The Apprentice – countdown to Sir Alan Sugar’s next business partner!

In the penultimate episode of The Apprentice last night we witnessed some classic scenes & ‘one-liners’. Whilst we may laugh at the screen and insist we’d never make those blunders, I am sure we can all actually learn from the contestants and make sure when going for an interview or applying for a job that we thoroughly research the company/role and get our facts right when questioned, rather than blagging the figures like Jim so embarrassingly did last night:-

- So 60 people spending £7 each - what have you got? £4200 ... mmm, try again £4800. NOOOOO!! Jim (‘macho nacho man’) should have been prepared for this question, its basic business acumen, but as he wasn’t he completely made it up and as a result looked like an idiot. Know your figures inside out before you go into an interview for any role that requires such experience!!

- Columbus didn’t discover the potato and he wasn’t British, he was Italian!! I am surprised this wasn’t picked up in the boardroom, just for a laugh. Get your facts right before making such claims!

- "What does Caracas mean?" "I dunno, but it sounds like 'maracas'. "Maracas are Mexican." Maracas are Spanish. Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, not in Mexico – nice one guys!! Another huge blunder, I appreciate they are really under pressure with these tasks and certainly some of what they achieve is incredible in such a short space of time, but this is their brand name & was a sloppy oversight.

Sir Alan Sugar added to the fun last night throwing in about his degree in first aid (!!??) and that the food served up by Jim’s team resembled something that his Son’s dog would puke up!!

Really looking forward to next week’s episode where their business plans will be ripped apart by Sir Alan’s team and the ultimate winner will be crowned. Mmm, who will it be?

Stop & think before you press send!!

This is just a very brief blog post as I am up to my neck in Job Applications today! Over the last 3 days I have seen some sloppy approaches to applying for jobs and simply wanted to share a few of the errors with you;

- Sending a covering letter for a role that has not been changed since your previous application, therefore displaying a completely different job title & in some cases the company, to which you are applying. This is not acceptable and would usually, unless you truly tick all the boxes, would be immediately rejected. The role in question this week was for a PHP Web Developer, the candidate said he was applying for a ‘Graduate Analyst’ role!!

- I have seen a number of CVs this week that are in excess of 5 pages, this is complete madness – you are not writing an autobiography – it’s an overview of your career, keep it short & relevant (2 pages are ideal).

- When a job advert asks for 2 years minimum experience, for eg, in a certain sector, don’t apply for the role with NO experience!! If you have a very valid reason which you believe makes you suitable, without meeting their specification, then at the very least explain that in a covering letter/email.

- Also – I am not a mind reader! Please don’t send an email to a recruiter/potential employer with just your CV attached – with no job ref, no covering email, no words at all – mmm, strikes me that you are too lazy to say anything or so confident in your experience that you are assuming we know what you’re applying for!! We don’t L

Please stop and think before you send your application, it’s the 1^st few minutes of an employer reading your details when the decision will be made regarding whether to progress with your application.

That’s it for now but if you need help with writing your CV and/or Covering Letter then please get in touch with a CV Consultant at our sister company e-cv-buddy J