How to Get a Handle on an “Endless” Job Search

“My job search feels like I set off to walk across town and now I’m hiking Mt. Everest. When did this get so hard?”

While the job search experiences vary greatly depending on multiple factors, I’ve heard this sentiment echoed across industries and sectors over the past two years.

Getting a job right now is tough. It requires:

· Tenacity: Creating a plan and sticking with it.

· Creativity: Finding new ways to forge relationships and tease out opportunities.

· Skill: Excellence in your work.

· Empathy: Connecting your skills with those required by the job.

This is way different from the job search of yore, where you made ONE resume, printed it out, and dropped it off around town.

Now, when you’re job searching, you’re doing two jobs: 1. Finding a job and 2. still doing your job (or preparing yourself to do your job), both of which take distinct skills.

If managing two jobs isn’t exhausting — especially when one has been thrust on you and isn’t necessarily your wheelhouse — I don’t know what is! (Also managing a toddler? Twins? It can always get harder!)

I’ve read that the average time to find a job in 2024 is 5–6 months, but I’ve seen tech…