CAREER CHANGE / JOB SEARCH / INTERVIEWING / LINKEDIN

How I went from job search to hired in 60 days

Find a job via LinkedIn and ace your interviews in 2021

“Do you have any reservations about the role?”

“I don’t.”

“Then we would love to bring you on the team as soon as possible.”

As we ended our video call I stared at the screen, feeling elated. I’d just received an offer for the position of my dreams.

Applying to jobs is always a stressful experience. And until you get hired, you have no idea where you stand. What follows is my personal guide to sourcing and interviewing for jobs, especially when switching careers.

What you will need

1. A resume that is easy on the eyes (I have a one-column resume so as not to break the line of vision) and lists all of your skills. How do you make your resume stand out? Include articles you have written in your area of expertise (everyone’s a writer these days)… and if possible, have a current role listed, such as an internship or a team project, that you can discuss in your interviews.
2. A LinkedIn profile that includes a “Skills” section (the more skills the merrier). These can be anything from tools, tech, and languages you have worked with (Microsoft Excel, Javascript, Google Cloud Platform, NLP) to general skills you’ve built up like Communication, Data Analysis, Backend Web Development, and Management.
3. A couple of STAR responses. Don’t know what those are? STAR responses are answers to behavioral interview questions in a way that demonstrates the situation at a high level. Which job was this for? What was the project you worked on? Then, discuss the task or challenge with which you were faced. Next, discuss the action you personally took to overcome that challenge. Finally, describe the result of the actions you took and how they improved the situation.

Finding companies to apply to on LinkedIn

Why apply to jobs posted on LinkedIn? Personally, it was the only job board where I received responses.

LinkedIn’s Premium Subscription (I know it’s expensive)

Pricey, but I only needed it for 2 months. Note: I am not sponsored by them! But without a doubt, that $60 (for 2 months) was definitely worth it. With Premium, LinkedIn tells you when you’re in the top 10% of applicants, so I tried my best to apply to those positions. This gave me 9 recruiters reaching out, out of 120 applications sent in the last 60 days. That may not seem like much, but for someone who was filling out 12 applications on a Friday or Saturday, that’s basically like getting a recruiter screening once a week. They say it takes interviewing with 2-4 companies before landing a job, and even more companies when you have less experience, are switching careers, or don’t have a degree in that field.

Filtering by when the job was posted

I only searched for jobs posted ‘within the last week’ or ‘within the last 24 hours’. LinkedIn has a filter for when the job was posted. I never heard back from a single job I applied to that had been posted more than a week prior. I had great success with postings that had been out for less than 24 hours. With Premium, I could also see the moment my resume was viewed or downloaded. Most often, this was right after applying for a job that had come out a day or two beforehand. The older the job was, the less likely I would receive an email from LinkedIn notifying me my resume had been viewed. The job offer I eventually accepted had been posted about 5 hours before I applied.

Source

Searching by job skill rather than title

For instance, ‘Python’ or ‘AWS’ rather than “data engineer”. This works well when your skills could lend you to several roles, such as data analyst, junior data engineer, Python developer, machine learning intern, etc. Searching by skill allows you to run into all sorts of fascinating jobs that are asking for skills you know you have. You’re putting yourself in a favorable position compared to applicants who may be needlessly pigeonholing themselves.

Searching by experience level

I filtered by ‘Entry level’, ‘Internship’, and ‘Associate’ experience levels. When switching careers, you should be open to any of these. Note that while many companies use ‘associate’ to refer to a junior-level role, some companies use ‘associate’ to refer to a mid-level role. So while you may get more search results, some ‘associate’ roles will be directed at mid-level applicants.

I looked closely at the listed job requirements. When switching careers, it is especially key to look at the requirements. I like to follow the 50% rule. If a job requires 3 years of related professional experience, you should have at least 1.5 years under your belt. Any less, and you’re unlikely to hear back on an application. Some job postings ask for X years of “professional experience,” without specifying it to be “industry-related.” These also led to more responsiveness from companies. Other terms I looked for in the job requirements were phrases like “an interest in” or “some experience with.”

To remote or not to remote

Be aware that if you flip on the “remote only” switch, you’ll miss out on many opportunities that are at very least, 4 months out from being non-remote. That said, the recruiter’s first question will likely be “Are you okay with moving to X-town after the pandemic?” So, be prepared to answer that in the affirmative if you want to move forward with the company.

Considering the difficulty of the application

I personally had the best luck with LinkedIn EasyApply and jobs that led to Greenhouse (one-page) application forms. Generally, there would be 1–2 questions at most (like “Why this company?”) and filling them out removes quite a few people who aren’t willing to do a bit of research.

Preparing yourself for (video) interviews

Try to identify the uniting factors in my rejection at the first 3 companies I interviewed with:

Company 1: My answers to the hiring manager were vague and not specific to the role or company

Company 2: Having a referral and thinking I didn’t have as much to prove

Company 3: Having performance anxiety while sharing my screen on a Zoom call doing live coding

My prognosis? Besides the factors outside of my control, I was unprepared. I didn’t do my homework. And I received all of these rejections in the same week! It was time to try a new tactic.

I decided that my primary concern should be conveying the value that I bring to the company. In doing this, I would first and foremost convince myself as to why I was the right fit. Secondly, it would help to inform what to discuss in an interview. And finally, my resulting confidence would show verbally and physically.

For each company I had an interview with, I had a document open on my laptop with:

1. Top 3 things to convey about yourself (thanks to Katie Spencer for this one!) based on the job listing and responsibilities. You can usually identify these things in the “Who we’re looking for” and “Responsibilities” sections. Some examples gleaned from these sections might be that they want “a fast, efficient worker,” “someone who can wear many hats,” or “someone who is very interested in learning new technologies.”
2. A tailored answer to the question, “Tell me about yourself.” What is a great framework for this answer? For me, it was:

• What you are presently doing. What are you accomplishing and what challenges has that presented?
• What you have done. Recent projects, former roles, or a change of industry, and how that led you to where you are today.
• What you are hoping to do and how this role ties in with that.

Additionally, look at the LinkedIn of your interviewer. Do it publicly, so the interviewer sees that you are the type of person who prepares. Do you have anything in common with the interviewer? Come from a similar location or have a similar skill set or interest? Great! Slip it into the conversation when they ask you to tell them about yourself. Now you’ve already established rapport with a future coworker.

3. What you know about the company. Watch some of their videos on LinkedIn or YouTube, get an idea of their product and company culture, or alternatively, ask the recruiter about it beforehand. Bear in mind that many recruiters will ask what you already know about the company. Now, as long as you can speak at a high level about what the company does, you’re good. I’ve always been passed forward by recruiters, but you can sense disappointment when you don’t know as much as they’d like about the organization.

4. 2–3 Tailored STAR stories. You should have 2–3 completely rehearsed stories that can cover a lot of bases. For instance, I have a story that details a technical challenge I overcame, how I collaborate well on a team, and my desire to learn new technologies. One story can work for many behavioral questions. However, I can tailor this story with specific phrases depending on the job.

How do you know which story to discuss for the job? One of my most helpful tricks for determining which STAR experiences to discuss is to take a look at the job responsibilities and think of the experience you have that showcases that skill. Here is my own example of doing this:

Each of these two stories can be structured around the company’s specific criteria. And hopefully, the interviewer’s face will light up as you tick each one of their boxes. Try throwing in a few adjectives they used in the job posting.

Preparing for the recruiter interview

• What made you want to apply for a role in X industry (healthcare, cybersecurity, etc). I find a personal anecdote to be best.
• Questions. Generally, the logistics of the job. Save the exciting, thought-provoking questions for the hiring manager or team interview.

Preparing for the hiring manager/team interview

• Why you want to work at the company. Slightly different from why you want to work in that industry. Ask the recruiter, or get a sense as to the level at which the hiring manager prides themself on the company culture and values. Let’s say these things are very important to them. You will want to be able to intelligently connect what the hiring manager says to company’s values and culture. These will also inform why you want to work for that company.
• Questions. This should be information you can’t get from the recruiter. You can look at the hiring manager’s 3 most endorsed skills on LinkedIn to get an idea of their areas of expertise and what the interview might focus on. If their most endorsed skill is ‘product management’ versus ‘Python,’ for instance, this could help you create a question based on where their interest lies. Alternatively, you could reference an article they wrote or a LinkedIn featured project they worked on and ask how that impacted the company. If you still can’t find anything, try bringing up a topic that is related to their most recent LinkedIn activity (comments and likes on posts). One of my favorite questions to ask is what the team’s main challenges are right now, so you can see where your help is needed.
• Bonus: How to ask 5 questions in a row at the end of an interview without being as awkward as you are in real life. I used to be rather silly and ask a question, then after the interviewer finished answering, I’d say, “Oh, interesting. Well, my next question is…,” instead of naturally ordering the questions in such a way that each question is simply a follow-up question, giving the interview a more conversational flow. You can do this by imagining how they might answer each question and what you’ll say in response, which should lead you to set up a natural ordering to the questions.

For those changing careers

If you suffer from imposter syndrome, it’s particularly important to reassure yourself as to why you are the right fit. This will help you do well in the interview. You won’t be over-prepared. For instance, just because they don’t ask you “Why do you want to work here?” doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have the answer to that question. When you ask them questions at the end (and yes, you want 5 good questions prepared) and they start discussing team dynamics or something, you can say, “Wow, that is very in-line with the company’s mission of doing X, and I’m glad to hear that the team was able to ship that product…”. You get the idea.

Check your list twice

Great, so now you have a document with:

• a tailored answer to the question, tell me about yourself
• an answer to why you want to work at that company
• some well-rehearsed STAR stories that show you are the perfect fit for the role
• a bunch of questions for your interviewer that illustrate your interest in their company and the work, ordered in such a way that they create a discussion, rather than a reverse interview. But bear in mind, you are interviewing them, too; and their answers to these questions will help you determine whether you want to work there.

Extras

• Check your spam folder! After I sent out applications, 3 out of 11 of the emails sent from recruiters ended up in my “Promotions” folder in my Gmail account. Check here periodically. Sometimes a second recruiter will reach out to you to connect you to the hiring manager after you have passed the recruiter interview and that may also end up in a spam folder.
• Always send a thank-you note after the interview. I like to send a thank-you note the same day. Your punctuality and thoughtfulness in sending a thank-you note demonstrates the same qualities you’ll bring to the job. I generally start with acknowledging their time, reminding them of something we discussed in the interview, and expressing my enthusiasm for moving forward. You can also ask the recruiter to forward the note for you. If you don’t have the interviewer’s contact information, you can ask them for it at the end of the interview. Alternatively, you ask the recruiter.

• Be very nice to the recruiter. They are on your side. They can help prep you for speaking with the hiring manager. Don’t forget to thank the recruiter for facilitating the process between you and the hiring manager/team!

With that, you’re ready to jump start your job search! Feel free to comment with any questions.

The phone rang. It was the company’s recruiter.

“The hiring manager would like to offer you the job! What do you think?”

I couldn’t help but break into a smile. “I accept the offer.”