Super niche balance of skills, but the kind we are looking for. Unfortunately in Amsterdam, not NYC/Paris.
Ask HN: I’ve been applying to a million jobs
101–110 of 259 posts
Re: Ask HN: I’ve been applying to a million jobs
#102You kinda sound like a primadonna. It's an "inhumane effort" for you to even just apply for a regular job? How are you going to react when I give you a task that's actually unpleasant?
Re: Ask HN: I’ve been applying to a million jobs
#103I write resumes and coach job seekers who have difficulty in finding work or navigating career issues (my HN profile has links). My background includes nearly 20 years in recruiting for east coast startups. You have a few things going 'against' you in most cases. I haven't seen a resume yet, but based on your site and post: 1 - You're relatively junior (at 23). 2 - You now live in France and want either remote work o…
Great analysis. Targeting and messaging is key. Treat the job search like analyzing a problem. What kind of industry do I want? What is my market? How am I marketable in this market? Do my skillsets match? Create lists so you can visualize your opportunity.
As far as messaging you need to show accomplishments? Translate to measurables like $ grown, $ saved, % improved, % eliminated, etc. Those pop out that you are goal oriented.
I've found the generalizing duties and skills doesn't get much attention.
Re: Ask HN: I’ve been applying to a million jobs
#104Tossing CVs down an HR portal (to nowhere) isn't a way to find jobs. You find jobs by knowing people . I'm sure there are some developer/designer meetups in Paris. Find one (or many) and start going. That doesn't mean sit in the back silently. You need to network. This doesn't have to be cheesy. Make small talk. Get to know them and their interests. Maybe you'll have the same favorite CSS framework. Talk about that t…
General idea is to market and sell yourself. Doesn't necessarily have to be networking. But of course you do have to promote yourself and learn how to do that well if you are planning to have a career in this field. Competition for software jobs is not going to decline.
Re: Ask HN: I’ve been applying to a million jobs
#105I want you to know you are not alone... I have been doing the same thing with the same results for the last 6 months.
I have applied to over 168 jobs (I used LinkedIn and it tracks them all). Of that I got about 25 recruiter interviews (level 0), about 15 Hiring Manager interviews (level 1) and about 10 second stage calls or on-site (level 2).
None have yet panned out or even look close...
It's hard out there right now - I do not know why precisely. I have many guesses.
But the important thing is to keep applying. Certainly, if you stop, nothing will happen further on its own. Knowing your not alone hopefully helps you do that.
In the future I hope we can do something smarter with this information.
Re: Ask HN: I’ve been applying to a million jobs
#106I write resumes and coach job seekers who have difficulty in finding work or navigating career issues (my HN profile has links). My background includes nearly 20 years in recruiting for east coast startups. You have a few things going 'against' you in most cases. I haven't seen a resume yet, but based on your site and post: 1 - You're relatively junior (at 23). 2 - You now live in France and want either remote work o…
What kinds of projects do you consider that look good on a resume?
If you need more context, I just started learning web development and want to start building some interesting projects that could help me get a job.
Re: Ask HN: I’ve been applying to a million jobs
#107Tossing CVs down an HR portal (to nowhere) isn't a way to find jobs. You find jobs by knowing people . I'm sure there are some developer/designer meetups in Paris. Find one (or many) and start going. That doesn't mean sit in the back silently. You need to network. This doesn't have to be cheesy. Make small talk. Get to know them and their interests. Maybe you'll have the same favorite CSS framework. Talk about that t…
This is good info and the best place to start - but unfortunately eventually the contacts and acquaintances routes are used up without response.
This is one of several ways to apply (I think the first way one should apply) and after some time you should be doing more.
Re: Ask HN: I’ve been applying to a million jobs
#108I write resumes and coach job seekers who have difficulty in finding work or navigating career issues (my HN profile has links). My background includes nearly 20 years in recruiting for east coast startups. You have a few things going 'against' you in most cases. I haven't seen a resume yet, but based on your site and post: 1 - You're relatively junior (at 23). 2 - You now live in France and want either remote work o…
You can also test those things out and gain some confidence in the game. Make a bunch of fake persons with similar skills, try many different ways to present them and see which ones get the most responses.
Re: Ask HN: I’ve been applying to a million jobs
#109What does your CV look like? You're getting a lot of feedback about your website, but I doubt this is what hiring companies are getting hung up on. Using a website to showcase some of your work is great, but your CV is what's going to make or break the deal.
If your CV is written in a similar style, then I'd say that's your problem. Keep it short and professional; define your skill set by listing the tools you use and briefly describe where you've used them. Don't over design it, and keep the personal flair to a minimum.
Re: Ask HN: I’ve been applying to a million jobs
#110I write resumes and coach job seekers who have difficulty in finding work or navigating career issues (my HN profile has links). My background includes nearly 20 years in recruiting for east coast startups. You have a few things going 'against' you in most cases. I haven't seen a resume yet, but based on your site and post: 1 - You're relatively junior (at 23). 2 - You now live in France and want either remote work o…
What kinds of projects do you consider that look good on a resume? If you need more context, I just started learning web development and want to start building some interesting projects that could help me get a job.
The biggest thing with projects is that they're 'finished'. Most young devs have 20 sloppy repos or apps/sites with incomplete functionality that sends the message that the person is not able to finish something.
Of course you can go back and refactor old code (which you probably will if you keep repos public as your career advances), but have at least a few completed and fully functional projects to show.