Let's talk about meeting expectations of hirers and recruiters, when you're looking for remote work. How do you make sure you're exactly what they're looking for.?
But first, have a listen to the latest podcast episode,
IRL for Introverts: Hacking Face-to-Face Networking and Events
How we show up and meet the expectations of others, depends a lot on what is going on inside of us to start with.
For me, one of the things going on is intense introversion. There's good reason I have mostly worked from home for the past few decades! I love going to new places and meeting new people, BUT there is a high cost to that for me personally.
And as you can imagine, huge conferences and expos are the extreme manifestation of that. People! Noise! Opportunity! Connection! More people...!
Your mileage may vary of course, and many people find these kind encounters personally energising, as well as all their other benefits. But I hope you will still find value in my reflections regardless, and this is particularly true if (like me) you find such things draining or anxiety provoking. You can still enjoy them!
With a bit of preparation and prioritising:
It's the same kind of intentional preparation you can engage, when you're applying for a remote job.
If you are applying to an online job or pitching your perfect client, make sure everything matches their needs exactly.
If the job is global, round one filtering is a numbers game, and visible best fits have the best chance. There may not even be a human involved.
That doesn’t matter because you have complete control over how you describe yourself, in places such as:
📜 Your CV/résumé
👨🏫 Your LinkedIn profile
🎤 Your LinkedIn skills
📭 Your cover letter
👩🏻💻Your Upwork or platform profile
Change it for the specific opportunity!
Don’t lie or stretch the truth, present yourself as something you are not – that will backfire big time.
But if you know the opportunity is perfect for you, and they’ve simply used different terms to describe it, then fit yourself to the picture they have painted.
Show how you will slot perfectly into the gap they have identified in their team jigsaw.
Words matter, their words. Remember, this first phase may be completely automated anyway, and it will be seeking exact matches of job titles, experience, etc. Look closely at the keywords in the advert - these are the matches that will be expected. Later in the process you will hopefully get to show HOW you fit, but to reach that point you need to make the first cut.
YOU are not automated, so you cannot win if you approach it as a numbers game and pump out hundreds of applications to things which are not quite right!
Instead, try slowing down, and focusing intently on those which are the best fit. Then adjust your approach to clearly demonstrate that best fit beyond doubt.
Look at the closing date for the role and try to work out when they might assess your application, make sure you don’t change anything in a way that would create inconsistency - between a cover letter and your current online profile for example. You should not be making drastic changes anyway, because by staying in your lane and playing to your strengths you have the best chance of finding the perfect remote role.
Never forget, you have complete control over what it says in that email signature line or description field. Show them you understand exactly what they want by giving it to them - word for word.
