Rookie mistakes while trying to get the foot in the door - Gemma Lockhart

Today I got to meet Gemma Lockhart, an extremely proficient and knowledgable 'Head of Recruitment' at Essence Digital. I took the opportunity to come up with my first article for the "Learn from my mistakes section."

According to Gemma, these are the few very common mistakes people make. At one point or the other, I have either been guilty of doing them myself or seen someone do it.

1) Copy pasting emails

It is tempting to send the same email to lots of agencies by just changing the name, of the agency and the addressee. While it sometimes helps to have a set of things you'd definitely want to include in the email, it is much more effective to research each agency and tailor your email accordingly.

2) Generic emails

This one is a bit different than the previous one. This is about the emails sent to land interviews, follow up emails after interviews, or replying to rejection emails. Reading them, gives you an impression that they have been nicked right off Google. One should always try to make it personal and refer to the conversations that took place.

3) Not enough preparation

It might seem a very basic requirement but it happens more frequently than expected. I can think of lots of instances where it is necessary to do your homework beforehand.

Job interviews require intense research on the job scope, interviewer's background, company's past, current and future work and plans.

Even if it's a small drop in and chat over the coffee, if I do my research, it gives me conversation starters and that why I can make the most of the meeting.

4) Not convincing enough

Gemma said, many a times during an interview, the candidates don't seem like they even want the job. Lack of enthusiasm and interest shows within the beginning few minutes of the interview and that has a big impact on the hiring process. Interviewers rather hire a hardworking sincerely passionate candidate over person with the perfect skill set but won't put his/her full heart to the team.

Other very helpful tips Gemma mentioned are;

- Get a mentor and try getting referrals.

- Network-network-network.

- Read about lots of things so that you can have a credible opinion when some one has a conversation, it makes them want to listen to you.