Looking for a job is one of the most discouraging and tedious processes you can ever go through. In fact many people will tell you that job searching is actually a job on its own. Finally getting that call for a job interview is usually relieving but that is when the hard task truly begins.
As a job seeker, you depend highly on recruiters to get job interviews and hopefully a great paying job or even just any job that will put food on the table. While we go to school to get the necessary skills, what we are not taught at school is how to get a job. With so many qualified people in the job market, your chances of a getting that dream job you always wanted are slowly dwindling.
You need to understand that recruiters interview a couple of people for just one position-- and that means this is a competition. There are various things you need to have going for you and that includes right look and persona because these are some of the things that recruiters are keen on.
In other words, you must be marketable more than anything else. If you have been having trouble finding a job, yet seem to be getting enough interviews you are obviously doing something wrong.
Reasons Why You Never Ace Your Interview
Even with the best resume, you need to have the entire package, not just bits and pieces of what the ideal candidate should have.
Below are some of the reasons why your job search is proving to be futile:
•You don't dress well enough for the interview
•You have poor grooming
•You have poor communication skills
•Your personality stinks
•You are perfect
In case you haven't noticed, none of the above points mentioned your qualifications for the job. This is because the fact that you have been interviewed is an indication that you are already qualified. No matter how many times job seekers are told that presentation is everything, many don't seem to get it.
Major Mistakes To Avoid
One of the major mistakes job seekers make when it comes to presentation is with their interview attire. Believe or not you might not be getting that job because you are over dressed! While it is important to dress formally, some careers detest formal dressing and the fact that you did not do your research on the appropriate form of dressing is obviously not going to do you any favors.
Whenever you go for an interview, you need to keep an eye out for things such as dress code and color. Your grooming also plays a role in your success at the interview and it could either be too much or simply not enough.
In plain words, you could be sloppy or too overpowering! Besides your dress code and grooming, your communication skills also matter. Remember that you will be representing the company and the recruiter needs to find a person who is articulate and confident without being intimidating.
Perfect Is Not Always Sincere
How you speak and your body language therefore contributes greatly and actions such fidgeting, weird or plain facial expressions may be some of the reasons why you keep missing out on those opportunities.
Personality is one of the determining factors in an interview and while being confident is a good thing, you need to draw a clear distinction between being confident and overly confident. The recruiter will try to gauge your personality and self-centered, desperate and pushy candidates rarely get the job.
Last but not least, you may be too perfect. This may come as a surprise to many, but being perfect does not seem sincere. Think about it, there is something unsettling about a perfect person and though your recruiter will rarely tell you that you are perfect on all fronts; that may be the real reason why you are still unemployed.
Things You Dint Know About Recruiters
It's not always your fault that you just missed out on that job whose interview went really well. Recruiters are paid according to their delivery and sometimes, it's beyond their control when it comes to you getting the job.
Below are some things the recruiter will not be willing to share with you:
•The position doesn't exist
•The position was withdrawn
•The client is not cooperating
Most people don't know this but some of the jobs your recruiter asks you to interview for do not even exist. Yes, this may be unethical but it is actually a common practice with recruiters. So why do they do this? Well for starters, they need to look good on paper and they will only be hired if they appear busym -- even if this means holding phone interviews. Sometimes, it could be the client who hired the recruiter has gone AWOL (absent without leaving). Some companies will hire recruiting firms only to go silent over the matter after the recruiter has done his or her job.
Chances are high that your recruiter will not tell you that their client has gone silent or even worse won't pick up their calls. It also could be a case of the employer withdrawing the job.
Things Your Recruiter Will Not Tell You
You need to realize that recruiters, just like you, are human and their decisions not to forward you for the job may be based on the following reasons:
•You intimidate them
•You irritate them
•You don't look good enough
Since we all have egos, the last thing you'd want to do is intimidate the recruiter because they will obviously make a personal decision even when you are the right person for the job. There may also be things about you that simply irritate the recruiter such as your pitch or your personality.
How you look also matters and while the recruiter will not tell you that you are overweight or too thin, this could be the reason why you will not get the job.
As you can see, there is a lot that goes through a recruiter's mind. Some of their tactics may be ruthless, unfair and unethical but at the end of the day we depend on them to get the jobs we need.
What is your experience with job interviews? Leave your comments bellow.