I know that unemployment is high and that the job market is therefore fierce. I understand that people are desperate for a job, any job, and this means folks are willing to take positions well below their previous employment just to bring some money in the door, such as ex-managers working in fast food because even McD’s pays more than minimum wage. I know that people are losing their houses and condos because they can’t afford their balloon payments. I even understand that to get unemployment you have to prove that you are looking for a job. I get it.

But please, please: don’t waste my time by applying for a job that you are in no way qualified for, or are so over-qualified for as to be ludicrous. Now, before you judge me and call me callous, allow me to give you an example.

We have an opening on our administrative staff for a person to coordinate all of the daily logistics on research projects. This entails lots of phone calls, team coordination, photocopying, making travel arrangements, typing up reports, serving treats, etc. It’s entry-level. It’s clearly administrative support. We listed the salary we are willing to pay, and itemized the daily duties of this position.We didn’t make it sound glamorous or anything, just the facts.

And yet, and yet…  I just got a resume from a person that has, for the last fourteen years, been a west coast VICE PRESIDENT for a major retailer. Come on, really? This person is going to buy donuts and coffee for twelve consultants and stand at the photocopier for three hours trying to put together fourteen report binders and drive them to the FedEx office before they close and squeeze in some data entry while waiting? I don’t think so.

Don’t get me wrong: I’m not undervalueing this position, I have a lot of admiration for the person that has filled these shoes for the past few years. But it is administrative support; always has been, always will be. It’s working your backside off trying to orchestrate a bunch of engineers. It’s dealing with changing travel plans and delayed deliveries. It’s attempting to nail down project managers and principals and get them committed to a week-long workshop. It’s trying to type notes written by people with penmanship so atrocious you can’t even tell what language they are writing.

So please, before clicking the “submit resume” button, take the time to actually read the job description and be honest as to whether or not you are qualified for the job and willing to work for the posted salary. I know it only takes a second to send a resume via email, but it takes me several minutes to review, score, and catalog each one.  Employers spend a lot of time and money placing ads and reviewing applicants. By the time I get to an applicant that is qualified for the job, I’m so brain-dead from reading about executives and CEO’s that I’m likely to overlook the good ones.  Be respectful to a prospective employer, or your resume may get deleted without a second chance.

Thank you for listening.