10 Mistakes to Avoid During Your Job Search

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10 Mistakes to Avoid During Your Job Search

The entire process of applying for a job, interviewing for a job and weighing a job offer can certainly be overwhelming to anyone. There are constant hurdles to be cleared throughout the whole ordeal, making it easy to become paranoid that one mistake will hurt your chances. I’m here today to hopefully help everyone relax a little bit by offering the 10 biggest mistakes to avoid during your job search. These include some that might seem surprising but are all too common during an interview process.

1. Appearing disinterested. If the interviewer feels like they don’t have your full attention or you have other places you’d rather be, they will write you off immediately. Be careful to remain engaged and interested throughout the entire process.
2. Being unprofessional. This is an issue at all steps of the application and interview process. Make sure you have a professional looking résumé that does not include typos or spacing issues, that you have a professional sounding e-mail address (not Wildman23@…) and always dress professionally. It’s better to over-dress than under-dress.
3. Speaking negatively about previous employers or co-workers. This gives a bad first impression and can leave employers with a bad vibe about you. They may fear that you are difficult to work with and the same issues will happen at your new job.
4. Lacking attention to detail. This can occur in a variety of ways: failing to follow application instructions, being late on deadlines, forgetting to include attachments in an e-mail, etc. Candidates always give their best impression during this process, so employers will be wary to give someone a chance whose “best impression” already has obvious flaws.
5. Forgetting to personalize application materials. This may imply that you are either uninformed about the position & its requirements or simply unable to provide evidence supporting your candidacy.
6. Your résumé is too long or too short. You want to highlight key information while still being succinct.
7. Sharing too much personal information. Employers want to know how you will benefit their company, not what you do on the weekends with your friends. Don’t cross that line until you have worked at a company for a while and have learned when it is acceptable.
8. You can’t provide specific examples. Saying that you are good at this or that is nice, but it quickly loses value if you don’t have any specific examples to back up your claim. Entry levels positions can be more forgiving because you aren’t expected to have much industry experience.
9. Asking personal questions during interview. This goes along with #7 above but it’s still worth mentioning. When I’m interviewing someone, I find it uncomfortable when a candidate attempts to delve into my personal life. Know your place at the table. It’s to showcase why you are the best candidate, not to make new friends. It’s one thing to be personable, it’s another thing to get personal.
10. Applying for the wrong jobs. Being extremely under-qualified is obvious why that would be an issue for employers, but being WAY over-qualified can be a concern as well. Employers are hesitant to hire someone that they think will immediately be looking for another their next job. With that being said, I do think it’s fine to apply for jobs for which you may be slightly under/over–qualified. Passion, work ethic and desire to learn can make up for that.

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