ISSUE NO. 672
WE'VE BEEN THINKING A LOT ABOUT . . . 

how we show up. Though it might seem like one thing, there are two components: 
  • actually, physically showing up, and 
  • how we use our presence
We're thinking about both when we talk about How to Apply and How to Interview. And throughout both of these processes, there are two places - at opposite ends of the spectrum - where we hear strife around how people show up (or not).

APPLYING TO A JOB

We likely don't have to tell you how demoralizing it can be to have enough interest in a position that you take the time to create an application - only to hear nothing back. It takes vulnerability for a human to say, 'I see you, I appreciate your work, and I want to be a part of it. Pick me to work alongside you.'

Many applicants reach the hiring desk because they are advocates for an organization and are applying because they have an interest in their work. Even in circumstances where it is not the right fit, there are still many ways that employers can improve the experience for those applicants. Think of it as an opportunity to strengthen an already meaningful relationship. 

Here are some ideas we've witnessed and put into practice over the years:
  • If you - like a lot of small businesses - have your applicants send their application materials via email, set up a dedicated email address for job applications. This allows you to filter and organize the correspondence more easily and be sure to not miss a single application. 
     
  • Set-up an auto responder to communicate when applications are received. Include information about when they can expect to hear back from you (even if it is just a kindly 'no thank you, but we appreciate the time you took to apply'). We suggest making this date a few days later than you anticipate. Why? Because we can all use a grace period, and exceeding expectations (by responding sooner) is always preferable to missing them. (Don't miss this beautiful example on setting expectations from @moonriverfarmers.)
     
  • At each stage of the hiring process, respond to those who haven't made the cut. Share the characteristics of candidates who did proceed. This is a generous act. It shows how much you value someone's time, and helps folks better understand how to improve future applications. 
     
  • Acknowledge everyone's humanity. At the end of the day, there is often just one opening and many qualified applicants. It stings to not be the chosen one - but in hiring you have the capacity to make every human feel whole and appreciated. How you show up to this process matters. 
We recognize that all of this takes time and effort, at a moment when you may already be short-staffed. All of these suggestions are investments in your team. Our goal is to shift the paradigm and bring imagination to the process: what if you saw every applicant as part of your team in some way, even if you never see or hear from them again? 

Looking for real world examples and / or a template that you can adapt to your own process? Reach out and we'll send them your way. 

HIRING FOR A JOB
 
We know from experience that employers are not the only ones who don't show up fully to the hiring process. It seems to have become a real phenomenon in our modern age for potential hires to simply not show up - for the interview, for the training, or even for the first day of work. 

We'll dive deeper into this next week. If you are an employer who's been ghosted, or an employee who's done the ghosting, reply to this email and tell us your story. 

If you have one takeaway from this message, we hope that it's a new or increased understanding of the significance of small human interactions and acknowledgements. Changing the culture is not one swift move, but a shifting tide made up of hundreds of little movements, each and every day.

Disconnection leads to the danger of dehumanizing others...while building and sharing structures of support makes it easier to recognize the whole human in all of us. To changing the tide together,

Tay + Dor


photo by Sophia Piña-McMahon

tidbits...

resources on anti-racism, environmentalism and food culture AKA stuff we're reading / listening to / watching / noticing / thinking about / captivated by this Tuesday . . .

It's the beginning of Seed Catalog season, and the Sow True Seed 2024 catalog is a beauty (and free to sign up for). 

"You must separate a lack of knowledge from a lack of willingness. " - Allison Rolle on deconstructing the myth of inherent good, for Communty-Centric Fundraising

Rowen White back again to share reflections on the power of intergenerational relationships and shed wisdom on how to reimagine how to get what we crave.

Toi Marie on the power of language.

Alicia Kennedy's article about criminalizing foraging and the accompanying film Jumana Manna's Foragers are an important read / watch when we understand how food is political. 

If the 'holiday season' feels more life draining than life affirming Courtney from Be More With Less chimes in with some insight.

Robin Wall Kimmerer invites us to be in better relationship with the land and the "more-than-human beings" we share this life with, and her recent NYT Opinion piece is a must-read. As she writes, "We are called to a movement made of equal parts outrage and love."

View and share this free guide to How to Write a More Equitable Job Post, and stay tuned for new resources to deepen this work.

"Plenty has been written about the economic impact of the pandemic on the food industry, but not enough about its lingering effects on the bodies of people whose mission is to nourish us." Read the latest GFJ Story on the creator behind Anjali's Cup, with words by Nicole J. Caruth and photos by Christine Han.

got a tidbit? drop it here for us and we'll share it in next week's newsletter.