Billie Sucher Blog

Je ne sais quoi and The Job Search

Job seekers, pretend for a moment that you are completing an application and it states that you must complete the following question and submit it with your resume, cover letter, references, and salary history.

Here's the question:

What is your je ne sais quoi?

Yesterday, I was sharing this French word with clients based on a very interesting story I'd heard on a morning radio program. For the sake of this post, let's give this term an English translation:

~ What is 'that certain something' you have that makes your brand distinctive and attractive?

~ What is the 'indescribable quality' you possess as a job candidate?

~ What 'charm' or 'indefinable enchantment' do you possess that is simply hard to explain?

Bottom line, what might you offer in response to the employer's query? Something to think about as you consider your je ne sais quoi.

Au revoir!

P.S. Homework Exercise: To best serve you, your brand and your chances of getting hired faster, please take the time to formulate rock-solid answers to the above questions.

Are You An Engaging Job Seeker?

According to dictionary.reference.com, the word engage has multiple meanings. For example, definition number 6. would be appropriate for my son who recently became engaged. That, however, is not the type of engage I am contemplating for this post. I am still thinking about the #Vocus social media virtual conference I attended last week.

One of the words that captured my attention was one I heard frequently throughout the five presentations:

engage

Engage the customer.

Engage the audience.

Engage the listener.

Engage the client.

Engage the prospect.

Engage the employee.

Engage the candidate.

Engage the partner.

Engage on Twitter.

Engage on LinkedIn.

Engage the blog reader.

Engage your colleagues.

Engage the receptionist.

Engage the leadership team.

Engage the recruiter.

Engage the Hiring Manager.

Engage the HR Manager.

As a job seeker in today’s social media-driven market, are you an engager? Are you engaging? Are you an engaged seeker of work?

 

 

Windows

Windows.

Traveling around The Big Apple last year, I took hundreds of photos and upon review the other day, I noticed that I had taken many pictures of windows.

Windows.

Windows tell a story, keep a story, share a story.   

Windows open.

Windows shut. Windows: old, new, beautiful, broken.

Windows clean; windows dirty. Look in. Look at. Look out. Look up.

Windows. Big. Small. Tall. Wide. Windows of every conceivable shape, color and size.

Windows.

To watch from. To peer into. To see through. To see yourself. To see others.

Windows. Crack, pop, slide, push, pull them open. Enter the fresh air.

A window to the world.

A window of opportunity.

A window to the future.

Windows.

 

Job Seekers: Never Never Never Give Up!

Over lunch today, my client-turned-good friend and I were discussing the reality of looking for new employment in today's uber-competitive job market. Our takeaway from the conversation was this: never never never give up on yourself and others. If you're a job seeker exploring new work opportunities, take a moment to consider these thoughts:  

No matter how many résumés you have sent and heard nothing back, never never never give up.

No matter how many people you've networked with and still no job leads, never never never give up.

No matter how many times you have been told no and no thank you, never never never give up.

No matter how many people may be rude, abrupt, unkind, thoughtless or disinterested in you and your unique brand, never never never give up.

No matter how many job interviews you've attended resulting in zero call-backs or offers, never never never give up.

No matter how many times you try to get ahold of someone and they don't return your call, email, text or tweet, never never never give up.

No matter how many people say they will get back in touch with you and don't, never never never give up.

No matter how discouraged, disheartened and disenchanted you may be with today's job search activities, never never never give up.

No matter how many times you have rewritten, redesigned and rebuilt your résumé, never never never give up.

No matter how many negative things you may hear online and offline about the employment or unemployment situation, never never never give up.

No matter how many rejection letters are in your no pile, never never never give up.

No matter how many people you thought were on your team, yet they haven't yet stepped up, never never never give up.

No matter how many times someone tells you what you cannot do or be when it is your dream, not theirs, never never never give up.

No matter how many days, weeks or months it has been since you have drawn a 'real paycheck', never never never give up.

No matter how many career-related blog posts, tweets, books or articles you may read about how to find a job in 2011, never never never give up on yourself until you get what you want or need. Never never never give up!

Job Hunters: Are You A Winner With Your Words?

In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on. ~ Robert Frost

I like love words. Words build up. Words encourage. Words are powerful. Words bolster, motivate, inspire, and support. On the flip side, words tear down, discourage, destroy, belittle, devastate. Words can get you fired. Words can get you hired. Words comfort, console, compel, and convince. Words matter.

As a job hunter, I would invite you to carefully consider each and every word you use to speak about yourself and your brand, be it in a phone call, a text, a tweet, an e-mail or a face-to-face conversation. The words you choose are a direct reflection of the brand you represent as a job candidate, colleague, leader, partner, client, and friend.

Listed below are '11 words for 2011' conversations. Which, if any, of these words might you select for interactions with recruiters, hiring managers, network connections or your neighbor next door.

1. Imagine

2. No excuses

3. You deserve

4. You decide

5. I get it

6. Uncompromising integrity

7. Believe in better

8. Real-time

9. The simple truth

10. Let's get to work

11. If you remember one thing

If you would like to discover additional words to use in 2011, you can read more from Dr. Frank Luntz, the author of Win: The Principles That Take Your Business From Ordinary to Extraordinary.

Think twice before you speak, because your words and influence will plant the seed of either success or failure in the mind of another. #NapoleonHill