It is graduate school application season and loads of students (that I know of in or from mainland China) are attempting to go overseas for their Master's degree next September.

Other than the standardized tests like GMAT, TOEFL, GRE, and IELTS, many universities requirement a personal statement and at least 2 reference letters from every applicant.

Over the past 2 weeks, I have been approached ("ambushed" is a better word) by more than 10 students asking me to write them recommendation letters and/or personal statements. And these requests all came with deadlines, "I would like the letter by this weekend and I want 15 copies of it."

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm always happy to help.

But these students are not doing it right.

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Imagine walking into a room with two persons inside. One of them is highly creative but very shy. The other is clever, but not as creative and much more domineering than the shy guy.

Now, you have an upcoming assignment due in 2 weeks that needs high levels of creativity. So, you approach these two persons for help.

As expected, the loud and not-as-creative person dominates the conversation and never allows the shy guy to participate. So, while the ideas generated are good, they are not incredibly innovative.

The question now is: How do you get the loud guy to shut up so that you can hear the shy guy?? 

By distracting him.

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When an interviewer ask the question, “Tell me about yourself,” they are not really asking you to tell them about yourself.  Recruiters don’t give a hoot where you were born, what interest you have, why you selected your university or how and where you got your first and subsequent jobs.  They may listen to these responses from you appropriately just to be nice but they really don’t care.

Continuing from where I left off last week... Free Work.

Now, for a fresh graduate with nothing (much) to show for, doing free work will most definitely build your portfolio. This is one of the key items in your resume that employers are looking for - what you have done and what you are capable of doing.

You may have earned your degree, but you haven't earned the right to be paid a lot of money yet. And so, you have to proof your worth.

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What kind of person does any employer want to hire?

Answer: People who can solve problems and get the job done.

But...how can they know if you can get the job done before even hiring you?

The fact is: They can't. They can only make an educated guess. And how do they educate themselves about you?

Answer: Through your resume, cover-letter, reference letters, portfolio, personality tests, psychometric tests, assessment centres, group interviews, phone interviews, individual interviews, meal interviews, etc.

You see, none of these methods of screening and selection is perfect. So, at the end of the day, the employer is still making a guess and taking a gamble when they decide who to hire.

So, how you can make yourself a COMPELLING hire?