Don’t forget. No joke.

Better than a string around your finger, technology to the reminder rescue

It’s crucial for job seekers to maintain contact with all sorts of job search contacts. In addition to the most obvious – following up after an actual job interview – there are others with whom you need to stay in touch at regular intervals or at pre-determined times.

It can be a two-way street. Sometimes a contact will request that you reach out again in a certain period of time (e.g. “Call me around the first of the month.”), or sometimes you may ask the contact if you can get back to them in a certain period of time. (e.g. “Call I call you next week?”)

OK. Let’s be honest.

Everyone has done it at sometime or another. Sometimes you just forget to write down the follow up. Sometimes you forget the timing and reach out when it’s inappropriate. These are lapses you can’t afford during your job search. And no snide comments about old people forgetting things.

Just when you most need it, here comes technology to the rescue! Most email programs will permit you to schedule when an email is actually sent. So, when you return from an interview, the first thing, you can do while everything is fresh in your mind, is to draft the follow-up email. With the email safely prepared, tell your email program when to send it. For example, send at 7:00 a.m. on the first of the following month.

And you’re done. You don’t need to remind yourself. The email will be automatically sent.

But what if the situation changes and you need to revise that scheduled email? Again, most programs will allow you to edit an email while it’s in cue – or give you the opportunity to unschedule it; then you can make your edits; and re-submit.

Another option is to simply send an email to yourself on the appointed day reminding you to send that follow-up email. If it’s not an email, post a meeting on your e-calendar (i.e. Google calendar) to remind you to make whatever commitment you made.

Just when you thought that technology was an obstacle, here are simple, yet effective ways to stay on top your contacts, thanks to digital technology.

More tips.