The Long Job Search features stories and advice from women who got hired after a prolonged job search. In sharing their stories, we aim to support and inspire those navigating similar situations during their job hunt.

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My work experience spans more than 20 years, working in employee communications and engagement, working as an individual contributor, and as a people manager.

I looked at my extended job search as a welcome break. After working consistently since college, I was burned out and ready for a break to decompress.

The long job search

My job search lasted nine months (July to April). During that time, I struggled with recovering from a toxic work environment, the local job market slowing down, many companies laying off employees, and worrying about finances because I was afraid it might be a long time before I found my next role.

I set a goal to apply for jobs 2-3 days a week and only focus on roles and companies that I was genuinely interested in and found to be a great fit—the remainder of the time I spent with friends and family and took the opportunity to travel.

I kept in contact with other friends and past colleagues in a similar situation. We would send each other potential roles, connect each other to our network, help each other with our resumes and LinkedIn profiles, and serve as a sounding board for each other.

A welcome break

I intentionally saw my job search as a welcomed break. During breaks, I spent time with friends and family and took the opportunity to travel abroad. I cherished my time with people close to me and loved giving undivided attention to my nieces and nephews.

My husband also had a three-month career break in the fall, and we took the opportunity to take a two-week road trip through Eastern Canada and to Boston to sightsee and visit family and friends. Fortunately, we also had two pre-planned (and paid-off) scuba trips to the Azores and Indonesia.

While traveling, I continued to apply for roles and take interviews whenever possible. Most recruiters were accommodating, and I was flexible with my time so that I could join calls during business hours in the U.S.

Finances during the job search

I was lucky to receive severance when I left my previous company, which helped me feel more financially confident. I had savings, and my husband was employed while I was out of work. Eventually, I applied for unemployment benefits but only needed to do so for a couple of weeks before I found my new role.

The strategy

I focused on roles and companies that I was excited about and that were a fantastic fit with my skills and career goals. For every application, I would check to see if anyone in my network (or their network) was currently working at the company I was applying to and ask for an employee referral.

So, networking was essential. I also joined a few job search communities to keep my skills up and meet people outside my current network.

Regaining confidence after rejection

Rejections are hard. In my search, I focused on roles I was excited about, so it was always challenging to get the news that I would not be moving forward or that they chose the other candidate. I let myself feel sad for what could have been but then would remind myself that the rejection meant that the role wasn’t right for me and the right role was waiting. Each rejection makes it a little harder to feel confident going into the next interview, but with each interview, you increase your interviewing skills, and your confidence grows. I would take time to revisit my professional accomplishments and refine my responses in preparation to make the next interview even more impactful.

⭐ Landing the job

I learned about my current role from a colleague from my most recent employer. I led internal communications at our previous company, and she led external communications. Her new company had recently opened the Director of Employee Communications role, and she graciously referred me to the hiring manager.

With her recommendation, I was able to progress quickly through the interview process, which included an interview loop with the hiring manager and three other leaders. I was also interviewing with another company, but unfortunately, they kept extending the interviews—adding weeks to the already months-long process.

Meanwhile, I received a solid offer from my current company that I felt good about accepting. I’m now a few months into the role and am grateful for the time I had to reset and rest before taking on a new and exciting challenge.

Final words of advice?

Your role is out there. It will take time, many applications, phone screens, interviews, and even more rejections. The rejections aren’t personal but a redirection toward the right role. Use your time wisely. Do things you enjoy and spend time with friends and family. Network and reconnect with people—you never know where your next role may come from. Lastly, take care of yourself. Eat well, exercise, get outside, learn something new, get out and visit somewhere you’ve never been or always wanted to see, and prioritize your mental health.

Bonus tips

Keep yourself organized! There are so many tech programs that make your job search easier.

Join online networking forums that meet your needs—in your same industry, alum associations, local professionals, trade associations, etc.

Track your job search. This can be as simple as a spreadsheet or an online tracker, like Teal. Record every application and save the job posting. Capture the critical factors of each role, like location, salary, PTO, benefits, company size, or whatever is essential to help you make a decision. Tracking also lets you remember the details about different roles, companies, and interviews. Interviews will blend together, and clear, well-organized tracking will serve you well.

Create a folder system to store your resume, job description, interview notes, names of recruiters, interviews, and dates and times of conversations. You’ll refer to these notes often during the interview process.

Use AI tools to customize and optimize your resume for each role you apply to and ensure you address the role requirements. Jobscan was the tool that worked best for me when customizing resumes. Also, save each resume you create with the company's name and role.

Refine your interview responses to ensure they are concise and impactful. Use the STAR or CAR method to outline responses to common interview questions for your industry and have multiple examples for each potential question.