Ever wondered how to snag that dream remote job?
We've been there, and now we're here to guide you through it. We have cracked the code on leaving a memorable mark with remote employers, even when your experience doesn't line up perfectly with the job description.
Get ready for a treasure trove of tactics that will make your job applications pop! This episode is your toolkit for turning those 'not quite right' job prospects into golden opportunities. So tune in, take notes, and prepare to land that remote role you've been dreaming about.
Sign up right now for the Digital Nomad Kickstarter beginning May 6th and learn what you need to get started as a digital nomad!
https://austinandmonica.com/digitalnomadkickstarter
-----------------------------------
Join our Facebook Group Digital Nomad Start-Up Circle if you're interested in living nomadically, growing your online business, and forming a community of like-minded people.
Get our FREE 85+ Ways to Make Money While Traveling guide!
Connect with us on Instagram by following @austinandmonica
Visit our website: AustinandMonica.com
Enjoyed this podcast? Subscribe to our show and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcast. Your feedback means a lot to us, thank you!
Ever wondered how to snag that dream remote job?
We've been there, and now we're here to guide you through it. We have cracked the code on leaving a memorable mark with remote employers, even when your experience doesn't line up perfectly with the job description.
Get ready for a treasure trove of tactics that will make your job applications pop! This episode is your toolkit for turning those 'not quite right' job prospects into golden opportunities. So tune in, take notes, and prepare to land that remote role you've been dreaming about.
Sign up right now for the Digital Nomad Kickstarter beginning May 6th and learn what you need to get started as a digital nomad!
https://austinandmonica.com/digitalnomadkickstarter
-----------------------------------
Join our Facebook Group Digital Nomad Start-Up Circle if you're interested in living nomadically, growing your online business, and forming a community of like-minded people.
Get our FREE 85+ Ways to Make Money While Traveling guide!
Connect with us on Instagram by following @austinandmonica
Visit our website: AustinandMonica.com
Enjoyed this podcast? Subscribe to our show and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcast. Your feedback means a lot to us, thank you!
Hello and welcome to the profitable Nomad Couple podcast. This is a show where we share all of our secrets about building a sustainable location independent lifestyle.
Speaker 2:We're Austin and Monica. We're a digital Nomad couple here to help you develop an entrepreneurial mindset, ignite your passions and develop a purpose-driven online business.
Speaker 1:Get ready for weekly insights and inspiring stories to empower you to live life on your own terms.
Speaker 2:So are you ready to unlock the Nomad mindset and embrace a life of limitless possibilities? Let's dive in. Hey, what's up everybody? Welcome back to the podcast, or welcome here for the first time, if this is your first time. Today we want to answer a question that was sent into us, and we love moments like this. We love it when people reach out to us with questions about how to work online and we're able to answer it for them and help give some of our own insights. So the question that this person asked was I'd like to hear any thoughts on how to stand out to employers, amongst the others, who have degrees and experiences in the field of work, if we are looking to work for a company remotely. So if you have found a job and you want to apply for it, but you don't meet all the requirements, what do you do? Monica, and I say go for it. It's often, often still worth applying for, and today we want to talk about why and also how to go about doing it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, this was such a good question. It really highlighted a lot of fears that I think a lot of people have when it comes to applying for jobs, especially if you feel like you've been applying for jobs forever and haven't gotten any feedback. It can definitely be take a toll on our own mental well-being and our feeling like we are even able to do these jobs or worthy of applying, and you definitely definitely are. So even without every qualification, it is very possible to receive an interview and even a job offer. So where I'm excited about this episode, this is going to be good.
Speaker 2:Yeah. So our very first tip would be kind of the foundation to everything else. That we're going to talk about is a mindset shift that we feel like you should, you should, take on. So this mindset shift is to start thinking of job requirements that are listed on an application or, I guess, a job posting. Think of those requirements as a wish list. So these are the things that the ideal candidate or the perfect candidate for this employer would have all of these skills, but often people who are doing the hiring, the hiring managers or the business owners they're often a lot more flexible in their hiring approach than you might think and they're often also very willing to train you if you are the right person for the job but you don't have every exact skill they want. They're very willing to train, often very willing to train and to teach you what you need to know.
Speaker 1:I do think that company, culture and company, I guess that the person they're looking for, the human qualities, are going to be way more important at the end of the day than the skills that are learnable.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean you can. You can teach hard skills. You can even teach some hard soft skills, but it's a lot harder to teach someone how to be more compassionate or to teach them how to be enthusiastic or to teach them you know some, some of those other types of skills, personality traits. You can't always teach somebody. So if you have that, you can learn how to do some other more specific hard skill type of things. Yeah, so not having all of the listed requirements is not always a deal breaker. So if you have the knowledge, if you have some of the skills, if you're willing to do the job well, if you're, if you're excited about the opportunity, even if you have less experience, we say go for it.
Speaker 1:And even if I don't know if you are feeling so terrified by the, I guess, the option of applying for one of these jobs that you feel really unqualified for, just go for it. The worst they can say is no, not right now, and then you can move on and look for other jobs. So don't let this application process intimidate you. Don't let the job requirements intimidate. You Just apply.
Speaker 2:That's a really good point, Monica. Like often, we regret more the things that we didn't do than the things we did do. So if you, if you are really excited about this job and you don't apply, we would hate for you to look back on that and regret that and wish that you had later down the road and Monica brought up a good point Think about what the worst case scenario is, and in reality it's often a lot less bad than you think.
Speaker 1:Yeah, definitely, so definitely. If you take only one thing from this whole podcast episode, it's just apply for the job.
Speaker 2:Definitely.
Speaker 1:Our next tip and this maybe seems like kind of an obvious one, but we need to talk about it anyway is make sure you're highlighting your relevant and transferable skills. So make sure you are shifting your pitch towards your strength. Focus on the knowledge and experience that you do have and make sure you're showcasing personal qualities like passion, initiative, eagerness to your potential employer. Show them all the things that you have done that even might not be exactly relevant, but might have enough weight to pull you through. So a lot of times when Austin and I were first starting, we did apply for a lot of remote type positions and there were a lot of times they'd be like hey, like have you ever worked on air table? The answer is no, I haven't worked on air table, but I have worked a lot on a sauna and a sauna is really similar and I learned that really fast and I was able to organize it really well and organize myself and therefore I'm confident I can do the same in your job.
Speaker 2:Yeah, notice that Monica said showcase your personal qualities and not tell case your personal qualities.
Speaker 2:This is kind of like a tip from a writer Not that I'm a writer, but I feel like this is something that writers have to say is they say show, don't tell. In the same sense, don't just say, oh yeah, I'm passionate, I take initiative and I'm eager to learn, instead of just saying that, show them through the positions you've held or the maybe some of the results that you've accomplished or achieved for people, things like that like show them through your work that you have these qualities and don't just tell them you have these qualities.
Speaker 1:And then, when you are looking to write your resume and to pitch yourself to these companies, make sure you're looking beyond traditional work experience. Did you ever lead a club? Have you organized a successful event? Are experience like real life, tangible experiences that you have that demonstrate these really valuable skills?
Speaker 2:Our next tip is asking for recommendations, and we threw this on because this is so, so powerful, and you'll hear people say all the time that businesses are about relationships, or getting approved for a job is more about who you know than what you know, and in a lot of ways that's true. Getting a personal recommendation can go so far for you. So, if possible, if you know somebody inside of the company, get a recommendation from them. If they can be the one to walk your application into the hiring manager, even better. If that's not the situation you're in and you don't actually know anyone inside that company, you can still get a letter of recommendation from someone else that you know and then send that in with your application. Having somebody else vouch for you is very, very powerful.
Speaker 1:Getting hired can be a little bit of a long game if you want it to be, I guess. But if you take the time to look up different people in the company and become friends with them on social media and start up conversations, and then just as valuable as like getting to know them would be to ask them about what it's like to work for the company, Because it is a two-way street. You do need to make sure this is a company you'll be happy for working for, because it does affect literally every aspect of your life. So you do wanna get some information about the company. But it's also just really good to get some insider person working inside the company to be able to say hey, I recognize this name, this person's been talking to me on social media when the application comes up. Or, even better, if this person's like, hey, I actually think you'd be really qualified for this job opening that we have.
Speaker 2:Yeah, number four. Tip number four is to show your excitement, your enthusiasm, your passion for this position that you're applying for, kinda, similar to what we already talked about show, don't just tell. Notably, it's a lot easier to do when you're on an interview and you have that face-to-face interaction in your inner conversation with someone. There are still ways to do this when you just send in your application or send in your resume, but I think just having that genuine excitement, genuine interest in wanting this job, that can really be felt by people who are hiring More than just oh, I need this job to make ends meet, I need this job for the money. But if it's a project, if it's a company, if it's a position that you are genuinely enthused about, don't hide that Like, let that show through your conversations with people and kinda. Going back to our very first point, it's often a lot more about the person than the specific skills when it comes to hiring. So this can be exactly what they're looking for Someone who's enthusiastic and passionate about what they're doing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, different ways to kind of highlight your personality, I think is using social media, because you know that they are looking you up on social media and so if you use your social media to kind of highlight how you align with the values of the company in your own life, I mean you don't have to be too like, too on the nose about this, you don't have to be like oh well, toyota is really big on helping people getting out and explore the world, and so I am going to talk about how.
Speaker 1:I don't know anything like that you know, but like, go out and show you living your life and living the values that this company says that they value. And along with that, it would be just to do your research into the company, know its mission and show genuine interest by knowing about the values and recent projects that it has completed, and find ways to show how you would be able to add value to the types of projects that they've been doing or things that they're working on.
Speaker 2:Yeah, don't feel like you have to come across as knowing everything, though Like this kind of goes back to the main question of like what if I don't have the skills that they're specifically asking for? I think it's so important here to be honest. If you're asked if you have certain skills and you don't, and like if you're asked point blank, don't feel like you have to come across as like don't lie, don't feel like you have to say oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, and I know how to do that, and then like quickly Google it later. I would recommend just be as honest as you can. Sometimes, admitting that you don't know something can go a long way. If you admit you don't know how to do something but you're willing to figure it out, that can be powerful.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I will kind of go like just go back to my reference earlier where it's really nice to say like, hey, I don't know that now, but I'm willing to learn. Here's an example about how I learned. Or you don't just want to say I don't know and just leave it at that. You always want to follow it up with. I don't know, but I can learn and this is why. Or I don't know, I've never used Microsoft Teams, but I use Google suite and it's really similar from what I understand, so I can pick it up quickly, you know. But yeah, just being honest, being genuine, being human, goes a really long way, like people can tell when you're being fake. They can feel that so fast. So the more just, authentic and genuine and excited you are, the better that this whole thing is going to go.
Speaker 2:So those are the tips that we have specifically for this question. If you're applying for a job and you don't meet all the requirements, if you don't have all the skills they're specifically asking for, we wanted to add at the end of this a little bonus, some bonus tips for you, because we've never done an episode on applying for a job like this before, so we got a little bit cured away. Have some extra content here for you Quick fire tips.
Speaker 2:And I'm going to start with actually the last one I wrote, because it goes along with exactly what Monica was just saying Be authentic, be yourself, don't feel like you have to put on a facade, don't feel like you have to be someone else. Be genuine, be authentic, be yourself, and that's going to come across. People can pick up on that really easily. So the more you're able to do that, the more they can tell.
Speaker 1:All right, be results oriented. So anytime that you can show somebody the results that you have gotten, do that. Build a portfolio. Whatever it is you need to do, be focused on the overall outcome and the value that you, being in this position, will add to the company.
Speaker 2:Number three on our general application tips, is to utilize keywords that are mentioned in the job description. Something that I used to do, actually when I was applying for a bunch of different types of jobs online, is I would copy the job description, I would paste it into something like Word Cloud. I didn't have chat GPT at the time, but you could probably do chat GPT and have it tell you the words that are repeated most often words and or phrases that are repeated often and then find natural ways to incorporate that into your application.
Speaker 1:All right. And then, finally, make sure you are tailoring your resume to each and every job application, highlighting just the relevant skills and achievements specific to the job. Don't ever copy and paste your resume. Make sure you are tailoring it and it really will make all the difference.
Speaker 2:So there you have it, guys. Those are our thoughts on standing out to employers when you don't have all of the degrees, all of the experience that they're looking for. We hope this helps, and if you have a similar question, or if you have a question related to any of the stuff we talk about in our podcast, to traveling, to online work, anything like that, we would love to answer that question, just like we answered this question, so you can join our Facebook group. You can send us a message on Facebook, send us a message on Instagram, email us. There's lots of avenues to get to us, but please don't feel weird about it or shy about it. Just send us a question and we would love to help you get answered.
Speaker 1:Yeah, odds are. If you had that question, and the people do as well. So you can help us provide more value to everyone who listens to our podcast and are interactive.
Speaker 2:Hey, thanks guys. Thanks so much for joining us here on the profitable Nomad Couple podcast. We appreciate you listening to us today.
Speaker 1:If you enjoyed this episode, share it on Instagram and be sure to tag us. At Austin and Monica, together, we can inspire others to embrace a location independent lifestyle.
Speaker 2:And while you're there, we'd love to connect with you, so make sure you follow us for more tips and inspiration on living your dream location independent lifestyle.
Speaker 1:Until next week. Remember that you have the power to shape your own path. So stay curious, stay adventures and stay connected.