Get the Perfect Job: How to Get an Interview for Your Dream Job

The real unemployment rate is close to 19% in America.

As more people begin applying for the same jobs, landing a job interview can feel like an impossible task. After weeks of sending out resumes, people who would normally get a request to interview hear nothing at all.

The good news is that landing a job interview isn’t impossible! You can even land an interview for your dream job if you know the right steps to take. All you need is a new approach to the job application process.

Read on to learn how to get an interview for your dream job.

How to Get an Interview With Social Media

Since most job applications take place online now, employers have no face to put to your name. Luckily, with the help of social media, you can help potential employers see what you’re all about.

LinkedIn, Facebook, and even Instagram can all be helpful towards landing job interviews. Potential employers will enjoy being able to get a feel for the type of person you are.

Of course, you’ll want to make sure your social media accounts are all work-friendly. If your accounts aren’t professional, don’t include them on your resume. Instead, set up an account on a site for career professionals, like LinkedIn.

By introducing yourself to employers online, they’ll be able to get a feel for who you are. If they like what they see, they’ll be more likely to consider you for an interview.

Depending on the job you’re applying for, your social media could also be a way to showcase your talents.

For example, let’s say you’re applying for a job at an interior design company. Your application could include a link to your Instagram account that showcases your interior design skills.

Shorten Your Resume

Is your resume too long?  Let’s find out! First, pull up a copy of your resume.

Next, set a timer and begin reading the resume out loud, word for word. When you’re done reading, stop the timer and see how long it took you to work through the entire document.

If it took you more than 1-2 minutes to read your resume, it’s too long. A big part of knowing how to get an interview involves putting yourself in the employer’s mindset. Imagine how you would feel if you had to read through 100 resumes a day?

Would you want to spend extra time on lengthy ones, or would you rather have a quick read? When your resume’s too long, employers will give up on finishing it.

Include Relevant Jobs

One of the fastest ways to shorten your resume is by cutting out irrelevant job experience. Including irrelevant job experiences on your resume works against you in a couple of ways.

First, your resume will be too long, making it unlikely employers will read it. Second, listing irrelevant job experiences can make the employer think you don’t know what you’re applying for.

For example, let’s say Ms Smith is applying for a technical job with a software company. She’s always had technical positions, and sometimes she’d work 2 jobs at once.

If one of her 2nd jobs was as a waitress, it could be confusing to employers to have it on the resume. Instead, it’d be in Ms Smith’s best interest to only list the technical job positions employers care about.

Tips for Career Switchers

Are you switching from one career to another? If that’s the case, you might not have any relevant job experience.

To increase your odds of getting an interview, we suggest attaching letters of recommendation along with your resume. You can use email templates to make requesting recommendations from your past employers easier.

Next, you’ll want to create an attention-grabbing cover letter.

Customize Your Cover Letters

A cover letter is a chance for you to tell employers what you’re all about. Where you’ve been, where you are, and where you’d like to be. Without a cover letter, you’re just another voiceless applicant.

A cover letter is also an opportunity for you to explain to employers why they’re the perfect fit for you. Job hunting is a 2-way street, and employers want to know that you’re not ready to accept any old job.

Instead, employers want to see that you care about their company and their specific job opening. In your cover letter, explain what it is about the job position that calls to you. Paint a picture for the employer, so they can understand the story of your job hunt.

Why are you hunting for a new job? How will it benefit the employer to hire you? These are both questions your cover letter can answer.

Finally, while you want to maintain a professional tone, avoid being overly formal. When cover letters are too generic and formal, they don’t stand out. A potential employer won’t know the difference between your cover letter and the hundreds of others they read. To make your cover letter stand out, try to write it using a conversational tone.

Avoid using phrases like, “to whom it may concern”. If it’s not something you’d say in everyday life, don’t put it in your cover letter. Instead, try to infuse a bit of your voice and personality into the letter.

Your goal should be to grab the employer’s attention and help them connect with you in some way. If you’re applying to a sales or customer service job, employers will especially love seeing the effort you’re putting into making a connection.

Land Your Dream Job

Now you know how to get an interview for your dream job!  However, there’s more to do, and one step is passing the background checks, so how will you do – will you pass?

Be Prepared for Background Checks

Some employers will ask about criminal history, especially if it is relevant to the position you’re applying for. But there’s no need to panic – just make sure you have prepared the necessary reports for this step. If this seems daunting, consider hiring a third-party checker to get your police record in less than a day.

You want to avoid delays, and obtaining them yourself may take several days, which you don’t have if it’s a competitive job.

To protect your personal data, ensure that the company has robust data and privacy protection rules in their organization. You don’t want your personal information to be misused or land in the wrong hands.

Final Words

We hope that our article was able to highlight at least 1 new thing for you. Whatever you learned, don’t delay in taking action.

Before you know it, you’ll be getting the call you’ve been waiting for. A call to set up a job interview! For more ways to get what you want out of life, including becoming self-employed if working for someone else is not your thing, explore the rest of this site.