3 Simple Steps to Land a Job Interview
Time and time again, I hear people complaining about not being able to get a job, whether it’d be a job to pay the bills or their dream job.
I was one of those people too. After my graduation, I applied for countless jobs only to get one or two interviews per month.
It’s a frustrating position to be in. To get the foot into the door, we usually end up trying to bang the door down.
So I changed my approach. Rather than focusing on the number of applications I submitted, I focused on improving my conversion rate.
As a result, my conversion rate of getting an interview has improved from near 0% to above 80% ever since and I’m going to share with you how - in three easy steps.
1. Match your skill
Most people think of job application as a number game. They would hand out their resume to as many places as possible and hope that someone would call them back.
They would apply for jobs that they may be underqualified, overqualified or may not have relevant experience at all. As a result, they wasted their time only to get tons of rejection to add to the stress.
It will be much easier to just find out what you want to do and focus on those jobs that you might have a shot at. For example, if you want to become a barista, then take some coffee making courses and get some experience to make yourself a promising candidate.
Not sure what you want to do? Just look at the job responsibilities and ask yourself whether it sounds like something you want to do.
When I first finished uni, I realised that I wanted to become a Digital Marketer, so I looked at the required skills for the job. I looked at all the similar roles and identified the most common required skills. I then went on to learn and took some online courses to equip myself with that skills to put on my resume. Luckily, there are so many free resources online nowadays. The ones I took were HubSpot Academy, Google Skillshop and SEMRush academy.
When you have something that they need, it makes it harder for them to say no to you.
2. Show them that you have what they need
After you have equipped yourself with the skills, you also need to show them clearly on your resume.
The second common mistake that people make is that they only have one resume, and they hand it out like a flyer on the street, hoping that someone would call back.
What do most people do with the flyer when someone hands it to them?
Instead, you need to tailor your resume to the job that you’re applying for. You need to write them a personalised letter addressing their needs.
Have a good read on the job ad and identify what the employer is looking for. Are they looking for someone to come in to assist or are they looking for someone to take charge? What are the business concerns?
You need to clearly address all the dot points of the key criteria on the job ad in your resume and cover letter so that when the employer looks at your resume, they will think ‘this person has exactly what we’re looking for!’.
Years of experience can be irrelevant for some companies, as long as you have most of what they are looking for and present them clearly and effectively.
So instead of handing out your resume like a flyer, write a personalised letter.
3. Add your creative flair
Companies usually get tons of resumes from a job ad. That’s why yours can’t just be another white one on a pile. It needs to stand out.
How can you present your resume in a creative way to get their attention? Could you add some colours? *Bonus points if those are their brand colours* Could you use a different font that’s also easy to read? Could you add a bit to show your personality? Companies nowadays really care about the cultural fit, they don’t just want a robot to fill the role.
Check out my resumes below. You can see that they are changed according to the roles that I was applying for, both the look and the text.
Don’t overdo this though. The goal of this is to just grab the attention and stand out. It shouldn’t be a piece of art that distracts them from actually reading what you have to offer on your resume.
If you get rejected?
Don’t take it personally. As long as you did your best to apply for that job, you have nothing to regret.
There are many other reasons why a company would not hire you, and it usually has nothing to do with you. They might decide to put the position on hold or they have found someone internally, or someone that’s more culturally fit. It doesn’t hurt to give them a call to ask for feedback.
Rejection is a part of the game. Keep your chin up if you do get them. Keep upskilling yourself meanwhile to make yourself a good candidate, and that job will come to you.
I’m not a recruitment or hiring agent but my method has helped people actually get the job that they were after within a few weeks. That’s why I want to share this with you. Life is too short to be unemployed or to be in a job that you don’t like.
Give this article some claps and share it with others who need it.
Lastly, feel free to let me know how you go or reach out to me on LinkedIn.
