Six months into my first corporate job, my LinkedIn was suddenly flooded with updates.
“I am sad to announce that . . .”
“My journey with ___ has ended abruptly”
“I am now looking for new opportunities!”
Aren’t we all?
In a post-COVID world, job security is harder to come by, and my role was no exception. Having landed a “dream job” straight out of school, I unfortunately was one of the hundreds of thousands of twenty-somethings who found themselves unemployed in 2023. I’ll never forget leaving the campus parking lot on my last day; it was an exceptionally gorgeous morning in my often cloudy corner of the world. It felt strange to see my commute in the morning light, but the day was still young so I took that as my sign to keep moving forward.
I treated myself to a coffee and took the first step. I’d tell anyone in a similar position:
Take Immediate Action
It is tempting to marinate in feelings of loss. We’ve all seen a friend get their heart broken then swiftly enter post-breakup hibernation. Though, unlike romantic relationships, where time heals all wounds, the loss of a paycheck will only become more stressful as time passes.
Driving away from my workplace, I had no idea what my financial future would look like, but all I had control over in that moment was my effort and where I chose to direct it. I credit this decision (and one very motivational double-shot latte) as the reason I found a new job within a month.
Be Intentional With Your Effort
Unemployment in your twenties is already enough to inspire an identity crisis. It’s a time for self-reflection as well as redirection, and if spent wisely, can be a launch pad into something you’re actually excited about!
As I sat in the coffee shop, I perused my laptop for old job application materials and came across the first professional cover letter I ever wrote. My freshman year of college I had an assignment in a career-development course to write a cover letter to my dream job. Reading a letter from a younger, more optimistic version of myself helped narrow my job search, as I was reminded of what I wanted to do in the first place and how few of my career aspirations aligned with my previous job. I decided if this experience were my second chance to pick my career path I would go with my gut this time.
Starting from day 1 of the job searc,h I prioritized applications for positions focused on my desired career path. Being more intentional with my application materials made recruiters more likely to speak with me as a candidate who could speak to the hyper-specific elements of the job posting. Did I still apply to filler jobs in case I needed a fallback? Absolutely. But I felt more optimistic about the few positions I was applying for because they were roles I could see myself sticking with long-term.
Approaching the job search more thoughtfully also helped me find potential employers in my area. I discovered the city I lived in had several companies specializing in the career path I’d wanted to pursue since undergrad, which brings me to the last–and most important–piece of advice I could give anyone in the middle of a job search.
Be Fearless in Reaching Out
Every article on job hunting stresses the importance of leveraging your network, especially when using virtual tools like LinkedIn. While this is good advice, I found success when I took things a step further and pursued my desired companies via cold calls / cold emails.
My friend Rachel used to say, “the squeaky wheel gets the grease,” during our pep talks. She reminded me that the worst someone can say is no, and that it’s important to take risks just by trying. Keeping this in mind, I called multiple companies in my area until I spoke with someone who could discuss my demonstrated work experience and passion for their field of study. It was one of those phone calls that changed my career.
As fate would have it, one of the companies I cold-called had just received news that a long-time employee planned to retire within the year. There was no formal job posting, but within a matter of weeks, they would need to either rehire or restructure to account for her departure. If I had never reached out and had my initial conversation, I never would have been invited to visit the company in person. After an informal interview, this visit transformed from an exploratory conversation to a concrete job offer.