Survival Tools for the Job Hunting Journey
If you do nothing else, journal about others' embarrassing blunders for a dose of humility.
Navigating the job market can be a daunting process. The smallest of blunders can feel disproportionately embarrassing, and a single rejection may lead us to question our professional skills and qualifications.
If this feels familiar, here are some tactics that have been my anchor throughout the process that I hope can help you.
Journal about Others' Slip-Ups
One of the toughest aspects of job hunting is realizing that interviews are fraught with awkward moments. I've had my fair share of flubbed responses and premature celebrations of opportunities that ultimately fell through.
To counter this, I made it a practice to write down everyday an embarrassing moment that happened to someone else. These could range from a reality TV star's drunken blunder to a friend's disappointment with their LSAT scores. Unsurprisingly, instead of feeling vicarious embarrassment, I felt humbled witnessing someone accept their mistakes or persevere towards their goals despite facing setbacks. It served as a reminder that we are not alone in struggling.
Understand Rejection is Invariably About Fit
A common pitfall I had was equating a company's rejection with my general professional worth. I think it’s okay to feel sad about being rejected. But it’s important—and incredibly challenging—to not let ourselves paint ourselves to be failures based on rejections.
One process that really helped ground me in this truth was reflecting on companies that I rejected because they didn't align with my career aspirations. When I turned down roles due to reasons like company size, business type, or lack of learning opportunities, it showed me that rejection wasn't about a company's worth but about its fit for me. And often, I would actually redirect an opportunity to someone else who I thought might be a better fit.
The other process that prepared me was dating in my early 20s :)
Challenge Negative Thoughts with Concrete Frameworks
Another valuable tactic I found was combatting any negative thoughts with concrete frameworks (i.e. not ruminating by myself). One in particular comes from Dr. Julie Smith's "Overcome Stress and Anxiety" series on the Calm meditation app. The third episode, "Challenge Your Negative Thoughts," introduces a beneficial four-step exercise:
Identify a negative thought, e.g., "I will never get a job because I'm terrible."
Assign a percentage to the likelihood of this thought being true.
Write down solid evidence supporting this thought.
Imagine yourself as a lawyer challenging this thought. List counter-evidence. If this is tough, think about what a loved one would say.
This exercise encouraged me to critically examine my negative thoughts and helped me escape false narratives.
Remembering, You Just Need One Company
In the job hunting journey, regardless of how many companies we engage with, the falling through of any opportunity (even if by our choice) can trigger a sense of loss and the worry of ever finding the right place.
One piece of advice I continually leaned on during such times came from my sister, Head of Product at Rubrik, who persistently reminded me that I only needed to find one company. I think it’s easy to desire universal acceptance, but the reality is that we might not be the right fit for every company we interview with. And that's okay, because there's a vast array of companies out there, and we only need to find one.
Lastly, over time, I observed a pattern: every time one company fell out of my pipeline, another opportunity would invariably surface. While I am one to prefer predictability, I learned that proactive job hunting almost always yields new prospects. Acknowledging this fact was instrumental in helping me maintain positivity and resist the urge to settle during my search.