The other day I was on my computer when I got a message.
"Hey Jace, Do you have any thoughts on getting a job working on ServiceNow during these times?" (I wasn't asked this specifically but the conversation went down that way)
Oof, when asked this the first thing I do is consider myself losing my employment. I cannot begin to know the worry they have.
These are terrible times. I wish you all best, but every time I try to get involved getting someone a gig or job things go sideways fast. So I stopped doing that. Now I just tell people... the stuff below. That's why I'm writing this. So I can share it use it to cover all the things.
Since March I've been watching slack cautiously. Reading about lay offs and furloughs.
I encourage everyone in this space to listen to Robert Fedoruk and CJ Wesley's podcast featuring Kyle Carson.
Thoughts on getting a job working on ServiceNow
First you need to land an interview. To do that, make an amazing resume. Some say a resume isn't important, some say it is. I like my resume and trying to make it look good, but it's a weird thing. A piece of paper listing skills, history, accomplisments and why you want to work there.
Resumes are the tickets to interviews
There's lots of things online about resumes. I don't have concrete evidence on what works and what doesn't, so I'll share my thoughts from my experience.
I have a "Base" resume I keep up to date with all my experience and such, and I make copies of it tailored to companies needs.
| 1. Keep it current. | Update that resume anytime you get a job with the tasks or skills they list. |
| 2. Don't lie. | It's easy to lie, not so easy to get away with it. I wouldn't want to hire a liar. |
| 3. Describe creatively. | "Handled integrations." becomes, "Saved 5 hours per week per person automating ServiceNow to Payroll feeds." |
| 4. Know your skills. | An admin and a developer can look the same on paper. |
| 5. Clean up your social media. | If they look you up, you don't want controversial things coming up. |
| 6. Know your resume. | BE READY TO SPEAK ON EVERY THING YOU PUT ON THE RESUME. |
| 7. Make it personal. | Tailor the resume to the job. Use their lingo from their job posting. |
| 8. Quantify your successes. | Numbers will find attention. |
| 9. Enlist your community. | Share the details where you help others and they help you. |
| 10. Pair your resume down. | Be concise. This isn't an biography. |
You should update your resume per position applied. Show your best sides to the potential employer. I've done this but not every time.
Interviews are just conversations to give and get information
So since I'm still loving Hamilton I'm going to try something new;
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine... It's the ten jobby commandments.
| 1. Focus and elevate. | Know your worth and expect it.(I read this to get there. Every. Single. Time). |
| 2. Ready questions for people. | Screening call: benefits, culture, company expectations. Interview: team, and technical specifics. |
| 3. Apply to at least three places. | One you don't want work at, and the rest you do. Practice with the "don't" place. |
| 4. Take notes. | Write down notes during the all interview steps. You won't regret it, and then you'll have it to reference later. |
| 5. Research. Research. Research. | Understand the goals of each company. What their lines of business are, and consider would you fit in there. |
| 6. Never give a number first. | Goal: Verify you want to work here and if they want to hire you a lot. When that's true, numbers are flexible. |
| 7. Listen and repeat. | Use keywords from the job posting, and use them where appropriate. |
| 8. Money isn't everything. | It's important. Some places can't offer you what you need. Consider negotiating extra time off then. |
| 9. "Interesting" is a great word. | Them: We can offer you 80k. You: 80k is interesting. It's not quite where we need this. |
| 10. Defer to a EXTERNAL_AUTHORTY. | This gives you a scapegoat for refusing a request while not being guilty of the refusal yourself. |