Getting a "no" for the first time

[the_rookie]

"Thank you for your interest in the Podunk Times position we advertised.
We have now completed our hiring process and have selected another
individual.
Good luck in your job search."

Finally got feedback on my first attempt to land a job in SJ. Just wondering what you were all feeling when you found out you didn't land the gig. Here's to many more...*raises mug*

 

[audreyld]

Having been rejected a number of times, I'd say I felt a brief sting, and then it was on to the next one. The brevity of said sting is inversely proportional to the desirability of the job.

 

[JackS]

To me, it stings more if you actually get interviewed and then rejected.

Without getting to the interview, I've always been able to forget a rejection pretty easily.

 

[SCEditor]

Getting a "no" is tough, but a lot of times you have to realize you weren't the best candidate for the job. I've applied -- seriously putting effort into it and interviewing for it -- for two jobs that I haven't gotten.

Both times, the person who was hired was better at my job than me. One of them has since left and is working in a major city. The other was a veteran looking to live in paradise. Do I think I could have done a better job than most? Maybe. But, I'm also willing to admit that if I was in the sports editor's shoes, I would have made the hire he made.

 

[MU_was_not_so_hard]

Whenever I hear this sort of thing, I remember me and my three roommates at Missouri making a link of rejection letters all the way around our living room.
Just play it off and keep trucking. (Although the raised glass thing helps quite a bit, too.)

 

[Driver 8]

It's probably a good idea to evaluate the things you did during the process. Take a hard look at your resume and clips. If you interviewed in person, could you have presented yourself better in terms of actions or appearance.

Just try and learn from the rejection and be a better candidate for the next job that you go after.

 

[Jake_Taylor]

It's probably a good idea to evaluate the things you did during the process. Take a hard look at your resume and clips. If you interviewed in person, could you have presented yourself better in terms of actions or appearance.

Just try and learn from the rejection and be a better candidate for the next job that you go after.

Good points, but don't beat yourself up too much. A lot of times the difference between the person who got the job and the one who didn't is very, very small and sometimes completely arbitrary. If you were one of the final candidates that means they liked you quite a bit, but they can't hire everybody.

 

[Methodtomymadness]

Rejection letters aren't the greatest things in the world. I know, and I received one not too long ago when applying for a position. However, at least the people were professional enough to send a letter, unlike some that will just dodge the bullet about it.

 

[audreyld]

Rejection letters aren't the greatest things in the world. I know, and I received one not too long ago when applying for a position. However, at least the people were professional enough to send a letter, unlike some that will just dodge the bullet about it.

I agree. At least they had that courtesy. I interviewed with a place and didn't find out I had been rejected until I finally broke down and called. Their response, "Oh, we forgot to let you know. We found someone else."

 

[proudpittsburgher]

Lets not forget that sometimes, you may have been the best person for the job, but not the best "fit', meaning the other guy was very trainable, or at least close to your skill level but comes a bit cheaper, knows the area, cheaper to move, personality conflict, etc. I have come to realize that it isn't all about the skill level. Plus, journalists tend to work better with a chip on their shoulder, so don't let it bother you. Keep doing what you are doing, and always feel you are the best qualified candidate going into an interview (without being arrogent or cocky). Nobody wants to hire someone who isn't sure about abotu their own abilities. I almost always use the same line at the end of my job interviews when the interviewer asks me if there is anythign else I want to ask or say, "I am very confident I can do this job, but none of this interview process matters if I am not the person you want for the job, and none of this interview process matters if this isn't the right work environment for me. The goal here is to fill the position with the right mix of qualifications and personality and neither one of us should take it personally if it isn't the right mix or fit." So far, I have been pretty successful in job offers, some I took, some i didn't get, and others I turned down because in the long run, this has to be the right situation for my family. Don't ever sell yourself short and never, ever take a simple rejection without extenuating circumstances personally.

 

[proudpittsburgher]

I agree. At least they had that courtesy. I interviewed with a place and didn't find out I had been rejected until I finally broke down and called. Their response, "Oh, we forgot to let you know. We found someone else."

The onus should never be on you to make the call. Sounds like a mickey mouse operation to me.

 

[spaceman]

Sorry Yoshi,

We have found a better thread on which to post. Thank you for starting this one, however.

Best of luck with your discussion.

Sincerely, etc.

 

[WS]

the same sports ed that I strung for my senior year in college sent me a rejection e-mail for a full-time job that I applied for but probably wasn't yet qualified for, but a year later went above and beyond to help me land my current gig. So, it works out in the long run and for that I'm forever grateful.

 

[BTExpress]

There is a ton of turnover in this business.

June's rejection could mean a job offer from the same place in July.

That's how it worked for my first job in 1983.

In November 1985, I interviewed at a bigger paper . . . and was told I came in second.

One month later, I got another interview (from an even bigger paper which, coincidentally, had given my name to the aforementioned bigger paper).

I got that job . . . and am still there.

 

[Van Lingle Mungo]

Rejection letters aren't the greatest things in the world. I know, and I received one not too long ago when applying for a position. However, at least the people were professional enough to send a letter, unlike some that will just dodge the bullet about it.

I agree. At least they had that courtesy. I interviewed with a place and didn't find out I had been rejected until I finally broke down and called. Their response, "Oh, we forgot to let you know. We found someone else."

That was my first experience getting rejected -- after the sports editor all but handed me the job.  The new ME decided to strip the SE of hiring power and go through his own list of guys.  That one stung a little.  

Five months later, I got a better job at a paper that paid about 50 percent more, which eliminated the punch-to-the-gut feeling entirely.

 

[buckweaver]

Mungo, your name rawks.

 

[playthrough]

Hang in there Yoshi. There's plenty more opportunities out there.

And there may be some value in a rejection letter. A bar in my old college town used to give a free drink if you brought one in.

 

[leo1]

i got over 75 rejection letters when i was in journalism.

now that i'm in law school my stack of rejections is piling up fast. i have about 25. one firm was considerate enough to send me four rejection letters nine months after i applied. obviously there was some computer glitch but that didn't make me feel any better. i mean i get it already. i don't need four rejection letters. actually, they sent three and one asking me to return a survey indicating my racial background. um, no, i'm not filling out your stupid survey.

 

[ballscribe]

I applied to every major paper in the U.S. after my first job ended after a three-year series of contracts. Probably about 30 in all.

No, I certainly wasn't qualified to work at just about all of 'em. But what the heck. Can't hurt.

This was 10 years ago, but I at least got a response from just about every one. Pretty much form for the most part, but not all. All were extremely polite, except for the one from the Chicago Tribune assistant M.E.

Still remember it, and I'm paraphrasing with my own bitter spin: "As a friendly tip (that part was verbatim), I suggest you gain experience at a decent-sized paper before you waste my precious time with your sorry-ass clips."

Actually, my experience was at quite a large paper, more than large enough for her not to turn up her nose at it. That one stung a little. But I hear she got hers soon after. ;D

I still kept all those letters, and just recently came across them and re-read them. The least nice was from the paper I now work for.
Funny, I've since met several of those sports editors since then, two of whom I turned down for jobs. Wish I'd remembered those letters at the time, so I could bring it up.

 

[luckyducky]

They've never really bothered me too much. Mostly I'm actually appreciative that they told me I was out of the running, rather than not sending anything along.

The one "no" that truly bothered me was when I had a phone interview with a paper about a year ago. I thought it had gone pretty well, but the SE never called me back or even e-mailed to say "thanks but no thanks." WTF