Applying for Jobs: When to Give Up on a Lead, When to Pursue It

As we’ve mentioned before, there are many similarities between the process of dating and the process of applying for jobs. In both, sudden silence or a delay between meetings or communication often forces a critical decision: Should you continue to hold out in hopes that future invitations will come? Or should you give up altogether and start your search afresh?

(Alternatively, if you found your life partner in the seventh grade – it is the same question you run into when your car gets old and starts to break down in a big way: Should you get a new engine or a new car?)

At StartWire, we focus on jobs rather than dating advice or car repair. And here’s our guide to deciding when to keep a potential job opportunity in play – or cut your losses and move on.

When to Hold Onto a Job Lead

If the position has been advertised for less than two weeks. (Note: StartWire only publishes jobs that have been posted within the past 14 days since there’s no guarantee employers will review your resume after they’ve gone over the first batch of resumes they received and made a short list of candidates to interview. The cold hard truth: Sometimes employers don’t check their applicant pool twice.)

When you’ve been updated on the status of your application. Did you receive an update after you applied for the job thanking you for your interest? Have you been invited to interview for the job? Has an employer let you know that the process has been extended – and told you when you may hear back? If yes, give the employer a two week extension after your initial application date. (As always, StartWire offers a free service that provides you with access to automatic updates on the status of your job applications at over 7,000+ employers.)

If you’ve applied to more than one job – and have more than one option! Just as your chance of winning a local raffle go up when you buy more than one ticket, your chance of getting hired increases when you apply to more than one job.

If the job is still posted. Many organizations leave job listings up until a new hire starts their job. (If the job has been advertised for more than a month, call to verify that it is still actually open before you apply.)

When to Move On

When the job disappears from the website. While sometimes a job posting is removed from a website for an update, a missing description frequently means that the job is no longer available.

When you’ve been invited to interview, told you’ll be notified about a decision within the week – and three weeks have passed. (Though hiring approvals often get delayed, chances are good that either the job applicant who got the offer is still making up her mind – or the company is simply too busy/lazy/pre-occupied to let you know that you did not get the job.)

When the job gets listed every single day. (One of our hometown coffee shops do this – they advertise for counter help every day. If you’re new in town, it may fool you. But those who’ve been around for a while know – don’t bother applying!)

And that’s how to know when to hold on to a job lead, or let it go…(Hat tip to Kenny Rogers for inspiring us with his old country song on how to “Know when to hold ‘em or when to fold ‘em!)

Do you have any other tips or strategies you use? If so, share!