How To Get A Good Job - Without A College Degree

Most of us are taught at an early age to get a good education so that we can get a good job when we grow up. Our teachers, our counselors, our parents all have instilled these ideas into our brains to "Finish school, and then get a good job." As a parent, I couldn't think of any other lesson more valuable to teach a child. 'Knowledge is power', 'a good education will open doors', or my personal favorite "don't be a fool-stay in school".

The National Center for Education reported for the years 2003 and 2004 that the number of high school completers totaled 42.2%. College enrollment rates of recent high school completers were 45.2%. The reality is that more than half of all high school students do not graduate from high school and less than half of high school graduates will enroll in college. This says there is a strong likelihood that the majority of people looking for a good job do not hold a college degree. You can still get a good job if you are willing to have a good job and you can do so without a college degree.

So, what makes a good job, "good"? Is it salary? Distance from home? Company benefits? Advancement opportunities? Believe it or not, we think about these things when we apply for positions and seek opportunities. Actually, none of these things make a "good" job. Simply put, a good job is good when you love doing what you do so much that nothing else matters. There has to be some delight in going to your job every day. Not all people take pleasure in their work. As a result, we are only selling ourselves short of this fulfillment.

Remember when you were asked 'What do you want to be when you grow up?' when you were younger. Think about the reasons 'why' you wanted to be those things. 'To help people, fight crime, etc.' Those are the same reasons that should lead you into your job today. A passion. A belief. Not the amount of money you are going to make. Instead of finding a job that makes good money and learning to like it. find out what it is you love to do and make money doing it.

So, how do you know whether going to college would have been more beneficial than just obtaining a job right after high school? That depends on the hirer.

Depending on the size of the company and the salary range for the position, the employer can hire a non-degreed applicant with experience or a degreed applicant without experience for the same money.

So why go to college in the first place, you may wonder. Well, attending college is a personal decision that is only the best option for those who choose it. In other words, not all successful people have a college degree; so by far, it is common to choose alternative paths to become the person you want to be.

Being non-degreed in a work force so competitive can be intimidating, but it is possible to overcome.

1. The first thing you must do is to figure out what it is you want to do. There are so many occupations, jobs, and careers that match so many different objectives so start this process early. If you are unsure of your career goals, consider completing a career assessment to help determine your personal motivations and characteristics and see which careers are most suitable for you. You can also speak with an employment counselor.

2. Research a typical work environment for that profession and the most popular companies that are hiring. Contact the managers at those companies and request informational interviews with them. Ask them questions about how they became successful in their field and how they got where they are. Networking with people in your industry is the best way to get into a job. Network with as many people as possible.

3. Gather any and all on the job training certificates, seminars, workshops, volunteer activities, or other training that you have participated in that showcase your talent. This training will transfer into beneficial job skills and will need to be transformed into valuable experience and knowledge.

4. Be yourself. A phrase you have undoubtedly heard before. Sometimes you may need to practice being yourself by playing up your most desirable traits in social situations. If you are 'positive' then bring something positive to a situation, event, or conversation. If you are 'dependable' then always keep your word with others.

5. You must have a sound understanding of communication and how to communicate with others effectively. You must develop impeccable interviewing skills and clearly, you need to make a lasting first impression with the interviewer. Here are 5 tips to help you accomplish this:

1. Use strong eye contact. Be confident.
2. Smile. Show some teeth.
3. Shake hands firmly. Even I have shaken some wimpy hands on occasional interviews. Don't be afraid to touch the interviewer's hand, some might take offense to this. If you're that finicky, just remember, you can wash your hands later.
4. Speak clearly. You want to be understood and you want to make powerful statements that have meaning.
5. "Monkey see, Monkey do." Take note of the receiver's body language, tone of voice, posture, hand gestures, etc. People want to be around other people who are like them.

You can still get a good job without a college degree because a college degree does not make you successful. you do.

Your success is not measured by the degrees you hold, but by the person you are. Shape your own future and mold it into something beautiful. It starts with you and no-thing and no-one else matters. by Natasha 

Job Hunting Tips for the Broke and Unemployed

Networking, networking, networking.  We’ve all heard that stat that like, 99 percent of jobs aren’t listed – they’re found through networking.    Problem is, for most people, networking is about as welcome as near-pregnancies.

But now with more dogs employed than college students, you have to do something.   In fact, a 2010 MonsterCollege Survey from Monster.com found that more than half of students surveyed (52 percent) said they knew the economy would be a huge road block in finding a job, up from 40 percent in 2009; only 32 percent (down from 45 percent) think they’ll receive a starting salary higher than $36,000.

Sad but true: of those moving back home with mom and dad, 31 percent of those surveyed expect to live at home longer than one year.

With these numbers, you need to add some non-networking tips to your game plan.  If that doesn’t work, we hear the Red Cross is always looking for fresh young blood.

1.    Tweet Tweet

You may think that Twitter is a complete waste of time unless you care what Ashton Kutcher is up to, but the site is an insta-job-hirer if used right.  Sites like TweetMyJobs.com, TwitJobSearch.com and a slew of regional, industry, and niche sites are posting – and hiring – tweeters within minutes.  You cash in on this by replying to tweets with short links to your resume or by going directly to the tweet’s job post, which are posted on the company’s Twitter or Facebook feed. Still confused?

2.    Craigslist

It’s not just for finding nude housekeepers and the least-crazy roommates on the Web.   Nope.   While they have that too, Craigslist actually features high-quality, big-company jobs with one very big perk — desperation.  As in, these employers’ level of desperation is slightly higher than others, which could yield you a quicker response.  So while you’re on Craigslist looking for a girl, a car, free tickets and a used copy of today’s paper (“with a coffee stain on it”), why not throw “job” in there.   At least you’ll know someone’s on the other end.

3.    Link Me Up, Scotty

While keeping a semi-professional Facebook page (a.k.a. don’t go all Michael Phelps reefer on us) and “Fan Paging” companies you like (that post jobs on their page), your real social networking site for jobs is LinkedIn.

Not only is your profile the go-to URL to your most truthful resume (‘cause it’s public), but the site also tells you who you know in connection to what companies – and jobs – you are searching for.  LinkedIn’s own job search engine is powered by Simply Hired and often links you to the hiring manager in your network.  It’s a catalog of citizens, but really, the only citizens most likely to help you.

Tip #2: Look up 20 companies that you want to work for on LinkedIn and see who works there within your network.  Find the company’s email format using Google, and with lots of guessing and testing, then email people directly.

4.    Rewards Season

Times are tough and creativity wins the prize.  Message everyone you know and offer a reward to whomever helps you land a full-time job.  A friend of mine did this, and while it was odd, it showed tons of initiative and moxie.   (Most people just kind a sit on their ass.)  By offering a steak dinner and frequent flier miles in his plea, he got a slew of contacts, job forwards, and I think even a date.  

Bottom line:Everyone should know that you’re looking, because if it’s who you know and not what you know, then you need everyone’s contacts, not just yours.

5.    Fool-Proof Emails

One recent job hire applied to 10 jobs a day for months, finally landing a gig through Monster.com.  If sending out a million resumes like this and crafting concise, targeted cover letters to each, be careful:  The amount of wrongly addressed letters (to, ah hem, other companies) can be mind boggling.

The trick to writing better business emails is constructing them backwards.  Put the recipient’s email address in the subject line at first, until you are ready to send it.  How many times do things get send accidentally, unfinished?  It’s fine to your chump friends.  Not to future employers.

Attach your resume first, so you are sure to not forget.   Write the body.  Check the person’s name and company after all your copy and pasting from previous covers.  Then.  Cut the recipient’s email into the proper line.  And there you go.

6.    School’s Alumni Network

Perhaps the real value of your degree lies here.   Try emailing alumni with a professional, slightly kiss-up overtone.  You want to hear all about their illustrious career and possibly get connected to their hirer for entry-levels (though you don’t actually say that).  Also mention where you have worked, your connections and if you can help them in any way.  Time is precious.  So give them something for theirs.

7.    Volunteer to Not Look Desperate

Job hunting, done right, can be a terrible, terrible lonely process, admitted by a job placement professional.  So to get out of your head and score some real world cred (no need to note “volunteer” if work is legit), get a gig the easiest way – by working for free.   You don’t have to do it full-time, as you need to eat once in a while.  But stories abound about how people have either turned these jobs into full-time gigs or met great contacts to get them ahead.

8.    Crash networking events

So, this one is a tad shady, but look up networking events on Google by city, industry, age-range (like ProsInTheCity.com) and just crash the paid event.  The key is to play dumb, which is very, very easy for most.  If it’s in a private room, sit at the bar or lounge area to catch someone of interest, or to see if you want to cough up the cash for the next event.  Or try a (totally legit and non-shady) free Meetup.com event for job seekers or within your biz.

9.    All-in-One Job Sites

Apply to on-target job ads, but save time by using aggregate job search engines, those that troll thousands of job sites, including Monster and Craigslist plus thousands of company sites and hundreds of newspapers.  Some of the best are Mashable, Indeed, Simplyhired, and Jobster.com.

10.    Buddy System
It’s not just for grade school trips to make sure your little butt didn’t wander off.  Looking for a job can be an overwhelming full-time job in itself.  So enlist a friend to search together without distractions, or remotely check in or update each other daily or weekly with 10+ posts that you’ve applied to or forwarded to each other.  It doesn’t take the suckage out of the process, but at least you’ll know you’re not the only one here.By Janie Ho

How to get the suitable job

Job interview

A job interview is a process in which a potential employee is evaluated by an employer for prospective employment in their company,organization, or firm. During this process, the employer hopes to determine whether or not the applicant is suitable for the job.

Role

A job interview typically precedes the hiring decision, and is used to evaluate the candidate. The interview is usually preceded by the evaluation of submitted résumés from interested candidates, then selecting a small number of candidates for interviews. Potential job interview opportunities also include networking events and career fairs. The job interview is considered one of the most useful tools for evaluating potential employees. It also demands significant resources from the employer, yet has been demonstrated to be notoriously unreliable in identifying the optimal person for the job. An interview also allows the candidate to assess the corporate culture and demands of the job.

Multiple rounds of job interviews may be used where there are many candidates or the job is particularly challenging or desirable. Earlier rounds may involve fewer staff from the employers and will typically be much shorter and less in-depth. A common initial interview form is the phone interview, a job interview conducted over the telephone. This is especially common when the candidates do not live near the employer and has the advantage of keeping costs low for both sides.

Once all candidates have been interviewed, the employer typically selects the most desirable candidate and begins the negotiation of a job offer.

Interview Constructs

In light of its popularity, a stream of research has attempted to identify the constructs (ideas or concepts) that are measured during the interview to understand why interviews might help us pick the right people for the job. Several reviews of the research on interview constructs revealed that the interview captures a wide variety of applicant attributes. These constructs can be classified into three categories: job-relevant interview content (constructs interview questions are designed to assess), interviewee performance (applicant behaviors unrelated to the applicant characteristics the interview questions are designed to assess but nevertheless influence interviewer evaluations of interviewee responses), and potentially job-irrelevant interviewer biases (personal and demographic characteristics of applicants that may influence interviewer evaluations of interviewee responses in an illegal, discriminatory way).

Job-relevant interview content

Interview questions are generally designed to tap applicant attributes that are specifically relevant to the job for which the person is applying. The job-relevant applicant attributes the questions purportedly assess are thought to be necessary for one to successfully perform on the job. The job-relevant constructs that have been assessed in the interview can be classified into three categories: general traits, experiential factors, and core job elements. The first category refers to relatively stable applicant traits. The second category refers to job knowledge that the applicant has acquired over time. The third category refers to the knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with the job.

General Traits:

§  Mental ability: Applicants’ capacity to learn and process information

§  Personality: Conscientiousness, agreeableness, emotional stability, extroversion, openness to new experiences

§  Interest, goals, and values: Applicant motives, goals, and person-organization fit

Experiential Factors:

§  Experience: Job-relevant knowledge derived from prior experience

§  Education: Job-relevant knowledge derived from prior education

§  Training: Job-relevant knowledge derived from prior training

Core Job Elements:

§  Declarative knowledge: Applicants’ learned knowledge

§  Procedural skills and abilities: Applicants’ ability to complete the tasks required to do the job

§  Motivation: Applicants’ willingness to exert the effort required to do the job

Interviewee Performance

Interviewer evaluations of applicant responses also tend to be colored by how an applicant behaves in the interview. These behaviors may not be directly related to the constructs the interview questions were designed to assess, but can be related to aspects of the job for which they are applying. Applicants without realizing it may engage in a number of behaviors that influence ratings of their performance. The applicant may have acquired these behaviors during training or from previous interview experience. These interviewee performance constructs can also be classified into three categories: social effectiveness skills, interpersonal presentation, and personal/contextual factors.

Social Effectiveness Skills:

§  Impression management: Applicants’ attempt to make sure the interviewer forms a positive impression of them

§  Social skills: Applicants’ ability to adapt his/her behavior according to the demands of the situation to positively influence the interviewer

§  Self-monitoring: Applicants’ regulation of behaviors to control the image presented to the interviewer

§  Relational control: Applicants’ attempt to control the flow of the conversation

Interpersonal Presentation:

§  Verbal expression: Pitch, rate, pauses

§  Nonverbal behavior: Gaze, smile, hand movement, body orientation

Personal/Contextual Factors:

§  Interview training: Coaching, mock interviews with feedback

§  Interview experience: Number of prior interviews

§  Interview self-efficacy: Applicants’ perceived ability to do well in the interview

§  Interview motivation: Applicants’ motivation to succeed in an interview

by Wikipedia