Career PulseInsider's blog : What Applying to 80 Jobs Taught Me About Surviving the Job Hunt
Applying
to more than 80 jobs in four months has been both exhausting and eye opening.
At first, I thought blasting out my resume would guarantee results. I was
wrong. Most of the time, I heard nothing back. Some interviews went great and
still ended in silence. Others felt like a disaster and somehow moved forward.
There is no perfect formula, but patterns start to appear once you are deep
enough in the game.
Fixing My Resume Made a Huge Difference
I started
with a resume that looked clean but was way too generic. It was not until I
tailored it to each role using keywords from the job description that I began
getting callbacks. I also added bullet points that showed real results instead
of vague responsibilities. For example, instead of saying I managed social
media, I wrote that I grew engagement by 45 percent in six months. Numbers help
you stand out fast.
Interviews Are Wildly Unpredictable
I have
had interviews where the interviewer clearly did not read my resume and others
where they grilled me like I was on trial. The key is preparation but also
flexibility. What helped the most was keeping a list of common questions and
having short stories ready from past roles. I also followed up after each one
with a thoughtful email, which actually got me a second shot once after a shaky
first round.
Real Talk About Staying Sane
Rejection
can wear you down. I tried to keep things in perspective by taking breaks and
not refreshing my inbox every ten minutes. I also started sharing the process
online, and that opened up a lot of helpful conversations. You would be
surprised how many people are silently going through the same thing. Whether
you are applying to your first job or your fiftieth, the main thing is to keep
showing up—even if it is just one application a day.
- Jobs