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Ask HN: Feeling quite disheartened about job search, any advice?

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Ask HN: Feeling quite disheartened about job search, any advice?

#1

Post by dispirited »

Yeah, so I'm really feeling the negative side of the remote job market right now...can't help but feel pretty beat down. My savings are running out, and though I've tried lowering my expectations (like down to what I was earning when I first started as an engineer), I'm still getting no bites. TopTal is a race to, and scuffle at, the bottom, and I've probably spent more than a month on take-home assignments only to get demoralizing replies like "We liked your solution, but actually we decided not to offer this role". I have 8 YoE (mostly web apps) and am kind of facing a crisis of if I need to uproot my life and move. I don't have high living expenses, so I'm not at all expecting a big tech salary, but even still with low expectations I'm not getting many replies. My personal network hasn't been able to help either. I'm in the EU FWIW.

Any words of encouragement or advice or comfort? Feeling a bit down today.

Re: Ask HN: Feeling quite disheartened about job search, any advice?

#3

Post by pluc »

I have 25 YoE and talking to walls too. My only suggestion is to ask everyone to review your resume. If that doesn't work, start lying. The last time I was looking for work, I applied to over 600 positions. I've been off work 2 weeks and I'm nearing 200.

Came across this the other day, good resources hidden in links: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IUUwdEw0RjTftvJv3LTA-7XI... (such as this: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1a_l8V-R7i5UOJiCV_QUqK167...)

Re: Ask HN: Feeling quite disheartened about job search, any advice?

#4

Post by itake »

When I am in situations like this, I try to focus on the process, not the outcome.

Find joy in applying for new jobs, learning about system design and algorithms, or doing practice interviews.

If you follow the process, you will find that job.

----

On a side note, I would encourage you to not lower your pay or communicate you will accept lower pay, because its a signal to employers that you're desperate, no one wants you, and they too should be cautious to hire you. As one of my old favorite managers once told me, "when I gave you that offer, I wanted you to walk in on your first day smiling"

Re: Ask HN: Feeling quite disheartened about job search, any advice?

#8

Post by Charlie_32 »

Have you tried any indirect hunting tactics? Going to a tech meet-up and seeing who's hiring? Talking to people in the sector can also put your mind at ease when you relate to people with similar problems.

Might also be worth looking at University job boards if there's any Uni's in your town. I worked an academia job part time because it was all I could find, but I learned a lot and the work felt great compared to most office jobs. Might be a good stop gap for you, as they tend to be fixed term contracts I think.

Re: Ask HN: Feeling quite disheartened about job search, any advice?

#10

Post by mattlondon »

Get your CV/resume reviewed by friends/former colleagues or hell even here on HN. I have seen some ... let's say "wacky" CVs.

It feels like though the market is somewhat in the doldrums now - I have no direct experience of current conditions but at my BigCo (deliberately not naming) hiring is basically stopped, even for backfill/attrition. Seems like companies are kinda spooked at the moment and not really hiring, and letting headcount naturally shrink.

Have you considered contract work? If companies are not hiring FTEs, they may still be looking for temporary contract work as that is lower risk for them.

Good luck.

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