Why Aren't You Getting Calls?

The following article is a presentation which I recently delivered to a job seekers support group at the National Council of Jewish Women's Center for Women in Livingston, NJ:

If you are frustrated because you send out dozens of resumes each week and rarely receive responses, let alone invitations for interviews, rest assured that you are not alone. In my roles, both as a recruiter and as a career coach, people contact me frequently, concerned because they feel like something is wrong with them or their resume. Before you throw in the towel, something you obviously cannot afford to do, let’s take a look at your efforts and see if we could make things a little bit better!

The first place to look is your resume.
~Do you list a phone number? Is it the number you most frequently use? Is there an answering system attached to it? Do you check this number at least 2-3 times daily for messages? Do you respond to all messages within 12-24 hours?If the answer to any of these questions is ‘No’ there is your initial problem. Potential employers may only call once. If you do not answer the phone live or respond within 24 hours, do not expect them to try again. If you do not have voice mail, set it up now!!! It is very annoying when a candidate relies on caller ID and calls back to a company and says they have no clue who called them or why they called them. There are plenty of others who will respond faster and get the interview intended for you.
~Have you listed an email address on your resume? Again, is it an address that you regularly check and respond to? Is it a professional looking address or something gimmicky like jerseyshoregirl1@aol.com? Having a novelty email address for your social activities is fine but you need something business like for employers to reply to such as jdoe@gmail.com. Yahoo, Hotmail, Gmail, and most cable providers allow you to set up no cost email addresses and I strongly recommend this.
~How many of you send out more than 75 resumes per month? 50-75?25-50?Less than 25? If you are not sending out at least 25per month, you should not claim that nobody is responding to your resume because nobody is seeing your resume! There are tons of sites to look for easy places to submit such as nj.com, indeed.com, simplyhired.com, tristatejobs.com just to name a handful to consider.
-When you look for places to submit your resume, what criteria do you use to select the jobs you apply for? Do you look only at jobs that fit 100% of your expectations based on your past work history even though it has been some time since you last worked in your chosen field? My suggestion is to apply for a mix of jobs with about 20% being the ones you consider perfect fits, 50% being jobs that you feel qualified to do about half the skills, and 20% for which you know a few of the needed skills plus about 10% just general, part-time employment with minimal special skills required. Avoid applying to full-time jobs that you have absolutely none of the required skills because if something more suitable comes up at the same site later on, the hiring manager might remember you as someone who randomly sent a resume for a job you were not qualified for. However, if your resources have hit rock bottom, you need to apply for any job just to get some positive cash flow. There is nothing wrong with taking a part-time job in a supermarket, drugstore or perhaps as a security guard or school lunch aide if you absolutely need to earn money but want to allow time to continue your job search.

If no one is responding to you, maybe you need to find other ways to search and target a new audience. How many of you are doing some form of networking beyond attending this group’s programs? Are you attending job seeker support groups through local houses of worship, Jewish Vocational Services, Catholic Charities, Professional Services Group of NJ? How many of you regularly visit your local public library and utilize their job search tools? I assume you are all using LinkedIN and have been adding at least 20-25 new contacts per week and have job search agents set up there. Are each of you calling 4-6 people per week who you simply know through one source or another and asking to meet with them to informally discuss your job needs, their current careers, and how they might refer you to someone they know? Do you attend job fairs and/or resource fairs at least once every 4-6 weeks. Does anyone pick up the newspaper and look for articles about new companies moving into the local area, write down the names mentioned, and contact them to see if you could meet to discuss future job opportunities they may have available?

It is terribly simple to get into a rut and say that nobody is responding to your resume but it is a true challenge to put yourself into high gear and find creative ways to identify job opportunities. Job hunting is a full time career and requires the same attention that a full time job deserves from you. Make a schedule consisting of weekly chores and responsibilities unrelated to job search then insert at least 6 hours per day six days a week for your search process and keep to that routine. It is okay, in fact better than okay, to rotate the order you approach your search each day and it is essential to give yourself one day off per week to clear your head.

Very honestly, this might look daunting to some of you. Rest assured, the results will start to become obvious if you stop making excuses and saying no one wants to hire and get out there and make things happen. Job searching is a job but is also a heck of a lot of fun and a great way to learn new things while finding fresh sources of income!!