Before my current job, I used to struggle quite hard with landing interviews. I was applying for tons of positions while rejection mails were vigorously hitting my inbox. In today's post, I would like to share with you 4 steps that helped me turn the table.
Know your strengths and how to present them.
During CV screening, Companies look at your CV, your LinkedIn, your portfolio, your cover letter, and your social media. They fill in the gaps to draw an image of you and then compare that image with their expectations. Getting rejected doesn't necessarily mean that you are not qualified. It just means that your image is not aligned with their expectations.
To land more interviews you must show them your strengths. That's easier said than done. To be able to "sell" yourself. You must define your goals and strengths in the first place. That is where those feedback meetings with your manager come in to place. You could also ask your friends or colleagues. Better yet, self-reflect on your past experiences.
After defining your strengths. Learn how to present them. Your CV shouldn't be just a pile of information. It needs to convey a simple message, "I am a perfect fit for the job". If you are not presenting your strongest skills and achievements effectively, you are not using your CV to your advantage.
Also, This is not a one-time thing. Self-reflection is an iterative process. Your strengths and goals will change after some time. You need to self-reflect from time to time.
Stop applying for positions that are not aligned with your plan.
This tip only works if you have a clear goal in mind or at least a rough direction on where you want to go.
You might think. Well, what harm can it do? Let me answer that,
First off. Interviewers can easily tell the difference between someone who really wants to be a Frontend developer (for example) and someone who just wants to land any job out there. They will sense it and will probably reject you. That's a lot of wasted energy that could have been spent elsewhere.
Also, remember step 1? You are building that image according to your strengths and goals. Applying for a backend developer vacancy while your whole image is tailored for your frontend development goal will get you rejected. Those rejections can affect you and your decisions. You might accept a job that you don't want. Or even worse, you could give up and stop applying altogether.
Finally. If you did land the job, You will be working in a field that you probably hate. That's never a good thing in the long run. At least try as much as you can to avoid that.
Stop applying for old listings.
This golden tip I got from Sarah Hündgen, She is an awesome career mentor at Imagine foundation. She told me to start using this "Date posted" filter on LinkedIn and only apply for newly posted vacancies.
Sure! It decreases the number of positions you can apply for at the same time. But, Applying early for 50 job listings across the span of 5 or 10 days is waaaay better than applying late for 50 jobs in one go. This will sky-rocket the probability of your CV actually getting read by HR.
Applying for jobs posted weeks or even months ago won't help that much. Sometimes those job listings are so old, that someone has already filled the vacancy.
Consistency is key.
I know it is a huge cliche, But it's important! "Don't give up" I landed a job after 7 months of actively interviewing. You can too, Don't let those heartbreaking rejection emails get to you. Delete them from your inbox and apply again.
Try those 4 steps out next time you start applying. They really did help me along my journey and I am sure they can help you too!
oh, yeah and good luck :)
Top comments (1)
This is quite true, as someone who gets his second job after four months of search and interviews, I can't agree either.
Your listed skillset on your CV must match the type of work you have done on your portfolio, it is very easy to see the difference when you apply for and what your CV Contains something different.
That is a sure way to get your CV thrown in the trash can.