Hi Realists! 👋

Welcome to Cup of Ambition, Volume 2!

Get the scoop on:

🔖Rebuilding Confidence in an Effed Up Job Market ❣️

🔖The Resume Realist + The Wall Street Journal Moment ❗

🔖Quick Poll on a Book Club 📘

🔖Boosting Your Target Jobs List With The BEST Job Report 🔍

🔖Remembering to Say Thank You 📝

In the words of Shania Twain…

9-to-5 Dilemma

“I’m used to getting jobs pretty quickly and I’ve never had an issue landing a job in the past. When it’s time to job search, I used to just update my resume a little, apply to jobs, get interviews, accept an offer, and start a new job in a few weeks. Lately though, I’m getting rejected for jobs I’m overqualified for, rejected for my exact job title in other companies, and I’m not getting any calls to interview, let alone an offer.

Is it me? How can my 17 years of experience be wrong? Am I an idiot now? Really tough to have those questions swirling and constantly get rejected from other opportunities as well.”

-Desperate and Depressed.

_____________________________________________________

Dear Desperate and Depressed,

You are seen. You are heard. You are wonderful.

Even when the incredibly backwards, biased, outdated, and inefficient hiring process leads a company to tell you that they’re not interested.

And usually, it’s not even about you, even though it feels like it is.

There is nothing that punches you in the gut more than job searching in 2024. It is messy out there and that mess destroys your confidence. It makes you start to question whether you really do bring value, if you’ve lost your allure, and whether anyone will ever hire you again.

And the worst part? There’s no magic formula that will open all the doors. A persuasive, well structured resume will open some doors, but not all. Networking will open some doors, but not all.

Hiring is full of bias, favoritism, inefficiency, poor communication, bad processes, and general chaos which all leads to a simple outcome:

^{The best person for the job doesn’t always get the job.}

So how to you stay resilient and persevere, even when it feels impossible?

🌼 First step, prioritize yourself, your wellbeing, and your mental health. 

Looking for a job (whether you’re employed or unemployed) has a major impact on your overall wellbeing. Schedule breaks, even if it’s a day or a weekend, to not be on LinkedIn, not applying to jobs, and not analyzing every application. I recognize that wellbeing often feels like a privilege, especially when your mortgage and bills are due. Beating yourself into the ground chasing jobs until you’ve lost yourself and your sense of worth won’t work though.

If you don’t yet have a therapist or mental health clinician in your corner, find one that matches your style and work their support into your job search routine. Having mental health support in a time of change, uncertainty, and self-doubt can be a game changer.

🌼Use a multi-channel approach and divide your time across each channel. 

To divide your time and maximize your energy, build a job search schedule and hold yourself accountable to keeping it.

It might look something like:

Monday: Applications

Tuesday: LinkedIn Outreach

Wednesday: Networking

Thursday: Applications

Friday-Sunday: BREAK

Give yourself time limits on how long you’ll scroll, apply, and reach out. When your time is up, move on. Give yourself boundaries to keep from spending 24/7 chasing, feeling defeated, and stuck in despair.

🌼Spend time with people who remind you how great you are.

Get out of your own head and spend time in the real world where it doesn’t matter what your job title is, whether that recruiter called you, or how many applications you submitted this week. Spend time with people who love you, show up for you, and remind you how wonderful you are as a whole person, not just an employee.

🌼Lastly, write this on a post-it note and stick on your laptop:

Have a 9 to 5 dilemma? Email me and tell me what you’re facing. Your story may be anonymously featured in a 9 to 5 Dilemma to help others facing similar challenges. ❤️

The Resume Realist + The Wall Street Journal?!

Pinch me.

About six months ago I wrote a LinkedIn post on “meeting maximalism” and the impact all the Zoom meetings have on our creativity, trust, and communication. Return to office mandates aren’t working, so what’s going on with trust at work?

About 4 months later I got an InMail asking if I had time to talk about the current state of the American worker, loneliness, and trust. It was a reporter from the Wall Street Journal. WHAT?!

I immediately hopped on the call and she mentioned my post and that it had sparked as she was researching views on the American workforce. We had the best conversation, over 90 minutes, about trust and work. And how everything has changed in such a short time period.

Check out the article here!

Gauging Book Club Interest

One of the things on my list lately has been pursuing a book club.

The Realist Book Club would meet monthly for 3 months, reading a career/personal development book, and working through the activities together (with other job seekers and professionals looking to level up).

This would be a great way to lean into your career story, build community with other job seekers and professionals finding their way in the work world, and build your personal development routine.

❓ So, what do you think ❓

Hot Tip: Shuftan Jobs Report

If you’re a job seeker and you haven’t subscribed to Dan Shuftan’s newsletter, Shuftan Job Report, you need to.

It’s PACKED with job listings and now includes a candidate spotlight that gives jobseekers promotion and air time to share their story across a large audience.

Introducing (FREE!) Prepped Pilot.

Modern interview preparation that puts you in control of getting an offer.

I’m working on a pilot project for a new service called Prepped— modernized interview coaching with a punch. I need a group of volunteers to participate in the pilot, totally free, so I can gather more feedback.

My vision for Prepped is to create space for professionals to practice interviewing with someone they're likely to face when a real job is on the line to build confidence, persuasion, and clarity in selling your unique value.

How it works:

✔️ We’ll use a real job description from a job you’ve applied to (or have an interview for) and partner you with a hiring manager in your field that has similar credentials, experience, or job title to the hiring manager you’ll likely interview with.

Example: You’re a VP of People Operations— you’ll interview with a Chief People Officer.

Example: You’re a Customer Service Specialist in a Call Center— you’ll interview with a Supervisor of Call Center Operations.

✔️ We will meet for 30 minutes to prepare and build interview skills using my Wins + Impact model.

✔️ You’ll participate in a mock interview with your Prepped Advisor and the interviewer will ask similar questions to those you’ll likely face in a live interview.

✔️ Your Prepped Advisor will complete feedback across core interview areas and provide customized recommendations on where to improve.

✔️ We’ll meet to walk through all the feedback and refine so you are Prepped for your interviews and you shine through selling your value proposition, skills, and talents.

✔️ You’ll feel more confident and in control of your interview to land an offer or promotion!

Building interview confidence is a lifelong skill that impacts earning potential and career trajectory. Even if you feel confident in interviewing working with a professional coach refine your abilities only amplifies your interview success rate.

Interested in participating in the FREE pilot? Drop your information and we will follow-up!

^{Did You Remember to Say Thank You?}

The thank you note post-interview hasn’t died. I recommend every job seeker have a template ready to send after each stage of the process. Most interviewers read thank you notes (as opposed to cover letters!), so spending a few minutes to remind them of your value proposition and thank them for their time can go a long way.

Phone interview?

Send a quick thank you and ask about timeline, next steps, and and reaffirm your continued interest and alignment with the job.

Interview?

Send a personalized thank you to each interviewer reiterating how your unique value and skills check all the boxes they need in this role.

Check out my templates and resources in the attachment to begin writing compelling thank you notes that move you forward to an offer!

Dollyism.

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