DON'T BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU THINK IN THE JOB SEARCH PROCESS

By Fernando Ratkoczy - Executive Career Management Consultant

Rejection comes in many forms during the job-search process. You send out a resume and no one responds. You have an interview and you don't receive a call back. You send a thank-you note and you don't receive a response. It's only natural to feel insecure and unwanted.

Let’s first visit what a no answer means. When companies have an open position, they like to have options in other words, more than one candidate is going to be interviewed for that specific opportunity. The reason they do this is to pick the best candidate for “them” not necessarily the best and most qualified person. If you feel you are the best qualified you may well be, but a hiring process is a bit more complex than that. Match in personality, a good cultural fit is essential. Let face it, we can not be everything and everybody at the same time. That’s why being yourself is the best tool you have.

The company normally will be very positive after the interview and even give you an implicit hope that you might be the one. They are telling the truth so far they have not made a decision and you could be the one. After speaking with the rest of the potential future employees they may even have a hard time deciding who is best for them. Once they choose, it’s normally over. Too many times we don’t get a phone call to let us know we have not made it. They just don’t like to say “No” And hope you get the hint. You may have been so close that they can’t find good enough reason to explain their decision.

Other times an organization in doing you the biggest favor by not hiring you. We are who we are and fit where we fit. It’s human and natural that we all want that job as fast as possible and in consequence turn a blind eye to the red flags we encounter somewhere in the process. We need to apply some sales rules and act as we would be prospecting buyers. Why would you want to spend time trying to sell something, in this case your services, if the buyer is not interested in buying now or the relationship will not be a productive one and it will terminate early. You’ll find yourself doing this again very soon. For most of us is not something we aspire to do. Since, as I mentioned before, is natural for us to ignore these signs, we hope the organization won’t. Always look at the positive side of the event, by them not hiring us, it has given us the opportunity to find the right and best fitting job.

When you find the right job you will be enthusiastic and passionate, probably you will excel and perform with excellence. Always happy to go to work and give results. Your job has a better chance to be around longer for you since even in hard economic times the company will think long and hard before they let you go. These are things we all want. A very successful man once told me “You have to fail before you succeed, every time I fail I know I am closer to success.”

So when things don’t go your way acknowledge it and allow yourself a few minutes to mourn the loss of a particular opportunity.Then assess the situation logically and rationally. Find a positive perspective that you can live with. ("The best job offer is yet to come," "I will use that situation to perfect my interviewing techniques," etc.) Whenever negative thoughts creep in -- and they will, refer back to that perspective. Say it aloud. Repeat as necessary.

Many people equate looking for a job with rejection and rightfully so. Job seekers often hear dozens of no's before they land a position. Repeated rejection can erode anyone's confidence and negatively affect a once-positive attitude. Unfortunately, a positive attitude and a healthy dose of confidence are what will sustain a job seeker during a search. They are also the very qualities that will attract employers.

© Copyright New Edge Productions

About the Author

Fernando Ratkoczy http://www.linkedin.com/in/fernandoratkoczy is an author and Founder of http://www.NewEdgeProductions.com . If you're looking for Job Search Training, then check out “The Fast Job Search Series”. If you try to reduce your job search time and improve results you found one of the most comprehensive programs in the market. You are welcome to review free previews http://www.newedgeproductions.com/job-training-videos.html