7
You know what sucks? Applying to a job and never hearing anything back. Job seekers around the world call it the black hole. You do not want to be black holed.
Here are some guidelines to make sure you get a response and some additional tips for jobs that make sense to apply to.
Apply to Jobs Within the First Two Days They Are Posted
“A job requisition came across my desk on a Monday morning that was a great match for two candidates I was working with at the time. The first candidate told me she was interested and I shared her resume immediately. She had a phone screen that evening, an interview on Wednesday, and by Thursday they were checking references. The other candidate took three days to get back to me. When I sent his resume in, the hiring manager told me, ‘He's got great experience, but we're already so far down the road with the first candidate that we don't need more.’ The job posting was only four days old. Strike while the iron is hot.’”
—Recruiter who you're really going to want to respond to
Fun fact: 50% of new hires applied within the first week.1
In the beginning of a talent search, employers are interested. They want to see what kind of candidates the job posting is bringing in. If you're in that group of early applicants you're also being considered against a much smaller group of competition. The possibility of standing out is greatly increased.
Don't Self-Disqualify
“We intentionally put a lot of requirements into our job listings, but I don't expect candidates will meet them all. Why do we include so many? Well, we either end up with ultra-qualified candidates, we end up with candidates who are so confident learners, which is a positive trait to have.”
—Employer who knows you don't fit all the requirements
“But Ian,” you say, “I don't fit all the criteria listed under the requirements section for this open job.”
Well let me tell you an important truth about job postings. The people writing them are rarely creating a list of actual requirements. What they are creating is a wish list. And often these wish lists bear no resemblance to who actually gets hired.
Talentworks (an organization that studies the science of job search) reviewed nearly 100,000 “entry-level” jobs back in 2018. Of those jobs, 61% asked for one to three years of experience in the requirements.2 How can a job be both “entry-level” and require multiple years of experience? It can't! Employers are not describing who they will actually hire.
From now on when you see the “Requirements” header in a job description, I want you to read that as “Nice to Haves.” Give yourself permission to apply for any job where you have 40% or more of what they are asking for.
Apply to Jobs That Exactly Match the Most Recent Job Title on Your Resume
The robots that review your application love a perfect match. Any time they see that your current (or last) job title matches the job title in the job posting, you have high odds of getting put in front of a human.
And remember what we discussed previously. Many companies use non-standard job titles. Throw that title away! For your resume I want you to use the most common description of the role you filled. No one is reporting you to the resume police for making your work history easier to understand.
Apply to Jobs Where You Know Someone at the Company
This is the holy grail of getting your foot in the door. More than 50% of jobs are filled by a candidate who already knew someone at the company.3
When you have someone on the inside vouch for you, they're essentially pulling your resume from the grips of the robots, sidestepping the black holes, and placing you at the top of the list. Not only is it more likely that your resume will be seen by the person with the power to set up an interview, but it's coming from someone the company already trusts. Would you rather hire the babysitter your friend already uses, or take a chance with a total stranger you find on the internet?
Many companies encourage these types of referrals, paying out bonuses to employees that bring in new hires. And there's nothing like a little self-interest to make someone want to help you. It's the job-search hat trick. You get a new job, the employee gets some cash, and the company gets an amazing new hire that's already been vetted.
“We rarely post jobs for our company. Instead, if you want to get hired, you gotta know somebody already on the payroll. If you don't come in with a warm intro, then you probably don't come in at all. And we trust that, because our employees take pride in our culture and the team we've built. They aren't going to vouch for just anybody to get hired. Personal references are everything, and we far prefer to hire somebody that is a known quantity.”
—Employer who is not even going to look at online applications
Apply to Jobs Where You Love the Company, Product, or Service
Companies don't just hire employees. They hire humans—humans with passion. If you're passionate about a company, that enthusiasm will shine through to anyone you meet. Even better, if you love what the company does, there's a good chance you're already an expert on the product, service, or industry they work in. If you can talk about it with enthusiasm—Congrats! You're a great candidate. All companies love a fan who comes in with opinions.
“This candidate walked in the door knowing more about our software than some of us did. She was a power user, an expert, and she was animated when she talked about it. She had ideas for new features we should build and was unafraid to tell us how some current features were letting her down. It was easy to see how somebody like her was going to make us better. Easiest hire we ever made.”
—Employer who took the afternoon off after meeting this candidate
Apply to Jobs That Are Closer to Where You Live
Commuting sucks. Whether you're pushed up against a stranger's armpit on the subway, stuck in traffic on the freeway, or fighting freezing winds on a ferry, it sucks. We all have other things we'd rather do with our commuting time.
And besides the cost of gas, parking, insurance, wear-and-tear on your car, plus wear-and-tear on your body—the commute has even further-reaching effects. If you're traveling more than 45 minutes to work, you have a 40% higher chance of getting divorced!4 And commutes don't just kill marriages, they can kill you. Commuters who spend a lot of time getting to work disproportionately suffer pain, stress, obesity, and dissatisfaction.
On the other hand, commuters who have been able to cut an hour off each part of their travel time equated their increase in happiness to that from a $40,000 raise.5
The clear message is that long commutes breed misery. And misery breeds unhappy employees who call in sick—or just plain quit. And employers know that. Which is why even your proximity to an office engenders bias. It's called the “commute penalty,”6 and it's real. Employers are going to love it if you live closer to the office and be more weary of considering applicants who live farther away.
Note: 23% of people report having left a job because of the commute.7
“I pay a LOT of attention to where somebody lives when I'm interviewing. It's easy to say ‘I don't mind the long commute’ in an interview, but it's another thing when you're living it five days a week. And it's just simple math to say that whatever hours an employee spends on their commute, those are hours that they either can't spend working on the business, or can't spend recharging their batteries with their friends and family. And so I generally won't even interview anybody who lives more than 40 minutes away from the office.”
—Employer checking your address on Google Maps
Apply to Jobs with Stated Compensation That Is Higher Than What You Currently Make
About 50% of jobs on ZipRecruiter include salary information in the job posting. The surest way to get a salary bump is to move to a new company. It's a sad fact, since most companies won't give large increases to current employees, yet end up spending more to recruit and train new ones. But that's not the focus of this section. Getting you paid is.
While money isn't a long-term motivator, it is extremely motivating in this moment when you're considering new opportunities. The idea of a big payday will drive you to research more, prepare more, and fight for the job more—there's a pot of gold on the other end.
Compensation is a concrete way to compare one job to another and a succinct way to clarify to yourself and hiring managers why you are looking to leave a current role. While there are lots of factors that go into job satisfaction (like avoiding commutes that turn you into a sitting-alone-in-the-dark divorcee), comparing salaries is an easy black-and-white option.
Targeting jobs and companies that offer more money isn't just self-serving. It's an easy way to identify healthy, growing companies. If they are able to offer more compensation, they are likely a stable, long-term place to begin or continue your career.
Lastly, always remember the age-old adage: “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you can land among piles of cash.” (That's the quote, right?) The fact that you'd be delighted with their stated salary means even if they don't budge when you negotiate (we'll cover this later, but you always negotiate), you'll still be happy with the outcome.
Apply to Jobs at Direct Competitors of Your Current Employer
It's one of the most difficult decisions you'll have to make in your job search because doing this has a high risk of both professional network and personal relationship fallout, but if you want to slam dunk getting a job offer and earn more money fast, try applying for a position at a competitor of your current company. Your industry expertise makes you catnip to the hiring manager as they know you'll hit the ground running, and your inside knowledge of a competitor means you carry a currency that no other candidate on the market can match.
Again, think HARD before you make this choice. Unless you get the blessing of your current company, this strategy is fraught with not just relationship risk, but actual legal peril. Check your employment agreement with a lawyer to make sure you haven't signed a binding noncompete clause. You'll also want to be extremely careful not to bring any of your prior company's intellectual property to your new job—intellectual property has a broad definition under the law. (Don't take a single piece of paper from your old company to your new one!)
“I do recruiting for a client whose entire hiring strategy is to target the engineers at a short list of named competitors, and offer 25% salary increases. Their rationale is that these companies have stringent hiring standards, so the vetting process is already done for them. Paying above-market rates avoids the cost of an extended talent search, and incentivizes those new hires to stay longer.”
—Recruiter who stalks other companies all day
Apply to Jobs Where the Employer Has Reviews Online That Pique Your Interest
On average, you'll spend more time with the team you work with than your family. And while you may not be able to read reviews about your family before you join them—you can read reviews about a new employer before you apply.
Sites like Glassdoor, Comparably, and Salary.com share feedback from employees on all types of details like work culture, diversity, management, and salaries. Doing this research will give you great content for your interview. And companies love it when you research them! It shows that you're serious about the role and you came prepared.
These review sites are a great complement to your research, but be wary of believing everything you read. Many of these sites show data amassed over “all-time.” You could be reading a complaint by someone who left the company years ago. Further, many review sites only have one company page per company. That means a company like Google, with 70 offices in 40 countries has all their reviews combined in one place. Chances are the meeting culture in Melbourne bears no resemblance to the meeting culture in San Francisco. Don't let bad reviews chase you away from opportunities that otherwise look great.
Reading reviews can help you identify the right company for you. There are many amazing, world-changing companies that don't have strong employee ratings. Then there are companies that don't have a well-known brand, but people love working there. It's all about personal preference. Having a prestigious company on your business card or resume can pay dividends in terms of salary, title, and offers for the rest of your career. That's very attractive to some job seekers. For others, work-life balance, office culture, and overall satisfaction is more of a priority. These are by no means mutually exclusive, and one is not necessarily better than the other, but reading reviews will give you insight into what might be the best fit for you.
“I recently took a job at a competitor to my old employer and accepted a 15% pay cut to do it. Why? My last company paid above-market rates because the culture sucked and that's the only way they could keep people around. The managers were a-holes, politics influenced everything, and HR did nothing about the toxic environment. Now that I'm out, I wish I had left earlier. I forgot what a pleasure it is to work in a professional environment. Knowing what I know now, I would've taken a 30% pay cut to be here. Life's too short not to enjoy going to work every day.”
—A much happier employee
Should You Send a Cover Letter With Your Application?
“I don't think I've read a cover letter in 10 years. I don't even know how a candidate could submit a cover letter through most of the sites we post our jobs on.”
—Employer who isn't reading your cover letter
Much like the sagittal crest in a caveman's skull or wisdom teeth in today's children, cover letters have been phased out by evolution. When job search went online, it transformed the entire application process. There are no more printed resumes mailed to a hiring manager. Now we submit resumes digitally, and it's robots not people who read those submissions. No human opens the envelope, and sadly, in many cases no human ever reviews the application.
These days, I'd say about 99% of the time a cover letter doesn't matter. But what about the other 1%? What about the rare occasion when a human being actually places your resume directly into another human's hands! (Or, more likely, his or her laptop—held by human hands!)
If you find yourself in this incredibly rare edge case, you're a unicorn. Here's an example of how you might gallop your way to success for a Social Media Manager role:
· Address the reader. Find out exactly who the hiring manager is, and use your online stalking skills to find out as much as you can. You want to write something to them directly.
“Hi Kathy, I saw the Social Media Manager role at [company], which you shared on LinkedIn …”
· Keep it brief. No one reads anymore. Grab their attention, say what you need to say, and get out.
“… I'm so excited to apply that I almost tweeted about it! (But then decided it was best to keep my competition in the dark.) The position would be a seamless transition …”
· Don't rewrite your resume. They already have it. Instead highlight the main thing you'll bring to the table. Support that point with numbers if you can.
“… The position would be a seamless transition from my current role where I increased social engagement by 300%, expanded my client's presence from one social platform to five, and increased social-driven sales by 50% …”
· Let your personality shine through. Professional doesn't have to mean boring. Especially if the company has a more relaxed attitude. Show that you're a real person, not just a piece of (digital) paper.
“… I've been following your company for years and love the work you do. I even participated in the TikTok campaign you ran. Here's the link. (I promise, I'm much better at social management than dancing.)…”
· Look out for formatting. Do a quick search and base your format off a standard cover letter template. Finish off with a thorough proofread, making sure you look out for things like the difference between to, two, and too.
“… I’d also love to hear more about the company’s commitment to donating one of every two dollars it makes to climate initiatives. The environment is something I’m incredibly passionate about, too …”
What If I Want to Change Industries?
According to an annual survey by Gallup, only one in three Americans feel engaged and fulfilled at work.8 The rest are either “actively disengaged” (meaning they hate what they do) or “not engaged” at all (meaning they put time into their work, but no energy or passion).
You may have a degree or years of experience in a field, but wake up one day to realize this isn't how you want to spend the rest of your life. Or you may be forced to switch careers for another reason. Sometimes an industry is disrupted by a new technology (or maybe a pandemic strikes!) and a whole job category disappears.
However you come to find yourself at a career crossroads, the truth is that the modern job search world can be unkind. The robots don't care about your passion or your hardships. They don't care about what makes you unique and different. There are no “dark horse” candidates in their algorithmic eyes. They are looking for candidates with relevant work experience.
It's a Catch-22: To get a good job in a new industry, you need experience. But to get that experience, you need a job first.
How do you start over and do something new when none of the details of your work history tell the robots you'd make a good candidate?
Be Realistic
The path to a new career isn't always clear. There might be jobs you would love to do and can easily see yourself doing, but the training and experience requirements put them out of reach.
For example, if you suddenly wake up in your fifties and realize you should have become a doctor, that ship may have sailed. Even if a medical school would admit you (and that's highly unlikely), chances are you wouldn't want to go back through years of college courses, medical school, and medical residencies.
But don't despair! There is a rewarding job out there for you and the necessary skills are likely within your reach.
ZipRecruiter regularly crunches the numbers to figure out which occupational licenses give job seekers the biggest bang for their buck, and there are plenty that have relatively minimal training requirements but come with above-average paychecks. These jobs are sometimes referred to as “new-collar jobs”—single-skill jobs that require more education and training than high school, but do not require a degree.
Explore New-Collar Jobs
The economy has become so complex that many jobs are highly specialized. As a result, employers increasingly don't need you to have a four-year degree but do want you to have mastered a particular software tool or online platform.
The good news for job seekers and career switchers is that many of the skills in greatest demand among employers can be learned cheaply—or even for free—in a couple of hours on the internet.
High-quality online course providers—such as LinkedIn Learning, edX®, Coursera, Skillshare, SkillSuccess, Udacity, and GoSkills, to name just a few—offer classes and certifications at reasonable prices. And YouTube has millions of video tutorials that walk you through every feature and use case.
In his bestseller Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell popularized the idea that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to master a skill. But many software programs are becoming so user-friendly and accessible that they do much of the work for you—no coding necessary.
While it is true that some employers are desperate to hire people who have mastered advanced software engineering, there are many more who need candidates with basic tech skills—the kind that can be mastered in six weeks or less.
Here are some examples of skills and certifications that can give you a big bang for your buck and open the door to well-paid, new-collar jobs.
Drone Pilot Certification
The new capabilities offered by drones are creating tens of thousands of jobs in agriculture, entertainment, oil and gas, construction, insurance, real estate, and delivery. On average, drone pilot jobs get paid $58,000 per year—well above the median annual income in the United States. Drone pilots with photography and video-editing skills can easily earn six figures.
And here's the amazing thing: Although drone pilot programs provide access to a growing number of well-paid opportunities in a wide range of industries, they have really low barriers to entry. Earning the “Federal Aviation Administration Certification” typically requires studying for roughly 20 hours to pass a test and a $150 licensing fee. Contrast that with becoming a plumber—most states require you to get 4,000 HOURS of experience and training to make the same salary as a drone pilot!
Photo- and Video-Editing Software Skills
At any one time, there are more than 10,000 jobs on ZipRecruiter for people with photo-editing skills and another 10,000 for people with video-editing skills. Increasingly, these skills are required if you want to be a web designer, graphic designer, photographer, or social media marketing professional, whether in business, entertainment, e-commerce, or tech.
There are dozens of high-quality video tutorials on YouTube—from five-minute beginner tutorials to four-hour crash courses—that can help you build your skills. And there are plenty of image processing courses online, some of which are free of charge.
Even if you don't get a full-time job immediately, you can gain experience and earn competitive pay by putting your skills to use as a freelancer on a freelancing platform like UpworkTM or Fiverr®. There are always people looking for someone to design a book cover or company logo, design an image for a product, or edit a short video.
Sound Production Software Skills
Podcasting has quickly exploded in popularity, with more than 100 million people consuming podcasts regularly, according to Edison Research's 2020 Infinite Dial report.9 Nielsen projects that number will rise by 20% per year over the next few years.10
Rising demand for podcasts means rising demand for people who know how to record a podcast! This includes cleaning up the sound, splicing in effects, queuing up the ads, and publishing episodes to the web. You could become a podcast engineer by investing just a few hours in learning how to record and edit audio using Pro Tools®, Logic Pro, Garage Band, Audacity®, Squadcast, SkypeTM, Zoom, Ringr, or Zencastr—or any other podcasting tool or service.
Computer-Aided Design (CAD) Software Skills
Another highly marketable skill is the ability to use computer-aided design and drafting software programs, like AutoDesk®, AutoCAD®, or Solidworks®. CAD skills are among the most valuable job skills in ZipRecruiter's Skills Index, which ranks skills in terms of the number of jobs to which they provide access, the rate at which those jobs are growing, the geographic breadth of the job opportunities, and pay levels. They are also relatively easy to learn.
Several YouTube channels offer CAD tutorial videos, from basic to advanced, that are free, quick, engaging, and easy to understand. Spend a weekend watching some videos and practicing some examples, and you could become a competitive candidate for more than 50,000 well-paid positions that are open at any one time on ZipRecruiter at manufacturing, engineering, product design, and interior decorating companies around the country.
Business Management Software
Modern companies use a myriad of software programs to perform their operations. One example is Intuit's QuickBooks® for accounting, accepting business payments, paying bills, and managing payroll. Another is Kronos® human capital management software for human resources functions, payroll, talent management, and timekeeping. Yet another is Oracle's Netsuite® software for accounting, enterprise resource planning, and e-commerce.
Software programs for business management, project management, team collaboration, and office management score highly on ZipRecruiter's Skills Index each year. And many are relatively easy to learn. The software companies themselves offer many training certifications, and you can find playlists of training videos on YouTube.
Other New-Collar Job Skills
Not all new-collar job skills are software-related. There are many other trades that require more training than high school, but less than a college degree. For example, home inspectors take home about $61,000 per year and earning the license only requires 360 hours of training and experience, much of which can be gained free of charge on the job.
Massage therapists typically aren't required by state licensing boards to get nearly as much training and experience as manicurists or pedicurists, but massage therapists earn almost twice as much, on average ($54,639 versus $32,509 according to ZipRecruiter salary estimates).
Licensing requirements for cosmetologists have become so onerous that candidates now need 2700 hours of training and experience, on average, to get paid to cut your hair. That's not much less than the requirement for becoming a Radiologic or MRI Technologist (3,300 hours)—a job that is growing considerably faster than average, is more recession-proof, and pays twice as much ($56,162 versus $28,608, according to ZipRecruiter salary estimates).
Among jobs that require a two-year associate's degree, some pay substantially more than others. The average state licensing fee for becoming a dental hygienist is a hefty $1,600,11 but the pay bump you'll receive will make up for it ten times over in the first year.
So if you're thinking of finding a new career, do some research and do the math. Important numbers to find include the median salary for a job, your state's occupational licensing requirements (for example, how many hours of training and experience you need to be allowed to work legally, the state licensing fee, and any training course tuition fees). Before you take the plunge, make sure the up-front investment you need to make in developing new skills is one you can reasonably afford, and make sure the payoff is worth it.
Consider Freelancing
Another way to make up for a lack of prior experience when you're switching careers is to freelance. About 59 million Americans freelanced at some point in the past year, according to a survey by UpworkTM, an online freelancing platform. That's more than 30% of the United States workforce.12
Freelancing can give you schedule flexibility and a way to get your foot in the door. It can also be a way to develop a portfolio of projects and gather references—both of which are extremely valuable when you apply for a permanent job.
Joining a freelancing platform (or more than one) can make it easier to find clients and jobs that you like. UpworkTM, Fiverr®, Toptal®, DesignHill, and 99Designs® are just a few examples of online platforms where you can bid on jobs. But know that the internet is a dynamic place, with new platforms coming online all the time. Look into both general platforms and more specialized ones in your particular occupation to explore all the options.
Do Not Apply to These Jobs
“I was so excited to get a job so quickly that it didn't even occur to me how strange it was that the interview process was so quick and easy. I filled out the intake paperwork without hesitation, and didn't even get suspicious when they asked for all my bank account information for the direct deposit of my paychecks. It wasn't until they asked for backup bank account information that I began to suspect anything was up, but by then it was too late. They had already wired most of my money out of my bank account. Luckily, I notified the bank early enough that they got the funds back, but it was a painful and time-consuming mistake I made.”
—Employee who won't make that mistake again
Watch out for phony employers and job scams. Even though many job search sites use software to detect and remove fraudulent job postings and have entire teams devoted to removing suspicious postings as soon as they're flagged, no system is totally secure.
Many criminals are highly sophisticated and can fool you into thinking they're offering a legitimate job opportunity, even if they're really operating an illegal operation.
There are many scams out there, designed to take advantage of people who are desperate for work. Remember, you aren't desperate! You've got this book to help, and you're on your way to getting hired.
Scams are so common that the Federal Trade Commission is constantly clamping down on them and publishing warnings and tips on how to spot them. Tip-offs include having to pay to get the job, a requirement to share credit card or bank account information, or the promise of access to otherwise private government jobs.
Other red flags are job postings with spelling errors, vague job descriptions, and limited information about the company and its address. Pushy interviewers who sound very urgent and press you to agree to the job now are another warning sign. And if you can't find information about people who work at the company on LinkedIn, be on the lookout for a scam.
If the gig seems too good to be true, it is. If anyone offers high pay for little work or extends an offer without even speaking with you, run the other way.
Three particularly dangerous job scams are jobs that require you to receive and send packages, jobs that require you to receive and transfer funds, and call center jobs that require you to sell a sham product or service and collect people's financial information. If you end up interviewing for a job that sounds like one of these, back out quickly.
Repackaging Scams
Some jobs offer you the chance to make a lot of money simply by receiving packages in the mail, repackaging them, and mailing them to other addresses. Sounds simple, right? And it is, until the police show up at your door and arrest you for trafficking drugs or stolen goods. These kinds of offers are particularly popular during the holiday season when they're sometimes described as work-from-home gift-wrapping jobs.
Just as you should never let anyone talk you into putting something in your suitcase for them at the airport, you should never let anyone bamboozle you into receiving and sending packages, especially if the details are vague and you cannot verify the contents. Jobs that ask you to do so are a big red flag. Get out as soon as you can and notify the Federal Trade Commission.
Money-Laundering Scams
Other jobs ask you to provide your banking information and then send you funds to deposit in your own account. They then transfer to another account later. Fake employers can spin all kinds of stories to make this seem legitimate, but if you're being asked to receive and transfer funds, you should stop immediately and look for another job. Chances are you're being enlisted as a money mule in a money-laundering operation.
Don't let anyone use you to transfer illegally obtained money from one fraud to another, obscuring their identities in the process and helping them evade authorities. This is another job that could easily land you in prison or, if you turn on your employer, in a witness protection program hiding away from the mob for years.
Even if you aren't being used as a money mule, you could end up a victim of theft. Some fake employers will send you a check for, say, $5,000 and then call to say they accidentally sent you too much and need you to mail back a check or money order for, say, $1,500. You mail $1,500 and deposit their $5,000 check only to find that their check bounces or is a fake.
Call Center Scams
In some call center jobs, the script you're asked to read from might make you feel a bit icky and set off alarm bells. If you feel uncomfortable, there's probably a good reason.
For example, you could find yourself convincing retirees that they are in grave danger of being defrauded or sued, and encouraging them to fork over large sums of money for legal protection or insurance or a membership in some or other protective club. Or you could find yourself persuading retirees to pay you a large sum to start an e-commerce business for them, promising to make them rich with little effort on their part.
If the goal in your call center job is to get a credit card number, expiration date, and CCV code based on spurious threats or promises, and hand those over to another part of the organization, you should leave immediately and alert the Federal Trade Commission. Many scams like this end up cleaning out people's bank accounts and causing untold misery for their victims. Participating in a scam like this can land you in a world of legal trouble.
Other Job-Related Scams
Here's a quick, and by no means comprehensive, list of other common scams you might run into while searching for a job:
· The Bait and Switch: At the interview, you find out the job you came in to discuss doesn't exist, but there is a much less desirable one available.
· Career Consulting: Someone asks to represent you in the job search but ends up selling you marketing, resume, and other services; this happens with so-called recruiters as well.
· Crafts or Products Assembly: Once you pay the enrollment fee, the company will send you items to assemble and pay you for them … if they are happy with your work. They won't be.
· Dodgy Data Entry Jobs: You get offered an exorbitant salary to perform a fairly simple data entry task—but first, you must pay out money in advance to receive training and materials.
· Direct Deposit: You provide an “employer” your bank info so they can deposit too-high-to-be-true paychecks; instead they empty your account.
· Rebate Processor: Unlike legitimate rebate-processing jobs, which require you to process forms administratively and pay a small amount for each form, rebate-processing scams require you to pay a training fee, post product ads online, and sell products for a small commission.
· Shipping Jobs: These will offer you the opportunity to work from home by repacking and mailing goods, which are likely stolen; if you get a check at all, it will be fake.
· Stuffing Envelopes: Companies have automated this process, so anyone offering to pay for it is hoping to encourage you to pay them for materials and recruit your friends into the scam.
· Requests for Your Credit Report: A potential employer asks you to provide your credit report or social security number so they can run a background check. They then use the information to steal your identity.
· Unemployment Scams: Services that offer to expedite your unemployment claims for a fee are often illegal, and won't get you your money any sooner than doing it yourself.
Think Twice Before You Apply to These Jobs
There are some jobs to which you should only apply with your eyes wide open because they are risky. So risky, in fact, that many people who sign up end up spending more than they earn.
Two of the most prevalent on job boards are multilevel marketing (MLM) jobs and lease—purchase truck-driving jobs.
Multilevel Marketing (MLM) Jobs
The first thing they told me is you don't need a social security number to sign into this business. You're going to be fine. It sounded like the perfect opportunity … I lost about $70,000. I kept moving forward because of my kids mostly and because I wanted to get some of that money back someday. I expected that, if I would go to a higher and higher level, maybe someday I would see a big check, one of those big checks they always promised you were going to get.
—Soledad M. in “The American Dream Denied: Herbalife Victims Speak Out”
MLM companies, also known as network marketing companies, include AmwayTM, Avon®, doTerra®, Herbalife, Mary Kay®, Scentsy, and many, many others.13
A major study by the AARP Foundation found that among the more than 20 million Americans who have participated in MLM companies, a full 74% have either lost money or made nothing at all.14 In some particularly egregious cases, as many as 99% of the MLM participants have made less than the minimum wage.15
A close read of many MLM business earnings disclosures shows that even the top 1% of reps often earn less than $25,000 per year.16 Be very wary of opportunities like this before leaping in.
The Promise
Here's how their pitch usually works.
You want to work from home, be your own boss, choose your own schedule, and earn unlimited amounts of money, right?
Well, the company will give you something extremely valuable—the opportunity to sell a popular and well-known brand of some product (be it beauty products, essential oils, knives, weight-loss shakes, or something else)—and to do so on your own terms.
How much you make will depend only on how hard you work. The sky's the limit. Work hard, and you could soon be debt-free, financially independent, even rich.
What could go wrong with that?
The Pitfalls
Well, here's the catch. Typically, you'll need to buy a supply of the products first. And then you'll need to sell them to your friends and family to earn a profit.
It turns out it is actually incredibly difficult to get your friends and families to buy enough essential oils or lipstick to make you rich. And if you spend all day every day badgering everyone in your contact list to buy the $500 makeup sets or Tupperware you're peddling, your friends will probably start cutting you off.
There are plenty of former reps and clients with horror stories, who were required to buy more inventory than they could realistically sell. Some were even encouraged to rent commercial properties and open stores or clubs at massive personal expense, and then buy enough inventory to stock the shelves.
The Pyramid
MLM companies encourage you not merely to sell the products, but to recruit friends and family to become salespeople themselves. And this is where the real earning opportunity lies, you'll be told, because in addition to earning a recruiting fee, you can also earn commissions on all future sales that your recruits make, and that their recruits make, and so on.
Imagine a lifetime of sitting back and earning a passive income from commissions and residuals?
MLMs follow a pyramid structure in which a few people at the top make lots of money off the sales commissions of recruits, while many at the bottom lose money. These companies rely more heavily on recruiting a steady stream of new salespeople than on attracting customers.
Critics charge that MLM businesses are no different from pyramid schemes, which are illegal. “Legitimate businesses make money selling products and services, not by recruiting. The drive to recruit, especially when coupled with deceptive and inflated income claims, is the hallmark of an illegal pyramid,” warns Andrew Smith, director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns people to be wary of MLM businesses and has charged several with deceiving distributors about their earning potential.
In 2016, for example, Herbalife, paid $200 million to settle FTC charges and was forced to restructure its US operations and compensate reps. In 2019, AdvoCare International, L.P. agreed to pay $150 million and be banned from the multi-level marketing business to resolve FTC charges that they were operating an illegal pyramid scheme.
The Prey
Despite information campaigns warning job seekers of their risks and multiple lawsuits alleging abuse, MLM businesses continue to grow.
Stay-at-home moms and dads, military wives and husbands, and semi-retirees: take special note. MLM businesses will recruit you aggressively, knowing that you desperately want financial independence paired with flexibility. Immigrants should also be cautious. MLM businesses promise you a path to the American dream. Some have reportedly appealed to immigrants without authorization to work in the United States by telling them they don't need a social security number to work as reps.
But remember my two rules: Don't fall for promises that are too good to be true, and think very, very carefully before you open your wallet. A job is supposed to pay you, not the other way around.
Lease-to-Own Truck-Operator Jobs
A lot of times, when I'm expecting to see a check for a couple of thousand dollars, I'm getting a bill for, like, $200 or $500 or $1,500.
—Kimberley Sikorski, discussing her experience with Prime Trucking on NPR's Planet Money podcast, August 14, 2020
Another kind of job opportunity that frequently causes workers to lose tens of thousands of dollars is lease–owner trucking.
Here's how it works.
The Pitch
You go through a truck-driver training program, and get paid a few hundred dollars a week just to be a student. This is great!
Upon completing the training program, you are offered a choice: Either be a salaried employee earning a modest wage … or be your own boss with—you guessed it—unlimited earning potential! All you have to do is sign up to buy your truck, which turns you into an owner–operator. At that point you command higher fees and set your own schedule because you own the truck.
Who would say “no” to doing the same job, but over time owning the truck they are driving? The trucking company makes this an even easier choice by offering you generous financing terms. Pay it off little by little each week. Sit back while the trucking company accountants register your LLC and take care of all the paperwork. Simple, right?
The Trouble
Here's the trouble. The costs quickly multiply—truck payments, insurance, gasoline, maintenance, parking. And they're deducted from your paycheck. So it's quite common to get negative paychecks or bills from the company after weeks of around-the-clock work. If you want any health or retirement benefits, you have to pay for those yourself as well.
This model is a great way for trucking companies to keep their costs low and have workers shoulder all the risk of doing business. But it's usually a terrible way for a truck driver to make a living.
Many earn less than minimum wage or even lose money and damage their credit scores in the process. And by many, I mean hundreds of thousands of Americans.
In fact, several trucking companies have paid millions to settle class-action lawsuits in which they were accused of misclassifying tens of thousands of employees or violating minimum wage laws. PAM Transport settled a suit for more than $16 million. Prime settled for $28 million. And Knight-Swift Transportation settled for $100 million.17
The Tragedy of the Lease–Owner Trap
The tragedy of the whole thing is that being a salaried company truck driver is actually a lucrative job.
Many long-haul trucking jobs pay $60,000 a year or more and provide generous benefits.
So don't be tricked into thinking that it's better to be your own boss and have your own company. It likely isn't. There are many benefits to being a regular employee with reliable paycheck and benefits, and the ability to give your two weeks’ notice and move on to something else when the time is right.
Think twice before buying a $150,000, 20-ton truck of your own and being trapped by a truckload of debt.
Summary
· When racing against the robots, apply within two days of a new job posting.
· Don't self-disqualify; apply to roles where you meet 40% or more of the requirements.
· Make it personal; apply to places where you know people, love the product, or live close by.
· Read public reviews from people within the company to get a sense of culture and fit.
· Many great opportunities require only weeks of training in a single skill. Research emerging job categories to get in while demand is high.
· Consider freelancing to gain experience, build up a portfolio of projects, and cultivate references.
· Be suspicious of jobs that sound too good to be true or that require you to spend thousands of dollars before you earn.
Notes
1. 1. Chandlee Bryan, “The Early Bird Gets the Job,” StartWire, June 2, 2011, www.startwire.com/blog/6107618938.
2. 2. Kushal Chakrabarti, “The Science of The Job Search, Part III: 61% of ‘Entry-Level’ Jobs Require 3+ Years of Experience,” TalentWorks, 2018.
3. 3. Danielle Elmers, “The Job-Search Statistics All Job Seekers Should Know,” TopResume, March 4, 2020, www.topresume.com/career-advice/7-top-job-search-statistics.
4. 4. Umeå University, “Long-Distance Commuters Get Divorced More Often, Swedish Study Finds,” ScienceDaily, May 2011, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110525085920.htm.
5. 5. Dan Buettner, Thrive: Finding Happiness the Blue Zones Way (National Geographic Books, 2011).
6. 6. David C. Phillips. “Do Low-Wage Employers Discriminate against Applicants with Long Commutes? Evidence from a Correspondence Experiment,” Journal of Human Resources 55, no. 3 (2020): 864–901.
7. 7. PRNewswire, “Nearly One-Quarter of Workers Have Left a Job Due to a Bad Commute, According to Robert Half Survey,” news release, September 24, 2018.
8. 8. Jim Harter, “Employee Engagement on the Rise in the U.S.,” Gallup, November 11, 2020, https://news.gallup.com/poll/241649/employee-engagement-rise.aspx.
9. 9. Edison Research, “The Infinite Dial 2020,” Edison Researchblog, March 19, 2020, www.edisonresearch.com/the-infinite-dial-2020/.
10. 10. “Nielsen At Podcast Movement 2020: Opportunities in a Skyrocketing Industry,” Nielsen, November 17, 2020, www.nielsen.com/us/en/news-center/2020/nielsen-at-podcast-movement-2020-opportunities-in-a-skyrocketing-industry/.
11. 11. National Conference of State Legislatures, “The National Occupational Licensing Database,” March 2020, https://www.ncsl.org/research/labor-and-employment/occupational-licensing-statute-database.aspx.
12. 12. “Freelance Forward 2020,” Upwork, September 2020, www.upwork.com/documents/freelance-forward-2020.
13. 13. “Complete List of Direct Sales and MLM Companies Worldwide,” LaConte Consulting, LLC, 2020, https://laconteconsulting.com/mlm-list/.
14. 14. Marguerite DeLiema, Doug Shadel, Amy Nofziger, and Karla Pak, “AARP Study of Multilevel Marketing: Profiling Participants and Their Experiences in Direct Sales,” AARP, August 2018, www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/aarp_foundation/2018/pdf/AARP%20Foundation%20MLM%20Research%20Study%20Report%2010.8.18.pdf.
15. 15. Jon M. Taylor, “The Case (for and) against Multi-Level Marketing,” Federal Trade Commission, 1999, https://www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/documents/public_comments/trade-regulation-rule-disclosure-requirements-and-prohibitions-concerning-business-opportunities-ftc.r511993-00008%C2%A0/00008-57281.pdf.
16. 16. “19 Amazing MLM Statistics You Should Read in 2020,” Jobs in Marketing, February 19, 2020, https://jobsinmarketing.io/blog/mlm-statistics/.
17. 17. “Big Rigged,” NPR, August 14, 2020, www.npr.org/transcripts/901110994.