5)  Tell me about yourself.

This is usually the first question. It’s a good chance to tell the interviewer about what kind of person you are. Tell them a little about where you’re from, hobbies, achievements, and goals. Keep it brief though. They don’t want a novel.

4)  Are you a team player?

The answer is always “yes”. (unless the job involves working alone!) Many jobs out there heavily rely on how well you work with others. It’s OK to mention that you can work independently, too, but you do value the benefits of good old fashioned TEAMWORK. Give examples of when being part of team was important.

3)  What is your greatest strength?

This is a perfect chance to talk about what makes you successful. Don’t be too vague. Give examples to back up why you’re “great”. Try not to sound cocky, but make sure you sound ready for any challenge that awaits.

2)  What is your greatest weakness?

Alright this is the most famous of all interview questions. How can you tell an employer what you’re not good at? It seems unlikely that there is any way to answer this without making yourself seem bad. Unless you’re prepared, you’ll stumble on this one. Try mentioning a positive. “I forget to ask for help sometimes, but I’ve been working on that and I’m starting to notice good results.” You can mention most real weaknesses, as along as you can mention that you’re working on it and how you’re doing better.

1)  Why should I hire you?

Okay, now you can sum up what you’ve talked about. Keep all the points in the interview that you did best at fresh in their mind. Remember to be sure to study the company and know what the position requires. Tell them you are a hard worker and really like to succeed at everything you do.

Keep in mind these aren’t the only questions they will ask. Be prepared for anything. These are just the 5 most common questions. Remember to practice, either alone or with a friend/family member. It will make a great difference and the interviewer will notice. Good luck and I hope this helps.

1. To Show That You’ve Read The Job Description

For an employer, or recruiter, nothing is more annoying than reviewing the resume of someone who did not read the job description. With the internet providing the ease of access to many, many job postings, job seekers are taking a shortcut by creating generic responses and mass sending them to multiple prospective employers. You might be able to get away with this in some cases, but most employers and recruiters are able to pick out generic responses. They know when you neglected to read the job description!

By updating your resume, this gives you an opportunity to add something in your “Objective” or “Summary” that shows that you’ve read the job description and have taken the effort to modify your resume to reflect your candidacy. Of course, updating your cover letter would serve this purpose just as well.

You may also show that you’ve read the job description by mentioning in the body and subject of your email the job title you are applying for and how you qualify.

2. To Add New Relevant Keywords

There is no way your resume could tell the whole story of your career. No single job title can truly explain all your duties and responsibilities. So chances are, your current resume doesn’t fully endorse your candidacy for the position you are applying for. By updating your resume, you get to add new keywords that are relevant to what the recruiter is looking for, thus increasing your qualification. Obviously, I’m not suggesting that you lie about experience you don’t have. Instead, I’m saying you should “brag” about the relevant experience you’ve had.

3. To Add Relevant Experience and Eliminate Irrelevant Jobs

Let’s say you’ve had 15 years of experience working at different jobs in warehouse and office environments. Your current resume shows that you’ve had 8 years of experience working in an office and only 2 years of experience working in a warehouse. You are applying for a warehouse position which you feel you completely qualify for. What should you do about your resume? Before you send your resume to that prospective employer, make sure you update it to highlight the 7 years of experience you’ve had working in warehouses, and eliminate some of the office jobs you’ve listed. This new resume would show the recruiter that you are not only qualified for the open position, but you are also well rounded and have had success working in different fields.

4. For The Sake of Having a Current Resume

I’ve seen many resumes that only highlight work experience up to 2 years ago. They only make me wonder what exactly these people have been doing the last few years. Were they taking time off to travel? To care for their infants? To go to school? I’m sure they all have valid reasons but, I shouldn’t have to guess. Because, if I have to guess, then I’d second guess, then I’d delay calling the candidate to phone screen them, then I might forget to call them. My point is, every resume that gets into an employer’s hand should look like it was updated yesterday. Addresses, contact information, and dates should all be updated. If you’ve just moved to Dallas, TX and your resume still says that you live in Louisiana, you might have some trouble trying to find a job in Dallas.

5. To Practice Your Job Interview

And lastly, but not least, going through and updating your resume gives you a chance to revisit your work history, to refresh your memory. This way, when you go to that important interview, you’ll be prepared to answer all the questions asked about the jobs you’ve listed. And that is not a bad thing!

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Do recruiters “judge” you the moment you walk in the door? No. Not really. But the way you present yourself will be remembered and documented in their database forever! So how do you go about making a good first impression with your recruiter? Here are a few things to keep in mind:

Your Body Language

So your cover letter says you can adapt to any type of work environment and that you’re full of energy. Your resume also shows that you’ve worked in many different fast pace environments, performing multiple tasks. Sounds like a good candidate, right? But when you walk into the recruiting office your eyes are half shut, your feet are barely moving, your arms are crossed, and, you’re looking at the floor. Hardly convincing.

Your body language is very important. If you don’t convince the recruiter that you are physically capable of handling the pace and demands of the job, then you will not have a chance. Recruiters do not like to waste their time sending candidates to clients that they don’t think would last on the job. It is necessary that you walk into the room full of energy. You must let your recruiters know that you are ready to take on the job, if needed!

Your Attitude

Your attitude is also very important. Don’t be too laid back. Don’t be too cocky. You are there to apply for a job. Make sure you convince your recruiter that you are willing to learn and follow orders. Stay positive. Leave your baggage at home – recruiters don’t need to hear about what you’re going through. Be polite, but not overly polite. You don’t have to call anyone sir or ma’am, but “dude” and “man” will not sound too good.

Try not to dominate the conversation, but single word answers are also not a good idea. Only say what you need to say, and elaborate on your points when necessary. Remember to show enthusiasm and interest towards the job you are applying for.

Appearance

Dos
-dress appropriately for the position you’re interviewing for
-make yourself look presentable
-hide your tattoos if you can
-remove your earphones from your ears

Don’ts
-wear overly baggy clothing
-wear excessive make up or jewelry
-wear athletic clothing
-carry unnecessary items into the office
-be talking on your cell phone while in the office

I guess my point is you’d have to present yourself very well when you come in to meet your recruiter. With the unemployment rate being as high as it is in the Dallas area, recruiters have become more picky with their candidates. Your recruiter will only send you to work if she believes that you’d represent her well. A bad first impression will be noted and stuck with your profile in their database forever!

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Once you’ve narrowed your choices down to certain types of work, do a google search for staffing agencies that specialize in placing people to work in those fields. For example, if you are looking for staffing agencies in Dallas that specialize in finding accounting jobs, you could google “accounting staffing agencies dallas tx”, and a list of relevant agencies will be returned. You could try combinations of different keywords to get different results.

Example #2: If you are looking for work in the light industrial fields (warehouse, machine operator, assembly, etc.), you could google something like, “light industrial staffing agencies dallas tx”. Again, you’ll get a list of relevant agencies. And again, try using different keyword combinations to get different results.

There are a lot of agencies out there that are “full service”, meaning they staff in all industries and could help any job seeker. They, however, are often not as focused as those agencies that narrow down their target market. I can’t speak for any staffing agency to tell you who’ll serve you best, but if you are a nurse looking for work, it would make more sense for you to apply with an agency that specializes in placing nurses to work only, rather than one that finds jobs for nurses, and forklift drivers, and business analysts, and accountants, and graphic designers, and HR managers…

Furthermore, narrowing down your list of agencies will allow you to keep track of and stay in touch with them easier. When applying for work, the application itself is only a small part of the process. A timely follow up could mean the difference between getting a job and not getting one. I will touch on this again in a later post.

Good luck!

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The four most common ways are to: walk in for a visit, set an appointment for a visit, apply online, or send your resume via fax or email.

I believe the most effective way is to visit in person. This gives you a chance to get to know your recruiter and the company that you depend on to find your next job. But more importantly, it gives your recruiter a chance to get to know you! Why is this important? If your recruiter works for a busy office, chances are he or she contacts tens of people everyday. If you can get a chance to make a good, and lasting impression on your recruiter, there’s a very good chance you’ll be remembered the next time a relevant opportunity comes up! So give an agency a call to find out when you could stop by to see them!

Applying online is very convenient, both for you, and for the agency. When you apply online, you’re submitting all your relevant information and work experience for the recruiters to review. If a recruiter feels that you qualify for a certain position, you’ll receive a phone call for further screening. Applying online will save you a lot of time and gas, and will allow you to apply to many different offices.

You could also send your resume via email or fax. This takes very little effort on your end, and you could potentially send your resume out to hundreds of contacts. This, however, would require you to obtain a big list of contact emails. You could do this by visiting staffing agency websites and click on their “Contact” link. Keep in mind, though, when you send your resume unannounced, there’s a good chance that it will get lost in the piles of other resumes that recruiters are often too busy to look through. To increase your chances of having your resume read, make sure you indicate the desired positions you are seeking in your email subject. As well, include an introductory paragraph in your email body to entice the recipients to give you a call back!

I hope this gives you a bit of a boost in your journey to that next job!

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The idea of going to a staffing agency to ask them to help you find a job has been around for more than 100 years! During the early days, staffing agencies were few and far in between. Today, there are thousands of agencies across America, with the biggest ones reaching revenue heights of 10 to 20 billion dollars! The Dallas Metroplex alone has close to 1000 recruiting offices!!

Whether you are looking for work as an engineer, a forklift driver, a machinist, receptionist, a business analyst, or anything in between, a staffing agency can help. Each agency specializes in certain area(s) of employment. Some agencies only place nurses to work, others, engineers. Some specialize in finding accountants, others, sales professionals, machinists, warehouse managers, general laborers. You get the point. Whatever area of work you are looking in, rest assure that there’s an agency out there that could help you!

Continue reading future articles to find out how you can best take advantage of the services of staffing agencies.

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