Korva is a scroll of the internet’s best ideas.
Apply like you already have the job
Act like you have the job
The standard application is supposed to capture your potential value for solving a company's problems in a single page, which makes it almost impossible to stand out. Acting like you already have the job gets around that. Ask what the company needs, which problems it has to solve, and where its core challenges or gaps are.
Do the work first
Then work up solutions: how you would solve those problems and which of your skills you could use on the company's behalf. Make an outline or a mock-up, such as a simple memo or an example video. The answers don't have to be perfect, since you don't work there yet and have limited information. The work shows real, unfakable attention and energy, and a high figure-it-out ability, which anyone who has hired will say is among the most valuable things in a person.
Get it to people
Once the work is done, it doesn't go into the application pile. Dig into the key individuals the role would work with and find a way to get the work to them. The hit rate won't be 100%, and some of the energy will go unnoticed, but the quality of the shot and the odds of success go up sharply.
Why do work samples predict job performance so well?
A work sample shows the actual skill, while a resume only describes it. A 1998 meta-analysis by Frank Schmidt and John Hunter, covering 85 years of research on hiring methods, found work sample tests among the strongest predictors of later job performance. Unstructured interviews and years of experience ranked well below them. A sample also lets the hiring manager imagine the person already doing the job.
How long do recruiters actually spend on a resume?
In a 2018 eye-tracking study, the job site The Ladders found that recruiters spent an average of about 7 seconds on an initial resume review. Recruiters looked mostly at the name, current title, previous titles, and dates. With so little time spent, a one-page application has to compete on a handful of scanned fields. A memo or mock-up gives the reader something to stop on.
Why do outside contacts matter in hiring?
Sociologist Mark Granovetter interviewed professionals in a Boston suburb for his 1973 paper "The Strength of Weak Ties." He found that many people had landed their jobs through acquaintances rather than close friends. Acquaintances move in different circles, so they carry information and introductions that the people closest to you do not have. Later studies on referrals have also found that referred candidates are hired at higher rates than applicants who apply cold.
More from Curiosity Chronicle
