Posts Tagged ‘applying for a job’

By: Jaye T. Darden

There are so many ways to know if a job is going to be right or wrong for you before you even apply. The crucial part of this topic is the ‘knowing’ or knowledge. You have to do a bit of research in order to distinguish between positive and negative aspects of a job you are applying for. The more you know about what you want in a career, the better off you will be when checking out the web or job sites to find your ideal career.

What do you envision as the perfect working environment?
Once you have done your research, the first question you’ll want to ask yourself is, “Does this atmosphere or working environment agree with me?”

This can be seen as the people who are working there, the boss, and work flow. Is it fast paced? How many hours are you required to work a week? Will the boss listen to your ideas? Is it an open atmosphere? Is the working environment more traditional, or is it more cutting edge? You must know these sort of things based on information you have gathered prior to the interview and in the interview as it happens.

Does your passion match the companies?
What else can you have before you go into an interview or even apply to a workplace, passion or interest, of course. You obviously will not go into a place you hate to apply for a job. You need to find something you are passionate about.

Look around for places that may entice you to apply and keep your focus and interest in mind. If you take a job “just for the money,” you’ll feel burned out, overworked and unmotivated after just a few months.

This may not be the easiest thing in the world to do, but it needs to be something you try and make happen. It has been said that if you do a job you love you’re on vacation every day.

Why exactly do you want to work there, of all places?
Many people would answer this question by saying, ” make a living, earn a wage, and obtain cash.” All of these relate to receiving something in return for doing something. In this case, it is all about doing work for a salary or hourly wage.

When applying for a job this is important but look at things from a different perspective. If you’re a hard worker then how will you be rewarded for working, going above and beyond, while motivating others to do their best?

In other words, how does the company you’re applying for reward you for your efforts? If you work extra hours do they benefit you? Can making a big sale increase the chance for promotions? How does this company actually promote being a hard worker? This is so important to jobs and careers in this saturated market. Some may say people are a dime a dozen, but think of the jobs, are they too not out there in droves? Pick the job that will be rewarding in every sense of the word.

You can find out some insider information on companies culture, promotion situations and more by checking out GlassDoor.com. The site encourages current and past employees to review the company, including salary reviews, management reviews and more.

Does taking a job at this company work into your plan for making it to your dream career?
You have to know yourself. And you have to know what you want out of a job beyond a paycheck. People all too often do not know what they want to do in their lives. Answering these questions may be tough, but once a person figures themselves out, they will be ultimately happy with their choices in life. Take a minute out of your day and realize some things about yourself. Do you like organizing, crunching numbers, be creative? What gets you excited to do or think about? Whatever it is. Find a way to incorporate it into your next job – or better yet, start applying for jobs that revolve around that.