| Topic Name: |
The Top 10 Reasons ..... |
| Message Name: |
point by point reply |
| Date Posted: |
03/09/2002 |
| In Reply To: |
You think you are the obvious choice for a position - here's what shoots you down:
10. Poorly prepared resume - grammar and spelling mistakes.
9. Failed to include job history with complete info including Mo/Yr - Mo/Yr of employment. Forget "functional " resumes.
8. You think "Energy and Enthusiasm" are major job qualifications.
7. You think that just because you contact the hiring manager, he/she will overlook the fact that you're not qualified and magically give you a job - nope, not going to happen.
6. You think that "going around HR" will magically fix the glaring fact that you are not qualified - wrong again.
5. You are one of 300 candidates for the opening and the company can pick and choose exactly what they want.
4. You have not done your research and you are applying for a position for which there are better qualified candidates.
3. You live in South Africa and you are applying for an $8 an hour job in San Diego. Or, you live in Cleveland and you are applying for a position that is too low level to go outside a specific geog. area.
2. You have unrealistic career change expectations and are relying on submitting a resume to effect a major career change.
1. The hiring manager knows exactly what he/she wants, and you are not it. |
| Message: |
"10. Poorly prepared resume - grammar and spelling mistakes."
These usually get introduced when I change the resume to sound better for a specific job. One should print out the resume and carefully read it over before sending it out.
Yes, looking for a job is very frustrating, so much time is spent sending out a single resume, and usually it just goes into a black hole.
"9. Failed to include job history with complete info including Mo/Yr - Mo/Yr of employment. Forget "functional " resumes. "
People who have perfect job histories don't have to worry about this. However, if there are gaps, you have the devil's choice of advertising the gap, or preparing a resume that doesn't include months, or that is "functional".
"8. You think "Energy and Enthusiasm" are major job qualifications. "
Implying that people are really STUPID for thinking they can do a job they aren't "qualified" for. And "qualified" to HR means they've done that exact job before. Thus under this Catch-22 situation there would never be a single qualified person because no one would ever be qualified to get any job to get the "qualifications" necessary to get the job.
"7. You think that just because you contact the hiring manager, he/she will overlook the fact that you're not qualified and magically give you a job - nope, not going to happen."
There's no magic. One's chances of getting a job increases if one gets to the hiring manager. Anyone who has ever done cold calling knows that you can't get a sale if you don't get to talk to the decision maker.
It's better to know the hiring manager outside of the job-hunting context. All the time peopel get jobs they aren't "qualified" for in the HR sense.
"5. You are one of 300 candidates for the opening and the company can pick and choose exactly what they want."
Obviously it sucks to be one of 300 applicants, but in all the jobs I've been involved in hiring for, there have never been that many resumes. It's always been not enough resumes.
"4. You have not done your research and you are applying for a position for which there are better qualified candidates."
This is really stupid to suggest that people should spend time to do research to see if they aren't qualified for a job!!! It's obviously a much better use of the same time to prepare a good resume and cover letter to send out.
"3. You live in South Africa and you are applying for an $8 an hour job in San Diego. Or, you live in Cleveland and you are applying for a position that is too low level to go outside a specific geog. area."
This is a warning WELL WORTH HEEDING. Always include a local address on your resume. If you have a friend or relative living in the area, use their address.
If you live in Queens and are seeking a job in Manhattan, even this can hurt you; they'd rather hire someone living in Manhattan.
"2. You have unrealistic career change expectations and are relying on submitting a resume to effect a major career change. "
This is true that the really GOOD jobs where you advance to a much higher level don't come from submitting a resume to HR, since HR is looking for people who have already done the same job.
"1. The hiring manager knows exactly what he/she wants, and you are not it. "
An extremely rare event that the exact kind of person the hiring manager wants happens to submit a resume. There are just too many variables.
But it's true that hiring managers have an infinite number of silly reasons for not liking a particular candidate. One manager might prefer those with college degrees, the other might have exactly the opposite prediliction.
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