Valedict
who cares?
I've been told by an AI to try and post on a few forums, including this one, about how i feel about job market, as a method of psychological self-help.
I'm a young male, 25 years old. I've had commercial experience and people tell me i got a nice set of skills.
But i couldn't find a job in the last 2 years. I've submitted over 200 applications. Mostly they were responded with silence. I am not even worthy of a "no" answer.
Eventually i've started having debilitating issues, like panic attacks during my next attempts of job search. I was hospitalized and diagnosed with clinical depression, then prescribed sertraline and quetiapine.
I'm not starving, my family supports me. But this feeling of alienation, where unemployment worldwide is rising, but the media doesn't portray it, and all problems attached to it at all, makes me feel unbelievably lonely. And i still feel very bad when i try to look at the available positions, to the point where it physically hurts. I've been hit by knives and hammers in the past, it doesn't hurt half as much. Am i really worth nothing?
Why attempts at job seeking give depression and really detailed thoughts of suicide instead of a job?
I hope somebody who is in the same boat reads this. Maybe it will at least make it a bit less...lonely.
Or maybe no one will read this.
2 answers
Mark W Stanley, PMP
Mark W’s Answer
For what it's worth, your experience in the job market is pretty much the norm these days. Companies have turned over the recruiting process to AI to do the bulk sifting and only deliver a handful of applicants to real people. Nearly everyone will get no response, or the standard "we are pursuing other options, but thanks for your interest."
So, what can you do? The first thing to know is that any decent job will get more applicants than you can possibly imagine - it can literally be in the hundreds. No one is going to read all of the applications; there just isn't time. Their first goal is to find things that make it easy to filter out applicants such as educational achievement, years of experience, physical location. and certifications. Some of this may be disclosed in the job posting, so pay close attention to that. If you see "5+ years of experience in this field" as a requirement and you don't have that, you can be certain you won't make it past the first cut. Your primary goal early on is to tailor your resume/application exactly to the job posting, providing enough information to show you qualify but not too much to get de-selected. Invest the time crafting your story on LinkedIn and in your resume. Don't just list things like awards, tell a story. What is your unique perspective that the world needs? You have one, tell us about it. Pay attention to key words that search engines use to find your unique skills.
Next, where are you looking for jobs? Remember that many of the job posting websites are only listing those openings to show they did in fact make a public post; they have no intention of hiring anyone that responds there. Don't take it personally when you don't get a response. Many real opportunities come from who you know. Now, if you think, "gee, I don't know anyone," then you have to do two things: reframe your list of connections and make new ones. You know people now, but maybe never thought of them as a conduit to a job. If you go to sites like LinkedIn and friend every person you know, it will be a start. If you have a good profile first, you can then change your settings to show you are "open to hire" so that recruiters will know you are available. Activities like Toastmasters will help you build confidence and give you an opportunity to meet people in a professional setting. Volunteering at places like Chamber of Commerce events, food banks, and animal shelters will put you in direct contact with people who can help you grow your professional network.
Finally, remember that people are drawn to those who display positive, friendly confidence. It requires some acting, but the interesting thing is that after you learn how to act that way you will begin to internalize the behavior and it will actually improve your own feelings about yourself.
I hope this helps!
Best,
Mark
