The Frustrations of Job Searching

The past few weeks I had two really strong job prospects. For both potential jobs, I had completed writing assignments and had actually received positive feedback as a result. Both were jobs that I felt confident that I not only could do well but felt like my odds were really strong of getting either one of these jobs.

Being invited to the final round felt really exciting to me. I was sure I would get one of the two. I even entertained the idea of accepting one, and still going through with the other’s interview process, just to see how I felt about each job if given the offer from both.

Unfortunately, as any job seeker realized, no job prospects are certain.

In the first company I was interviewing for, I went through the final round of being interviewed by three different people. I had already been prepared for this three-part interview, thanks to a review on Glassdoor from someone who went through that same process. I maintained a positive outlook, thankful that my interview was early in the day. Throughout the interview, I tried to read body language – difficult to do on Zoom – and thought I noticed that the smiles seemed genuine, my responses elicited a natural, friendly reply from my potential colleagues, and my questions asked received a “great question” each time.

Relieved to be done for that first job prospect, I hopefully awaited my job offer. Less than a week went by and I got my standard, “thank you but no thank you” answer.

Shocked, I looked ahead to the next final round of interviews I had for another job offer. I prepared even further for this one, even digging out a new camera for my laptop that I hadn’t used before. I cut my hair, put in my contacts, and even made an effort with makeup. I made sure to figure out where on the screen I’d need to look to maintain eye contact (advice I picked up from my own blog post I shared weeks ago on Zoom). It was hard to read this employer except I noticed she wasn’t overly friendly, but I assumed it was a personality trait. I thought my interview went well, and my answers were concise and confident.

Confident at the conclusion of my interview, I awaited my job offer. Then a couple of days went by and I got another “thank you but no thank you.”

To say I was frustrated is a bit of an understatement. I felt defeated. Friday came and went without another job interview possibility. I prayed for strength to the Lord to help me apply to jobs, and I am thankful that I did find several to apply to this week, despite my setbacks.

I have no advice today except to share that job searching is incredibly frustrating. It feels like two steps forward and then brought right back to start. I do have faith that the Lord will lead me to the right job, and for whatever reason, these jobs weren’t right for me. So if you are out there job hunting, know the Lord is with you every step of the way. It’s hard, but we just need to take it one day at a time.