If you can't find a job right now, you're not alone...
Summary
TLDRIn this video, the creator shares their journey of unemployment after losing a job six months ago. They discuss the challenges of living in an expensive city, declining job offers due to a desire for a fulfilling role, and the importance of networking and referrals. The creator reflects on lessons learned, including the necessity of continuous job searching, the value of real interviews, and the significance of cultural fit in the hiring process. They also touch on the disappointment of missing out on equity due to inflexible terms and the emotional rollercoaster of job hunting.
Takeaways
- 💼 Lost job and severance ran out, currently unemployed.
- 🏡 Living with parents during tough times, considering it normal in some cultures.
- 💻 Tech market is tough, but personal choices also contributed to the situation.
- 🔄 Reflecting on the past 6 months and lessons learned.
- 🌐 Believes in the power of networking and reaching out to old contacts.
- 🔄 Realized the importance of always being open to new job opportunities.
- 📈 Learned that doing real interviews is the best way to improve.
- 🤖 Interviewers might be suspicious if performance is too perfect.
- 👥 Importance of fitting in with company culture, the 'airport test'.
- 💡 Value of referrals in job hunting, even when not fully qualified.
- 🚫 Declining a job offer due to unfavorable equity vesting terms.
Q & A
How long has it been since the speaker lost their job?
-The speaker has been unemployed for about 6 months since losing their job.
What was the speaker's reaction to living with their parents during the pandemic?
-The speaker found living at home during the pandemic to be a lifesaver and suggests normalizing it.
What is the speaker's educational background?
-The speaker is a software engineer who studied computer science at Rice University.
What was the reason the speaker declined job offers they received?
-The speaker declined job offers because they were not genuinely excited about the opportunities, preferring to wait for a role that aligns with their interests.
What was the speaker's strategy during their time off before starting to look for a job?
-The speaker decided to enjoy life, take a break from work, and not actively recruit for a new job.
What lesson did the speaker learn about the importance of always being in the recruiting process?
-The speaker learned that one should always be recruiting, even when not actively job hunting, to keep leads warm and opportunities open.
Why did the speaker decide to start looking for a job again?
-The speaker needed money and was also getting bored after a period of not working.
What was the outcome of the speaker's interview with the company they had previously received an offer from?
-The company informed the speaker that they did not have the headcount to hire them, despite the speaker's previous success with them.
What was the speaker's experience with the interview process after a long break?
-The speaker found that doing real interviews was the best way to improve, even if it meant making mistakes and feeling embarrassed.
Why did the speaker get rejected from a company they felt they performed well at?
-The speaker was rejected possibly due to the interviewer's suspicion of cheating, despite the speaker's strong performance.
What was the significance of the speaker's interview with the company in downtown Manhattan?
-The interview was significant because it was for a role the speaker was genuinely excited about and it included a system design interview, which is crucial for senior roles.
What was the final outcome of the speaker's job search as described in the script?
-The speaker received an offer but declined it due to unfavorable equity terms that would have locked them in for a longer period.
Outlines
😟 Struggling with Unemployment and the Tech Market
The speaker shares their experience of losing a job six months ago and being unemployed since then. Their severance pay has run out, and they're living off savings while facing the challenge of affording rent in an expensive city. Despite receiving decent job offers, they declined them, which they now reflect on in the video. They discuss the importance of always being open to job opportunities and maintaining a passive search to keep options open. The speaker also talks about taking a break after working non-stop for three years and enjoying a summer in New York City, which was a refreshing change from the hustle of work life.
🔄 The Ups and Downs of Job Hunting
The speaker describes their journey of job hunting after a period of unemployment. They recount a conversation with a company where they had previously received an offer but were told that there was no longer any headcount available. They express regret for not taking the offer when they had the chance. The speaker then discusses the importance of doing real interviews to improve, as opposed to mock interviews, and shares an experience where they felt they performed exceptionally well in an interview but were rejected, leading to a discussion about the unpredictability of interview outcomes. They also touch on the importance of referrals and how they can help in the job search process.
🚀 Overcoming Challenges and Landing an Offer
The speaker talks about their preparation for a job interview in Java, a language they were not proficient in, and how they managed to relearn it quickly. They discuss the importance of system design interviews for more senior roles and how they managed to pass one despite feeling inexperienced. They also mention the significance of cultural fit during interviews, often referred to as the 'airport test', and how it can impact the hiring decision. The speaker reflects on receiving an offer from a company they were excited about but ultimately declined due to unfavorable equity terms. They conclude by mentioning two other significant job opportunities that they will discuss in future videos.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Severance
💡Recruiting
💡Optics
💡Hustle Culture
💡Tech Market
💡Referrals
💡System Design Interview
💡Equity
💡Backdated Equity
💡Airport Test
💡Senior Software Engineer
Highlights
Loss of job and subsequent financial concerns
Exhaustion of severance pay and reliance on savings
The importance of living with parents during tough times
Decline in tech market and its impact on job prospects
The decision to decline job offers despite market conditions
Reflection on the last six months of unemployment
The value of taking a break from work
The realization of needing to find a job for financial and personal reasons
Lesson learned: Always be looking for job opportunities
The mistake of not accepting previous job offers
The process of reaching out to old professional connections
The importance of doing real interviews to improve
The challenge of being perceived as too competent during interviews
The strategy of using referrals to increase chances of getting a job
The experience of relearning Java for a job interview
The significance of passing a system design interview
The importance of cultural fit during interviews
The dilemma of equity backdating and its impact on job acceptance
The emotional journey of receiving and then losing a job offer
The decision to extend the recruiting series to cover ongoing job search
Transcripts
about 6 months ago I lost my job and I'm
still unemployed my Severance has since
run out my mom texts me every single day
concerned about my well-being and how
I'm going to afford rent in the most
expensive city in the United States and
for the first time in a long time when
my friends invite me out I have to look
at the number of dollar signs on the
restaurant to decide if I can go don't
worry I'm not on the streets just yet
clearly I lived at home during Co and
that was honestly a lifesaver because I
have some savings now that I can use
during these tough times we should
normalize living with our parents it's
quite common for IND culture but not so
much in others and I'm not sure why now
I'm sure you can agree that the tech
Market is absolutely trash right now
there really is no argument there but I
can't really blame the tech market for
all of my problems because I actually
recruited and got some pretty decent job
offers but then I declined all of them
so the obvious question you're probably
thinking is why well in this video I'm
going to tell you and if you're
following the recruiting series then
welcome back I'm going to reflect on the
last 6 months and then tell you all the
lessons I've learned along the way
because hindsight is 2020 baby in this
market the companies have all the power
so maybe it's about time I just accept
that Beggars can't be choosers but I'm
not ready to do that because I have
confidence in myself and it's just like
I tell all of you it's not if we'll get
that dream job it's just a matter of
when I'd rather take something I'm
genuinely excited about rather than
something just because here's how the
last 6 months have been if you're new to
the channel or just to recap my name is
num I'm a software engineer I went to
Rice University and studied computer
science I've Ed at slumber Microsoft
Gusto and then in June of 2020 upon
graduation joined bolt a fintech startup
in San Francisco I was there for just
about 3 years of which the first two
Fondest Memories ever the last one not
so much we had multiple rounds of
layoffs and then I 2 was unfortunately
let go in June of 2023 and if you want
to watch that entire Saga unfold check
out this video right here I signed a
severance agreement which covered some
benefits and then gave me the equivalent
of X weeks of pay if you're interested
in a full breakdown of the severance
document page by Page comment the word
Severance below that Severance has since
been depleted and now I'm living
entirely off of my savings but just for
a minute let's go back to the good old
stays since I've been working basically
non-stop for the past 3 years I never
really got an opportunity to take a
break so I purposefully decided not to
recruit I had just moved to New York
City it was summertime and I decided to
just enjoy life for a bit in a way I
didn't realize how exhausting it is to
do a job and I'm not talking about the
coding or debugging or even designing
the fun stuff I'm talking about all the
work you do just to make it look like
you're working the slack updates
standups responding in Threads messages
or what managers like to say Optics well
for the first time in a very long time I
had no Optics no one to respond to I
could just truly be myself my time was
my own without digressing too much I
enjoyed a summer in New York City one of
the best things you can do I spent time
outdoors I experimented with new
creative YouTube videos and then some
days I just bummed on the couch and
watched TV it was a well-deserved break
and honestly the first time I just said
Fu to hustle culture and did nothing at
some point it became evident that I
needed to get a job for two main reasons
one I needed money money is nice it buys
things and two I was getting a little
board and I've never felt this before
because when you're working you always
want to not work but try it for a bit
just go do all the things you've been
meaning to do that you've put off and at
some point you'll get bored of that too
which is a good thing it means you've
recharged your batteries and you're
ready for something else so I started
looking and that actually brings us to
lesson number one always be looking it's
like the common adage always be selling
at least that's what investors tell
Founders a always BBC closing always be
closing well I'm realizing that's
exactly how recruiting is too it doesn't
matter what you're doing you should
always be recruiting in the past 3 or so
months when I was just chilling I should
have put out feelers and set up coffee
chats and passively applied to companies
online you don't have to be in full
recruiting beast mode but keep the leads
warm put a little bit of effort in
because once it gets cold and you have
to start from scratch it's so much
harder for what it's worth I'd actually
gone through a pretty intensive
recruiting cycle in Spring of 2023 while
I was still employed so I guess I did
listen to my own advice back then I'd
actually gotten some pretty dope senior
software engineering offers but I ended
up turning them down because my manager
convinced me to stay which I know was a
mistake because in just a few weeks
after that I was laid off super messed
up I know I'm over it I've healed thank
you so anyways I decided to start
looking for jobs the first week of
October like just about October 1st 2023
but this time it's not proactively like
in the spring it's out of necessity and
honestly I was pretty complacent because
in the back of my mind I was just like
oh the offers I got in the spring
they'll probably take me back if they
have head count I mean yes that's how it
usually works if you think about it from
their perspective they spent so much
time energy resources hiring me they
liked me I was ready to come but then
decided not to so so as long as there's
no burned Bridges we should be good
lesson number two always reach out to
Old Flames no I'm not talking about your
ex partner girlfriend boyfriend whatever
I'm talking about your ex-coworkers
managers friends as long as you didn't
burn the bridges that's a professional
relationship you can leverage so I
started to reach out to my network but
I'm not going to go into a full
recruiting breakdown of the entire
process yet since it's not over and I
don't have a job imagine if I titled
this video how to get a job but then I'm
unemployed trying to give you advice
that'd be a little strange but what I
can tell you is what I've been through
so far the experience in these last 3
four 5 6 months here's the first
conversation on the calendar the company
I'd already gotten an offer from in the
spring George picks up my heart is
beating super fast my hopes are up and I
don't want to recruit if I don't have to
so if I can just accept this be so great
but they unfortunately tell me that they
just don't have the headcount they're
super nice about it and this company is
honestly goed great benefits great
people great pay I should have taken it
when I had the opportunity s tier
company but sometimes things just aren't
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AI Essentials now let's get back to the
video so then I continue looking I set
up some first chats do some first round
interviews and they go okay as good as
you'd expect the first couple interviews
after a long time of interviewing to go
to come across as competent but
confident but not too confident so
humble at the same time that's a fine
line it takes practice and the only way
to get better is by doing more of them
people are so obsessed with lead code
questions and yes that matters a little
but doing real interviews not mock
interviews not practice interviews
that's how you get better you need to
fail make a fool of yourself and feel
embarrassed when that call ends and
you're like oh my God what was that
that's how you move forward lesson
number three do real interviews by this
point I've done so many first round
chats and companies are telling me that
they're looking for more senior
Engineers with one company actually
having two levels for senior they have
like a junior senior engineer and then a
senior senior engineer I know it's super
strange but I apparently fall in the
middle or the junior senior engineer and
they want the higher one it was crazy
then there's this one company that's
objectively not that good I'm not trying
to be entitled I'm just saying compared
to even in this trash Market the
compensation offers the caliber of
engineer the caliber of company you can
get this one wasn't it it's Warner Media
Pretty Legacy entertainment Powerhouse
and then I absolutely cred crush it
which this is the first time in this
process that's happened I walk out and
I'm like oh my God 45-minute interview I
did that in 15 minutes all test cases
passed code was clean there's no way I
don't get the offer well isn't it only
when you feel so confident that things
don't go well because I've done
interviews where I feel like I failed
and I somehow magically passed but it's
never the other way around why why is
that why so yes they reject me and the
recruiter calls and he's like hey num
quick question I know you didn't but
just in case had you seen the interview
question before or did you use AI to
solve it I was like what no of course I
didn't he claims that that didn't
contribute to the rejection but come on
let's be honest if they had any inkling
that that's what happened during the
interview they're not going to take a
chance so they rejected me now I'm not
trying to say I didn't pass cuz I was
just too cracked but I guess they think
I cheated but I don't even know what
advice to give you here like maybe make
more mistakes which is mostly me
trolling but I'm not sure I guess look
more human than I did lesson number four
be good but not that good again mostly
trolling but I guess in the age of AI
with all these llms you could have it
open on another monitor so don't do that
but when you're doing the problems I
guess speak more to the camera maybe
stutter a little bit act more nervous
I'm not really sure it hasn't happened
again after that but if it does I'll let
you know so by this point the first
interview I crushed but then got
rejected definitely broke my morale but
no worries story gets better I get an
interview with a company I'm actually
really excited about for a couple
reasons I use them they're really good
and my ex-coworker works there and only
has good things to say about them so I
mean that's that's like a winning combo
unfortunately the job description says
they're looking for six plus years of
experience in the industry but also more
specifically in Java and the last time I
used Java was in college we had a couple
classes couple assignments there's no
way I know how to write industry level
Java and honestly I don't even remember
the syntax anymore none of my
internships use Java and both used go so
this is right about the time when I fly
back to Houston to be home for a bit so
I decide I should probably start
prepping no distractions regardless I
end up applying with my friend's
referral and get the interview which
just goes to show you that even though
the job description says I wasn't qual
ified if you have a warm internal
connection they can go to bat for you
and you can kind of finesse your way
lesson number five always get referrals
I was so hyped but also so nervous cuz I
actually really wanted this job so I
wanted to do well shout out to my boy
for the referral I end up going home and
then I relearned Java from scratch
essentially in two days and I live
stream the entire process I'm not sure
if any of you tuned into that I pull up
for the first round and I actually end
up passing with the only feedback being
that if the candidate knew more Java
they would have done better but all the
skills were there so thanks to the
interviewer for realizing skills matter
not programming languages anyways I get
the onsite but now I'm even more scared
cuz it's a system design interview and I
haven't done any of these yet if you
aren't familiar these are really
important for any role that is basically
not nrad software engineering and you
can't really get any offers that are
senior unless you kill the designed
portion of the onsite which makes sense
because the hardest part of building new
features is designing them in the first
place not just to work correctly but to
also be extensible scalable and all the
other buzzwords and while I've worked on
my fair share of medium problems I'm
still quite Junior in the grand scheme
of things so I haven't worked on any
Netflix level architecture that I can
talk about confidently but we out here
and we try our best I was doing a lot of
these first round interviews and even
some virtual ons sits from home either
in New York or in Houston but this
specific company's onsite was actually
in their downtown Manhattan office
remember when on-sites meant that
companies would fly you out put you in a
hotel and then you would interview
onsite like literally in a conference
room with these other real Engineers
yeah the good old days pepper rich
farmer members I'll spare you all the
details but if you're interested just
comment and maybe I'll make a video with
like a real deep dive of this specific
interview and maybe some other ones too
but I pass yes I pass the onsite I
passed the system design interview I
have no idea why because my system was
not that efficient but I think I just
really got along with the other two
interviewers in the room and I think
people forget how important that is
lesson number six don't forget the
airport test people are so caught up in
doing well in the interview like
actually passing it in terms of code
quality or correctness that they forget
that they're going to have to work with
these humans and these humans are going
to have to work with them and that might
matter even more than getting the
question right it's like the vibe or the
airport test where essentially if you
were stuck in an airport with one of
these co-workers or this candidate
you're interviewing would you hate your
life or would you go and grab a drink
with them you'd obviously want the
latter because it means that they fit in
with your culture and you enjoy being
around them anyways I end up getting the
offer just about a week later and I am a
hype but there's one thing no one told
me which was that this company gave you
Equity that was backdated just like
Amazon where your Equity Grant was
weighted towards your later years
instead of your first couple so if you
had a 4-year vesting period you'd only
get 15 or 20% your first two years and
then the bulk of it in your third and
fourth from the company's perspective
this makes sense because it incentivizes
employees to stay longer they have to if
they want to get the bigger parts of
their Equity Grant but I'd already been
burned from one startup before and I
wasn't trying to F around and find out
again I asked if the equity terms were
flexible but they said no because they
weren't going to make an exception just
for me at this point it didn't matter
that the company was profitable that
they were probably going to IPO soon or
even that the dollar amount of equity
they were giving me was substantial I
just didn't want to get locked in like
that so this company ended up becoming
the one who got away it was a little sad
because I was going to get the
opportunity to work with one of my ex-
co-workers again who's actually on the
same org as me at bolt but it wasn't
meant to be it's okay though he lives in
New York I see him all the time we're
good friends last but not least I know
I'm missing the two stories I promised
you the company I really wanted but I
just failed the interview and the
company that I wanted I got I started
celebrating and then they said actually
sorry no well as I'm recording this I'm
realizing this video is becoming really
long and those two other companies they
deserve videos of their own because the
tea is quite hot and spicy Masala chai
so I'm going to make a game time
decision right now sorry to my editor
who's probably editing this video right
now we're going to extend our original
recruiting series we're just going to
keep these stories going so you can
follow along as I get that coveted dream
offer we already talked about the broken
senior only developer Market I shared
every single interview question I've
been asked so far and now you know what
the past 6 months have been like next up
is the almost
$500,000 per year offer I just didn't
end up getting and that company that
pulled it away at the very last minute
so much more to come stay tuned cheers
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