manager reading your resume.
• Most likely your name will be Googled by employers. Make your Facebook or any other social sites that may come up private. You don’t want them seeing your pictures from Friday and Saturday nights. Instead build out a Linkedin.com profile, sign up and post your resume on ResumeBucket.com. Google yourself and see what comes up and work from there.

Post up your comments! We love to help out our users with any questions they have, and if you really want an outstanding resume check out our top tier resume writer.

The only one stop website for literally hundreds of free resume samples and free cover letter samples. With the less-than-ideal economic times our world is pushing through, your resume and cover letter are the first tools of the trade for landing yourself that new career path, first job, or getting back into your industry. The first step…

You need to have an industry specific cover letter AND resume.

Now more than ever both your cover letter and resume need to compliment each other and be written flawlessly or you risk getting lost in that dreaded pile of other applicants.

Take advantage of our free, MASSIVE database of resume and cover letter samples.
We cover all our bases when it comes to sample documents for any type of career.

Preview the screen shots below to see what we offer to our users looking for a free cover letter and resume in the Nursing industry:

With an complimentary resume to follow up the cover letter:


Not bad, but if you were looking for something a little different, but still related to the Medical field, just glance at the plethora of free samples ResumeBucket offers just for that niche. Resumes. Cover Letters.

• Free Administrative Assistant Resumes!
• Free Banking Resumes!
• Free Clerical Resumes!
• Free Teacher Resumes!

That’s just a SMALL taste of what we have to offer. ResumeBucket.com houses so many free sample resumes and free sample cover letters, it would take hours to list them all! GO CHECK ‘EM OUT FOR YOURSELF!

Find one of that fits your needs, edit it, use it as a guide to create your own, or print it out as is. We have some of the most highly acclaimed resume and cover letter writers in the industry handing them to you for free. You are only a few clicks away from creating your own FREE professional sample resume and professional sample cover letter!

SIGN UP FOR YOUR VERY OWN RESUMEBUCKET ACCOUNT
It takes just seconds!

]]> http://www.resumebucketblog.com/resumebucket/free-samples/feed/ 1 http://www.resumebucketblog.com/resumebucket/how-to-get-discovered-on-resumebucketcom/ http://www.resumebucketblog.com/resumebucket/how-to-get-discovered-on-resumebucketcom/#comments Mon, 02 Nov 2009 07:43:32 +0000 josh http://www.resumebucketblog.com/?p=392 ResumeBucket.com is more than just a resume posting website like Monster.com or CareerBuilder.com. We provide all users with multiple media tools that enable them to become more visible to employers which significantly increases the chances of being contacted for an interview.

The following is a step by step instructions and a few creative ways to have more people view your resume. The guide assumes you utilize the larger business minded social media tools on the Internet such as LinkedIn and Twitter. We recommend you familiarize yourself on those websites to assist in increasing your visibility online.

LinkedIn.com FAQ page

Twitter.com FAQ page

1. Head to Linkedin.com and edit your profile. Add your Unique ResumeBucket.com Link to your profile.

* Log in to your account and on the left hand side, click on “Edit Your Profile”.

Under Websites, Click Edit.

Select “Other” and label it “My Resume” then activate the link by placing your custom ResumeBucket link (http://www.resumebucket.com/YOUR USER NAME) i.e. http://www.resumebucket.com/JoshStomel

Then SAVE CHANGES at the bottom and you are done.

2. Edit your Twitter Profile to have your ResumeBucket.com link displayed, prominently.

* Log in to your Twitter account at http://www.twitter.com

* Click Settings;

* Then change the “More Info URL” to your Unique ResumeBucket.com Link, i.e.  (http://www.resumebucket.com/JoshStomel)

3. Take your ResumeBucket.com badges and place them on your Blog or anything that accepts HTML

* Log in to your ResumeBucket.com account, or click here to go straight to the Promote Page;

Link: http://www.resumebucket.com/members/promote

* You can put this HTML code on your Blog, Myspace Profile or ANYWHERE ELSE that accepts HTML.

4. Add your ResumeBucket.com link to your email signature.

* You can use the above section to access our images & logos; http://www.resumebucket.com/members/promote or by clicking here;

* Right Click on the Images, and save the image.

* In your email client, add the Image in to your signature, then right click the image and make it a LINK, then add your unique Link to the image.

5. Share your ResumeBucket link EVERYWHERE, by DOING THIS!

* Go to your ResumeBucket page i.e. ResumeBucket.com/JoshStomel

* In top right of the resume, you will see the following bar.

* Hover your mouse over the SHARE Button.

* You should see all your favorite social-sharing sites listed such as Twitter, Linkedin, Digg, Myspace, and Facebook.

Integrating the above profiles into your ResumeBucket.com profile will significantly increase your chances of having your business profiles come up first on all the major search engines when a prospective employer searches for your full name. Your resume should be immediately accessible by anyone online because you never know where opportunities are going to come from. Being prepared is the best offense.

If you have any ideas, suggestions, tips please contacts us at info@resumebucket.com

]]> http://www.resumebucketblog.com/resumebucket/how-to-get-discovered-on-resumebucketcom/feed/ 12 http://www.resumebucketblog.com/miscellaneous/survive-the-recession-toolbar/ http://www.resumebucketblog.com/miscellaneous/survive-the-recession-toolbar/#comments Fri, 30 Oct 2009 22:40:11 +0000 aaron http://www.resumebucketblog.com/?p=383 ResumeBucket just rolled out our recession proof toolbar. This toolbar has everything to help you cut your finances, find jobs, and save money!

Here is a complete list that comes with our toolbar.

• Job Search function Powered by Resumebucket

• Free Stuff search that scours websites like freecycle.com

• Cost cutting resources such as: cheap gas, coupons, bill shrink, organizing and combining finances, current bank rates, and your credit report.

• Scrolling CNN news feed with up-to-date news about the economy

• Stock ticker

• Free Stuff from websites

• Deals of the Day

The best part about this toolbar is that is all completely FREE. Our goal here at Resumebucket to help out as many people as we can with no cost to our consumers. This toolbar can only help you on your way to surviving the recession.

If you want more information or want to download it now click here!

We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused but the problem has been fixed and all users should be able to upload their resumes.

Please contact support@resumebucket.com for any issues or questions you may have.

Thanks,

ResumeBucket Team

Getting an online degree is more available than ever, but people still don’t take that option because they might have heard some myths about receiving an online degree. Where did this stigma come from? I am going to tackle the elephant in the room and debunk all the bad rumors about online degrees.

1. Online degrees are not real or accredited: There are some scams out there that pretend that their schools are accredited to when choosing you school of choice make sure your school is a real organization. All the schools at http://www.resumebucket.com/collegesearch are fully accredited and have over 100 degrees to choose from.

2. Online degrees have a poor reputation. Getting an online degree is exactly the same clout and respect from getting it from a traditional school. Even popular 4 year universities are offering some sort of online bachelor degree program for certain students who are more suited towards this format Online degree programs are geared towards students that do not have the time to take a four-year education and employers understand that. With an online education, you will gain as much respect as with any other college degree.

3. Tuition is too expensive. This couldn’t be more wrong. Budget cuts are making tuition go up on average 10% every semester! Online degrees have less overhead so rising cost of electricity and other resources doesn’t affect your pocketbook. Many online schools offer financial aid and tuition assistance to qualifying students. You also save money and time just by not having to drive to class everyday.

4. Online degrees are easy and don’t have lots of room to mess around. Online expect their students to be ambitious and self-driven, capable of independent study and discipline. Companies look at people with that type of personality too! If stop doing assignments and fall behind in your classes, you will fail, just like if you were in a traditional campus environment. The classrooms are made to be personalized and it very easy to contact your teacher if you need help or just have a question. Some degrees are going to be harder than others but it all depends on what you are doing.

5. All online degrees are the same. There are hundreds of different degrees you can get. You can also get your MBA if you’re done with your undergraduate classes. Some lasses are transferable as well so it’s a good idea to talk to a representative at your school of choice to find out what your can do with old classes you might have taken.

So there it is, the top five myths about online degrees debunked. Sure, it may not be for everyone but for people who are busy and don’t have time to commute to school everyday it is a great option. I say, if your thinking about it, try it! Expand your horizons; get the MBA you thinking about getting before you had that full time job. Get that undergraduate degree and move up in your company, or better yet, get them to pay for it!

1. Know what other people are getting paid in your market

2. During or after the interview, do try to get a sense of whether you are the preferred candidate. If you are, you have more negotiation power

3. Wait for them to put out the salary number first.

4. If the company mentions a number, then do the following: Repeat it back to them, then stare at them while counting to 30 in your head. 90% of the time they will then give you a higher number.

5. You can try and negotiate other things like more paid time off if the salary is right already.

6. The best time to negotiate is after the interview but before you’ve been hired. If the hiring manager wants you, talk to HR about raising your payroll. They will try to do their job and not let you get away.

]]> http://www.resumebucketblog.com/miscellaneous/6-salary-negotiation-steps/feed/ 0 http://www.resumebucketblog.com/resumebucket/resume-bucket-user-manual/ http://www.resumebucketblog.com/resumebucket/resume-bucket-user-manual/#comments Mon, 10 Aug 2009 22:41:19 +0000 aaron http://www.resumebucketblog.com/?p=289

Resume Bucket 101, the complete guide to effectively use our services to post your resume online,  browse jobs, network, and most importantly promote yourself. This guide will walk you through the entire Resume Bucket experience. All of our features are free and simple to use. We don’t clutter every page with sponsored ads and job postings like the major job search engines do. The site was created from the ground up with you in mind. The objective: Use us as the medium to meet your goals through premium promotional features that other job search engines don’t offer. ResumeBucket.com is unmatched by any other employment service or job posting website, so take advantage of us; it’s why we exist.

The Complete ResumeBucket.com Guide

Getting Started
Signing up for most services is a hassle, you know drill. We despise the typical process too which is why we’ve made signing up for ResumeBucket to having your resume posted only take a matter of minutes. Join our community by filling in only three lines on the homepage, we’ve ran many internal tests and focus groups to make sure the maximum sign up time is twenty seconds or less. Just kidding, we didn’t have to test it. It really is that simple, try it for yourself.

Time to get started on building out your profile; by creating a unique URL then uploading your resume. The unique URL feature is a fantastic way to promote yourself and consistantly used as a tool for employers and recruiters to locate you. Your resume will show up in this format: resumebucket.com/yournamehere directing to your customizable resume page and profile, now you are able to showcase your resume and give each viewer the option to directly message you or forward your resume to potential employers.

The final step is to upload your resume document onto the the unique page you just created. We offer a variety of ways to do this, seen in the screen shot below.

If you already have a resume ready to go, locate it on your computer using the “browse” button and you’re set. Don’t have a resume yet? Not a problem. Use our exclusive Resume Builder to create your own. The image below gives a glimpse of how the process works you may omit any information you wish.

Next you are guided through the steps to fully customize your resume. Begin by choosing a resume template and following the steps to fill in information that will be formatted into the template. When you finish the process click this bright orange button – now your resume will show on your page. 

The second option for those that do not currently have a resume on file is to access our massive database of sample resumes where you can search through hundreds of templates targeted at specific careers and edit it as if it was your own. Those looking for sample cover letters we have over thirty occupations to choose from and modify.

Managing Your Resume(s)
After you’ve successfully uploaded your resume, the first step to promoting yourself online and having employers contact you. Your unique URL is listed at the very top of the page and below is your personal status updater. You may change your status to anything you wish, but we offer four suggestions so that those browsing through can easily see if you are “In need of a job” or “Happily employed”.
Above your resume you should see a variety of text editing tools that allow you to update or modify your resume in seconds. When you are finished be sure to click the “Publish My Resume” button to save the changes.
Unfortunately sometimes when a resume gets uploaded the format can get tweaked (this only applies to those who didn’t use our Resume Builder or templates). Which is also why we provide this tool. If you notice that anything has changed in your original resume you may need to use the text tool bar to edit it. If you have any trouble contact our support team and they will fix it for you.

For those that have more than one resume we’ve designed into our interface a tool so each user account is able post up to twenty different resumes. You are can choose which one you want to be your primary resume and that will be the one displayed on your unique URL. Primary resumes can be changed out with alternative resumes at any time with just one click.
In the near future we will be adding a feature that allows you to create unique URLs for each resume you’ve uploaded under primary login.

Managing Your Account
Located on the left hand side of the screen is your administration panel. Listed are a variety of different options but we suggest you go into “Account Settings” to begin and start customizing each option to your liking. For those that don’t want their resume publicly viewable we offer a Password Protection feature, meaning an individual needs to know the set password to view your resume (this is different from your login password). The Notification Settings, which we highly recommend you keep checked so that you are instantly updated on any InMail sent to you, without having to log in to check.
Changing your password is also done on this tab.

The next link on the list is “Personal Information“. Here you are able to input your contact information ranging from cell phone numbers to social networking groups and chat clients. Update your current employment status, configure your desired salary, and set your employment preferences to the industry you work in, previous/current titles, you can browse the other options and tweak them accordingly to help employers seek you out more effectively.

With your account comes a personal Inbox for people to connect with you. The “Message Center” can be configured to send notifications to your e-mail. We are very serious about spam here so expect to see real job offers and networking opportunities in that folder, never spam claiming you inherited millions from a prince in Nigeria.

“Resume Manager” is where you can upload and store your multiple resumes. Switching between resumes just requires a a click on the appropriate alternative resume and it becomes the primary and displayed on your URL. The options let you preview the resume, edit, or delete any of the resumes. Having your resumes stored here makes it easy and instantly accessible from any computer by downloading them in either .pdf or .doc format. Note that only your Primary Resume Type will be public.

Exclusive Features
Resume Bucket offers a variety of amazing features that no other job search engine has, all for free. One of the features we are proud to provide is the exclusive “Metrics” system. This system allows you to see exactly who and when people have viewed your resume. The metrics come in graphic and textual form as shown below. Along with options to change the dates of data and where the viewer found your resume. For instance if they saw it on Twitter it would let you know that person was refered to your page through the link you posted on Twitter.

Above is the visual graph which can be modified by a multiple ways to give you the type of data you want. Hovering your mouse over any part of the graph shows the statistics for that specific section. All stats are shown in real time.

This is the textual part of your personal metric page. Not only does it show you who viewed you page but where they found your resume link, views,state, and time. Very useful information if you spend a bit of time researching the metrics, which will be explained below.

Now you understand the main features how to use ResumeBucket.com and how we differentiate ourselves from the other resume posting and job searching websites. Great. However our goal is that your resume and name get farther than just our website. We created “Promote Yourself!” so that you are able to embed a variety of personal badges to promote yourself practically anywhere on the internet. We’ve found that placing these in e-mail signatures, personal blogs, and social networking websites are the most effective way of getting them clicked. Here is just a small sample of the badge types and sizes (we have them in all different shapes sizes and colors schemes).

Tip: Research your metrics to see where most of the clicks are coming from and invest more time promoting yourself in that area. Maximize your viewers! The more exposure the better, right?

Outside the Bucket

It’s 2009, so it’s safe to make the assumption that most of our users are involved in or are aware of the overwhelming amount of social networking websites. While we maintain a presence on most of the major networks, start yourself off by following our twitter stream. It’s updated daily with job market news, featured jobs and resumes, and offbeat industry content (we love those). Plus you can see the co-founder in a mullet. http://twitter.com/resumebucket

Those interested in more senior jobs in the LA and Orange County area should check out our other successful start-up www.NeoHire.com, which specializes with placing top tier candidates for many internet and .com businesses. You can view their updated list of current career openings and what makes them different and more effective in than all other recruiting agencies.

We love comments! Post feedback, questions, and features you would like to see in the future. Or contact us directly at support@resumebucket.com. Click here to go back to the home page and get started.

THIS MANUAL IS A WORK IN PROGRESS
Above is enough to get you started on ResumeBucket
COMING SOON:
COLLEGE SEARCH AND OUTREACH
TIPS ON HOW TO PROMOTE YOURSELF
MORE IN “OUTSIDE THE BUCKET”

Was this guide helpful to you? Let us know! We are always looking for feedback to improve ResumeBucket for our users.

Why do we offer all of services and exclusive features for free?

Every other website in our industry makes you pay a fee to even have a shot at finding a job or getting your resume noticed, that is if you can manage to navigate through all the advertisements and sponsored job links. The ResumeBucket think tank saw a need to provide users with advanced services at no cost. With the Internet establishing itself as the primary medium of communication, this type of service was nessessary to facilitate the movement for beginner and advanced users alike. We are much more than just a resume listing website, the list below is a snapshot of some of the services we currently offer.

• Personlized URL (www.resumebucket.com/yourname) with your resume on it
• Variety of options to customize your entire account including privacy settings
• Easy to use Resume Builder
• Massive database of sample resume and cover letters sorted by industry
• Manage multiple resumes under one account
• Promotional tools that make your resume easily viewable from anywhere
• Career advice articles including resume hints, interview tips, how-to on self promotion
• Tools that show you who has been looking at your profile
• Networking, getting employers or recruiters to find you

To learn more about all these services we recommend you view our ResumeBucket Manual, a complete how-to guide beginning to signing up to utilizing the advanced features and everything in between.

We know how annoying it is to sign up for a website and then just get spammed with e-mails daily that will never get touched (if they even make it to your inbox). Instead, we take advantage of social media platforms such as twitter to update our users with industry information, career tips, website updates, and content that sometimes may be just a bit off-beat, we aren’t just another corporate, robotic, impersonal service. We are real people designing tools and services with only you in mind. This also goes for the way we brand and promote ourselves.

For example we would never do something like this to our users, on any medium. This happens to be from Twitter.com.

oops!

Instead we choose to not use mass spamming techniques to get the brand name out, we want our user base to grow organically through brand awareness and word of mouth. These are the type of e-mails our support team receives on a daily basis;

“Hey support team,

This is an example of fantastic service. I could get in and I reposted my resume and also changed my password”

“Wow I’m floored at the your response time. I needed that document deleted ASAP and it was gone by the time I refreshed.I was expecting it to be a few days at least…

Thanks“

Hey ResumeBucket,

I just wanted to thank you for creating this website. I can’t believe everything is free, within two days of uploading my resume i had job offers coming into my mailbox :) Awesome!!

We can’t stress enough how important you are to us. Never hesitate to ask a question or request assistance, just e-mail support@resumebucket.com and watch how fast someone from our team gets back to you!

If you have any feature requests or general questions post them in our comment section. We love hearing from you!

Working at Resumebucket.com we often come by resumes and job descriptions that make us laugh, the reasons vary but more often than not it’s because of the tedious and pretentious buzz words that people often use as filler or to make themselves look intelligent (hint: it doesn’t). Yesterday one of our founders came across this gem that had us all staring in disbelief trying to force a laugh.

Click HERE to view the train wreck of a job description. Be warned, you are about to get slammed with a wall of text made up of buzz words with no real content. Why would we expose you to such a monstrosity? Well my hope is that those of you out there filling your resumes with buzz words will change formats and start focusing on real content.

Coordinate planned and researched system enhancements/modification activities with administrative and technical personnel to ensure a continuing supportive environment for existing and planned application systems and a coordinated and transparent conversion.

Uhhh.. what?

So why would we bring this to everyone’s attention? Our hope is that #1, you’ll laugh, but more importantly #2, you’ll take what you’ve just seen into consideration and learn from the mistake. Flooding your resume with useless buzz words not only makes the hiring manager throw the resume out, but you are doing yourself an injustice by using to many words to convey nothing. Keep your resumes (and job descriptions!) short, concise and to the point. You’re not only helping yourself, you are doing those of us that have to read them a favor.

For more pointers regarding buzzwords check out these articles at the TechRepublic and Directory M.

The most popular job search websites are so saturated with sponsorships, sneaky advertisements, monthly fees, and on top of all you are submitting your resume into a massive sea with hundreds of thousands of other resumes—reducing your chances of being seen to slim and none.  At ResumeBucket we get rid of the clutter so that it is easy to navigate and recruiters can access your resume in a flash.

So why waste your valuable time, effort, and money when you can promote yourself the same way but in an easier, cost free, and effective way. ResumeBucket lets you get your personalized resume online in less than a minute of signing up as apposed to other websites. You have the option to create a personalized profile with a unique URL with a recognizable name (example: http://resumebucket.com/johnsmith).

One feature that sets ResumeBucket above the competition is our metrics tool. You have the ability to see who is looking at your resume, how many times it’s been viewed, and when it was viewed. Seeing the results in real time is great to check for the effectiveness of getting your resume out to potential jobs. You can easily get your resume out with the premade badges that you can paste into your e-mail, personal webpage, or social media network.

Have more than one resume? Cover letter? ResumeBucket allows you to upload multiple variations of each so you can submit each one accordingly, depending on the recruiters’ interests.  You also have the ability to make resumes private or public and active or inactive if one is still being updated. If you don’t have a cover letter you can browse through our sample cover letters that have been organized based on different career categories.

Having trouble creating the professional resume and cover letter you deserve? ResumeBucket offers professional writing services that will custom tailor you a personal qualifications into a resume that will impress any potential employer.

Not only are you able to do all these things with your resume, you can proactively search and apply for jobs with minimal effort. With the search function you are able to search for thousands of jobs that are relevant to what you want to do.

ResumeBucket has all the services you need to jumpstart your career. Sign up and watch your newfound opportunities unfold. Have a success story? Tell us about it because we love hearing them. With all these options, ResumeBucket.com is your one stop job search website.

For example say you live in Santa Monica and you’re looking to find a college or vocational study in the Web Design industry. Finding an opportunity is as easy as clicking the “college” tab, choosing “Technology/IT”, and typing in the Santa Monica zip code. A few milliseconds later you will land on this page. Check out all the different options available to you!

Sounds easy right? Well it doesn’t get much easier.  ResumeBucket.com has a wide variety of college options to choose from- ranging from Art and Design to Biology to IT and even Massage and Wellness. Any type of path you are looking for can be found by our easy to use college search function.

Most websites will charge a fee to be able to access a similar search function but of course, like everything on Resumebucket, the feature is completely free to our users (similar to our college search and job search features). The only thing we ask in return is that you take a few seconds to give us some feedback by clicking the red tab located on the left side on the search page or go directly to our forum and post what you would like changed on our website. Our new feedback option will help us get more in tuned to our users so that we can make ResumeBucket even better!

If a few days after dropping off your resume you haven’t heard back from anyone, it’s time to make that phone call. It maybe intimidating for some, so its always easier if you have a script written out like this one:

This is ______ calling. A few days ago I applied for the ______ position in your company’s ______ department/division. I’m calling to make sure you received my resume and to reiterate my interest in the position.

Anymore than two phone calls is too much. The trick is to sound interested and qualified, not desperate. The CareerDoctor.org puts it in good terms:

“The cliché that fits in job-seeking — unless abused — is that the squeaky wheel gets the grease; in other words, the job-seeker who follows-up — who shows interest in the job and the company — will get more attention than other applicants.”

Some employers don’t like the phone calls mostly because of the inconvenience and time management so they’ll prefer email instead. It is important to be brief and straight to the point. No one is going to read a longwinded email about how much you really want the job and then proceed to ask multiple questions concerning the job. Remember, recruiting and selection process can take months so be patient.

If you have sent out multiple resumes, it is a good idea to keep a record for everything. Make a spreadsheet that has a list of all the places you have sent out your resume too with columns for interviews, follow-ups, and contact information. If you don’t you may lose important information concerning your next job.

The very last thing to remember is “Don’t Give Up!” Be persistent and confident in your job search. It may get low at times but remember that your dream job may just be a phone call away.

Internships are important for many things, the first being experience. Hands-on experience with a job that is relative to your future career is a definite step in the right direction. Even if the internship isn’t exactly what you want to do, it will be able to open doors and will also have some type of job skill that you are able to put on your resume. Employers love to see that you have work experience even though sometimes they don’t ask for it.

“Online business networking profiles are still just a piece of the puzzle, though. A successful blend of the old and the new networking techniques will counteract the deficiencies inherent in both approaches. A human touch in the new digital landscape goes a long way towards maintaining awareness and crafting image, while drawing in more localized business”

Another reason internships are important is that they help you network. Often times, hiring managers ask employees to refer qualified workers for interviews. The key is to network with all the opportunities your internship has to offer. Networking takes time and won’t happen over night but social networking websites can make it easier.

“I often see new salespeople attend one or two networking events and say ‘networking doesn’t work.’ Of course it doesn’t work after one or two handshakes – you need to give something to the group first before you can expect anything back. Networking is a marathon, not a sprint.”

Don’t kick yourself when you’re down! Internships are down as well. Employers know that it is hard to get experience so don’t be so gloomy in your interview. You don’t need to be young but you need to bring something to the table and be willing to learn. So go ahead and get your hands dirty and remember that every internship could open doors you never thought existed.

-Spencer

The Internet is the best tool you have as a job seeker to create an amazing network of contacts. Social networking has taken off expoentially these past few years with websites emerging for specific niche demographics which include business networking. You will want to do a bit more in-depth research but a quick google search can give you list of business oriented social networks; it’s a good bet to start off with Linkedin and Twitter.

While social networks have gotten many people jobs, there is still a much more you can do for yourself. Consider carving yourself a personal space on the Internet. For example an excellent resource would be to create a website than expands on your resume. While your resume is a short and concise summary of your qualifications, a website can give those potential employers a lot more information should they choose to seek it out.

Remember anything you do online with under your name can potentially be googled so be sure to keep everything professional. This includes your Facebook and Myspace pages because employers often seek those out to get a feel for an individuals personality. This is a direct reflection of yourself to a potential employer so keep that in mind the entire time you are crafting your personal brand. You don’t want this happening during an interview! Websites should be easy to read and navigate so leave out busy artwork and confusing fonts. Before anything gets published you’ll want to proof read and correct all typos, consider having a friend go over it also to catch some mistakes you may forget. Remember, even one tiny typo could leave a nasty impression with an employer.

This is our nations first major recession in which job seekers have these types of tools at their disposal to assist them in their hunt. Be creative and consider ways to promote yourself that may be unconventional but effectively set you apart from the others in the market for your dream career.

First you should check out these ten rules that no longer apply when creating a resume, and edit your own accordingly. You then need to make sure your resume looks like an attractive document; for instance if it was sitting on your desk would you glance over it or would you pick it up? If you have trouble laying out your resume in an attractive fashion consider hiring a professional to draft it.

Every resume should have all your contact information at the top making it easy for an employer to get in contact with you through e-mail or a phone call. A common mistake that people make is putting a phone number, such as a home number, that is not exclusively your own. An employer does not want to leave a message with your significant other, or hear little children running around in the background. The same concept applies to your e-mail address. Create a professional one with your first and last name included.

Get to the point on your resume and don’t bore the reader with mundane facts about your personal life. Following this structure outline is a great start to creating a flawless resume. When formatting the final draft of your resume make sure you pay attention to detail; typos such as incorrect punctuation and misspelled words give a nasty first impression to the reader.

“A great resume doesn’t just tell a prospective employer what you have done but makes the same assertion that all good ads do: If you buy this product, you will get these specific, direct benefits. It convinces the employer that you have what it takes to be successful in this new position.”

A resume is your gateway into the any company, you need it to be an immaculate representation of yourself. The process of creating a flawless resume can seem overwhelming but with a little extra effort you can make your resume stand above the rest.

We hope this post this post finds you well on your way to a job you love, if you have any questions or comments feel free to post them and we will gladly respond.

Each cover letter should be tailored to go with a specific company. Do not make the mistake of creating a generic cover letter and attaching it to your resume, doing so shows lack of interest and plain laziness. You need to be willing to invest time and energy to formulate a directly targeted cover letter showing the hiring manager you are a legitimate prospect and not a desperate job seeker spamming out their resume to anyone who will take it.

The four main things that you should keep in mind when creating a cover letter are:

1. Research
2. Professionalism
3. Why me?
4. Format

Doing background research shows the employer that you have a genuine interest in their company! An easy start would be to research their website and do a quick google search. While doing that it’s a good idea to retain any excess information such as company history which could be useful during an interview, should you get one.

Keep the cover letter professional! Don’t use any crazy fonts or clipart. Keep it direct and to the point. Making it an eyesore to the reader will leave a nasty impression if they choose to read the entire thing. Format ties in here also. Research sample cover letters to give you an idea of how professional format looks.

After doing research go back and make an outline for yourself as to why you would be the ideal canidate for the avalible possition. This is a chance for you to expand on certain sections of your resume, but don’t get to wordy and try to expand on all of them–just the ones that are more so directly related to the specific job.

A cover letter gives your resume a boost, shows interest to the employer, and gives you a personality in your absense. Make sure all your effort that you put into your resume doesn’t go to waste by letting the cover letter fall by the wayside. For some examples of cover letters specific to your industry, be sure to check out our free sample cover letters on ResumeBucket.  Do everything in your power to get that job!

“Employees of startups tend to have more varied duties, which can mean a chance to develop a host of valuable new skills. One day you may be designing a product, the next day closing a sales deal. It’s up to you to seize the many challenges and opportunities that come your way in such a fluid environment.”

The good thing about working for a startup is that they can offer you more as far as creativity and having input on where the business is headed.  It is also more likely that upper management will see the quality of work you do and that will open more opportunities to get promoted. They also sometimes pay better than other larger corporations. The biggest perceived risk is that smaller businesses have a higher rate of failure, so make sure you’re in the right industry in these tough times.  Also, startups normally don’t have the job security like giant corporations do.

“No matter what the industry is, business startups usually have one advantage in common – a more informal and relaxed atmosphere. Very often business startups don’t have thick guides of formal rules one must strictly follow and this leaves room for improvisation and creativity, which is highly valued by many employees.”

Working for a startup is a lifestyle. Some people love the relaxed atmosphere while other would like to work in a huge corporation and climb the ranks. Having your startup grow into a corporation is a double-edged sword. On one hand, you helped turn a startup into something big and now you’re making that salary you always wanted. On the other hand, that small business atmosphere is gone and will never return.  What a lot of people do is move on to other startups because that’s how they work. In the end, it’s your discretion on whether working for a startup is right for you.

The best thing you can do for yourself before heading to an interview is to prepare yourself by going over common questions and organizing predetermined answers. These are questions that the majority of employers will probably ask at some point during the interview. Prepare yourself before hand and you can enter the interview with less anxiety and more confidence. Consider the following list and determine the most effective way to answer in a concise and powerful persona that will leave a fantastic impression when your interview concludes.

Ten Common Interview Questions:

1. Why do you want to work for us?

2. Give us an example of a situation where you faced conflict or difficult communication problems.

3. Where do you see yourself in 3 / 5/ 10 years time?

4. What would your current manager say are your strengths/weaknesses

5. Do you prefer working in a team or on your own?

6. What is the first thing you would change, if you were to start work here?

7. What was the most frustrating experience in your current (or last) job? The most satisfying?.

8. What do you know about this organization?

9. What did you think of your previous supervisor?

10. Why are you looking to leave your current company?

When formulating your replies to the above questions make sure to keep it all positive. Don’t bad mouth your previous employer, or comment on how unhappy you may have been there–remember this is a potential current employer and you don’t want them to conjure up any connotations about how you’ll act if they employ you.

Your sucess relies on how you prepare and approch the task. Take those extra steps and you’ll nail your next interview!

“Although today’s job market may be bleak, there are some bright spots if you know where to look. While   recessions hit some sectors hard, others go on like clockwork — or even experience growth.”

Be creative on how you approach looking for a new career. Apparently twitter is the new way to find jobs now. Stay ahead of the curve and get on networking websites because not all jobs are posted in the public sector. Your friend might not know of a job but your friend’s friend might know of an opening.

“Finding a job still requires networking skills – whether you are glad-handling potential bosses at a job fair in the city or following employees of the companies you want to work for on Twitter. It’s not about creating an “online brand” of yourself, but about using social networks to showcase or develop what you are already are doing in your life.”

Have you tried everything and still haven’t found that job? Rome wasn’t built in a day and your career won’t be either. It takes time and effort so work on it everyday and you will find a job. In the mean time, stay positive and focus on why the recession is good for you.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to email us at Info@resumebucket.com

In addition, we are looking for consumers who have successfully recieved a job from our site, and also testimonials from employers and recruiters who are using our system.

Don’t forget you can view Sample Resumes, Search Resumes, and find a job

Thanks,

ResumeBucket Team

We will keep all of our users posted on progress, but to help minimize the number of alert-emails you receive, all further updates on the situation can be viewed on our Blog Page at www.resumebucketblog.com.

We appreciate your patience with this matter and should be back up online, as soon as possible. Feel free to contact us with your thoughts and questions. Happy Friday & have a great weekend.

Yours,

Ted Hekman (ted at resumebucket.com)
& The ResumeBucket Team

Recently many have been turning to major social media outlets to get their name in the open in order to meet potential connections in their respective industry. For example jakeonjobs outlines two major websites, Linked In and Twitter:

“Linked In – A professional site for reaching out. This IS a site for connecting clients and colleagues with one another. This IS NOT a site for posting pictures from the weekend.”

“Twitter – A Site for Piquing Interest. This IS a site for letting others know what you are doing, reading, creating, working on, or thinking about at any given moment. That’s it.”

Twitter is the simplest to use out of all the social media websites because the interface is very user friendly, and there is little effort required to set it up as compared to other social sites that require a plethora of personal information and time to begin. A useful starting guide for Twitter can be found at administrativehearts which says:

“Twitter can also be an awesome networking tool. Once you join, be sure and fill out your profile and bio, and then start looking for people to follow. I recommend twellow.com for finding people to follow. Follow people in your locality, in your industry, who have similar hobbies and beliefs, whatever you enjoy. And then start interacting. Reply to what others say, share what you’re reading on the web, get to know people. And here and there, maybe once a day, mention that you’re looking for work. Link your resume. You’d be surprised how far things can get retweeted.”

For those that are looking to start a Linkedin profile or already have one, a list of useful groups to join can be found at spinstrategy.

The Career Group Library goes a bit more in depth with Twitter by showcasing some great people to ‘follow’ on the website for those interested in job openings, career news articles, and events:

“JobOnline – the latest graduate vacancies. The Careers Group – updated with careers news articles, new resources, upcoming events. The Guardian London Graduate Fair – new exhibitors and general build-up to the big day.”

Of course you can always follow ResumeBucket for the latest and greatest in ways to promote yourself online and get the job you’ve always dreamed of! ☺

Join Our Facebook Group

Join our Linkedin Group

Follow us on Twitter

Make sure to periodically check your account / or your junk email to make sure you have not missed any emails.

The subject line usually looks like this; ResumeBucket.com New Message From XXXXXX

The Email it will come from is: noreply@resumebucket.com

Thanks Everyone! Keep spreading the buzz.

Check out the site: www.jobprofiles.org

And the mention of ResumeBucket: 100 Tips, Tools, and Secrets to Develop a Successful Personal Brand

As word starts to spread across the country about our site and how useful it can be to job seekers and hiring managers, we have begun to generate interest in television(namely spots on the news) that are giving us some great visibility and allowing you all to see what we(well, Waleed I, anyway) look like!

The rest of the team spent the day down in sunny California working away on new functionality and making sure these damn spammers are gone for good. Maybe someday I’ll take them with me to this kind of thing, but for now they prefer to stay out of the limelight and I can’t blame ‘em.
Check out this great TV spot on Good Day Sacramento! More coming soon I’m sure as the word continues to spread

Email Info@resumebucket.com ASAP if it continues.

Thanks

ResumeBucket Team

We will have this issue resolved within then next 24 hours. Messaging may be turned off until the time being. Please standby over the next 24 hours while we fix this problem.

If anyone has any questions or problems, please contact as us Info@resumebucket.com

Here are some samples spam emails;

Dear NAME

I crave your indulgence knowing, that this my letter will be a surprise to you I am Mr. Paul Subramaniam, an attorney at law. A deceased client of mine, by name Mr. Richard Ziperovich, who here in after shell be referred to as my client, he died as the result of a heart-related condition on the 13th of March, 2005. His heart condition was due to the dead of all the members of his family in the Indian ocean Earth Quake on Idonesia (Tsunami) Aired December 26, 2004 – as reported on:

Paul Subramaniam, (Esq).

Last night we added a simple feature that will allows you to share your resume to many many social networks and blog outlets.

Now, if you look @ your resume page, in this case (resumebucket.com/joshstomel) you will notice at the top right a little feature looking like this:

Now, when you click it, you will see this;

This feature will allow you to post your resume in to your Facebook profile, myspace and more….

If you are looking to gain more eyeballs, use this feature and place it on your blog, your Facebook account, your Myspace account and more.

This will help you gain traction on potentially getting a job, or even sharing your background with others! Get to work!

Just wanted to take this chance and thank all of you amazing folks that helped ResumeBucket.com to grow in 2008 to where we have arrived.  From your moral/emotional support to just creating an account and uploading your resumes, all your efforts are greatly appreciated by the ResumeBucket team.  We truly hope that 2009 brings happiness and success for you and your loved ones and if ResumeBucket.com can somehow be a part of that, then all the better!

Keep a close eye on ResumeBucket.com and this blog, we are going to have even more advanced functionality for you to make it even easier and more effective when you store, share and access your resumes online.  Plus you can enjoy the job search tools as well as the career resources like sample resumes and cover letter assistance.  If 2008 was big, 2009 is going to be huge! All thanks to you…

Keep the suggestions and feedback coming, we love to hear what you think of the site and how we can continue to provide you with the ultimate online resume destination site. Again, thanks for a great 2008, and we’re wishing everyone a Happy & Prosperous 2009!

-Team RB

We have so many things planned to make our site the ultimate resource for our users, and we’re trying to figure out how to proceed.  We’re working on developing a lot of partnerships that will help employers find you, so expect lots of exciting news after the new year.

In the mean time, we want to thank all of our users for signing up and giving the site a whirl.  Please, ALWAYS, feel free to let us know if you have any great ideas, feedback, questions or concerns.  We always want to make sure that our efforts are focused on making it easier for our users to find their next job.

Happy Holidays,

-Everyone at ResumeBucket

Over the last 72 hours we have had some issues with our converter. We are working diligently on fixing this issue and making sure this does not happen in the future.

Meanwhile, a quick solution would be to copy and paste your resume in to the editor.

If you are unhappy with the way your resume looks after uploading(it happens, no converter is perfect, believe us), we suggest you follow the following steps:
1. Open your resume on your computer in whatever program you made it with(i.e. Microsoft Office, Adobe Acrobat, OpenOffice, etc.)
2. Select all text and copy it to your clipboard(by holding down Ctrl+A, then Ctrl+C)
3. Open your Rich Text Editor(i.e. WordPad on Microsoft Windows)
4. Paste your resume into that editor(Ctrl+V)

Also, don’t forget to contact us if you have any questions or comments about the site. We also have some great resume samples if you care to have a guide when building your next resume online.

Thanks again for your patience :-)

Team RB

We are still in Beta, so please report bugs, issues, comments or suggestions to us;

Info@resumebucket.com

Make sure to take advantage of the resumesearch, jobsearch and more!

According to Wikipedia, multivariate testing is “a technique for testing hypotheses on complex multi-variable systems, especially used in testing market perceptions.”

If you don’t think that hoards of HR employees or office admins sorting through resume after resume is a “complex, multi-variable” system, think again.  You’re appealing to humans, the same way a product web site is trying to appeal to visitors.  You’ll never know what works best unless you try some different approaches.

Mixing Up Your Cover Letter

Whether it’s a separate attachment, the body of an email, or a cover page on your resume, the first thing a prospective employer will see is your cover letter.  So how do you make it count?

There are several variables, including:

• Your industry
• The type of company that you’re applying to (corporation, start-up, small business)
• Your experience level
• The public perception of the company
• What has worked for you in the past?

Don’t discount the last item — build off of your successes.  If you’ve had a lot of luck in the past getting interviews with formal cover letters, but not so much luck with friendly or personable ones, then figure out why the formal route has worked.  Is it because of your industry or the type of companies that you’ve applied to?  What perception did you have of the companies that interviewed you?  Did they seem relaxed or corporate?  Were they large corporations or small operations?

Start with what has worked.  And then make some variations.  Write ten different versions of your cover letter, and mix in different tactics:  slightly witty, confident, short and sweet, complimentary, excited, bold. Get some feedback from the people you respect to narrow your options down to 2 or 3, and continue to tweak.

Once you feel comfortable with your choices, move on to your resume.

How To Vary Your Resume

This can be a tough task for some people, especially those that do not have a lot of job searching experience.  What information should you include on your resume?  How much detail should you provide about your responsibilities at each position you’ve had?  Should you include references on your resume?  How many pages long should your resume be?

Start small.  Make an outline, and keep it simple at the beginning.  Stick to the primary sections of a resume:

Career goals, qualifications, experience, education, references.

Don’t waste any time tweaking your resume up front.  Wait until you complete these five steps before you spend any serious amount of time editing.  Don’t worry about typos, wording, styles, or anything else until you have some resumes to work with.

1. Create a solid, simple, visually attractive resume and save it as your first option, and then continue to build it out. 

2. Add each job title that you’ve held for each company that you worked for.  Save that as your second option. 

3. Add your responsiblities, in detail, to each job title.  Save that as your third option. 

4. Add every project of considerable size to your responsibilities, and save that as your fourth option.

5. Add your extra-curricular activities from college and/or high school, and save it as your fifth option.

At this point, you can go over each option and start tweaking.  Once you’re happy with your resumes, pass them along to your peers for review, and make the changes you see fit.

But I Don’t Work A Traditional Job

Actors send headshots with their resumes, designers send portfolios.  Mix these up.  Get a second set of headshots, or re-order your portfolio in a few different ways.  I don’t know what you’d send to NASA if you were applying for a job as a lead scientist, but I assure you it’s something more than a two page fact sheet about yourself.  No matter what you’re attaching to your resume, make sure there is some variation.

The Fun Part Begins: The Testing

Any statistical test requires a sample size.  This may mean applying for jobs in cities that you’ll never move to, or for jobs that you’d never take.  Your goal is to find out what works best for you.

Find at least 75 jobs related to your career, and email your cover letter and resume to each of them.  Keep track of them in a spreadsheet.  Select three cover letters and the version of your resume that you feel is the best fit for each.  Note which cover letter and resume you sent to each prospective employer in a column in your spreadsheet.  Send an even number of each pair.

Wait for feedback.  Any time you get a response, mark that row in your spreadsheet as a success.  If you get an interview, take it, even if you know you’re not taking the job.  This is practice!

At the end of your interviews, ask your point of contact what they liked or didn’t like about your cover letter or resume.  Get real feedback from people whose job it is to hire someone like you.  Make adjustments and start the process over.

What About Jobs That I’m Actually Interested In?

Apply for those, too!  After your first round of testing, you should have at least a general idea of what is working and what isn’t.  If option 1 netted 6 responses and the other two options netted less, go with option 1 for the jobs that interest you.  If each option resulted in a similar number of responses, spend the time to determine which of the options you think is best for each company that you apply to.

Most importantly, continue to get feedback.  Continue testing, even if you land a job.  Who knows if you’ll like it or if it will pan out? 

There’s no harm in sending your resume to prospective employers, even if you’re gainfully employed.  Knowing what works and what doesn’t for your industry will only help you when the time comes to find your next job.

The current economy is definately putting pressure on many people and companies.

ResumeBucket.com shortly will be launching a new idertion of our next generation site.

This new launch will give YOU the consumers the ability not only to put your resumes online, but also the ability to search jobs, and A LOT more.

See below screen shot for our new homepage.

Get Ready

New Website coming soon

This is our official first post for the new ResumeBucket.com design and funtionality. Resumebucket.com idea came about a few years ago when I was driving home to Santa Monica.  Being a recruiter, I asked myself, “what is a tool that will help solve some common problems that I hear daily?”

• “I don’t have my resume on this computer.”
• “I’m traveling, I will get it to you when I get home.”
• “I haven’t updated my resume in years, I need to spend time polishing it.”
• “I am not sure what version of my resume to send you.”

So, we decided to build a slick tool that would answer these questions, plus to A LOT MORE!!!!

ResumeBucket allows you to upload your resume within 10 seconds on a customizable URL, and you can use our full web based editor to modify and style your resume. You can store and save multiple versions of your resume and easily share it with others. You have access to all the metrics/analytics of who is looking at your resume, as well.  We also optimize the site to promote you, so your resume can show up on the first page of Google quickly — sometimes within 24 hours!

Also, from our website you will have the ability to search jobs and we will deliver you jobs that are relevant to your resume.

ResumeBucket.com is here at the perfect time to help you get through the current economic situation we are in. By putting your resume on resumebucket.com we will be building traffic to your background and employers, and like minded inviduals will be able to find you!

Finally the last feature that NO ONE else provides is the ability for anyone to search our resume database. Let’s say you’re an engineer, or a product manager, or a Venture Capital firm, and you want to find a resume of someone with a relevant background for a position, or someone to help you with an idea, you can use ResumeBucket to find the right person for your company or to help you collorborate on a new startup.

We are here to serve you.  Enjoy ResumeBucket, use it, own it, and make it your next destination site.