Land the job you didn't know existed
Sharing an approach that helps me to make good, and brave, career decisions.
When I was in my final year of university, everyone around me started to apply for jobs for after graduation. Some people were going for management consultancy, others for law firms, others for investment banking. I had no idea what job I wanted to do. I didn’t stop and think about what I was looking for, what motivated me and what the dream job would be. Instead I started applying for hundreds of jobs - each application stating how excited I was about this opportunity and that I’d always been passionate about whatever it was that this opportunity was about.
I probably don’t need to tell you that this approach didn’t work out too well. I had no idea what these jobs entailed and that was obvious in my applications. Even if I was convincing, my application was lost in a sea of hundreds of other applications. I got a lot of rejections, and a lot of silence.
I know lots of people have been through this process. It’s painful. Especially when you’re further on in your career with a tonne of valuable experience.
At some point during this gruelling and demoralising process, I got chatting to a few friends of my housemate that worked at a tech company, Hootsuite. Their work actually did sound interesting. I got to learn more about the company and the types of roles that were available. I was able to write a genuine application, be referred for the role that sounded the best fit, and got the job within a couple of weeks.
Since then, I’ve approached my job searches by taking some time to really figure out what I care about, researching companies, chatting to people and then applying via a referral. I’ve not gotten a single job through a standard application process.
Let’s dig into each step of the process.
Take some time to reflect on what matters
If anyone has asked you what your dream job is, and you’ve not known how to answer that question, then don’t worry. Some people know exactly what this looks like, and others don’t. If you’re like me it might have always been a bit fuzzier and harder to nail down.
I have found it really helps to try and get some things written down on paper, that help me make good decisions later on in the job search process. Specifically - not getting drawn in by a company that isn’t the type of work or environment I enjoy working in.
This is about the type of work I currently enjoy, areas I’m curious about learning more, how work fits into my life, and the type of people I enjoy working best in. I find it easiest to do this by answering questions, I’ve included my favourite ones below.
Some questions to ask yourself:
What type of work engages me the most? When am I in my flow state?
What are my strengths and what are the environments that I can use those the most?
What culture do I work best in?
How does work fit into my wider life?
What are my goals for the next few years, and where can I achieve them?
When I was moving from Canada back to Europe (many years ago now, my answers looked like this):
I’m in my flow state when I’m doing interesting data analysis and solving hard problems.
My strengths are collaborating with others, using insights to build better products and make decisions and telling stories.
I work best in a culture that’s ambitious, collaborative and biased to action. I like earlier stage startups.
I want to live somewhere in Europe, somewhere where it’s easy to escape the city. I want to have time for climbing and running and making new friends. Work isn’t just a pay-check for me - I want to enjoy what I do.
I’d like to move back to Europe, I’d like to work towards a management position, I’d like to experience amazing product development. I’d like to earn enough to rent a place I feel happy to live in.
The reason this is so important is that once you start applying for jobs it’s easy to be swayed by the company that offers you the bigger pay-check or the hiring manager that does an amazing job at selling you on a role or a mission that you might not even care about. In this situation above I had a job offer from Intercom and a job offer from Facebook. The Intercom job ticked almost every box above, and the Facebook job didn’t. However, Facebook offered a slightly higher salary and were extremely persistent in calling and expressing how amazing the opportunity was. They flew me to the office and put me up in a fancy hotel.
I was very tempted. Having already written this list down allowed me to see that the Intercom opportunity was the better fit, when you took away the allure and perks of the Facebook opportunity. I’m so grateful that I took that Intercom role. It was a pivotal moment in my career - I got to work in a product centric company where I met some of my closest friends.
When writing this dream list, don’t worry if it seems unrealistic. This is your chance to really dream big and write down the things you don’t know if you can get from a job. I always push my clients and ask “What else?” here and so ask yourself the same question.
Research your options, and start early
Your dream job list might include a super specific idea of the industries you want to work in, the role you want to be in, or even a short list of companies. The further on in your career you are, the more likely you have this narrowed down.
The next stage is to start researching what’s out there and what feels like a good fit. It doesn’t really matter whether you start broad, or start narrow with your research. Just start somewhere and start talking to people. Instead of writing an application for a role that looks interesting, find someone at that company that you think can help provide some information about the company and the role. If you can find a friend of a friend - amazing. But if you can’t - don’t be afraid to ask someone you don’t know.
I went through a stage of considering a career switch from tech to NGOs based in Geneva (there’s a long story there, but the short story was the appeal of the Alps and the opportunity to do meaningful work). I send a message like the following 👇 to about ten people that I thought were doing interesting work.
Hi XX,
I hope you don’t mind the direct approach. I am reaching out to you because I am very interested in the work that you are doing at XXX. I am going to be in Geneva in a couple of weeks - on Friday Feb 2 - and I would love the opportunity to meet in person for an informal chat. I would love to learn what it’s like to work at XXX and more specifically about your role.
I have included detail about my motivation and current role below:
detail detail detail
Thanks for reading. I appreciate that this is a direct approach, but I have often found it's worth reaching out to people doing work that inspires you. Hope this email finds you well, and hope to connect soon.
Best,
Flora
I ended up meeting with four people working in interesting sounding roles over a day in Geneva. I quickly realised that my perception of working in NGOs didn’t match up to what I expected, and I was keen to stay working in tech and do more research into opportunities within my industry. So research can help you say no, as much as yes, to opportunities.
On the flip side - research has opened my eyes to companies and roles that I didn’t even know existed. I found out about Intercom because I asked a few colleagues at Hootsuite (the role I was in at the time) for some ideas for companies based in Europe. Somebody mentioned Intercom and made an intro to someone that was already working there. I got to discover this company that I had no idea about, learn about the company outside of the interview process and then realise it ticked a lot of boxes for my next move.
So research areas of interest, ask friends for suggestions of companies and industries you haven’t thought about - and start speaking to people.
For some benchmarks:
When I’m in a job I love and rarely think about what’s next, I aim to do an informational interview every quarter. Just to keep my eye on what’s out there.
When I’m in a job I enjoy but occasionally have thoughts of “I wonder what else is out there.” I aim to do an informational interview every month. Starting to pick up the pace and understand options.
When actively job seeking I aim for 3+ informational interviews every week.
I know a lot of people stay in jobs because they don’t believe there’s something better out there. If you can’t see it, you won’t believe it. My advice is to keep exploring what is out there and build up your understanding of your options
Let research → conversations → application process
Research and informational interviews are invaluable tools for learning about what you want to do, and the opportunities that are out there. They can also be the start of an application process.
Each role - Hootsuite, Intercom, Monzo, Beam - came through research, informal chats, and then starting the application process. I’ve not got a single job through a standard application process.
I’d heard great things about Monzo from a few friends working in tech. I wasn’t looking for a job at the time, but when they approached me for a role I decided to meet with the hiring manager to learn more about the company and the role. I did an informational interview, some research. I met with a few more people from Monzo over a long period of time. When I was eventually looking for a role (more than 6 months later) I sent the hiring manager a message and within a few days I’d done 6 rounds of interviews and had a job offer.
Research and informational interviews are a really effective way to start the application process, both sides are more informed and you save so much time on writing applications and doing interviews for roles you don’t want.
Two of my close friends are currently looking for jobs and were feeling fed up with applying for roles and hearing nothing, literally nothing. They’re both super experienced and have amazing CVs. I shared this approach with them and it’s been really helpful - both in terms of impact (getting into interview processes for roles they care about) and enjoyment (you get to connect with interesting people and learn about new companies and roles).
Slow down to speed up
It sounds like a lengthy process - writing out a dream job, doing research, and chatting to people. Firing off a job application can feel more tangible.
But this is about outcomes, not output. It’s about finding, and getting, a job that you’re genuinely excited about. This research led process is effective. I promise you.
Even if you feel the need to keep firing off applications, try and book a few informational interviews at the same time. Be open to exploring things that you didn’t know about.
Break this research down into small jobs and small steps. What’s one person you can speak to this week that will help you learn more?
Looking past your network
A big part of this process is fuelled by the network that you have already. I heard about Intercom through a colleague at my, then, current company.
About 75% of my informational interviews over time have been outside my network. I’ve had huge success in reaching out to people I don’t know and asking to learn more about their role. Yes I’ve had a lot of non replies and the odd rude message back. But I’ve been overwhelmingly surprised at how many people are willing to take the time to share more about their role and what they do. Especially when they see it comes from a place of curiosity, and respect for their career path.
I tend to focus my outreach to people at a similar (or earlier) stage in their career to me. When I was a junior data analyst, I got a much higher reply rate from people in similar roles than the VP data at a company. The more senior you go, the busier the individual.
Start when you’re ready
The job search is hard. Especially when you’re forced into it. Sometimes the immediate pressure is paying the bills.
I’ve been in a situation where I’ve not followed this process. I’ve taken a job that wasn’t a dream job because I’ve been too burnt out to dream big and do loads of informational interviews. I’ve taken some time to rest and re-energise and then started to follow this process.
That was the right decision for me, and it might be the right thing to do for you too.
Working with me
I partner with heads of product – directors, VPs and CPOs – to help them become more self-aware, confident and fulfilled leaders. You can read more about how I work and get in touch here.