Looking To Get Hired? Here Are Some Tips To Make That Happen.
If you’re new to the So She Slays community allow me to hype up our host of “The Work-shop” and founder of Soul Work & Six Figures, Stephanie Heath.
Now we’ve known Stephanie for years and she has helped us bring tips and knowledge to Slaynaton about all things having to do with your career. Whether you are looking for your dream career, trying to get hired, negotiating your contract, or getting a raise, she has done it all.
We wanted to do an interview with her on the So She Slays podcast to really break down and put together some of her top tips when it comes to career stuff in general. In the podcast we talk about everything from figuring out your dream career, your resume, what your LinkedIn should look like, how to negotiate your salary, and so much more.
At the end of the article, you can find the full episode of the podcast with Stephanie so be sure to take a listen, you may want to grab a notebook as well. Below are just some highlights from the interview to help get you started.
What are the top mistakes people make in their journey to getting hired?
Having a vague resume and LinkedIn profile. LinkedIn is you basically selling yourself into the role, like your painting the picture of the role that you're targeting. and making use of their algorithms. So make sure that you have a lot of keywords. The first step that you want to think about is just grabbing the job description of the role that you're targeting, or, you know, grabbing a three-month-old job description of an ideal role for you and using that to craft your LinkedIn and your resume.
Not using the keyword in LinkedIn’s algorithm. You're going to want to make sure that you have all of those keywords that are in that job description in your experience section, you're going to want to make sure that you're going through your past history and adjusting your job titles, as much as you can just with an eye to the roles that you're targeting now without being dishonest. You probably want to put the more relevant bullet points that the company is going to be looking for at the top. So let's say if you've done a lot of consulting work, you've been a contractor, you can combine that experience so it doesn't look like you have a bunch of short stints. Then with your headline area on your LinkedIn, you want to call yourself the role that you're targeting, you don't want to call yourself what you are currently. Let's say you’re a project manager at MasterCard, you could say project manager at MasterCard, and then have a slash that says Product Management and maybe the methodology that product managers use, just so that you're getting that keyword hit and so your profile is rising, as recruiters are searching for your for people like you.
STOP with the short resumes. For some reason, people feel that a long resume is negative, as a recruiter, we want to answer as many questions upfront before we get on the phone with you as possible. So it actually benefits you to have a longer resume with as much detail as possible so that when they get on a call with you, it's like, okay, I already know you've done all this stuff let's talk about fit. Let's talk about culture. By doing this you're going to find that you're skipping interview rounds. Whenever I have my friends, my network, and I speak to career coaches that are, like college administrators, career coaches, they say have a shorter resume. But whenever I'm talking to my recruiter friends, they're like we really appreciate the longer resume. So take that piece of advice, so that you're skipping interview rounds, and you can focus on that likability factor during the interview versus proving that you know how to do the job.
Your tips for college students and graduates entering the workforce.
Internships. Definitely take on as many internships as you can, this is super important. So you have those relationships, you're proving yourself and so that when you are applying for that entry-level role, you have the experience.
Networking. Definitely learn how to talk to people. Understand that networking is just you making friends with people and seeing how you can help them while also just being straightforward with whatever asks and have that be your job for the first six months. So let's say you're applying to roles, maybe you're applying to roles three days out of that out of the week, three days out of the week, you also need to be trying to create a network for yourself. So let everyone know that you just graduated, your mother's friends, your aunts, uncles, everyone really being that sort of, quote, unquote, aggressive, pushy person to like, hey, you know, I'm looking for this job because that's how you're gonna get that first role now, especially since the market is just really strange. We have folks that aren't even really looking, but they have their resume up and they're getting other jobs just because of COVID. People kind of are like, well, what do I really want in life, and I'm not really happy with this role. So we're just seeing that there are a lot more job seekers on the market than we have prior to this. So your network, and just being able to really get people to take a chance on you is going to be how you get that first role. That's way more important than the companies that you're applying to because I want to say like nine out of 10 times that is what's going to be your first role. So what could that look like is you joining websites like elfa.com, careercontessa.com, built-in communities, Slack channels, Fairy God Boss, and other places that have really active forums. If you just graduated, potentially Facebook groups aren't going to be that relevant for you but let's say you have three or four years of experience, joining a Facebook group for your specific role could help. But make this your full-time job and really dedicate yourself.
Negotiating your pay. How do we go about doing this?
You should first research the market and know what you can be making. If you were our client, we would suggest that you find out what the top of the range is for your function and your years of experience in that city. Then ask for that or even ask for five to 10 to 15k more than that. The company is NOT going to look at you like you have three heads. What you're doing is just establishing yourself as a pricier candidate, someone that's a little bit more high value. We want to negotiate from the top of the range because as a company negotiates it down, you still want to land at a good space.
So how do you do that?
Whenever you have that first conversation about money, you can put your actress hat on and say, “oh, you know, I just entered the market? I'm not quite sure. What would you recommend?” If you're not that type of person, you're more direct, just say, “Yeah, you know, I'm in a few conversations with a few different companies and I'm being considered for around XYZ to XYZ.” Again, that range should be at the top, and even more, maybe like 5k more. So being able to come up with that number, and then listen to their response. And they could be like, “Oh, you know, while we should probably end it here, that's way above what we can manage.” Ask them, “What is your budget?” And if it's still within a range that you'd be happy with? Ideally, not more than maybe like 15k of a difference, then just say, “Yeah, you know, I'd like to continue the conversation as I mentioned, I'm in talks with a few different companies, I definitely want to continue learning more about the role and we can maybe discuss that a bit later.” So that's something that you can go with. Again, don't get caught up in the language and having this like, script. Understand that if you're interviewing with a recruiter or the founder of a company, they would agree, they definitely want to have the conversation again later. So it's in both of your benefits to talk about it later.
The second time, you can expect a company to bring up salary again, is going to be around your final round, either right before or right after it. That's when they're basically temperature checking and trying to persuade you to take the number that they want you to take, this is actually when the real negotiation happens. I would say that most people aren't aware of this, they think the negotiation happens after you get your verbal offer. It's at that temperature checking, that's like the hardcore negotiation.
So maybe they'll say, “Oh, you know, we've been interviewing you for a few weeks, everyone's in love with you, how do you feel? How are your other interviews going? You know, I want to check in about salary are you still looking for XYZ, as I mentioned, we are looking around this range…” they may even try to help you by saying they’ll talk to the manager to see if they can get a bump, but likely they’ll come back to around their original offer. And that's when you take a deep breath, have a glass of water near you so that you're not talking unnecessarily, and just listen to what they have to say. Almost be sympathetic to them. Recruiters don't like to negotiate, founders don't like to negotiate, they just want to make you happy, hire you and move on to the next role. So just be kind and listen. For us, our method is, you know, restate your ask, affirm them, compliment them and be genuine, “I as well have enjoyed this interview process, you know, I’m in talks with a few different companies, but you are top of the list for XYZ reason.” Really spend time on affirming them from a genuine place, and then share that. “As I mentioned, I am in a few different conversations, and this is what they're considering for me.” And that's when you restate the number. So what you're doing is that you're blaming your number on the other companies that are trying to get you. It's not your fault, it's their fault. You can even be apologetic about it, like, “This is what I'd be considered for and so, you know, if the company can come a little bit closer to that number, or match it, I'd be a lot more comfortable and accepting an offer here.” And that's when that person will either try to, you know, persuade you again, or they say, “Yes, you know, that's fine. I'll, I'll let them know.”
These are just a few highlights from our interview with Stephanie Heath, founder of Soul Work & Six Figures. The full interview can be listened to below on the So She Slays Podcast. Be sure to follow her for more career information and tips, and be sure to check her out when she hosts “The Work-shop” on So She Slays IG Lives twice a month.