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Take
an active approach to your job search.
Don't let procrastination ruin your chance at a
better life. Figure out what you want and
go for it. How you may ask? By
networking.
Networking means many things and can take many
forms. In simple terms, networking means
creating relationships with other people and
harnessing those relationships to help you
gather information for your job search.
Part of networking is sending out enquiry
letters. You have questions about a
position or wonder whether a company has an
opening? Why wait for that company to post
the opening online or in the newspaper? Do
you really want to have to compete against
possibly hundreds of other candidates?
What if you feel you could really contribute
something to the company? How would they
know about it? What if there was a hidden
opportunity?
It
doesn't hurt to enquire, either by asking for an
informational interview or sending out an
enquiry letter. What's the worst that can
happen? You may receive a "sorry, we are
not interested" or "sorry, we don't have time"
response... Big deal! You'll have to
deal with rejection at some point in your job
search, why delay the inevitable?
Before sending out enquiry letters, keep the
following tips in mind:
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Send out the enquiry letter to the right
person.
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Be professional and polite in how you draft
your enquiry letter.
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Give some background about yourself.
If you want an informational interview,
explain why. If you are offering your
services, give them a reason to call you or
to enquire further. Yes, the fact that
you enquire about them may prompt them to
want to enquire further about you!
-
Be clear as to what you are asking for.
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Don't insist.
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Make sure to thank the person to whom you
address the letter for his or her
consideration.
Don't leave things to chance in your job search.
Set yourself concrete goals and try to reach
those goals. If you don't believe in
yourself, nobody will. |
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Seek Out Employers
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
People looking for work often wait for an opening to apply. But
what about, instead of waiting for employers to seek you out, you go
ahead and look for them? This is the whole purpose of an enquiry
letter.
Writing enquiry letters has the advantage of being focused, meaning
that most people will only enquire into positions that really
interest them. Therefore, enquiry letters often have that
additional touch that makes them stand out. Indeed, it's easy to
stand out because employers that do not have openings or have them
but do not advertise them, receive very few applications, if any.
And what about this: the employer didn't think he or she had an
opening until he or she read your letter...
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