The big job search engines can put you in touch with thousands of possible jobs in any city, state, or country—but thousands of job seekers have access to those same possibilities. To get your foot in the door (and even take a step or two closer to getting a job) you need to take advantage of the number 1 most trusted resource of hiring managers: personal referrals.

In case you aren’t a regular on the site, that’s pretty much what LinkedIn really is. It’s a massive network for personal referrals. The strength of the social network’s foundation of trust gives it real potential for connecting you with a job opening where you aren’t just a strong candidate; you could be the leading candidate. Here are 10 ways you can use LinkedIn (and the people you know) to find the job you really want.

note : we’ve also included a visual guide to LinkedIn at the end of this post. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s the weekend so we are going to have a little fun.  Here at applicant.com, we’ve compiled many articles related to job interview and helping out job applicants. We have yet to explore job applicants who drive interviewer’s crazy. You know, the kind who acts overly confident and blows his chances of landing a job, or the one who talks so much the interviewer feels like he is the one being interviewed.  These job applicants may not be top on the list to get a job, but they sure give interviewers a break from the interview process. Whether the interviewers go crazy in a good way or bad, one thing is for sure – these job applicants drive interviewers crazy.

Party Animal

“Yo dude, I can drink till 5 and be at work by 7,” if you hear this statement from a job applicant, you can quickly draw the conclusion that they are party animals. Party Animal is a job applicant who tries to stress the importance of partying and binge drinking as much as possible during an interview.

Signs of a party animal : you can smell alcohol as soon as they walk in

Interviewer : What is your biggest achievement?

Party Animal : I don’t remember much cause I am always so hammered. Ohh wait, I was drinking till 5 this morning and I am here at 9:30. That is my biggest achievement I can remember at this point. Impressed? I know!

Read the rest of this entry »

Times are tough and finding a job isn’t exactly an easy thing. Using the same tactics as everyone else isn’t near as effective as it used to be. This calls for getting creative in your job search and tactics to land a job.

You have to stand out to prospective employers to get their attention. Grab their attention in some unconventional ways and you stand a much better chance of being noticed. Otherwise your resume will disappear in a pile along with everyone elses.

Use your imagination and get creative. And most importantly never give up. Read the rest of this entry »

At the beginning of any job interview, you will thank your first interviewer for the opportunity. At the end of the job interview, you will thank everyone for their time. In between they will grill you with the usual barrage of piercing questions, incalculable facial expressions, and awkward silences, you’re thanking them for the chance to win a job, not for the torture chamber that some job interviews turn out to be.

Seth Godin once said that the best interview he ever witnessed turned out to be the worst employee he ever had, suggesting that job interviews as we know them should be abolished (and many employers and employees agreeing) don’t you ever wish you could do something drastic? You know that every answer you give will be analyzed to death, and no interview can ever adequately express what you’re capable of doing. And you know what you’re not supposed to say in an interview . . . well, what if you said it?

To get the frustration out of your system, we’ve compiled 10 brutally honest (and jaded) responses to the most common interview questions in the book. These uncommon answers would be sure-fire attention getters. Of course, if you’re more interested in getting a job than getting attention, you may want to just stick to something a bit more polished. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s easy to say you should make a full-time job out of looking for a job. But full-time job seekers often feel like calling in sick. To be successful in your job search for the best position available, you need to make progress every day. Having a set routine to carry out your job search effectively is a must.

Here are seven steps to add to your daily routine to help make sure your days as a full-time job hunter are numbered in 2010. Read the rest of this entry »