Well, we're deep into 2024, and I haven't done a check-in yet.
After surviving what felt like a dozen rounds of layoffs at Fast Radius, I was laid off from my "Mr. Manager" data science job, along with the rest of the holdovers from the software team.
Stay tuned for "Part 3: Private Equity" to wrap up my time at Fast Radius.
I remember prior job searches being painful, but I wasn't able to put my finger on why until this time.
The job search process is a sales process.
Filling out a job application is like cold-calling.
You go through the same motions, asking a company "What problems do you have?" and then you pitch yourself as someone who can solve their problems.
The problem is I'm not cut out for the "sales job search".
I don't like networking.
I don't want to ask my colleagues for a job.
I hate rejection; and unlike selling a product it's hard not to take rejection personally.
And if you are successful...now you have to go to work!
(This could be a Seinfeld bit.)
This analogy isn't novel but it explains why it's so tough.
After all, I'm a data scientist and my skills revolve around analyzing data and building predictive models.
The sales hat is what you have to wear during a job search.
You need the right mindset, and as people say, "it's a numbers game" where most of the time you strike out.
One piece of advice from the sales analogy I found useful comes from Jerry Seinfeld who has a quote to the effect of, "I love being sold -- there's a romance to it. I enjoy buying a box and excitedly unwrapping it. It doesn't matter if the thing inside is disappointing because I enjoyed buying it."
Romance is part of the sales process -- it should feel good to close a deal.
The takeaway: the people who interview me should be excited to work with me.
They should think, "He's great! I can't wait to work with him!"
That's a longer way of saying "be nice," but that's the idea, at least.
Reach out if your company needs a data scientist. I'm nice!
(Always be closing right?)
Other Notes
I created a CRM spreadsheet to keep track of applications.
In Colorado, companies are required to post the salary range so I have a handy dataset of salaries too.
It looks like this:
Company Position Date Applied Response Date Response Salary Range Job Link
I can filter on Response to see active applications.
Saving the link to the job posting is handy for future reference during interviews.