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Get Students Ramped Up for Career Services from Day One – Back to School

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Photo byA Chris LawtonA onA Unsplash

It’s easy to get lost in the excitement and confusion when adjusting to coming back to school.A  But, as you know, planning for internships, building portfolios, updating resumes, and looking for post-grad job opportunities can’t wait until everyone is comfortable. In fact, time is of the essence for many students to get their foot in the door in a competitive market.

Many students recognize the urgency to begin piecing together the picture of their ideal industry, role, or employer. The trouble is they don''t realize career services has the information they need to establish themselves as professionals before they graduate.

Here are a few ways you can get students ramped up for career services from their first impression:A 

Send a campus-wide welcome email

Get it in early and make it fun. Use a video introduction to make a personal connection and make sure your personality shines through. Students, especially those new to campus, may be nervous to come out to meet the career services team. This is the prime time to get in front of students and make it personal. 

Have members of career services record brief video introductions that share what they do in the day-to-day to help students map their academic to career paths. Include a few fun facts as well. Students’ nerves will be put to ease recognizing career service team members who binge-watch the same Netflix originals, follow the same social influences, or love the same spicy taco sauce. 

Host a career services open house

You''ve tried this before, and only a few students showed up, right? You could dissect the details of your events from timing your invites to hor d''oeuvres but the ways students connect with social engagements, especially in an academic environment, changes as frequently as year to year.

Instead, look at current trends, whether through exploring social media or surveying students in your network, and identify entertainment and resources that resonate with college students. Perhaps you can host an escape room-themed event or American Ninja Warrior challenge.A 

Relate the theme, the best you can, to the job search and encourage students to show their grit and come out triumphant. The key is to show that your career services team is relatable and invested in helping students launch into their career journeys. Even better, you can show them it can be fun. 

Plan a class-to-class introduction campaign

Admittedly, depending on the size of your campus or professors'' schedules, blocking out time for class-to-class career services awareness presentations may not be practical or worthwhile. You could consider popping into different buildings and catching professors and students in conference halls and classrooms to share a fun fact, relevant to the course or career path.

Then you could leave some career services marketing collateral, maybe some mints or post-it notes, or pens with social handles and contact information. Make it easy for students to connect online by asking professors to share and even hang a URL code students can easily scan and save the career services page to their bookmarks. 

The key is to get in front of students, show professors you''re serious about student success, and make your services memorable and accessible.  

Make smart use of career services budgets

I don''t have to tell you this, but it''s worth acknowledging. Your budget for career services is stretched thin. You want to host events and give every student complimentary care packages, but quite frankly, there''s a hole in the bucket.

In fact, following the pandemic, NACE revealed one-third of career services professionals reported cuts to personnel budgets and over 50% reported a decrease in their non-personnel budget. This can be devastating for students who desperately need your guidance.A 

Deflated budgets will make it more challenging to blast career services presence, but there are plenty of ways to make the most of your resources and skills. For example, many businesses offer free hats, t-shirts, pens, and koozies. Reach out to employers to build connections that could open more doors for internships and recruiting opportunities.

When you share job opportunities and the guided paths students need to follow to earn top job offers following graduation, you can toss in a career services business card with merch from an employer that caught their attention. Be creative and be smart with your budget. Don''t throw it all down for the biggest back-to-school event if you can get a better turnout once students settle in. You know your students, school, and surrounding community best. Lean into the support and resources they offer.A 

Set Students Up for Succss

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The post Get Students Ramped Up for Career Services from Day One – Back to School appeared first on Blog Job Hunting Career Management Solutions | CareerShift.

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Interview Tips: Master Your Nonverbal Communication
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Interview Tips: Master Your Nonverbal Communication

If you are going to an interview, there are many things you will want to consider. Many people think that knowing how to accurately answer the questions is the only thing that needs to be practiced. In reality, you also need to master your nonverbal communication to demonstrate your best attributes to the interviewer.

There are a few things you will need to think about. Your nonverbal communication is one of the most important aspects of an interview. This includes factors such as your gestures, body language, facial expressions, and more. These communication signals are important because they send a multitude of messages to the interviewer. Many times, nonverbal communication is subconscious, but it is still something that people will notice. Just as you will control what you verbally say, you will want to control what you communicate nonverbally, too.

It is a good idea to have your verbal match your nonverbal communication. This means if you say you are confident that you can give the business what it needs because you have years of experience, you do not want to come off as timid, shy, and unsure of yourself. Instead, you want to exude confidence.

Here are a few interview tips for nonverbal communication in an interview:

Get Plenty Of Practice

One of the best things you can do is to practice your interview ahead of time. You can do this by yourself, though you will want to have a mirror or video recording so you can evaluate your communication signals, or with a friend via a mock interview. When practicing for a job interview, you should think about the things you appear to be saying nonverbally and think about how you can change them to give the impression you are looking for.

Be Mindful During Your Interview

Man smiles during a job interview

You should be aware of how you are communicating during the interview, but be sure not to overthink and become distracted from the interview questions. For example, if you want to demonstrate your confidence, then you need to think about having excellent posture, keeping eye contact with your interviewer, and making sure to keep a calm demeanor.

Be Aware Of Your Hands

Man listens to a question during a job interview

A big issue many people face when they are in an interview is that they do not know what to do with their hands. Individuals should avoid fidgeting and touching their hair and face because the interviewer can read these communication signals negatively. These nervous movements and fidgets may be a sign of anything from uncertainty in your qualifications to lying about something.

It is also important to give the interviewer an open body position without crossing your arms, which shows that you are comfortable and open to discussion. By crossing your arms, you are sending the message that you are closed off, which makes an interviewer think you may have something to hide or feel negatively about the interview. You can keep your arms at your side or on your lap. Using your hands when you explain something is fine as well, and it is seen as a very open gesture to show your palms to the other individual while explaining.

Pay Attention To The Interviewer’s Nonverbal Communication

Man shakes the hiring manager's hand before a job interview

While thinking about the right thing to say both verbally and nonverbally, you need to think about the message you are getting from the interviewer. For instance, if you see them lean back or look uncomfortable, you may be in their personal space. If the interviewer seems impatient or uncomfortable, you may want to try to explain yourself better or offer shorter and more concise answers.

There are many different aspects to think about with nonverbal communication and what it means in the business world. If you are finding that you are not having the success you want with an interview, you may find it helpful to take a class on nonverbal communication so you can achieve the results you are looking for.

Or you could join our FREE community. It’s a private, online platform where workers, just like you, are coming together to learn and grow into powerful Workplace Renegades. More importantly, we have tons of resources inside our community that can help you prepare for your next job interview.

It’s time to find work that makes you feel happy, satisfied, and fulfilled. Join our FREE community today to finally become an empowered business-of-one!

This article was originally published at an earlier date.

Pulling The Tiger’s Teeth: How To Deal With Angry Customers
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Pulling The Tiger’s Teeth: How To Deal With Angry Customers

Millions of people work in customer service. Customer service roles vary from contact center agents handling enquiries about a 10-dollar bus service to account directors managing billion-dollar clients.

Sooner or later, they all have to deal with angry customers.

I am one of these customer service professionals. Here are a few tricks I’ve learned over the years.

Mindset

Woman at a coffee shop helps an angry customer

Customers can get angry, abusive, or even violent.

Even the angriest customer is unlikely to be angry at you, specifically, if you have the right mindset.

Firstly, check your own emotions and how they affect your behavior.

If a customer starts acting aggressively, check your own pulse rate and heart rate. Is the blood rushing to your head? This is when you have to be still. Responding to anger with anger makes a bad situation worse.

This doesn’t mean you have no right to be angry. If someone behaves aggressively, millions of years of evolution have built the “fight or flight” program into our brains. In this situation, reacting aggressively or running away will not help.

Instead, try and put yourself in the customer’s shoes. The customer wants to go home at the end of the day. He finds out his bus has been cancelled. The next one is in three hours. Or your corporate client’s IT director has spent half a million dollars on a new computer. It doesn’t work. If it can’t be fixed, his job is on the line. How would you feel?

The Customer Is Always “Emotionally Right”

Angry customer calls a customer service representative

As Mr. Brian Shore, CEO of ZOOM International says: “The customer may not always be right, but the customer is always emotionally right.”

Emotion is the key. Emotion drives angry customers’ behavior. Logic will not prevail until the emotion has been handled.

Many try to ignore emotional behavior. It’s better to openly acknowledge and validate the customer’s emotion. Try this response: “I can see you’re feeling very frustrated/angry about this. If I were in your position, I’d feel the same way too.”

Show the customer that you have recognized and respect his feelings, and understand the urgency of the situation.

If the customer is still expressing anger, stay silent and let him continue. If you are in a public area, lead him politely somewhere out of public view so that he can “vent” there.

The customer is less likely to feel angry with you specifically. Once he sees you are “on his side,” he may be ready to have a rational conversation.

The worst thing is to tell an angry customer to “calm down.” This implies that the customer has no right to feel angry at all. Customers don’t usually react positively to that. It’s better to tell the customer that you can see that he is angry, and you want to help him. Then, ask him politely if you can ask these questions to fully understand the situation.

Take Control Of The Conversation

Customer service representative talks to a customer

Asking questions allows you to take more control of the situation. Once the customer is answering your questions, use the customer’s name and the “question/answer/comment” rapport-building techniques. (See “further reading” below.)

If you have a lot of questions, let him know to manage his expectations. (“This may take some time—may I ask you some questions?”) If the questions relate to technical details, such as website addresses, credentials, part numbers, etc., you might want to give him a list of questions and some time to find the answers.

Positive Language

Young woman talks to an angry customer

Angry customers do not respond well to being told something can’t be done. Negative language, offering no solutions, and implying that the customer is to blame does not help the situation, even if it is true.

If what they say they want is not possible, ask more questions to find out what they really want. (Your flight to Manchester is cancelled. When do you need to get there?) There might be an alternative that more or less gives them what they want.

Sometimes “no” really does mean “no.” In that case, try to soften the blow, but make sure he understands it really is not possible. Try saying this: “I appreciate that this situation is very frustrating for you. I’m afraid we can’t help you right now. I’m sorry.”

A couple of very important points.

Never use the word “but” after “I’m sorry” or “I appreciate you are feeling frustrated.” The word “but” sends the message “Disregard all the nice things I said before.”

When you use the word “sorry” or apologize, do not say specifically what you are apologizing for. That may be taken as an admission of liability and used in court. Likewise, if you cannot give a clear and company-authorized reason why something is not possible, it’s better not to explain.

Clear Outcomes & Managing Expectations

Customer service representative helps a customer

It’s very important to give the customer a clear outcome. If you can solve his problem, the outcome is clear. If not, the outcome is also clear.

If you need more information, or something else has to happen, then make it very clear to the customer what will happen next, who needs to take the next action, and tell him when this is going to happen.

You need to let the customer know what happens next as clearly and accurately as possible. If the news is bad, telling the customer everything will be fine won’t help him, your employer, or you.

To manage your expectations, everything I have written above won’t work every time! There are some problems that cannot be solved, and there are some customers that cannot be helped.

How was it for you?

I love hearing about other people’s experiences! Let me know your “hacks” for dealing with angry customers!

Further reading…

You can read more about rapport building here: Don’t Be A Wallflower! A Beginner’s Guide To Building Rapport

You can read more about positive language here: Positive Language For No-Nonsense Managers

How To Explain Job-Hopping To A Recruiter
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How To Explain Job-Hopping To A Recruiter

So your looking for a job need to explain to a recruiter why you’ve been job-hopping. How can you effectively explain your job-hopping habit without disqualifying yourself as a job candidate?

The Best Way To Explain Job-Hopping To A Recruiter

@j.t.odonnell How to explain job hopping to a recruiter. #recruiter #interviewtips #interview #jobinterview #jobinterviewtips #jobinterviewquestions #jobsearchhelp #jobsearchtips #jobsearch #careeradvice #careertok #edutok #careertiktok #careertips ♬ original sound – J.T. O’Donnell

Well, first, you need to understand job-hopping from the recruiter’s point of view. To a recruiter, job-hopping is a red flag. They’re worried that, if they do hire you for a position, you’re going to ditch the company six months later because that’s a pattern in your work history.

In order to effectively explain job-hopping to a recruiter, you need to revise your work history by filling in the gaps.

For each job, a recruiter wants to know:

  • What did you learn?
  • What did you experience?
  • How did you grow your skills?
  • What made you leave your job and move to the next one? (What opportunity was at that next job? What was the next thing that you were going to learn there?)

Walk the recruiter through your job-hopping history by talking about what you learned and how you learned even more at the next job. When you get to the current situation, you then look at them and say, “For those reasons, I’m now very clear in the value that I can bring and what I want in a job. And I am looking to stay put. And so while I know it looks like I’ve been job-hopping, I believe that that journey brought me to this moment where I have all the experience that I need to stay here and do a really good job for you.”

That’s what recruiters need to hear. If you follow this strategy, your job-hopping habit won’t prevent you from landing your next job.

Navigating job search challenges like this one can be incredibly difficult, especially if you’re not sure what value you bring to the table as a professional. The good news is, I can help.

I’d love it if you joined my FREE community where professionals like you are learning how to become empowered in their careers so they can finally find career happiness and satisfaction, and overcome job burnout once and for all!

Sign up for my FREE community and become a Workplace Renegade today! My team and I are looking forward to working with you soon.