02. Stop Applying. Start Connecting.

02. Stop Applying. Start Connecting.

It’s time to stop applying and start connecting with humans!

How many resumes have you sent out without receiving a single response from an actual human? Does it feel like you’re constantly sending your resume and links to your portfolio into an HR black hole? It might be time to change your strategy. Stick around and learn why it might be time for you to stop applying to jobs and start connecting with people. 

So, are you starting to wonder what might be wrong with your portfolio? Maybe your case studies aren’t as impressive as you thought. Or perhaps you don’t have that fancy design degree, so you’re getting overlooked by more talented or experienced designers.

Well, I have some good news. The good news is that I bet it isn’t any of those things. I bet you’re a real design badass. I think it’s your job-hunting strategy that might need some tweaking.

So today, I’m going to offer some insight into how you can really up your job hunting game and start getting callbacks from actual humans. 

Just to be clear, what I’m about to talk about in this video is not going to guarantee you a job. But, what I can be pretty confident about is that what I’m about talk to you about will, at the very least, get you a foot in the door. How you handle yourself in an interview, how you talk about your work, how you handle a whiteboard design challenge, all those things will be what finally help to land you the job. 

I’m willing to bet that your portfolio is fine. Your resume is fine. Your understanding of UX methods, rules, whatever, is totally fine. You just have to get a human involved to help move the process forward. 

Unfortunately for most candidates, It’s really hard to get to the part where humans take over.

The real problem with the industry today is the fact that most big companies use ATS bots to sort through all the applications they get. Some sources say up to 75% of most applications are just tossed before a human actually sees them. 75%! This is most likely the reason you’re sending off hundreds of resumes and never hearing anything back. 

Now there are definitely some tips on how to beat the ATS bots, but we’re not reviewing those things today. Today we’re talking about how to avoid the ATS bots altogether. 

The best way to avoid the ATS bots is to simply stop applying for jobs. That’s right. I said it. Stop applying to every random job out there that might seem even remotely close to the job you want. Sending hundreds of cold applications on job hunting sites is a total waste of your time.

I’ve seen people on LinkedIn lamenting that they have applied to hundreds or thousands of jobs online and have never heard back from a single recruiter. 

The problem with this mass application approach is that you’re likely never making it past the ATS bots. Remember, up to 75% of resumes are tossed without a second look. I’m willing to bet almost all of those hundreds or thousands of resumes those people on LinkedIn are sending are part of that 75%. 

So let’s talk about some tactics you can use to avoid the ATS bots altogether. 

When I see people on LinkedIn lamenting that they have applied to hundreds of jobs but never hear anything back, the first thing I ask myself is “yeah, but how many people have you tried to talk to?”

There are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to this approach. 

1. Job hunting is a job. Treat it like a job.
2. Find an industry you’re passionate about.
3. Find a leader and design team you respect
4. Don’t overlook the smaller/mid-size companies.
5. Take advantage of meetups

01. Job hunting is a job. Treat it like a job.

The key here is to not blast every company that is hiring a UX designer with a generic copy/paste message. You’re going to be having a lot of conversations with people. Since this involves a lot of effort on your part, you need to start being selective about who you are taking the time to reach out to. 

Don’t just send hundreds of messages to random people on LinkedIn, or wherever, or set up a time to talk with a bunch of people if you don’t really want to work for them. 

This leads me to point number two.

02. Find an industry or company you’re passionate about

Again, this strategy involves a lot of legwork, so don’t waste your time on companies that you have no interest in working for. 

Find an industry you’re passionate about. Find the companies that match your values, and don’t waste your time on companies you don’t respect. 

Are you passionate about enterprise UX design? Or you’re really interested in the healthcare sector? Maybe you are passionate about making investment opportunities accessible to more people. Whatever you’re passionate about, start there. Find those companies that fit your passion.

03. Find a leader and design team you respect

Similar to finding the right industries and companies is finding the right leader and design teams. 

Do you have a design leader in mind that you want to work for? Maybe there is someone who has written a few books. Or has done a lot of conference talks and you love what they have to say about leadership. Maybe they have a podcast you like to listen to. 

Whatever it is. Connect with them. I guarantee at some point they will be hiring for their design team. If you’ve already connected with them and you’ve had some conversations, guess who will be on the top of their mind?

Now, I know this one might seem hard for some people. You might be thinking “if they’re really important design leaders, why would they talk to me?” And to that, I say “Maybe they won’t? So what? Just do it?” What is the worst thing that can happen? They don’t respond? I am willing to bet this method works more often than you might think. 

If they’re really as good of a leader as you think they are, wouldn’t you expect them to reach out? And if they respond with some nasty or dismissive comment, doesn’t that tell you a lot about what it would be like to work for them?

The good thing about this is that designers LOVE to talk about themselves and their work. So use this to your advantage. 

Just like finding a leader, find those design teams that you know do great work. Maybe there are some people you’ve found online. Maybe some teams that have won some design awards or something. Find out who those designers are and connect with them.

04. Don’t overlook the smaller, lesser-known companies.

Sure. We all want to work for Apple or Google, or any one of the FAANG companies. But there are A LOT of other companies out there that do amazing work. If you really have your heart set on Google or Apple or any other FAANG company, by all means, go for it. 

But I would encourage you to search out smaller companies that are probably not as well known. They might still do great work. Contrary to popular belief, these big companies haven’t gobbled up EVERY good designer. So you will find some awesome and talented design teams out there. You will likely still learn a whole lot working at a smaller company, and there is the added benefit that competition won’t be nearly as high. Opportunities to grow with the company might also be there. 

So don’t overlook these smaller companies just because they aren’t well known.

Keep in mind that today there are tons of remote opportunities out there. So don’t limit yourself to one geographical area. Keep an eye out for companies in smaller markets too. You never know.

05. Take advantage of social networks

In 2022, we have a unique opportunity to instantly connect with people all over the world. This is your opportunity. 

Use whatever social networks you’re on to reach out to all of these people. Find these awesome leaders on LinkedIn, Twitter, Dribbble, Behance, wherever they are. Connect with them. Take a chance and send them a personal note.

What you want to do is let them know that you’re interested in working for them or their company. You want to find out what the culture is like. If you’re career-shifting or just starting out, ask what kind of skill sets they’re looking for. Ask what they look for in a candidate. Ask if they do whiteboard design challenges. Ask how they prefer to have you review your work. 

Ask questions about leadership styles, work-life balance, psychological safety, growth opportunities, education opportunities, and whatever it is that you’re worried about. Ask. 

Find out what you need to do to qualify for this job, what skills you’re missing, is this company really as good of a fit as you thought. Do you really want to work there?

What you want to do is build a friendly rapport. Give them an idea of what it would be like to work with you. Would you make a good teammate? Think of this as kind of a more informal pre-interview screening. 

If you make a good first impression, they may offer to send you a referral link to apply to the job. Lots of times companies will offer different perks for referral candidates. Some companies might offer cash bonuses to employees who refer talent. So they may be incentivized to do this. 

I’ve heard some companies will guarantee a phone screen at the very least for referred candidates, which means you’ve just bypassed the ATS bots. Congratulations.

Don’t forget about in-person networks like local design meetups, or other local in-person gatherings. These are great opportunities to not just professionally network, but you might make some great friends in real life, too!

Keep in mind that you don’t want to just straight up ask them for a favor. You want to ask them for some time to chat. If they’re local and you can meet up for coffee, buy them a coffee. 

Remember, the single best way to avoid the ATS bots is to stop cold applying for jobs and start connecting with humans. That’s it. It’s quality over quantity. I’m willing to bet that when you start finding people to connect with, the interviews won’t be far behind. 

Well alright, y’all. That’s it for me for today. I hope I helped to give you some control back in the interview process. Have you tried any of these tips? How did they work for you? Did it land you that dream job? Let me know in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you.

Helpful Links
• The Design MBA Podcast
• Jayneil Dalal – How to cold email, network, and apply for jobs as a designer
• Over 98% of Fortune 500 Companies Use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS)
• Hidden Workers: Untapped Talent
• Harvard Business School Study Says Software Overlooks Millions Of Qualified Job Candidates