Interview Answers for Tough Questions - What To Say If You've Been Fired, Laid Off, Or Out Of Work

By Don Georgevich
 

Job interview questions are impossible to answer when you feel angry about being fired, guilty about being laid off, or depressed about being out of work. Your emotions are going to work against you in the job interview.

The best thing to do is keep a clear head and have some prepared answers!

We all know that the unemployment rate is soaring, and it's true that layoffs are common, but it doesn't seem so common when it happens to you. You probably feel like you have a lot of explaining to do.

You have to explain why you were fired. You have to explain why you were the one laid off in your department. You have to explain why it's taking you so long to find work. You have to explain why there is a gap in your resume.

The best way to explain your situation in a job interview with a potential employer is to be honest, but brief.

Did I mention brief? Brief is the key. Rambling on and on will get you in trouble. You'll get tongue-tied and say the wrong thing. Rambling is a beacon to your interviewer that you are hiding something.

And there's really nothing to hide. Just explain yourself clearly, be honest, be brief, and be prepared with the best answer.

The Top 10 Deadly Resume Sins

One of the hard truths about job searching is that resumes, not people, get chosen to be interviewed. In a perfect world every candidate would get an in-person opportunity to pitch themselves for a job. However, in reality, it's the resume that has to do all the work. The process is simple. A hiring manager is handed a large stack of resumes of which they will pick only 4-5 for interviews.

In other words, it's up to your resume to get you noticed. 

These are things they see day in and day out that destroys the chances of an otherwise qualified candidate.

I thought you might like to hear about these flaws, so you can avoid making them.


The Top 10 Deadly Resume Sins

1. Improperly formatted name and contact information. Corporate resume processing systems cannot process or "read" resumes with improperly formatted contact information. Without contact information your resume is pretty much DOA (dead on arrival). The use of these systems continues to grow exponentially, making proper formatting even more important for job seekers.
2. A missing or poorly worded Career Summary section. This section is a chance to catch a hiring manager's eye, and has become an essential part of modern resumes.
3. Lack of clarity and readability. Hiring managers don't read every resume they receive. Instead they spend about 3-5 seconds scanning a resume to determine whether it deserves to be read. This practice is being used more than ever with hiring managers receiving 300+ resumes per a position. If your resume isn't "scanable" then it won't get read.
4. Using a common or over-used template. Many job seekers use resume templates they find on the Internet or through their word processor. The problem with this is monotony. There's a good chance you'll look like every other resume in the pile.
5. Inflating skills and experience. It's one thing to market yourself, and another to stretch the truth beyond belief. Employers know humans aren't perfect, and they appreciate a resume that gives an honest portrayal of an applicant.
6. Missing industry and profession-specific terminology. Many companies use sophisticated resume database systems that require keyword searches to find resumes. If the right keywords aren't on your resume, then hiring managers won't be able to find you in their database. This same issue often occurs with the popular resume databases on the Internet (e.g. Monster).
7. Including clichés. Including phrases like "duties as assigned" and "responsible for" makes you sound lazy and unimaginative. The hiring manager will think you didn't care enough to spell out your actual experiences.
8. Too many or too few bullets. Bullets can help hiring managers rapidly scan and digest a resume. No one wants to read a block of text. However, it is also important not to overuse bullets otherwise they are less impactful. Remember, everything in moderation.
9. Highlighting duties instead of achievements. Employers aren't very interested in hearing about your previous duties. They want to know what you've achieved and how you'll help them achieve their goals.
10. Poor grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure. Proper grammar and sentence structure is becoming a lost art in our society. Everyday we're amazed at the common mistakes we see on the resumes of very accomplished professionals. These mistakes are often fatal as very few HR professionals select resumes containing errors.

I hope you've found these tips helpful.

10 Things You Don't Do at a Job Interview

Sometimes we get nervous during a job interview and we say or do things that don't really give our best impression. Here are 10 things you don't do at a job interview.

1. Don't Dress To Seduce
Don't dress to seduce the interviewer, and on the other hand, don't dress for the gym with the hopes of appearing relaxed and flexible. Most proficient businesses are looking for employees who will representative their product or service with quality and professionalism. They are not looking to be entertained. So, line your appearance up with what they expect, not with how you want to impress them.

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10 Things to Know About Background Checks

You have been working long and hard on your search for a new job opportunity. Finally, you have an awesome interview and you get a great offer. The hiring manager indicates that the only thing remaining is a background check (BC).

Your heart starts to pound and beads of sweat appear on your forehead. Questions fly through your mind: What are they looking for? What are they going to find? Who are they going to talk to? How do they conduct the process? Am I in trouble because of the DUI I got when I was 20 years old? Will they find out about the company I didn't include on my résumé because I only worked there for two months? Will they find out I got fired instead of quitting? Will my bankruptcy from 12 years ago prevent me from getting the job? What will my vindictive former boss say about me?

Let's answer these questions for you.

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5 Important Interview Tip

To increase your chances of landing a great job, you should take time to define your strategy and prepare your resources. Successful job offers are direct results of effective planning, and a productive interview needs to be well-researched. Follow these tips and future interviews will deliver positive and powerful results.


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Five Guidelines for a Strong Job Interview

By Mark Krajnik, CEO, Next Level Solutions

In today's competitive landscape, preparation is your best resource. What will I wear to the interview? What questions should I prepare? What research have I done on this organization? Do I know anything about the hiring manager or team? What do the financials of the company look like? Are there any recent articles about their products, people or projects?

Answers to these questions will give you solid information and key insight to landing an offer. But don't stop there -- know how to answer behavioral-based interview questions, and you will stand out from your competition.

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The Interview: Body Language Do's and Don'ts

By CareerBuilder.com

Your heart feels ready to leap out of your chest. Beads of sweat build on your forehead. Your mind is racing.

It's not a full-blown interrogation -- although it may feel like it -- it's just a job interview. While it's no secret that job interviews can be nerve-racking, a lot of job candidates spend a significant amount of time worrying about what they will say during their interview, only to blow it all with their body language. The old adage, "It's not what you say, it's how you say it," still holds meaning, even if you're not talking. You need to effectively communicate your professionalism both verbally and nonverbally.

Because watching your nonverbal cues, delivering concise answers and expressing your enthusiasm at once can be difficult when you're nervous, here's a guide to walk you through it:

Have them at "hello"

Before you walk into the interview, it's assumed that you will have done the following: prepared yourself by reading up on the company and recent company news; practiced what you'll say to some of the more common interview questions; and followed the "what to wear on your interview" advice. So you're ready, right?

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Making the First 10 Minutes of an Interview Count

Seven Tips

By The Creative Group
A hiring manager can often tell if you're the right fit for his or her organization just minutes after the two of you shake hands. In a recent Robert Half survey, executives polled said it typically takes them only 10 minutes to form an opinion of a candidate during an employment interview, despite meeting with staff-level applicants for nearly an hour, on average.

With such a short amount of time to interact with a hiring manager, how can you evoke a positive response? Projecting confidence and enthusiasm is key, so keep the following advice in mind:

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Five Important Interview Tips

By Debbie Shalom, founder of Amazing Resumes and Coaching Services

In order to increase your chances of landing a great job, you should take time to define your strategy and prepare your resources. Successful job offers are direct results of effective planning. A productive interview needs to be well-researched, planned and implemented. Follow these tips and future interviews will deliver positive and powerful results.

1. Carefully research the company. Learn as much as you can about your prospective employer’s business model. Visit its Web site and read their mission statement and/or company philosophy. Identify main products, services and functions. Speak to employees, vendors or other contacts with inside knowledge. Acquire strategic information that will enable you to speak knowledgeably and offer valuable insight during your interview.

Read More CareerBuilder.com

15 Job Seeker Mistakes

By Rachel Zupek, CareerBuilder.com writer

You talk too fast. You avoid eye contact. You ask too many questions. You wear too much perfume. You lie about your work history. You show up late to interviews. You don’t do your research.

And you wonder why you haven’t gotten a job yet?

There’s no such thing as an error-free job search, says Eli Davidson, business coach and author of “Funky to Fabulous.” Most mistakes can be avoided with a little attentiveness.

“The best way to get a great job is to have a laser beam focus,” Davidson says. “The more targeted and specific you are, the more powerful your job search will be.”

Many people assume only young job seekers are making these mistakes; but in reality, both new and seasoned candidates face different challenges that cause them to slip up, says Kip Hollister, founder and CEO of Hollister Inc., a New England staffing firm.

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