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IT DOESN’T MATTER whether you’re seeking a part-time casual job or a full-time corporate ladder position, appearances are critical to performance at interviews.
Worse, recruitment decisions are often made within the first five minutes of eyeballing a candidate based on appearances and – dare I say it? – odours and personal habits alone.
To win at the interview game it helps enormously if you can build rapport with recruiters from the first moment of meeting. The more comfortable they feel about you, the better the interview will go. Moreover, if someone looks professional, confident and a good fit with the organisation, most recruiters will assume he or she can do the job on offer. Wild hair, chipped nail polish, shirt-tail hanging out, and suspicious smells etc., rarely build rapport – they repel. It’s that simple.
Or is it? Well, no, not quite.
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Preparing for job interviews isn’t just about scrubbing up, throwing on conservative threads and taming one’s hair. It’s about turning recruiters on. Drawing them in. Doing everything in your power to make them want to hear and then like what you have to say.
Turn them off and nobody’s listening. Instead, they’re thinking variations of the same thing over and over again on a loop: “How fast can I get this person out of here?”
In an ideal world, of course, the substance of what you have to say would be far more important than how you look, act and speak. But it isn’t an ideal and never will be. Like it or lump it, research consistently shows you are more likely to land a job if:
You’re obviously freshly washed. If male, that you’re clean shaven or, if you have a beard, that it’s neatly trimmed, along with your hair, have clean fingernails and use deodorant. If female, your face is not plastered in make-up, hair is tidy, have clean, subtly manicured fingernails as opposed to 5-inch talons, are also using deodorant, not wearing clothes so risqué they scream “Look at me!” and, if generously endowed, your cleavage is covered and you’re using a robust bra. Regardless off a recruiter’s sex or gender orientation, bouncing boobs, saluting nipples, and over-exposed flesh are extremely distracting.
In the case of both males and females, you have on clean, smoothly ironed clothes, trousers with a sharp crease down the leg, and are wearing polished shoes, not open-toed sandals, flip-flops or Dita von Teese stilettos.
Your breath doesn’t hum of garlic, tobacco, alcohol, and / or onions. Nobody – but nobody – enjoys holding their breath in confined spaces. Heads will swivel, throats will gag, and the interview is over. Do as your mother told you to: brush your teeth. Equally critical is not wafting a mushroom cloud of aftershave or perfume so pungent it clears a path before you.
Other bullet-proof strategies for turning recruiters off include:
Avoiding eye contact. This is a big no-no. Just do it. Otherwise recruiters will suspect you of lying and you don’t need me to tell you what happens next. Nothing.
Eyes fixed and dilated are equally troublesome. Strangely recruiters are averse to the trapped, drilling sensation this triggers in heads. Focus on the chin or forehead to soften your gaze instead. Doing so will also aid those erring in the other direction.
Limp handshakes. Recruiters will understand if a hand betrays signs of nervousness but they will never, ever, forgive or forget the slithery, slimy sensation that comes from weakly pressed flesh-on-flesh.
Cracked knuckles. Yes, yes, a firm handshake is advisable but please don’t squeeze down and wait for the crack of joints. Equally, don’t yank a recruiter out of their air space and into yours. Doing so could be misconstrued.
Fiddling and fidgeting with anything. This is especially true of nose-picking, chewing nails, poking fingers in ears, and / or exploring one’s nether regions. Need I say more? Yes. Stop it. Stop it now. Each and every one is revolting, particularly if you find something and pause to examine it.
Slouching, yawning, playing with hair, checking watches and / or mobile phones. If you have something better to do, then go do it. Oh, and if your mobile phone rings, go home. And if you must yawn, cover your mouth. Your tonsils are your own business.
It’s also a compete turn-off to recruiters if you:
Speak so softly you can’t be heard or boom so loudly you can be heard three rooms away.
Give answers in a hesitant fashion or speak in monosyllables, to wit – ummm, aaaah, no, umm, yes, I dunno, might be – all of which guarantees being told to: “SPIT IT OUT” even if only in the recruiter’s mind.
Constantly interrupting and / or gabbling at warp speed. The time to shut up or slow down is when the recruiter’s eyes glaze over.
Downplay achievements or abilities, or criticise yourself continuously.
Equally damaging are making excuses, blaming others for past mistakes, and bitching about previous employers.
State sole objective for job change is money / package related / fancy the receptionist.
Even hinting at possessing any of the following traits will also guarantee bombing at interview:
Arrogance, conceit, aggressiveness and / or overbearing attitude. Who wants to work with a boor?
Lack of tact or courtesy and / or tardiness. Forgetting the recruiter’s name or arriving late is rude and there’s no excuse for either.
Having no clear, plausible reasons for leaving current position.
Elizabeth Hutcheson is a career consultant with www.SliNuaCareers.com, who offer CV preparation, interview training and mock interview services. They have offices in Dublin, Galway and Ballinrobe, Co Mayo. To get their free ebook offering Job Hunting and Interview Tips, email getthatjob@slinuacareers.com with ‘ebook’ in the subject line.
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This is the most conflicting disease ever! Kids were super spreaders, now they’re not. Wear masks to masks can spread the disease to everyone must wear a mask in retail but not in other indoor settings. The saying ‘We’re all in this together’ but some people went to work throughout, some people had to struggle to work from home whilst minding kids and some people reckoned they enjoyed their time off hugely. Pubs can’t open but there have been protests, amusement centres are open, children’s playgrounds are open etc. A lot of people have taken hour cuts or pay cuts but the Government junior ministers got a pay rise of €16k which is the equivalent to a part time workers ANNUAL wage. It’s all very inconsistent.
@Joan Needham: 100% right well said, even at the start of was young people will kill granny then they were fine now it’s back to young people will kill there granny again, also vaccine will get us out of this and only way to get back to normal and yesterday we are told there’s might never be a “silver bullet” and might never be one it’s all over the place along with all the policies being introduced, I say people could lose patience very soon
@Thornto84: it’s hardly surprising. It’s a brand new illness that we’re learning more about each day. Advice is going to change based on the latest evidence. Would you prefer if they just came up with one plan at the start and blindly stuck to it just to save face?
@The Guru: The “it’s a new virus we are still learning” is the worse counter argument, we’ve known about it for 8/9 months and have possibly 1000′s of scientists studying it and you still go with it’s a brand new illness and we are still learning, its a coronavirus and we know alot about them, the common cold is one, only good research coming out now is suggesting we actually have a good immunity to it, fair few articles coming out suggesting, I highly suggest have a look at them it will actually offer people bit of hope rather then the doom and gloom
@Joe_X: Don’t worry I do that buddy why I’ve come across plenty about how we could actually be able to develop immunity to this virus, you might try your own advice you’re very quick to try and shoot people down who have a different opinion
I suspect a lot of other diseases were as conflicting the first few months after they were discovered. It takes years, probably decades to learn about a disease. Of course we would be confused at this point. The years of research just aren’t there to give us the information. We’re learning, bit by bit.
The South Korean study said Primary/infants (age 5-10)was the least infectious group but adolescents in Secondary (10-19) was the most infectious. This article just says “schools” so I’d have to see breakdown by age ranges. From the same lancet article: “A notable exception to the general pattern of very low attack rates in school settings occurred during an outbreak centred in a high school in northern France
Infection attack rates were high in students (aged 14–18 years) and staff (38% and 49%, respectively)” That matches the South Korean study.
This study has since been shown not to be correct sure the current state of emergency in Australia began in school system. There are numerous studies that now show in schools that transmission rates are similar to rest of society and higher where social distance and masks are not worn . Children over 10 transmit at same rate as adults and under at around 50 %. Asymptomatic spread is common as children can have few mild symptoms.
@Forkan Orla: Only 12 students in this Lancet study were found to be positive with COVID to begin with. I wouldn’t be making national policy based on the outcomes on literally a dozen students that were mostly contained with contact tracing. They might have gotten lucky in January but look at Australia now with a run on supermarkets yesterday. In fact Ireland was mentioned in this same Lancet article, six students in one outbreak, probably that ski trip. Still good news about primary schools ages.
This research is completely out of date and does not reflect the current pandemic progression. School term in Australua is Feb 4 to April 9. The progression of the pandemic has developed in extraordinary ways since this time.
Australia had 21 cases in March 10 and has 395 (Aug 3)cases daily now as it is now in crisis and was not then. What was the R number when this research was done? What is it now?
The temperatures in term 1 were favourable to outdoor activities. What was the air quality in the schools?
We can have our schools open with the simple measures hand washing with soap, cough/sneeze etiquette, cleaning surfaces with detergent avoiding chemicals which cause respiratory irritation and dermatitis. Air quality of 5 air changes per hour increased in inclement weather and air purification where air flow us inadequate. Face coverings should be used where possible when indoors. Get outdoors as much as possible.
We can do this. This tiny germ has no brain – we have. Let’s use it.
Nobody is claiming that it’s the primary mode of transmission but people need to be cautious about proper ventilation and the Government need to update their advise. Most of that advise to schools stuff comes from very early data gathered in April and May. It’s August and yet here we are again with the “no need for masks, just stay 2m apart and for some reason 1m in a school because the virus is scared of nuns”.
@Daniel Murray: Yes WHO have not extended face coverings to all indoor situations which is delaying our control of the pandemic.
COVID-19 multiplies and spreads from human lungs. From each breath to cough the virus is emitted from the infected host. Close conversations in enclosed spaces are a risk… but introduce fresh air and this risk lowers. Unlike hair lice we cannot see the germ, but we can prevent it’s spread by wearing face coverings. We face a long winter lockdown and many unnecessary unpleasant lifelong COVID-19 health complications if this is not managed safely. In WHO terms it is not a virus you would want to contract.
Just open the schools up, cos we need another way to blame the youth for something in relation to covid, also sure them pesky teachers are getting easy money for minding your darling, well behaved monsters, so back to school as fast as possible even if this government are proving they have no real clue or nowhere near the resources to make it completely safe to do so…..meanwhile mammy and daddy can go off shopping on Saturday and not wear a mask and meet up with friends for drinks with the added knowledge of knowing they spent 9 euro on food each so they don’t have to worry about covid cos its only kids and the elderly that were meant to be the targets of this disease
The headline should read: “A study of 12 children”
That study isn’t reliable on such a small data set. Another statistic you could read from it is that the 27 infected had a transmission rate (R) of 0.6 in s school setting alone. So their overall R rate would be much higher after they return to their families reach evening.
The journal demonstrates the real need for a law forcing the media to properly reference “studies” they quote in articles.
I had to look pretty hard for the original study, and it does not say “very low risk of students and teachers transmitting covid-19″. It says that with proper social distancing measures and controls, that it *can be* low.
Ie: “We can open schools with strict controls and limits”, not “it’s totally fine, kids don’t spread it” like this article implies.
I assume the government will ignore this and force the kids to wear masks just like they will ignore what the WHO said 2 weeks ago-There is no evidence that Asymptomatic spread the virus.
So the WHO was asked why were they advising masks to be worn.
@Vladimir Macro: Presenting strong claims without evidence to support or sources? Very reliable indeed. Thanks for your very valuable contribution to the discussion!
@Vladimir Macro: The W.H.O state that true asymptomatic transmission rate is unknown, not doesn’t exist. They also state that the rate of asymptomatic cases is most likley at 23%. What they do differentiate is asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic cases. 44% of transmission, in cases that developed some sort of symptoms (77% of cases), is achieved before symptoms appear. So in this case masks are important, especially as the routes of transmission are still relatively unknown.
@Tony Garcia: Nothing to do with the unions here. This research is already out of date and the experiences of other countries who have opened schools contradicts it. The teachers’ unions have been involved in talks with the department of education around planning for re-opening right from the start and have consistently said that the safety of their members is their number one priority, as it should be. Even two weeks ago we might have said that numbers in the community are so low that the schools should re-open but not now given the sharp rise in new case numbers here.
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