Frequently Asked Questions

Clara,

I posted my resume on several on-line job boards (Monster, CareerBuilder, etc.). Now I am getting a ton of e-mails for jobs that do not even come close to meeting my minimum salary requirements!

I have been spending way too much time responding to e-mails for jobs that turn out to be a waste of my time. I had one lady respond to me with a pretty bad attitude when I kept asking for their salary info. It turned out they were only offering a $20,000 per year salary plus commissions that added up to around $45,000 per year, way lower than I can accept.

I was wondering if you could give me some advice on the best way to handle replying to these e-mails and asking them for their salary and/or benefit information before proceeding with any further contact. Any info you can provide is greatly appreciated.

Chris Thompson

Our Answer:

Chris:

This is tricky, because if the job turns out to be something you will want, and you come across to the employer as only interested in money, they will probably lose interest in you!

I recommend that you push for information about what the job involves, who the employer is, how long they have been in business, why the job is open, what they are looking for in a new hire, etc. If they aren't open about these things, the big red flag will go up, and you don't even need to learn about money. Scam artists and employers who don't have much to offer will hedge on the answers to these questions.

You can't tell what motivates an employer to hedge on your question about salary. There are truly good jobs out there where the employer will not want to discuss salary until they figure out where you fit in terms of productivity. And you shouldn't be discussing your salary requirements either until you've had a chance to demonstrate to the employer that you are worth it.

Generally, when a person is most interested in what they will be getting, rather than what they can contribute, it is a turn-off for an employer. You need to qualify the employer based on whether the employer's opportunity and situation will set the stage for a productivity that will generate what you want to earn.

Job search is an activity in which there will be a lot of "no's" before you get to the "yes." This can be frustrating for a bottom-line oriented person like yourself, and especially when you are coming from a situation where the promises did not pan out. Beware of looking for more promises – look for evidence. The evidence is in the facts about the company, the product, the marketing strategy, and the job.

Don't forget, also, that posting your resume is inviting spammers, scammers, etc. It's what you have to expect. You have to be willing to wade through the muck to find the pearl. If you aren't willing to play that game, take your resume down from those sites and get busy networking! You will still have to do the due diligence on the leads you turn up, but you may have more fun.

Clara Hurd Nydam