Ask the Experts: Finding Well Paying Jobs in Rural Areas

Question:

I’ve been unemployed for seven months. My old employer went out of business. I had been with them for 16 years and am now 49 years old. I can’t seem to find a new job even though I very much want to work. I recently moved to an area where most well paying jobs are two to three hours away. A nearby town has a few well paying jobs, but I haven’t been able to even get interviews for them.

I was an executive assistant in the sales department for a wholesale food distribution company, so my skills can be used in any industry. I apply to about four to seven advertised positions a day and they’re in a variety of industries. My resume does not include my salary information, although I do provide that if the advertisement requests it.

During the only interview I had, the recruiter asked why I am looking for a position in a different industry. I told him that there aren’t many food industries in the area and I did not want to limit myself to that industry. I added that my skills could be used in any industry. He said I’d hear back within two weeks. I followed up with a thank you letter and emailed him three weeks after the interview, but I have heard nothing.

I receive about one rejection letters a week, so I don’t even know whether employers are interested in my skills. Is it my age? Am I overqualified? Was I paid too much at my previous job?

First Answer:

While there’s likely not a specific reason you’re having difficulty, try looking at potential ways to address each of your concerns. First, are you tailoring the resumes you’re sending? Rather than address industry questions in an interview, try creating a profile (a paragraph at the top of your resume) that tells the reader who you are, what you bring to the table and what you’re looking for. The “what you’re looking for” can include industry indications such as: “…looking for a senior administrative position in the [XYZ] industry” or “…looking for an executive assistant position with an opportunity to apply my administrative expertise to a new industry.” While it is good to have a base resume to share at a moment’s notice, before proactively sending a resume you should research the organization and customize the content of your resume to the organization’s issues and needs.

Second, are you hiding behind your computer? 80% of jobs in a down economy are achieved via some form of networking. And while it’s no surprise that networking yields results, you may be surprised how quickly! People are always more comfortable with people they know, so you need to get out there and meet more people! Research organizations in your area that you would like to work for and look for contacts in that organization. Set up informational interviews to learn about the organization and then follow-up with a resume. Join local civic organizations or get out there and volunteer. Through social interaction you can easily make new contacts.

Finally, are you looking at new avenues? Many temporary agencies hires executive assistants in a variety of areas. These positions often lead to permanent work that varies depending on geography. If you’ve “temped” before and had a difficult experience, don’t hesitate to try again. Temp experiences can differ widely in responsibility, length, challenge and pay. The more open you are to these types of opportunities and making new contacts at every turn, the more likely you are to find leads around new corners.

— Susan Strayer, Assistant Director, Career Services, School of Professional Studies in Business and Education at the Johns Hopkins University and founder and President of University and Career Decisions

Second Answer:

As far as the resume is concerned, I noticed several entries that could invite age discrimination and/or outright disqualification of your resume. The date of high school graduation should never be included on one’s resume, as it allows employers to pinpoint your age. Some employers will omit you for consideration for providing this information. I also feel you have provided more job history than is relevant to your current search. There are also other ways of presenting dates so that the focus is more on your skills and accomplishments than your years in the workforce.

Overall, the resume seems to miss many opportunities to impress. I feel you need a better summary of qualifications, tighter writing, and correction of grammatical issues.

That being said, the resume is probably not the only thing contributing to the relative lack of progress in your search. I don’t know how you’re going about your job search, but if you’re like most folks, you may be making these common job search mistakes:

1. Not contacting enough companies.
2. Not following up enough (or at all).
3. Only applying to companies that have advertised positions.
4. Only applying via email.
5. Not requesting and utilizing networking opportunities or referrals.

If I were in your situation, I would get a directory of all of the businesses in your target town, call them directly, and ask whether they might need some administrative support. If there’s interest, I’d send a resume, then I’d follow it up with phone calls once a week until an interview can be arranged. I’d make a point of contacting at least 30 companies each week. I’d also get out to as many community business events as possible.

— Tracy Laswell Williams, certified job and career transition coach, accredited resume writer and founder of CAREER-Magic.com

Third Answer:

We were supplied with a copy of your salary history. Before I address your most immediate question, let me comment on your salary resume.

2. Only the most recent ten years need to be accounted for on most job applications, resumes and salary histories. Any more than that is merely to account for direct experience in the same position for which you are applying.

3. The font size used may seem insignificant but it is important in certain instances. The standard size for Times New Roman is 12 pitch. However, 11 pitch is still readable when there is a large amount of information that is being presented within two pages. Using 10 pitch is just too small; the recipient will be less inclined to read.

4. Grammatical issues are of primary importance in any document. In addition to grammar, make certain your spelling, punctuation and capitalization are correct throughout your document.

5. When changing industries, it is important to not use acronyms and abbreviations for industry terms of art. When creating a document with the intent of getting an invitation for further conversation, think of it as a presentation to the person on the street who has no knowledge of the industry. Show some sophistication with your subject but not so much that the reader feels as though they’ve just picked up a document written in another language — in which they have no experience.

6. Quantify, quantify, quantify. When presenting yourself, talk about the duties you performed in terms of how effective they were in terms of dollars or hours saved, return revenues generated, efficiencies developed, strategies that helped win the account or made the boss look great. These factors make a person one who gets invited to come in so that more of the inside story can be discussed in relation to how they may fit in the company.

Have you earned too much and are now priced out of the market? I went to a trusted Salary Calculator and checked on salaries for three of the job titles listed on your resume in the approximate zip code for those locations. It appears you have not priced yourself out of the market. To assist you in your presentations and salary negotiations, it will be beneficial to visit my Salary Survey pages. You may also want to make use of the tools in my Career Center.

— Yvonne LaRose, career and professional development coach, Career and Executive Recruiting Advice

Fourth Answer:

Since your resume was attached, here are a few of my thoughts…

Although it was written in the first-person and your tenses were mixed throughout, at least it gave me a good idea of the range of accomplishments. Others may call for a more quantitative assessment of your accomplishments and tell you to ditch the first-person – but neither of these should be deal killers. All in all, nothing that I would consider to be so bad that it wouldn’t get you in the door – unless you consider that hiring isn’t what it used to be. Nor are recruiters: Between the competition for jobs and the dearth of really great recruiters thinking outside-the-box, you need to present a stronger case for your candidacy.

As for you hearing nothing, I truly believe it has more to do with recruiters behaving badly than anything you’ve done. With regards to being “paid too much”, everyone should know the salary ranges in their respective areas of the country. The local Department of Labor office can supply these statistics. If you move from one area to another, your previous salary may, in fact, be out of the local range, and you may have to modify your requirements. Age discrimination? Of course it takes place but is more difficult to uncover than salary statistics. Overqualified? Perhaps but it depends on the jobs you are looking at. A VP applying for an entry-level position is overqualified (by the way, when someone says you are overqualified, ask them to specifically describe their reasoning). But back to your resume…

What I do sense is that your resume presents someone who has been in quite a few jobs and who hasn’t linked them together into a cohesive picture of what they want to do next. Some may suggest that you offer a functional assessment of your skills at the front of your resume – Executive Support, Communication, etc. – not a bad idea when one has been in a range of “disparate” jobs. Since most recruiters have great difficulty seeing outside-the-box, you might want to offer a snappier beginning to your resume that transcends the tired and typically poorly written “Objective” that isn’t general and vague. For instance, the opening line of your Objective begins with – and you’re not alone, far too many others receive the same advice and write the same thing – “To obtain a secure position with a company that is a success in its field and offers growth potential”, this is a throwaway line that offers no substance and wastes critical space.

In my opinion, a better approach is to tell the world what type of job you are seeking – and be as specific as possible – while also summarizing, in detail, your experience, skills, and abilities. Start with “Seeking…” and continue with a list of your core competencies that are directly related to the position (e.g., market research, warehousing, community relations, computer security). Also include the business sectors where you gained your experience (e.g., Public Relations, Retail, Technology, Manufacturing); and, the size and type of the businesses (e.g., start-up, Corporate Headquarters, manufacturing plant, $100M turnaround, Fortune 500 growth). It takes time and skill to craft a great summary. If anyone wants examples, please see Objection! How NOT to Start Your Resume.

I suppose the real question to ask is “If you were the product and your resume described how the product was manufactured, how it worked, and the benefits of using the product, would you buy it?” Well would you?

— Steve Levy, Principal of outside-the-box Consulting

Fifth Answer:

The biggest mistake (of many) on your resume is that you have gone way too far back into your job history,
thus exposing yourself to age discrimination.
The rule of thumb for someone with your level of experience
is to list about 15 years worth of jobs. Age discrimination, unfortunately, is a reality. Read more in my article, Resume, Cover Letter, and Interview Strategies for Older Workers and Positive Attitude is Key When Fighting Prejudice Against Older Workers.

Other resume flaws include lack of bullets (most employers want bullet points, not paragraphs), inappropriate use of
the personal pronoun “I,” emphasis on duties/responsibilities instead of accomplishments, lack of a summary section, skills section buried at the bottom of your resume, typo (it’s instead of its) in your Objective statement. Your resume really needs professional help.

You say you do not include salary on your resume, but I see it on there plain as day. Maybe this is the version you use when employers ask for a salary history. Even so, salary should NEVER be included on your resume. If you decide to reveal your salary history to a prospective employer, which is always risky, create a separate salary-history document.

Employers ask for salary histories to determine how often the candidate been promoted, to what levels, and how much of a raise
accompanied each promotion.

If salary is the most important issue to you, you may feel comfortable complying with requests for salary requirements or
histories. After all, if the company is not willing to pay you what
you feel you are worth, you probably wouldn’t be happy working there.
The only snag is that you could sell yourself short. The company
could have been willing to pay more than your stated requirement.

When asked to supply a salary requirement or history, your choices are:

1. Ignore the request, which is obviously risky.
2. Acknowledge the request but say you are uncomfortable discussing salary in a cover letter and would prefer to do so in a face-to-face
   meeting. Assure the employer that salary will not be a problem.
3. Acknowledge the request and say your salary requirement is negotiable.

Research shows that most candidates who choose options 1, 2, or 3 do not automatically get screened out – even if the ad states
that candidates who fail to provide salary information won’t be
considered. If your qualifications are a good fit, and you write a
brilliant cover letter, most employers won’t put you in the reject
pile just because you ignored the salary information request. 4. Provide your salary request BUT only after you have done enough
research to know what you are worth in the marketplace. Give a very
broad range and make sure you will be more than comfortable with the
salary at the bottom end of the range.

Your response to the interviewer’s question about why are you switching industries seems fine, except that you should elaborate on
the transferable skills.

Once you fix up your resume, be sure you follow up after sending it out in response to ads.

And don’t limit yourself to responding to ads, which is a relatively ineffective way to find a job. Mix up job-hunting techniques, such as
networking (the most effective method) and cold-contacting employers.

— Katharine Hansen, former speechwriter and college instructor who provides content for the Web site, Quintessential Careers, edits QuintZine, an electronic newsletter for jobseekers, and prepares job-search correspondence as chief writer for Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters

Originally posted by alwin