Job Searches: Expert Guides and Resources

Before you send a resume into the world, run it through this ten-point checklist. Getting your ATS-friendly resume format and structure right is the single biggest factor in whether a screener — human or software — even gets to read your story. Each item below reflects what today's screeners and applicant tracking systems (ATS) actually look for: a tight match to the job, a clear focus, ATS-clean structure, proof of results, strong language, and zero distractions.

Your resume is your professional marketing document in digital form.  It’s often the first (and sometimes only) change you get to show employers how you deliver value. In an era of applicant tracking systems (ATS), AI screening, and six-second human scans, your resume must prove relevance fast, clearly, and in the employer’s language.

Getting ready for that all-important job interview? Don’t go into the lion's den unprepared. Check out the tips and techniques listed below to find out which questions to ask your interviewers and how to handle the negotiation process once that job offer comes your way. Successful interviewing is an important lifelong skill, and it can be learned!

A personal brand is the culmination of your actions; it’s an image that is useful during a job search that marks you as a specific, well-defined package of abilities, talents, and experiences. It is you, outside and inside, in the sense that you’re unique. Personal branding has a lot to do with the emotion people feel when they think about you but is rooted in self-reflection and integrity.

Personal branding — the art of communicating what makes you unique — has been around for a long time and can be used in your job search. Everyone has a personal brand, even you, because everyone is unique. But not everyone is good at expressing this differentiation. Those people who are seemingly irreplaceable prosper in any economic situation.

Once you get that job you are seeking after 50, you need to negotiate the terms. Negotiations are best when both parties work toward an arrangement that’s mutually beneficial. Don’t approach negotiations with a hiring manager as an adversarial relationship. Follow these suggestions instead: Wait. Let the hiring manager offer you an amount, and then take a day or two to consider.

Despite the craziness of Craigslist, it’s still a marvelous place to find up-to-the-minute job postings. In fact, if you were to walk into a business and ask the hiring manager about the first place he would post an ad for a new job, without much thought he’d likely say, “Oh, I’ll just drop it on Craigslist to get some résumés in the door.