Jobs Need A HERO  

Employers look for 4 aspects in every job  Every job that ever was and ever will be requires a combination of skills and components of a person's personality.

Heart

By Heart , every job requires that the employee deal with clients or consumers of the agency or business.  Can you understand their needs and perspectives?  Can you respond effectively to those concerns?  Can you deal well with your co-workers so that you will be a good fit?  Every change involves a 'storming' or change from the agency norm - will the company be better off after the storm you bring?  Finally, will you deal well with the other stakeholders of the agency?  By that I mean the people or organizations your agency has to deal  with over time - like the media, the company neighbors or contractors.

Energy

Energy refers to more than having the ability to meet the physical demands of he job.  It means the type of spirit and work ethic in that job on a consistent basis.

Did you ever have a cashier work with you when he has no pep and barely makes eye contact with you in the few moments you are together?  Or the co-worker who puts in little effort on a day when he is "just not feeling well"?

Everyone has days when they "hit the wall" and cannot muster the energy to do the job well.  What does it take for you?  Give the prospective employer examples of how you worked double shifts, ran track in the rain or helped someone with great customer service you did not have to provide.  THAT shows the energy the employer is looking for.

Relearn

Everybody has to relearn when moving to a new job.  Employers give the new hire some time to learn the ways of the new company but their patience lasts only for so long.  As the applicant, you need to show that you have the ability to learn and better yet in these fast paced times, the ability to adapt to change, learning something and being able to put it into practice quickly and effectively.

What are somethings that you have learned quickly - Perhaps the effects and side effects of medications for your sick child; like a new accounting system at the place you volunteer at - give it some thought and you may find examples that show how you can learn and adapt to change.

Owning up

One of the most important questions, or often it is left unspoken in the interview is can you take responsibility for the work you do or are problems someone else's fault? Along with that when you get constructive criticism, will that make you a better employee or just a bitter one?

Showing that you are conscientious, can take the heat and are looking for ways to improve gives the employer a fuller picture of yourself separating you from the pack of other applicants.

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Show them; don't just tell them.

Generations of job hunters have been told of the "power words" using the active tense that are right for snappy answers to interview questions.  They offer the same old replies good for nearly everyone.  So how do you stick out?

First you use divergent thought - sit back and think of all of the ways you have dealt well with people, especially in difficult situations.  Think also about the energy you have shown, the way you learn and adapt to changes, more about the ways that you have taken responsibility and done well with it.  Write them down as examples that not only can you talk the talk, but you can walk the walk and give specific examples the employer can picture in her mind.

You are a symbol of their best choice  When I worked as a placement specialist in the staffing business, my boss reminded me that whomever I sent to do a job had my name tatooed on their forehead.  Any time the individual made a mistake in dealing with the Heart, Energy, Re-Learning or Owning aspects of the job, it reflected on my judgement.  You see, any placement of a person on a job shows anyone looking whom I thought was the best qualified of those available to do the job.

Stop and think of the pressure the hiring manager is facing and you may begin to see why selecting  you is such a compliment to the different sides that you bring to the employer.   (For more on this, check out the Valentine's Diner section of the ToolKit.)

Remember that what you are bringing to the job application is uniquely about you. Targeting the four aspects of the job and having the examples to show that you not only say you can do the work, but can back it up together will do the main thing that the resume and the interview should do for you.

Together they will take that image you have in your mind of being the new employee and put it into the hiring manager's mind.