Losing a job is way too easy these days. Finding another job is brutal: it takes planning, adding boundaries, and a willingness to learn new things. Landing two jobs after getting fired from my job last year has taught me that the opportunities are out there if you know where to look and approach it with pure intention. Whether you’re just picking up extra hours out of necessity or building stepping stones towards a bigger career move, remember: you’re not just surviving the juggle–you’re reshaping your own path.
For the record, I am not a major supporter of a traditional 9-to-5 job. It’s never been my plan since childhood to work for corporations(well, I did want to once). Plus, hasn’t the pandemic taught us anything? Corporations look at the bottom line– and employees are at the bottom of that line. So, I write this to you knowing full well in my heart that I am all about side hustles, gigs, and entrepreneurship, but I am also a realist.
Note: For your convenience and to save time, I've provided a summation with key points at the end of this article.
3 Steps To Get the Job
Temp agencies
Back in the day, one could head to the local temp agency and secure a job within a day or at least within the same week. It’s much harder in 2025. Even the temp agencies are coming up empty handed when you go to them for help.
A temp agency is a place that helps you find a job. To reach a temp agency back in the day, you had to make a phone call or visit them on site. The beauty of the internet is these days you can simply Google the keywords, “Temp agency in [your city, state)]” and you’ll get a list of places.
I have relied on the same temp agency since 2018.
These days you can now take their skills tests, upload your resume, create a profile, search jobs and more–all from their website.
Then, prepare to receive a call.
Hopefully, that call means they’ve found some jobs for you.
After losing my job in 2024, I reached out to my temp agency, and each week they had nothing for me. I reached out to other temp agencies in the area–they also had nothing.
I held hope right in the palm of my hands. Yet, it was slipping from my grasp.
The scary realization that times have truly changed, hit me square in the heart.
Will I ever get a job?
I didn’t put all my “eggs in one basket though”, I decided to take a different, yet familiar route to obtain work.
Apply strategically(and be careful!)
I did not give up on my favorite temp agency, but I had to keep striving. I went on Indeed and applied for at least five jobs on there. Then I would go on LinkedIn and apply for 5 more jobs on there as well for a total of 10 job searches per week(this was not just to fulfill unemployment's requirements).
That’s when I noticed something weird.
Indeed would have “recruiters” email or text me, but they weren’t real!
I would dress in my nicest suit, turn on my PC, and log into the Teams link sent and no one would show up. The picture looked oddly familiar too. It was a standard photo of a too perfect looking white woman with a Colgate smile and blonde hair. The last time I seen that picture or similar one, was the one my husband showed me when he also had a fake interview for a job.
We were literally being interviewed by bots.
Needless to say, I was indeed, disappointed in Indeed and kept my searches to LinkedIn.
Trust me. LinkedIn was no better, but it some ways it was--more on this later.
Stick with only 2-3 versions of your resume
Some experts will tell you to create multiple resumes. They suggest you are not getting a call back because you are sending out the same resume to all companies.
I disagree that that’s the reason jobs are not calling.
Jobs are not calling because of the current recession/depression/economic hell we are living in right now. That’s why.
Nonetheless, do not burn yourself out creating 20 different resumes for different kinds of jobs. Stick to at least two. Three at the max.
I had at least ten different resumes and I would edit and tweak each one for each specific job and it stressed me out because by time I was ready to submit the application, it was nightfall.
I had to shift my process.
One resume is dedicated to customer service. Another is dedicated to education, and I have one for retail–I rarely use the retail one because I have more experience in customer service/call center and tutoring.
Of course, when reviewing job descriptions, I make sure my qualifications match. Sometimes, I have to run those qualifications through AI. I leave out my personal contact information of course, but I make sure to include some parts of my resume and get AI to see where my skills add up.
Now I'm getting calls from multiple jobs...
Last month, two job opportunities came up.
One from the temp agency.
The other I had found on LinkedIn months prior.
Now, how did that happen?
Well, the job I found on LinkedIn was in education, but they have taken so long to secure a school for me, I gave up on them ever reaching out to me. It’s a long story.
The temp agency called me about a position I had at an old job dealing with medical insurance. It was the exact same company, I worked for in 2018. Same procedures, yet different people. I already completed the interview. The temp agency handled all the paperwork. All I had to do was sign off on it.
I found myself at an impasse. Which job should I choose?
Look beyond the salary
When faced with more than one job offer, it helps to look at a few important factors before deciding:
- Look at compensation beyond salary. Sometimes, slightly lower pay is outweighed by stronger benefits.
- Schedule and flexibility: hybrid, versus remote and everything else in between. Analyze how the job will fit your life.
- Career growth: Is this just for a short-term check or something that will bring you closer to your long-term goals?
- Check out the workplace culture. Did you feel respected at the interviews? Did you check out reviews on Glassdoor?
Weighing all these options, including listening to my own gut led me to the position I am choosing now.
The position I have chosen pays one dollar more but it ends every Summer(bummer). It’s an educational position, but it aligns with my work and life balance, it matches my ikigai perfectly, it is remote, and something I’ve always loved doing. However, the other job was a position I had before–filled with high-stress phone calls, pays one dollar less, but the job assignment would last longer, and I would potentially make more.
I’m looking beyond salary though and towards something I can stick with that allows me to still have the space to write and continue my other interests.
TL;DR(if this essay was too long, here’s the bare bones of it all)
- If looking for work is stressing you out, try a temp agency.
- Apply to jobs strategically–be careful of spam jobs and fake recruiters.
- Don’t create dozens of resumes for different jobs, just create 2or 3 resumes for each specific career you’re interested in and update it to match job requirements.
-
When faced with more than one job offer, weigh the following:
- Salary versus benefits
- Work life versus life balance: does the job fit your life?
- Is this a short-term job or a lifelong career?
- What is the workplace culture like?
As usual, thank you for reading, and as an added bonus, I’d love to offer something FREE, yet special.
OPTIONAL: Support and Donations are accepted here.
