Job Interview

Today, I had a job interview at PNC Bank for a customer service position. It was a group interview, with 6 other people from my job training class and 4 people who work in the bank.  There was one main person asking all of the questions.  Everyone was very nice.

Before the interview, we took a tour of the branch and we got to see everyone in action.   After we were done with the tour, we went into a conference room and began the group interview. We went around the room discussing our experience on various topics, such as sales, providing exceptional customer service, and future career goals and I believe that I gave good examples based on my experience.  
This is the first interview that I did not hesitate while answering the questions.  I was nervous in the beginning, but I started to relax as the interview went on.  As we were walking out, one of my classmates mentioned to the interviewer that I became an aunt recently and she wanted to see pictures. I showed her pictures of my nephew on my phone.  The interviewer made everyone feel comfortable and she was very nice.  

I feel really good about the whole process.  The training really helped boost my confidence because we had a lesson on answering possible interview questions and I used some of the tips our professor gave us.  I will know what the final decision is in a few weeks. Wish me luck!  

Asking For Feedback

A few weeks ago, I asked people to send my Life Coach three things that they like about me and three things they would like me to improve on.  It was scary for me to do this assignment because I was afraid of what people had to say about me. I think it is a great exercise to do from time to time because things become known to you that you might not have been aware of.

When I read the feedback, there were things that I would agree on and things that stung a little bit.  After processing the information with my coach, he told me that I can't dwell on every little thing that people say to me because it would really weigh me down. I just have to take it with a grain of salt and move on.  It is just feedback. I can either take it and make a change, or I can leave it and do nothing at all. I want to make a change.  I just need to evaluate where these perceptions are coming from and make better decisions with my words and actions. 

I value the relationships I have with these people and their opinions of me.  I feel fortunate that people care enough about me to take the time to help me become a better person.  Thank you!

She Works Hard For The Money

Today, I am thankful for my job. It is the first job I've ever had and I still work there. I have been working there for twelve years.  It has taught me how to work hard, how to work with other people, and how to be patient.  I really enjoy the people I work with because they always make me laugh. While I am still looking for a full-time job, I'm glad I have this part-time job to go to because a lot of people are struggling.  It has been a great twelve years. 

Rejection

Lately, the job search has been a little frustrating. I have been receiving rejection letters from employers saying that I am either not qualified for the position or they have chosen candidates for the positions already. .  Earlier this year, I got quite a few rejection letters all at once and it made me want to stop the job search. I can't allow myself to do that anymore. I am trying not to take it personally because employers have to go through so many applications and narrow it down to a few people.  The thing I am struggling with is that employers need applicants to have a certain amount of years of experience.  You can't get a job without experience, but you can't get experience without a job either. At least this job training and the volunteer work that I have been doing is keeping me busy and giving me some experience that I can add to my resume. I just have to keep at it and push myself to continue to apply.  One of these days, I will get letters asking me for an interview

Personal and Professional Development

For this weeks assignment in my job training class, I was asked to email people in my life asking their opinion of me. They had to answer what they like about me and what they think I should improve on.  I am not going to get the emails that people send, but I am going to get a list of likes and improvements from my Life Coach. This allows people to be honest without me knowing who said what. To be honest, this assignment scares me a little.  In the past, I took a lot of things to heart and I got defensive. I know that I am not perfect and I have some things I need to work on.  No one is perfect.  This exercise will help me grow as a person.  This is just another one of those experiences that will help me. Thank you to those who have agreed to participate in this assignment.

Making Head-Heart Shifts

Hey everyone! The last webinar for my job training class was really interesting because we talked about shifting our thoughts from our mind to our heart.  Oftentimes, we listen to our minds rather than our hearts. 

When we listen to our minds, it is often negative. There is fear, doubt, and we limit ourselves. We often decide not to do certain things because our minds are telling us that we are in danger.  

When we listen to our hearts, it is often positive. We push our own boundaries. There are no limitations. There is no fear.  Our hearts give us the courage to do things that we want to do without any fear.

Now close your eyes.

What does your mind have to say about these six words:

• Employment
• Money
• Relationships
• Aging
• Your health
• Your overall life

What does your heart have to say about the same six words:

• Employment
• Money
• Relationships
• Aging
• Your health
• Your overall life

It's hard to train yourself to listen to your heart, but it is a good exercise.  I challenge you to listen to your heart more often. The more you listen to the voice in your heart, the louder it gets.

I Don't Have Time

This week in my job training course, we had a lesson in Time Management. Everyone has a busy life. We have jobs, a family, school, and activities. It can be overwhelming at times when we don't know how to manage everything.  

What I hear a lot is, "I don't have time." That's a lie. We do have time. Everyone has the same amount of time in the day, but the way that we manage your time makes all the difference. We tend to put things off that are not as important to us.  

Here are some strategies that we discussed in class:

• Aim for balance
• Set small goals for yourself
• Be flexible
• Set priorities with an ABC system with your highest priorities at the top
• Take time to do nothing and relax
• Take time to do something fun
• Avoid taking on other people's problems
• Write it down
• Do the most challenging thing first
• Learn from mistakes and move on

At the end of the lesson, the professor asked, "What if you knew that you only had a certain amount of time to live?" It was interesting because it meant that we would have even less time to accomplish everything we want to accomplish. I bet your priorities would change and those things you put off would be closer to the top of your list.  

"Not everything has to be done at optimum level. Not all your life has to be organized. Your social life/family life can be spontaneous and unplanned." Annie Mueller

How do you manage your time?  What are some goals that you would like to accomplish?

Creating Change And Reacting To Change

Hey everyone! I had a webinar this afternoon, and we spoke about creating change and reacting to change.  It is the one constant in our lives.  It is inevitable and you can only choose the way you are going to react to it in order to grow as a human being. You can also create change to enhance your life and other's lives.  

Change is scary because it can be unexpected and it forces you out of your comfort zone. It can be overwhelming if you are not prepared for it.  If you choose to learn from these experiences, then you have succeeded.  If something didn't turn out the way you wanted it to, it doesn't mean you failed. It means that you might have to take a different approach. There are always lessons to be learned.  

It goes hand in hand with your attitude.  You can either make the best of it and find something positive in the experience, or you can sit back and let it control you.  Even if you are going through something negative, there is always something positive to take from it.  I think it is very important to have the mindset to want to make changes in your life.   

Whether it is positive or negative, what major changes have you experienced recently? How did you handle it?

"Be the change you wish to see in the world."-Ghandi

Having a Certain Skill Set and Mindset

Today's webinar in my job training was very insightful. We talked about the skills in a job that people already possess, the skills that need to be improved on and the mindset that people must have in order to be successful in a job or in life.
Some of the skills that were talked about consisted of a good problem solver, a good listener, patient, compassionate, good computer skills, and reliable.  We use a lot of these skills in our every day lives; therefore, it allows us to apply these skills to a job.  



During the second part of the exercise, we talked about additional skills that we want to obtain and skills that we need to improve on. Public speaking is a very big fear for a lot of people.  The idea that we might have to talk in front of a large group of people can be a very scary thing. Another skill that people might not possess, is speaking a language other than English. I noticed that a lot of employers are looking for people who are bilingual.  Our society is multicultural and we need to be able to communicate with as many people as possible even if they do not speak our language.

Finally, you need to have a certain mindset in order to be successful.  We always talk about things that we should do instead of things that we must do.  The instructor said that there comes a time where we start "shoulding all over ourselves" and we need to have the mindset that we must get things done.  One of the biggest problems is procrastination and there needs to be a voice in your mind telling you that you must get things done.  Otherwise, people get stressed out when things must get done last minute.  

I think our disabilities contribute to our mindset. For example, when we are dealing with doctors and insurance companies, we really have to exercise our patience with them.  We also have to use problem solving skills in order to make sure that we are getting the products and services that we need.

What are the skills that you know you are good at? What skills do you need to improve on? What is your mindset?

Thanks for reading!

Day One of Training: How You Present Yourself

This afternoon, I had my first class in my 14-week long job 

training course.  The class consists of men and women of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities.  Everyone was very nice.  As soon as I got to the school I saw two people in wheelchairs, a girl and a guy. I was hesitant to go up to them and ask if they were a part of the class because I didn't want to assume anything.  Maybe they were students of the school and they just happened to be in wheelchairs.  I did decide to go up to them and I met two great people who are taking the class with me.  

The main focus of today's class was about the way you present yourself to other people.  You have to be able to communicate verbally and non verbally.  People are always going to question you, so you have to know what you are talking about and understand what you are talking about.   That is how you gain respect and trust from people.  You have to be confident.

I've struggled with confidence for as long as I can remember, personally and professionally. People have doubted me so many times and I believed them.  People told me that I would never amount to anything, but I am proud to say that I have a Master's degree.  It is the biggest accomplishment of my life, but sometimes I still find myself doubting my abilities.  I don't like to make mistakes, especially in a job setting, but I know that it is the only way to learn.  

I had two job interviews in the last year, and I believe the reason why I didn't get the jobs that I was interviewing for was because of my confidence.  The interviewers probably sensed that I was nervous because I took long pauses when I didn't know how to answer a question.  I have to show that I am capable and confident in my ability to do what I am asked, even if I have to fake it.  

This is something that I really need to work on and I think this class will help me get through it.  I'm looking forward to seeing my growth and hopefully it will help me get a job in the near future!  

Back to School Blog: 10 Resume Mistakes That You Should Not Make

• Spelling and Grammatical Errors- Always use spell check and proper grammar. 
• Unclear Summary or Objective- Employers do not have a lot of time to go through your summary so your objective needs to be short and to the point.
• Talking About Yourself- Don't talk about what a job will do for you. Instead, talk about what you will do for the job.  
• Things You are Responsible For- Employers would much rather see what you have succeeded in rather than what you are responsible for. 
• Length- When you are first starting out, your resume should only be one page in length. When you gain more experience, you will add to your resume.  
• Too Many Words- Short and to the point is key. Use up to three bullet points for each job, in my opinion.
• No Mention of Leadership- Always include volunteer work and community involvement. You want to show that you are a well rounded person and a leader.
• Lack of Professionalism- If you have an email that says something like bsbgirlxo82@gmail.com, it's time to change it. Also, make sure your message on your phone sounds professional. No one wants to hear an entire song before leaving a message. Make sure you include contact information in the top of your resume. Keep your resume simple and do not add pictures or print it on different color paper.
• Font- Make sure your font is consistent throughout your resume.  A helpful tip: You might want to match your resume and cover letter fonts so that it looks put together.
• References- Only submit references when asked.