The first day at a new workplace will always make you a little nervous and stressed along with the some excitement of meeting new people, opportunities etc. You may be a seasoned job hopper, or a fresh out of school recruit, but the following hygiene checks will always make you shine at workplace.

Dress smartly: One of the first thing that people notice is what you are wearing. Since you are not aware of the work culture yet, it is idea to wear smart and comfortable formals on the first day. Don’t be overtly jazzy with your choice of clothes. Remember you are there to work and not to impress.

Ask Questions: It’s always good to be inquisitive about the workplace and the work that you are expected to do. Ask many questions/clarifications as you want in order to get you fair idea about your work. Remember not to ask personal questions, because you donot know you may be offending someone.

Be Proactive: In order to make you comfortable your boss will not load you with all the work on your first day. But once you are comfortable with the work assigned, you can take initiative for more work related to your profile. It will highlight your sense of responsibility and your ability to work.

Be Friendly: There is a need to show that you are serious about your work, but that shouldn’t stop you from exchanging smiles and hellos with your colleagues. An informal introduction will also help you bond with your colleagues over coffee or lunch.

I am sure above points will help you settle comfortably in a new workplace. However some people take more time to settle down. It depends on the rate of adaptability and workplace approach. Do share your experiences about your first day at work.

I still remember the day when I faced first interview of my life, it was PI (personal interview) at the FMCG conglomerate that had come for selection at our institute campus. 7 out of our 10 friends made through the interview and rest 3 of us could not. Though we were almost alike in terms of study and marks, I wondered what the reasons were for us not breaking through the interview.

Over the years, I have been on both sides of the table. Initially while giving interviews in all seriousness and then gradually taking interviews and hiring people for the companies I was working.

Though the candidates whom I have interviewed were not remarkably bad, but the ones who were eventually hired, had some common traits which made them stand out. It is also worth mentioning that these hires have had a long and fruitful associations with the companies they were hired for.

What I realized and am going to share with you is the crux to succeed in an interview. It’s always the first impression which matters most apart from self confidence and knowledge. If your first impression is positive, it means half the job done. Here are the few tips to utilize that one chance to make a good first impression:

Smile Please

If I ask you with what kind of people you would like to interact/ meet then your answer would be in adjectives like joyful, enthusiastic, eager to meet etc. Same applies with the interviewer also who is meeting with the candidate for the first time. So a good smile on face, a firm handshake and eye contact are the few ways to make you likable by the employer. And if interviewer likes you it will enhance your chances of getting the offer letter.

Chit chat

As an interviewer I have heard this answer sometimes, when I ask about the strength of candidate, “Being a talkative person I mingle with the people very well.” It means irrespective of whether you are talkative or not if you engage in small talk when meeting with the new people will always help to know each other. Small talk or chit chat with interviewer also puts both parties at ease and this small talk could be your golden chance to demonstrate your abilities/ skill and correlate them with the requirement of the job.

Do your homework

I remember the days of my childhood. I was not so regular in doing my home work given by teacher at school. So standing on bench, other punishments (like writing “I’ll do my home work regularly 100 times”) were the regular thing with me. But the day I my home work is complete I used to go with full of confidence and happiness, that means no punishment today! That way I realized doing homework is a good thing.

Translated at workplace/interview stage, whenever you go for interview you should also do your homework first. Know as much as possible about the company and the job profile by visiting company website, job posting from the company on websites like www.naukri.com , www.monster.com etc. or see the company review at www.talentequity.in Also, not to forget to know about the interviewer also (if you know who will take interview). You can look about him at various professional networking sites like www.linkedin.com or www.siliconindia.com or simply search www.google.com by his name or email id, to know more about the person.

Get ready with FAQs

One research shows that 70% of the questions are common, asked in most of the interviews. The idea behind asking those questions by the interviewer it to analyze the views, attitude and ideas of the candidate. So prepare and practice those common questions in a professional way. You also can refer to our blog to know about all these types of FAQs asked in any interview.

Walk the talk and talk the walk

Interview does not mean always to say big about your performance/achievement. Talk real and don’t forget to support your statement with proof/ figure. If you say, you have successfully achieved 120% of target of last quarter which was Rs. 80 lacs, will create a positive impact on the interviewer. So always quantify your claims of success/ achievements.

I am sure that this tips are applicable globally and will help you succeed in any interview.  Keep watching this space for more tips and resources for you

I asked, ‘what’s the best way you consider for background check of a prospective employee?’, to a friend who is a recruiter in a company. I was surprised with his answer when he replied ‘google search’ as his favourite tool for background check.

I realised most of us use internet extensively and based on our surfing/ interest/ postings/ comments an image is portrayed which can affect our professional and personal life. I found the concept very interesting and hence this post on the importance of ‘online image’.
Adding on, I recently read somewhere that an employee took leave because of sickness and her colleagues found her active on twitter and facebook updating her day activity including where she went for shopping, lunch and night out. You can imagine that why she was not happy when she went to the office next day.

Furthermore you need to keep your online image simple and clean. As I mentioned earlier that a quick search on google, facebook or yahoo can give a summary impression of a person. Its good to have parties and share photos, info etc. with your friends online but you need to be very careful when you present yourself in front of world. It would not be a good impression if prospective employer/client finds you on facebook with bottles of beer. So search google with your name, email ids or phone no. Do you like the result? Analyze what image of your will it create on employer’s mind.

Agreed that we use these social sites to connect with our personal friends and share some personal activity but there is a professional aspect also attached to it as these sites are like open book. You never know, how people can use these sites to know about their prospective/current employee or client. So getting a new job or sustaining in the existing one can be decided by your online activity.

Here are the few ways to gauge your online image:

Be careful while posting online
If you are found on web suggesting ’10 ways to ditch your girlfriend’, or ‘how to fool your boss’ it wont be a good impression. I still remember few years back when I searched google with the e-mail id of one our then senior colleague, I (in fact all of us) got to know that he is looking for partner. The said person became a topic of many a joke in the office, which is certainly not desirable.
I have an account on linkedin, facebook, twitter, some communities, maintain a blog and a website. I always take extreme care while writing anything over the web. Content travels faster on the web. Some discourteous words or drunken, sexual, violent images or a wrong communal or social remark is enough to spoil your image over the internet.
In fact I would suggest that join some forum/community related to your domain knowledge and participate in discussion, knowledge sharing.

Use decent ids for mail
I can assure you that ids like sexychamp@…, harrypotter007@., …hunkydude@…, hottysweety@…, will turn your prospective employer off.
Avoid using complicated e-mail, with irrelevant names, some slang or some inappropriate intensions. Always use your name as an email id. Your name may be common so you can also add some number at the end to make it unique with you name. Like sanjaykumar3@… or other variations

Be careful while posting resume on job sites
During the beginning of my career one day my HR Manager came to me and asked why are you looking for job change? Are you not satisfied here? I wondered how he got to know that I am looking for change. The reason was, she had found my resume on a popular job site.
Your name and your current employer name can appear on the search of jobsites like naukri, monster etc. So make sure to keep your few details confidential.

To sumarise, I will emphasise that revolution in technology has provided us with the numerous ways to be connected with the people. People are part of different communities like facebook, twitter, orkut, myspace etc. to connect with friends and share personal life. But you should be careful enough while sharing your personal incidents over the internet as it is directly related to your professional online image.

Last month I had a meeting with one of my old friends, who is now VP–HR in a fairly large IT setup. He informed me that he is planning to lay off a couple of hundred people in his company, in a phased manner. What surprised me was that he mentioned that out of them around 80% are ‘difficult employees’. I wondered aloud what was his definition of a ‘difficult employee’. What he told me was interesting and forms the basis of this post.

In every department/organization there are few people who are arrogant, demeaning (to others), insubordinate, not trustworthy, (always) cribbing and unproductive. And these employees are a huge drain for an organization in terms of wasted time, reduced productivity, inefficiency, and ultimately resulting in customer loss.” I again asked him as to why did the team, then not take precautions while hiring? He said these are traits and sometimes it is difficult to observe them during an interview. You get to know about them only from observing them in terms of their approach, attitude, performance, productivity and feedback from co-workers and managers etc.

It sure means that ‘difficult employees’ are at the first place in the queue when it comes to being shown the door.

Based on his observation and my research, I am listing a few traits/signs that can label you as a ‘difficult employee’. They are:

1. Work is your foe/ additional responsibility:

I, like many people, don’t like to work long hours or during weekends. But in a down economy & competitive environment your approach towards this additional work plays a huge role in
whether you are a valuable employee of the organization or not. Organizations generally perceive an employee’s worth by evaluating his/her work ethics.

2. Your personal problems are public knowledge:

If most of your colleagues are aware of all your personal problems, from hole in the shoe, missed breakfast, argument with friend, mismatched nailpolish, then this point is for you. No one is really interested in these kind of regular updates. This can create a sort of distraction among the other employees who already are overworked and busy in meeting deadline. You will suddenly see co-workers distancing from you. So keep your personal problem very personal.

3. You & your company are not on the same page:

You don’t have to be alcoholic if you work for Kingfisher beverages. But you need to understand the vision and approach of your company and work towards it. If you are heard making fun of the company or its products/services it can hamper the office environment, spirit of teamwork, your relation with co-workers and the management. The company is better off without you for the the fact that, you don’t understand and respect your work.

No one likes ‘difficult employees’ in their team, organization. Every organization wants an employee who can add value. So watch your approach in office, who knows someone is preparing list to lay off!

In these times of slow economic recovery, many of us are finding it difficult to hold on to our respective jobs. Work pressures, stretched working hours, stringent quality checks and – clubbed with all this – workplace politics. Ethically speaking, just how desperate are we to save our job?

You need to be aware when someone is gunning after you. After all you don’t want to loose your credibility, a promotion or your job. You need to identify and fight back the people who indulge in workplace politics. A few signs that you should keep a lookout for, are:

1. Your mistakes and weaknesses are exaggerated in front of others.
2. You find yourself caught in the playing the blame game.
3. Meetings are conducted without you being invited or informed.
4. You don’t get the information which you should be normally be getting directly.
5. Your private information becomes public knowledge.

If 3 out of the 5 mentioned situations seem familiar to you, you may be getting dragged in politics at workplace. So how does one survive? Below are a few things that one should keep in mind:

1. Keep your cool. Being too emotional works against you.
2. List all situations. Prepare a note of all such incidents where you think your colleague is playing mischief.
3. Introspect. Review each of the incidents objectively. Do you see any logic? If you are confused, it is always advisable to speak to your confidante at work or a senior (a person who is removed from the situation and would be able to guide you). This helps you in seeing the correct picture.
4. Discuss with your boss. You have your list of incidents, viewpoints and patience with you. Share your fears with your boss. The boss may call in for a dialogue with you and your colleague. Be prepared.
5. Face your adversary. Prepare yourself, choose the right assertive attitude and share your observations and ask for an explanation.

It is most likely that the person will back off and will be careful about their behaviour after the meeting. And trust me, your boss/ colleagues will respect you for that.

It has been observed that when we stop, think and act on a situation we are likely to win. So go ahead, face and resolve workplace politics and make the workplace a reason to look forward to and not sulk. Growl

It depresses me when I meet some smart talented youth, without a job. Scratch their surface and I am surprised with the findings. The observation is that many of them really do not even know what is the kind of job they are looking for!!! I have come across many a candidate who have not yet decided on a goal/area of interest. They have no idea as to which field/industry they want to work in, or which profile they think is suitable. For them the idea is just to get a “job”.
I reproduce below the lines from my childhood storybook “Alice in wonderland” , as I write todays post:

“Would you tell me which way I ought to go from here?” asked Alice.
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get,” said the Cat.
“I really don’t care where” replied Alice.
“Then it doesn’t much matter which way you go,” said the Cat.

Job search is exactly that. My advice to everyone is to form a plan of action. Decide what profile/industry excites you and then research on your field/industry. Look for the opportunities available.

Once done with identifying the targeted profile/industry the rest falls in place. Research is a key element here. Research, research and research some more. Know more about the industry, the prospective employer, the desired skill sets etc. Examine your own skill set and see if you fit in the role. Identify the gaps between the desired skills and the skills that you possess. It would be ideal if there is a perfect match, but in cases where there is not, then don’t loose heart. You can always bridge these gaps through:

• Researching on the net
• Doing short/mid term courses
• Reading books
• Interactions with experts
• Volunteer for projects in the desired area on an apprenticeship basis. Being an apprentice has its other merits too. You might meet people who will be giving you your next job

The difficult tasks out of the way namely identifying the plan of action and addressing the desired skill issue, the rest is fairly easy. All you have to do is to update your resume (keep in mind the top ten resume mistakes) and (re)apply with confidence and a smile.
Goodluck with your interview.

Last week one of my friends Sumit received this awful and not so unexpected news, “Effective today your services are not required. Kindly collect your belongings/ dues by the weekend”.

He immediately called me up with very stressed and frustrated voice and complained about the employer that he has worked with them for more than 4 years now and how they could do that with him!. “Please arrange some interview for me today itself”, he said. I asked him to calm down and suggested him to go home and relax.

These kinds of situations are not very uncommon these days. Getting tensed and frustrated is very obvious. But this is the time where we need to control our thoughts and respond in a cool and mature way.

Some tips what to do after you being laid off:

Be Positive:

Kind of responses like of Sumit is very obvious in these types of situations. Even if this was anticipated, you will go through many thoughts. Some negativity, anger, jealousy,frustration may come but you need to be watchful enough. Don’t let these thoughts hinder in your life. Be positive and think positive. Like there is a saying “Only a calm mind can sail you through the storm.”

Don’t take it personally:

“I have been loyal to the company and still they have asked me to go”. Don’t badmouth or think badly for your employer. That decision might be driven by bad health of the company. So don’t take it personally. The company will move on and you also should move on.

Don’t feel ashamed:

I have one friend who lost his job twice during last six months. So he started his own business and he is doing quite ok in that. If you are laid off that does not mean that you are not competent in you work, it is the end of just one chapter and you need to start new one. After a year you will think that better you lay off, that’s why you are in such a good position today.

Good time for vacation:

When I asked one of my acquaintances after he was unceremoniously dropped, what are his plans. He replied, “Since I don’t have much responsibility so I’ll utilize this break as a vacation and have some fun”. This could be the right time to spend some quality time with your family and plan for the future with a calm mind. So you can think to go for small vacation.

Go through self assessment:

Before going for a job search go through a self assessment. That will help you to put your best foot forward towards finding a matching job. Ask these questions to yourself :

- What kind of job I want?

- In which domain I want to work?

- Should I change my specialization?

Check your connections:

This is the start of the job search.  Making a comprehensive list of whom you know and where they are.  Get this organized on paper or in Microsoft Excel and start contacting them!

Good luck and do share your story with you

The most stressful part of job interview is to get stuck in those questions which are generic in nature but nevertheless difficult to answer. Here is a few answers to those questions, that should help you.

01 Tell us about yourself?
For a long time, I would go around talking about my place of birth, education and work experience etc etc. Then I  realised how silly it sounds.
Interviewers want to know the candidates skillsets, strengths and achievements in the past and how these are related to the requirement of job.
For example: “I am really passionate about my work. Whatever I do I do it with full of my dedication, determination and devotion. I am working in insurance sales for last two years and that has given me a lot confidence and taught me the importance of time management and goal setting. I have been consistently achieving my targets for the last 3 quarters. I also have organized and been part of various road shows and counseling activity for lead generation”.

02 Why are you leaving current job?
It is very easy to criticise your employers and there the interviewer deducts the marks. As a thumb rule remember to stay away from saying negative things about your former/current employer. Instead focus on the positive.

For example: “I have learned many things from my last job like team play, client management, being an efficent worker. However now I am looking for new challenges. So that I can further utilize my potential and also widen up my skill sets.”

03 What are your weaknesses?
Sitting with friends, I would say things casually. However at an interview this is a great chance for the candidate to show positive attitude. Here you can use a real examples of weaknesses you have overcome.

For example: “Initially i was quite scared of working on Excel sheets, the formula making used to frighten me, but over time I took it as a challenge and have overcome my fear of Excel and numbers. In fact I am also now responsible to manage the MIS for the sales team.”

04 What motivates you?
I have heard of movies, good food, friends as answers. But then the answer to this question should reflect the positive attitude of candidate. So rather than giving frivolous answers, focus on attitude.
For example: “ The challenge of finishing projects on time and also ensuring client satisfaction motivates me”.

05 What is your expectation in terms of salary?
Now Salary negotiation is an art. There is a good saying “You don’t get what you deserve, you only get what you negotiate.” So you should negotiate your salary very carefully. We would suggest don’t give the numbers directly.   It is good to say “based on my experience and the demand of the job I expect the appropriate range to be paid for this role.”

It is important to have and show an interest in the job profile offered. You can definitely do a small research on www.talentequity.in to know what the salary range is for the profile offered and what is the industry trends like.

Simple isn’t it?