FOUR times this last week I heard from people who were in the job hunt, had applied for a particular job and then, nothing.  I read about this happening all the time.  Most forum threads blame the avalanche of applications at a time when unemployment is near 10 percent. Millions of people are filling out forms and waiting in line, to paraphrase a Billy Joel song from a recession of days gone by.

 

So what to do?  One mentee who applied for a job was ready to write a scathing letter to the employer after not hearing back. But guess what?  They called (finally) and did a phone interview and now said mentee got a second interview, in person.  Another with whom I spoke said she noticed how quickly corporate hiring goes compared to non-profit.  She's wanting to do non-profit, community work. She's still waiting.  I was talking to a fellow recruiter/coach at lunch the other day and noted from his side of the fence, the waiting can be perfectly unintentional.  Applicants can never really know all that is going on behind the scenes during the hiring process. The recruiter said it's far more common that the person doing the hiring also has a thousand other duties too and making a hire should be somewhat methodical.  They do want to get the right person.  It's far too expensive to not get the right person.

 

Suggestions:  If you have applied for a job recently, have some really good clues as to exactly what kind of organization you are looking to join.  Before you apply, ask some questions of people who either work there or find people who have some kind of affiliation to your future employer of choice. And, try to get a sense of the personalities involved, too.  Ultimately, you want to work someplace where you can throw yourself in with gusto and learn from colleagues who are a notch or two better than you. (Yes, you should try to work around people who are better than you and you should be humble enough to admit that.) So, first know what you are looking for and second, know what you are getting into.  

 

If you can do that, then the waiting becomes part of a game where the outcome has a better chance of being in your favor.