Apply for one job at a time, or make out multiple applications? (CDL, interview)

[bentstrider]

I've been working steadily for the past, 16 years. As of the last six years though, I've finally somewhat stabilized into holding down jobs for longer than a year. My unending problem, along with many others, is reaching that point where you're either bored with the job or it's just no longer paying what it once was.

Anyways, I've been filling out multiple applications for a myriad of trucking companies in adjacent states over the past, couple of years. It used to be that I would expect nothing in the way of contact later. But recently, I've actually been shocked to get contacted 1-2 days later by each company and then having to choose which is the better one to go with.

For the sake of not burning bridges with a potential employer, is it better to just fill out one application at a time while doing research about the company and the area they're in? Or is it still better to fire out multiple apps in order to increase one's chances of landing a position elsewhere?

Personally, the application and following employer bombardment has been a tad overwhelming. Especially when you're still working at one spot and they are already hounding you over "when you're able to start".
With most of the jobs at least 8-10 hours away, moving is quite costly. Especially when you've been in the same spot for a few years and look back in horror at how much garbage you've accumulated.

[Hemlock140]

You cannot win the lottery if you don't play. When it comes to jobs, the more applications you have out there the better your chances of finding a good one and getting hired. Just because you apply doesn't mean you have to go for an interview or accept an offer if it's not what you are looking for. what you call employer bombardment is a good thing, most people complain that they are not getting any bites. Use it to your advantage. Just don't mention "bored with the job" as your reason for leaving the old job!

[Mr_Geek]

The more lines you throw in the water the more fish you can catch.

[DonaldJTrump]

Depends how desperate you want to leave the current
I've been looking passively for the past year, one app a week or two avg. Been through about a dozen phone interviews and like half a dozen in person. Rejected the only offer I had so far because it was basically the same exact job, but pay was higher.

[bentstrider]

Originally Posted by Hemlock140

You cannot win the lottery if you don't play. When it comes to jobs, the more applications you have out there the better your chances of finding a good one and getting hired. Just because you apply doesn't mean you have to go for an interview or accept an offer if it's not what you are looking for. what you call employer bombardment is a good thing, most people complain that they are not getting any bites. Use it to your advantage. Just don't mention "bored with the job" as your reason for leaving the old job!

That's my own, personal reason as far as the "bored" comment goes. I usually keep it in my head and attempt to edit it into something more crafty and useful before it gets past my noisebox. If anything gets asked of me at a particular interview, it's a slew of multiple jobs I held between 2008 and 2012. In the span of 2011 and 2012 I actually went through five jobs in a matter of a year. The fifth one I ended up staying at for three, but the preceding ones are the ones I get any grief for from an interviewer. I could've just said, "I was getting stressed out at those and HAD to get away." But I don't know how well that reply would've gone over with a terminal manager.

Then there were some companies such as McLane Foods where I got multiple replies within several months. First applied to **gulp**, a Denver area driving position back in 2016. The position with the days off advertised that I applied to was gone, but I was instead offered a "split days off"(read: easy way to get fired) CDL position. I didn't exactly tell the HR guy up there no, but told him I'd call back if I made my mind up.

Low and behold, I reapply for some positions with days off that I wanted and a location(Albuquerque) that were desirable. I encounter the same HR guy again and he pretty much tells me that the positions were filled rather quickly and then rambled on about "burning him" in regards to the split day off BS I was originally offered up in Denver. After explaining the little details about how the split days off weren't going to work out and how crazy over-priced I came to find the Denver area was, I just told him I'll lay off of it until I'm ready.

I don't know how it is in the highly coveted, and education heavy, tech and finance worlds, but the trucking industry tends to play by it's own selective rules. Sometimes they're selective and questionable towards applicants due to too many, "90 day wonders". Sometimes they've gone through so many people that as long as you didn't crash a truck elsewhere and can pass a drug screen, you're in a truck within 2-3 days.

For me, I'm just trying to find the right balance of pay, days off in the week, and of course the local costs of living within the area. Again, this is home every night/day, or every couple of days trucking. Not the "crowded truck stop" boogie with the oversized sleeper trucking.

[ExpertAnalysis]

Submit as many applications as you can two companies where you feel comfortable. You always need to keep your options open. You will not burn any bridges... This is simply a matter of today's job market.