Smokin? Up a Storm: Clothing, Smokers, and the Job Interview
You're nervous. You're so nervous that you crave a smoke. So you light up, and as you puff away, it feels so relaxing, right? Well, what's good for your nerves is not so good to when you're job hunting. What?! What does smoking have to do with job hunting? It has to do with the fact that if you-the job hunter-are a smoker, and your interviewer is a non-smoker, then your chances of getting hired are very slim. And yes, legally, an employer can't say "You're a smoker, I'm not going to hire you!" However, it is an unofficial fact that if all things are equal, a non-smoker will be hired over a smoker every time. If you're a smoker, this is a disadvantage to you. So if you're not going to quit smoking, then get into the habit of doing so outside! This is especially important during your job hunt. Why? Because if your interviewer is a non-smoker, he or she *will* know you are a smoker. You will reek of smoke IF you smoke inside (I, the author, am a non-smoker-I know what I'm talking about). Because of this employer prejudice, while job hunting and especially before an interview, be sure that you dry clean all of your clothes (I'm talking: your suit jacket, shirt, and pants-male. And skits or dress pants-female). Buy new neckties (or bowties), socks, underwear, t-shirts, and hosiery (female) and keep all these clothes in some kind of air-tight bag. Put all these clothing items in a part of your home that the farthest away from all the smoking. And if you do smoke with your interview clothes on, do so outside only! NOT in the car before the interview and NOT while going straight home afterwards. Wait until you are home and strip naked (seriously), put all these clothes in your "smoke-free zone." Only then can you smoke freely. And only then do your shopping, visiting, etc. If you don't, you'll reek of smoke and will have to dry clean after each and every interview. By keeping all clothes away from the tobacco smell and smoking outside, you reduce most (but not all) of the smoke odor. This will give you one more edge over non-smokers. And this may help you get that job! © 2005 by Jerry Carmack. You have permission to publish this article electronically or in print, free of charge, as long as this footnote is included. A courtesy copy of your publication would be appreciated. If you wish to use portions of this article, you must email the author at carmackpublishing@yahoo.com for permission. Thank you. Jerry Carmack is a freelance, self-publishing, non-fiction ebook writer living in Hot Springs, AR USA. This article is a part of an ebook, "How to Tie a Tie: Everything You Wanted to Know About Neckties and Bowties, but Didn't Think to Ask." (http://carmackpublishing.tripod.com/how_to_tie_a_tie.htm)
Related News
Springboards for life in careers elsewhere - Financial Times
Springboards for life in careers elsewhereFinancial Times, UK -4 hours agoAlthough the small state offers only restricted employment choices for graduates the average expected wage in the oil-rich country is the second highest in ... |
Health Care Marketing Industry Day to offer employment opportunities - Hattiesburg American
City Expands Job Training For Public Housing Residents - NY1
Green Jobs Transition Must Accelerate - Policy Innovations
Green Jobs Transition Must AcceleratePolicy Innovations, NY -8 hours agoThe report forecasts that millions of cleaner careers could be generated by 2030, with as many as 20 million new jobs in the energy alternatives sector ... |
Shifting Careers In Hard Times, Lawyers Advise Cautious Steps - New York Times
Arbitrability of USERRA Claims: Battle on the Home Front - Law.com (subscription)
Apprentices start building a career - Bradford Telegraph Argus
Apprentices start building a careerBradford Telegraph Argus, UK -10 hours agoMohammed, 18, and Shaun, 19, were both recruited by Lovell from Accent Community Partnerships, which delivers construction-based training and employment... |
Bye-bye to career employment for Baby Boomer men - Examiner.com
New committee working on five-year plan to improve job prospects - Kawartha Media Group
The Grades recruitment event: White men in braces need not apply... - Independent
|
|
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Why Should We Hire You?
This is one of those broad questions that can take you down the wrong road unless you have done some thinking about what to say ahead of time. This question deals with your ability to sell yourself. Think of yourself as the product. Why should the customer buy?
So You Want To Be a Nurse When You Grow Up?
You're interested in becoming a nurse. How do you get into the field? First of all, you need to assess your basic interest. Why do you want to get into nursing? Are you getting ready to graduate from high school and always wanted to be a nurse? Do you want to go into nursing, because a relative is in the profession or your family has a tradition of graduating nurses, and it seems like the right thing to do? Nursing seems like a nice secure profession-the pay attracts you? You've always liked helping others and you care a lot?
Outsmart Other Job Seekers by Showing These 5 Key Strengths
Getting an appointment for an interview these days is an accomplishment. It indicates that you have a good resume, and/or that networking has paid off. Bravo. Now for the all-important in-person phase of the process.
How to Receive Multiple Job Offers After You?re Fired
Ask survivors of the most popular reality television shows and they'll tell you "If you have to eat a cockroach, don't spend too much time thinking about it." Keep focused on the end-game and move on.
Hospital Staff at Great Risk of Attack and Injury Whilst at Work
There are millions of people working extremely hard every day in the UK to ensure that the public are healthy and recover from illness or accidents. Countless medical staff around the country study hard to become doctors and nurses and then work long hours and endure stressful situations in order to save the lives of men women and children every day. These people are present day saints and have chosen the caring professions because they genuinely want to help others. Sadly though, their efforts sometimes are not appreciated.
Certification for Freelancers and Home-Based Business Owners
When we think of technical certification, most of us think of the seemingly endless jumble of letters that follow the names of information technology experts-MCSE, MCSA, A+, CCNA, etc. These certifications serve as standardized, objective validations that the person holding them possesses a certain set of skills and a certain level of professional competency.
A Bit of Pollyanna
"Stop being such a Pollyanna," a trusted, more experienced colleague counseled as we took the long route back to my office. He had just witnessed my project idea annihilated as co-workers eagerly argued why my idea wouldn't work, where it was flawed and why it shouldn't be funded. Despite naysayers in the room that day, I believed it was worth pursuing. Ultimately, it did receive funding and became, in time, a successful endeavor. A bit of Pollyannaism got me though.
Finding Employees For Insurance Industry Jobs
Finding the right employee for any job opening can be a challenge to say the least, and this is no truer than in the insurance industry. With considerations ranging from experience and education to their personal skills, the decisions faced by recruiters and employers can be of critical importance.
Career Change: A Glittering Invitation To The Emotional Stalkers
As much as you are yearning for career-change, and as much as the trends actually favor it, just contemplating a shift is a glittering invitation to four emotional stalkers who love nothing better than to play a nasty game of team-tag at your personal expense. When you unmask these bandits -- even a little -- they begin to lose their emotional charge ? leaving you free to more fully explore the opportunities to re-invent yourself.
The Hidden Job Market: Real or Imagined?
The hidden job market has been touted as the place to go if you want to find the best jobs. It's been said that this sector of the job market accounts for seventy-five percent of all the job openings out there. If that is true, then what we see in the classifieds and on the Internet job sites account for only twenty-five percent of all job openings. So the question becomes, is the hidden job market a myth or does it truly exist?
The Musketeer Approach
Stories of intrigue, treachery, politics, lies, double crosses, and power struggles fill the history books, much like they fill today's headlines. In the world of the 17th century musketeer, life depended on who you could trust. In the world of the 21st century employee, one's livelihood may.
I'm not naïve to corporate politics, competition, or sabotage in the workplace. I've held my own in corporations where silos, turf wars and power brokers delivered indigestion, sleepless nights, and distrusting cultures. But I still don't get it. When people are more focused on what's happening in the cube next to them than on achieving corporate goals, everyone loses. When corporate politics fill emails with mixed direction stalling productivity, everyone loses. And when discretionary effort and new ideas are swallowed in pits of bureaucracy, guess what? Everyone loses. The way I see it, if the company fails, we all fail.
So, I believe the Three Musketeers got it right: "All for one and one for all!" Each understood his fate as an individual was tied to their fate as a group. Trusting each other was unambiguous. One was in trouble, they all were in trouble. One needed help, they all provided help. One succeeded, they all succeeded. The fiction of Alexandre Dumas, set in the 17th century, seems a good prescription for the 21st century workplace.
I know it's worked for me. Arriving at a new job, I discovered the boss who hired me was away, and no one expecting me. I found no office, no desk, and no information. The person I was hired to replace was in my job, and had no idea I was replacing her. Each week got worse. Information and requests flowed like water through a clogged pipe. I was out of the loop on important issues and viewed like the enemy. Turning to my boss for guidance was like stepping into a sink hole, as I discovered his credibility and the department's lacking.
I realized if I was to survive, I had to find, win over, and/or develop a handful of people I could trust. It took a difficult year, but the payoff lasted an entire career. Gradually the group of trusted colleagues grew. We never thought of ourselves as musketeers, but by our actions, we became them. Unspoken rules of ethics and integrity prevailed. We looked beyond individual interests. We shared ideas, collaborated on projects, borrowed resources, and worked together easily and enthusiastically. We wanted the best for each other and the best for the company, each of us worrying about more than our own five acres.
Unspoken commitments prevailed. If I was in trouble or asked for help, help was given. I was called upon to step up and provide help too. We all knew our musketeer roles required reciprocity. The bottom line was that helping each other succeed, helped each of us succeed. I don't know where I'd be today without the musketeer approach. My advice? Become a musketeer!
(c) 2004 Nan S. Russell. All rights reserved.
Have Some PASTA with Your Interview
When cyclists prepare for a big race, they always make sure they load up on the carbs. It is not uncommon to have a pasta feed the night before an important event so that the athletes can store up some of the carbohydrates they will be burning up the next day. The same goes for preparing for an interview. A candidate for a job, preparing for that all-important interview, needs to take in some PASTA. However, it isn't the same kind of pasta, but it is something that will energize, fortify and maximize a person's chances in having a successful interview.
Out Recruit The Competition
We hear from our clients that they "hope the candidate takes the job." Hiring a candidate shouldn't be a guessing game. After you interview a candidate thoroughly, and spend a great deal of time and money getting them through the process, you should not have to worry about "landing them."
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. One of the major mistakes many job seeks make is not being able to keep the whole job search experience organized. Remembering who you spoke to on what day, concerning what job can be a true "mission impossible."
What Did You Say?
My table-mates introduced themselves as the reciprocal protocol began. We chatted about what we did, where we did it and what we thought of the conference. Stan joined the table as the chicken was served. He'd been introduced to me earlier and we'd talked briefly during the pre-dinner social. Now he was peppering me with intriguing business questions. This was going to be a lively and interesting discussion, I thought.
Make Your Career Offshore Proof
There has been a lot of talk recently about American jobs moving overseas?offshoring is the buzzword for it. During difficult economic times it is often easy to find a scapegoat to blame for a downturn in jobs. While government reports and politicians try to downplay the impact, offshoring is something to take seriously. This article will discuss the permanent effect offshoring will have on U.S. jobs and what you can do to make sure it doesn't happen to you.
Death By Workers Compensation
Excerpt of Death By Workers' Compensation
Job Interviews and The Secret of Selling Yourself
A very effective and persuasive tactic when selling something is to promote its benefits as well as its features.
Franchising Offers NO Guarantees --
You have to ask --- IS a FRANCHISE FOR YOU?
Six Factors That Can Cost You the Interview/Job
Most job seekers know that an unprofessional appearance will count against them at an interview. Here are six MORE factors that can help you remain in the unemployment line:
(1) Being unprepared for the interview. Prepare, plan, and practice! In today's tough job market, you MUST do everything you can to give yourself an edge... preparation is the key.
(2) Not being able to communicate clearly and effectively. This is important during the interview and on the job. Being nervous can really mess up your communication skills, so being well prepared and practicing what you're going to say are always your best bet.
(3) Being aggressive, arrogant, or acting in a superior way. No one wants to hire or work with people who think they're better than everyone else. Be careful with your attitude, even if you think you're surrounded by incompetent fools. Being confident is good. Being an arrogant jerk is bad.
(4) Making excuses for failings. Your teacher never bought "The dog ate my homework!" and your boss isn't going to buy "The finance department gave me the wrong figures!" In the grown-up world, you have to take responsibility for what you are responsible for! You'll never earn respect by blaming others when things go wrong.
(5) Saying unfavorable things about previous employers. Even if you left a job because the boss was an egomaniac who took credit for all of your hard work, verbally abused you in front of others, and poisoned the plant on your desk, don't say anything bad about him/her during an interview. When asked "Why did you leave your last job?" say something like "My manager and I both agreed that my advancement opportunities were limited there and obtaining another position was the best option for me and my career goals."
(6) Having a poor/limp handshake. Why do people think you'll be a lousy employee if you have a lousy handshake? That's not really logical, is it? Doesn't matter. It just turns people off and gives them a bad impression of you. So make your handshake firm and confident but not bone-crushing. (It's not a competition to see who winces first!)
If you DON'T want to be unemployed, don't let any of those traits apply to you!
|
