Get The Ink Out:

My mother likes to think my brother’s height is what’s keeping him from finding work. After all, he is 6 feet, 9 inches tall. But that should be more of a help, and, as he says, “You’ll never have a burnt-out lightbulb with me around.”

Appearance is everything, so how do you make yourself stand out, especially on paper, when looking for work?

As internship coordinator for the Daily Pilot and its two sister papers, the Huntington Beach Independent and Laguna Beach Coastline Pilot, I see a lot of students trying to get their feet in the door.

Having looked at many cover letters and résumés, I’ve noticed a few indicators about how well someone will perform. So here are a few tips to help you in your job hunt.

What’s in a name?

I have a unisex name. So it’s no surprise that I get a lot of e-mail for “Mr. Rowe.” I typically laugh it off, but at times I’m a bit insulted that someone would automatically assume I’m a man.

Now, let’s look at the spelling of my name. I would argue it’s the “normal” way, but I might be a bit biased. I’ve also seen Jaime, Jaymi and Jamee.

So what’s the big deal? It means you aren’t paying attention and aren’t going that extra mile to be thorough.

This is an employers’ market, so you have to be the best of the best. Any signs of weakness could hurt your chances.

Not verifying something is a sign of laziness, which no employer wants.

Get the facts

When I was a child, adults used to say, “There is no such thing a stupid question.” Now, I believe there is such a thing as a question that will make you look stupid and keep you from getting that job.

The worst question I got was from a woman who wanted to intern for us but didn’t know where our offices are.

We live in a digital age where Google is at just about everyone’s fingertips.

There’s no excuse to not fire up your search engines and find out where our offices are (1375 Sunflower Ave., Costa Mesa, CA 92626, if you’d like to send me hate mail or pictures of kittens).

Although Google maps and I have a love-hate relationship — it loves to get me lost, and I hate trying to find my way out of some bad neighborhood at midnight — it’s still a great tool.

What did I get myself into?

Google itself is an easy way to look up information on a company to see if you really want to work there.

Do they have a reputation for treating their employees badly? Do they pay more than the standard wage? Do they even exist?

The Daily Pilot published an article about a Craigslist job scam (“Fake job postings deceive applicants,” Nov. 26) that gave some crooks all the information they needed to steal applicants’ identities.

When you’re unemployed and barely making ends meet, finding out that someone has opened multiple credit cards in your name is not a pleasant experience.

Above all else, you have to make yourself your No. 1 priority. Be careful and alert.

If you take nothing else from this column, remember, put your best foot forward to hold open the door of whatever job you’re applying for.

Oh, and if you have some lightbulbs that need changing, my brother could use the work.

JAMIE ROWE is a copy editor for the Daily Pilot. She lives with her cat, Squee, in Santa Ana. She can be reached at jamie.rowe@latimes.com or (714) 966-4634.