How to Market Yourself?
Because skill is not enough
In the fierce battleground of today's job market, many competent individuals are left stranded, unable to secure work due to the overwhelming number of applicants. So, how do you outshine your rivals? The key lies in effective self-promotion.
Drawing from my personal experience that bagged me multiple offers over $800k, this guide will walk you through optimizing your resume, LinkedIn, and online presence to win more interviews and ultimately secure that dream job.
📝 Sculpt Your Resume
The first impression is the last, and your resume is your first impression. Use LinkedIn's features to craft a comprehensive resume that complements your traditional one. Emphasize displaying your skills, experience, and cultural compatibility, which are top priorities for recruiters. Highlight your most notable achievements, relevant skills, work experience, and academic qualifications. Prune out outdated or irrelevant data and avoid lengthy paragraphs or text blocks. Keep your resume concise and restricted to a maximum of two pages. For additional pointers, check out this article on how to write an impressive developer resume.
🔗 Build Your LinkedIn
LinkedIn is your professional digital identity, a platform that makes you visible and accessible to potential employers and recruiters. Even though I once stated that job titles are overrated, recruiters still use them as a preliminary filter to evaluate your suitability for the job.
Make it a point to underscore the skills you've applied in your experience. Not only does it enhance your profile visually, but it also enables hiring managers to spot your profile when they're in search of a candidate with specific skills.
🔍 Operating LinkedIn
LinkedIn's search feature can be your ally in discovering job opportunities and connecting with professionals in your field. Pro tips: following companies can increase your profile's visibility and inform you about job vacancies.
Set your profile to indicate that you're open to new opportunities without tipping off your current employer.
Personalize your messages to your connections, expressing your interest in particular roles or companies. Regularly posting relevant content helps exhibit your expertise and engage with your network.
📧 Approach the Head of Engineering
Skip recruiters and directly contact the head of engineering, engineering directors or VPs, who are more likely to engage with you. Engineering managers might lack the authority to make hiring decisions; hence it's wiser to target higher-level decision-makers. Check out this thread for more insights.
Leverage online tools and resources to locate the email addresses of the head of engineering. Use ChatGPT-4 to draft personalized and engaging emails.
🕵️ Work with Headhunters
With their vast networks and expertise, headhunters can help you secure interviews at premium companies. Always respond to headhunters professionally and politely. Collaborating with headhunters costs you nothing but time, as the hiring company pays their fees.
📥 Manage Recruiter Reachouts
Treat each interaction with a recruiter professionally and respectfully, as they can be your gateway to new opportunities. Create a separate folder in your inbox to keep track of recruiter emails, ensuring easy access for future reference. Stay connected with recruiters, even if they've moved to a different company, as they might still provide valuable leads.
🌐 Job Portal Applications
Make use of diverse job portals to boost your job search efforts. Some well-known platforms include remoteok.com, angel.co, workatastartup.com, weworkremotely.com, and jobboardsearch.com.
🌟 Build Your Online Presence
Maintain an active online presence to build credibility and authority in your field. Keep your LinkedIn profile current and actively interact with your network. Share industry updates and insights, and engage with professionals on Twitter. Publish articles on Medium to showcase your expertise and experiences. Start a Substack newsletter to share your thoughts and insights with subscribers. You can also start a YouTube channel to share tutorials or industry insights. And remember, a little bit of light-hearted content or "shitposting" is okay too.
💻 Contribute to Open Source Software (OSS)
Although contributing to OSS can be demanding in terms of time, the benefits are undeniable. Make substantial contributions that enhance the project and exhibit your skills. Despite the commitment involved, OSS contributors often find themselves with a higher success rate in securing job interviews.
🎲 It's All a Numbers Game
At the end of the day, be prepared for a fair share of rejections. Always bear in mind that it's a numbers game. Rejections are not a reflection of your worth; they simply suggest that the role wasn't the perfect fit for you. Devote time and effort to refining your resume, expanding your network, and differentiating yourself from other candidates. Your funnel of interview might look something like this:
How do you market yourself?