Need advice on your first job?

text: Andreea Decean

illustration: Diana Visinescu

If you're following us on insta, which I assume you're doing considering you've landed here, you've probably seen our latest campaign on how to make the perfect CV, how to prepare for an interview and how to answer the most common interview questions It was one of my favorite campaigns, and apparently the community's too, so we thought we'd give you some more insights on the subject in a bit more words than an instagram post can handle.

Because I don't want to bore you I'm not going to repeat things from that campaign, so if you didn't manage to read about preparation for the first job, do so before reading this article.

Ready? Super. Let me share a few more secrets with you.

The perfect resume

When you send your CV either for a company, a volunteering, an NGO or a competition, whatever, make sure you send it in PDF format. I know it seems trivial and no one would care about this detail, but the most important reason you need to do this is because not everyone can open a word document, image, or any other kind of document, but absolutely anyone, regardless of what device they use, can open a PDF.

Another detail you may not have thought about is that when you send the file, don't name it something like CV- Surname Surname or simply CV. A company is sure to be full of files called CV or Curriculum Vitae or Portfolio, to find you easily, to stand out, always put your last name as the first thing Surname-CV or Surname Surname-Portfolio. It will be much easier for them to find you this way, and you will most likely break out of the pattern.

Ok, what I'm going to say might sound super basic and you'll be like "fff". I know, I know, but bare with me. Make sure you have no typos. Yes, I know, obviously you're going to do that, but you've probably read and re-read that document 100 times already, and you've probably missed some mistakes that you're skipping over because you haven't seen them in a while. I write articles, believe me it happens more often than you would imagine. So you have two options here, you can either have someone, a friend, a family member read it to make sure everything is correct. If you don't have this possibility for documents in Romanian, try it languagetool.org or if you have your CV in English call grammarly.com. Both sites will help you have a perfectly written text.

To finish with the resume part, I know maybe you've had a job at a restaurant/fast food or coffee shop, grocery or clothing store and you're thinking about how you could present that experience in a way that sounds more interesting and professional for a larger company.

"I worked at the cash register." →	"We have used a POS system for receipts including card and cash and have made changes, returns and refunds successfully."
"I made food" →	"I prepared over X memorized dishes from the menu for over X customers per day."
"I helped customers" →	"I have provided customer service that has resulted in large purchases and satisfied customers and helped me become employee of the month"
"I served food to customers" →	"I served breakfast, lunch and dinner to X customers per day."
"I told the customers about the menu" →	"I presented a menu with over X memorized dishes and showed him the different combinations in which the dishes are delicious and with which drinks it should be combined."
"I folded clothes" →	"We maintained a clean space, organized inventory, and set up the store in such a way that all products were visible and accessible to customers."

The perfect interview

In the post I discussed the most frequent questions encountered in interviews, as I said above, I don't want to repeat myself, so let's address a little other topics.

Often at the end of an interview, you will probably be asked something like "Do you have any questions for me?" Maybe you will have a tendency to say no, to give the impression that you are very well-documented and prepared and have no doubts. In reality, you can create a very good impression by asking a question like "I saw on your social media profile that ... could you tell me more about that?" It can be seen that you have done your research and are interested in the company's activities. Or "What do you think is a necessary skill for this job?" Or you can be a little more personal and ask “Why do you like working here? What is your favorite thing about this company?” These questions show that you're even more interested, and maybe you'll create a better connection with the interviewer if you try to communicate more genuinely with that person.

As above, bear with me, I know it's obvious. Don't be late. But if you do, don't start talking about it. "Ah, this traffic. They're all driving like crazy today, I swear. Ugh I'm so sweaty. Sorry." Try something more professional "Thanks for waiting for me, I know punctuality is essential and it's not my style to be late at all"

PS: replace expressions like "sorry I'm late, sorry I haven't done this yet, forgive me for not being able to come" with "thanks for waiting for me, thanks for giving me more time, I appreciate you you understand the situation"

Some final advice I have for you

After the interview, within a period of 3 days to 2 weeks, send a follow-up email, in which you thank them for the opportunity, remind them of your skills and why you think you are perfect for the job and tell them you say how anxious you are to hear an answer.

If you don't get the job, I know maybe the only thing you want to do is scream in frustration, but what will be in your best interest is to send them an email asking for feedback. Ask why you were not suitable for the job, what things you can improve in the future. Maybe they'll realize they can't find anything wrong with your resume or interview and actually hire you. If not, you got some constructive feedback anyway that will stand you in good stead on your next jobs.

There are a lot of things to keep in mind and it can seem a little scary, but always remember that you are ready for any job and interview that comes your way, you have the necessary skills and the only thing you need to do it's to prove that you deserve to get the job.