Get weekly-ish tips on interviews, resumes, networking, salary negotiation, and how to break through the noise in a market where everyone’s shouting. I’ve worked at Google, Microsoft, and Salesforce (to name a few). Hired for high-performing teams. Mentored hundreds of job seekers—many from underrepresented backgrounds—into life-changing roles. The problem? Most career advice out there is outdated and given by folks who’ve never hired, never survived an 11-round interview loop, and never worked in the roles you’re applying to. I write the kind of actionable advice I needed, but couldn’t find. 👉🏾 Not another boring newsletter. 1,800+ job seekers agree—subscribe now.
So your cold outreach messages keep getting ignored. Now what?
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Here's part 2 of last week's “WTF happens to your job app after you hit submit?!” Today we'll cover the cold messages that cut through the noise — and the ones that flopped. (You probably know me from one of my freebies (resume templates, interview prep, questions to ask your interviewer), or maybe from social media. 👋🏾 Thanks for tuning in. When I was hiring recently, my inbox turned into a full-on traffic jam:
I replied to ~5 of those LinkedIn messages. Not because I’m anti-outreach... I'm all for scrappy. But I just couldn't reply to everyone. And honestly? Most messages just blended together. Here's what stood out:✅ Memorable opener ❌ I saw a lot of: “Hey Ratna, I came across your post and wanted to reach out…” ➡️ What stood out to me: "Hey Ratna, this is probably the 500th message you're seeing about your open role..." → It's okay to infuse a little humor into your hook to help break the scroll. ✅ They didn't ask me to chat before applying ❌ I saw a lot of: “I’m thinking of applying and wanted to chat first to learn more about the role…” ➡️ What stood out to me: "Just submitted my application and wanted to reach out directly...” → No wavering. Just a confident nudge saying, “Hey, I’m in the mix, and here’s why I'm worth a look.” ✅ They created an emotional connection (and I make it really easy to do that) ❌ I saw a lot of: "Saw you had an open role... I'm passionate about fostering collaboration and have worked at XYZ companies..." ➡️ What stood out to me: "Saw your reel about resume summaries — I reworked mine right before applying!” → I literally post job search advice across multiple platforms, yet only 1 person referenced it. It takes 30 seconds to find something about the hiring manager worth referencing — most people just don't. ✅ They didn't regurgitate their entire resume ❌ I saw a lot of: [long intro with no mention of how their skills actually relate to my open role] ➡️ What stood out to me: "I built dashboards that saved our teams a ton of manual work — sounds like that kind of automation is a big focus in this role.” → I didn’t have to do any guesswork. They showed me how their experience transfers, quickly and clearly. ✅ They kept it low-pressure ❌ I saw a lot of: "Do you have 15 minutes to chat?” ➡️ What stood out to me: “Happy to send over more detail if helpful — either way, thanks for reading.” → When I’m hiring, I can’t do calls with everyone. The strongest messages respected that. They gave me a reason to pay attention and left the door open. Job search in today's market is absolutely brutal — I know. You’re putting yourself out there, over and over again, and most of the time… crickets. But a thoughtful message does cut through the noise. A little more intention in your messaging can be the tweak that gets you noticed. And if no one’s told you lately... 💫You’re doing great 💫 If you’ve been second-guessing your cold messages, you’re not alone. Send me yours — I’ll review it and help you make it stronger. I read every reply!
P.S. If you need additional job search support — a few 1:1 coaching spots open up each month.
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Ratna | @jobwhisperer
Get weekly-ish tips on interviews, resumes, networking, salary negotiation, and how to break through the noise in a market where everyone’s shouting. I’ve worked at Google, Microsoft, and Salesforce (to name a few). Hired for high-performing teams. Mentored hundreds of job seekers—many from underrepresented backgrounds—into life-changing roles. The problem? Most career advice out there is outdated and given by folks who’ve never hired, never survived an 11-round interview loop, and never worked in the roles you’re applying to. I write the kind of actionable advice I needed, but couldn’t find. 👉🏾 Not another boring newsletter. 1,800+ job seekers agree—subscribe now.