Business Success

Excessive Contact Scares Interviewers  Lindsey Novak Q: I have a job, but I am looking for another one for more money. One company called me a week after receiving my resume. I interviewed with the vice president and the human resources person. The VP was a New Yorker in his late 40s and seemed comfortable talking with me. The HR person was in her late 20s and was awkward with interviewing, as she asked trite questions right out of a textbook: "Where do you see yourself in five years? What do you expect to make? What are you making now?" I gave short answers. I told her I expect to be with the company in five years and make the advertised $35,000. There were silences after I answered, and I felt as though I had said the wrong thing, but I couldn't think of anything else to say. I interviewed on a Thursday. They said they were traveling the next week but would get back to me that next Friday. I wanted them to receive my thank-you note before they left town, so I texted both a thank-you message; then I mailed a handwritten note expressing my interest. The next Thursday, I left both of them voice messages reminding them of my interest. I haven't heard from them, and it has been a month. What did I do wrong? A: Your answers to the trite questions may have seemed sarcastic. You could have discussed your philosophy on salary and asked questions that showed interest. Interviewers want candidates to be polite, but three contacts with each person in one week is overkill. They might have been afraid to call to say no, but they should have sent you a standard rejection letter because you took time out of your day to meet with them. Employees Must Bring Manager Back to Reality Q: I sit in a grouping of desks that face one another. There used to be three employees and our manager. The three of us always had fun sharing our experiences with clients, but we took our work seriously. Recently, a new guy was added to our group. He is cocky and naive, even in front of the manager. When we hear him talk to clients, we cover our mouths to avoid bursting out in laughter. One client disagreed with him, so he shouted, "Well, of course you don't understand it! You're from Wyoming!" Then he slammed the phone down. Our manager overheard and said nothing. Once before that, our manager meekly corrected him, and this guy announced loudly, "You're wrong, and I am doing it my way." He is so insolent that we sit there in shock at what comes out of his mouth, while the manager is in his own little world. We think he is interviewing and doesn't care anymore. We know the new guy will be fired eventually, and we will have to call the clients and apologize for his behavior. Should we correct him without our manager's approval or wait for the manager to give notice or to take control again on his own? A: Tell your manager that your group (minus the new person) cares about the clients and that none of you can sit by and allow this man's irrational behavior to continue. Ask your manager whether something is keeping him from taking action against this employee or whether he is planning to take action. The bottom line is that you cannot have this new employee destroy client relationships, because it will be up to you to repair them. Confronting your manager may shake him back to reality and remind him that he is still the manager and must deal with the situation. ======== Email Lindsey Novak at LindseyNovak@yahoo.com with all your workplace questions. She answers all emails. To find out more about Lindsey Novak and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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Chris Lytle Tip -- Edit Your Proposals  Chris Lytle Proposal Writing Tip: I once interviewed 40-plus clients of a major Canadian corporation. "What does good look like in a written proposal?" I asked. The consensus was that conciseness is good. "Edit and summarize," they said. "Cut to the chase" came up a lot too. Check the length of your next proposal. What words and sections could you eliminate? What if your customers demanded a one-page proposal? What vital information would make the cut? Mark Twain said, "I didn't have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead." It takes time to edit yourself. (This tip took 25 minutes to write and rewrite.) Time-starved customers might see your conciseness as a positive point of differentiation. Don't take my word for it. Ask them the question in the second sentence of this tip. Your competitors aren't. Click here to visit Lytle's site

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Quote of the Day  Dwight Eisenhower, 34th US president "A people that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both."

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