How Many Times should I Call

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ok so I turned in my application last wendsday, i called this monday for an interview and got the answering machine. should i call again? they said they would call but some of my friends who work there told me that as a "unspoken protocal" that i have to be the one who calls to set up the interview.. should i call again this Thursday?

Mitrovah, I too have heard it said that if you call up nicely, and make a good impression, it will put you ahead. I must say though that when I was looking for a job, I did this and had no luck.

As an employer myself, what puts candidates for employment with me ahead of the pack is when they volunteer. In fact, I have a girl doing this now, and if she does well in her volunteer work, I will likely hire her. Of course, in a lot of environments, volunteering would be inappropriate.

thanks.. they used to let people volunteer but they don't anymore, its strictly corporate.

ok but is it ok to call a second time?

Mitrovah, the conventional wisdom is that you call, while being as nice and pleasant as possible, until you are told that you either have the job, or it is filled. I will say it didn't work for me. But this isn't to say it might not work for you. I say this because employers want enthusiastic, motivated people working for them, and calling shows you are motivated--assuming, of course, one isn't obnoxious about it.

Calling too often is bad. I say, leave it til Friday or Monday. Don't leave another message, but hang up before the machine kicks in. Definitely do not call twice in the same day.

How bad ly does leaving a message hurt me?


On another note, I find I frustrating that I am in this suppliant position, and the employer can just do as he pleases, Yet I have to be "respectful" of his time yet he can ignore me without the extending any courtesy by acknowledging my time is valuable as well.

You need to not take it so personally. People are busy and sometimes they get overwhelmed. When I'm hiring, I can get bombarded with resumes, and it takes time to review, schedule, interview. This is on top of other responsibilities I have. The delay or lack of responsiveness has nothing to do with the candidate but rather with my own situation. I find it's better to give people the benefit of the doubt.

On a related note, I used to feel like you and tried to not follow those protocols. In the end I realized that I can't change the way society operates without myself being in a position of influence and power. It takes a lot of perseverance to work your way up, but eventually you can lead in a manner that you think is correct. The best thing to do is to focus on your skills and strengths to make yourself valuable (and hence desirable to employers).

Good luck.

You need to not take it so personally. People are busy and sometimes they get overwhelmed. When I'm hiring, I can get bombarded with resumes, and it takes time to review, schedule, interview. This is on top of other responsibilities I have. The delay or lack of responsiveness has nothing to do with the candidate but rather with my own situation. I find it's better to give people the benefit of the doubt.

On a related note, I used to feel like you and tried to not follow those protocols. In the end I realized that I can't change the way society operates without myself being in a position of influence and power. It takes a lot of perseverance to work your way up, but eventually you can lead in a manner that you think is correct. The best thing to do is to focus on your skills and strengths to make yourself valuable (and hence desirable to employers).

Good luck.[/quote]

so how badly does the message work against me, secondly should I call his office again for an appointment.

Do you mean I should not follow the "unspoken protocol" my friend told me about. he told me that is how it is done sometimes... I just don't want to lose the opportunity.

so how badly does the message work against me, secondly should I call his office again for an appointment.

Do you mean I should not follow the "unspoken protocol" my friend told me about. he told me that is how it is done sometimes... I just don't want to lose the opportunity

Lastly, i don't mean this as a retort but, I can't help but take things personally, I'm autistic.

Most of us here are autistic in some way too.

It just means, give the person some space. I know that I was hiring recently for a job, but due to a doctor's appointment and a conference, I had limited times to interview and a limited space of time to make the decision and get everything carried out. Not everyone has those limitations.

I used to feel a lot like you do, but you are still quite young.

Yes, your time is valuable, and it is good to keep interviewing and applying.

But companies and organizations usually also have needs that need to be addressed too.

Just so that you do take heart, I used to call places once a day until I was told not to. And that was just a few years ago too (I am JUST turned 29).

It can vary from person to person, but even short messages can be seen as annoying.

This does not happen all too often for me, but on two occasions where I was being asked to provide additional services, I already had a huge workload that week. And I would be getting brief follow up phone calls when I had already specified a date that I would have the thing done by, saying, "Have you done it yet?" Yes, they were not more than once every two days, but I was thoroughly annoyed by them. I wanted to snap on the phone, but I remained cordial instead. I realized that there was no way that those individuals could have realized that I already had a conference booked for that day, a volunteer event the day after and other programs for that week that needed my ASAP attention.

to managertina, what should i do? should I just sit on my hands and wait or should I try to call again for an interview? this is the one job i would really like to have.

Leaving a message by itself isn't necessarily a bad thing. It really depends on the industry/role you are trying to fill. In my field (quant finance) we work primarily through recruiters that mediate the interaction. In your industry it might be different. If the uncertainty is eating away at you the best thing you can do is research the hiring manager and also the company to find out their culture. If they like "tenacious self-starters" then they might look favorably at regular phone calls (within reason, say no more than once every two days), assuming you are being polite and showing enthusiasm. Here again it helps to know something about the company, the role, and the hiring manager so you can use the conversation as an opportunity to convey your strengths and enthusiasm for the role.

Regarding your non-retort, one of the articles here mentioned that ASD is an explanation, not an excuse. I remind myself of that constantly so as to improve and not take things personally. It's hard work, but you can do it.

Employers will call you for the interview.

This is very true. We did a hiring in August, and it ran long, and ran into the busiest time of the year so it got delayed.

Also, I've seen a job search get shelved when a server got hacked.

I'm just anxious to get a job so I have some structure around which I can do other things. I just graduated and I want to have things settled so I can deal with other things as they come. I really have alOt of trouble managing suprises.