The Citizenship Application for TJICistan

Travis has a job available and gives some really good, well reasoned advice to would-be employees:

When I ask for two references, with contact information, this is because I want two references, with contact information. However, there is another reason: the job I just posted requires good attention to detail. 20% of you failed to include references, and this makes my job easier - I can immediately respond to you and say “I’m sorry; this position is not a match”, and then delete your email. Only 160 emails to go!

When I ask for your resume to be cut-and-pasted, instead of being included as an attachment, this is because I am stuck in the 1980s, and use a non-MIME aware email reader. Also, it’s another opportunity to filter out candidates who can’t read closely, or follow directions. We’re now down to 120 emails.

The job was listed as “customer support”. If you start your cover letter by asking about the “sales associate” position, or the “nanny job”, I know that (a) you’re applying for 100 jobs at once, and you’ve gotten confused; (b) you don’t have the attention to detail that this job requires.

...

etc.
I strongly recommend reading it, as his winnowing procedure is pretty much SOP at every company I have ever worked for.

Then we get to:

Finally, I prune the emails with spelling errors. Spell checkers are free, and they’re easy to run. You don’t care enough about this job to try, so you’re gone. 40 emails left.

Unfortunately, Travis tends to be a do-as-I-Say-not-as-I-Do kind of guy:

Logan Williams Says: July 4th, 2007 at 2:36 am
“… I turned the *add* off again 8 hours later.”
“Finally, I prune the emails with spelling errors. Spell checkers are free, and they’re easy to run. You don’t care enough about this job to try, so you’re gone. 40 emails left.”
Finally, I prune the blogs with spelling errors. Proofreading is simple, and necessary to editing. You don’t care enough about this blog to try, so you’re not going in my RSS reader. 20 Reddit submissions left.

Boed Says: July 4th, 2007 at 5:49 am
“But, come one, make things a bit easier for me, please?”
“and permission to listen to your iPod all day log.”
“Spell checkers are free, and they’re easy to run. You don’t care enough about this job to try, so you’re gone. 40 emails left.”
hmm……a bit of a contradiction wouldn’t you say?


Thus Travis would eliminate himself from *my* pool of potential jobs as I recognize the Do-As-I-Say or "Two Sets of Rules" boss as being incompatible with my personality. And I haven't even read the job description!

*snicker*

Seriously though, it's good advice.