5 Resume Tips for Older Professionals

5 Resume Tips for Older Professionals5 Resume Tips for Older Professionals0By law, age should bedrngnis be a consideration for employment. However, older job seekers sometimes fear it may be an issue. Turn those worries into action by offering employers a stand-out resume that gets them excited by what you bring to the table. Below are five resume tips for older professionals that will have hiring managers looking at your qualifications rather than your age.Here are five resume tips for older professionals1. Target your document.Regardless of an applicants age, a resume should demonstrate why the candidate is the best choice for a given position. Focus on creating a strong case.The single biggest mistake older job searchers make with their resumes is believing that a resume is a comprehensive career history instead of a marketing document that outlines your qualifications for a targeted job, says Duncan Mathison, co-author of Unlock the Hidden Job Market 6 Steps to a Successful Job S earch When Times are Tough. Begin by looking at job postings to understand what your targeted employers are looking for and tailor the resume to highlight only those items that match their needs.2. Choose an effective structure.Dont feel bound by convention when presenting your background. Stating things in alternate, yet still truthful, ways can make your document livelier. Two possibilities Mathison suggestsRemove the dates from your degrees and add a section under Education called Professional Coursework. This allows you to highlight the most relevant and recent knowledge needed to perform in your target job. Guess how many hours of training you have had and add relevant course titles. For example, More than 300 hours of professional development courses, including topics such as Effective Performance Management, Cloud Based Computing, and Social Media Marketing. Notice you do not have to list all training you have had, just the relevant topics.Drop off early career jobs, particul arly if they do not directly sttze your qualifications for your targeted position. If some early career jobs are a critical piece towards your qualifications to your targeted job, close out the Experience section of past positions with a Previous Experience item. Follow that with a brief statement such as Early professional and progressive positions including . . . where you list only relevant job titles.3. Keep up with the times.Remove references to outdated technology. Include your LinkedIn URL (and be sure up-to-date info and a professional-quality photo await the potential viewer). Take courses in your fields hot topics or in areas where you might be lacking. Anything you can do to dispel stereotypes of older workers being stuck in the past will support your candidacy, and lifelong learners get noticed.4. Be proud of your accomplishments.Remember that age can be an asset. Seasoned candidates have a variety of life experiences from which to draw upon and can cite real-world examp les of traits employers value such as loyalty, ability to meet deadlines, innovation, and teamwork. When you start seeing yourself as a prized vintage wine, chances are others will too.5. Seek input from others.Finally, dont be afraid to get help. A professional resume writer can work with you to craft an application that truly showcases your abilities and maximizes the chances of getting through the automated resume scanners many firms use nowadays. At the very least, run your resume by a few trusted friends or members of a job-seeker support group. These extra eyes may spot ways you can be clearer, more effective, or convey a better tone.Readers, have you utilized the above resume tips for older professionals? Share your successes and challenges with us below

What NOT to Do When Job Searching

What NOT to Do When Job SearchingWhat NOT to Do When Job SearchingWhat to do and what not to do when job searching can feel like a minefield of unknowns, but it really doesnt have to be so complicated. Throughout the application process, there are several seemingly small points of contact that occur between a company and an applicant. Its important to keep in mind that each of those points of contact helps an organization decide whether or not you are a good fit.Heres what NOT to do while job searchingDo not stalk the hiring manager.You found a job listing that is tailor-made just for you. In your zealousness to connect with the hiring manager, you emaille and call the partrepeatedly. But theres a fine line between being eager and a borderline stalker. If youre not getting responses to your communications, limit yourself to three or four calls or emails in a two-month time frame. If you do get a response, read it carefully. Is it encouraging further check-ins? If a person says they w ill reach out to you, its best to continue your job search.Dont ask about compensation too soon.It would be awesome if every job description included salary and benefits info. Unfortunately, very few do. And while that information can certainly be a deciding factor as to whether a job could be a financial fit for you, you shouldnt ask about compensation too quickly. Wait until youve gone through at least two rounds of job interviews before broaching the topic. Remember, your focus should be on explaining what you have to offer the company, not what theyre going to pay a potential employee.Dont get defensive or argumentative.One of the biggest complaints among job seekers is not hearing back from a company after an interview. So if a company is willing to take the time to send you a note letting you know that you were not selected for a job, accept it graciously. Its even fine to ask if there is any feedback they could give you to help you be a better job seeker. Even if youre upset that you didnt get the job, try to keep your cool and avoid getting defensive. Telling the recruiter theyre wrong, or trying to go over that persons head isnt going to win you any brownie points or cause you to be reconsidered for the job.Dont make simple mistakes.It can be really hard to see your own mistakes sometimes. Thats why you should read (and reread) any parts of your job application before submitting it, like your cover letter, resume, or any corresponding emails. If youve read through your own work so often the letters are swirling together, ask another person to proofread it for you.As for the actual job interview, dont be late. Even a few minutes could be counted against you and docked from your interview time. And make sure that you dont dress inappropriately for the interview depending on the field and position youre applying for, a suit or casual business dress will usually do just fine.Dont forget to read everything.From the job description to emails with a potentia l boss, its important to read all correspondence relating to your job interview carefully. For starters, the job listing may have very specific instructions for applying that, if you dont adhere to, might get your application rejected by the applicant tracking ordnungsprinzip (ATS). If do you receive any communications from the company, read them well, too. Try not to ask a question that has already been answered. If you inadvertently do, apologize and be extra careful moving forward.Dont mass email the company.Its not a good job searching strategy to send the same email with your resume to every person in the company. It will either get deleted or re-routed- several times- to the appropriate person who wont appreciate the deluge in their inbox. Apply for the position once via the method requested in the job description, and then continue your job search as usual until youre contacted for an interview.Dont narrow your options.While creating aprofile on a job site like is a great sta rting point, dont stop there. You have to actively seek out potential job opportunities wherever you can find them. Look to company websites, alumni networks, and LinkedIn for your job search resources. The wider you cast your net with a specific job in mind, the mora likely youll be to find the right position.Start Your Job SearchJennifer Parriscontributed to this post.

Madiha El Mehelmy Kotb, ASME Past President, Receives CSA Grou...

Madiha El Mehelmy Kotb, ASME Past President, Receives CSA Grou... Madiha El Mehelmy Kotb, ASME Past President, Receives CSA Grou... Madiha El Mehelmy Kotb, ASME Past President, Receives CSA Groups Highest AwardJuly 13, 2018 (Left to right) David Weinstein, president and CEO of CSA Group Greg Weeres, chair of the CSA Group Board of Directors 2018 John Jenkins Award winner Madiha El Mehelmy Kotb and Mary Cianchetti, president, Standards, CSA Group. (Photo courtesy of CSA Group.)The Canadian standards organization CSA Group recently presented ASME Past President Madiha El Mehelmy Kotb with its most prestigious honor, the 2018 John Jenkins Award, in recognition of her decades of tafelgeschirr supporting public safety through codes and standards development and advocacy. Kotb, a resident of Montreal, Canada, received the award at CSA Groups Annual Conference awards ceremony, which was held June 19 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.The award, which was established in 1978, acknowledges individ uals who have demonstrated leadership in the development, advancement, and application of voluntary standards encouraged the development and advancement of standards both nationally and internationally and helped to substantially advance the arts and sciences related to standardization.Kotb, who was the former head of the Pressure Vessels Technical Services Division for Rgie du btiment du Qubec and is currently an independent consultant with Madiko Consulting, was recognized for her visionary leadership, unparalleled professionalism, sweeping contributions to public safety, and commanding advocacy of standards and the standards development process, both nationally and internationally. An active member of CSA Group for more than 34 years, Kotb has shown exceptional leadership in the CSA Groups Nuclear, Construction Infrastructure, and Health Safety programs and has served on approximately 15 technical committees, subcommittees and strategic steering committees, according to the ass ociation. She had previously received the Award of Merit from CSA Group in 2003. Madiha El Mehelmy Kotb gave Steven Lawrence, one of the 2018 CSA Group Award of Merit recipients, a high five as she made her way to the stage to accept the John Jenkins Award at the CSA Groups Annual Conference awards ceremony on June 19. (Photo courtesy of CSA Group.)Kotb, who served as the 132nd president of ASME in 2013-2014, has held a number of leadership roles within the Society during her 23 years as a member. Currently the chair of the Committee of Past Presidents and an advisor to the Nominating Committee, she was also a member of the Board of Governors from 2008 to 2011, vice president of Conformity Assessment from 2003 to 2006, chair of the Sector Management Committee in 2012-2013 and member of the ASME Industry Advisory Board from 2012 to 2014. She has also served as chair of the ASME Presidential Task Force on Uniform (Financial) Reporting and as a member of the ASME Committee on Governan ce and Strategy, the Council on Codes and Standards, and the Committee on Ethical Standards and Review.An ASME Fellow and licensed Professional Engineer, Kotb was also chair of ASMEs Quebec Section from 2000 to 2002 as well as a member of ASMEs Engineering for Global Development Committee and the lead volunteer member for the Engineering for Change (E4C) global development initiative.

The question isnt when we sleep, its how much

The question isnt when we sleep, its how muchThe question isnt when we sleep, its how muchThis week a sleep civil war broke out over at New York MagazinesThe Cut. The firstshot was fired on Monday by Edith Zimmerman in apiececalled Its Astounding How Many Problems Can Be Solved Just by Waking Up Early. The spoiler is in the headline, but Zimmerman elaborates by describing what an obscenely early wake-up time, like 5 or even 4 a.m., does for zu sich. Almost no one is awake then, so you can quietly and without being judged just get a bunch of stuff done, she writes. She concludes by saying that while she hasnt always been able to maintain that schedule, its still useful as a turbo-charge button to press when confronted with a seemingly unsolvable problem or set of problems.Controversy erupted. Twitter, as is mandated by Federal law, weighed in. As did, when they woke up and read the piece, the night owls.Zimmermans colleague Anna Silman returned fire with a spirited and hilarious piece of her own. On behalf of The Cuts motley collection of night owls, late-risers, and people who generally feel like theyve been hit by a cement truck if someone tries to shake them awake before 9 a.m., she wrote, Im afraid I must dissent. While allowing that being an early riser makes you better at life, Silman maintains being a night owl is more badass.And in any case, for Silman, it doesnt matter, because, as she writes, its physically impossible for her to wake up before 9 a.m. Shes tried everything medications, booze, herbs, elixirs and, yes, sleep tips from yours truly. But, she writes, my body is trained to resist these things. Silman concludes with a rousing call to arms to her late night brothers and sisters in arms (or beds) So I say to you, my fellow night owls, let us band together and fight against the scourge of early-riser propaganda. Let us revolt Let us sleep in Let us look at the clock flashing 145 a.m. and say Oh screw it, just one more episode Let us be ourselvesT o which I say Ladies, please Youre both right. Possibly.The question isnt whether youre a lark or an owl, when you go to bed or when you wake up. The real question is how much sleep youre getting between those two times, whenever they may be. The science says we need between seven and nine hours of sleep (unless youre parte of the one and a half percent of the population that has a genetic mutation - a single DNA sequence change causing a switch from proline to arginine in the 385th amino acid of the DEC2 protein). Yes, its true, chronotypes are real - some people are owls and some people are larks. And living a life out of sync with your chronotype can cause something called social jet lag. And thats why sleep stability, maintaining a consistent sleep and wake schedule, is important.But even more important is that youre getting all the sleep you need. People often rationalize short-changing sleep because of all the things they need to get done during the day. But as sleep researc hers have revealed, your brain is just as busy with its own high-priority action items at night. Taking time away from the sleep-time to-do list for the waking-time to-do list is not good.While we sleep, our brains are intensely active, taking care of things like memory consolidation, cognitive maintenance and neurochemical cleansing. As Dr. Maiken Nedergaard from the University of Rochester explains, its like bringing in the overnight cleaning crew to sweep the garbage thats accumulated during the day - except in this case, the garbage is made up of toxic proteins that, when they build up, are associated with Alzheimers disease. Its like a dishwasher, she said. You can think of it like having a house party. You can either entertain the guests or clean up the house, but you cant really do both at the same time. So the real issue is Did you get all the sleep you need to complete the cycle? Because if you didnt, its like not completing the cycle of a dishwasher or a laundry machine- only with much more dire consequences.So if youre a night owl, dont let your real late night house party take away from the party clean-up your brain needs to do. And if youre a lark getting up early to work, make sure you go to bed early enough to allow your brain to do its work - as Zimmermans and Silmans colleague Katie Heaney wrote when sheweighed in Sleep might be the most unimpeachably human behavior there is, she wrote. You almost certainly need more of it, and you do that by schauplatz aside a bigger chunk of time in which to do it.And if youve really got a problem to solve, try sleeping on it - it really works. As John Steinbeck put itSweet Thursday, It is a common experience that a problem difficult at night is resolved in the morning after the committee of sleep has worked on it.So yes, be yourselves, listen to your body, and nobody needs to be sleep-shamed (including the night owls, whom, as Silman rightly notes, society is biased against). I only hope the sleep wars h avent escalated at The Cut. Though I guess the fact that the two warring sides probably dont actually see each other very much will keep the tensions down.This article first appeared on Thrive Global.

What the In-Crowd Wont Tell You About Cover Letter Resume

What the In-Crowd Wont Tell You About Cover Letter Resume Putting yourself out there to find your fantasy job is among the most scary and vulnerable affairs you will do in your lifetime. To put it differently have a very clear idea what you wish to attain in your professional career. By the way, you dont need to do thatespecially in the event you have tons of solid experience you wish to highlight and truly need more than 1 page. The intro needs to be worded carefully, be concise and ought to catch the interest of the reader or prospective employers. As you dont need to come across as using a persons name for a foot in the door, framing the connection for a point of reference and credibility can produce a strong effect. Write out the questions that you wish to ask the people who are able to make it easy for you to find job leads. Even in the event you dont have an immediate reference, it is possible to still attach yourself to people, places and things in such a manner that y ou obtain an expert boost. You might even ask numerous folks to serve as references or to compose letters of recommendation, and pick the most suitable ones to use, based on the job that youre seeking. Ahead of the choice to submit an application for an internship, please ensure you dont have conflicts with the dates below. Odds are, your HR department can counsel you on the very best procedure for doing that. Some employers only permit courses of relevance to your distinct career and could need you to get a minimum grade level, as well as a commitment to remain employed with the company for a specific amount of time after the conclusion of a program, to be reimbursed. Relocating is a challenging way to receive a fantastic job. Details of Cover Letter Resume Not all completely free cover letter samples are made equal... For the very simple reason theyre not sourced from a single individual. An expert cover letter isnt more than a page long. The body has become the most sig nificant part the cover letter. With your resume letter youve got to assure the prospective employers that you arent going anywhere. Notice that there are a few of the exact same words included in every ad for your sort of job. These days, the trend of writing a cover letter gets increasingly popular to the majority of companies. It is very important to review a few examples of cover letters prior to making your own. Make sure to learn who is receiving the paperwork, including full name and title. Put numbers to everything that you do. The direction you mention references ought to be conversational, therefore it feels as if youre establishing ties rather than simply naming names. Your resume needs to be free of errors and grammatically accurate. All About Cover Letter Resume With an impressive resume letter, you are able to surely get the wanted job prospect. When you make an application for a job youre marketing yourself. You will not discover a job if you dont go out t here and convince an employer that youre the appropriate person for the job. Never give the impression that youre applying for the work simply to have a paycheck. Cover Letter Resume Explained Lets look at each one. Any corporation can truly gain from such experience. It is at least as important to create a strong personal brand. Your own personal brand is a consistent image thats distinctly you. Keep in mind that youre vying for a work position that could signify a significant difference in your life. Maybe the biggest point in the current job market is to target your resume to the employer youre sending it as well. When you havent been on the work market in a little while, youre discovering a completely new experience. Make sure youre confident about what you could achieve and dont be scared to let that confidence show. Companies desire a strong individual. You may discover the application below. Applications might be rejected if incomplete. If you submit more than 1 application for the identical position, the latest application is going to be used.

6 Steps to Better Diversity Hiring - Webinar feat. JazzHR

6 Steps to Better Diversity Hiring - Webinar feat. JazzHRAccording to a recent McKinsey study, there is a statistically significant correlation between more diverse leadership teams and better financial performance.This comes as no surprise to most HR professionals. Its a longstanding best practice that diverse teams create better business decisions. But hiring for diverse teams proves more difficult than Just hire some women. or diversity training.Making a decided effort to improve your hiring for diversity is challenged by many factors. Identifying and eliminating them can be difficult.But dont fear In this months Growth Recruiting webinar, weve teamed up with JazzHR to present 6 Steps to Better Diversity Hiring.Heres what youll learnProcesses for diverse hiring practicesThe conscious elimination of potential biases is key to diverse hiring. How to go about it can be more complex, but just as important. Biased hiring can land your organization in hot water with candidates, the gove rnment, and hurt your hiring brand. Avoid these pitfalls with a methodical examination of your hiring process and tools before problems arise.How to expand your organizations talent poolGrowing and diversifying your talent pool can make your organization smarter. Including employees of varying backgrounds likely increases your teams creativity too. ansicht results of diverse teams are well-known but difficult to achieve. It is the task of HR professionals to find the root cause of a lack of diversity. One culprit may be your talent pool. Nuances like how to apply for positions and your location narrow your recruitment. Awareness of new methods can help fight improve your pool.Applying merit-based hiring into your effortsDownstream of your talent pool, the application and interview process may keep your team from seeing and moving forward with qualified, diverse candidates. From inside the organization, identifying where you can improve may be hard to find. Take an outside look with the steps presented in the next Growth Recruiting Webinar.About the WebinarJoin us on Wednesday, May 16th at 12PM Central as Corey Berkey, Director of Human Resources at JazzHR, explain how to implement diverse hiring practices, expand your hiring reach, and merit-based hiring. hbspt.cta.load(3358296, 0799c41d-e421-4b3f-ab3d-881a90b62b42, )

This Woman Found a Career for the Long Haul - The Muse

This Woman Found a Career for the Long Haul - The MuseThis Woman Found a Career for the Long Haul We all want a career with longevity. But, how do you find the right fit? Jessenia Morales, Group Talent Acquisition Manager at Enterprise Holdings, did just that. Shes moved 3 times with the company, climbed the corporate ladder, and grown her confidence and skill set. And now she helps to hire employees just like her who want to join a company they can commit to. Watch the video above for the qualities she looks for in an employee and what shes learned from spending her career at one company.

Leveraging Human Resources for Sustainable Growth

Leveraging Human Resurces for Sustainable GrowthLeveraging Human Resources for Sustainable GrowthLeveraging Human Resources for Sustainable Growth W. Savitz with Karl WeberAdapted from Talent, Transformation, and the Triple Bottom Line, by Andrew W. Savitz with Karl Weber (Jossey-Bass, 2013)An organization that wants to become a sustainable organization has to look at changing a wide range of business activities, fruchtwein of which are measured by the triple bottom line (TBL) the total impact of your companys operations on the environment, society, and the economy.The TBL is comprised of specific environmental, social, and economic indicators, such as the amount of various pollutants released, the ways in which employees are treated and the financial impacts of companies on local communities. The TBL includes the direct impact of your operations, the impacts of your products, and the impacts of your suppliers and their operations.As daily headlines remind us, sustainability and the TBL are now of enormous importance in practically every industry, helping shape companies public reputations and their future business prospects.Less widely recognized, however, is the fact that the human resources (HR) department often has an outsized impact on sustainability.In fact, HR departments in most companies are expected to generate a number of specific deliverables that are significant in measuring an organizations TBL includingFair and reasonable pay and competitive benefitsWorkforce diversityA happy, healthy, and productive workforceUseful training and career developmentHuman rights for employees and suppliersPositive community relations, andGood working conditions for employees and contractorsAll of these traditional HR deliverables are elements of sustainability and all are crucial to your businesss ongoing success.Fortunately, many HR departments today are discovering and focusing on their vital role in sustainability. Theyre becoming mora environmentally and socia lly responsible, generating direct and measurable benefits for the entire organization and leading other departments toward greater sustainability.Measuring Employee EngagementOne good way for your HR department to leverage sustainability is to measure how your company treats its own employees. One good, simple reason to abflug there is that any organization that claims to be managing according to sustainability principles should be taking good care of its own people. Sustainability begins at home.In fact, surveys reveal that most customers in the United States base their impression of a companys social and environmental responsibility largely on the way it treats its employees not on the companys corporate philanthropy, volunteerism, environmental projects, or any other acts that provide benefits to those outside the company.If employees are well-treated, this creates a halo effect that sheds a positive light on many other aspects of the company.Recognizing this, a number of compa nies have used employment policies alongside a strong commitment to the TBL to create a cadre of loyal, supportive workers who are deeply engaged in their work.These employees tend to be highly motivated, which leads to higher productivity, greater efficiency, increased customer satisfaction, or simply more good will in the community.Engaged employees feel that they are being valued and respected, and they naturally earn their employers a reputation for good corporate citizenship that helps grow and sustain their businesses.If they also feel that they are part of a company that shares their commitment to making a positive difference in the world, their commitment can rise even higher.How Starbucks Sustains SuccessConsider the coffee chain Starbucks as an example. For Starbucks, employees hold the key to financial success. Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz describes the vital relationship between his companys employees and its customers this wayWhen we are fully engaged, we connect with , laugh with, and uplift the lives of our customers even if just for a few moments. Sure, it starts with the promise of a perfectly made beverage, but our work goes far beyond that. Its really about human connection.How does Starbucks make the seemingly mundane job of a coffee server attractive and get baristas to make the Starbucks Experience one that customers will pay more for, certainly beyond what they might pay elsewhere for the same cup of coffee?One important way is to provide excellent employee benefits employees who work twenty or more hours a week receive health insurance coverage, including prescription drugs, dental care, and vision coverage an unusually generous package.Other benefits include a retirement savings plan, stock options, a discounted stock purchase plan, an adoption assistance plan, domestic partner benefits, referral programs and support resources for child care and elder care, and, of course, a discount on Starbucks merchandise including a free pound of coffee each week.This array of benefits, combined with flexible work hours and above-average pay for entry-level employees, makes Starbucks a significantly more attractive alternative than most of its obvious rivals, including other food chains, and pays rich rewards to the company as well.Similar employee-centered strategies have been followed by other businesses, from the Wegmans grocery chain to the PricewaterhouseCoopers accounting firm, with impressive financial results.But Starbucks goes a step further to deepen its connection with employees with a strategy we call values alignment.Starbucks works hard to attract and hire people who share the companys well-publicized social and environmental commitments (such as buying ethically sourced coffee). Many even consider these commitments part of the benefits of working at Starbucks.So although Starbucks sustainability programs appeal to many customers, they are even more important in terms of motivating the employees who create t he Starbucks Experience the heart and soul of the companys business model.Employee Motivation through Sustainability Many of todays most successful businesses, from GE and PepsiCo to IBM and the Gap, as well as smaller companies, are creating such sustainability-based motivational programs, with tremendous benefits for the business.Whats more, a commitment to sustainability, as evidenced by these kinds of initiatives, is proving to be a powerful attractor of todays best talent.Countless surveys as well as anecdotal evidence provided by many HR professionals we interviewed underscore the reality that working men and women of all ages today are hungry for opportunities to live out their personal values on the job, including environmental and social values.As a result, companies that practice sustainability starting with their HR policies have a leg up in the war for talent that will largely determine the winners and losers in todays global marketplace.Factors such as these help e xplain why we believe that every HR professional needs to put sustainability at the top of his or her agenda for years to come.Author BioAndrew Savitz is co-author of Talent, Transformation, and the Triple Bottom Line(Jossey-Bass, 2013). He iscurrently Principal, Sustainable Business Strategies and a creative advisor, author and speaker, with over 20 years of hands-on experience assisting corporations to become leaders in sustainability, environmental performance, measurement and reporting. Savitz speaks frequently on the topic of sustainability and corporate social responsibility and has been widely quoted in both the sustainability trade press, the environmental press, and the mass media. He serves on the mainboard of the Environment and Natural Resources Department at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He founded, and currently chairs the Board of the Massachusetts League of Environmental Voters. Visit The Savitz Report website (launching early April, 2013). Reach Andrew Savitz by email.Read moreCareer Planning for your Multigenerational WorkforceE-Learning Tools to Advance Employee DevelopmentTeam Development Creating Positive Change

How to Answer Unusual Interview Questions

How to Answer Unusual einstellungsgesprch QuestionsHow to Answer Unusual Interview QuestionsSometimes employers ask interview questions that are a challenge to answer. But, dont worry too much about them. It is impossible for candidates to prepare answers for all the possible questions which might be asked during a job interview, especially some of the less common and unusual questions. For example, what happens if the interviewer raises a hypothetical question like How much toilet paper will it take to span the state of New Jersey? or unusual queries like What animal best represents who you are? or If you could be any animal on a carousel what would you pick and why? You dont need to try to come up with answers. You wont know what youll be asked, and these types of questions dont have a right or wrong answer. Rather, the employer is trying to get at how you respond to questions under stress and how your logical thinking processes work. Take some time to consider how you will respond rather than thinking about what youll say. Here are some tips for responding in the best possible way to unanticipated questions. How to Respond to Unusual Interview Questions Buy Some Time First of all, buy some time before responding so you can formulate a thoughtful answer by saying something like Thats a really intriguing question, Ive never gotten that one before. Ask for Clarification Its fine to ask for clarification if its hard to figure out just what the employer is looking for in a response. For example, with the question about how much toilet paper it would take to span New Jersey, you might say Interesting question, were you thinking north/south or east/west, at the widest/longest points or an average? How You Think Its important to recognize that many unusual questions are asked to see how your thought process works and not because the employer expects you to furnish any particular right answer. Be koranvers to articulate your reasoning when you respond to these types of questions. For example, if you said a cat was the animal that best represents you, you might mention that you are curious or quick. Of course, referencing qualities which are in line with job requirements is a good way to respond. Match Your Skills to the Job Most interview questions are designed to determine if you have the right skills or qualities to excel at the job in question. The best way to prepare for unusual questions is to prepare a list of 6 - 9 of your skills that will enable you to perform well in the job. Make sure you are ready to supply anecdotes or examples of how you have used those strengths to engineer successes in past projects, work or co-curricular roles. Theres a good chance that this type of information will enable you to formulate viable answers to many unusual interview questions. When You Dont Have an Answer If you are totally stumped by a strange question, be prepared to mention that you cant think of a viable answer to that q uestion just now. Its acceptable to ask if you might return to it later. Otherwise, let it go. You dont want a tough question to stress you so much that you lose your focus. Dont let your inability to respond disrupt your composure during the rest of the interview. You dont need to be perfect in order to succeed in an interview. If possible, share a response later in the interview or in your follow-up communications.