In case you missed it, last week I listed the first five of my 10 tactics for job searching. They were:

1. Treat the job search as a full-time job (if you're currently out of work);
2. See at least 10 potential employers each week;
3. Ask your friends to go to bat for you;
4. Prepare a general purpose résumé but try not to use it; and
5. Remember that employers are always right - about what they need.

Now let's finish this thing off with tips 6-10. Each of these tips addresses the culminating and most critical part of any job search: the interview.

6. Show Up Early

If you're late for an interview, you're toast. The message you're sending: I don't care enough to show up on time. In a context where the little things differentiate one job candidate from another, lateness sets back a candidacy by miles and miles. This is true even if you have a legitimate excuse for being late.

So do whatever you can to be punctual. If you're not sure where the location of the appointment is, I suggest you drive there the day before. Leave yourself plenty of time to account for traffic and unforeseen delays. And plan to be 10 minutes early.

7. Dress Appropriately

Lots of otherwise qualified candidates don't get the job because they don't look the part. And the reason they don't look the part is, more often than not, because they're not dressed appropriately.

Dress conservatively. It's strictly business formal. Navy and gray. Suits and ties for guys, suits and flats for gals. The interview is not a place to make a fashion statement. Once you're hired, you can pull out your Rush Limbaugh ties.

8. Don't Criticize Yourself?

Humility is an admirable quality, but it has no place in a job interview. Nobody wants to hire somebody who acts like a beaten dog. Employers are looking for confidence. So set aside the value lessons you've been taught all your life about the virtue of self-criticism and humility and for that 30 to 60 minutes talk all about the things that make you special. If you don't laud your own qualities, nobody will.

9. Don't Criticize Former Employers

At some point in every interview, the candidate must talk about his or her former (or current) employer. Find something positive to say about your ex-bosses, even if they're world class jerks. Criticism of the ex-boss doesn't go over well with prospective employers. It makes you sound like a complainer and a troublemaker. So keep negative thoughts about bosses and companies you used to work for to yourself.

10. Try Not to Ask About Salary, Vacation and Benefits on a First Interview

Questions about compensation and benefits suggest that you're out for yourself and do not genuinely care about the work or the company's interests. This might be unfair. But in interviews, perception is everything. So try to keep these things out of the first interview. Concentrate on the employer's needs and how you can fulfill them. There will be plenty of time to discuss money and benefits later in the process.

Conclusion

Remember that finding a new job is a job unto itself. It takes hard work, preparation, patience and the ability to recover from setbacks. I hope this series and set of 10 tips will prove helpful to each of you in your quest for a position worthy of your abilities. Good luck!

MEMBER REPLIES

The Canadian Healthcare System

I received about half a dozen responses to my short piece in last Wednesday's SafetyXChange about the findings of a recent report criticizing the Canadian healthcare system. The notes pointed out some inaccuracies in the story that I would now like to correct.

First and foremost, I want to apologize for confusing the Simon Fraser University and the Fraser Institute. Although both institutions are based in British Columbia and named for the same man, the Scottish-born explorer, fur trader and general, Simon Fraser, that is where the parallels end. Simon Fraser University is one of Canada's preeminent institutions of higher learning. The Fraser Institute is a think tank with a decidedly conservative political agenda. The two institutions are not affiliated. It was a big mistake to suggest they were.

As for the rest of the points challenged in the article, I'll let the members speak for themselves.

Glenn Demby
Editor-in-Chief
SafetyXChange

Private Insurance Is Available in Canada

[In addition to confusing Simon Fraser University and the Fraser Institute], Glenn Demby's article on the Canadian Healthcare system contains another statement that needs to be clarified regarding the purchasing of private insurance. As Glenn points out, this is not allowed in Canada. The purchasing of private insurance would effectively allow an individual to by-pass any wait lists that may be in place at any given health care facility in order to gain immediate access to the procedure(s) that they may require.

However, many entities such as insurance companies have found a way around this legislation. For example, in British Columbia, WorkSafe B.C. (the former Workers' Compensation Board of British Columbia) often provides injured workers with accelerated access to both diagnostic as well as to remedial services (operations, rehabilitation, etc.). Thus many injured workers are able to by-pass lengthy waiting lists at publicly funded hospitals in order that they are able to accelerate their return to the work force.

Other than those points I wish to congratulate all of you for the excellent publication and for the opportunity to gain valuable and insightful information .

Bob Parsons
District Vice-Principal
Queensborough Middle School
Queen Elizabeth Elementary School

Check Your Sources

As a Canadian, I am disheartened that you would use the Fraser Institute as a reference for anything. Simply put, the Institute is nothing more than a politically motivated extremely biased organization. The Alberta government has repeatedly tried to have the private sector involved in Medicare but the federal government has always panned this idea. The truth of the matter though is somewhat different. Private facilities exist in every province. The difference is that they must bill the government and not the individual. I strongly suggest you check your "sources" before using any group to base your opinions on.

Dean Lailey
Calgary, AB

An American in Canada

I’m an American who is CEO of a Canadian company based in BC. I want to point out that many Canadians think the Fraser Institute is a haven for flat-earth, far-right-wingers. So any report from there generates a lot of instant, knee-jerk opposition.

Your short article couldn’t possibly address all the nuances, but, for example, we do have a private insurance program in BC which allows us to purchase services above and beyond those covered by BC Medical. And we do not get FREE health insurance in BC (though they do in Manitoba). We have to pay $100/mo+/- per person in premiums (and a whole lot more than that in taxes) for access to the "free" provincial health care system.

The biggest problem is the utter imbalance between supply and demand, country-wide.  You literally have to wait months for an operation (elective or non-emergency surgeries) that could be scheduled within days in the U.S.

Name withheld

Quality Care and National Pride

The topic of the Canadian medical system is about as touchy as questioning Americans’ freedom of speech or right to bear arms, etc. You don’t go there half-heartedly.

As a Canadian, I am extremely proud of our medical system. Sure it has flaws. But in the past few months, I’ve had access to more than half a dozen top quality screenings and specialists at no extra cost and with no delay. My parents have each needed medical care in the past year and it’s been of the highest quality and efficient. And for 10 years, our medical system supported my brother. As far as I know, he would not have received the same treatment – that extended his life by 50% - in any other country unless he had big bucks to pay for it.

It’s also a topic of national identity. Canadians feel that we take a lot of ribbing and critiquing from Americans. But we draw the line on this issue.

Name withheld

SMOKING FACT OF THE DAY

Not such a crazy idea

The Dangers of Secondhand Smoke

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Workers who are exposed to secondhand smoke in the workplace are 17% more likely to develop lung cancer than workers who are not so exposed.

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Source: Boffetta, Agudo, Ahrens, et al., "Multicenter Case-Control Study of Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke and Lung Cancer in Europe," Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 1998, 90: 1440-1445.

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