UNVEILED…… How to develop your COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE And Stay Abreast Of The Game.

Have you noticed that there are thousands of millions applicants in the labour market competing for job slots and a large percent are been injected each year. Also given the current global meltdown; there is no doubt that more people than usual are going to be competing for employment opportunities this year and employers have a large option to choose from.

With the terrain so tough, it is important you learn how to develop your competitive advantage and stay abreast of the game. So in this piece you will learn how to use your IT skills, employability skills, knowledge of your prospective employer and having a plan to secure your dream job and achieve job security.

People pay you for the value you create and the problem you solve for them. The business world is now a stiff competition that employers are no more interested in paying large chunks of money to employees who just do the duty assigned to them but they are ready to pay even any amount for that employee who can increase their competitive edge and make them stay in business.

To succeed in your career, you need to learn to be a problem solver who can use initiative without being told. To develop your competitive advantage you need to:

1. Build your IT skills; we are now in the information age where information is power and a great one at that. You will have an edge if you know how to use the computer and not just the basic Microsoft word but the more you know the better. Imagine, if you are vast on the internet, it saves you time to get things done and make you give informed decisions compared to someone who gives suggestions that are already outdated. Know that you are in the age where an information today may be outdated by tomorrow or next and which if implemented, may lead to disaster. Therefore, you need to keep abreast of things. Taking courses and certifications in the IT industry will make you have a huge advantage over your peers which will give you a flip in securing your dream job. Another avenue to have a competitive edge is also to develop your employability skills.

2. Develop your Employability skills; the whole bulk of job seeking is determined by how well you communicate and relate with people. The decision to employ you or not starts from the first day you go to a company to ask if they have a vacant position. To ensure that you are qualified for employability; there is need for you to develop your communication skills, your interpersonal skills (how you relate with people), your skill to work under pressure and your ability to work with a team. You need to increase your ability to make things happen.

To ensure that you secure your dream job it is necessary to show your employer “what you can deliver when the chips are down”.

3. Have a Plan; having a goal and planning the achievement of the goal will save you the stress of seeking for a job and will hasten your chance of getting your dream job. Know what you want in the short and long term and develop a game plan to achieve them. Know your role and understand your strengths and weaknesses and how you can use it as an opportunity or reduce the threats in securing your dream job. This will prepare you in handling your prospective employer when applying for a job or in the course of an interview. Act only when it is appropriate, don’t use all your energy on irrelevant things and leverage on the relevant events. Having a plan will shorten and lessen your burden and time in securing your dream job.

4. Have Knowledge about prospective Employers business; employers are out to employ hands that can move the company forward. Applying for a job or going to an interview without any knowledge about the company, their challenges, strengths and weakness and offering to work for them is an indication that you have nothing to offer them and this may make you lose the job. There is need for you to have adequate knowledge about the organization; their staff strengths, customers, market share, their most prominent problem and offer to help them solve this problems.

From the research you have made. It is sure to make them open the front door to you in getting your dream job.



This highly guarded secret of developing your competitive advantage will make you irresistible and will guarantee you get your dream job. It is also important that you package your experience and expertise in an irresistible killer resume and ensure that you secure your dream job after getting it.

The Awful Truth Revealed…. 10 Reasons why you may Never Get A Job.

1. Badly prepared Curriculum vitae: Majority of fresh graduates in the labour market believe that writing their curriculum vitae (CV) and sending it out to potential employers is all that is required to land a job. The real purpose of your CV is not to get the job. It’s to be selected for the short list of people that the employer wants to interview. This decision is made in less than ten seconds and not by the hiring manager; it is usually an Administrative Assistant who looks at the submissions and it takes him/her at least 5 seconds to do that.

Sentences in application letters like “I wish to apply for a vacant position in your organization and I promise to give my best if given the chance” end up in the trash immediately.


2. Bad Attitude: Employers or human resources are faced with so many “headaches” to keep the company going that they are not interested in teaching “Graduates” how to behave. A lot of job seekers have lost the opportunities of employment as a result of their attitudes and a large percentage of people lost this opportunity in the first day of going to the company! No matter your aptitude, if your attitude is not right, then you don’t get the job.



3. Lack of good communication skills: If you have what it takes to get the job and you are unable to verbally communicate appropriately or with good and correct grammatical expressions you may sure lose your employment chance.

4. Lack of Adequate Knowledge about the Company: Employers are out to employ hands that can move the company forward. Going to an interview without any knowledge about the company, their challenges or their strengths and offering that you wish to work for them is an indication that you have nothing to offer them and this make you lose the job.


5. Lack of Knowledge about Job description: There are so many job seekers who apply for jobs they know nothing about. It is of no use applying for a vacancy you know nothing about.


6. Lack of Confidence: Many job seekers lose their confidence when they are faced with interview panel and this gives them out. Learn to make eye contact. Speak and act with confidence. Not having a level of confidence that the employer find irresistible may make you lose that job.

7. Dressing to kill: Employers watch out for your dressing. It is used to judge your first appearance. Being over dressed or putting on clothes that cause distractions send a message of unserious ness to them.


8. Not changing what you are selling: Job hunting is like selling and you the job seeker are the product. If there has been no demand for the product (you) and you still stick to it without studying what is in demand in the job market and then change whatever you are selling, you are likely to wait for job a long time.


9. Not setting the pace: Traditional job search of submitting your CV and cover letter, and then passively waiting for a call inviting you for an interview is a way to get passed out for employment. Lack of follow up contacts with Hiring Managers, follow up of interview results or updated
“Hidden job markets” deter your dream job.

10. Lack of Punctuality: Not getting to the interview venue on time or strolling away before the interview are things prospective employers take note of and don’t find pleasing in their prospective employees.