Personal Files: Land the job!

Hi friends!

I have been told in the past I am exceptional at interviews [humble brag or just brag? prolly just bragging.]. Last week, I somehow managed to land the job of my dreams, and the interview was a major part of the process. Several hours and being grilled by panels on clinical and personal levels, it can be so hard not to crack under pressure. Without further ado,

Here is my guide to getting your dream job:

• If you feel something in your heart while reading the description, go for it.This is so important. I have recently made the conscious decision to live my life with my heart. This means that I listen to it, and make choices based on what instinctively feels right. When it comes to your career, people tend to do the opposite. More money, more power, more flexibility, making choices only based on what looks good on paper… be weary of your ego friends. If you choose a job to feed it, you will live your life a slave to inflating it.

• Make your resume for YOU.Don’t make it based off of your friends, your colleagues (unless you particularly love their style), or competition. I know that sounds silly, but it will stand out the most if you create it with your own personal style in mind. I am a nurse and recently threw out my boring old white template. If you’re looking for some out of the box inspo.

• Make a mission statement.This is amazing advice that seriously applies to your life. If you are currently not sure how to listen to your heart or maybe feel disconnected to it; making a mission statement will open up the flood gates to living your life with intention. I have two right now, and I alter them as I need. I created mine after having a particularly significant meeting with our Chief Nursing Officer, crying in the back of an Uber because I finally realized what I wanted for my life. It was easy, and it was my truth:

“as a nurse and as a human, caring for others is my calling”.

Whether you choose to wear your truth on your resume, cover letter, or even just drop it in an interview (HIGHLY recommend), you are #1. guaranteed to stand out. #2. you are making decisions based off of what you know you were put on Earth to do.

• Make it personal. Before every interview I’ve ever had, the night before or a few days leading up to it, I will whip out my legal pad, and write down every reason why I am applying for this job. Next, and I think the biggest key to my success, is I relive and write down examples of times in the past that made me stand out as a leader, memories that make me so damn proud to be a nurse, times when I was a team player and an innovative thinker. I literally write out where I was, what happened during the scenario, and how I felt afterwards and during. By writing these down and feeling all those feels, I keep these examples in the forefront of my brain that gives me an entirely different level of confidence. While prepping for an interview, a lot of people go through questions on Google (which I do too, of course), but if you create a solid list of examples of times that made you a badass and are actual moments that may have inspired you to get the job, you will answer these questions in a totally different and enlightened way. A way the exudes passion, authenticity, and truth.

• Next on that legal pad, write down REAL questions, you are curious about for the job.My personal favorites for managers interviewing you: “what does your personal definition of success look like in this job? Whether it be success for you or for your employees, what is your marker?” This gives you insight to what they are looking for and if you two are using the same measuring stick at the end of the day. If they’re all about making money as success but you’re interested in saving the world, you may want to end the interview there. Also, don’t forget to ask what their expectations of you would be by the end of the day, and the end of your first year there. You want to know what you’re signing up for!

• Remember, the ball is in your court. Interviews are scary because you want everyone to like you (at least for most of us), but seriously ask yourself, “do I like them?”. I once met with my therapist (if you’re shocked I have one, go home) before an interview and I asked “I know the answers they want to hear, but there’s a part of me that is struggling to just say those with fake confidence like I’m sure everyone else is, or should I tell them my truth, even though it may not be what they want?”. Her advice was simple “speak from the heart. You can never go wrong and if the interviewer doesn’t agree, the job wasn’t meant for you and trust me, you won’t want it.”. That advice put me in the top ranks for a job that I was EXTREMELY unqualified for (like, they asked for 2-5 years experience and I had one… barely, and to be a certified nurse, nope, and to have been currently enrolled in graduate school, definitely not). I was only considered because my manager had told me, that I had the best interview he had ever been apart of.

*yes, that is and was still the best compliment I have EVER received, this guy was a BOSS (figuratively and literally, no I’m not sorry for that)*.

• Lastly, dress like a motherf*cking boss, okay.Buy the dress you can’t afford, the briefcase you can’t stop thinking about, the shoes that are calling your name. Treat yourself beforehand to an item that may seem superficial and unreasonable to others, but will bring your power during your interview. For me, that was this Ted Baker shirt. My rationale: if I couldn’t afford it when I bought it, I would be able to after I got the job.

I hope any of this advice helps if you’re in a spot where you feel like that dream job you want is a reach. Above all else, believe in yourself. You are too damn good to fail, I promise.

Also, send a Thank You e-mail, card, WHATEVER. Just be grateful you got this opportunity and show them that.

xoxo,

Andi