Have you ever applied for a job that you were absolutely sure was a perfect fit for you? You met all the qualifications, and the interview went beautifully, but…you didn’t get the job.
How does that happen? Why does that happen?
There may be several reasons:
- There may be a flood of applicants for the job (which is very typical these days).
- As qualified as you are for the job, there may be another applicant who has even better qualifications (or an inside reference).
- You may lack an important skill, or be not as strong in a skill as the employer wants.
- There may be a bad reference in your past.
- The interview may not have gone quite as well as you believe it did, at least not from the employer’s perspective.
- There may not be an actual job – the employer may just be on a fishing expedition for reasons you’ll never understand.
- The job may have been eliminated before filling it.
As you can see, there are a lot of reasons why you won’t get a particular job. Your one consolation is that it happens to all of us, and usually more than once.
[How to take a tax deduction for your job hunting expenses!]There’s no point being angry or bitter of the job that got away, but you can find ways to use the situation to your advantage.
Find Out The Reason You Didn’t Get The Job
Even if the application and interview process went well, employers will often terminate your candidacy either through a form letter (that gives no concrete information), or they will ignore you completely in the hope you’ll “get the message”. But if you do get the word from a live person, you should get as much information as you can. This will be considerably easier if your application and interview was arranged by an employment search firm. Though the employer may not speak to you, they will usually give information to an employment agent.
Though it may hurt to find out why you didn’t get the job, this information can be critical in preparing you for the next prospective employer. If you are turned down because there was a stronger candidate, or because the position has been eliminated before filling it, it may be unfortunate, but it will not reflect on anything personal about you.
If on the other hand, the employer felt that there was a weakness in your skill set, or didn’t feel as well about the interview as you did, these are things you need to know so that you can make improvements in the future.
But most important – something you absolutely need to know – is if you received a bad reference. Out of fear of lawsuits, most employers will not give references whether positive or negative. But there are some who do, if only in an indirect way. Even more important, you may find that a reference that you gave has less than positive things to say about you. If you find that out, you want to drop that person from your reference list going forward.
Ask For Constructive Criticism
It may be that you came very close to actually landing the job, but failed to get it because you’re weak in a certain critical area. For this reason, you want to get constructive criticism that will help you to learn where you are weak so that you can make improvements in future job applications.
[When is it time to make a career change?]Ask For Job Leads!
If the person who interviewed you does make contact with you, either by phone, by email, or by written mail, you should seize the opportunity to ask that interviewer for other job leads.
Just the fact that the interviewer took time to contact you to let you know that you are no longer in the running means that you are viewed as a credible candidate. Take advantage of that status – and also the opportunity to play on the interviewer’s sympathies – to ask the interviewer if they know of any competing companies who are looking to fill a similar position where you might be a good fit.
If the interview went particularly well and you built a rapport with the interviewer, you might even ask if they would give you a referral. You may not get it, but it never hurts to ask.
NEVER Let It Get You Down
If you have ever worked in a sales related job, you are well aware that you have to approach many prospects before you actually make a sale. The same is true when it comes to finding a job. You are being a salesman, and the product you are selling is you. It is the reality of sales that you will not be able make a deal with all prospects, or even most of them. For this reason, you should enter the job hunting process fully prepared for rejection.
You will have to be prepared to accept many rejections on the path toward landing a job, but no matter what, you can’t let it get you down. Upon learning of a rejection, you need to immediately spring into action to land more interviews. Getting down about the rejection, or worse – feeling sorry for yourself – will accomplish absolutely nothing productive.
[Tips on finding a job when unemployed.]When looking for a job – as in sales – you should have “several coals in the fire” at all times. That means that you are working on more than one potential job at any given point. More important, you should never view any single job as a make-or-break situation for you. Sure, you may need a job, but you don’t need any particular job. The right one will come sooner or later.
What do you do when you learn that you didn’t get a job you hoped you would?
photo credit: freedigitalphotos.net
The Importance Of Integrity In The Workplace
My biggest problem was that I used to be horrible at interviews! I had great grades, qualifications, experience, etc. – but I was a complete dud at interviews. Try and setup with a family member or friend and actually record yourself in a practice interview. You’ll be surprised at what you find.
Excellent point Derek. The interview is at least 50% of the reason you’ll land a job or not. It’s worth some heavy practice.
Experience! experience! experience!
I have applied for several jobs and what they need is 2 or more years working experience and am just a graduate.
The only thing that makes me strong is my own quote, ‘Challenges do ruin or make/build.’ I believe challenges makes me a strong person.
Hi Erastus – I couldn’t agree more. Tough times are what define our lives at the deepest levels, and especially how we handle them.
The experience requirement is common, it’s their way of saying “what can you do for me today”. It’s become even more important now that employers no longer train new hires.
If I had a nickel for every time I was told that they went with somebody with more experience, I’d have a lot of nickels. Enough to buy a cup of coffee at least! I’ve made it to the final three in interviews a couple times, but have always gotten that same answer. So I’m stuck trying to figure out how I’m supposed to get experience in a skill set that requires certification that requires an employer sponsorship.
Hi Edward – I don’t know what career that is, but this may be time for some creativity. Instead of applying for jobs, maybe what you need to do is to get really friendly with 3 or 4 potential employers. What I’m suggesting is that you avoid applying/asking for a job, but instead find some people who could mentor you into the career.
People who won’t give you a job will often be happy to help you in other ways. While they are helping you, you are working to build a relationship.
When we apply for jobs we’re one stranger among many. When we look for mentors we become real human beings with real stories and real potential. You may have to work on building a few of those relationships and put finding a job on the back burner.
That’s just my suggestion, feel free to customize it any way you like.
BTW, I’m not saying this will be either quick or easy, but as the saying goes, desperate times require desperate measures.
I’ve been considering something like this. When my current job goes into hiatus this winter, I have been considering asking the guy from my last interview if I could job shadow or something similar to gain some sort of experience that way.
The problems with that are that the office is kind of far for me to be working for free and that it is an ancillary industry to my current one, so they aren’t going to have much in the way of work in the winter either.
If that can’t work, then invite him out to lunch – or dinner – you’re treat. Be upfront – let him know you need the insight of an insider to get your career going. Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable, and to ask for help. Build relationships that can lead to a job.
I graduated college during at the beginning of the recession. I got automated rejection letters day after day. It wasn’t until I started networking that I found real opportunities.
These “real opportunities,” as I call them, allow for better understanding, conversation, and feedback.
I’m not sure what you mean by ‘real opportunities’ but I think there’s deep wisdom in what you’re saying. When the job hunt isn’t going well, it often helps to shift the search from ‘jobs’ to ‘opportunities’. Opportunities may look like contract situations or even self-employment.
That shift in thinking has benefited me, and college graduation is well behind me. I think it works especially well in a tight job market/weak economy.
This happens to many people. I recall years ago being told that I was the second choice for a job, after making it past the screening, phone interview, and in-person interview. Out of 100’s of applicants, I was 2nd. Yet, it’s an all or nothing situation in that finishing first matters and that’s it.
However, I kept in touch with them, and tried to learn from the experience. It kept me motivated and actually gave me confidence. Bottom line is that we can use situations to learn and better ourselves going forward, as failure can help us reach success indirectly.
Since you were number 2 and they kept in touch, they obviously see you as employable. But you’re right, finishing first on a particular job is all that matters. That’s why you have to salvage what you can from the experience. It looks like you did just that.
Wow, really great information here. Failure is an important part of any process and understanding how to learn and grow from it is crucial to succeeding in the future. These are all really practical, actionable tips. Thanks.
Hi Matt – Thanks! Failure is bound to happen – if you’re trying – but what’s important is learning and growing from it. It’s easy to get steemed about not getting a job, but there really is no choice but to get ready for the next opportunity. That being the case, anything that can be salvaged from the job that got away is a postive step in a negative situation.