What does your credit history have to do with your future job prospects, anyway?

by JJ Weir | Sep 28, 2015 | Advice, Newsletter

When it comes to landing a great job, it’s more than what’s on your resume these days. In addition to your one to two page work history, employers are also looking at other things, including your cover letter, your LinkedIn profile, your social media, and your presence on Google.

The one thing you may not have realized is that employers are looking at your credit report too! If you have a low credit score, they may decide not to hire you.

Why? Well, an employer may think that if you can’t keep a positive credit history, how could you possibly run their business?

At first glance, this makes sense. Executives are often managing millions of dollars a year. They control big budgets, and are responsible for decisions that impact hundreds, if not thousands of people.

But, when you dig deeper, this issue is more complex than it sounds. There are many things that go into your credit score that you don’t have full control over, including:

• Inaccurate information – Anyone who’s had their financial credit stolen knows what a pain it is to clean up the mess left behind afterward.
• Healthcare bills – At times, healthcare bills you have already paid show up on your credit report as delinquent. Then, there are those times when you actually do have big medical bills, but at no fault of your own.
• Home Foreclosures – Due to the crazy market we’ve had for a long time now, many homeowners have been forced to foreclose, or participate in a short sale. These actions can have a negative impact on your credit score.
• Unemployment – In today’s job market, a layoff can happen any time and is often not a reflection of employee performance.
• Divorce – Divorce can wreak havoc on a credit score.

What’s worse is that these negative events can stay on your credit history for up to seven years!

The good news for job seekers is that a new act, Equal Employment for All Act, is being introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives. Tennessee Rep. Steve Cohen and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren are behind the project.

But, as long as employers are using your credit score to make decisions about your future, you should know what to do:

1. Check for inaccuracies – Review your credit report once per year for errors – and report them. You can download one free copy of your credit report each year online.
2. Keep your phone and online accounts secure – Don’t be careless and allow thieves into your personal accounts.
3. Pay attention to where you shop online – Use reputable sites online. Stay away from putting your credit card into unknown sites.
4. Pay your bills on time – One of the easiest ways to damage your credit yourself is to be careless about when you pay your bills. Make a point to pay them on time, or to set them up for automatic payment.
5. Keep your balances on credit cards low – High credit card debt can negatively impact your score.
6. Only apply for new credit when you need it – Don’t create a situation where you have a huge amount of unneeded credit available.

These tips will help you to both protect, and improve your existing credit score. And, having a dream credit score will get you that much closer to landing a dream job!
I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.

Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on Apple Podcasts and Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in Apple Podcasts or Stitcher.

I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.

Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on Apple Podcasts and Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in Apple Podcasts or Stitcher.

Happy hunting!

Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach

Successful Modern Phone Etiquette

by Angela Copeland | Sep 21, 2015 | Advice, Newsletter

A lot has changed in the last twenty years with regards to how we use the phone. Once tethered to the wall for an entire family to share, cell phones can be found in the pockets of everyone. Even small children have cell phones. They’re no longer reserved for the elite business person, or successful celebrity.

Often, homes no longer have land lines at all. When I arrange interviews for my career podcast, I ask guests to use a land line if possible. For many guests, finding a traditional phone is virtually impossible.

In the past, when you called someone at home, a family member would often answer first. Now, it’s very rare for anyone else to answer your personal cell phone but you.

In addition, we now often text rather than call. And, if we do receive a call from a number we don’t know, we’ll let it go to voicemail so we can screen it before deciding if we want to call back.

Along with all of these changes comes a net set of rules and etiquette. And, unfortunately, we’re not all following those rules.

Here are a few tips that will help you to be at the top of your phone game:

1. When you answer your phone, introduce yourself. This is especially important if it’s a business call. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve had a conversation that’s gone something like this:
   • Bob: “Hello?”
   • Angela: “Hello. Is this Bob?”
   • Bob: “Yes.” (silence)
   • Angela: “Hi Bob. This is Angela. We have a meeting scheduled for this time. Is this still a good time to talk…?” Talk about awkward. A much better solution would have been something more like this:
   • Bob: “Hello, this is Bob.”
   • Angela: “Hi Bob. This is Angela. Is this still a good time to talk?” When the phone is answered with an empty hello, the caller may think they’ve dialed the wrong number. They also think the person they’re calling has forgotten they have a call scheduled.
2. If you answer someone else’s phone, explain that when you answer. I had this happen recently. It was both confusing and a bit off putting. The conversation went something like this:
   • Jane (answering Susan’s phone): “Hello?”
   • Angela: “Hello. Is this Susan?”
   • Jane: “No. This is Jane.”
   • Angela: “Oh. I must have the wrong number.”
   • Jane: “No. I’m answering Susan’s phone.”
   • Angela: “Oh. Is Susan available?”
   • Jane: “Yes. Hold on.” Wow! Talk about a mess. Answering someone else’s phone can be helpful, especially if they can’t get to it in time. But, introduce yourself and explain the situation on the front end. Something like this would have been more helpful, and far less confusing:
   • Jane (answering Susan’s phone): “Hello. This is Jane; answering Susan’s phone.”
   • Angela: “Hi Jane. This is Angela. I’m calling for Susan. Is she available?”
   • Jane: “Yes. Please hold on just a moment.”
3. Setup a voice mail message on your phone you can be proud of. So often, voicemail on our phones doesn’t represent us in the best light. Listen to yours. Is there wind blowing in the background? Can you hear cars, children, music playing, or dogs barking? Is your voice clear and professional? Do you introduce yourself? Stay away from messages like this, “Hi guys! I’m not available. Leave a message.” Instead, try something like, “Hello, you’ve reached the phone of Michael Smith. I’m not available right now. Please leave your name and number and I will call you back as soon as possible.” A clear, concise message (in a quiet room) that asks the caller to leave their information will be a much more effective use of your voicemail. It will also sound far more professional to a potential employer.
4. When you leave a voicemail, make it professional. Voicemails should be short and concise. Think before you speak and be brief. Voicemail is not the place to share every detail or thought you’re having at that moment. Say your name, phone number, and the reason for your call. Request a call back and thank the person. That’s it. Keep it short and sweet. If you blunder, many voicemail systems will allow you to rerecord your message. Take advantage of this feature if you need to. A short, concise message will ensure that someone actually listens to your entire message and it will get them to call you back faster.
5. In a business setting, use text messages sparingly. Text messaging is on average very generational. People of different ages use texting differently and have varying opinions of what’s acceptable and what isn’t. Reserve text messaging for those you are truly comfortable with or who have texted you first. If you are interested to text with someone from work, but don’t know their perspective on texting, ask them. And whatever you do, don’t use text messaging when you’re interviewing for a job. It should be reserved for after you’ve landed the job.
6. Be aware of the time of day you make phone calls and send text messages. I cannot stress this point enough. You may turn your phone off when you go to sleep at night (so late night calls might not bother you), but not everyone does. Try to limit work communications to work hours: 8 or 9 AM to 5 or 6 PM. Keep personal communications between the hours of 9 AM and 9 PM. For some close friends you talk with regularly, these rules may not apply. But, don’t assume everyone is comfortable receiving random text messages or phone calls at 10 PM. It can be both rude and frustrating for the person you’re contacting.

In business, much of your success is tied to your personal brand. And, your ability to know and follow the rules of phone etiquette are very much a part of that brand. Be conscious of these simple rules and you’ll be on your way!

I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.

Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on Apple Podcasts and Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in Apple Podcasts or Stitcher.

Happy hunting!

Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach

How to use your academic experience to land a corporate job

by Angela Copeland | Sep 14, 2015 | Advice, Newsletter

How to use your academic experience to land a corporate job

There’s an issue that has come up a number of times since starting my business. Job seekers who are looking for a job for the first time in their 30s or 40s find it tough to know where to start. This is a very common occurrence for those who have spent their entire careers in academia or research.

They’ve gone to school for many years without stopping. At the end, they have a long list of awesome accomplishments. But, because a full time corporate job typically isn’t one of them, the thought of going down this path can be very daunting.

I was recently interviewed by Fast Company on this very topic, because they’re hearing about the same issue!

If you find yourself in this situation, with mainly academic experience, here are a few of my tips for writing your resume for a corporate job.

• Leave out your GPA. In the corporate world, it’s rare that anyone will want to know your academic grade point average.
• Get your own e-mail address. Using your school’s e-mail for job applications just makes you look young and inexperienced.
• Keep your resume short and sweet. One or two pages is the maximum length a resume should be. Corporations don’t have time to read a 10 page CV. Be concise.
• Use plain language. There will inevitably be people who read your resume that don’t have the same impressive credentials that you do. Write your resume in such a way that a human resources pro or a recruiter could understand it. They’re often the first person to screen your resume. And, if they don’t understand it, you’re dead in the water.
• Don’t list every publication you’ve ever been in. Or, if you do, consider a format that’s readable. A long bibliography written in a highly technical format is rarely appropriate in a corporate resume.
• Be aware of your formatting. Your resume should have a consistent look and feel throughout.
• Use bold to emphasize important things. But, keep it to a minimum. Use it to highlight important parts are your background, such as your titles.
• Include internships, speaking events, and leadership activities. Although you may not have been paid, these activities provide students with valuable experience that translate into the working world.
• Include class projects. It may sound silly, but very often, professors give you real life problems to work on. Sometimes, you even get to interface with the companies to solve them. Again, just because you weren’t paid doesn’t mean your experience doesn’t translate. Include these pieces of your work to show your future employer what you can do.
• Save your resume as a PDF. So often, when we e-mail our resume to someone else as a Word document, the formatting gets all mixed up. Keep things simple and save your resume as a PDF before you send it.

Once you get your resume ready, it’s time to head out and find a job. Although good for research, the internet is not your ultimate answer to landing an interview. Take the time to network and get your feet wet in the community.

And, when you do land an interview, keep in mind that the most important thing in terms of hiring is can often be whether or not the employer likes you – rather than your degree. Take the time to both refine your personal brand, and work on being relatable. Show up to interviews looking polished and be approachable.

At the end of the day, you want to package up your years of academic prowess into an intelligent, relatable, refined brand.

I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.

Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on Apple Podcasts and Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in Apple Podcasts or Stitcher.

Happy hunting!

Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach