By Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter
I answered 6 questions from people:
Should I Tell The Interviewer That I Already Have A Job Offer?
How do find a job in America if I am from outside of the US?
How should I show a job in my family’s business on my resume?
What are some of the best career objectives written in a resume?
What are some of the most common mistakes people make in job interviews? How can these mistakes be avoided?
Is it bad to quit your job when you have nothing else lined up already?
Roadblocks. Perseverance. Adversity. Resilience. Determination.
This is No BS Job Search Advice Radio, episode 1779. I’m your host, Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter. And welcome to another day in paradise.
Welcome to another day together. And today’s show is an ask me anything, an AMA, where I answer a number of questions from people on different topics. Hope you enjoy it.
Hope you find it helpful. Hope you’re getting through this time well. And let’s get going.
And I thought today I would do an AMA, an ask me anything show about job hunting. And I’ll just simply say that if you’re interested in my coaching you, connect with me on LinkedIn at LinkedIn.com forward slash i n forward slash the big game hunter. Mention that you saw this video.
I just like knowing that people will be helped by it. And once we’re connected, send a message to me. We’ll set up a time for an initial chat.
Okay. So, here are my questions for today. By the way, let me give you the LinkedIn address one more time.
LinkedIn.com forward slash i n forward slash the big game. Now, question number one, and I think I’ve got six here today. Should I tell the interviewer that I already have another job offer? Scenario is a person got an interview on Friday.
They want to see this other job before committing to the first one. Should I tell the interviewer that I have another offer? The answer is going to sound contrary to something I’ve said in another video. And that is, yes.
Now, in the other video, it was being used as a gambit in order to trick a firm into making an offer. And unfortunately, most people, when they play this gambit, they get these questions as a follow up. And I’m just going to cover it with you.
Well, why don’t you just take the other job? Well, you know, I’m curious about yours. I just want to make you aware that I have this other offer. It’s a good one.
But I want to find out more about your opportunity before making a decision. What kind of money? They’ll go through all the tactics here. And when you don’t have another offer, it feels like firms call your bluff.
And basically, they’ll say something along the lines of, well, we’re going to engage in our process. It could take weeks. You’ll have to make a decision too.
And they’re not going to wait for you. And I know the first firm that’s already made the offer isn’t going to wait for you. But it’s certainly possible that the second firm, the one that you’re interviewing with, in this case, on Tuesday, can accelerate the process.
So, unless you tell them, they don’t know to do that. So, by all means, tell them that you already have another offer. Now, if you’re bluffing, you know, frankly, the bluffs tend not to work, because ultimately, they say, we’re going to engage in our process.
And if it takes longer than you’re hoping for, well, you know, we wish you very well. And suddenly, you have to go, but, but, but, but, but, and show that you lied to them. Not a good approach, but when you actually do have another offer, it’s a good thing to do.
Right? So, question number two. How do I find a job in the US if I’m from outside of the country? Now, this is one of the great dilemmas of our time. This is not just true of our current administration, but previous ones as well.
You need to obtain a visa. There are a limited number of visas available. And, thus, at the time of year, which I believe is March, when the visa lottery occurs, you have to be a part of that lottery.
The other approach is you need to be sponsored by a firm or brought to the United States by a firm that will hold an H1B visa that will restrict your ability to change jobs for a period of time. Those are the basic ways to do it. Yes, there are lots more, but these are the primary ways that people get to the United States.
It doesn’t matter where in the world you’re from, there’s a limited number of visa applications that are accepted for which you’ll receive the H1B visa. You can work for an employer that brings you to the United States on a B1 visa, I believe it is. But the question becomes, how do you find a job in the US? Well, you’re hired for a job while you’re overseas that brings you to the United States.
That’s the basic way that most people do it. Is it ideal? No. I’m not going to kid you.
It’s not ideal. But these are the rules that this country has set up. I’m not going to tell you to become an illegal immigrant in order to get a job.
The legal way to do it is what I’ve outlined. Number three, how should I show a job in my family’s business on my resume? The answer is the usual way. So, it’s listed on your resume as a job.
You have a job title. You talk about your role and responsibilities. Now, let’s say . . . let’s use me as an example.
Let’s say, it’s Jeff Altman, I’m applying for a job, and I’m going to now list the Altman organization as my employer. Well, first off, people will think that I’m self-employed, not a bad thing, or at the time of the interview, you can correct their impression when they talk with you about, what’s this Altman organization thing that you’ve been working for? It’s my father’s business, my mother’s business, my nephew’s, my uncle’s business I’ve been associated with. I just want to be clear.
I’ve been a real employee, either. And what I’ve done is . . . you talk about your role, responsibilities, accomplishments. If you use technology, the technology that you’ve used, excuse me, how much money you helped the firm make or save, you treat it like any other job on your resume, and present it accurately, effectively, positively, and not defensively.
As soon as you sound defensive, their response mentally is to go, I smell bullshit. So you don’t want to do that. You want to treat it like any other employer.
Number four, what are some of the best career objectives written in a resume? The answer is none. Career objectives locks you into an alternative. It is a one-size-fits-all solution that’s going to be on top of your resume, as though every organization is going to be pleased by you writing, I want to work with a progressive firm where I can grow to my greatest potential.
Who cares? That says nothing. It says nothing about you, nothing about your interests. At best, you put it into your cover letter.
And at worst, frankly, I don’t believe in career objectives. I think they will turn off more employers than turn on. It’s an excuse to screen you out, because using that one trite example I gave earlier, some firms are going to read that and go, oh, God, not another one.
And they’re just going to reject you. Why would you put something in there that’s not going to get you hired, but can cause you to be rejected? Career objectives on a resume don’t work. I don’t care how junior you are, and how much space that you need to fill in your resume, better to add another two lines of information about work that you’ve done previously than to put an objective on the resume.
Number five, what are some of the most common mistakes people make in job interviews? How can these mistakes be avoided? Now, the most common mistake that people make, the one I see them make time and time again, is not being prepared for the interview and walking in ready to wing it when they answer interview questions. Not be prepared. I keep . . . notice that word I keep using.
They’re not prepared to answer common questions, let alone the more complex ones. If it’s on your resume, you need to be prepared to talk about it. In addition, you should also learn when I call the best question to ask on any interview, you can get it . . . well, I’ll simply say I have a video about it on YouTube.
I’m sure I’ve done podcasts, as well. The single best question you should ask on any interview is a Kindle book I have out. I’ve had it out for years.
It’s in there, as well. I’ll just simply say to answer this question, lack of preparedness is always the biggest mistake job hunters make on interviews. Last question, number six.
Is it bad to quit your job when you have nothing else lined up already? You know, the only rules in job hunting is that there are no rules except those that work for you. Now, if you’re being abused, by all means, if you’re being harassed, by all means, you get the hell out of there as fast as you can. Hey, Rebecca, you get out of there as fast as you can.
Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. You get out of there fast.
When asked on interviews about why you left without another job, you can simply say, this was an untenable situation where I was being harassed by a manager. And rather than stay and put up with such behavior, I left. I don’t care if you’re male or female.
You get the hell out of there. Now, beyond that, you have choices to make. If you can afford to leave and know full well that there’s going to be a consequence when there’s a negotiation, by all means, go ahead.
Take the summer off. Go to the beach, travel, what have you. But there can be a consequence when you get to the actual job hunting side and start negotiating for your final salary, as firms will think you might act immaturely with them.
Again, these are your choices. Who cares what they think? As long as you’re prepared to accept the consequences of the decision, by all means, get the hell out. You don’t have to put up with other people’s crap because of this bullshit system that says, you shouldn’t leave a job without something else.
It’s your life. You only have one life to go through. Know full well what your consequences are.
If you don’t have money in the bank, don’t do it because it’s going to be a painful proposition. But I’ll simply say, you can leave. You can stay.
It’s your choice, not theirs. So that’s today’s show. I hope you found it helpful.
And if you did, here are a few more ways to get information and advice from me. First of all, there’s my website, which is TheBigGameHunter.us. I have more than 8,000 blog posts there that you can watch, listen to or read that will help you find your next job. In addition, if you’re interested in my coaching you, at the site, there’s a button there that says schedule.
Schedule time for a free discovery call. Schedule yourself in for coaching, interview preparation coaching. Salary negotiation advice.
Coaching related to hiring more effectively. Managing and leading. Helping you to be a better executive in your organization and overall being a better employee of your firm.
If you have questions for me, you can ask them at wisio.com forward slash TheBigGameHunter. That’s W-I-S-I-O.com forward slash TheBigGameHunter. The price at Wisio is less than one third of what I’m charging my website.
And I’m doing this because I want to benefit my subscribers here and on YouTube and only you’re going to know about it. You can also connect with me on LinkedIn at LinkedIn.com/in/TheBigGameHunter. Mention that you watched or listened to the content.
I like knowing I’m helping folks. Once we’re connected, you know, it’s nice to hear from you. I’d love to hear from you from time to time about how I’m helping.
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ABOUT JEFF ALTMAN, THE BIG GAME HUNTER
People hire Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter to provide No BS job search coaching and career advice globally because he makes job search
and succeeding in your career easier.
How to Get More Interviews: Look for the Third Way
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