Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Is your email address preventing you from interviews?

Literally, one of the very first things a prospective employer will see, even before opening your resume via email, is your email address itself. Let me tell you from experience, I have seen some personal emails used to submit resumes that have been anything but professional. It may be funny to use such emails with friends, but probably not a good idea to use when sending your resume to employers. The following are actual (or close to) email addresses I have ACTUALLY SEEN to apply for jobs I advertised for:


drinkingchampion@kegmaster.org

screwhomework@yourcollege.com

men_suck@hotmail.com

bubbanuts@gmail.com

fuqdup@yahoo.com

hateworking@gmail.com

69_fan@xxx.com


It’s better to stick with a professional "firstname.lastname@xxxxxxx.com" style email for your resume (i.e. John.Smith@gmail.com). Save the funny versions for your private interactions with friends and family.

One other email address you should not use is your work email address (or work number). The biggest problem with doing so is the loyalty you show to that company, and the perception of the type of loyalty you will also show to a new employer; the thought is, if someone uses his/her work email to apply for new jobs, what will stop them from doing the exact same thing in the future with our company? It can also be a quick way to get yourself into hot water, or in the worst scenario fired from a job.

In short, if there is any question about the way potential employers will view your email address, invest 3 minutes to create a new one. It’s one of the best ways to arbitrarily dismiss yourself BEFORE the reader even opens your resume otherwise.

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