Side Door
The recruiting process is broken!!! I’ve spent hundreds of hours completing online applications and personality tests in an attempt to get in through the front door at a company “claiming” to be hiring engineers. My networking pool has also run dry. Everyone I know working in this field is tied up trying to remain competitive and busy trying keep their own jobs to think about helping anyone else. Someone suggested replacing my cover letter with a pain letter. Not sure exactly what a pain letter entails but at this point I'm willing to try anything different as long as it helps me land a job. Anyone have any success getting to the interview round of a job opening using a pain letter?
I'm sure there are methods and connections to help you find a position. I'm in the same boat, Sinking. My situation is different but when all else fails, PRAY!
A pain letter is an "Oh, Poor Me" sob story to make them look at your resume out of pity for you.
A cover letter is a synopsis of your skills and experience, and how you, and ONLY you, are the solution to their manning issue.
As for getting interviews: I'm also an engineer, and I have exact opposite problem: TOO MANY companies want to interview me.
What kind of engineer you are also plays a role. Engineers in the biotech, computer, and electronics fields are in demand. Those in the oil/gas fields are not.
As with real estate: location, location, location. Maybe there's a glut of engineers in your area. Thee were in mine, so I moved.
Look into career fairs. That's where I found everyone looking for people with my skills and experience.
Maybe switch fields. There was no real demand for librarians, so I became an electrical engineer. Combined my two degrees and military experience, and bingo! I'm now a hot commodity.
Give it a whirl, but don't get on the Pain Letter Bandwagon, or what employers call "The Self-Pity Express". That'll almost GUARANTEE you won't get an interview, never mind a job.
Cheryl, a "pain letter" shows the potential employer that you both know and understand their business. It is specific to the organization to which you are applying and demonstrates your ability to solve a perceived business problem by showing your own proven track record. As an example, you address your letter to the hiring manager at a bakery and explain how in a prior organization you increased cupcake production by 50% by instituting novel finishing techniques and you would be happy to further elaborate in person; in essence, you understand the business behind the business and feel their "pain". I hope this helps.
I hear you loud and clear Cheryl cause I'm dealing with the same issue looking for a job. I enrolled in some online courses to build my resume up. Never heard of a pain letter though.
Hi Cherly, When you write a Pain Letter, you don’t waste a second with the Black Hole. You ignore it completely. You write directly to your hiring manager at his or her desk.