Are You Ready to ROCK (Your Interview)?

As graduation draws near, many soon-to-be grads are applying for internships and entry-level jobs for the summer. Many will get lucky and land an interview, spending days (or even weeks) preparing for that one-shot at making a good impression. But what do you do in that final hour before the interview?

For me, that final hour was literally a 60 minute drive left alone with my thoughts. Or rather, a perfect chance to psych myself out and over think every possible situation that could happen during the informational interview and writing/ editing test that would ensue for the next few hours.

What if I blanked on basic rules of AP Style during the editing portion? What if I had writer’s block (an illness I’ve been recovering from lately) during the writing test? What if clammed up and was completely out of character from my usual bubbly self? What if I was put on the spot and the only words that come to mind are “I don’t know?” Or even WORSE – what if one of many bodily functions blindsided me while I was there?!

As my life going down the drain flashed before me, a glint of something shiny on the floor caught my eye. Quickly I reached down, taking my eyes off the road for ONLY a second (I swear!) and struck gold: an ’80s mix CD I had compiled last summer. Immediately I popped the CD into the player and cranked the volume as loud as it would go without making my ears bleed.

Belting out the lyrics in the comfort of my car erased all of the if’s, and’s or but’s from my mind. Dance moves (though limited in the confines of a moving vehicle) and head bobs included.

Then it hit me: I am Dwight Schrute from The Office. Okay, maybe not quite, but I can at least relate. If you watch the video clip below, you will see Dwight take a moment alone in the car to vigorously listen to Motley Crue’s “Kickstart My Heart.” *I know embedding is disabled, click on it again to go to this clip on YouTube. It’s 25 seconds long. Just do it!

At this point you may be asking yourself, “Okay Mikinzie, you are a huge geek and I’m frightened to be driving on the same road as you, but what’s the point?” The point is you need to have your “thing” that will ease your nerves and put any doubts in yourself to rest. Whether that means dancing it out, meditating, writing down all of your accomplishments on paper, looking at old pictures of fond memories or even letting your voice crack to bad ’80s music is up to you. In the end, whatever you do needs to inspire self-confidence. Even if that means getting funny looks from other drivers on the highway.

What do you do to get rid of the first-interview jitters?

As some of you know, I’m a bit of a music fiend and love giving (and getting) music recommendations. Here are few songs on the playlist that I sang particularly loudly while bopping around in my purple ’95 Cavalier:

• “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” -Simple Minds
• “Burning Down the House” – Talking Heads
• “Always Something There to Remind Me” – Naked Eyes
• “I Ran (So Far Away)” – Flock of Seagulls
• “Ah! Leah!” – Donnie Iris
• “Ordinary World” – Duran Duran
• “Love Will Tear Us Apart” – Joy Division
• “Video Killed The Radio Star” – The Buggles

Two Twommandments of Using Twitter in Your Job Search

I’d like to introduce you to March’s PRepster of the Month, Stephanie Majercik. Stephanie is a senior at Canisius College in Buffalo, NY graduating May 2010 with degrees in Communication Studies, German and European Studies. She is currently the media relations intern with buffalofutsal and Concert chair/event planner extraordinaire on the Student Programming Board. Connect with her on Twitter, LinkedIn and check out her blogging debut, The Blonde Experience.

A PRepster of the Month Post By Stephanie Majercik

Most students have realized by now that an online presence is helpful during their job search. Some of them have even remodeled their Facebook profiles to appear more professional than the typical college student. Many students, myself included, have recognized Twitter’s potential for networking during their job search.

Like other social networking sites, Twitter is a tool; every tool has a purpose. When used correctly, tools do their job very well. When used incorrectly, tools can have adverse effects. I’ll admit: I’ve learned what not to do when it comes to using Twitter as a job search tool because I’ve used it incorrectly in the past. Twitter has been much more useful to me since I’ve stopped hiding and started contributing. I can only imagine that it can work for others this way too.

1)    Thou Shalt Not Block Your Tweets. Blocking your tweets prevents you from joining the conversation. I used to have my tweets blocked, but realized when I participated in the first #PRStudChat that nothing I tweeted was being seen in the tweet stream. Because they weren’t my followers, they couldn’t see my tweets, and because they couldn’t see my tweets, how could they know I would be a value to their following? The same applies to the job search. For one, companies and professionals you tweet at won’t see your tweets if they aren’t following you. And if they can’t see your tweets, there really isn’t an incentive for them to know if you would be worth following. So in order to ensure that your ideas are really heard, unblock your tweets!

2)    Thou Shalt Keep Your Tweet Stream Holy. We all like to update our statuses to tell others what we’re up to, which is fine every now and then, but I find the true value of Twitter to be interacting with others. I was looking at a friend’s Twitter page the other day and all that was tweeted were statuses like “Updating my resume” and “On the job hunt.” There are no links posted and no @replies to other tweeples. If you’re not interacting or sharing with others, then where is the incentive for employers to follow you? You guessed it: there is none.

Debt, Booze and McDonald’s

The American Dream: “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Or is it?

After flying out to New York City for my spring break, I discovered that while I’m looking forward to living my life, flexing my liberties and pursuing the things that make me happy, I simply don’t have the means necessary to actualize my dream at this stage in my life. In the meantime, New York City taught me a new set of ideals: Debt, Booze and McDonald’s.

Debt

Don’t let debt, or anything for that matter, be an excuse from doing the things you want to do, but keep it within reason. As a poor college student, I knew I was going to have to travel on a budget. Last month was also one of the most overwhelming months I’ve had all year. With little time and little cash, I bought my tickets a week before my trip and after a slight speed bump, had to book my hotel the morning of my flight. However, what ended up being my biggest concern was that two days before my flight, I lost my job. Thankfully it wasn’t performance-based, but rather a time, effort and cost issue. However, I was afraid and apprehensive about going to New York City, one of the most expensive cities in the world, having just lost my main source of income. I realized that I was talking myself out of something that I had been looking forward to since January. Was I being incredibly risky by flying out to NYC after just lost my job? Probably. Was it going to cost more than I had planned? Most likely. Did I get crap from others about it? Definitely. But being cynical and holding yourself back will cost more in the long run.

Booze

While I’m not advocating the dangers associated with alcohol use, I am most certainly advocating letting go of your inhibitions. Don’t be afraid to jump up on that platform and show the world what a good time you are having while you discover the world. This is why I tweeted live from NYC, creating my own hashtag #MikinzieDoesNYC and made my Facebook photos from the trip public to everyone (while all of my information on Facebook is public, I like to keep photos for friends only). While I wanted to cram all I could in the matter of a few days, I also wanted to enjoy myself and have fun. This is why most nights in the city were unplanned. I let go of the “itinerary” and let whoever I was with at the time grab my hand and drag me to whatever art space, dive bar or pizzeria was in sight. Don’t take yourself or life’s “small stuff” too seriously or else you might forget to enjoy the adventure.

McDonald’s

Seeing as I was on a budget, I had to remember while living it up, not to live it up too much. I admit it: with all of the famous foods in NYC, I ate a meal or two at McDonald’s. This may sound crazy at first, but I had to remain realistic and remind myself to pick and choose my budget battles. McDonald’s is quick, cheap and predictable; I knew my meal would tide me over for a few hours and cost me under $5. When you’re on a budget and have a ticking clock in your ear, you have to prioritize. You have to find that fine line of not limiting your experience while still being conscious of very real limitations.