25 Ways to Sabotage Your Job Search

When you're job hunting, you can go mad if you think about the amount of factors beyond your control that affect your chances of getting hired. The economy, your location, industry trends -- even the hiring manager's mood -- can influence whether or not you get a job. Still, as nice as it would be to blame your lack of offers on external factors, you can't forget that common denominator in your job hunt -- from the resume to the interview -- is you.

Here are 25 ways you might be unknowingly sabotaging your own job search:

The First Steps

1. Not keeping track of your accomplishments.
When you're happy with your job, it's easy to forget about possible future job hunts. You never know when you'll end up looking for new work, and if you don't keep a running list of awards, promotions and accomplishments, you might not remember them when it's time to update your resume.

2. Leaving on a bad note.
As much fun as it is to fantasize about telling off a bad boss, don't actually do it. Leaving a trail of angry bosses or co-workers will come back to haunt you when you need references.

3. Not networking.
If you're silent about your job search, your friends, family and colleagues won't think of you when they hear about job opportunities.

4. Only using the Internet.
Online job boards are fantastic resources, but you need to do some footwork if you want to increase your chances of finding a job. Contact companies whom you'd like to work for, even if there are no job listings. Not all companies advertise openings online.

5. Only searching for the perfect job.
Yes, your job search should be focused. After all, applying to every job posting that comes your way is a good way to waste time but not an effective way to find a job you want. However, if you approach your job hunt unwilling to accept anything less than the precise job title, pay, vacation time and hours you want, you're setting yourself up for disappointment.

The Resume and Cover Letter

6. Writing a generic cover letter.
If your cover letter looks like it could have come from a word processor template, right down to the "To Whom It May Concern," don't bother sending it. Hiring managers look for a candidate who wants that specific position, not someone who sends out applications en masse. Write a new cover letter for each job application and include details specific to that company.

7. Typos.
Sending a cover letter or resume filled with grammatical mistakes and typographical errors shows hiring managers you don't care about the quality of your work and probably not about the job, either.

8. Including your current work info as the best place to contact you
Making sure employers can get in touch with you is important, but they shouldn't be contacting you at work. "Potential employers are going to question if these people will search for a new job on their time," says Kathy Sweeney, resume writer for the Write Resume.

9. Focusing on yourself and not on the company in the cover letter.
"When 'I' is the predominant subject -- and there are times when it is the only subject of all the sentences in the cover letter -- it indicates to me that they don't understand my organization and its needs, and, in fact, says they don't care to know," says Dion McInnis, associate vice president for university advancement at University of Houston-Clear Lake. "And therefore, I don't care to know them."

10. Not targeting your resume to the position.
Just like the cover letter, your resume should build a case for you to be hired for a specific position. If you're applying for a financial analyst position, don't waste space including your teenage stint as a lifeguard.

The Interview

11. Showing up late.
Nobody likes to be kept waiting, especially hiring managers evaluating whether or not you would make a good employee.

12. Dressing for the wrong job.
Your interview attire should match the dress code of the company, or be one step up. If the office dress code is business casual, wearing jeans and a T-shirt won't work in your favor. On the other hand, if you're told dress is casual, you'll stick out if you show up wearing a double-breasted suit.

13. Not asking questions.
When the interview comes to a close, the hiring manager will undoubtedly ask if you have any questions for him or her. Not asking anything is the equivalent of saying, "I don't care all that much about the job."

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Anthony Balderrama is a writer and blogger for CareerBuilder.com. He researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues.

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