This new grad job hunting phase of my life has left me in a place of constant networking. I often find myself wondering... Am I being too assertive? Not assertive enough? Am I conveying my interest without being a total pest? Whether it's looking for a job, a shadowing opportunity, or a LOR, here are some rules that I try my best to live by.
𝐃𝐎𝐍'𝐓 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐀𝐍 𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝗪𝐈𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐅𝐔𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄 𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐒 𝐎𝐑 𝐍𝐄𝐗𝐓 𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐏𝐒 - This might be the most important point. When should I hear back? Would you be willing to let me shadow for a day so I can see what a typical day looks like for you? (my personal favorite after an interview)
𝐃𝐄𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐄𝐒𝐓 𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐃 𝐎𝐅 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐌𝐔𝐍𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 - Call, text, email, in person? I like to continue to follow-up on the same email thread even if it's an old one. This allows the person to look back at messages and remember more about your prior conversations.
𝐅𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐎𝗪-𝐔𝐏 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐋𝐘 𝐁𝐔𝐓 𝐃𝐎𝐍'𝐓 𝐁𝐄 𝐀 𝐏𝐄𝐒𝐓 - I always send a thank you email a few hours after an encounter. Mostly because I will forget if I wait until the next day. If you don't hear from them when they said you would, check-in the following day. If you don't hear back, try weekly and eventually move to every few weeks.
𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐂𝐊 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐈𝐓𝐔𝐃𝐄 - Be polite and humble. Resist the urge to call them out on their lack of responsiveness. Don't say, "I haven't heard from you" or "you said I would hear back." You don't want to come off as demanding or entitled.
What are your tips for being pleasantly persistent?
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