Happy Friday ThinkTalkers, I'm going to keep it short and sweet today. Just informing you all about a simple word that will help you in not only face-to-face interivews but also over the phone. Careerealism writer Lee Gibson developed the REACH method of preparation for all interviews.

Today’s post will hopefully help to relieve a little bit of stress while preparing for job interviews. Ideally, before each interview, you should be reviewing questions with a friend, family member, career counselor, or anybody willing to help to make sure you have your answers ready for the big day.

Happy Monday Job Seekers...We know you have a lot to think about when walking into an interview. And it's for that very reason people end up doing silly things that get their resume tossed in the can as soon as they walk out the door. So ThinkTalk and ResumeBear are here to help. This list may look long but it deserves to be glanced at at least once so you have these no-no's fresh in your head. Some of them are quite obvious, and others you do without even noticing.

We’ve all heard of how much of an impact first impressions have and that when heading to a job interview you should obviously look your best and dress appropriately - but a recent article from My Glo

Happy Wednesday ThinkTalkers,

To celebrate being halfway through the week I’m going to share with you a great job hunting tip. New and different for us, right?! Okay so maybe we share a lot of job hunting tips but this one interested me in particular because I definitely didn’t think about it when I was doing my job search, and it makes complete sense!

You’re in your most professional looking outfit. You’ve done the firm handshake and the ‘thank you for meeting with me.’ You’ve answered all of their questions and gotten some answers of your own. But now you feel the interview coming to an end. What do you do to in those last few minutes with the hiring manager? What do you do to seal the deal?

Those are the questions Alexandra Levit posed in her blog post How to Close the Deal in a Job Interview. Her short list of bulleted tips might just give you that extra oomph needed to get one step closer to securing the job. Check them out:

"classic handshake with the pastor" courtesy nutmeg via Flickr Creative Commons

It’s officially June! I don’t know about you guys but I’m excited summer is here to stay. I hope that in-between trips to the beach and shifts at your summer job you graduates are focusing on nailing that full-time position you’ve been hoping for. Like I said in previous posts, I’m going to try to provide you all with some advice for succeeding in interviews. It’s generally the hardest part of the job search process so we here at ThinkTalk will advise as best we can!

I recently found a blog post from Careerealism that brings up an issue we all know in the back of our minds but don’t often actively think about it, body language. It is subtle cues that can subconsciously (or not so subconsciously) make an impact on the impressions people get about us. Careerealism-approved expert Debra Wheatman provides some negative body postures to avoid, especially while interviewing:

Crossing your arms in front of you: This signals that you are resistant to ideas and not open to others’ opinions. When speaking with people – especially during an interview keep your hands in your lap. When standing, keep hands at your sides.

Looking down when speaking: Looking down is a sign that you are disinterested or feel inferior. Make sure you maintain eye contact without staring. This will let the other person subliminally know that you are interested in what they have to say. If the eyes are the window of the soul, looking at someone when you are talking to them is a strong indicator that you are engaged. Eye contact is good; staring is creepy!

Checking your watch: There is nothing that screams boredom more than the continuous checking of the time. Do not look at your watch when speaking with someone. You want to convey continued interest in what they are saying. The exchange of information should be an engaging one – not a situation where you appear to be focused on something else.

False smiling: A smile is one of the very best ways to communicate sincerity and a friendly, approachable demeanor. Don’t force a smile or smile the entire time. That will look odd and raise questions in the mind of the person you are interacting with. A natural smile will resonate during the interview. A genuine smile involves the entire face – a fake forced smile uses only the mouth – and studies indicate that people are very good at seeing the differences.

Poor posture: Standing up straight with your shoulders back displays confidence and self-assuredness. Slouching immediately makes you look smaller and is indicative of lack of self-confidence. Your posture serves to deliver a clear and positive message about how you should be treated. Leave a lasting positive impression with good posture.

"bored..” courtesy stefg74 via Flickr Creative Commons

It's Monday morning and things look good. This morning we welcomed two new interns to the ThinkTalk staff. In addition we have been working hard in the ThinkTalk office planning and preparing for our upcoming Fall season. There are blue skies as far as the eyes can see.

Happy Friday job seekers! I hope summer break is creating some new-found-time that you can dedicate to your job or internship search. With a lot of ground to cover, you'll need to make the most of every minute. That's the idea behind TwitJobSearch, a cool new way to get an interview "in 30 seconds or less." Allison's Job Searching blog profiled the service earlier this week:

Twitter job search engine TwitJobSearch.com has just made it easy to connect via Skype. Job seekers can link their Skype IDs to Twitter accounts and recruiters can interview the candidate via Skype with a click of a icon.

When job seekers find a job of interest, they can attach their Twitter/Skype IDs to the job and send a "Tweet" to the recruiter notifying them that they are interested. The recruiter can then click on the Skype ID and instantly set up a video interview.

An instant interview means the face time and the personal connection that can really make your application pop. A quick video interview has the potential to stand out in a way that a copy of resume never can. If you are currently hunting for a job, TwitJobSearch is worth checking out.

Are you nervous or unsure how to handle an online interview? Allison's Job Search blog scores again with these tips for a successful video interviews. Although much of the advice applies to any type of interview (dress to impress, be prepared to ask questions), they also suggest things like making sure your desk is clear of distracting items and using the picture-in-picture feature so you can see how your video feed looks to the interviewer.

"Solea in my lap” courtesy Beyond Forgetting via Flickr Creative Commons