Summary: An introduction to Harrison Barnes’ article about the importance of marketing yourself to a lot of law firms during your job search.
In his article, Why Every Attorney Needs to Apply to a Lot of Places and Not Give Up When Rejected, you will learn from one of the country’s most successful legal recruiters why effective job seekers cast their job search nets as wide as possible, despite ill-founded advice they may have gotten to the contrary. With wit, wisdom and real-life examples, legal recruiter Harrison Barnes explains that perseverance pays when it comes to job searches. And lots and lots of resumes!
When we enter the job market we are selling ourselves as lawyers. As any great salesman knows – whether he’s selling Coca-Cola or oil changes or private jets – the more potential buyers he gets access to the more likely he’s going to close a deal. It’s a numbers game. And it’s not just that you need to apply to a lot of firms. You can maximize your chances at success by applying in specific ways. Like bringing back snail mail, for one thing. Mr. Barnes tells you how and why.
It is especially important to read this article if you have been counseled to limit your job search to only a few firms, whether because you think you are “too special” for most firms or for any other reason. The reality is, if you go with that approach you probably won’t get a job anytime soon, and even if you do it might be a job you end up hating. Mr. Barnes exposes the hidden motivations of industry insiders who propagate this counterproductive strategy which helps them and hurts you.
And for those who are discouraged, Mr. Barnes gives you hope. Your qualifications may have nothing to do with why you didn’t get that job you wanted. Hiring motivations are often random. That hiring partner may not have gone with you because he liked the striped tie of the guy who interviewed before you better than your polka-dotted one. No big deal. Just recognize that there are all kinds of random factors that go into hiring decisions that have nothing to do with your qualifications as a lawyer. As long as you keep plugging away and getting those resumes out soon you’ll end up interviewing with a hiring partner who not only loves polka-dots but is wearing them himself!
Perseverance is the key. Read this article and the right job, the right fit and the right path to happiness could be just a postage stamp away.