Tough love for a job seeker

Yesterday I met with a girl who used to work at my company but who now is unemployed after nine months in New York City pursuing PR and event marketing. She moved back here with a job offer from an employer in town, but that didn’t pan out so she’s currently looking for work.

In her email to me, she asked if I’d meet with her to discuss career opportunities and I happily agreed since  I’ve had several mentors help me throughout my career, and I’m always trying to pay their kindness forward.

Unfortunately, the kind of help she needed required a little tough love.

Her resume – which she’d sent me in advance – contained 22 errors. In case you think that’s a typo, let me repeat: 22. Everything from incorrect grammar usage and misspelled words to style and font inconsistencies…and this from someone who wants to work in public relations and marketing!

After the requisite small talk, I steered our conversation toward her success thus far in securing interviews. As expected she was frustrated with the lack of responses she’d received in her search.

And here’s where I dashed the hopes of a young, aspiring worker in one fell swoop <insert evil laugh>!

I’m kidding, of course. I would never do that, but I was completely honest with her. I told her that the job market is extremely tight right now and employers have their pick of candidates, especially in the city in which we live.

Therefore, her first impression – typically a cover letter and resume – needs to stand out…and by stand out I meant not in a negative way. I then took a highlighter and went through all 22 errors with her, showing her the mistakes I’d noticed.

That may sound harsh, but most employers wouldn’t have read past the first or second error before filing her resume in the NO pile, better known as the trash can.

I then went on to give her some advice, and it’s the same advice I’d give to any other person looking for a job right now:

*Always put your best foot forward: From your resume, to your follow-up phone call or email to your actual interview, be sure you are putting forward your best. Read and re-read for typos, ask others to double-check your work and practice what you’ll say in your interview, changing it up as necessary. With 500 people applying for the same job, you can be sure others will be going out of their way to make a great first impression.

*Get out there and network: Sure, many companies aren’t hiring right now, but that doesn’t mean you can’t meet with a contact informally to “learn more about what their job entails.” Successful people usually like talking about their successes, and once you’ve met with them face-to-face (and hopefully made a great impression – see #1) they’ll likely think of you first when they do have an opening.

After your meeting, be sure to send a follow-up email – both to thank them and to ensure your email address is recognized. This way, even if they don’t automatically consider you for an opening, at least they’re more likely to open your email when you send them your resume/cover letter in the future.

*Don’t be proud: In this girl’s particular case, she has debt and needs to get a job to start paying the bills. I know she wants to find her “dream job,” but in the short-term she needs to be realistic and take care of necessities.

When I first graduated from college, a lot of companies were laying off workers and implementing hiring freezes similar to those we hear about today. After little success in my job search – despite graduating magna cum laude and having three internships under my belt – I had a tear-filled breakdown on the couch one day with my mom. She knew I was in debt and she told me to stop being proud and to start being smart. I drove to a temp agency that day.

*Be smart in the interim: I’m not advocating working for a temp agency or at a random job for the rest of your life, but having a semi-regular paycheck and not being in financial distress may actually help your search for a dream job because you won’t have the pall of desperation that comes with being unemployed.

Also, your interim job – whether temp or otherwise – has the potential to be a learning experience in addition to a meal ticket. Even if it’s not quite up your alley, important skills that are universal can be learned and used to your advantage in the future.

*Look for the long term: The last piece of advice I gave her was to take her time looking for the next job she plans to include on her resume. This seems to contradict #4 but let me explain.

This girl has had four separate jobs in the span of a year and a half. HR folks and those in the position of hiring (including me) see that as either a lack of commitment, or worse, a reflection on the quality of her work.

Since she seems intent on finding that elusive concept known as a dream job, I advised her to first find a job that pays the bills to meet her immediate needs. Then she can have the luxury of being picky because ideally she will stick with her next PR/event marketing job for a minimum of two years. 

I left the meeting with two different feelings. The first: hope that she took the advice for what it was – constructive criticism – and that she finds something soon. In person, she comes across as polished, professional, intelligent and eager, so if she can just improve her first impression I think she will find success.

The other feeling? Gratitude. Gratitude that I have a career I like and that I’m not looking for a job in this economy.

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