Have you ever felt like your job search was pointless? Or that you would never get the promotion you needed at work? Or that things would be different if you were the one running your company?
Don’t fret - things are likely to turn around with determination, motivation, and a pinch of inspiration. A great way to raise your spirits and stay positive is to enjoy the peace of sitting down with a hot drink, a warm blanket, and a great movie. Here are a few inspirational movies that might help you put your career troubles (or any other issues) into perspective.
The Pursuit of Happiness
Embark in the journey of the life of Chris Gardner (Will Smith), a struggling salesman, on his search for financial stability and true happiness. Gardner is a single father struggling to keep food in his and his son's the mouths by selling medical devices that have long been outdated and are virtually useless. Gardner knows he must find his way out of this rut that he calls life.
Through hard work, determination, an internship, and a little bit of luck, Gardner lands the job of his dreams and finds the stability that he has always longed for. Gardner’s son is played by Smith’s son, Jaydin Smith. This real life bond helps to intensify the struggles and joy endured throughout their pursuit of happiness.
The Devil Wears Prada
Welcome to NYC! The city of bright lights, up-and-coming starlets, and the fashion mecca of the world anxiously awaits. Watch as Andrea Sachs (Anne Hathaway) fights for acceptance and notoriety in the fashion writing realm. With a boss like Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep) Sachs will be faced with many tasks that are designed to be unachievable. Although Sachs originally thinks Priestly to be the Devil herself, she soon realizes the passion and love for the company Priestly has. Sachs soon learns the true meaning of respect, dedication, commitment, and passion.
It’s a Wonderful Life
With the holidays right around the corner what better way to get inspired than to watch It’s a Wonderful Life! Follow along as the life of George Bailey (James Stewart), a businessman, unfolds before your eyes. Bailey feels that his life is unimportant and things would have been no different if he had never existed. With the help of an angel, Bailey is shown just how important he is and all the people who need him in his small hometown of Bedford Falls, New York.
These movies should inspire you to be determined, believe in yourself, fight for what you love, and most importantly, NEVER GIVE UP. Whether it be Andrea Sachs determination to be the next great writer in the Big Apple or Chris Gardner’s burning desire to give his son the life he deserved, may these fictional characters lead and guide you through your roughest moments in the business world.
What's your favorite inspirational film?Image Credit: Shutterstock
The leaves are changing, the kids are back in school, and that familiar chill is in the air. You think it's the perfect time to look for a job, and it is! But are your job search fears preventing you from making that leap?
It's not uncommon to feel lost when embarking on your job search journey. After all, school teaches us everything except how to get a job. What should you put on your resume? What questions should you ask in an interview? How can you stand out in the hiring process when there's so much competition?
Are you feeling spooked yet?
Believe it or not, there's no need to be afraid of the job search process! You can land your dream job with the right tools and strategy. You can find a job that won't give you nightmares. Here are three spooky secrets every job seeker should know as they look for a job this fall.
1. An Effective Job Search Starts With An Interview Bucket List
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Despite your fears, you've decided to take the plunge and look for a new job. You might be asking yourself, "Where do I start?" The answer is simple: start by creating an interview bucket list.
An interview bucket list is a list of 10-20 companies you'd love to work for. Are you passionate about a company's products or services? Do you feel connected to its mission? Can you relate to its values and beliefs as an organization? If you answer "yes" to any of these questions, that company probably belongs on your interview bucket list.
Once you create an interview bucket list, you'll be able to conduct a targeted job search, one with direction and a foundation upon which everything else will be built. An interview bucket list helps you focus your job search and networking strategies on the right opportunities, making it easier to get your foot in the door at one of your dream companies.
2. Your Job Application Needs To Disrupt Hiring Managers
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In order to stand out in the hiring process, you need to disrupt recruiters and hiring managers. You accomplish this by doing two things: optimizing your resume and writing a disruptive cover letter.
A well-optimized resume includes keywords from the job description. This ensures your resume gets past the ATS and into the hands of the hiring manager. Once it's in front of the hiring manager, it needs to grab and keep their attention. Quantifying your work experience—adding numbers to your bullet points—will make you stand out from other applicants. Hiring managers will want to know more about you and your accomplishments, and that's how you land a phone interview.
Before that, though, a hiring manager will read your cover letter. To disrupt them, you need to write a disruptive cover letter (obviously!). A disruptive cover letter gives you the opportunity to tell a story about why you feel connected to the company you're applying for. It's that storytelling aspect that will stand out to hiring managers and compel them to pick up the phone and give you a call.
3. Employers Hire You Based On 3 Things
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You can't get hired unless you know what employers are assessing you on in the interview process. While your skills and expertise matter, companies actually hire for three things: personality, aptitude, and experience (in that order).
Most job seekers don't realize how important it is to demonstrate their personality, aptitude, and experience in an interview. You could have the right experience for a job, but if the hiring manager doesn't think your personality is a good fit for the company culture, you probably won't get a job offer.
Make sure you demonstrate your soft skills and learn how to answer behavioral interview questions to prove you're the best candidate for the job you're applying for, not just the most qualified.
Want To Learn More Job Search Secrets?
As you look for a job this fall, it might be helpful to know some more spooky secrets so you can get over your job search fears and finally take control of your career.
We know the job search process can be scary. However, it's important to get clear on what you want to do next and focus on conducting a strategic job search, or what we refer to at Work It DAILY as job shopping. This is the only way to effectively market yourself to employers. If they can't see exactly where and how you add value, then that's going to decrease your chances of landing the job.
The competition is fierce, and there are a lot of factors that are out of your control. But the one factor you can control is your job search strategy, the tools and tactics you use to land a job.
If you want to learn the secrets to conducting a strategic job search, sign up for our Job Search Bootcamp, a two-hour, on-demand video workshop that comes with a free workbook.
In this video workshop, you'll learn:
How to use backchanneling to get directly to hiring managers.
The secret to using a connection story to stand out against the competition.
How social media can be your secret weapon to get job interviews.
The resume format that is getting job seekers more job interviews.
