You know as well as anyone else out there: the job market is less than wonderful these days, and it can seem impossible to stand out from the crowd with so many people constantly applying for jobs. As part of your routine job search, you’re probably checking job boards daily, you’re writing stunning cover letters, and you’re updating your CV on a regular basis, but you’re still not landing any interviews. Why? Well, because you’re not using psychology to your advantage.
What Psychology Has to Do With Job Applications
Psychologists make it their mission to find out as much as possible about their patients’ backstory before they even consider the idea of approaching them with solutions to their problems. When it comes to applying for jobs, you should be applying the same principles.
You should be aiming to understand how HR and recruiting works. If you don’t understand how the hiring process works, you can’t possibly hope to apply for a job and receive positive feedback.
How Recruitment Works
Regardless of what position is being advertised, there’s always one person (or a few people) from HR that receives an abundance of job applications. They’ll scan through the stack as fast as they can to help cut down on the time they waste with insignificant applications, so here’s where you need to catch their eye with your application.
Three Psychology Tricks that Can Help You Stand Out
Trick One – The Familiar
Psychologists know that people love things they’ve come to know over time. Just like the crowd at a rock concert might be cheering loudest for not the best song the band has, but for the most familiar, you’ll have to find a way to make yourself familiar with the company’s HR department.
You could try volunteering at company events or sending them an email enquiring about what the company does and what their vision and mission is. Get them familiarized with you and you’ll have a better shot at catching their eye when it’s time for them to work through the countless applications.
Trick Two – Network
Wanting to get a job on your own just to prove that you can do it is great, but it might not be the most successful approach to landing your dream job. After you’ve landed the job you’ve been hunting down for so long, nobody cares about how exactly you got there; their focus will be on whether or not you’re the ideal fit for the position.
Networking is s proven way to help you succeed in the business world, so harness its power. If you know someone who works at the company you’re applying to work for, have a chat with them and see if you can somehow get involved with the company events. You might also want to attend industry meetings or get some of your friends to recommend you as a candidate.
Trick Three – Hone Your Pitching Skills
During your interview, the hiring manager will remember three things about you, so make sure you’re highlighting your top three strengths first. You should be building your interview around those three key skills. Mention them in your cover letter too.
Make sure you’re highlighting those three things in your CV as well. State your message, loud and clear. The more prominent the idea, the better your chances are of getting a call back for a second interview!
At the end of the day, your knowledge will be your power of persuasion. Make sure you learn about the company you’re interested in working for. Get familiar with their working methodology, harness the power of networking, and make sure you’re pitching yourself perfectly.