Job Search Process - 12 Tips I Wish I Knew
i definitely did not look so happy during my job search process
this post is not:
- a step-by-step on how to write a CV or how to interview — there are better resources online than I can provide
- an industry-specific guide — take whatever is suitable for your path
- need a change of perspective
- need a little pep talk
- are earlier in your career or returning after a break
- have high, dreamy expectations and need a reality check
The Job Market Has Changed - And So Must We.
I just want to find my dream job, send one application and get the role.
A dear friend of mine shared this with me today.
This is exactly what the other 100 or 200 applicants applying for the same role also want, I replied cautiously. I didn’t want to discourage her, but I also didn’t want to withhold what I’ve experienced on my recent, exhausting job searching marathon.
Funnily enough, I had this conversation many times in the past year.
Because apparently many of us have been completely spoiled by our previous job hunting experiences, back in the days where they talked about shortage of skilled workers and you were able to choose your roles. Making us think like we’re some type of special snowflake.
And we thought that layoffs and scary job market stories simply don’t apply to us.
Some friends only sent out one or two applications for their first roles many years ago and immediately got accepted. Now, they got laid off.
Another had multiple offers to choose from within months. Now, she’s met with silence.
Another has more than a decade of experience in her industry, and was constantly being head hunted.
Now, she can’t get her foot back into the market for over a year.
I sent out three applications back in 2022, got an interview the next day and an offer within two weeks.
Part-time, fully remote, hello digital nomad life.
Now it took me 150+ applications, 10 interviews and several nervous breakdowns to get an offer.
Time has changed.
And so must we.
1. Stay in Your Lane (and Ignore Negative Internet Comments)
Some people send 100 application in a month, others 10. Others 2000 in a year.
You don’t know anything about the quality of their applications, their professional background, or what types of jobs they were applying to.
You don’t know about their financial and emotional resources. Their other commitments.
The amount of work they’re actually doing in the background. Or not doing. Whether they’re attending networking events, working on certificates, have a part-time job, or educating themselves otherwise.
It will probably take a while in the beginning to get into the process and feel confident. You will have phases of sprints, phases where nothing seems to work, phases where you need to take or break, or breakthrough moments.
Maybe you’ll get an offer within a month.
Or maybe you realise that you actually don’t want to work right away and rather focus some time on yourself and your hobbies and relationships. Maybe you want to finally start your own business. Travel. Do nothing. Learn that new skill.
Enjoy the side quests! Enjoy taking your mind completely off your employment status for a while!
And then come back after some months off — given that you have the financial resources.
It’s a unique opportunity to reevaluate where you are and dream up different possibilities.
Don’t compare your timeline and pace to someone else’s. Don’t let some internet stranger discourage you or make you doubt yourself.
Yes, we’re all triggered by existential fear, but this doesn’t mean that we don’t still have the power to write our own stories. And maybe find valuable lessons and even joy in it.
Focus on your lane.
2. Think in Iterative, Incremental Cycles Rather Than a Linear, Steady Path
In software development there’s an agile framework called Scrum, which deals with the highly uncertain world of developing complex software through short, iterative and incremental cycles.
Applied to your uncertain, complex job search, a one-month sprint could look like:
- Create a CV that’s 80% done.
- Apply for 10–20 roles with at least a 70% match.
- Customise CVs and cover letters for 1–5 roles you really want.
- Receive the first responses, revise and iterate.
Getting feedback fast is crucial to get you going. Yes, rejection emails hurt — and the sooner you get used to them, the better. On the contrary, every interview you get will feel like a lottery win, and this will make up for all the rejections in the long run.
Forget perfection, you want to create momentum. Refinement comes with time.
3. Quantity Over Quality (At First)
This may feel very counterintuitive, and I’d never suggest it in a normal economy. But you have to face the numbers. Look, I don’t know about your industry, but currently in tech there are at least 100 applications for one role.
Let’s say you’re highly qualified — there are probably still 10 other people with the exact same qualifications, maybe lower salary expectations and other unknown nuances that you don’t know about.
The only thing that helps is to maximise your chances of getting an interview by sending out as many applications as possible.
According to various Reddit threads, a ratio of 1 interview per 10–20 applications these days is quite common. On average, I got 1 interview for every 15 applications — but it heavily depends on your industry, niche, experience and the state of your local job market, so don’t fixate on those numbers.
Personal tip: Make use of the quick apply feature on most platforms. For the majority of roles, a (slightly adjusted) standard application is enough — save your energy for the 20–30% you actually want. But to be honest, in the end I hand-crafted and customised CVs and cover letters for around 30 roles and didn’t get a single interview from any of them.
4. Lower Your Expectations and Gather Data First
- Journal about your dream job — there is nothing wrong with being a little delusional and dreaming big, even though it feels impossible and scary.
- Archive that page and come back to it only when you are getting to final rounds or receiving offers.
Whether you think you know exactly what you want or have no idea where to start: truth is, you don’t really know until you get your foot into the current market. You have changed since your last role. Your needs have shifted. And what you think you want right now may look very different after your first three interviews.
So broaden your search. Don’t narrow down too early on salary ranges or specific benefits. Trust that refinement comes along the way — you cannot weed a garden you haven’t explored yet.
5. Be Diligent With Tracking Your Progress
Keep a simple Notion page or spreadsheet, where you note every job you applied to, the industries, the details, the outcome. Organising the information will ease your stress immensely and bring you a sense of accomplishment when you look at it at the end of the day.
Journal about what worked well, what didn’t, what type of questions where asked in the interview, how you want to improve the next time.
It won’t always be fun to log another rejection. Do it anyway. Over time you will get a clearer understanding about what’s working and what isn’t. And even if you don’t get the desired outcome, it’s valuable progress.
6. Customise Your Interview Answers
I know, you’re supposed to do this anyway.
But here’s what I’m getting at:
Recruiters are currently flooded by (AI generated) CVs.
Economy is not great.
Companies are more risk-averse.
They prefer the safe option.
Show that you’re the safe option.
Add two extra enthusiasm points when talking about how great their company is (without sounding too fake).
Study the job requirements and write down exactly the qualities they are looking for.
Tailor all your answers in the interview to those qualities.
Especially when they ask about your hobbies or what you did in the CV gap.
Show a little bit of personality, but not too much.
Come with a good story that fits the job requirement.
What I did for example: In my free time I love doing calisthenics, because I enjoy breaking down complex movement skills into small progressive exercises.
(i admit it sounds cringey. but you get my point.)
7. Rejections Don’t Mean Anything About You
Especially in this economy.
Cry if you need to. Don’t doubt your self worth. Keep being the best version of yourself. Take a break when needed.
And then come back and continue 🫶🏽
8. Don’t Do This Alone
Talk to people going through the same process
In the beginning, I used to go to group workouts in the middle of the day and met a bunch of recently laid off people — because who else would have the time to work out at noon? And along the way, more friends of mine got laid off or quit. It was really helpful to connect in a shared mission (and shared pain).
Talk to people in your network who could help
Shame is probably the number one emotion in a lay off / job search process.
First of all, there is no shame in being unemployed.
Second, there is no shame in reaching out for help — whether that’s connecting you to their network, reviewing your CV, or helping with interview prep.
Don’t be shy.
Everyone has gone through this phase in their life at least once.
You will most likely be met with sympathy.
9. Set Strong Work-Life Boundaries
Treat job searching like a job.
Set a start time and an end time.
Don’t mindlessly scroll through job listings whenever you’re on your phone.
Don’t check emails around your sleeping time. You really don’t want to go to bed or wake up to a rejection email.
(you will probably do all of this anyways until your mental health is really miserable. that’s how we humans learn unfortunately, i speak from experience.)
10. Remember That You’re a Human!
You are NOT your LinkedIn profile.
You are NOT your CV.
You’re a beautiful multi-dimensional being that can never be squeezed in a job title and job description.
Make your mental and physical health your number one priority.
Don’t let the label ‘unemployed/searching for a job’ define you.
Invest in your hobbies, side projects, friends, and family. Have something else to talk about other than your job search.
Sometimes it’s easy to forget to breathe.
random: I went from three consecutive pull-ups to eleven during my job searching time. No one will ever care about this, but I do.
11. Have Fun and Be Curious About How Creative You Can Become
You’ll probably hate me for saying this. I would have.
But if you remove the existential angst for a minute and look at the big picture: this is a wonderful opportunity to go on a quest and get to know a variety of companies, their cultures and values. I was stubbornly sure that there was only one company in the world that could work for me with aligned values (naive, I know!) but the job search stretched my beliefs in all the best ways possible.
Go out and explore the possibilities. Get lost for a while, and when the time is right, target a few selected ones and get to work. Learn how to sell yourself, embarrass yourself, and surprise yourself. Let go of your identities and step widely out of your comfort zone.
From experience, I can say that the closer you are to rock bottom, the more you will see that there’s absolutely nothing to lose anymore. And if you step into that turning point of genuinely not caring what others think about you — that’s where liberation lies.
Transmuting this raw survival energy into purpose.
(please don’t let it come to a rock bottom moment, you can start the transmutation before!)
12. A Reality Check for My Spiritually Inclined People
Continue your prayers. Continue your manifestation work. Continue talking to God, your guides and ancestors.
Everyone gets the experience they need and I’m genuinely happy for you if you’re able to attract a dream role within a week without lifting a finger — during this f*cked up economy.
For everyone else: you are not misaligned if things are not working out immediately.
Yes, inner work is important, but so is rolling up your sleeves and being willing to dig into the mud if necessary. Sometimes the lesson you need to learn is about how to survive (and thrive) in this physical world in a very practical way. It can get ugly, messy, and no amount of candles and chanting will save you (even though it helps to feel better).
My guides kept telling me — in the midst of nightmares, daily crying and existential dread — that everything will be fine in the end.
But I still had to do the work.
You cannot get around the hard work. Your strength, determination and faith is being tested.
Remember that this journey, too, is a spiritual one. You will learn so much about yourself in the process: how to be your biggest cheerleader, how alignment feels for you through experiencing misalignment, and how to grow in ways you wouldn’t have thought possible.
One can argue that there actually is magic in such a transformative, humbling process.
I hope you found some value in this post. Feel free to share this with a friend or let me know how the journey went for you!
Trust that everything will turn out well. May you face the inevitable with more ease and lightness.
Good Luck❣️
more random tips
- Apply locally. You want to get a remote job or relocate? Well guess what, that’s what many people want and in this economy you don’t want to make it more difficult than it already is with more competition.
- Use a standard CV template unless you’re a designer.
- Polish with AI and then add 30% of humanness.
- Ask the recruiter about their experience at the company. Treat them like a colleague, not someone you’re afraid of.
- It’s okay to have 20 iterations of your CV
- It’s okay to feel like a depressed, exhausted and burnt out mess. Stop scrolling, do what makes you happy, take care of yourself and come back when you’re ready.
- It’s okay to feel calm, confident and actually not so stressed out like everyone else. All emotions and experiences are valid.