The MAN

Do you have access to your resume… Right now!

Networking should be an ongoing process. Because of that you should keep your resume handy. We are lucky. Not that many years ago that would mean carrying around a hard copy with you. Today you just need access to your Google Drive, One Drive, Dropbox, etc… That is IF your resume is there AND it is up to date.

Keep it up to date. Recently I have interviewed several candidates with outdated resumes. I usually start off the phone interview going over their resume with them. I even tell candidates my first two questions ahead of time! It is not uncommon for the most recent part of their resume to be a little out of date. I hear “Oh, I am no longer there” a lot. I can handle that, although for many employers that is a BIG RED FLAG. But, like I have said before, I am flexible.

What is less excusable is two weeks and two interviews later when we have our final interview, the exact same resume is provided with the same incorrect information. I tell candidates to bring an updated version of their resume with them to the interview. About 60% of the people who come to the final interview bring their resume with them. Of those, about 50% of them have changed their resume.

Your resume should be a living thing. You should update it regularly just as you do your LinkedIn profile. You should also be able to access it and send it to someone when you need to. Come to think of it, mine needs a little more work, if I can find it. 🙂

I do not want to foresee the future. I am concerned with taking care of the present. God has given me no control over the moment following.
Mohandas Gandhi

What to do when you get Ghosted by a recruiter

This happens to everyone. You apply for a job and nothing. You might get the “don’t call us, we’ll call you email” still, nothing… crickets. You feel like you are back in high school and everyone breaks up with you by not calling. Or maybe you are playing golf with a buddy and at the turn he asks “When did you and Caroline break up?” My answer “We haven’t.” (OK, I should let that one go)

Many of us go through the job search like this. We think we are out of the running for a job but we are actually still being considered. Or more frequently we are counting on the company contacting us but they no intention of doing so. First, I will talk about the why people get ghosted then what to do about it.

WHY

Recruiters are like the rest of us. They have jobs. They usually have more work than they have time for and if they don’t get their job done the company will find someone else who will get it done. People tend to focus on what is measured, and candidate satisfaction is usually NOT a metric for recruiters. Compound that with the fact that most companies do not care about the candidate experience because you are not their customer.

Some companies receive 100’s or 1000’s of applicants, many of whom are not even close to being qualified for the position. Imagine trying to drive down a freeway if they let everyone on freeways; pedestrians, bicycles, horses, etc… it would be a MESS! That is why most freeways have a minimum speed and only allow motorized vehicles. Unfortunately there is nothing preventing unqualified people from applying. To fix this companies run algorithms in their ATS to select the “most qualified” candidates. If you do not have the right keywords then you may be out of luck.

Another way recruiters handle a large number of applicants is to just take a chunk at a time to work with. If they do not find anyone in that group then they grab another chunk. Maybe you applied at the wrong time.

But there are some of us who do care but remember no good deed goes unpunished. I have followed up with people to let them know they did not make the cut and received emails like this:

Why did you email me to tell me I wasn't being considered for the job?  Thank you for wasting my time.

Your company is full of idiots, I wouldn't want to work there anyway.

After a while these “Ricky Bobbys” wear you down and you stop replying to everyone that applies.

HOW TO PREVENT GHOSTING

First, DO NOT just apply, Apply and Adjure. You need to be you own advocate. Remember the dating analogy? You want to show interest but you don’t want them asking about restraining orders. Don’t be a stalker. It is a fine line and it is different for everyone so you need to pay attention to the signs.

Be patently persistent. Since you ALWAYS ask what the next step is in the process and when you should hear from them, you know when to follow-up. If they said you should hear something by Friday, then I feel it is a good idea to follow-up Saturday if you have not heard anything. When following up always assume the best and be understanding. Here are some BAD examples that I have received with my unwritten response below each one:

You said I would hear by Friday, it is now Saturday.

This is a statement, not a question. No response necessary 🙂

Did you receive my previous email with my questions???

The excessive use of “?” is the main issue here.

I am assuming that you have hired someone else since I have not heard from you.

I will now.

Here are some much better responses that I have received:

You had mentioned that you would touch base with me Friday.   I know the week can get away from you but I want to make sure I have not missed your call or email.

I am still very excited about the opportunity.  Please let me know if you need any additional information.

You also want to follow-up with anyone you know that is an employee at the company you are interviewing with. They may be able to nudge a decision maker in your favor if they are on the fence. An employee may also have inside information on the position that they can provide. If your contact at the company is a friend of yours you can ask detailed information but if it is an acquaintance, you may want to keep things more general:

I interviewed last week and I hope to have an opportunity to make it to the next round of interviews.

I feel like my interview went well.  They mentioned that they were making a decision last week but I have not heard anything, keep your fingers crossed.

So don’t assume you have been ghosted until you do your due diligence. They may have not seen your information at all. Your goal is to have the hiring manager or recruiter to reach into the black hole, that is their ATS, and pull your information out. There is no ONE right way to get this done but you want to work as many avenues as possible.

Do your best to stay positive in your job search. Negativity is no bueno.

Ambition is the path to success. Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in.
Bill Bradley

The one on one interview

One on one interviews are the mainstay of corporate America. Here are a few things you can use to your advantage in a one on one interview.

Stereotypes: All us have stereotypes. They are not always true but there are stereotypes for a reason. Use them to your advantage. If someone went to the University of Alabama, they probably follow Alabama football. It really helps to be observant and do your research ahead of time. If you know who you interviewing with ahead of time be sure to look them up. Where did they go to school, what is their work history, etc… This will also help with the small talk part of any interview. Just keep in mind that you are walking the line between confident and cocky / interested in them and stalking them. Saying something like “I bet things were exciting at Countrywide Financial Corporation back in 2007” sounds a lot better than “How do you feel about being part of the real estate bubble popping in 07-08?”

Horns or Halo: There is something called the horns or halo effect. You want to make the best impression as soon as possible in the interview. If they like you right off the bat the interview will likely be better for you. A seasoned interviewer may know how to mitigate this effect but the fact is that an interviewer is much more likely to hire someone they like.

Follow up: You only have to write one follow-up/thank you email so you can spend more time crafting it. ALWAYS follow-up! As I write this there are candidates whose interview outcome hinges on whether or not they follow-up with their interviewers. A well crafted email definitely helps.

Connect with them: Find some common ground; school they attended, sports teams, fashion, technology, etc… This is where it really helps to be observant especially if you are interviewing in their office. Be inquisitive: “I see you have a variable height desk, do you use it standing very often?” not “Wow, those are expensive shoes, you must do pretty well around here.”

Body language: Mirror (but not exactly) their body language. If they are sitting up straight and more formal you want to do the same. If they are more casual, then you might want to cross your legs. It is also a good suggestion to match the cadence of their speech. Don’t talk fast to a slow talker.

Ask for feedback: An interviewer is much more likely to give you some direct feedback when it is just you two in the room. Many interviewers are worried about being judged by others just like you are as a candidate. But if it is just you two, then they may be more forthcoming with information.

If you are prepared, interviews can actually be fun. Where else in life are you encouraged to talk about yourself?

All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence, and then success is sure.
Mark Twain

Become a Nowist in your job search

I just watched a great 13 minute TED Talk from Joi Ito: Want to innovate? Become a “now-ist.” He is speaking about innovation, but this applies to all parts of our lives, including your job search. Don’t plan, do!

Don’t spend time worrying about what are you going to do when the recruiter calls, start applying for jobs.
Don’t worry about how someone will respond when you ask for an informational interview, call or email them now.
Don’t spend 50 hours on your resume, start asking for feedback from others.
Don’t focus on what you don’t have, can’t do or don’t know… focus on what you do have, can do and what you know.

Don’t worry about the HOW, do the NOW.

Joi Ito lays out a great argument for a few things that will make us successful in the PI (post-internet) era:

be CONNECTED: Why do we continue to try to do things alone? As humans we are made to work together and we usually do it very well. Find others to connect with where you can help them and they can help you. I think we use to call that synergy. LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and other social media can be utilized for way more than just learning new recipes and who is doing what with whom. These are your social networks, invest in expanding and contributing to them.

always LEARNING: I love that he says “Learn over Education.” I totally admit that I have skin in this one. My 2.48 BA in Criminal Justice did not open many doors for me. GPAs do not predict long-term performance. They do however, predict what college you will get into, so don’t ignore them. You do not need to pay a fee, fill out an application, make a request or join a group to learn. Innovators like MIT, lynda.com, Coursera, and many others have made learning fun, easy and cheap. One question many interviewers ask is “How do you/have you improved professionally?” Life is not static, you are either moving forward or you are being left behind.

be fully AWARE: This includes being self-aware. If we do not see the opportunities for us to improve or make a change, nothing will happen. Think of the TV show Fear the Walking Dead (Yes, I am a Dead-Head) Travis, his family and the Salazars have figured out what is happening so they are leaving their neighborhood. As they drive by we see other families having a quiet dinner, unaware of the real situation. Many times we see the sign posts in life but do we pay attention. Many of us do not move over when the road sign says “lane ending.” We drive until we run out of road. What do you need to do today?

be super PRESENT: Stop worrying about that will happen tomorrow, next week, or next year: What if I lose my job? What will we do when the kids grow up? How will we pay tuition next year? I am not saying don’t plan at all, but don’t prioritize planning over action. Here is an example from Beth Moore of what happens when we keep thinking “if this happens, then what?” Start living in the now and making things happen. You can fall into analysis paralysis very easily in life and your job search. I’ll throw another one at you: how do you eat an elephant?… yep, one bite at a time. Won’t worry about eating the whole elephant, start taking bites.

have a COMPASS: We need to know where we are going but we don’t need to have the entire route planned out. “Compass over Maps” lets us move and figure it out along the way. You rarely find yourself without resources along the way to somewhere so don’t worry about what will happen, get busy making it happen. You hear about a moral compass but I have never heard of a moral map. We need a job search, career and personal compass.

We need to work on being NOWISTs. I know that investors, banks, boards of directors and other “business” people do not like going without a plan, but some of the biggest and best results are from being a Nowist.

One example of this was during Katrina. The Coast Guard did not wait around making plans like the Federal Government did. They headed to New Orleans and made things happen. They saved more than 33,500 people including rescuing from peril 24,135 lives and evacuating 9,409 medical patients to safety. This was from action, not planning. They were able to do this because they stayed connected, had learned through cross-training, they were aware of the issues, and they were super-present in the moment.

What are going to do today as a Nowist?

P.S. This article may not be the best-written, most grammatically correct written piece but I got my butt out of bed at 6am on Saturday, made my coffee, turned on the computer, started reading my Twitter feed, watched Joi Ito's Ted Talk, and started writing.

Doing what needs to be done may not make you happy, but it will make you great.
George Bernard Shaw

Focus on the positive in your jobsearch

Much of what I read about the employment market is negative. Here are some not-so positive quotes from the web:

More Americans than ever before are not working with 92 MILLION people out of the workforce.
Job-seekers are taught to grovel and beg for a job.
How to deal with job search pain points.

Let’s face it, looking for a job can really suck. Interviewing CAN be fun but the job search, I don’t think so. So you need to stay positive and not have a bunch of pity-parties. There are several ways to do this during your job search.

Do at least one fun thing a day, but have a time limit. When I say something fun, I mean something positive. Yes, drinking 6-12 beers may be fun but there is a heavy price to pay for that. Maybe sit outside and drink a cup of coffee or meet a friend for lunch.
Surround yourself with positive people, online and in person. You may need to block some people’s news feeds for a while.
Work on some professional development. I find that if I am learning something new I am in a much better mood.
Laugh. If you look at YouTube videos or The Chive be sure to laugh.

Yes, you need to plan your fun when you are in a job search. Set time aside for yourself but limit it.

I am being positive… I am positive that you are an idiot.
Al’s wife

Follow up

I am amazed at how few people follow-up after an interview. Call me old-fashioned but it is nice for someone to take the time (it doesn’t take much) to write a quick email.

For some hiring managers or recruiters this may just be feeding their ego but there is a very real sense that if you do not follow-up, you are not very interested in the job. You may not believe me but it is true. This may come as a shock but many candidates just apply because they want “A” job, not “this” job. I really do have people say “oh, I am open to anything” when I ask them what they are looking for in a job or position. This would be like going on a date and asking the other person “what do you look for in a significant other?” and they reply “oh, I am not picky… I will go out with anyone.” Boy, wouldn’t you feel special.

Guess what, companies want you to want to work there! So act like it!

Let me encourage you to get up every day and focus on what you do have in life. Be thankful for the blessings of the little things, even when you don’t get what you expect.
Victoria Osteen

What do we owe others?

I just listened to the latest episode of the Freakanomics podcast which asks “Should kids payback their parents for raising them?” This is an interesting question in an of its self but what about the people who have helped shape you professionally? Don’t we owe them something?

What about the company that took a chance on us when others wouldn’t? Or that Manager that stuck with us when other managers had written us off?

You do owe them something… respect. That means if you decide to pursue another opportunity then you should tell them, face to face if possible, and definitely give them at least a two-week notice.

People can forgive a lot if you “own” your decision and handle things professionally. If you just stop calling or returning calls…. well, that is what H. S. students do.

Being a professional is doing the things you love to do, on the days you don’t feel like doing them.
Julius Irving

Think like a recruiter

One of the tips I give people in their job search is that if they want a recruiter to find them, they need to think like a recruiter. One of the easiest ways to do this is to participate in some of the free webinars that are offered online. Many companies including LinkedIn, Glassdoor, Electronic Recruiting Exchange and Social-Hire.com offer periodic webinars to help recruiters source candidates.

You can also go on Twitter and other social media sites to follow these companies and learn from the tips they give recruiters. Google searches are also helpful with things like “How to recruit Java programmers.” Think to yourself “if I were a recruiter and I wanted to find candidates for the position I want to have, where and how would I look? Also look up recruiter events and organizations. Follow them on Twitter and other social media to see what people learned at these events.

All of this is also a great way to find out who the recruiters are in specific industries and companies.

Just remember, you just need one job and the next one you apply for might be the one.

People may hear your words, but they feel your attitude.
John C. Maxwell

Interview type: Over a meal

One of the most dreaded interviews are the ones that happen over a meal. I like these interviews because I want to see how people REALLY act and meals give lots of opportunities for problems. As I say “Any idiot can handle it when things go right, you see what people are made of when things go wrong.” Things always go wrong, sooner or later.

Where to go: If they give you the choice, give them two options to choose from. No matter where you go I would go by before the interview to scope the place out. Just like in other face to face interviews you want to know how to get there, where to park and how long it will take to get there with traffic. If you have any dietary issues, definitely plan ahead. Let’s say you have Celiac Disease, Crohn’s or some other intestinal related medical problem. Look at the menu ahead of time and if you need to ask detailed questions, do it before your interview.

What to eat: There are two schools of thought on this. One, eat something easy. It is a smart and safe move. Two, go bold and stand out… spaghetti with meatballs. Whichever route you take, don’t plan on eating a lot, you are there to talk so don’t go when you are very hungry.

Etiquette: If you are not familiar with etiquette be sure to brush up. Let’s say you go to lunch and you are at a tight round table with six people. Which water glass is yours? Do you eat European style or American? Figure this stuff out before you need it.

Tricky Situations: During an etiquette dinner I was hosting, a student asked “what do I do with my sugar packets from my coffee?” My answer, “drink it black and you don’t have to worry about it.” Remember, this is not about you getting what you want to eat and drink, it is about the interview.

Drinks: It is best to stay away from alcohol but if it is dinner and the host orders a bottle of wine they might take offense if you do not have some. If you do, just have ONE glass and make it last. I like to order an Arnold Palmer. I like the taste of it and it is a little unique, which can make a lasting impression.

Small bites: The rule of thumb is to only take a bite that you can get down in three chews. That way when they ask you a question right after you take a bite you don’t have to stare at them while you look like a cow chewing on your cud.

Remember, this is more about the interview than the meal. Lastly, the general rule is no to-go boxes, sorry.

A smiling face is half the meal.
Proverb

Interview type: Panel

A panel interview is where there is one candidate but two or more interviewers. Many people do not like panel interviews but I believe they are a very useful tool in the selection process. It prevents just one person’s bias from derailing the entire interview. But the panel interview does present a few challenges for the candidate.

Set up: Hopefully there is a good set up for you, as the candidate. Usually panel interviews are done in conference rooms. If you are at the end of a rectangular table or on the other side from the interviewers then you are in luck from a logistics point of view. If you are at a round table it may seem less formal but it is more difficult to make eye contact with everyone.

Introductions: Introduce yourself to each person with a handshake. Do your best to remember each person’s name. It is also a good idea to ask them for a business card or write down their name to reference later. Always ask if they have a copy of your resume and offer them one.

Eye contact: Ideally you will make most of your eye contact with the person who asked the question but be sure to look at the other interviewers as well. Don’t leave anyone out.

Questions: Frequently the questions come more quickly in panel interviews and the interviewers may play off each others questions. Hopefully you don’t run into a situation where they try to outdo each other with touch questions but it does happen.

Use their names: Everyone likes you using their name. If the answer to one question overlaps with another answer you gave previously you could say something like “Similar to the situation Mangesh gave me, I would….”

Your Questions: If you know ahead of time who you will be interviewing with, it is a good idea to prepare questions for each interviewer based on your research. For instance, if you are interviewing for a position in sales and the operations manager is there you could ask “tell me a little about how operations and sales interact.” ALWAYS ask what the next step in the process is.

Follow up: Be sure to follow-up with a thank you email to each person you interview with and include specific information relevant to them. Do not just send out a generic thank you.

Like all interviews, try to stay calm. Most of the time the people you are interviewing with really do want to find out if it is a good two-way match for you and them.

Stressed spelled backwards is DESSERTS!
Loretta Laroche