I kept trying to get out of bed and do something … but nothing was working. Nothing was making me get up – Irina Gonzalez
Some jobseekers report low morale and even depression from looking for jobs to no avail (Credit: Getty Images)
The years-long ordeal also dampend her career confidence. Shenouda remembers feeling positive and excited when she first began applying for tech jobs. However, as the search dragged on, and she found herself applying to at least five roles per week, she became increasingly “upset and not optimistic about my career. I was never really able to take a break from job searching across those three years because there was so much at stake”.
Her low point, she says, was when a company put her through six rounds of interviews throughout four months, only to tell her via a form message that she did not get the job. “I felt really lost and vulnerable by how I couldn’t seem to catch a break … My mental health completely plummeted. I was very depressed. I lost weight from the pressure.”
Vicki Samelmi, a New York-based careers expert at jobs site Monster, says many workers may have to augment the way they’re thinking about their career paths as a result of increasingly tough labour-market conditions. She says the “Plan A” for workers may be a full-time, salaried job with benefits; but jobseekers may also need to consider “a part-time, hourly job to keep your skills sharp, earn some money, make some contacts, get you out of the house and stay engaged”.
She suggests there may be ways to alleviate the burnout burden by creating a daily routine and setting a designated time each day for setting up job alerts, spending time applying for jobs and sending out emails. The process is still time consuming, but for workers who are suffering, she says it can help to “incorporate the job search and networking conversations into your day, but don’t make it your entire day”.
Gonzalez, who now runs the Substack newsletter Raising Gen Alpha, has realised getting through this kind of burnout takes time. Without having yet secured a full-time position, she’s had to pivot to freelance work – though she still glances at job postings. The stress is dragging on, she says. “It’s upsetting and really shakes me, making me unable to do much for days.”
Shenouda wishes she’d taken better care of herself during that period, and is still working through the repercussions of her three-year-long job search. “Although the most important thing at the time was to survive, I wish I didn’t let it become all-consuming, and that I took the time to process my emotions, journal and meditate,” she says.
Things may get better, says Dooney. Even as companies are still re-evaluating and restructuring their workforces after the hiring sprees of 2021 and 2022, employers are still adding jobs in many countries, he points out. Unfortunately, however, for many workers, the job market is still tenuous amid an uncertain economy.
The reality is that it may still take time for jobseekers to secure a role. However difficult, Salemi recommends workers do their best to protect and prioritise their health, and be as patient as possible – especially as recruiters are especially inundated with applications right now.