what is the problem in sending a message letting him know I sent an
In a public, topic-oriented, support newsgroup, it's not professional. In a
sense, it tells the potential employer something about your knowledge level,
not something positive. As to what is the problem with it, I don't have a
problem with it, and I did not take issue with it. However, I couldn't help
but notice your reaction to the correction, which was defensive. This
re-inforces the impression of the part of the potential employer, reading
the newsgroup, including the impression that you are not teachable, that you
can not take correction. A simple "oops" would have de-fused the situation,
and smoothed any impression on the part of the potential employer. The
continuing defensiveness adds nails of a new sort to the coffin.
Remember Dan Rather?
An employer worth his/her salt looks at a number of points of information,
the least of which is your resume. Your resume is an introduction, and may
or may not contain factual information (like a letter from a Nigerian con
man posing as a lawyer). It can not be taken at face value. The information
in it must be confirmed or denied by a number of methods, not the least of
which is the interview.
During the interview, a good employer looks not only at the things you say
(similar to a resume), but at how your say them, and how you behave. By the
time of the interview, he/she has already checked out the references in your
resume, to the extent that they can be checked out, and is looking at you,
the person. A job is a personal relationship. Like a woman considering a
marriage proposal, the employer is trying to figure out how well you will
get along.
This thread has become a form of public interview. As it is public, it has
enabled the potential employer to observe your behavior. Had you not made it
public, you could have avoided the impression altogether. In fact, your
first response to the posted message should have been made privately.
So, I made the observation that you may have blown the job offer. If you can
receive this, you may be able to prevent similar situations from occurring
in the future.
Private communication in a personal relationship is a wonderful thing. And
less communication is often better.
--
HTH,
Kevin Spencer
Microsoft MVP
..Net Developer
Ambiguity has a certain quality to it.
