What are your salary expectations? How to answer with a number
Give one number anchored to the BLS median for the industry you are applying into - not the occupation median. Here is how to pick it and say it.
Jordan Reyes · · 8 minCareers Editor
Jordan Reyes
Jordan writes the resume, cover letter and interview guides - the parts of the search that happen before anyone presses Apply. Every example comes from a real job title.
Jordan Reyes · · 8 min
Short cover letter examples: 120 words that do the job
Two complete cover letters under 120 words - Bookkeeper and UX Designer - with the public task list every sentence was built from, and the lines to cut first.
Jordan Reyes · · 9 min
PDF or Word resume? What each ATS actually accepts in 2026
Both parse. Here is what Greenhouse, Workday, SmartRecruiters and Ashby say they accept, the size limits that quietly break uploads, and which file to send.
Jordan Reyes · · 9 min
Phone screen interview questions and what they actually decide
A phone screen is a routing decision, not a hiring one. Here are the questions, what each one resolves, and the two that quietly end it.
Jordan Reyes · · 9 min
How long should a resume be with 10+ years of experience?
Two pages, and no applicant tracking system says otherwise. What the vendors actually limit, what belongs on page two, and what to cut.
Jordan Reyes · · 10 min
The federal resume format in 2026: what USAJOBS requires
Federal agencies now cap resumes at two pages. Here is what USAJOBS requires on the page, what OPM checks, and how it differs from a commercial resume.
Jordan Reyes · · 9 min
What is your greatest weakness? A true answer, by role
Name a weakness the job does not depend on, say what it costs you, then say what you do about it. With O*NET work style scores for two roles.
Jordan Reyes · · 9 min
How to end a cover letter (and the sign-off to skip)
The closing paragraph has one job - point at the next thing. Here are the four lines that belong in it, the sign-off to use, and the sentence to delete.
Jordan Reyes · · 10 min
Second interview questions: what changed since the first
The second interview stops testing whether you could do the job and starts testing how you would do theirs. Here are the questions that follow, and why.
Jordan Reyes · · 9 min
How to show a promotion on a resume without looking like two jobs
Stack both titles under one company block, each with its own dates. Here is the exact format, why the parser needs it, and the version that breaks.
Jordan Reyes · · 9 min
What to wear to a job interview in 2026, on camera and in person
Dress one clean step above the team you would be joining, then let the format decide the rest. What changes on camera, and how to guess which you get.
Jordan Reyes · · 10 min
Cover letter vs resume: what goes where in 2026
The resume is the document a recruiter can search. The cover letter is not. Here is which facts belong on each, worked through a financial analyst application.
Jordan Reyes · · 9 minThe best of the blog, once a week
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