Knock backs happen all the time. That doesn’t mean the sting gets any better each time it happens. When looking for a new job you are essentially selling yourself. Your CV is a mini brochure of your achievements and when you are rejected by a potential employer it is hard not to take it personally.

So, what happens when you get knock back after knock back when searching for a job? Suddenly you begin to question yourself, are your achievements not enough? Are you aiming too high? Before you know it, you are ready to accept anything that comes your way even if it isn’t the right fit for you.

The competition 

The job market is getting far more competitive. There was a time when you could leave a job and walk into a new position a week later, but those days seem to be a thing of the past. The good news is there are a lot more variety of job out there.  The key is to be more selective with what your skills are and narrow down your search to the right jobs for your skill set.

Ask for feedback on your interview.

If you have applied for a job and are unsuccessful, don’t be afraid to ask ‘why?’ …well maybe not as bluntly as that but ask for feedback. By doing this you achieve a few things;

1. Putting your mind at ease – like I said earlier, when you get a knock back your mind can go in to overdrive. Where you see a failure on your part the truth may be that someone just pipped you to the post.
2. You learn from your previous mistakes. There may be a habit you are unaware of, maybe your spoke too much during an interview, maybe you didn’t give enough information, but how do you change this behaviour if you don’t find out in the first place? For interview tips why not check out our blog? 
3. It shows your willingness to learn and improve which is a great quality and one that leaves a good impression with the employer. (you never know another position could come up with them).

There are always new job opportunities out there.

‘what’s for you won’t go by you‘ – This isn’t everyone’s ideal way of thinking, but really if you take in to consideration all the good things that you have that wouldn’t have occurred had you chosen a different path. There are other opportunities out there and you will be successful. It is hard when you have you heart set on a dream job, but another dream job could be just around the corner. Never lose sight of that.

Something to remember

We often look directly at the job description and match our skills up with each bullet point, however there are more factors at play than you might have thought. On past occasions I have applied for a job, been rejected and left confused as my skills seemed to be a perfect match to what they were looking for. It’s important to remember that you don’t know who you are up against or how close you came to the finishing line; a no doesn’t mean what you have achieved isn’t good enough.  

Top tip!

More and more employers are looking at people who will fit in to the culture of their company. Have you ever come across a job description that says ‘Do you want to work in a lively vivacious office?‘, don’t discount statements like this as just their sales pitch, it’s a probe for you to highlight your ability to interact with the other employees.  For more CV tips why not read our blog? 

Murray Recruitment| 01698 501130 – Specialising in Commercial & Technical Recruitment