Answering YOUR Questions!

Advertise on Landed!

I get asked about tools, resume services, courses, coaches, etc. all the time. I have also partnered with some companies to promote their services in here or on other platforms. And I want to make sure that those services are actually adding value to people.

Today, I’d love to hear from you - what have you tried and do you recommend it or not? I have a short survey you can complete here and I’ll be selecting two people who complete this to win a $25 gift card to the store of your choice.

Three Helpful Things Worth Checking Out!

1. I’ll be doing a LIVE Q&A with Adam Posner on Fishbowl TOMORROW! Feel free to join!

2. Amy Miller has been doing a deep dive into different Amazon Leadership Principles and how they approach interviewing for that principle. This will certainly be helpful if you’re interviewing at Amazon, but should be relevant for many companies!

3. I’ve been working behind the scenes with a UK-based start-up that’s helping companies tap into a broader network for referrals! Check it out, and make/request referrals for jobs! (Free for jobseekers of course, employers do pay to be on the platform, but if you’re hiring, you can get a 10% discount here!

For career changers or those looking to accelerate your career, courses through Coursera are a great way to gain access to get certifications and content developed in partnership with top companies like Google and Meta, and universities like Duke and Harvard.

Whether your goals are to strengthen your existing skills, or build additional skills to help you explore new career paths, Coursera can be a great tool in your career journey!

🙋Answering Your Questions🙋

Each week, I’ll answer a few of your questions in this section. You can submit your questions here.

I think this message is probably relatable to so many readers!

The reality is that so many companies have scaled back from remote work that it’s increasingly more difficult to land a remote role.

A few ideas:

1. You already know what your resume may benefit from! You can use ChatGPT, or an AI tool like Teal or Kickresume or Ramped (all have a free component so you can cycle through to get multiple examples!) to help you generate stronger bullet points that will better convey your achievements. If you’re not landing any interviews, this is where I’d start. But if you ARE landing interviews (even just 2-4% of the time), you’re likely fine in terms of your resume.

2. People hate to hear this but unfortunately remote work is just getting harder and harder to secure. But there are so many hybrid roles that are still flexible. Before writing off a hybrid role, I’d ask about the requirements. I have friends in remote roles who only go to the office 1-2x a month. When you target a hybrid role, you’re dealing with a much smaller candidate pool so you have a higher chance of getting an interview.

3. I say this all the time, but I’ll say it again! Due to the high app volume for remote roles, I think reaching out to people at the company alongside your application is a must. This can help encourage them to review your application more quickly.

4. And if you’re focused on remote roles, two sources you can try to at least guarantee the roles are remote are:
   -Remote Source is a newsletter and job board that sends out remote roles (I believe it’s free, at least I’ve never had to pay anything though maybe there’s a limit) - you can subscribe here.
   - Flex Jobs does have a charge but they verify that all roles are remote.

I’m so sorry - this is tough no matter what, but I know the market makes it even scarier.

First some good news: I know lots of people who have been on performance improvement plans (PIPs) and successfully kept their jobs! (At one of my employers, I believe that number was something like 80%. PIPs were truly intended to help people get better).

There are some employers who treat them as a formality and truly intend to terminate someone’s employment, but every place I’ve worked as seen them as a way to gain clarity with the employee around what success looks like in the role.

Assuming you are an “at-will” employee, your employer is not obligated to put you on a plan and could terminate you on the spot if they wanted to. So I would personally treat this as a chance to get better.

1. I would let HR and your manager know you’re committed to being successful in the role. Ask lots of questions and document what they say about success in the role.

2. You can also ask HR questions about how PIPs work - they may be able to tell you if most employees remain with your employer for example.

3. In every 1:1 with your manager, ask how you’re doing towards the outcomes of the plan. Again, document, and send an email recapping. Something like “I enjoyed our conversation today. We seemed in alignment that i’ve improved in the quality of my communication and that I should continue to ask for feedback from you before submitting my reports to ensure that there are no errors which I will continue to do. Please let me know if I missed anything.”
   This allows you to have documentation that you’re meeting expectations of the plan.

4. Document everything.

5. Finally, I would probably apply for a few jobs just to get the ball rolling - if the plan doesn’t work out as hoped, this will give you a back up option.

I’m sorry that you have this added stress, but as much as possible, try to treat it as an opportunity to align with your employer around expectations in your role and a chance to improve your performance!

I know so many people are struggling with this these days.

One thing to note is that the “entry level” filter on LinkedIn is not very accurate. This is because many jobs are scraped from company job boards and end up labeled entry level when they actually require many years of experience. So make sure to look for jobs that indicate 0-1 years of experience.

Any internships, part time jobs, volunteer work, leadership experience in school can be added to your resume as experience. You can develop a lot of skills through these experiences and employers hiring for more entry level roles care about that!

If you attended a college with a career center, they can often assist as well with resume reviews and networking support.

This is a good time to find rotational programs at many larger companies as well - these are generally designed for early career jobseekers. If you’re further in your career or re-entering the workforce after some time away, you can also look for programs called returnships which some employers offer and there are also organizations that will pair you with companies looking for interns.

Finally, as noted in a previous question, remote roles are HARD to come by, especially for entry level roles. So I would consider expanding this requirement if at all possible.

🛫 Community Connections 🛬

Products/services that I think will support you in your job search.*

Teal offers a full suite of tools for jobseekers from their job tracker to AI-powered resumes - they even offer free courses and resume templates on their website! Many of their features are completely free, and I think this is a tool every jobseeker should have in their toolkit. Sign up here!

Flex Jobs is one of the TOP sites for remote jobs globally, and they ensure that every job on their site is ACTUALLY remote. Find your remote job today!

_{*This section may include ads/affiliate links}

_{For more resources to support you in your search, check out my Linktree.}
My content is seen by over 4 million people each month. Need help getting the word out about your brand? Let’s connect!