When looking for a senior living role, you don’t just want to be noticed, you want to come off as the absolute best applicant for the job. Recruiters look for someone with the right skillset paired with empathy and a people-oriented mindset. With a growing industry like senior living, you may need even more than that.
Here are some tips on how you can let your best qualities take the stage, stand out from the bunch, AND get the job.
Talk about your career journey
“We are, as a species, addicted to story. Even when the body goes to sleep, the mind stays up all night, telling itself stories.” — Jonathan Gottschall, The Storytelling Animal: How Stories Make Us Human
Scientifically, people gravitate towards stories with human interest. In fact, when we hear a story that resonates with us, our levels of oxytocin increase. This “feel-good” hormone boosts our feelings of empathy and trust; and by talking about your career journey, you can set up the framework for your interview. Basically, avoid reading your resume like a checklist and find ways to communicate your passion to the hiring manager. This can be done easily with a cover letter, or even during the initial phone screenings. Communicate why you chose this industry, where your passion lies, and the areas where you aspire to evoke change. This echos the advice we give all the time: focus on accomplishments rather than skills.
Update your LinkedIn
Some industry professionals are always on top of their LinkedIn game. In the world of hospitality, for example, people are constantly posting, commenting, and keeping their data up-to-date. Senior Living? Not quite as much. Regardless of the industry, recruiters and hiring managers are searching for you! Make sure that when they’re looking you up they can find an up-to-date headshot, your most recent roles, and possibly any accolades you’ve received. Avoid talking about politics or getting into arguments in the comment section… we can all see what you’ve posted.
Show how you can problem-solve
No community is perfect and many have common issues. For example, one community may be focusing on its health and wellness programs, while another may be focused on expanding its dining options, while ANOTHER may be focused on onboarding medical practitioners. If you can tie your experiences to the potential needs of the community, you’re setting yourself up to get hired. While you shouldn’t discuss any auditing (unless you’re requested to do so), the research you do is important, and figuring out what the pitfalls are community will help you manage your expectations as well. This will give you the opportunity to give them a taste of the work you would like to do if you were hired. Write your resume and cover letter in terms of what you can do for the employer, not what they can do for you.
Respond fast
You don’t need to respond to an email 1 minute after it has been received… but you shouldn’t procrastinate either. Senior living can be surprisingly fast-paced and folks who answer an email quickly are considered extremely engaged. Someone who doesn’t respond for two or three days can be interpreted as being less enthusiastic and involved. According to several employment specialists, it’s critical to demonstrate your enthusiasm and aptitude for learning, particularly if you’re an experienced job seeker.
Unfortunately, the hiring process is not perfect. No matter how great the company is, the hiring process is often one of the last aspects of an organization to get a face-lift. If you’re in senior living executive and don’t want to waste your time going through endless interviews that lead to nowhere, you can always reach out to one of our recruiters! We can give you honest counsel that will help make you the business professional you want to be. Our goal is to leverage our expertise to help you with your next step; whatever or wherever that may be.