Get a Job in South Carolina: Learn Southern Hospitality

I want to thank you for taking the time to read this article.

As a resume writer/interview coach and former Corporate Recruiter, I write award-winning resumes. I know the importance and value of showcasing your professional skills in a good resume. A good resume will get you a telephone or an in-person interview but it won't get you the job, especially in the South.

If you want to get a job in the South, specifically South Carolina, let me give you 3 tips in Southern hospitality that can help you make a winning impression.

1) Dress conservative as defined by South Carolinians.

You may be thinking what does dress have to do with Southern hospitality? Please allow me to show you by using an example.

If I threw a formal dinner party where all the guests wore their Sunday Best, then you strolled in dressed in dirty jeans, a tee shirt and uncombed hair, I would feel insulted, disrespected.

The same is true when interviewing. If you haven't taken the time to learn what is acceptable or unacceptable, you obviously don't care a thing about your potential employer's culture. You lack good manners/hospitality.

Now what does dressing conservatively mean in South Carolina?

For females this means what is considered as a tab bit too short skit/dress in New York is considered "I can't believe she walked out of the house with no clothes on" in the South.

For males this means the interviewer in California may not notice if you are not wearing socks, but the interviewer in South Carolina has not only noticed your socks, the interviewer has checked if the socks are the appropriate color for your attire.

2) Greet everyone who greets you whether verbally or nonverbally.

There are people, especially men, in the South who still nod/bow their heads as a polite gesture. As a native Southerner, I'll be the first to admit that this gesture is a bit humorous to me.

It reminds me of cowboys saluting women in old movies. Anyway, acknowledge this greeting by saying hi or returning the nod. Who knows if you ignore the greeting from a stranger, you could be ignoring the hiring manager or even the president of the company!