"You are over qualified for this job"

After the question about strengths and weaknesses the next biggest concern that people have written to me about is that they are not getting to the offer stage or in many cases not even getting the first interview because the employer thinks they are overqualified. It is not a question but an objection and many times it is not even brought up but the candidate knows from past interview history that it is probably an issue.I have been in this business all my life and I have never seen this as prevalent as it is now. The reason is simple; 9.4% unemployment nationally as of 6/10.2009. A great many of the unemployed have given up trying to find the high responsibility, high paying jobs like the one they lost. They are willing to and even anxious to land a lower position just to get back to work and keep the wolves away from the front door.Every basic sales training course teaches that before you can overcome an objection you must first determine if what you are hearing or thinking is the true objection. In this case, is being overqualified really the objection or is there really a different issue/concern. In order to identify and overcome the true objection we need to understand the employer’s thinking. Let’s look at what the employer might be worried about. Logic says that an employer would love the opportunity to land a candidate that was stronger, more highly skilled than the job really required. In this market logic has gone out the window and it is replaced by fear and insecurity. Why wouldn’t the employer want to higher the more qualified candidate?If I hire a candidate into a lower level position my primary concern is turnover. For the following reasons…

1) If a candidate takes a less challenging position he will be bored and less interested.

2) If the job has less responsibility and doesn’t look as good on a resume the employee will not do his best and will not achieve to his best ability.

3) If he comes to work each day knowing he has committed to a lower paying job his enthusiasm will be diminished.

4) If he is not proud of his job, work and pay logic says he will be a poor performer.

5) He is not taking my job because he really like the work, people or company. He is taking it because he is desperate and can’t find anything better. Were you ever last choice as a kid when teams were picked? Were you ever 2nd choice or the date of last resort for the prom? Always the bridesmaid never the bride? This is how the employer might picture himself going into this relationship.As an employer I am worried about costly turnover. Instead of doing his best for me my new employee will be looking for jobs that really meet his needs. My job will not have his full attention and as soon as he finds a bigger job for more money my new employee will jump ship.Now that you understand the employer’s thinking you can decide how to address his true concerns you can head them off and it can be done. A good salesperson anticipates an objection, brings it up, talks about it and defuses it before it becomes a deal breaker.If you are applying for a job that is obviously a lesser job and are just trying to get in front of the employer your cover letter must be highly customized. It must do two things.

1) It should state something like... “On the surface I may seem overqualified however I am excited about the opportunity because…” Now pick out elements of the job that excite you. Be specific and sincere. Explain why they excite you.

2) Write about why you will bring far more value than a candidate who JUST meets the qualifications. Again, be specific.When you go on an interview the employer probably won’t bring up his concern. It is not really ethical to tell a candidate he will not be pursued because he is too good. In most states it is not legal. Just as you did in the cover letter bring it up yourself but this time have more reasons and more value statements prepared. At some point in the interview you will need to ask…”I have had an interviewer tell my recruiter that I was overqualified for a position. DO YOU SHARE THAT CONCERN?Follow the rest of the instructions and tips in my article “Ace the Job Interview” and being “overqualified” will never be a deal breaker again.Good luck and have fun.

Submitted by - Mark Warren