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Finding a new job can be stressful.
- Looking for a job can be stressful and overwhelming, especially when you have to apply while working full time at your current gig.
- There are some things you can do, like asking for what you want directly, that can help you land the perfect job.
- Here are the three smartest things I did when looking for a new job.
In early 2015, I hit a low point. My freelance writing wasn't bringing in enough to pay the bills, and I was running low on funds. I imagined the resumes I had sent in response to ads on Craigslist and Indeed were disappearing into overfull inboxes, never to be seen again.
I was desperate to find work - any kind of work.
When my situation felt hopeless, I got willing to do things that seemed crazy, like replacing my safe, formal cover letters with wildly honest (and sometimes borderline goofy) notes and going on interviews for jobs I was sure I would never accept. And those crazy things were the secret sauce that got me job interviews and, in the end, a position at a nonprofit I had admired for years.
One disclaimer: I'm not going to tell you to network. I'm terrible at small talk, and I hate networking. That doesn't mean you shouldn't reach out to your network when you're looking for work - I'm just not the right person to tell you how to do it.
Here are the three smartest things I did when looking for a job: