7 Keys to Landing Your Dream Job

By Matthew Setter


We all know it’s tough getting jobs these days. So here are seven tips that will help you nail your dream job:

1. Build a brand

When you’re applying for a job, you could be like so many others – BORING! You could have nothing interesting, innovative, novel or remarkable about you.
You could send in a CV in the same style, font, line-height, line-spacing as EVERYBODY ELSE. Now think for a second, what’s going to be remarkable and memorable about you? Answer: NOTHING!
Businesses spend hundreds, thousands, millions each year building a brand, so why don’t you? If you have no brand and aren’t sure where to start, ask yourself:

• Am I on LinkedIn?
• Do I have a personal website?
• Do I have personal business cards?
• Is my CV different?
• Does it have extra polish?
• Does it have sharp wording?
• Does it have professional color?
• Do I have a personal video introducing myself?

Tim Reid at the Small Business, Big Marketing Podcast gives a good introduction to this.

2. Turn up early

The surest way to not get the job is to be late or scrape in on time. If you can’t even turn up on time, then rightly or wrongly, this says a lot about you in the mind of the interviewer.
The sad thing is, a lot of very talented and capable people barely organize themselves and then wonder why they aren’t called back. Don’t be one of these people! Without wanting to flog a dead horse here:

• Know where you need to be
• Know who you are talking to
• Have contact details handy – email, linkedIn, phone, fax and website
• Check out the place on Google Maps so that it’s easier to find

But don’t be too early either. Being on time means being (no more than) 10 – 15 minutes early. That way you’re not hanging about and needing to be looked after, and you’re not cutting it so close that you’re filling out paperwork when you should be in the interview.

3. Preempt interview questions

When you interview for a role, it’s so important to articulate why you’re it, the bomb- shizzel, the top notch, top dog, the A1 with a bullet! So pre-empt questions that you might get asked and be prepared with answers that show why you’re the right person to hire.
Try what Greek businessman, Aristotle Onassis, used to do: he rehearsed in his mind (for hours if necessary), asking himself questions that would likely be asked and refining multiple answers until he nailed each and every one of them perfectly.
Don’t let yourself be surprised. Take the initiative and pre-empt!

4. Research the organization thoroughly

If you get the job, you’ll probably work there for 2+ years, 44 – 48 weeks a year, 5 days a week, 7 – 10 hours a day. So you should damn well know a TON about these people, what they do, who they are, when they kicked off, why they did so, what they’ve done recently, where they’re going and WHY!
This isn’t sucking up to the teacher and offering them an apple – this is YOUR career and your life. So take it seriously.
Not sure where to start? Here are a few helpful resources: LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Tumblr, Companies House (or the local companies register), plus the company’s website and press releases. The list goes on and on.

Keys 5 -7 and complete BrazenCareerist Article