09 Nov 11 What you’re looking for

Image via Wikipedia

Most of you coming to visit the site in the past month are here by searching for something specific.

SCOTI

The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services has not done much to help explain what SCOTI is or how Ohio citizens should use it.  A significant number of you find this blog because it’s one of the few (maybe the only) places that mentions it.

I’ve mentioned elsewhere that I’m not an expert on SCOTI. I wrote this post contrasting SCOTI and an Indeed Salary Search, and it remains one of the most popular articles people read.  I get emails from readers, asking how to sign up for it, and I reply with all that I know:

It’s been ages since I tried to use SCOTI myself. I’ve heard the ODJFS recommends checking out http://ohiomeansjobs.com

How to Answer Interview Questions

Many readers come here looking for ways to answer job interview questions.  I know I need to be reminded of these myself. In November 2009 I participated in something called NaPodPoMo, which stands for National Podcasters Post Month. Every day in November that year, I posted a video where I took a stab at a typical job interview question.  You can find that series of videos here: Job Interview Questions: NaPodPoMo 2009 Video Series

Some of your particular favorites have been:

• Persuade me that you have strong analytical skills.
• Show me how you adapt to various people, situations, and environments.
• What did you dislike about your last job?
• When have you had to be relatively quick in coming to a decision?
• When have you missed an obvious solution to a problem?
• When have you had to go above and beyond the call of duty in order to get a job done?

I’d also recommend checking out the broader Interviewing category, which includes posts that are not part of the NaPodPoMo 2009 series.

Counter Offer Letters

Two posts I wrote about counter offer letters don’t contain much information. I still point people to the Google search results for “sample counter offer letters.”

What else is important?

I’d love to know what you’d like to see more of. I’ve got some ideas that still need to be fleshed out, but I’d love to keep this as a valuable resource for you. Let me know if there’s something you’d like to see more of.  Also, let me know if you come across a bad link; i.e., one that no longer works.  I’d also like to know what’s working for you? I provide no guarantee that anything I write over here will work, but maybe something has worked for you.

Contact me.  And, if you’d like, check out what else I’m up to here

Tags: counter offer letters, interviewing, job interviewing, NaPodPoMo, Ohio Means Jobs, SCOTI

21 Sep 10 Filing for unemployment in Ohio

As I’ve said previously, I’m not an expert in Ohio Unemployment Benefits. I don’t work for the State of Ohio.  I’m just a guy sharing expertise gained from my own search and experience.

I don’t have to tell job seekers how frustrating it is to make sure you’re doing everything you need to get unemployment benefits. But I hope this post will point you  closer to getting the information you need.

It’s gotten easier to file

It’s gotten a lot easier over the years. Back in 2002, you might appear in person to file for benefits, but the office began encouraging people to file for Ohio unemployment benefits through their hotline: 1-877-644-6562. You’d get a card mailed to you and you’d need to fill it out and mail it back. Or you could call the phone number and file your claim that way. What’s nice these days is that you can still use the phone number, but you can also apply and get Ohio unemployment benefit information online.

SCOTI – should I really care about that?

One of the most popular posts on this blog is this one I wrote almost 4 years ago entitled Ohio SCOTI System and Indeed Salary Search. I’ve gotten emails from readers asking how to register for SCOTI. To be perfectly honest, I don’t think you can. SCOTI doesn’t even exist anymore.

When you file your initial claim, this is something you can ask the person on the phone.  They will probably point you to Ohio Means Jobs.

Related articles by Zemanta

• How to Survive Unemployment (socyberty.com)
• Long-term unemployed workers grow (news.cincinnati.com)
• Resuming unemployment benefits after work? (ask.metafilter.com)
• Unemployment payments on way (dispatch.com)

Tags: Business and Economy, Employment, job search, ohio, Ohio Means Jobs, SCOTI, Unemployment benefits