Padma Knowles Career coach / Recruitment / Talent expert

Personal brand is your reputation online. It's what you want to be known for and what people can say about you in the form of testimonials /recommendations and so on. Putting real focus into crafting this means your ideal employers and recruiters will reach out to you with opportunities that align with your skills and strengths and the value you can add.

It's so easy to get demotivated when you haven't reached your destination yet. The reality is that we have to take the time to think about how far you've come and reflect on the progress made. I see a lot of clients get fixated on the job title or the end goal but not give themselves the credit to the progress they've made. Journalling definitely helps me keepyself in check with my coachign business when I get a case of comparisonitus!

Giving yourself both the space and the permission to really define what career success looks like to you personally is the key. You can't use the compass if you don't know where you're going. So getting real clarity on your values in the 1st place will undoubtedly help you make decisions more easily. Also being realistic and accepting that there is usually more than one option and exploring the most viable options is OK when setting your goals.

I am a big fan of the CARL method when it comes to answering interview questions. It stands for Context Action Results Learning The L part at the end naturally gives you a really impactful way of talking through your examples, as well as giving you an opportunity to reflect and discuss any Learnings. I also think the way it's structured lends itself better to talk through "what you would do" if you haven't actually got the experience.

I think asking specific questions around your core values is important at interview stage. For example if collaboration is important to you and the company highlights it as one of their core values, ask them for specific examples of when people from different areas of the business have collaborated recently? Havign questions that question for values is something that as a interviewee you have complete control over and will help you assess further for value alignment.

You can't underestimate the power of someone who demonstrates that they actually want the job! It doesn't always have to be shown in a cringy way either. When talking about similar past experiences, simply telling the interviewer that you really enjoyed that aspect of the role counts for a lot.