Two weeks later, you see the same ad in the paper. How could they have passed me up, you wonder? Should I take another stab at it?
Most people don't make another attempt in such situation. They're content to wallow in their aggravation and frustration. That's a mistake. It could be that your initial response got lost in the mailroom, or in a tall pile of responses that sit on the hiring executive's desk.
The question you have to ask yourself when that occurs-and it does occur with regularity-is what you have to lose by responding to the same ad again. A postage stamp, a piece of stationery, and a bit of your time. Those are small expenditures compared to the potential gain. I urge you to try again. If you come up with the right kind of letter for this second attempt, you could land that better job you've been yearning for. I agree that the odds are against you, but even hundred-to-one-shot racehorses win once in a hundred times.
What I suggest is to be aggressive in your second letter. It might start something like this:
"You might have seen my resume a few weeks ago, but then again, you might not have..."
As I mentioned earlier, your chances of succeeding with this approach are not great. But nothing ventured, nothing gained. I recommend that you include second attempts in your bag of job-seeking techniques.
Remember, you have everything to gain, and nothing to lose.
