Apply proactively: What do you have to pay attention to? Tips from the career coach

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How do I get into the company that I think is good, even if there is currently no vacancy?

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dusanpetkovic / Getty Images / iStockphoto

Tarek, 37, asks: »I'm looking for a job and want to switch to a company that has always fascinated me.

I checked regularly for vacancies there, but nothing is advertised in my area of ​​responsibility.

Should I apply on my own initiative and how does an unsolicited application differ from applying for job advertisements? "

Dear Tarek,

in the case of an unsolicited application, you take the initiative. This is not surprising, but it is essential to understand what you should do differently than when applying for a vacancy. Every unsolicited application is sent in unsolicited from the point of view of an employer. That means: It does work, cannot be assigned to an advertised position and requires a mental transfer - to understand your career and to consider the positions in which you could create added value.

The aim of a good speculative application is therefore to present yourself and your idea of ​​collaboration as if on a silver platter and to arouse the reader's desire to get to know you.

Otherwise, there is a risk that your application will be bogus in the »Other« folder and you will never receive an answer.

Here are my four tips for your speculative application:

1. Create your own clarity about your values ​​and goals

Before you contact an employer, you should be clear about what will be important to you in your profession over the next few years and what will make a healthy work environment for you.

You should also be able to know and appreciate your specialist knowledge and experience.

Your own clarity is the most important thing in an unsolicited application.

Because more than when you apply for a job posting, you have to make a reader feel that it is worth investing time in you.

This only works if you are aware of your values ​​and motivation and can speak openly and honestly about them.

2. Develop concrete ideas for target positions

Find out as much as you can about your dream employer: What are current internal projects and what are the issues that concern the industry?

Who works there in the company in which positions?

Are there any functions that from your point of view should be expanded or rebuilt?

Do you have knowledge that is still missing there today and is of use, or is your experience from another branch of value there?

Develop concrete ideas in which positions you can create added value.

3. Say what's going on and show your profile

Many applicants think unsolicited applications that if they are kept as general as possible, they increase the chance of just one position.

But how can a HR manager or a managing director make the decision to give you time on the basis of softened wishy-washy?

Create clarity about what your current situation is and what specific positions you can imagine in the company.

Get to the heart of what you bring to the table, what is important to you in the team and what makes you tick personally.

Clarity creates security, convulsive ingratiation with a slime trail is the end of every speculative application.

4. Creativity and courage for new paths

Unsolicited applications require more attention.

Think about who is the best addressee for your first contact and which format suits you.

Is it an application made up of a cover letter and résumé, your own webpage or a short video?

Perhaps it is initially just a message via XING or LinkedIn to the managing director or the manager in the department.

Write that you are changing your career, have had this company in mind for a long time and what ideas you have developed for your work there.

Less as an applicant, more than a potential new colleague - according to the motto “Shall we meet for a coffee?”.

Also think of the contacts from your networks, because vitamin B can also give your initiative a boost.

Passion instead of despair

For many job changers, speculative applications are the last attempt when they can no longer find jobs.

This strategy is a waste of time.

Those who take the initiative themselves should have a real interest in an employer and be curious to discover the possibilities of working together together.