Occasionally I will receive email from recruiters about “can’t-miss” opportunities. The notes often feel like auto-generated spam, with my personal information copied and pasted into place.
On one hand this seems contrived and impersonal. I mean, if this is such a really “amazing opportunity at a Series A start-up” and you think I’d be “the perfect candidate,” couldn’t you have taken time to write me something personal? If these assuptions are true, reacting this way could be justified.
On the other hand, however, should I not be grateful that job opportunities are coming to me rather than me having to find them? Should I not be thankful that someone thought to send me an email (regardless of the method) and thought (perhaps for only a moment) that I might a fit for a position they know about?
What if recruiters never emailed you with opportunities? What if you had to constantly hunt for your next opportunity? What if you never left your crummy job because you weren’t sure what other opportunities were available?