# Reading Between The Lines (Job Adverts) ![[assets/jobads.jpg]] _Trying to make sense of the gobbledegook of job vacancy ads._ **Written By:** Geovian\ **Date:** 13 October 2024 ## Introduction I'm sure many of you have undertaken the unholy task of reading through and applying for jobs online through various job broker services. Unfortunately applying for jobs in this manner is an unfortunate byproduct of the employment industry. If you are lucky enough to be self-employed and to generate your own income without having to be saddled with the job application process, then lucky you. Due to changes in the workforce landscape across all industries, the job application process is becoming a lot more difficult because of the circumstances around remote work/being in the office, retrenched businesses, roles being overtaken by technology automation and AI, lack of a career pathway and reduction in salary. ## The Detail Not helping matters are the requests laid out by employers and their recruitment agencies when it comes to the recruitment process. You can read the nonsense they write up in their job ads. Much of it is corporate speak, where they use jargon, corporate terminology that only they know about and the use of obscure acronyms, without explaining what they are, and expecting you to know what it means. Much of these job adverts have been written by rank amateurs with no true idea of how to put a proper job ad together. In some cases, roles for company positions have transitioned from one era to another without any change being made to the position description. You could be applying for a job in the 2000s but the job description reads like it was written for someone back in the 1970s. In my experience, privately held companies suffer from this malaise more than government departments, who at least do a better job of keeping roles/positions updated. Now with online job portals being the go-to place to finding a new job, you can now go in with a better understanding of what they require just by doing a careful analysis of their job advert. Let's take a look at some gotchas. ## Fast paced environment So what does this mean when you first come across this term? Is 'fast paced' a good thing, and if so how and why? Is it indicative of a chaotic environment? Surely that wouldn't be a good thing? You'd be surrounding yourself with people running around like chooks with their heads cut off. Goodness no, I've seen that often enough. Be brave enough to ask, and observe the response. ## No one day is similar to the other This is another phrase that annoys the bejeezus out of me. Of course this depends on what type of job is up for grabs. At face value though, what it suggests borders on a state of regular chaos throughout the working week. The flight plan for your job is your job description. Hopefully your line manager will understand this. If not, you're in trouble. Lol. If you see this phrase or something similar, it's best to put the interviewer on the spot. ### A passion for this job This would rank as one of the dumbest statements you can read on a job application. Unless you have the skills of an Nostradamus or a Madam Blatva with a crystal ball, 'passion' is an empty piece of verbiage made to sound more impressive than it actually is. And besides, how can you have passion for a job which you haven't even landed yet? How can you even quantify that word, or its twin 'passionate? Marks out of 10? Zero. ### Resilience when working under stress Now I've seen this phrase pop up more often than not. It normally applies to senior or managerial roles, but equally lower level job ads also include this. Why do companies want to put the equivalent of a brick wall in their job ads? For some prospective employees, this is a red rag to a bull. In other words, stress could imply disorganization, ineffective application of resources including staffing, processes and procedures not being adhered to, technology failure and interpersonal conflict. All resulting in corporate chaos. Defining 'stress' within the confines of both the job and the company should be identified so you know what you're dealing with from day one. ### Talented and motivated Well this all very flowery and pompous, not on the least subjective as well, and totally irrelevant to put in a job ad. There is a saying that goes "beauty is in the eye of the beholder". In this case, the beholder won't actually know if the applicant is talented and motivated until they've actually been appointed to the role. So what's the point of actually putting it into a job ad before you appoint anyone? Surely the company won't be dumb enough to ask that question in an interview? Not only would it be inappropriate but it would be totally unethical. A sure sign for the interviewee to "run to the hills". ### The use of Buzz Words If you read hundreds of job adverts online you'll soon discover some of the most overly used buzzwords that try to make the job a little bit more attractive than it probably is in real life. Here's a few: - **Passion** - yes that word again, employers please delete this word from your vocabulary. - **Innovative** - if you've been in a job long enough you'll find ways to become innovative through continuous improvement and familiarity. Take that as a given, it doesn't need to be mentioned in a job ad. - **Prioritize** - if you are a perfectly functioning adult, you'll know what prioritizing is in your day-to-day life. Nothing changes from your domestic life to your work life. Humans know how to prioritize, take it as a given too. I believe this is another vacuous term of no importance. - **enthusiastic** - well this is all rather subjective and it depends on what type of job is being advertised. Try putting this in an ad for a cleaner or a janitor. Throwing it around willy-nilly in a job ad means that it's likely to be a filler word more than most. - **offer professional growth** - I've seen this term used in job ads that are so low quality and so low paying, that even burger flippers in McDonald's earn more. The old adage applies: you get what you pay for. - **Attention to detail** - why do companies put terms like this in their ads? This suggests to me that companies who are advertising like this are expecting people to apply who don't exhibit these traits. And during the interview process, how would they know anyway? This reads like a disingenuous term which could be reworded in a more friendlier tone. ## In Summary I'm sure there are many other examples, but I've just picked on a couple that have sprung up over the last couple of days which made me mad enough (or annoyed enough) to write something about it. But, I can guarantee you that when you next read a job advert online, you'll see some of these terms being repeated ad nauseum. It just goes to show that some of these recruitment companies in line with their corporate clients are reading off the same repetitive page year after year. It's getting boring. So, if you are preparing for a job interview go well prepared with questions at the ready. Use this as a guide. Good luck.