What to do when things don’t seem to be working?

You’ve been looking for that new job for a few months now.?

You’ve applied to, what seems like thousands of positions without getting the kind of reaction you’d like to have.?

You’re pretty sure you’ve done it all right, or at least … have put in the work from your perspective to land that job.?

Resume? Updated and done.

Interviews? Answers practiced.

Meeting and networking people? Yup.?

So… Now what?

You're no slouch when it comes to doing ALL THE THINGS you need to do to be in the running for that fabulous new opportunity.? However, you may want to consider these three things if you're not seeing the results you'd like in your job search:

1. Listen to the feedback. You’ve been actively applying and hoping to get selected for interviews for a while now.? What has the job market been telling you? Not sure what it is saying because you haven’t heard from anyone?? Consider that a sign. I mean this with all love, of course, as I know that many jobseekers give 110% of their energy to make sure they’re on their game.? They are getting their resume, LinkedIn, and other marketing collateral in order, and doing the legwork to be in front of the right people. But…? if you aren’t getting the kind of positive response you hope for, and it’s been a few months of active effort, consider that some part of your approach may need a revamp. A part of your strategy isn’t working as well as it could be.

Of course, there are always systems and people involved in hiring who might miss out on understanding what you fully bring to the table all together. And they’re not worth your precious energy.? However, it’s important to focus on the overall response. If you’re consistently putting forth the effort and getting nothing but crickets back, it’s time to change something in your strategy.

2. Seek out new perspectives for guidance. A lot of job seekers share what they’re doing with people they know, including soliciting advice and insight on whether things like their resume ‘looks good’, tips on how to best answer a tricky interview question, or if they know of any potential companies looking for new employees and who can refer them.? These are all great starting points.? However, if you aren’t gaining the traction you want after diligent work, it sounds like new advice is in order.? If your network of trusted resources consist of your peers, or even people who haven't hired people firsthand recently nor know anything about your desired field, you’ll want to change the lineup of resources.? Find the people who can directly help you make the kind of strides you want professionally.? And yes, this might even include investing in resources - be it from a consistency, time, and financial perspective – who can help troubleshoot issues effectively and efficiently based on their expertise.

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3. Show others your value rather than telling them about it. When people are in pursuit of a new job, you typically see them share the news with others,? including posting on social media about how they’re looking for their next role and a high-level summary of their years of experience and industry preferences.? While sharing the news publicly is a good start, consider doing more. Give examples that show the expertise and experience in action and within a venue where others can see it.? Many people choose to do this through volunteering or gig-work (great ways!), but showing your value in new ways on social media could be incredibly helpful for building your brand and professional reputation.

Does this mean doing more than just ‘liking’ someone’s post, or re-sharing the boiler-plate press release from a company or news outlet you like? Yes, most likely. It would be a good idea to brainstorm additional ways to showcase your knowledge and passion for your line of work beyond the obvious.

A person who I think does this well is Alex Wang . I had come across her posts while working at 德勤 , as I found out she had as well (albeit on another continent!). She shared helpful nuggets about data science, machine learning and other related topics from her everyday work – practical examples of things she encountered in the technical aspects.? I appreciated that she also shares insights about her journey as a professional in this field – highs, lows, the gray areas… while building her visibility and a sense of her professional depth and interests.? Consider making different kinds of contributions to your social footprint and in ways that feel authentic to you -- it'll help gaining visibility to your background in a meaningful way.

Hitting a brick wall when it comes to making job moves? What tips to gain traction in the job search do you find to be most helpful?

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