The saying goes, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.”
As a recruiter, our job is to provide you with all the resources we can possibly get our hands on. We’ll give you insider tips & tricks, personality insights about the hiring managers, even a heads-up where to park at the office. Your recruiter is right alongside you, rooting for that picture-perfect offer letter for your dream job.
But we can’t do the interview for you.
There is considerable value in the support we provide throughout this process, so we ask that you take into consideration the following:
Read the job description.
After an initial call, we’ll email our candidates a job description, the client’s website, and even their physical address. It’s amazing how many people don’t even look at it! Please read the job description and immediately identify 2-3 questions you have, identify whatever you’re not comfortable doing (ie. Must deliver donuts to every building on Orange Ave twice a day while doing jumping jacks? No thanks!), and genuinely consider if this is a position that you can see yourself doing, day-in and day-out.
When we schedule an in-person or virtual meeting with our candidates, one of our first questions is “What questions do you have about the job description or company?”. To be honest, it’s pretty discouraging to have a candidate say, “I haven’t had the chance to look at it.” If you’re interested in a position and actively scheduling meetings with your recruiter, come prepared! In the same sense that your recruiter studied your resume and learned about your experience, we could only hope that you put the same amount of time into doing research about the position and company. It’s a huge indictor to us about how engaged you really are in the process.
Let’s say you end up speaking with the hiring manager…that is NOT the time to admit that you are not prepared and have no understanding of the job or company. Employers take a lot of time out of their day preparing for interviews so it’s not nice to waste their time. If you really hope to nail an interview, prepare questions, comment on something you liked about their website, point out a piece of the job description that you’ve excelled at – overall, show them that you are interested!
Be Honest.
If you’ve never made a cold call in your life, tell your recruiter that before a phone interview with a client! Maybe this isn’t the best opportunity for you or maybe we can position you in a different light that highlights other qualities of your background; so even if you don’t check all of the boxes, you can still get a shot!
Google Maps is your friend.
Okay, I prefer Waze, but whatever GPS app you use…type in the company’s address in BEFORE your interview. Take a look at how long it will take you to get there. Plug the commute in during your commuting hours; traffic patterns change so if a long morning commute puts you in a sour mood, you have a chance to find backroads or if anything, recognize that the commute may be a dealbreaker. Even if this job is the best opportunity you’ve ever seen, no one wants to sit on I4 traffic for 3 hours (you feel me, Orlando-ians?). In fact, according to CNBC, 23% of workers have quit a job because of commute.
We don’t want you to start your new shiny job, just to quit a few weeks later because of the commute. (Or get fired because you’re 2 hours late!) Do us all a favor and map the location from your home and consider if this is realistic or not!
You can’t wish yourself into a job. Or hope that other people will do the heavy lifting for you. At the end of the day, employers want candidates who are excited about their company, eager to do whatever it takes to be successful, and most importantly, are PREPARED. Make a good impression, know what you’re getting into, and show passion! I promise, you’ll nail the interview!
