Job Search Coaching: Make yourself more employable

In simple terms, the 2 stage plan for job hunters is:

Stage 1 ) Get the interview
Stage 2 ) Pass the interview

Most people have difficulty with one or the other.
Maybe your CV & application forms do not emphasise your strengths, or you are unable to create the right impression at interview. The good news is that even without all the ideal qualifications or experience, it is eminently possible to get the job that you want. The secret – as with a lot of things in life – is how skilfully you market and project yourself. Employers still buy personality just as they always have.

Based on my decade of experience as a consultant psychologist for many of the top companies in the UK, I will:

  • train you in the art of writing effective CV + application forms
  • give you an insight into what the employer is thinking and what they are really looking for in a recruit.
  • coach you in some psychological tricks of the trade to create a favourable early impression.




1 Make an impact

As an occupational psychologist who advises organisations on their selection processes, I've witnessed plenty of online application forms deleted by HR in about 4 or 5 seconds. And many interviews that were already dead in the water after 4 or 5 minutes... My coaching will train you how to make a favourable (or at least neutral) first impression, and then you will be in a position to demonstrate your talents.

 

6 Focus on what you can change

Even though selection methods have become more sophisticated and objective over the years, companies often don't pick the best person for the job. They pick the best candidate – the person who does the best audition for the role. This is good news because this is something you can change and improve. You can't suddenly gain better qualifications or more experience – but you can learn how to make a better impression on people, and that will be one of the most useful things you ever learn.

2 But be subtle!

I won't encourage you to be a blowhard who bangs on about how great you are. That might work if you want to audition for The Apprentice, but in real life it is professional suicide. Instead, I will coach you how to display your poise, skill and judgement – to demonstrate your virtues rather than bragging about them.

5 Use your personality

How you go about finding a job will depend on your personality. An extravert, with their natural networking skills, will use a different approach to an introvert, who has a longer attention span. With this in mind, I will give you a short career personality test to ensure that you are using your personality inheritance to its best advantage.

3 Proven to succeed

Universities in London employ me as a career coach to run Employability workshops for final year students of all ages. Results show that students who have taken part in my Employability workshops have improved rates of employment – and at a time when the competition for graduate jobs has intensified.

4 Use psychology

Organisations tend to parrot a lot of rhetoric about core values and innovation, but in the final analysis they make more instinctive decisions. After my coaching, you will be in a position to understand and then influence the unconscious psychological choices made by the employer.