We have committed ourselves to give back to some wonderful, local organizations in our community. One of them is the Hershey Ronald McDonald house. There is nothing we enjoy more than inviting one of our clients to cook dinner with us at the house while the residents stroll through the kitchen to see what is being created that makes their temporary home smell so good.
One of the ways the Ronald McDonald house raises additional money to offset costs is to collect “pop (soda) tabs” which teaches kids about philanthropy and the importance of recycling while at the same time raising funds to help children and their families. The pop tabs are collected instead of entire aluminum cans because “it’s more hygienic to store tabs than cans, and collection and storage is easier”. These tabs are taken to local recycling centers to be weighed to determine their value which, once determined, is given back to the Ronald McDonald house. It makes me want a Diet Coke just thinking about what a great program this is.
Recently I had a lunch interview with a terrific person whom I had never met yet it was clear she had spent a significant amount of time on our website getting to know who WE are before our meeting. What immediately endeared me to her is she presented me with a bag chuck full of “pop tabs” as she had read about our involvement with the Ronald McDonald house on our website. To make this gift even better, she had been collecting these for years, had moved a few times, and still brought this collection of tabs with her knowing someday she would find someone who would want them. It was a perfect match.
What a great message this new candidate had reinforced in me, and it is one every candidate looking for a new job should embrace. Prepare for your interview. Whether you are meeting with a staffing company who represents multiple companies or with the CIO of a global corporation, do as much as you can to get to know your subject before sitting in front of them. It will be immediately clear you took the time to research, absorb, and develop questions that will place you at the top of the contenders looking at that same job. You will no longer be a resume to your interviewer – you will make a lasting impression the interviewer won’t soon forget.
Keep in touch with those you have met, even if you haven’t been selected for a position for which you interviewed. Every few months send an email or a LinkedIn message to see what might be brewing. I promise the person on the other end of the email will remember who YOU are because of how you stood out during the interview process, and how you continue to be a favorite.
I am excited to work with my pop-tab, gift bearing candidate and know we will have a relationship that goes beyond finding her a job. We’ve already talked about how she and her husband are going to cook with us at a future Ronald McDonald dinner and my mind is still spinning as I think of colleagues to whom I can introduce her. Yes, keeping tabs has a whole new meaning to me since meeting my new friend. Both SGC and the Ronald McDonald house are going to be richer because she did her homework.
