Job Application Perfection is Unrealistic

As beautiful as this flower is, it is not perfect.
Neither is your application, nor your resume / cover letter.
Make sure you proofread and check for errors twice though!

by Megan Elliott, Social Media Developer

You know that nagging little voice inside your head that tells you that your application could be that much better if you just tweaked this a little bit and that wording a hair? There are those of us who hear that nonstop, no matter what we do. We’re perfectionists. Raise your hand if you’re a perfectionist. Great, you’re in good company!

The thing is, you have to let your baby go eventually, otherwise you’re going to miss out on so many great opportunities for you. That’s part of the curse of being a perfectionist. You have to let go of your resume and cover letter and let someone look at it and say, “This person is a great applicant! Let’s give them a call!”

But you’re also picky enough to realize that you can’t just apply to any and every job posting out there. You have to be selective in those openings; even if you’re not a perfectionist, this needs to be how you apply for jobs too! You have to be selective about what your skills qualify you for, and sometimes, no matter what you would like to do, you’re not qualified for that position… yet.

Even though screening softwares are looking for the unrealistically “perfect” candidate, there are things you can do to make yourself stand out after you submit your application. If you’ve done your research on the position, you know who you addressed your cover letter to, and you can use that to your advantage. E-mail them if you haven’t heard about your application in a week. Call them if you haven’t heard back from your e-mail in a couple of business days.

I’m not saying that you need to be super-aggressive, but sometimes you have to make yourself rise above the rest of the pack. Does your network have connections in the industry or in the area? Check with them and see if there’s something you can do to make yourself stand out.

So scale back your expectations for yourself, I.M. Perfectionist, and don’t obsess over every detail of your resume for days on end. Send that application in, and then focus your attention on the rest of the process, because getting yourself noticed after you hit the submit button is important too.