As a new college graduate a couple of years ago, I can still recall the sense of panic and urgency I had upon graduation. I was eager to put my degree to use and began applying to jobs in my field. After a couple of months of no responses, I decided to mass email any and every job I could find on Craigslist. The result was even less call backs. Eventually, I learned that some employers actually look at cover letters and expect personalization. I was making the number one mistake in job searching and wasn’t even aware of it.
Here are some mistakes that can harm you in your own job search.
– Saying anything and everything on Facebook and Twitter. Social media outlets have cost many a potential candidate job offers. Facebook accounts offer a few more privacy privileges in that you can restrict full access to your account to only friends. However things can get tricky when befriending a coworker or boss. Posting anything about desiring to quit or looking for new employment is an automatic no no. A Twitter account can also cause trouble when job searching- especially if prospective employers have a tendency to look you up before hiring you.
– Sending out massive amounts of resumes with the same generic cover letter attached. This is a mistake I made when job searching and one that may have cost me jobs that I was otherwise qualified for. Job recruiters will not be interested in a candidate who did not put enough effort to tailor a resume or cover letter to a specific position and in this day and age when company information is a mere Google search away, there is no excuse for not personalizing cover letters and resumes.
– Applying to jobs to which you are not qualified for. The job application process has been made easier than ever with technology facilitating that process. For instance, Spark Hire is one of the best ways to set yourself above the competition by utilizing a video resume. Plus, everything in the job search process can be utilized on Spark Hire- from searching for a job, to applying for one and eventually interviewing. For some jobs, it may only take a click of a mouse and boom, you’ve applied. While you may think that there is no harm in applying for a job to which you clearly do not meet the requirements for, it usually means a waste of time for the job recruiter who will probably skip over your application in the future if you were to apply for another position. This can significantly harm your job search and put you on a blacklist with certain recruiters simply for wasting their time.
– Only searching for jobs on the Internet. Though it may seem like a simple job search on Google or Craigslist will bring up every possible job opening, this is usually not the case. Most jobs are filled by word of mouth and, in fact, are never even advertised online. Try to put the word out there that you’re looking for new employment and branch out from the Internet. These are just a few of the numerous mistakes you can make that will harm your job search. I have personally made them all myself, but the good thing about starting over is that you learn. So the next time you’re on a job search, just make sure to customize your resume and be your most professional self on Twitter. Or at the very least, have a separate account for the not-so-professional things you may feel like saying.
SOURCE: New Grad Life
IMAGE: Courtesy of Job Mob
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