Three Mistakes You Can Make When Applying for a Job After You’ve Already Applied
In a sense, hitting the submit button and applying for a job is a catharsis. You’ve done a lot of hard work to decorate your resume and cover letter, and to be honest, you extol the whole thing in some way. The problem is that for many people it only takes a few minutes before they start thinking about all their mistakes.
This post was originally published on the Muse website .
If I told you about all the problems I had after applying for a job, this article would be at least five times bigger than it is now. But it turns out that a lot of the things you’re worried about (did I spell the hiring manager’s name correctly? Should I submit a sample letter for bonuses?) Are out of your control right now. So instead of tense, focus on not making these three mistakes.
1. You ignore further instructions in the job list.
If I had a dollar for every time I posted a job on the Internet with the words “no calls” in the job description, I would have tens of dollars. But if I had the same dollar every time a candidate ignored these instructions, I could retire tomorrow.
This should be one of the first things you should look for in a post when applying, especially after you submit your submissions. Of course, conventional wisdom might say this is a great way to grab a recruiter’s attention. And technically it is.
But if the job listing highlights the fact that the company doesn’t want to hear from applicants, being “proactive” won’t help your cause. In fact, being too persistent on the phone will ultimately reduce your chances of being answered.
Instead, if you really want to know your status, email is a much better (and less annoying) option. It can be difficult to write a response email to a request, but if you are short on ideas, use this handy template .
2. You don’t have to double check if you have connections with the company.
Want to keep abreast of developments with the company you were forced to apply to? Cold follow-up emails won’t necessarily help, but a quick glance at an employer’s LinkedIn page to see if you know anyone currently working there.
Usually I would say that you should do this before applying, but I understand. Sometimes you see a concert that sounds amazing and you want to submit your materials as soon as possible. I’ve done this many times, only to immediately regret skipping this step in the process. And most of the time, I just chalked it up to a missed opportunity that wasn’t on the table anymore.
The truth is, while it’s not always ideal to wait for you to apply to reach out to the “entrant” of your dream company, some employers actually prefer it. And even if the company doesn’t have a particular preference, I wrote many recommendations for friends and ex-colleagues long before they initially submitted their application materials. So if you haven’t had the time to dig around to see who you know yet, don’t be afraid to get to know (and reach out) after the fact.
3. You are not looking for another job
Sometimes you find a job that looks so incredible that you don’t need to do anything but just sit and wait for a call from this employer. And since this work is “For You”, there is no point in looking at what else is there, right? Wrong. So this is wrong.
I know that editing and revising resumes and cover letters can be difficult at times, especially when you just want to find your next job ASAP. But in reality, the situation is such that you express interest in the concert of your dreams – and this is just the first step in a very long process.
Of course, you can get a response from the one employer you are counting on and things can work out exactly the way you want them to. And if so, I invite you to tweet me and say, “You were wrong! I was waiting for the company of my dreams, and only the company of my dreams, and everything was amazing. “
But if you are like the rest of us mere mortals who have been rejected for great work in the past, do yourself a favor and find the strength to continue your search. After all, as great as this may sound, it may even be the best one you haven’t seen before.
The point is, whenever you apply for a job, you transfer most of the control to the person who vets candidates on the other side. This is a daunting proposition, especially considering that much of the app cannot be changed by clicking the Submit button. However, this does not mean that you should panic and make mistakes, or just sit and wait. While you no longer have control over how the process goes with that particular position, you still have some control — accept that.