🤫 Whisper #19: When to go guerrilla in your job search
Hustle culture may be on the out, but when you want to land a job, there are key moments when you need to embrace your inner hustler.
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Whisper #19
Guerrilla tactics when it counts
You found a job that's a perfect fit. You applied. Within a day or a week, you got rejected. End of the road? Nope. You can still get an interview.
This happened to me.
I got rejected within a day of applying for a role that felt like it was written for me. I went guerrilla and landed an interview. Here's how:
I found a role that I am highly skilled at and uniquely qualified to do.
I found a connection at the company to refer me.
I applied as soon as the company sent me the link to apply.
...and I got a rejection email within hours 😿
But I didn't give up.
I found the recruiter who posted the role on LinkedIn (it’s on the job postings on LinkedIn Jobs).
🤫 ᴘꜱ: ʏᴏᴜ ᴄᴀɴ ᴅᴏ ᴛʜɪꜱ ᴛᴏᴏ
I sent him a LinkedIn connection request with a short note about my interest in the role and asking for feedback.
🤫 ᴘꜱᴀ: ᴍᴏꜱᴛ ʀᴇᴄʀᴜɪᴛᴇʀꜱ ᴀᴄᴄᴇᴘᴛ ᴀʟʟ ʟɪɴᴋᴇᴅɪɴ ʀᴇqᴜᴇꜱᴛꜱ. ɴᴇᴛᴡᴏʀᴋɪɴɢ ɪꜱ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ɴᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇɪʀ ᴡᴏʀᴋ, ᴀꜰᴛᴇʀ ᴀʟʟ!
As soon as he accepted the connection request, I wrote him this note:
“Sad to hear the news that I’m not being considered for <role title>. Can you share anything about why my profile wasn’t considered?”
Within 27 minutes, he responded:
“Just sent you an email! Happy to chat this week if you have time to connect.”
On the phone, he admitted he was rushing a bit and overlooked my deep experience building this specific function.
As it happened, he accidentally rejected me in a flurry of resume reviews 😬
PS: I also took this rejection as a signal that I needed to improve my resume, which I did. Every rejection is an opportunity to iterate.
The truth is, this happens 👏all👏the👏time.
Recruiters have the very challenging job of finding needles in haystacks, and sometimes they swipe left a little too fast 😇
We got on the phone that week ☎️
By the following week, I was interviewing for the role ✅
The moral of this story:
When you find a role that fits you like a glove, don't let an auto-rejection stop you from getting into the funnel. Go guerrilla and re-pitch them on why you're worth the time and energy to interview.
Going guerrilla means making every application count and chasing down every opportunity with persistence.
a low-stakes experiment for you (if you’re in a job search now or in the future)
If you’re actively job searching and you find a role you’re jazzed about, channel that enthusiasm to fuel a new level of effort and persistence to land the role.
Don’t be chained by the interview process. Throw convention out the window.
One tactic I’ve done myself, I’ve seen others do, I admire when I see it, and I challenge you to do:
Find a role that’s a perfect fit for you (scope and title are in your wheelhouse, not too big or too small)
Develop three to five ideas to improve the company/team/product.
Put it into a pitch deck.
Post it to a Google site (or Wix, Square, or whatever you like).
Send the site to the hiring manager, recruiter, or anyone you can find at the company who you can message.
The right hiring team will acknowledge the effort and consider your ideas. If you’re a fit for the role, you’re more likely to land an interview, and you’ll already have made a strong impression over candidates just following the process.
Note: when coming up with ideas, be aware that people within the company may also have these ideas. They may have already been tried and tested, even failed. It’s not your ideas that will land you the role; it’s the extra effort and commitment to your craft. Be humble and clarify that these ideas are based on publicly available information, and you’d welcome the opportunity to test the validity of the ideas from within the role.
A friend of mine did this and landed a chief of staff role in a prominent VC firm, working directly for a very heavy hitter in tech 😎
Go guerrilla when it counts.
💌 What do you think? Have I inspired you to go guerrilla on one of the jobs you’re eyeing? In the comments, tell me why yes or why no.
Check out coacherika.co for free resources, resume help, and coaching options, including my very popular TUYJS Workshop. Follow me on Substack, YouTube, and LinkedIn to stay in touch. Subscribe to this newsletter to receive a steady stream of tech career advice and experimentation ideas 💛
Loved this edition! I love when folks share from their personal experience of how they used X tactic they’re promoting. Thanks for this super useful and helpful article, Erika!😄