Dominic Bokich - Sex and Your Job Search: A Guide to Scoring Your Dream Job

CONTENTS

That was amazing!

You just blew my mind!

God, that was incredible!

I truly believe an interviewer will say those words about you (in a professional sense, of course) if you follow the advice in this book.

Thats because satisfying an interviewer and scoring your dream job is a lot like dating and sex. And youve been thinking about them your whole life, right? See, you are much more of a job-hunting expert than you thought!

So, how is the job search like sex and dating?

This book takes you step-by-step through the process of finding your dream job in an entertaining and educational way. It highlights the most current job search and interviewing methods, including behavioral based interviewing, values based interviewing (new), and situational interviewing. These interview techniques are used at top companies, including Amazon and Google.

Along the way, youll learn whats worked for other job seekers through numerous Success Stories. And what hasnt by way of true and embarrassing job-search Funny Mistake stories. Well begin by looking at the job market overall, and by the end of the book you will have crafted Seven Interview Go-to Stories that any employer will love, based on the Seven Universal Skills. I will also reveal the Three Values that every employer wants to see in someone they hire, and that youll tie into your Seven Stories.

The interview section is broken down into four parts that I call the Bases of the Interview. What gets you to first base with your interviewer is a great Introduction. Wowing an interviewer with your background, work history, and education gets you to second. Getting to third is all about satisfying the interviewer with Seven Go-to Interview Stories. And if you hit a home run, well, youve scoredone or more job offers!

To get you hired fast, we will review where the hot careers of the future are. We will cover new insights on resumes, networking, and social media tools such as LinkedIn and Facebook. And I will demonstrate the Interview Wingman Cheat Sheet Method that was taught to me by several directors and vice presidents earning between $100,000$250,000 a year. Even if your mind goes blank, you will be able to rock the interview.

This book will equip you to:

Ill freely admit that I wasnt always an interview expert. When I first interviewed for an entry-level human resources job eleven years ago, my mind froze and I wanted to jump through the window and run away screaming like Homer Simpson would. I feel your pain.

However, for the past eleven years, I have worked in HR for a 14,000-employee university medical center in California. I was chair of a committee that rolled out a behavioral and values based interviewing program. I am a Master Certified Interview Coach and teach administrators and hiring managers how to interview. I was even asked to critique our CEOs interviewing skills. And I wrote this book while working full-time (40-60 hours a week), so this is the most current and real advice out there. I hire on average one person a day and am not semi-retired or a consultant like other job-search book authors.

During the thousands of interviews Ive conducted, I have seen too many people panic, get nervous, and freeze up. Ive tried to make this book like the best date you have ever hadmemorable and relaxed.

So, whether you are unemployed, underemployed, overworked, or live at home, I am confident that after reading this book and applying the advice, you will find your dream job. Ive seen it work over and over for hundreds of successful applicants. Theres no reason the next person to find their dream job cant be you!

For those of you who already have interviews scheduled, please read Chapters 8-13 immediately. Doing so drastically increases your chances of rocking your interviewers world.

Sex, dating, and the job search have a lot in common, as we talked about in the Introduction.

Lets begin with the playing field.

A great analogy for todays employment environment can be taken from the film The Princess Bride , one of the greatest romance, comedy, and adventure movies of all time.

The Princess Bride opens with a beautiful young woman named Buttercup and a farmhand named Westley. They fall madly in love. Westley heads off to seek his fortune so that he may marry Buttercup. In the process, hes captured by the cruel Dread Pirate Roberts, who steals all of his fortune. At this point, all seems lost for him and Buttercup.

Five years pass and, believing Westley is dead, Buttercup reluctantly agrees to marry (spoiled trust-fund baby) Prince Humperdinck. At this point, neither Westley nor Buttercup have much hope of being reunited and rekindling the love affair that had only begun to blossom.

Like Westley, you might feel hopeless, desperate, and discouraged. This Recession has shattered the dreams and fortunes of millions. Some have lost almost everything, while others, like Buttercup, have made compromises they normally wouldnt have, just to get by, and are extremely unhappy.

But theres hope for you, even in this economy, and Ill tell you why in a moment.

As The Princess Bride continues, Westley makes the best of his situation and befriends the Dread Pirate Roberts through his sincerity. Roberts sees potential in Westley and eventually offers him the job of Dread Pirate Roberts.

You see, Roberts had inherited the title of Dread Pirate Roberts years earlier, as the name had been passed along by a series of individuals over many years. Westley gets the pirate title and relaunches his quest for Buttercup.

IS THERE A JOB FOR YOU? YES!

There is a job for you out there. Inconceivable, you say? Not so. Heres why. Millions of people have found jobs during this Recession. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), 4.3 million people were hired in October 2012. And a similar amount were hired each month for the past year. The October 2012 Job Openings and Labor Turnover (JOLT) report went on to say that another 3.7 million jobs were left unfilled at the end of that month.

In 2011, I hired over three hundred people for the university medical center where I work. I am on track to hire even more than that in 2012. On an average day, I recommend at least one job-seeker for hire. The positions include nurses, accountants, business interns, directors, dieticians, administrative assistants, and housekeepers, among many others. These numbers have been consistent throughout the Recession.

I know there are a great number of recent college grads without jobs and millions of others who are suffering. I see it every day. In this economy it is true that you may have to work harder and longer to find a job. And similar to Westleys situation, the jobs available may not be what you expected. But even though there are fewer total jobs out there right now, thousands of companies are hiring at any given time.