In a high-pressure job search, is it ever possible to turn a no into a yes?
Absolutely, says Robert Hellmann, a career coach at GetFive, a career counseling firm, who also teaches career development at New York University. The would-be sales team director was Hellmann’s client and he helped her turn the situation around. After every job interview, Hellmann advises, you should write not a thank-you note but what he calls an “influence letter.” In this case, that letter became his client’s key to getting back into the running.
The letter should address both the conversation you’ve had and your skills and experience. During your interview, be sure to ask what challenges the company is facing and what the new hire will need to do as soon as she starts work. In the influence letter, address those challenges concretely, ideally by describing similar challenges you’ve tackled at a previous job and how you handled them. [Read More]
