Welcome to the 8th episode of the Graduate Job Podcast.
This week I speak with Jack Catherall, Managing Director of GradEye, an innovative social recruitment platform which uses video CVs to connect graduates to employers. We cover all aspects of making a memorable video CV, from how to record it though to top tips, and basic mistakes to avoid. We also explore wider aspects of the recruitment process such as how to make your CV stand out, and amazing tips to wow any CEO.
You can download the podcast to your computer or listen to it here on the blog. Additionally, you can subscribe via iTunes or Stitcher radio.
MORE SPECIFICALLY IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
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- What to include in a video CV
- How long to make the video CV
- How to sell yourself in 60 seconds
- How to get your personality across on a video CV
- What to wear for a video CV
- Which industries work best with a video CV
- How to conquer your video CV nerves
- The top 3 tips for making a successful video CV
- Technical tips to produce an amazing video CV
- How to produce a great CV
- A brilliant tip to wow any CEO
LINKS AND RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
- Check out the ‘How to Get a Graduate Job’ step-by-step online course at https://howtogetagraduatejob.com/
- Don’t even think about applying for graduate jobs until you’ve read my free guide, ‘The 5 steps you must take before applying for graduate jobs’. Click here NOW. It will completely change the way you apply for jobs!
- Would you like a free 30-minute video coaching call? Simply select a time that works here https://calendly.com/gradjob/ We can go over your CV, application, or anything that you are struggling with.
- Assessment Day – One of the top providers of psychometric tests. Click HERE and support the show
- Career Gym – Use code GJP to get 20% off all of their tests!
- Job Test Prep – One of the top providers of psychometric tests. Click HERE and support the show
- Rich Dad Poor Dad
(Jack’s book recommendation #1 – a classic. Click on the image below to buy on Amazon!)
Think And Grow Rich
Jim Rohn – (Jack’s tip on who watch on YouTube)
Grant Cardone – (Jack’s tip on who to watch on YouTube)
https://twitter.com/jacklcatherall (Jack on Twitter)
https://uk.linkedin.com/in/jackcatherall (Jack on LinkedIn)
Transcript –Episode 8 – How to use video CVs with Jack Catherall
James: Welcome back everyone to the Graduate Job Podcast, with your host James Curran. The Graduate Job Podcast is your weekly home for all things related to helping you on your journey to finding that amazing job. Each week I bring together the best minds in the industry, speaking to the leading authors, entrepreneurs coaches and bloggers who bring decades of experience into a byte size weekly 30 minute show. Put simply, this is the show I wish I had a decade ago when I graduated.
Today I cover video CV’s with Jack Catherall from Grad Eye. I’m sure that everyone listening has a CV, but hands up how many of you have a video cv? Well, the use of Video CVs is growing rapidly and in this episode we will guide you through everything you need to know to produce a video CV you will be proud of. But it’s not just video CVs we cover, Jack also shares his considerable knowledge about all aspects of the recruitment process and it’s worth listening to just for his brilliant top tip at the end on how to catch the attention of any CEO. So sit back and enjoy episode 8 with Jack Catherall.
James: Hello, and welcome to another episode of the Graduate Job Podcast. I’m very pleased to be speaking today to Jack Catherall. Jack is the Managing Director of GradEye, an innovative social recruitment platform which uses video CVs to connect graduates to employers.
Jack, a very warm welcome to the Graduate Job Podcast.
Jack: Hi, James. Thanks for having me on.
James: My pleasure. I’ve given the listeners a very brief introduction of you and your work but before we jump into the topic today of video CVs, would you like to introduce yourself properly and tell us a little bit more about what it is that you and GradEye do?
Jack: Okay, yes; sounds great. So, essentially we’re an online social recruitment platform and we are connecting graduates to employers using video CVs. So, essentially that’s what our website does — it’s all online; it’s all web based — we get graduates coming to our website and they go through a very simple registration process. That essentially means they came on, select their job preferences, in terms of what sector they want to work in, what salary they require, in terms of location as well. They also then select the academic profile. So, what university you went to and what degrees you studied, what grades you got and then you upload your CV and you essentially do a video profile for us which is like a cover letter but it’s more visual. It’s all audio based as well. And it’s a 60 second video of yourself giving an employer an overview of your background, your experience, any noteworthy achievements and, also kind of explaining what industries you want to go into.
Once you do that, we have essentially a team behind the scenes who give everyone a call within 24 hours you sign up. We introduce some vacancies to them that they can, go forward for and some interview dates as well. But it’s also a good chance to go on our website and apply for jobs directly. So, there’s plenty of employers who are reaching out to graduates, who advertise on our website and graduates can put their profiles and their CVs in front of employers that way as well. So we’re trying to be a one stop shop for everyone. We don’t just help in terms of the recruitment process. We also give advice a bit of information for graduates who perhaps have not yet graduated and about the industries, the hot jobs and the best way to go about getting them as well.
James: Excellent. And I know all the listeners will be familiar with CVs – well, paper-based CVs – but what would you want to include in a video CV?
Jack: So, I mean, there’s plenty of graduates out there. The reason behind setting up GradEye is because the industry hasn’t really changed much in the past 15 or 20 years. I think the only thing that technology has brought into recruitments is job boards and psychometric testing. So graduates and employers are going through hundreds of CVs. There’s loads of graduates out there with a similar background. What the video does and what it adds to the CV is, essentially, it gives the employer that first impression which is more visual. You can see presentation skills. You can see, how well people communicate as well. Business acumen, also emotional intelligence and that’s what you don’t see on a CV; it’s personality standing out, that you can in a video.
James: Yeah. I can imagine, it’s quite daunting, though, when you record the first one. I mean, how long would you recommend the actual video to be?
Jack: So, we actually set a limit at 60 seconds, but we give candidates an unlimited number of attempts to keep practicing over and over again and essentially because we’re the middle man – the recruitment service — it’s our job to support the candidates through the process. So, we know that the first couple of times you’re going to mess up or you’re not used to hearing yourself and seeing yourself on camera but, more and more kind of graduates and young persons are used to it. The YouTube generation are kind of coming onboard with it as much as possible. So, we understand it can take a couple of times but it’s our job here at GradEye to support candidates through that process as much as possible.
James: I know how many times it takes me to re-record the intros and outros to the podcast. So, I can imagine if we videoed as well it would take even longer.
Jack: No, definitely. Yeah, I mean like, for example, we’ve had one candidate who has done an exceptional video, and it took him 30 attempts. We’ve had others who’ve done just as well but in one or two. I suppose it comes down just to that level of confidence, understanding the reason behind it and really what we’re trying to see and what the employer trying to see and once you have that from the start, then it’s quite easy to do. And most graduates get it after a couple of attempts.
James: So I’ve got 60 seconds. Where do you start, if you’re trying to sell yourself?
Jack: Yeah, so, introduction. An introduction should always be quite kind of informal; you know, just kind of going, hi, my name is Jack. I’m a recent graduate from the University of East Anglia and have a brief introduction to your academic background. That’s always good start because, at the graduate level and particularly in our market, employers want to know, okay, what university have you gone to and what have your studied and who are you and get that first impression across straight away. So, a good strong introduction is always the most important part.
Now, it’s always said that, on CVs, people spend about six seconds on average on a CV whereas we’re giving you 10 times the length to kind of get that impression across. So, we’re trying to get you to really get that impression across in 60 seconds so you get employers staying longer and looking at you for a bit more as well.
James: And in terms of equipment then, do the graduates film it themselves, or do they come into your office to film it?
Jack: This is all web-based. So, we’ve implemented a kind of a web based system onto our website. So essentially you go through and it’s like doing a Skype call or kind of recording a video on your Mac Book. The videos will be already implemented into the computer. So, essentially, it goes through your webcam and a video question pops up and it pretty much says, a question mark that says, in 60 seconds give an overview of your CV, any work history and any worthy achievements to date. And then once you click that button, it will start a countdown, – 3, -2, -1, and then it will start recording, and in that way you can see yourself and you record the answer. And then once it comes to the end of the 60 seconds, it will stop and you get the option to review or submit the video. Most people will want to review it and then if they don’t like it they can retake it and go back to the start again. But it is all web-based. All you need is the webcam, or you can do it on your phone or an iPad or any tablet.
James: So, how can you get your personality across within 60 seconds and without sounding arrogant or trying to say how great you are?
Jack: Yeah, no sure, yeah. So, I think here the main issues with video CVs is people will try to overdo it. What a CV doesn’t give you is this, that kind of sound, and that hiring process, the look, the feel, the sound of someone, is a very much important part of hiring and it’s really just kind of confirming with the employer. This is who I am. This is how I come across, and this is how well I communicate. So, it’s not about overdoing it at all. It’s simply just pretty much portraying yourself, like you were to have a conversation in a face to face interview and yeah, it’s really holding yourself well, presenting yourself well and obviously, you looking the part as well.
James: And you mentioned looking the part. Would you recommend formal dress as if you’re going to an interview or is it more informal?
Jack: Yeah. So, formal but you don’t have to go over the top. So, in particular for us here – and I’m not talking for all video interviews or any video CVs that you do going forward but, it’s something that we want you to kind of obviously make a good impression but you don’t always have to wear a suit and tie. You can come in with a shirt. You don’t always have to wear formal dress but something which obviously makes you look presentable. You know, it’s definitely “no” to casual wear. We’ve had video CVs that come through with candidates doing – sorry — wearing heavy jumpers or vest or even T-shirts. You sometimes got to look like, you would go to a meeting and present yourself well.
James: No; definitely. And you talked about being able to, showcase your public speaking skills and of course, there is no better way than to doing it actually on a video.
Jack: Of course.
James: Do you find that video CVs work better for some industries and roles than others?
Jack: Yes, and we’ve had this question before from certain industries. Let’s say, the tech industries. You know, if it’s not a client facing role, then, why would you need to have the kind of, client facing, would be kind of candidate facing element of the process at the start. It doesn’t really matter. It’s all about your academics or your experience. But actually what our video CV process does is that it’s not always about the video. We can get candidates to reply answers to certain questions. So, how would you go about coding this? And it’s sort of about answering the question technically. So, it not just about presenting yourself well. It’s about also coming across with the right information as well.
We can upload projects. We can upload data onto this video profile that we have and we get candidates to view that before going to answer the question. We might have an employer who is looking for a technical consultant to look at a certain project and look at the review or the case study and we can get it uploaded and then the candidate can review that and then answer how they would go about doing this project or case study, if they were to come into the industry.
So, the initial kind of worries were there for certain industries to start with but once you can show them how effective video profiles or video CVs can work in a variety of different roles, then those barriers soon came down quite quickly.
James: And what sort of companies do you work with?
Jack: So, we actually don’t just specialize in one area. We actually have a number of different sectors that we work in; so, engineering; IT; consultancy; sales and recruitment; advertising. So, we’re quite, widely spread across most sectors and these range from, large corporations all the way through to kind of small and medium enterprises and start-ups as well.
James: What advice would you give to people who might not think that they’re outgoing and egregious and able to, stand up in front of a camera and talk about themselves in 60 seconds?
Jack: The best advice I can probably give in that area is that, when going through your career, you’re always going to be pushed outside your comfort zone. If you want to progress or, you want to head up the career ladder, you’re always going to be faced with certain situations which, perhaps you need to practice or enhance to improve yourself personally. So, a video CV is something you can practice over and over again if you need to via your own laptop first before you come to our system. And it’s something you perhaps need to get used to, but at the end of the day, people want to, hire good people and if you can demonstrate that well over the camera and also on the video, then, essentially a good stepping stone to get your foot through the door.
James: And with the growth of social media especially for job hunting, are candidates able to share it more widely on LinkedIn, for example.
Jack: Yes, it’s essentially part of our product development plan. So, a candidate comes to our website, they create a profile page essentially just like LinkedIn as well. At the moment we’re keeping it closed because we don’t want candidates to feel that they are going to do a video and everyone is going to see it. So, it’s going to be just kind of a one on one basis where the consultants behind the scenes here and the candidates can do their video in a way which they can feel comfortable and do it. I think once, the industry gets more used to doing videos, then we will give access to candidates to export a link like they were to export it a Facebook introduction or a LinkedIn introduction. They can share that on their CV to employers, around the world, if they need to.
James: And I know that when I’ve been applying for jobs over the last couple of years, I’ve had different, several different CVs which are each tailored in a slightly different way depending on the job which I’ve been applying for.
Jack: Yeah.
James: Are you able to do the same thing with video CVs, and have more than one version, depending on the type of role?
Jack: Yeah; definitely. So, our standard kind of formatted question that we ask candidates is, an overview of your CV, but what we can actually say is, explain why you, and why you want a career in recruitment. So, what makes you a suitable candidate for the advertising industry? I mean, at the moment we have digital marketing roles. So, we’re looking for candidates who can explain their interest or their experience in pay per click or PPC, what you call it. So we’ve essentially said, in 90 seconds give an overview about what you know about PPC and why you would be suitable for a career within this industry and the candidates can be very bespoke in their video CVs or video profile while doing that as well. And this is very, varied for any client and any industry which is the good part about GradEye as well.
James: So having seen hundreds of video CVs, what are the top tips that you’d give to make a successful video CV?
Jack: Yeah, sure. So the best tips I could give would be to definitely prepare. Don’t go into this like, it’s kind of like a one off chance and you’re going to give it a go. If it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work. This essentially could breakdown loads of barriers and prepare in, having a script or a pitch that you can practice over and over again; you could record via your own computer beforehand is essential because it does make a massive of difference. The benefit of what we do is, you have the unlimited number of attempts to practice it but we always see the candidates who put, perhaps, a bit more effort in beforehand like it was just another interview and it definitely makes a massive difference.
The second tip I’d give is, to really come across like, you know, bring out your business acumen, bring out your emotional intelligence. Bring out, a personality which, is quite infectious as well and this can’t be taught but it’s something which you can do by just body posture, looking straight into the camera, speaking clearly and getting to the point rather than, rambling on a bit going forwards.
And I suppose the last tip I’d say is that, you should always try to separate yourselves from other candidates and that’s not by, you know, kicking a football with a background or anything like that. It’s just by, trying to get the best bits of your CV, to the front of your video and showing employers, this is what I’ve done to stand out in the past which is why, you should consider me as the candidate going forward.
James: Excellent. And what you said there echoes what one of the previous guests, episode 1, John Gregory talked about with preparing for telephone interviews and the need for preparing but using – he termed it — “the spotlight technique” where you internalize the script and what you wanted to say but you didn’t learn it by rote but you know it internally. So you were able to deliver it in a confident and fluid manner without it sounding as if you were just reading it from an autocue. So you were able to inject your personality into it as well.
Jack: Yes; definitely. I mean, we’ve had plenty of candidates who come through and have, you can see them reading a script, even if they’re not made it, visually kind of there for us to see it, a piece of paper in front of them but they’ve obviously put it up on a wall behind them and you can see their eyes going side to side. What we’re trying to say here, even though it’s a computer, you need to come across like you’re communicating to a person. And essentially you’re trying to sell yourself by it in the best light and sometimes reading from a script is not the best way to do it. It’s quite robotic and people are just looking for you to be as natural as possible.
James: And you’ve given some top tips there generally but how about from a technical point of view to make sure that the quality is going to be the best; where they set up the camera, how far away they are, et cetera. What would you recommend from that point of view?
Jack: Yeah; definitely. So, the video should always be from kind of just below your shoulders upwards, or chest upwards. You don’t have to be standing. You can be sitting down. That’s definitely fine but make sure that the lighting is clear and you can see yourself; there’s no dark spots. Make sure your background is suitable; it’s not your bedroom. We’ve had candidates who have been lying down on their beds whilst doing it which isn’t the best way, the best impression you might come across a bit relaxed or a bit lazy and it does go a long way, certain scenes that you have. We do it within an office space; or you do it within, your bedroom but in a good sense, with a bookshelf in the background. It doesn’t make a massive difference in comparison to perhaps doing it, with a TV behind you and you’ve got a TV playing with a bit of noise. So, you make sure that you’re in a space where it’s clear, it’s professional and you’d be happy for this to go to any employer, from someone who is corporate all the way to someone who’s a start-up, perhaps in a creative industry. You want to kind of get a one size fits all.
James: You talked earlier about how video CVs is just one aspect of the process at GradEye and you also get the normal CVs in as well.
Jack: Yeah.
James: What tips would you give to make sure, for people to help, you know, to put forward a great CV? What aspects would you expect to see in the CV? Would you expect them to link it to the video CV; or do you see them as two different entities?
Jack: At the end of the day, not everyone, you know, is adopting the video CV process yet. It’s definitely where the industry is moving; everyone is seeing the benefits of it because of time and obviously the effectiveness of it as well. But CVs are still going to be around and it’s going to be an important way to introduce yourself as well as your video going forward. But with CVs in particular, this is one thing that doesn’t happen is that candidates at graduate level never really clearly write down what is it they want to do in terms of their goals and ambitions. So, they’re quite open about the opportunities and at sometimes can come across as quite flaky or someone who is not entirely sure what they want to do. For someone who comes along with these are my goals, in terms of timeline, so this is what industry I want to get into and the reasons why, it’s always a great way to start your CV and it gets the employer interested and they can see the story as to why as to why you’ve arrived at that decision.
The second point on CVs as well which, I suppose seven times out of ten I can see on CVs is that people don’t really explain their experience. So, you’ve been working at a bar. Normally I’ll see bullet points as, working behind as a cashier or doing stock levels, but these are all things I would expect a barman to do. So you’re not really teaching me anything new. What you need to do is show that how you’re different from all the other barmen within that same job and that can be done by how did you increase efficiency or output? Or, how much revenue did you bring in? And being more specific and being more bespoke about what you contributed and what you gained from that role, can make a massive difference from a CV; even if it means you’ve just been working at a bar or retail. And that’s you want to be doing. Every time you’re working in the job, you want to be noting down all the outputs, all of the kind of results you’ve achieved and then putting that on your CV because that makes you different from most other people.
James: No, that’s really good advice. When I review people’s CVs and hand it back to them, most of the time next to each bullet point there’s written “so what”? They’ll have, you know, I did this, and you’re like, you know, so what? You know, you’ve got to take it to the next level and talk about the benefits that you generated, for either you personally, the skills you learned or as you mentioned, were you able to save cash or improve the process.
Jack: Yeah.
James: Just keep your mind that “so what” is really powerful.
Jack: Yeah, I mean, what makes you a person that can add value to our company? What have you done to add value to other companies in the past? And just listing duties that you’ve been doing. It’s not rocket science to work out perhaps what most of the jobs involve, but what we’re trying to find out as employers or recruiters, is what makes you different; what makes you stand out; and, how can you add value to our company going forward as well.
James: Excellent. Well, Jack, we’re approaching now what I term the lightning round part of the interview where you give some quick insight into your thoughts on books and websites. So, starting with the books, what book would you recommend for listeners to read, and why?
Jack: Books is a massive part of my life, personal development is something we should do more of in the personal development phase. One book in particular is Rich Dad Poor Dad and I think all students should be reading this book, and it’s by Robert Kiyosaki. I’m not sure if you’ve read it yourself? Have you, or—
James: Absolute classic. Absolute classic.
Jack: Yeah; amazing book. It’s all about, viewing things differently. Lots of our parents and the education system always promotes, go to school, go to college and getting a good job; whereas Rich Dad Poor Dad, his dad was a poor dad. He was a guy who was telling him to go kind of go the route of going to school, going to college and then go get a job afterwards and pay off the mortgage; whereas his Rich Dad was his friend’s, best friend’s dad. He was the entrepreneur. He was the guy who thought a lot about personal development further education; kind of multiple forms of income; about savings, investments going forwards and he taught him a different philosophy and it’s a philosophy that all students should listen to because, what graduates need to do going forward is not always view life about going forward and getting the job and just hitting, certain kind of milestones that are expected of them. Rich Dad Poor Dad really helps people open up that view anyway going forwards, but there is loads of classics like Rich Dad Poor Dad. My first book I ever read when I was 15 years old was Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill.
James: Another good one.
Jack: A 15 year old to read that it really kind of made me start thinking. It’s these personal development books that at 15 years old made me, want to go and start my own company and really kind of develop myself personally going forwards; but I think if graduates who are looking for a book, Rich Dad Poor Dad is definitely one. Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon is another one but go to any bookshop and go to the Mind, Body and Spirit section. Now, this is a section that most people don’t walk to, because they are not entirely sure what to find there but, there are some great sellers in that section and whatever it is you want to do, whether it’s a career, a sport or a hobby, or if you want to kind of like break a habit or if you want to, achieve a certain result going forwards, all of these result and habits have been broken in the past and they’ve all been written in books as to how to do it. And if you’re looking for a great career as well and how to work your way up the career ladder these are all written in certain books. In the Mind, Body, Spirit section of most bookshops you have some great authors, with some great experiences and kind of, really kind of teaching the world on, how to do things quicker and it’s not about, trying to do things your own way and making it up as you go along. There’s books that show you how to get to certain spots, points in your life quicker if you were to read these books going forward. So, it’s definitely kind of a recommendation for me for most people.
James: Excellent; excellent advice there. And I know Rich Dad Poor Dad for me was, it was a paradigm shift in terms of having read it. It was, ah, that makes sense.
Jack: Yeah, definitely, yeah.
James: You just look at things differently.
Jack: Well, most of those things do makes sense, it’s very simple and with all of these personal development books that I’ve read, it’s stuff that you’ve all heard before but, when it’s put down into certain contexts and you really stop and look at and you continue to read it in that sector or that field, it really open up more doors and it kind of changes your shift of pattern and the way you think rather than having it as bad news coming in from, 10 o’clock news or newspapers. It’s a good kind of, way to get your head away from that and to keep you positive going forward as well.
James: I definitely agree. Moving on then, so what website would you recommend our listeners to use?
Jack: So, in particular for careers? Or, just in general?
James: Generally careers, or generally; it’s up to you.
Jack: Get on YouTube. YouTube has tons of information that you need at any point of the day. YouTube for me – I know it sounds like a very basic website and something that probably doesn’t stand out but there is so much information on YouTube, visual content that you can get. So, there’s— I mean, I follow – We were just speaking to this before the call — people like Jim Rohn. He is a motivational speaker and career coach and he’s got some great advice on how to work out your life in terms of certain areas. So, your finances or your kind of relationships or how to contribute to society? He’s got tons of videos on there. There’s other people like Grant Cardone who is more in the sales industry but he’s got tons of videos for, young professionals. It’s called Millennials and he posts one every week. It’s about how Millennials can do well within certain areas of their life, whether it’s career or it’s finances as well; relationships. And YouTube for me is something that I have subscribed to probably about 20 to 30 different channels, and it’s a great source of information. It’s definitely a website people shouldn’t be using just for, kind of silly videos, vine videos going forward but where they can really kind of get information. On the travel to work or whilst at university going to lectures, you can get really good source of information from there.
James: And all the videos and books that Jack has mentioned will be listed in the show notes.
I will also say that Jack far too modest. There’s an excellent series of videos that he’s posted online, on YouTube around graduate skills, and things to think about with applications. So, they’re well worth the watch.
Jack: Yeah, I mean, it’s got my attention, I suppose if you’re touching on that — from our other employers who have done well within this industry. We’re just trying to contribute to that kind of network as well, to the graduate network and it’s our plan in our first year to put 300 videos on YouTube, under the GradEye channel. So, if you are looking at YouTube and you want some career advice, then, yeah, yeah, feel free to look at our channel because we will be posting up loads of different tips and advice for graduates on how to stand out.
James: Just make sure you don’t follow those links to the fluffy cats, under the click-bait that’s going to draw you away from the good stuff.
Jack: Yeah, definitely.
James: And finally, Jack, moving on to today, what one tip would you share with the listeners that they could implement today?
Jack: Okay. So, pick five companies who you want to work for; and this could be out of interest, this could be role models; this could be out of influences from your parents. Find out who the company CEO is or executive level director which you can find on LinkedIn. All you need to do is sign up to LinkedIn, type in the name of the company that you want to work for and type CEO next to that and that person should most likely come up. Then do a video for that person, a 60 second video on why you want to work for that person. Now, make sure you practice this beforehand but once you send this video over to that person via LinkedIn or via email, that is a great way for you to really demonstrate why you want to work for that person because an email doesn’t do it anymore. A phone call, trying to get through to the office doesn’t do anymore. But video is a great way for you to kind of get something visual to that person and it works 100 percent of the time, if done in the right way with the right amount of effort and commitment and the right pitch as well going forward.
James: That’s brilliant advice.
Listeners, I’d like to hear how you get on with that tip. So, let us know by the show notes on the comments page following that advice and how you got on with it.
Jack, it’s been a pleasure to have you on this show. Before we close, how can people connect with you and the work that you do?
Jack: Okay. I’m on Twitter. You can find my handle which is @jacklcatherall; and that’s spelled c-a-t-h-e-r-a, double l. You can come to our website with is GradEye.com. All of our contact information is on our contact us page. I’m on LinkedIn as well. Connect with me on LinkedIn, I’m blogging every week and also, benefits of connecting with me on LinkedIn or signing up to our website is that we are introducing in December 2014 a new initiative which is a weekly seminar which is free every Monday night for all graduates who sign up to GradEye or connect with me on LinkedIn as well.
Also, in the new year, which we were talking about earlier, James, is that we are trying to launch a new initiative which is a seminar every Saturday for students to come to for career advice, coaching — not just about your career — but personal development, we have quite an extensive network of coaches within kind of finances and performance base and results. It’s something that we really want to try and expand and try get young professional, kind of, working towards. This is free. This is a good chance for you to get in front of me and my team here who have, loads of vacancies that we can talk about and try and introduce to you some clients going forward as well.
James: Wise words there. Thank you, Jack.
Jack: No worries. Thanks, James; appreciate your time.
James: My thanks again there to Jack Catherall for all of his insights, they were coming thick and fast. In terms of key things that stuck with me. My first takeaway is on video CVs generally. Do it, create one, create several, tailor them to the job you’re applying to. Might it be daunting initially? Yes. Might you feel self-conscious stood in front of a camera? Yes. Might it make a difference? Yes! Have a look at your current CV, do you mention words in it like confident, outgoing, public speaking skills, presentation skills? These are all easy to write down on paper, but difficult to actually prove. But with a 60 second video CV you can easily demonstrate each of these skills and demonstrate your real personality. As Jack said, at a basic level, people want to hire good people. And with a video CV you can easily show who are you really are. Don’t be scared, give it a go.
My second key takeaway for you is on the topic of personal development, and how you need to make it a part of your life. Jack talked about using YouTube and good old fashioned books to expand your horizons and push your boundaries. You were lucky today listeners, in that you got not one, but two brilliant book recommendations from Jack. Rich Dad Poor Dad and Think and Grow Rich, both of which are required reading, so if you haven’t already follow the links in the show notes and get yourself copies, you definitely won’t regret it. As Jack said, YouTube is a treasure chest of inspirational and informative material, the Graduate Job Podcast is on there for example, but do definitely check out Jim Rohn and Grant Cordone, Grant Cordone was a new one to me but I’m enjoying his 2 minute Grant rants. It doesn’t matter what the content is, from Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday’s to Tony Robbins or GradEye’s career advice, find the content which resonates with you, and challenges to look at yourself and situations in a new light so that you’re always learning and growing.
Finally, as I said at the end I love Jack’s tip about sending video’s straight to the CEO or board members. As you know the job market is a crowded place and you need to do all you can to stand out. 99.9% of people who hear that tip aren’t going to do it, it’s going to be too much effort, it’s going to be too much hassle, it takes too long to record, so they’re not going to bother. But if you’re the person that does, you’re going to see real results. So step outside of your comfort zone, take the risk, put the effort in and make that impression. And don’t forget to tell me how it went.
Right that’s episode 8 put to bed. You can find a full transcript of everything that we’ve discussed and all links at www.graduatejobpodcast.com/videocv. Please get in touch with us on Twitter @gradjobpodcast, and also if you’ve enjoyed the show please leave a review on Itunes, just as JGerrard did, and left us 5 stars saying ‘Some great hints and tips in here that will help me stand out vs all the other candidates’. Thanks J. Join us next week when we speak to Alastair Paterson, and cover the topic of how to get a job with a tech start up. I hope you enjoyed the episode today, but more importantly I hope you use it and apply it. See you next week.