It's Been a Tough Year, So Let's Talk About It w/ David Neal

If you want to find out why David ate 4 lbs of bacon every day for a month, you can watch the whole show here. But what I want to talk today about is something a lot of people are feeling right now. In short, the job search feels like a never ending cycle of constant rejection topped off with getting a job that might not even be the best fit for you. Not to mention some of these interview requirements have gotten absolutely out of hand. David talked about a 40 hour project as an interview requirement. Who would want to do that when they have a portfolio of work that shows they’re more than qualified? Or you could be one of the people who goes to dozens of interviews and still have nothing to show for it.

So what can you personally do to break the cycle? The messed up hiring process aside, I think everything should start with simply taking some time to reflect and understand yourself and your needs before jumping into the search. David talked about talking to his wife and how she reminded him to think about the work and the projects that brought him the most joy. Your next step on your career doesn’t necessarily have to be in the exact same role as what you were doing before. Maybe you want to get back to building or maybe you really enjoy the things a certain company. Find things that spark some sort of feeling for you, or reach out to that company and see if they have any open positions. There aren’t many upsides to being jobless BUT you do get the space to reflect, so don’t let it go to waste.

A lot of you probably know David from conferences and public speaking, so I thought I’d take a minute to talk about just that. David describes public speaking as a super power. And as someone with chronic sweaty palms when speaking, I couldn’t agree more. Luckily it’s a super power that anyone can have with practice. And it reaches beyond simply standing in front of people and talking. It can give you more confidence for so many things like meeting new people, advocating for yourself in front of your boss, or presenting projects. It’s not just some course you were required to take in college, it’s a skill that can actually change your life and career.