got a letter from one of our readers…seems he is getting a job offer in the next day or two from a company and is expecting another one from another company on the 15th…he wanted to know how to stall a decision with the first company so he can compare it with the offer of the second…he asked our advice…so, here it is..
don’t even try this…30% of the time a company says they are “going to make a offer”…they don’t…they think they are gonna, but they don’t…
if you have an offer in hand..call the second company and ask them if they can move faster…if they can’t, make a decision on the first offer regardless of how the second one might appear…a bird in the hand is always best..
if you postpone the first offer any longer than a day or two, they will inevitably think you are “shopping” their offer and will often rescind the offer and go to the next candidate…
in this economy, you can only count on the offer you have in your hand… don’t believe anyone that tells you they are going to make you an offer until they do..
…famous words…don’t do that…don’t ever bank on an offer unless you have one…in writing..in your hands..and don’t stop interviewing until you have it..
we can’t tell you the number of tremendously disappointed people we have consoled over the years who thought they were getting a job offer, quit interviewing and never got it…
no company will ever admit to doing this, but we have seen situation where the candidate showed up for their first day of work to find out that there was no job for them…
lesson…don’t stop interviewing until you have an offer in you hands and a start date that is a as quick as you can get it…you never know what might happen
1. people overestimate the value of a resume…it isn’t going to get you a job…sending it, thinking that it is magical, is an error…it may not even get you an interview
2. the average resume gets read in 10 seconds…don’t think someone is reading and digesting what you wrote…if you don’t get their attention in 10 seconds, it isn’t working
3. people underestimate the number of resumes they are competing with…on average …300
4. people overestimate the qualifications of the people who will screen, read and or “pass” their resume along…if you think the “right” people are reading your resume..you are wrong…
5. people write the wrong content on their resume…they write what they understand about themselves …forgetting that unless they are clear about what their company does and what they do, most people won’t understand it…if your resume can’t be understood by a high school senior…who doesn’t know you…you are writing the wrong content…
so much has been written and spoken about these over the years…save your breath, time and trouble..
no employer in today’s market…who is worth talking to, has time to give you an “informational” interview…now if it is your uncle, or your dad’s best friend…maybe…
but don’t call someone and ask for an informational interview..you are either looking for a job or not…and if you are..talk to people that might have one…ask for a job…not information…how wimpy!
