Land the tech job you love : why skills and luck aren't enough

You've got the technical chops -- the skills to get a great job doing what you love. Now it's time to get down to the business of planning your job search, focusing your time and attention on the job leads that matter, and interviewing to wow your boss-to-be. You can't just wing it. As a techie, you're a special breed, with special challenges facing you in the job search. Your competition is smart, tech-savvy, and highly resourceful. Expectations among employers are higher. Your competition will run you over if you're not up to the challenge. __Land the Tech Job You Love__ gives you the background, the skills, and the hard-won wisdom to bypass the mistakes of those who don't prepare. You might not think you need this book. Conventional Wisdom has it that finding a job is simple: send some resumes, go on some interviews, and take the offer that sounds best. But that's only the start. You've got the background and skills to work the Web and other resources that the general job seeker doesn't. This book shows you how to take advantage of those skills or be left behind by competing techies who do. It all starts with an examination of you, your strengths, and where you want your career to take you. Without a roadmap, you'll wind up in any old job. Life's too short to spend in a job that you don't love. From there, you'll see how to find the job you want that fits you and the employer, using your technical and web savvy to find the hidden jobs that never make it into the classifieds or Monster. ''Marketing'' is not a dirty word, and you'll learn how to present yourself, your skills, and your background in the way that shows the hiring company that you're the right person for the job. Create a resume that tosses out conventional wisdom, write cover letters that sell your background, and assemble a portfolio of work that will wow the interviewer. Social networking has been the darling of the Web in the past few years, but it's no substitute for the sort of personal interaction that makes relationships that help in future careers. As one manager said, ''One recommendation is worth a million resumes.'' This book shows you how to make and maintain the connections that will drive your future career moves.__Land the Tech Job You Love__ pulls no punches and lays out the details for what gets you an interview, and gets you hired in a job in the technical world that makes you happy. Contents 7 Appreciations 11 Introduction 14 The Fireman Who Loved His Job 14 How This Book Was Born 15 A Disclaimer of Sorts 16 What's Inside? 17 Land the Tech Job You Love Online 19 Go Love Your Job 19 The Job Search 20 The Foundation of Your Job Search 21 Be Honest with Yourself 21 Be Honest with Others 24 Think Like the Boss 26 Be a Problem Solver 28 Sell Yourself 29 Tell Stories and Give Samples of Your Work 31 Be Positive 33 Moving Ahead 35 What Do You Want in a Job? 36 A Crash Course in Work Motivation Theory 38 Dig In to What You're Looking For 39 The Motivation Worksheet 41 What Motivates You? A Dozen Factors to Consider 42 Now Go Beta Test Your Worksheet 50 R茅sum茅 Content: Getting the Words Down 51 Before You Write Your R茅sum茅... 52 Writing a R茅sum茅 Is Not Speedy 54 The Sections of Your R茅sum茅 55 What to Leave Out of Your R茅sum茅 76 Moving to Construction 78 Building Your R茅sum茅 Documents 80 The Three Versions of Your R茅sum茅 81 General Guidelines 82 Use Word's Features Correctly and Effectively 84 Create an Effective Summary 85 Check Your Word Document 86 Build the HTML Version 88 Build the Text Document 92 You're Ready to Move Forward 93 Finding Your Job 94 It's All About the People 94 Where the Jobs Are 99 What to Find Out About a Potential Job 108 Do Your Detective Work 109 Headhunters 118 Work the Hunt 120 Summary 122 Applying for the Job 124 Customize Your R茅sum茅 125 Create a Cover Letter 127 Put the Package Together 130 Never Tell Anyone Your Salary History 131 And Now You Keep Looking 134 The Interview and Beyond 135 Preparing for the Interview 136 Clear Your Schedule 137 Prepare to Sell the Interviewer on You 137 Prepare to Answer Tough Questions 137 Prepare a Relevant Portfolio 138 Prepare Your Questions to Ask 143 Prepare to Get to the Interview 148 Prepare What You're Going to Bring with You 149 Preparation Is Half the Battle 150 The Interview 152 Work Toward Your Goal of Getting an Offer 153 Listen to Everything 154 Treat Each Person Like the CEO 156 A Walk Through the Interview 158 Sell Yourself by Telling Stories 161 Sell Yourself by Doing the Job 168 Closing the Interview 170 Phone Interviews 172 The End of Your First Day 174 Handling the Tough Interview Questions 176 Never Give B.S. Answers 177 Never Complain or Disrespect 177 Know the Red Flags the Interviewer Wants to Uncover 178 The Tough Questions 179 Curveballs 193 More Tough Questions: Exercises for the Reader 194 Too Much Information 196 Illegal Topics 196 Other Topics to Avoid 200 Handle Inappropriate Questions Tactfully 202 Who Wants to Work for a Company Like That Anyway? 203 It's All About Focus 204 After the Interview: The Job Offer and Beyond 205 Send Thank-You Notes 205 And Now You Wait... 206 Go for Further Interviews 208 Give Solid References 209 The Job Offer 213 Leave Your Job Gracefully 219 Getting Rejected 222 And the Cycle of Work Continues... 225 Staying Hirable 226 Improve Yourself 228 Improve Your Network 232 Improve Your Brand 237 Always Look for Your Next Job 241 It's Never the End 245 Meaningless Clich茅s to Avoid 246 R茅sum茅, Cover Letter, and Email Killers 247 Interview Killers 248 Web Resources 249 Bibliography 250 Index 252 A 252 B 252 C 252 D 253 E 253 F 253 G 254 H 254 I 254 J 255 K 255 L 255 M 256 N 256 O 256 P 256 Q 257 R 257 S 258 T 259 V 259 W 259 Y 259 You've got the technical chops -- the skills to get a great job doing what you love. Now it's time to get down to the business of planning your job search, focusing your time and attention on the job leads that matter, and interviewing to wow your boss-to-be. You can't just wing it. As a techie, you're a special breed, with special challenges facing you in the job search. Your competition is smart, tech-savvy, and highly resourceful. Expectations among employers are higher. Your competition will run you over if you're not up to the challenge. Land the Tech Job You Love gives you the background, the skills, and the hard-won wisdom to bypass the mistakes of those who don't prepare. You might not think you need this book. Conventional Wisdom has it that finding a job is simple: send some resumes, go on some interviews, and take the offer that sounds best. But that's only the start. You've got the background and skills to work the Web and other resources that the general job seeker doesn't. This book shows you how to take advantage of those skills or be left behind by competing techies who do. It all starts with an examination of you, your strengths, and where you want your career to take you. Without a roadmap, you'll wind up in any old job. Life's too short to spend in a job that you don't love. From there, you'll see how to find the job you want that fits you and the employer, using your technical and web savvy to find the hidden jobs that never make it into the classifieds or Monster. ''Marketing'' is not a dirty word, and you'll learn how to present yourself, your skills, and your background in the way that shows the hiring company that you're the right person for the job. Create a resume that tosses out conventional wisdom, write cover letters that sell your background, and assemble a portfolio of work that will wow the interviewer. Social networking has been the darling of the Web in the past few years, but it's no substitute for the sort of personal interaction that makes relationships that help in future careers. As one manager said, ''One recommendation is worth a million resumes.'' This book shows you how to make and maintain the connections that will drive your future career moves. Land the Tech Job You Love pulls no punches and lays out the details for what gets you an interview, and gets you hired in a job in the technical world that makes you happy.

You've got the technical chops -- the skills to get a great job doing what you love. Now it's time to get down to the business of planning your job search, focusing your time and attention on the job leads that matter, and interviewing to wow your boss-to-be. Land the tech job you love.