Resume/Interview Tips!
So I got laid off last year and took that year off to just reset/do whatever LOL. This year (like two weeks ago) is when I started job hunting, and I just got an offer yesterday. I went on reddit a lot for tips so I just want to do the same and maybe help out anyone who is still looking for a job as I know job market is rly bad rn and even just landing an interview is hard 🥲
Resume:
• Your resume HAS to be ATS friendly! \~ can't emphasize this enough. Skip the fancy template ones and just use the most basic/simple templates. There are also sites you can use that already has the template and you just have to input your info! For my resume, I used [https://www.resume-now.com\](https://www.resume-now.com) \- highly recommend as it landed me 3 first round interviews!
You just have to pay a bit (no more than $20) to be able to make x resumes.
• Tailor your resume according to the job description! \~ this is one of the advice I saw from reddit or tiktok LOL that rly helped me. I used to just send the same resume to all the jobs I applied for and that didn't get me anywhere. I know it might be time consuming or too much effort, but tailing your resume will make a world of a difference in your job hunting. And you can do this w chat gpt! Draft your own general resume first, and copy and paste the job description onto chatgpt and prompt: "Tailor my resume according to this job description/role". Download your general resume, and chat will literally rewrite your whole resume tailored to that job description. Obviously, still make the edits after and review everything! But this rly helps as the computer system is always looking for key words that matches with the job description!
• Keep it to one page as much as possible! And I also heard one column is the most preferable, as the computer only reads one column not two. (My skill sections was two columns tho 🤣)
• Download pdf version OR word doc! I heard other ppl prefer doc over pdf but I downloaded all my resumes in pdf and had no issues!
Interview:
• Research as much as you can about the company! Some first round interviews will ask you what you know about the company, so if you don't know anything, it'll def leave a bad impression LOL. See if they also have social media accounts: instagram, tiktok LOL. I mentioned that I checked their ig account in my interview.
• If you know who is/are interviewing you, look them up on LinkedIn, and see if you can draw any information and mention/ask about it in your interview. For example, one of the people who interviewed me wrote an article on one of the projects they worked on, and I asked about it at the end of my interview.
• Come up with any potential qs they can ask you; you can use chatgpt for this too. Prompt: "Come up with all the questions they could ask me in the intro call, second round interview, or final round interview."
• This might be time consuming as well but I typed down all the qs they could ask me on a google doc, and also typed out my answers. I would first try to memorize my answers, and then keep rehearsing them until I sound rly natural/confident when saying them. You don't rly have to memorize your answers either, you just need to remember the most important/solid information in your answers. Keeping in mind what exactly does your interviewer need to hear/know.
• STAR method! I'm sure everyone knows this alr!
• Situational/behavioural qs are the most common qs being asked now so I highly recommend to have three or four main stories prepped for questions such as: how do you handle conflict / how do you handle pressure/managing different priorities / how do you stay organized / how do you handle feedback or mistakes or any last minute changes. I think as long as you have stories prepped for those questions, you can handle situational/behavioural qs well.
• Show your personality! \~ this really shines through in interviews! If you can try to build at least small rapport with them, it makes a huge difference. I also always hear that with interviews, if you make it to second round, they already know you can do the job, what they're trying to assess is if they want to work with you. It's rly more of a cultural fit, ofc again this varies and isn't applicable to every job! I'm sure technical jobs assess more of your skills than personality haha.
• Questions you can ask at the end of the interview \~ the most common q you can ask is "What does success look like in the first 3-6 months for this role?" But for me, I also like asking qs such as: "How have you both grown professionally and personally from working here?" "What do you like the most about this job?" I like asking questions that gives them the opportunity to talk about themselves too :)
I know interviews can be nerve wracking, but coming to it with preparation definitely lessens the nervousness/anxiety! And I rmr what my friend told me too, with job interviews, their approach is: "My attitude going in to interviews is that i have nothing to lose, like theyre not the end all be all. If you dont want me then i’ll just find another company." and I think this approach helps eases the tension bc its so true - it's not the end all be all! And yes as much as the job market is tough rn and there are still lay offs happening, I always like to believe there is a job for everyone. I have this abundance mindset in me that if my friends/family can find one, I too can find one for sure.
Anyways, this is all what I have so far! I hope this helps someone somehow 🥹. Again, good luck to anyone who is still looking! Do not lose hope 🫶🏻🍀