This may sound hard to believe, but I know a guy who was looking for a job recently. We’ll call him Sean.
After looking around for a while, Sean came across a job opening that fit him perfectly. But instead of shooting off his application right away, he held back.....He really, really wanted this job. And like anyone who really, really wants a job, he didn’t want to blow it with a less than perfect application. He agonized over how to best present himself in his resume. He wasn’t sure what to say in his cover letter. He felt uncertain about quoting a salary requirement. He didn’t want to price himself out of the job, but he also didn’t want to sell himself too short.
So what did he do? He got creative. He posed as a comparable employer and posted a comparable job opening online. He asked applicants to send a resume, cover letter and salary their requirement.
He got dozens of “applications” from poor, unsuspecting job-seekers. His little ruse allowed him to gauge his competition, and to identify an appropriate salary range. With this newfound omniscience, he applied for the job. And guess what… he got it.
Perhaps I should have been outraged upon hearing Sean’s story. After all, it’s a pretty sneaky thing to do. Sure, I felt sorry for the other job-seekers. But mostly, I was just impressed. What a clever way to get an edge on the competition.
Here I was, all these years, just taking the standard approach to job hunting. No subterfuge. No real insight into my competition. No way of knowing if I was asking for too little or too much.
I would have never thought to do something like this. Hats off to you, Sean! Your tactics may be shady – possibly, even illegal – but they’re certainly effective.
And Sean’s story got me wondering– what other crazy things do people do to get a job? What unbelievable tactics do job-seekers use to get noticed, particularly when times are tough?
Most importantly, which ones actually work?
If you have a success story like Sean’s, please share in the comments below.
