The Admin Job Search Isn't About 'Fit' — It's a Competition to Win
In this video, Dr. Justin Baeder challenges the comforting notion that job searches are about 'finding the right fit,' arguing that candidates must compete to win.
Key Takeaways
- 'Fit' is what the winner gets told - The concept of fit masks the competitive reality of hiring
- Compete on preparation - The best-prepared candidate wins, not the one who's the best 'fit'
- Take it seriously - Approaching a job search as a competition rather than a matching exercise produces better results
Transcript
One of the biggest misconceptions about the admin job search is this idea that it's all about fit.
That if you just apply for a couple of jobs and then you decide which of them feels like the best fit, then it's all destined to work out.
You're gonna get one of those jobs and live happily ever after.
And a lot of people get really disillusioned and discouraged when they realize that it doesn't work that way.
They apply for two or three jobs, they feel really good about one or two of them, and then they don't get any of them.
And they're not realizing that admin hiring is extremely competitive, right?
When you apply for an admin job, you're probably one of 100 or more candidates that have to be narrowed down through multiple stages.
And if you don't understand that it's this kind of tournament process, it can be very discouraging.
You can think, well, maybe I'm just not cut out for this.
Maybe I thought I had my heart set on the right fit, and it just didn't work out.
What's going on?
Well, what's going on is that it's competitive.
This is a competition, and you've got to compete if you want to win.
And you also have to persist.
You have to apply for probably 25 to 50 jobs and be competitive at every stage if you want to get the admin job you're looking for.
So we have a lot on our website that can help you with that.
If you're looking for help at the interview stage, go to principalcenter.com slash interview.
And if you're not even getting interviews, you want to get more interviews per application, you should be getting an interview about 20% of the time.
You may need to work on your resume and cover letter.
And we have a blueprint for you to follow at principalcenter.com slash blueprint.