Dazzle Interviewers With Your Achievements

Attention Job Seekers: Tasks and Responsibilities are Boooring

Ho hum. The interviewer sits there drumming her fingers on the desk trying to look interested while you drone on about your duties and responsibilities at your last position. As you finish up your snore-inducing list of daily tasks, your interviewer jots down next to your name - "Good candidate . . .but nothing special."

What happened? You didn't get the job. Even though you felt you were well prepared for this job interview. When the employer asked that common interview question: "What accomplishments are you most proud of?" For lack of a better answer you went into your litany of mundane tasks you know like the back of your hand. However, that's not what the interviewer is looking for.

What are your accomplishments? This is the question you must answer when preparing your job interview answers. Interviewers want to hear real accomplishments that you've achieved at school or on the job. This is the new trend in resumes and interviewing. You've got to make an impression on the interviewer and make yourself look like you can initiate projects and get them done successfully.

Have you been keeping track of your achievements? If not, start right now. If you've already left the job, then sit down in a quiet place and remember as much as you can. Dig up old emails, memos, awards, etc. to help jog your memory. Next, you'll want to make a list of all of your accomplishments. Achievements are what sets you apart from other job candidates - not tasks and responsibilities.

Q: How many managers, administrative assistants, accountants, etc. know how to do an Excel spreadsheet?

A: Too many to count.

** How to Make Yourself A Star **

Here's one of the best interview preparation advice tips you're going to get: Always keep a list of your accomplishments so you can access them quickly to use in your resume, cover letter and in the actual interview. What's that? You don't have a list of your star-making achievements? Well, now's the time to make one.

Below are several questions designed to bring out the inner achiever in you. They'll give you a jump-start on your quest to give yourself the credit you deserve, and, create a list of accomplishments that you'll be able to share with your interviewer the next time you're asked that frequent interview question: "What accomplishments are you most proud of?"

**Job Interview Achievement Skills Questions

>>>> In each job, what special things did you do to set yourself apart? How did you do the job better than anyone else did or than anyone else could have done?

>>>> What did you do to make each job your own?

>>>> How did you take the initiative? How did you go above and beyond what was asked of you in your job description?

>>>> What special things did you do to impress your boss so that you might be promoted?

>>>> And were you promoted? Rapid and/or frequent promotions can be especially noteworthy.

>>>> How did you leave your employers better off than before you worked for them?

>>>> Did you win any awards, such as Employee of the Month honors?

>>>> What are you most proud of in each job?

>>>> Is there material you can use from your annual performance reviews? Did you consistently receive high ratings? Any glowing quotes you can use from former employers?

>>>> Have you received any complimentary memos or letters from employers or customers?

>>>> What tangible evidence do you have of accomplishments - publications you've produced, products you've developed, software applications you've written?

>>>> Think of the "PEP Formula": Profitability, Efficiency, and Productivity. How did you contribute to profitability, such as through sales increase percentages? How did you contribute to efficiency, such as through cost reduction percentages? How did you contribute to productivity, such as through successfully motivating your team?

>>>> How did you make your company more competitive?

>>>> How did you build relationships or image with internal or external constituencies? How did you attract new customers or retain existing ones?

>>>> How did you expand the business?

>>>> How did you contribute to the firm's Return on Investment (ROI)?

>>>> How did you help the organization fulfill its mission statement?

About The Author

Donna Monday
Get Hired Now! Use These Online Interview Tips
http://www.get-a-job-interview-quick-tips.com

CAREER TOPICS

So you want to work at home
There are several ways to work from home. Some of the more popular ways are affiliate programs, direct marketing and starting your own business.

From Bumbling Bosses to Cranky Co-Workers - How to Overcome What Makes You Hate Your Job
I'll be the first to admit that I hated my job. It took many years for me to come to this realization since I kept accepting promotions in the hopes that the awful ache inside of my chest would go away.

How to Deal With Workplace Inflexibility
You've been a model employee: responsible, industrious, creative and productive. You've gone the extra mile time and again, with a smile.

More Companies Using Job Interview Phone Screening
Planning and preparing before you begin to send out resumes could save you some embarrassing moments when you receive that unexpected call.You just never know when that phone is going to ring.

Unemployment Blues: Staying Afloat
The unemployment checks are running out and there is no potential job in sight. The wolf is knocking at the door and you need to survive.

Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Try, Try, Again
This article relates to the Career Opportunities competency and explores issues such as internal growth opportunities, potential for advancement, career development importance, and the relationship between job performance and career advancement. Evaluating the Career Opportunities competency in your organization will determine whether your employees believe they have a chance to grow within the organization.

Intuition: The Secret To Your Career Success
For far too long, we moderns have relied on our analytical/logical brain to make important life decisions. It is my belief that our imaginative/creative brain holds the key to better, smarter and more soulful decisions.

175 Power Verbs and Phrases for Resumes, Cover Letters, and Interviews
While you're revamping your resume or cover letter or constructing your proof-by-example stories for interviews, you'll find you need to watch your word choice. Why? Communication is powerful if the words we use to communicate are powerful.

Self Describing Skills - Key Strengths
You need to be the best you can at describing your best qualities; particularly your key strengths. In my coaching practice I generally, at some point, ask my client: "What are you good at?" purely as a means to establish if they have already thought through this most important question.

So, Your Made A Mistake
Of course, mistakes are important. Two facts put those you make in perspective.

Your Self-Image in the Workplace
When communication breaks down in your office or factory and workers lack motivation, what are the roots of the problem? On a study tour of a Fortune 500 food company, Peter Grazier, an international consultant specialializing in employee involvement, stopped to chat with an elderly machine operator. Within minutes, the operator began discussing a solution for quickly clearing bulk food material from a clogged hopper - apparently a frequent problem.

Should You Make A Career Decision Based Upon A Career Quiz?
Q. I'm about to graduate High School and I don't know what I want to be "when I grow up".

Job Interviews: Succeeding With Panel Interviews
These days, job interviews often consist of a panel of three-to-six interviewers.A "team approach" to finding the best candidate can be beneficial for the employer.

Job Search 101
The whole job search effort is completely exhausting and at times just plain pathetic. It is what it is and if you are unemployed know that the job search experience is one familiar to everyone at some point and time, so don't feel alone.

Get Off Your Butt and Out of the Rut
It's amazing to see so many people who are prepared to sacrifice their lives for the sake of their careers.I'm sure you know of someone like that.

Sample Resume Objectives: Good, But Summaries Are Smokin!
Since college I've been told that a resume ought to have an "objective statement" at the top. Maybe you've been told the same.

Fascinating Ways to Make a Living Doing What You Love May Be Closer Than You Think...
You don't have to look very far to find fascinating ways to make a living. Opportunities are literally everywhere? if you're looking, that is.

Telecommuting Cover Letters
Question: How do I market myself online?Answer: With a stellar cover letter and resume.Okay, so let's get into the meat of this.

What to Ask During the Interview
Don't just sit there and bob your head, waiting to answer the next question - be prepared to ask your own questions and make the interviewer know that you care!Ask Them About the Company If you have researched the company, you should know something about their core business. Use the information that you have found to ask good questions about the company.

Four Job Interview Mistakes That Can Torpedo Your Chances of Success
What are the worst mistakes job hunters make? It turns out there are four big ones. These four mistakes turn up repeatedly when executives responsible for hiring talk about the reasons why someone didn't get a job offer.