Stop Scaring Off Hiring Managers: Avoid These 5 Common Job Seeker Mistakes

Career Management, Interview, Networking

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‘Tis the season for tricks, treats and all things scary. But while scary can be a lot of fun in your social activities, scary in the job search is not the way to go.

Scaring the hiring manager is the fastest way to get your resume into the “no” pile, so save the tricks for elsewhere. Remember, the hiring manager is a busy professional trying to sort through a mountain of resumes to identify the best candidate for the job.

So, how can you keep from frightening hiring managers away from your application? Avoid these common mistakes at all costs:

1. Careless Errors

Managers have no interest in candidates who submit cover letters and resumes sprinkled with typos, poor grammar, an incorrect company name, etc. You should be putting your best foot forward.

Most horrifying for hiring managers? The candidate who claims “outstanding attention to detail” while their resume and cover letter are filled with careless errors. How can a manager trust you to do quality work when you can’t demonstrate quality in the hiring process?

A few tips:

Don’t rely too heavily on spell check, as it may not catch all errors. (“Their” is spelled correctly, but if it’s supposed to be “there” in the context of a sentence, it’s still wrong.) Instead, try reading to yourself — aloud — to scan for mistakes.
Review your documents again with an eye for formatting to be sure that bullets are aligned, font is the same style and size throughout, etc.
Context is key, so do a third review to ensure everything actually makes sense.
Finally, ask an eagle-eyed friend to look over the finished product. Sometimes a fresh set of eyes will see errors you’ve missed.

2. Generic Cover Letters

A generic cover letter screams that you didn’t care enough about a specific opportunity to create a customized letter relating your skills to the company’s needs. That’ll scare any hiring manager off, fast.

A few tips:

Keep it short and sweet. There’s no need to expound on your life story, so enforce a (roughly) 200-word limit on your letter to keep things in check.
Avoid awkward, overused phrases like, “With this letter, I indicate my interest…” The letter shouldn’t be overly casual, but try to keep it more conversational in tone.
Show you’ve done your homework. Stumped on where to start? Research the company and put some thought into what it does, how you’d fit in and what you can offer.
Leave out the pre-college references; there’s no need to pad your letter with references to grade school science fair wins or high school extracurriculars. Instead, focus on what you’ve done recently and how that applies to the position.

3. It’s All About You

The hiring manager has a business need that must be met. It really doesn’t matter what you want — if the hiring manager needs someone with a particular skill set, they’re not going to go the Frankenstein route and try to create an employee from a hire who only excels in other areas.

What can you do for the hiring manager to meet their business needs? Try these ideas:

Think in terms of benefits, not just features. Many applicants get caught up in ticking off their laundry list of accomplishments. Instead, focus more on how your background and skills will help solve one of the company’s challenges.
Avoid the dreaded “I” disease. If you review your resume and cover letter and see too many references to “I” (“I want,” “I have,” “I did,” etc.), it’s a good idea to take another pass with the perspective of what you can provide the employer, not vice versa.
As tempting as it may be, don’t simply rehash your resume. Instead, use the opportunity to show your depth and dimension by translating your talents into how they’ll help the business’s bottom line.
Finally, avoid any kind of introduction like, “My name is ___, and I am applying for the position of ____.” This is a given and will make you look inexperienced. Don’t waste a hiring manager’s time — or your precious words.

4. Clueless Questions

Another thing that scares hiring managers silly is when they hear questions like, “So, what does your company do?”

Really? If you can’t take the time to look at their website and do some research about the company online prior to the interview (or even a networking event), there’s a good chance you won’t be considered for the position.

Demonstrate your interest and passion by being well-prepared with thoughtful questions and discussion points. For example:

Check out the company’s press release section and comment on current news.
Do a Google search to see what everyone else is saying about the company — including any controversial topics you might want to avoid altogether.
Put thought into which questions will give you deeper insight into the position, as well as the company as a whole, such as:
- How would you describe a typical week/day in this position?
- Is this a new position? If not, what did the previous employee go on to do?
- What do you like about working here?
- What don’t you like about working here, and what would you change?

5. The Phantom Cover Letter

Sure, it’s easier to just send only your resume and skip the cover letter, but then, why even bother? Take the time to write a customized cover letter so you can relate your skills and experience to the specific position the hiring manager is looking to fill.

Don’t make them guess why they should hire you. Are you just lazy, or can’t you write? Demonstrate your professional writing skills by preparing a customized, compelling letter that will make them want to talk to you about the opportunity.

A few tips:

If you’re struggling to fill the page, keep in mind that, again, the word count should be short (around 200 words).
Include the name of a mutual contact, if one exists. This connection will set you apart from other candidates, and the familiarity may give you a leg up.
Scrap the bulleted list of accomplishments in favor of telling your unique story — this is your chance to really sell yourself.
Very briefly summarize your career, and illustrate accomplishments with examples to show how you can help advance the company’s agenda.
Conclude by telling the recipient when they can expect to hear from you. And be sure to follow up accordingly to show your continued interest and ability to follow through.

A bag of tricks may work for Halloween, but in the job search, there is no substitute for hard work and preparation. (Click here to tweet this thought.)

Put your best professional image in front of the hiring manager with a quality resume and cover letter so you’ll be a strong candidate for the opportunity. Otherwise, consider the alternative — no job –- which is an even scarier proposition!

Hiring managers, have you come across any other frightening errors job seekers should be warned about? Share your words of warning below!

Lynne Sarikas is director of the MBA Career Center at Northeastern University, where she provides career management and job search advice to students seeking residency and full-time opportunities. She also works closely with Northeastern’s corporate partners to identify their needs and support student hiring. Previously, Lynne was VP of Development at United Way of Massachusetts Bay and held a variety of management positions focusing on corporate relationships and new business development, as well as teaching as an adjunct faculty member at Stonehill College.