Conselhos aos NEWCOMERS! (Inglês)

Texto pego de http://canadaproject.wordpress.com/
Muito bacana e vale a pena a leitura.

" Essa mensagem veio pela lista…é o relato de um newcomer…Tirei a parte chata e fiquei com os conselhos…Muito interessante, talvez longo demais, mas parecem ser boas e eficientes orientações.
First advice:

1. Do not listen to negative people! As soon as you hear a negative comment from another immigrant, run as fast as you can.

2. Try to associate with people that have suceeded in what you now want to accomplish. ~ It is true that as soon as a Newcomer gets a good job, you would hardly hear back from him/her again. For some reason, most success stories just go under the radar. You could rarely see some high achievers in magazines. Well! Actually you can see some when a non-profit organization needs an advertisement toy to recreate a fake portrait of the “great job” they are doing to help us. And you know what? It is our fault. We need to help each other. We need to Network among us. We need to give each other a hand. We need to support each other. WE= You and Me and all other New Canadians.
There are many newcomers getting jobs out there! Why are they keeping quiet??!!??

3. Volunteer. Shakira style: Wherever~Whenever!. Stop procrastinating and whinning about it and just do it, would ya’!!?

I do not care if you are an engineer, a doctor, an IT geek or a PhD in Architectural Design… You need to realize that we all need references in order to get a job.

Keep in mind that you can volunteer for as little as two hours PER WEEK!! And remember… What goes around comes around. Do good and you will receive good. You can find tons of volunteer opportunities by visiting www.charityvillage.com

UPDATE!!
Target well-known organizations as the Red Cross, Amnesty International, Canadian Cancer Society, The Heart and Stroke Foundation, etc. They would make a better impact in your resume.

Volunteering can potentially save you negative consequences after talking about “Canadian Workplace Culture” exposure during an interview.

TIP! Talking about interviews… Always, ALWAYS, keep both feet on the ground at all times. Do not lift one foot as it would be easier to unconsciously start moving your legs as if you are riding a bicycle. We all do that as a way of coping with anxiety.

4. Your English Skills are never going to get worse. There is one only thing that can happen: Your communications abilities WILL improve. That is a fact!. Period.

5.

• A. Get a voice mail and record your own professional message:
  
  e.g. “Hi, You have reach “Mike’s” voice mail. Please leave me your name and telephone number and I will return your call as soon as possible. Thanks for calling and have a great day!”
  
• B. Do not pick up your phone! Many people would disagree, but those people would be the ones that have never experienced how hard it is to get a call from an employer at an unexpected moment PLUS being an ESL speaker:
  Our accent gets really harsh; we get nervous; it becomes very difficult to even understand the caller’s name or the reason of their call.
  
  So do not pick up the phone…!!!!! It could be an employer and if you are not prepared, you just will not perform well on the pre-screening (and boy do they employers love pre-screening nowdays!!).
  Good news is that 99% of professional Canadian employers WILL LEAVE YOU A MESSAGE.
  
  BUT BE CAREFULL!! Check your voice messages as often as possible. In the event you receive one, replay it until you clearly understand the company’s and caller’s name.
  
  Go to a quiet room, bring your resume, paper, a pen, a calendar, two hard facts about the employer and something you can grab hard in case you need to relieve some tension during the call. Then, and only then YOU call BACK the potential employer.
  
  TIP!!
  Making that call while standing could make you feel more empowered/confident.
  

6. Get an email address for job search purposes ONLY. And when recording your name on the registration process, USE THE SAME NAME YOU ARE GOING TO USE ON YOUR RESUME’S HEADER.

TIP!!
gmail is ideal. For example, when using Yahoo your emails would arrived with advertisements at the bottom. That is not very professional.

TIP!!
Beware!!! Check for spelling/grammar mistakes not only on the body of the email but also in the subject line!!

TIP!!
Make sure the electronic copy of your resume is attached before you click the send button.

7. Do not take crap from non-profit agencies or assessment centres! As long as you show professional courtesy and business sense, you can request politely to be served in a respectful and efficient manner. You have the right to choose where to go for help!!! So take advantage of these services!!!

8.

• A. Do not spend an entire month attending pre-employment workshops unless you honestly see the need for it (And please be honest with yourself). There are many programs that offer one week workshops and are more reasonable in the terms they provide services.
  
• B. Go to an Employment Resource Centre (ERC) and work/get help with your resume. Contact a Mentoring Program [http://www.thementoringpartnership.com/index.asp] and borrow a couple of interview preparation books from the Library.
  

9.

• A. Go to the Reference Library (Bloor/Yonge) and kindly ask one of the staff members to coach you on how to use some of their multiple (AND AMAZING!!) companies databases. Get ahead of the bunch by creating a list of targeted companies (target small companies). Also visit www.eluta.ca A great Jobs Search engine.Look at the newspapers for job leads as well. If all you get is a fax number, google the number and/or conduct a reverse search at [http://www.yellowpages.ca/] ~ [http://www.411.ca/]
  
  Once you enter a fax/phone number, the website would potentially return more info about the phone line subscriber, in this case, the employer.
  
• B. !!!***!!! HIGHLY IMPORTANT Please! READ - R_E_A_D the job descriptions!!! And focus on positions that require YOUR skills (Again, do not lie to yourself -- e.g. If you are not good with computers, then stop being on denial and do something about it!!). There are many non-profit organizations offering all sorts of computer courses.
  

10. DO NOT submit cover letters unless they are customized, impeccable and highly, highly professional/tailored. Otherwise, they could turn against you. (Do no copy-paste those “poetry templates”).

Do not be lazy and start developing your writing skills. You can also find really good books on Cover Letters at Public Libraries and ERCs.

11. Get the help of a good employment consultant. They can coach you on topics from how to negotiate a job offer/salary to how to follow up (professionaly) on interviews.

12. Try to find a Program that offers Co-ops (Unpaid Work Placements). Do not committ to a Co-op for more than 8 weeks and keep in mind that your goal is to obtain a letter of reference. Some organizations would provide TTC Tokens for the full EIGHT WEEKS!!!

13. THIRTEEN!! ~ The lucky number! ~ BE PROFESSIONAL!!! You are a professional so behave like one! Dress appropiately (e.g. White Socks and Dark Pants/Shoes = That is a NO, NO ok?!) Comb your hair. Wash your teeth. Iron your clothes. Update your wardrobe (your case worker/employment consultant can refer you to an specialized program that can offer free-new-clothes for you ~ These programs are highly sensitive and emphatetic to different cultures).
Do not smoke before going for a job interview. Cut/Clean your nails. Trim your eyebrows and mustache.
(I really mean that unless is against your religious beliefs)!! Oh! And trim your ear hair if necessary. Also ~ Do not use too much perfume/cologne.