It's Essential to Keep Track of Your Applications

From: Karen Silins

When you're job-hunting, you can be up to your ears in papers, ads, résumés, letters, and general chaos. But, no one ever said job-hunting was simple! Letting all that paperwork get out of control can make you feel even more anxious and insecure. Being disorganized is a big negative, and it can be damaging to your job search. So, in this section, I'll give you lots of information about how to stay ahead of the game and increase your chances of success!

The two things you can do to stay organized are keeping a database or spreadsheet and maintaining a job search notebook of all the important information you accumulate while applying for jobs.

Database Information

Use a database or spreadsheet program on your computer to pull together the following information for each position for which you're applying:

»        Company name

»        Contact name and address

»        Type of ad (newspaper/online classified, networking contact, etc.)

»        Date on which you sent your letter and résumé

»        How you sent the résumé and cover letter (by mail, fax, e-mail, or online form)

»        Correspondence details (any letters or phone calls you received)

»        Interview date

»        Whether you sent the interviewer a thank-you card

»        Response from employer

Keeping an organized database or spreadsheet will help you now and in the future. It can also serve as a networking tool, something to help you throughout your business life. Most importantly, though, the database will help you remember your job-hunting history, which can get hazy if you don't record it right as it happens.

Job Search Notebook

The fact of the matter is, even if you do all the things I outline in this comprehensive guide, some employers might feel that you're not the right person for a particular job. That doesn't mean they won't want to consider you for a future job, and it doesn't mean you shouldn't stay in touch with them. The details you put in your job search notebook will guide your future communications.

For example, if you applied for a job but didn't get it, you could contact the company six months later to see if any new positions are open. Information from your notebook will help jog the employer's memory (and your own) regarding that first contact.

What kind of information should you record in your job search notebook? Here are some suggestions.

Organize the following information by company:

»        Database or spreadsheet contact information, organized alphabetically by company.

»        Copy of classified/online job advertisement/posting.

»        Copy of personalized résumé and cover letter.

»        Company research.

»        Notes from any phone interviews with the company.

»        Notes from any in-person interviews with the company.

Keep the following information in the back of the notebook:

»        Networking contacts, including business cards if available, in alphabetical order.

»        Recruiter/headhunter contacts, including business cards if available, in alphabetical order.

Here some tips to help you make your job search notebook as useful as possible:

»        Use a three-inch, three-ring, two-pocket binder. (You can purchase one quite inexpensively from an office supply store.)

»        Add notebook paper or a notepad that's been three-hole punched so you can keep your notes with the company information.

»        Use plain copy paper for affixing business cards of networking and recruiter contacts, being sure to use one page for each card so you have room for notes. This will allow you to keep the information in alphabetical order.

»        Always keep two pens and a sharpened pencil with the notebook. If the pens run out of ink, you still have the pencil to use for notes.

»        Have the job search notebook easily accessible from your phone so you can refer to your notes/research during the phone interview and before the in-person interview.

Karen Silins has been a professional resume and cover letter writer for 16 years and is the acting president and executive board member of the Association of Online Resume & Career Professionals

For more information about writing a cover letter that will grab the employer’s attention, please visit: http://www.breakthrough-cover-letters.com/