Thank You Letters: The Risks vs. The Benefits

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Thank You Letters: The Risks vs. The Benefits [by Jamie Bailey] This week, our recruiters weigh in on the potential benefits and risks of sending thank you cards to firms after interviews and come out decidedly against it.

Find out why.

One of the most common questions that at-

preciative and classy, (3) it helps them stand

learn that no one else would even consider

torneys ask me after going in for an interview

out from the crowd and be more likely to get

asking out their boyfriend or girlfriend if he

is whether or not they should send a thank

hired, and (4) it restates your case.

or she were single.

Before you ever send a thank you letter,

1. Thank You Letters Show You Are Inter-

2. Thank You Letters Show They Are Appre-

please read this article.

ested in the Job

ciative and Classy

The longer I have been in the business of

If you go to an interview, are nice to your

Many attorneys got it drilled into them at

legal recruiting, the more I have become

interviewers and shake hands with people

some point in their lives (by their grandmoth-

convinced that sending a thank you letter is

after it’s over, you are interested in the job.

ers, perhaps) that a classy person always

a bad idea. I have heard-and seen--far too

Moreover, if you apply to the firm in the first

writes a thank you letter to show their appre-

many horror stories regarding thank you

place, you are interested in the job. Think

ciation. I do not necessarily agree with this.

letters and believe the cost-benefit analysis

about it. The employer is already aware of

strongly weighs against the writing of thank

your interest. If you really want the job, then

In romance novels, notes are always being

you letters. They are simply not a good idea.

let the employer know the reasons why dur-

exchanged between the knight and his dam-

ing the interview. This is all you need to do.

sel. In addition, many Americans have mis-

yourself when considering whether or not to

Would you send a thank you letter after a

socio-economic ladder than them behave. In

send a thank you letter: what would you think

good first or second date? If you got a thank

this rarified environment (where a powerful

if you got one of these after a first date? In

you letter in the mail after a good first date,

partner you interviewed with might certainly

the job search situation, you are trying out

what would you think? You would probably

live), it is imagined that thank you notes on

for a potential long-term relationship with

think a couple of things.

expensive stationary are routinely exchanged

you letter. The resounding answer is “no.”

There is one thing you should always ask

guided views about how others higher on the

your employer. Just as there is in dating, you

after meetings.

need to have at least some mystery to make

First, you would think that you had already

the other side like you and, in addition, the

“closed the deal” and that the person was

Not necessarily the case. In fact, if a client

other side wants to feel like they are lucky if

very interested in you. While this might seem

got one of these notes, they would be more

you are interested in them, too.

like a good idea in some respects, it isn’t. I

likely to think the attorney had ulterior mo-

am not suggesting you play “mind games” in

tives rather than that they were classy or

This article analyzes the benefits and the

either your personal or professional life, but

appreciative.

costs of writing thank you letters. I hope that

I am suggesting that you do not need to com-

after reading it, you too will conclude, as I

pletely “show your cards” to your potential

The fact of the matter is, you can express

have, that sending a thank you letter is not a

employer.

your appreciation at the end of the interviews

good idea.

by simply saying “thank you,” smiling and If you show your cards too early, the potential

genuinely conveying your feelings through

employer will think that you may not have

the use of appropriate body language. Re-

a lot of options. The employer wants to feel

garding the “class factor”: you are who you

Many attorneys think that sending a thank

as if you are someone that is in demand in

are. You will come across as the person you

you letter is a good idea. The common rea-

the market, because they will view you more

are by the way you talk, the way you dress,

sons they think this are: (1) it shows they are

favorably. To revisit the dating metaphor:

the way you carry yourself and more. You

interested in the job, (2) it shows they are ap-

people, in general, would not be excited to

are not going to change the employer’s mind

A. The Rationale for a Thank You Letter

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WEEKLY RECRUITER SPEAK

about your classiness through a thank you note.

concerned about a collegial atmosphere and While I have gone about making this point in

more. It was amazing to me. I knew each of

an extremely long-winded way, I hope you

these students interviewing and they were

3. Thank You Notes Help You Stand Out from

can see that there is little a thank you note

among the most competitive people I knew.

the Crowd and Be More Likely to Get Hired

can do to improve your chances in the above

I also know each of them was full of it. Out

process. Yes, the interviewing process can be

of those six people, I know one of them went

Many attorneys think that sending a thank

and is different for different firms and for dif-

to work at Latham & Watkins (and is now a

you note will make them stand out from the

ferent classes of attorneys (partners, associ-

partner I think), one at Sullivan & Cromwell

crowd and therefore will be more likely to get

ates, etc.). Nevertheless, the basic interview

and another at Skadden Arps Slate Meagher

hired. I will concede that this argument may

follows this sort of format. Here, the thank

& Flom.

have some validity if you are interviewing

you letter is not all that likely to make that

with an extremely small law firm. However,

much of an impact on the process.

with large law firms, this is rarely going to

The point here is that all these students were masterful bullshitters. Given what they

Now, in the interest of fairness, I would like

did with their careers, it seems obvious to

to point out that there are certain types of

me almost all were lying to the firm. What

Let me tell you how most interviews with

situations where a thank you letter could re-

I suspect is that if I had sat there the entire

large law firms work. I hate to be so simplis-

ally serve to make your point effectively but

day, everyone would have said the same thing

tic, but in many respects this is how it goes:

where I still would caution against writing

to this small firm. Certainly, the firm must

one. The most common instance is when you

have known that these people were not being

a. Partner gets your resume (and cover let-

are a very well-credentialed attorney coming

honest. The only thing they were doing was

ter) from the recruiting coordinator of the

from a large firm and interviewing with a

trying to get the best job.

firm via office messenger or email;

smaller law firm. Here, there is a possibility

b. Partner reviews your resume and decides

that you would be well served writing a thank

What this says to me is that there are certain

whether or not you look good within 1-5

you letter and here’s why:

rare situations when a note might make a

make much of a difference.

seconds;

difference. Here, every single one of these

c. You show up for the interview. Partner

When I was in law school, a small law firm

candidates was telling the same story. A

makes up mind about whether or not they

from a small town in Alabama came to

note might have made their case a little

like you by the way you look and what was in

interview at my law school. There were many

better and made them sound more convinc-

your resume within 1-5 seconds;

well-credentialed attorneys at this small law

ing in the end-if someone really did want to

d. Partner interviews you for 15-60 min-

firm, but the fact remained that it was still

work in a small town in Alabama. Of all the

utes. May actually change their mind about

a very small firm of less than ten attorneys.

potential situations where you would need

whether they like you during the interview

The firm only interviewed people who were

to stand out from the crowd, though, this is

(10-15% of the time);

on law review and had marketed itself as a

about the only one I can think of where a note

e. Partner fills out an evaluation of you in

rare lifestyle firm that was really exception-

would help you do this. Given the small size

1-5 minutes and sends back to recruiting

al. It got a lot of interest. For some reason,

of the firm, they would want a very intimate

coordinator;

I wrote down the wrong time and showed up

understanding of every candidate they hired.

f. Recruiting coordinator goes over your

for the interview (being held in a small inter-

A note would also help separate those who

reviews from partners and associates who

viewing room on campus) about two hours

are genuinely interested in the position from

interviewed you and advises the hiring part-

early. Each interview was 20 minutes, so over

those who are not. Notwithstanding, this sort

ner of them. Person is ultimately hired or

the course of the next two hours I watched

of situation is so rare that I do not think it

not hired after some further discussion. This

six separate law students in my class walk

merits further discussion.

could take a day, or it could take months.

into their interviews with the firm. Based on

Firm will be concerned with whether they

the way the interview room was situated, I

have the money to hire you, the work to hire

could also hear each interview occurring.

you, if your experience is right for the job, if

4. Thank You Letters Restate Your Case While the above discussion touched on this

your interviewers liked you, if you are likely

Each of the six people who went in for the

a bit, I believe it is important to devote a

to succeed in this position, your potential

interviews made the same pitch about how

separate section to “restating your case.”

employment stability, your “fit” with the firm

they did not want to practice in a big firm,

Many attorneys who interview with law firms

and more.

money was not important, they were more

are under the impression that they need to

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(1) tell them what you are going to tell them

bring him back to the United States in a few

in a cover letter, (2) tell them in an interview

If you did something wrong in an interview,

and (3) then tell them again in a subsequent

if you did not make your case well enough,

thank you letter. If you have any familiarity

the odds are very slim that a thank you letter

I prepped the attorney the best I could for

with marketing, then you certainly may sub-

is going to make much of a difference. More

the interviews, but they still did not go well.

scribe to this belief system as well.

than likely, it will hurt you.

I learned this from someone else inside the

I do not think you ever need to restate your

In closing this section, I want to briefly write

scheduled to get on a flight on a Sunday

case after the interview. If you have made

about a situation where I worked with a can-

morning for his 30+ hour trip back. I called

your initial case well enough, you will not

didate and wrote a series of thank you letters

my candidate on Saturday morning at 7:00

need to because you will already be believed

with him over an 18-hour period that ended

am and told him to come over to the office so

by whomever is weighing the pros and cons

up getting him a job. This is a rare situa-

we could reposition his candidacy with the

of hiring you. If you restate your case, you

tion and one where I believe a considerable

firm.

may actually make things worse if there is

amount of skill was brought to bear. It was

any doubt or indecision with your reasons for

not easy, though, and it certainly could have

With considerable coaching, he did not com-

wanting to work for the firm.

backfired.

plete his thank you letter until about 3:00 am

One of the most interesting classes I ever

My candidate was working in a very distant

letter went into detail about why he wanted

took in law school was a class in conjunction

place as a corporate attorney. While I will not

the job, was brutally honest about his lack of

with the psychiatry department where we

divulge the location, suffice it to say it was

opportunities, described how hard he would

studied murderers. This class was fascinat-

not in the United States and he was work-

work and how much the position would mean

ing because five other students and I actually

ing in one of the most isolated places I have

to him and ended up being a very moving

got to watch police and psychiatrists inter-

ever heard about. He was practicing in an

product. I actually heard that a couple of

view murderers behind mirrored glass. One

area where no one spoke English, where the

partners who received the letter cried when

of the things that I learned in this class was

weather conditions were brutal and where

they read it.

that no matter how bad something is that

he desperately felt the need to return to the

someone does, they almost never think they

United States. The problem was, the market

are wrong or change their position. Through-

was not right for him to return at all. Without

out my legal career, as I worked for a judge,

meeting him, I got him numerous interviews

This situation, however, was extraordinary.

and then a string of attorneys, it became very

in the United States after convincing him to

There are not a lot of situations like this

clear to me that once someone has formed

spend 30 hours and a great deal of money on

where you need to step in and really do

an opinion about something, it is exceedingly

train and airline fares to travel here. In his

something monumental to get a position. It

rare that his or her opinion will be changed.

first trip to the United States, he did not get

worked here. It would not always work and

Certainly, outstanding lawyers can influence

a single job offer and had very poor interview

it was a risk. I want to be clear with you that

judges and juries. The truth remains, though,

skills. For all intensive purposes, his job

this sort of tactic should only be used in the

that most people believe what they believe

search appeared doomed.

rarest of situations.

weeks for interviews.

firm on a Friday evening. My candidate was

that morning. It was an incredible effort. The

He got the job.

and there is little you can do to change that.

There are thousands of political, psychologi-

The candidate continued to contact me and,

B. Why You Should Not Write Thank You

cal and social situations where it is next to

feeling incredibly sorry for him, I continued

Letters

impossible to change what one party thinks.

plugging away at his job search, but was unable to get any results. The market was

You should not write thank you letters be-

In the interview situation, a thank you let-

simply not right. As luck would have it, I was

cause, (1) they make you appear not to have

ter is rarely going to change how someone

able to set up a meeting with a partner I

any other options, (2) they give you an op-

thinks about you. In fact, because people are

knew who was traveling to this distant land

portunity to screw up, (3) they can potentially

more eager to justify their own decisions

for an unprecedented business trip. After

polarize interviewers against you, (4) they

than anything, a thank you letter may actu-

considerable lobbying, I got the partner to

can make you appear dishonest or disingenu-

ally serve the opposite purpose because the

meet with the candidate in a town about 3

ous, and (5) they make you appear like you

interviewer will read into it what he or she

hours from where he lived in a hotel bar

have nothing better to do.

wants to in order to justify their decision.

for drinks. Incredibly, the partner agreed to

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1. Thank You Letters Make You Appear Not to Have Any Other Options

too personalized, not personalized enough2. Thank You Letters Give You the Opportunity

whatever? Again, the quality of the stationary

to Screw Up

you are using says a lot about you. Maybe the person receiving it will like you based on this-

Let me be frank about one thing: Most attorneys do not write thank you letters after an

I have heard so many thank you letter horror

maybe they will not. You simply have no way of

interview. In fact, I would say that less than

stories that it is hard to count. When you write

knowing. Why, though, should you even take a

5% do. Accordingly, the people who will re-

a thank you letter, the chances are very good

chance?

ceive your thank you letter likely never wrote

you may make an error. They happen all the

one themselves when they got a job at the

time. One of the most common errors is a

I have also seen many stellar attorneys who

firm. Therefore, their first questions are: Why

typo, a misspelling, or something of the sort.

were guilty of (1) faxing thank you letters from

is this person writing me a thank you letter?

You may get the firm’s suite number wrong,

work, or (2) sending a thank you letter from

Is his current job in jeopardy? Is he desperate

you may misspell a name-the list is endless.

their work email address. These are stylistic

for a job?

One of the more common ones I have heard,

things that can also cost you an offer-regard-

is attorneys interviewing with several firms

less of how good of an interviewee you are.

As a legal recruiter, I have worked with nu-

and sending thank you letters and mixing up

Not worth the risk.

merous attorneys throughout the years. I have

the people at different firms. This is more

worked with attorneys whose firms were shut-

common than you might think. All of these

All of the concerns above are stylistic. Cer-

ting down, attorneys who are unemployed and

errors are so common, I would estimate they

tainly, you can screw yourself up based on

attorneys who were eager to find a new posi-

happen with over 50% of the thank you letters

style, but what about substance?

tion for various reasons. The attorneys who

attorneys write after an interview.

In your thank you letter, you may say some-

typically ask me whether or not they should

thing like the following:

write a thank you letter are usually in trouble

Regardless of your good intentions, these

or desperate for a change like those above. I

errors can be extremely fatal. They communi-

hate to be so brutally honest, but this is true.

cate a lack of detail in an extremely important

As a patent attorney, I really feel Smith Smith

piece of written work product designed to get

& Smith fits in with my goals. I particularly

If an attorney is considering writing a thank

you a job. They give those who interviewed you

look forward to the opportunity to start getting

you letter, they have put themselves in a

and were unsure or simply did not like you

some litigation experience in addition to doing

situation where they are effectively saying: “I

excellent ammunition to use against you to

patent prosecution at your firm.

really need this job, I want to give myself every

prevent you from getting a job. No matter how

What if the firm does not have much IP litiga-

possible advantage and a good thank you let-

hard you try, you may end up making errors in

tion and only prosecution? You may have just

ter may really set me over the top.” This is not

these letters. I do not care if you were Summa

blown yourself out of the water. Despite their

the best strategy.

Cum Laude from a top five law school and work at a top ten American law firm - to err is human.

representations in the interview, you have no

If you appear not to have any other options,

idea what the firm’s plans are for you. You could say 10,000 different things like this in a thank you letter and end up not getting a job

the firm is likely to think there is something wrong with you that they do not know about.

Have you ever looked at someone’s handwrit-

Firms want to feel like all of their attorneys

ing and decided that you did not like them

are strong and in demand. If you do not appear

because it was too sloppy, not sloppy enough,

The point of this is that you never know how

in demand, firms will think that you are inter-

too organized, too pronounced, too formal-

the firm is going to view either the stylistic or

viewing there because they are losers. Firms

whatever? The fact is, many people read oth-

the substantive representations you make in

do not want to feel like losers.

ers writing and will reach conclusions simply

your thank you letter. Be extremely careful

by the way it looks. I’m not kidding! Why on

before you write a thank you letter and know

There is also no way to make firms think you

earth would you want to give someone an op-

that it will have consequences you might not

are in demand in a letter that is likely to be ef-

portunity to dislike you based on this?

ever be able to foresee.

are likely to think you are “bluffing” anyway if

In addition, we have not even spoken about the

3. Thank You Letters Can Potentially Polarize

you try and make this case in a letter. It is also

quality of the stationary you are using. Is it too

Interviews Against You

likely to piss them off. Keep the mystery going

expensive, not expensive enough, too colorful,

by not writing a thank you letter.

too bland, too large, too small, too formal,

due to it, unbeknownst to you.

fective. Lawyers are suspicious by nature and

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are going to be more interesting to you than

surprised because you have may have only

time to write a thank you letter. You do not

others. Consequently, you will make more

touched briefly upon what you are referring

need to make all interviewers think this, but

of a connection with certain interviewers.

to. Accordingly, what you write will sound

you need to make some of them think it.

While this is perfectly normal, the fact that

dishonest.

C. Conclusions

you might have more of a connection with one person than the other is not something that is

The main issue with thank you letters is that

going to serve you all that well in the interview

it is often difficult to say anything without

Getting a job, interviewing for a job and then

stage.

appearing to be stretching the truth. The

getting an offer is a careful dance. This is

intent of most attorneys in writing them is

especially so with law firms. If you screw up

When you write your interviewers thank you

to say something-anything-in order to make

at any stage in the process, you may lose your

letters, there is a chance that some may com-

a positive impression and stick out. This is

opportunity for an offer.

pare letters. If one letter is long and shows

often impossible to do without appearing to be

an obvious connection and another does not,

pushing it a little bit.

one interviewer may decide they do not like

Ultimately, it is up to you whether or not you write thank you letters. In extreme cases, as I

you due to this. Does this sound crazy? Yes.

If you appear to be a little bit overreaching

have pointed out in this article, I think they can

The dynamics of social organizations can be

in your thank you letter, the interviewer may

work. In the vast majority of cases, though, I

nothing short of insane. You simply cannot

think that you may not be trustworthy. You

do not think they are worth it. When you write

understand them-especially when you are not

may remind them of opposing counsel, an

a thank you letter you are taking a major risk

working there.

ex wife-or more. You need to be extremely

you do not have to.

careful.

Do not make the dynamics of a certain firm

If not a thank you letter, then what?

work against you. This is almost unavoidable

Given this concern, many attorneys try and

if you are sending several thank you letters.

be understated in their thank you letters.

All you have to do is shine in your interviews

Many interviewees decide based on this logic

The problem with this is that they then sound

and make the best impression possible. Do

just to write one thank you letter-to the high-

disinterested in the position-or even sarcastic.

this and nothing more and you will never have

est ranking partner they interviewed with, for

You can never control how others view what

the need for a thank you letter.

example.

you write.

Again, this can backfire. “He only respects the

5. Thank You Letters Make You Appear Like

most powerful person he interviewed with?”

You Have Nothing Better to Do

one interviewer might think. That person will not even be giving him assignments-I will.

Good attorneys are always busy. Clients and other attorneys in the firm always want to give

I hope you can understand that there is just

them work because they know the work done

potentially too much going on here with thank

by the good attorney is of the highest quality.

you letters for you to get involved. They can

Those are also the sorts of attorneys most

turn your interviewers against you. Avoid

firms want to hire.

them.

When you sit down to pen a thank you note, 4. Thank You Letters Can Make You Appear

many attorneys who receive it will not help but

Dishonest or Disingenuous

think that you have nothing better to do. This is extremely unattractive to many interview-

Thank you letters are typically rife with state-

ers. Worse, you may fax them the thank you

ments that sound suspect. Interviewees will

letter from work on the firm stationary, or

say things like “it was the most interesting

send it using the firm postage meter. This

conversation I have had in a long while,” or

looks bad. Really bad.

“our discussion reaffirmed my belief that this is where I really want to work.” When an

You want your interviewers to think you have a

interviewer gets a letter like this, he is often

lot going on-so much so that you do not have

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