2020 graduates, those hunting for the much sought after internship or freelancers needing to find a way to have some consistent income; for you, the Covid-19 job market is a nightmare.
Spending hours, days, and at this point, months scrolling through LinkedIn, Indeed and Reed trying hopelessly to find a job in a market where companies can’t even afford to keep the staff they have, never mind take on, train and pay people at entry level; is pretty disheartening. It can feel like you will never get an email offering you the seemingly gold plated grad jobs, it’s hard enough even getting a rejection email, or an acknowledgement of your application. It’s so disappointing when hours spent on application after application bring you back to the same place of searching. So, how can you find some peace in this market, and stop the job hunt taking over your life?
“don’t keep switching between the same old tabs, driving yourself mad.”
Set limits to how long you can spend checking your email and aimlessly scrolling through LinkedIn everyday.
It’s difficult when despite the pandemic, everyone seems to be landing pitches, doing online internships, getting a first and all round SMASHING IT. Therefore it’s difficult not to obsess over LinkedIn and endlessly refresh your emails in the hope that a magical job offer will land in your inbox . Take a break, set aside an hour a day where you can email, check emails and use LinkedIn, but don’t keep switching between the same old tabs, driving yourself mad.
Apply for one job each week that would be a dream, and only apply to other jobs you would actually take if you were offered them.
There comes a point of knowing your loan is up, your degree is over and that you still haven’t found a job you would even remotely want and it can feel as though your dreams have gone to die on your weekly Indeed applications update email. It’s easy to blast off application after application, neglecting jobs you may actually want, in favour of ones you see at random just because you are desperate for employment. It obviously is a very privileged position to be in, to even think about waiting or turning down a job, don’t get me wrong. But even if you find some work to pay the bills, make sure you are still applying to those dream roles and jobs you would love to have. Remember what you want, what you care about, and what really matters in employment – even if, right now, paying the rent is the priority.
“Be kind to yourself throughout this tricky time.”
Spend a day or two working on your CV and then leave it there. I’m sure it’s great, and it’s probably not your CV that is putting off employers.
Coming from someone who has redrafted her CV nearly 10 times during Lockdown, please stop. You know what you’ve done, and chances are, you’ve written that down. It probably isn’t your CV putting employers off hiring you, not your grades or anything else, it is probably the current economy. If an entire staff has been furloughed, no one will be reading your CV, let alone turning it down. Give yourself a break and stop redrafting, you look great on paper, I am sure.
Be kind to yourself throughout this tricky time. It is hard not to feel like you are falling behind, stranded riderless without a plan, but I am sure, when the time is right, you will find something that will make you forget how stressful this time was for those looking for a job. Keep your chin up, and maybe don’t apply to a software job just because it is going, when you have no software experience.
Imogen Brighty-Potts
Featured image courtesy of Marco Verch via Flickr. All Creative Commons license can be found here
imogenbrightypotts
Recent Uni of Southampton Philosophy and Politics grad. Founder of The Hysteria Collective. Gilmore Girls fan. Coffee addict.