Sometimes it can feel as if the hiring process is this vague, ambiguous, mystery of a process. Because of that, the rumor mill has been spinning hard producing hiring myths. I want to talk to you about 5 hiring myths that most people believe, but fortunately, are not true! Hiring myths done MythBuster style!
Hiring Myths
Myth #1: Resumes should only be one page:
One page resumes are only good for one time in your life…when you graduate college. It is at that time when you have just about no experience; maybe an internship or two, but that’s it. Anytime there on out, you will most likely have enough experience for a two page resume. Now, there are a lot of opinions out there on the fact that if it does not fill a certain percentage of the section then you shouldn’t have it. Well, yes and no. It is one or two sentences, then yes, that would look silly. However, if you can fill half a page then you need that info. Here is why… That info is good info to the reader and without it, you may not get the interview. In addition to that, why are you leaving out valuable information on yourself? If you have practical experience, why wouldn’t you include it in your resume? Hiring myth #1 debunked!
Myth #2: The more resumes you send out, the better:
This hiring myth is a yes and no. To some degree when applying to jobs, it is a numbers game. The more you apply, the more you will hear back. While the opposite belief is that your job search should be targeted and precise, like a ninja! It really depends on your level of expertise and where you are with your career aspirations. For example, if you are a recent college graduate then you should be applying to everything possible in addition to targeting your job search. If you are an experienced or more seasoned individual, then your job search should be more targeted to specific companies within your specific industry. Hiring myth #2 – Plausible.
Myth #3: Thank you letters:
Another great hiring myth! Many people feel that there is no need to send a thank you letter because the company will remember them. Not only is this bogus, but you must send a thank you letter to every single person you met with. I wrote an article specifically on thank you letters that you can read here: Thank you letters. Companies usually interview multiple people for each role before they make their decision on who to hire and because of that, chances are they will not remember you. Take the 5 minutes and send them a thank you letter. Be appreciative! Hiring myth #3 debunked!
Myth #4: The Most Qualified Candidate Will Get The Job:
This hiring myth is already debunked, just by reading it. I had a guest author write a whole article as to why she hired someone with no experience for a job that required experience. Read here. Just because you have experience doesn’t mean you will get or deserve the job. In today’s interviews, there are so many more qualifying factors than yesterdays interviews. They now care about culture fit, organizational agility, training ability, etc… If you have a bad interview, no matter how much experience you have, you will not get the job!
Myth #5: All Job Openings Are Posted On Job Boards:
This is firmly believed by many, yet hardly true. While there are a great deal of jobs posted online, the best jobs are either created by yourself or are referred to you. This goes back to the power of your network; the more people you know the more you will be able to expand your job opportunities. While you should still be applying to jobs online, please only use it as a supplement to your networking capabilities. Hiring myth #5 – Plausible.
Good Luck!