Edit: sorry for posting this late.. I left it in the comments but realized I should update the post.. after job hunting for nearly 11months I finally landed an offer - the role isn’t everything I had hoped for.. but it’s something, and the uncertainty was driving me crazy.. I hope this year has something better in store for all of us.. Original post: I’m a Sr PM with 10 yrs of experience in microsoft and uber.. quit uber last year in Nov cos of an impossible boss.. Thought id take some time off and then apply and get a job - no trouble.. except who knew what 2020 would be like.. I'm going crazy applying to anything that matches my experience .. very few reach out for round 1.. even fewer go to full loops and I'm not converting any of them.. What can I do differently ? I'm already being asked what I've been doing for 10 months (none of the interviewers seem to realize the shitty market we're in ).. Does a gap in employment look bad? should i apply to any and every company or risk being unemployed even longer for the right opportunity .. finances are not a concern right now.. Any point applying to jobs outside the bay area ? i assume other places are going to be just as hard..#pm #product #productmanager #interview
Explain frankly what you've done those 10 months to the recruiters/hiring managers. If they buy it, and emphasize with you, you are good to go. You just have to crack the interviews. If they don't, you are likely going to get the same experience which you had with your former employer. So no point joining.
Beggers can't be choosers
Sorry to hear man, keep on don’t loose hope. Market will pickup soon in sometime. Start a personal project. ☺️
Didn’t you try the fintech startup for last 10 months?
I don't have relevant experience.. So I don't think I'm getting calls.. I've tried
r/woosh
Never quit without another offer in hand
Like a monkey you should never stop holding the branch you are until you are touching the branch you are moving to.
What great advice for a person in this situation 🙄
Consider putting a failed stealth startup as an option if you get desperate. But you will need Oscar performance to sell it with some interviewers. Goes somethin like this. “I was really passionate about X, so I left my “great job” at Uber to pursue it but events of 2020 impacted my plans, so I am looking to go back into industry.”
Wouldn’t it show on the background check?
Stealth startup you worked on? That’s the beauty - at worst they may ask to call your associate for reference check, but nobody says you had to register an LLC or such to spin up something.
It does look like a red flag. You better come up with a good excuse.
Not true, don’t listen to this
One thing I’ve learned with 19 yoe in tech: it’s always easier to find a job when you have a job. You should have shopped for another job while still at Uber. And just ask to start 3-4 weeks after your last day.
^No I really don’t and we say this for all the others reading this looking to move as a cautionary tale.
☝️
On your resume, can't you put founder if stealth mode start-up? That would help navigating the conversation for 10 months unemployment gap
Find someplace to volunteer now. Then at least you’ll start to fill the hole going forwards. Also, I don’t know what it is, but if you aren’t getting phone screens the issue is on your resume. If you aren’t making it past phone screens your issue is there, and not the resume.
Sorry to hear that OP. Where u r applying jobs, in companies portal, indeed or Linkdedin ?