A Successful Senior Year Job Search Begins in the Freshman Year: The What, the How and the Why

By Bob Roth

All college students would like to graduate with good jobs in their fields of interest, jobs that pay well and effectively launch their careers with desirable employers. This book shows students how to achieve their employment goals.

The What - What exactly can be done to ensure employment success?
The How - How are the steps, actions and results achieved?
The Why - Why are these steps, actions and results necessary?

For most good jobs, grades alone are no longer enough. The best employers want students to demonstrate their capabilities in an array of environments and situations. Therefore, knowing what to do is important. However, students also need a system that lays out the steps that can be followed during each semester of college.

When students perform the activities and produce the results that employers need, want, and expect of the best candidates, their employment possibilities will improve dramatically. That is what this book is all about. It will enable more students to compete effectively in the job market.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Sep 23, 2014
• ISBN: 9781496937131

Bob Roth

Bob Roth is one of the most experienced and sought-after meditation teachers in the world. Over the past fifty years, Bob has taught Transcendental Meditation to many thousands of people, including billionaire CEOs, Hollywood celebrities, combat-scarred veterans, and inner-city youth. He currently serves as the CEO of the David Lynch Foundation, and also directs the Center for Leadership Performance. Bob is the host of the SiriusXM radio show, Success Without Stress, and speaks frequently about the science of meditation to industry leaders at such gatherings as Google Zeitgeist, Aspen Ideas Festival, Wisdom2.0, and Summit. He is the author of Strength in Stillness.

Book preview

© 2014 Bob Roth. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse   09/22/2014

ISBN: 978-1-4969-3712-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4969-3713-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2014916130

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

CONTENTS

Introduction

1.   What Every College Student Needs To Know About Landing A Good Job

2.   Job Search Preparation, The Key To Employment Success

3.   Create An Exceptional Resumé and Sales Letter

4.   Improve Your Interviewing Skills

5.   Regularly Visit Career Services

6.   The Importance Of Effective Networking

- Popular Social Media Sites Can Help You Network To Find A Job

7.   Effective Differentiation Equals Employment Success

8.   Your Four Year Job Search Preparation Plan

Appendix A - Job Search Information Gathering Forms

-   Employer Identification Form

-  Details - An Employer With A Job Opening

-  Employment Web Sites & Job Banks

-  Employment Agencies & Search Firms

-  Temporary Employment Agencies

-  Log of Resumés Sent Out

-  Alumni Working In Your Field

-  Professional Associations In Your Field

-  Potential References

-  Meetings, Interviews & Appointments

-  Job Hunting & Interview Expenses

Appendix B - Personal Performance Forms

-  What Others Have Said About You

-  Employment Progress Evaluation Form

-  Examples of Active Involvement

-  Examples - Your Best Performance In College

Appendix C - Networking Tools and Activities

-  Networking Contacts

-  Networking Script - Friends, Relatives & Acquaintances

-  Networking Script When Referred To A Person You Don’t Know

-  Notable, Influential and Impressive People

-  Telephone Call Log

Appendix D - Other Useful Information Gathering Forms

-  Reasons Why You Should Be Hired

-  Describe Your Ideal Job

-  Strengths

-  Weaknesses

Appendix E

About the Author

For Kathleen, Patricia and Eileen

Thank You!

As always, I want to thank Rosanne Spadaro

(my Editor and a mother of two college students)

for helping me through the process

of finalizing a book that will hold great value for students.

~~~

A special thank you to Amy Soricelli,

Assistant Vice President, Career Services and Alumni Relations

at Berkeley College

for preparing the Spotlight Topic.

INTRODUCTION

You may not realize it yet, but you almost always hit what you are aiming at. When you don’t know what you should be aiming at, you can’t predict what you will hit. However, you will always hit something and that thing, whether you know it or not, is what you were aiming at. Unfortunately, by proceeding in that manner, what you will have hit is rarely what you wanted to hit.

I shot an arrow into the air,

It fell to earth, I knew not where …

— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

There is another way. When you do know what you want to hit and you devote enough time and effort to information gathering, preparation and practice and learn how to aim properly, you are very likely to either hit your target or come close. That is what I want for you. I want you to select a career direction (a target) and do everything you can to aim all of your activities and behaviors toward that target. In that way, you will either hit your career target and obtain the job you want or come very close with a related job opportunity.

For students to consistently hit their employment targets, they will need:

- A complete understanding of the employment process

- Ongoing coaching, guidance and encouragement

- A clear employment objective

- An effective and detailed plan

- Exceptional tools

- Methodical and thorough employment preparation activity

- A record of positive results and achievements

- Personal determination

- Continuous improvement and practice

- Effective Implementation of your employment plan

You have a choice. You can either learn about and follow a system that can lead to greater employment success, or you can ignore the system and proceed on your own. Yes, there are other ways to pursue your career goals. Some work, some don’t. Even dumb luck works occasionally. However, every student, you included, can greatly benefit from a system that provides a clear direction and dramatically improves the odds for achieving your employment goals.

It is very important for you to know what can and should be done, how to use each tool or technique and learn why they will help. Although few students can or will do everything presented, you should take from this book what you can, do as much as you can and appreciate the fact that each additional effort will improve your competitive position.

I want many more students to find success in this highly competitive job market. This system will help.

CHAPTER 1

What Every College Student Needs To Know About Landing A Good Job

Hundreds of thousands of college seniors lose out on good paying jobs every year simply because they did not do the things that employers want, need and expect of them.

Why do so many students miss out? Far too many do not know what to do and do not receive enough guidance and training. Other students procrastinate and get started too late. Some make halfhearted efforts. Still others take shortcuts and skip some of the steps that are necessary for job hunting success.

Although you cannot go back

and make a brand new start my friend,

anyone can start from now

and make a brand new end.

— John C. Maxwell

Athletes prepare to succeed in their sports by following a process that takes place over many years in school, in a gym or out on the playing field. The need for training and practice is obvious and is made part of their routine. Students interested in athletic success pay close attention to the fundamentals:

- Learn the rules of the game early on

- Practice the skills that are required

- Obtain the equipment they will need

- Focus on continuously getting better

- Research, read about and study the best players in the game

- Learn from the best competitors and coaches

Like an athlete, there are many things that students must do before they can win at the employment game. Last minute efforts will not cut it. Students who wait until the senior year to start thinking about their job search needs do not understand the requirements of this important challenge. The most effective student job hunters take the time to prepare and follow a process that can lead to employment success.

If you would like to land a great job in your area of interest, consider the following:

- Recognize that effective preparation takes a long time

- Begin preparation activities in the freshman year

- Learn the rules of the employment game

- Identify a career direction

- Learn about the jobs that may be of interest

- Research the specific job requirements

- Create a step-by-step development plan

- Gain the knowledge, experience and skills needed for those jobs

- Develop exceptional job search tools

- Seek out and utilize an employment coach

- Regularly visit and utilize the information provided by Career Services

- Practice the skills that are needed

- Decide how you will differentiate yourself from other good students

- Give target employers what (or more than) they need, want and expect

Students with a clear picture of the employment process along with effective tools and well researched information will stand out in the competitive job market. When students recognize the need to start the job search preparation process in the freshman year, they have time to build a solid foundation for launching their careers.

There are no secrets to success.

It is the result of preparation,

hard work, and learning from failure.

— Colin Powell

Students who ignore the fundamentals, avoid the hard work and come late to play will never get into the big game. This is one time when too little, too late is really too little, too late. Don’t find that out the hard way.

CHAPTER 2

Job Search Preparation, The Key To Employment Success

When done properly and thoroughly, it will take college students more than three years to prepare for an effective senior year job search.

Preparation is the price that you must pay to get into game.

Most college students will begin to look for a job during their senior year. They hope to launch their careers by obtaining a job that will enable them to make a contribution in the field they have studied. However, the key to job hunting success lies in the work that was done before they reached their senior year.

The good news is that students can greatly improve their chances for job hunting success by recognizing the role that preparation plays in determining success. Mark Twain expressed his view by saying, It usually takes more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech. We all do better when we are prepared. Importantly, Twain pointed out that preparation takes more time than most would expect.

Landing an ordinary, low paying job is one thing, but landing a good job, especially one in your field of study, one with career potential, is quite a different story. The competition for jobs like that is stiff.

Go After The Career You Want

If you are willing to pay the price, you can achieve almost anything.

College is a time when you are given the chance to chase your dreams, learn from the best, do your best and become the person you know you can be.

Let’s Get Started

If you would like to obtain a good job when you graduate from college, it is very important for you to recognize and understand six points:

1. Job Search Preparation is critical to landing a good job

2. The Job Search Preparation process starts as soon as you enter college

3. Job Search Preparation is hard work

4. Job Search Preparation continues until you find a job

5. The best employers want more than just good grades

6. Employers hire candidates who stand out

When you take the time to learn about, prepare for and give employers what they need, want and expect, you guarantee that you will become a competitive job hunter.

Recognize Your Natural Talents, Skills and Abilities

Most students are happiest and do their best work when they are able to utilize