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Why You Need to Stop Sending Out Angry Applications, with Brandi Oldham

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You’ve had a bad day at work, and so you go home, jump on the Mac’s List job board, and start sending in as many applications as you can. Why isn’t this a good idea? Because this tactic will never get you the job you actually desire, says Find Your Dream Job guest Brandi Oldham. Instead of firing off a hundred generic resumes, Brandi suggests taking some time to discover what you really want in a job, what you have to offer, and focusing on creating custom resumes for the companies you want to work for. 

About Our Guest:

Brandi Oldham is the founder of  Talent Career Coaching. 

Resources in This Episode:

Transcript

Find Your Dream Job, Episode 405:

Why You Need to Stop Sending Out Angry Applications, with Brandi Oldham

Airdate: June 28, 2023

Mac Prichard:

This is Find Your Dream Job, the podcast that helps you get hired, have the career you want, and make a difference in life.

I’m your host, Mac Prichard. I’m also the founder of Mac’s List. It’s a job board in the Pacific Northwest that helps you find a fulfilling career.

Every Wednesday, I talk to a different expert about the tools you need to get the work you want.

Find Your Dream Job is brought to you by TopResume. TopResume has helped more than 400,000 professionals land more interviews and get hired faster.

Get a free review of your resume today.

Go to macslist.org/topresume.

You have a really bad day at work.

It’s so bad that you want to quit your job.

So you go home, and you start applying everywhere.

Brandi Oldham is here to talk about why you need to stop sending out angry applications.

She’s the founder of Talent Career Coaching. Her company helps individuals, teams, and entrepreneurs in all aspects of the career journey.

Brandi joins us from Vancouver, Washington.

Well, Brandi, here’s where I want to start; what is an angry application?

Brandi Oldham:

Yeah, Mac, angry applications are the applications that you, just like you said, are the ones that you do after a really bad day at work or maybe a really long day at work. You’re feeling extremely frustrated. Maybe you and your boss had a conversation that didn’t go so well, and you’re doing what I call rapid-fire applying.

So, for some people, that’s going to LinkedIn and clicking as many “quick applies” as possible; for others, it’s just firing out generic resumes to any job posting that you can find, to try and find something different. The problem with angry applications, they don’t work for you. They don’t work for the company you’re applying to.

Mac Prichard:

Why do people do this, Brandi? To go from a bad day at the office to beginning to apply not just for one position but, perhaps, several dozen. That’s a huge leap. Why does this happen?

Brandi Oldham:

A lot of it has to do with a scarcity mindset. So when we get into a position where we’re extremely frustrated with what’s going on, we feel like we’re trapped, and we feel like there are no other options. And so, the result of that is we try to take control, and through our scarcity mindset, we just start applying to everything we can to try and see if something’s going to land.

And this is something that, it’s natural. I’ve done it. A lot of my clients have done it. It’s not abnormal to rebound that way and want to take action very quickly. But it is not something that’s gonna serve you long term, and it’s better for you to actually take a pause and reevaluate what’s going on and figure out the motivation behind why you’re doing the behavior.

Mac Prichard:

How do people feel in your experience with the clients you’ve worked with when they sit down at that computer and hit send on one or more applications after that tough day at the office?

Brandi Oldham:

Yes. So, one of the things that I think happens for most of my clients when they’re hitting that apply button – it’s bringing little hits of feel-good energy. I’m taking control of this. I’m doing something to make this bad day at work better by looking for other opportunities. And it’s great; you’re getting that tiny little hit.

The problem comes is we get what I like to call the job search hangover the next morning or even a couple of hours after you’re done with that binge apply, where you realize, oh my goodness, I’m getting rejection notices because I’m not a good fit, or I’m getting interviews, or I’m getting “move to the next step”, and I actually don’t want this job at all. And that feeling is doubling up that negative feeling.

But initially, it’s gonna feel really good. It’s just that twenty-four-hours, forty-eight-hours after, most of my clients explain, I feel like I’m in a worse spot because I wasted energy and time, and now I’m in a position where I’m feeling really desperate and demotivated because the things coming through aren’t actually what I want.

Mac Prichard:

In the long run, Brandi, does this help or hurt your career if you indulge in angry applications, not once, but maybe consistently?

Brandi Oldham:

Yeah, I mean, it depends. I would say it hurts. And here’s the reason why, when you’re submitting an application that you’re not a good fit for, not only are you wasting your own time and energy, which could very easily be spent doing other things to make you feel better overall; you’re also wasting the time and energy of the person at that company that you’re applying for.

That recruiter is looking desperately for someone who’s gonna be a great fit, and if you’re kind of teasing them, if you will, or giving them more applications to go through than they need to, that’s not a good thing for you or for them.

In terms of your own career trajectory, I would say it’s a negative. And here’s why; it’s going to put you into a position where your mental health is going to be in a negative place because most of the time, my clients get auto-rejects from this kind of behavior and/or interviews that are not in alignment with what they actually want.

What this does to you is if you’re looking for something long-term that’s going to be a great fit, you are wasting time, and it’s going to take you longer to try and find that thing. It also could potentially lead you into what I’ll call a rabbit trail, where you might end up accepting a job just to get out of the current situation only to find yourself right back where you were, and now you’re having to put in time and energy before you can go to something else.

Mac Prichard:

Can an employer tell if a candidate is sending an angry application? Are there any tell-tale signs?

Brandi Oldham:

Yes. I am someone who used to train recruiters, and so I often would get busy. I would help my recruiters source through candidates, and the short answer is absolutely.

There tends to be a little bit of desperation in the application. So what that might look like on the receiving end is an incomplete application. So let’s say, hypothetically, we’re asking you to fill out three short answer questions. Those short answers are either going to be incredibly short and abrupt, or they’re gonna be a little all over the place and not actually answering the question being asked. They’re also not going to be very thoughtful. It’s gonna be more of a very quick, knee-jerk reaction to the questions. It comes through in your writing.

Also, if you’ve had a really bad day at work, so let’s say you’re applying from a place of, maybe you’re angry at your boss. Oftentimes, those answers are going to have an angry undertone. And so, I’m going to see that on the other side, and so will any other recruiter.

The other thing I will say is if it’s just like a resume application, for example, your resume is not gonna match that job post. It may never even come across my desk because I’m not gonna be looking at resumes that aren’t a match and aren’t coming through the system as, hey, we’ve got a good fit here.

So, yes, if you’re applying, it does show on that back end. Thankfully, I’m not doing that anymore. But I know those recruiters out there; they definitely see this on a regular basis.

Mac Prichard:

In your experience of an angry application, I’m guessing that the candidate isn’t taking the time to do the research necessary to tailor a resume to that position, are they, Brandi?

Brandi Oldham:

No, and that’s one thing that when I’m working with clients as a career coach, most of my clients that are not getting the jobs they’re looking for are utilizing generic resumes. So they’ve created one version, and it goes to every single job post out there. Well, the reality is not every job is the same.

And therefore, the skillset that you have may match up to multiple jobs. But if your resume doesn’t showcase that, you’re leaving a lot of opportunity on the table, and when you’re doing angry applications, I can, with almost one hundred percent certainty, guarantee you’re not doing a custom resume. It is just a generic hit-and-send. And so, that does show through, and that does lower your chances of getting an opportunity that’s a really good fit for what you want to do.

Mac Prichard:

In your experience, Brandi, has a custom resume or a tailored resume become table stakes even in today’s job seekers market?

Brandi Oldham:

Yes, in my coaching practice, I coach all of my clients to do a tailored resume. So one of the things that I do, I have a five-minute resume approach. It requires you to do a lot of work on the front end. But on the back end, you can pull together a five-minute tailored resume for any job you’re looking for.

So, I tell my clients, sit down. Spend a couple of hours creating what I call a comprehensive resume. That’s gonna be the resume that has every single job you have ever worked at on it with detailed bullet points that are ready to go to be cut and pasted to a tailored resume. Once you’ve created that master document, it took me about six hours to do mine back when I was job searching. That resume is ready to go.

And so when you find a job posting that you’re interested in, you can duplicate your comprehensive resume, make sure you duplicate. I’ve had a couple of people who’ve overwritten their comprehensive. Don’t do that. Duplicate that document, and then go through and you can delete anything that’s not relevant and listed on the job posting for that current position. It is so easy and so fast to delete stuff that’s not relevant, and then you’ve got a tailored document in less than five minutes.

Mac Prichard:

Terrific. We’re gonna take a break, Brandi, and when we come back, I want to talk about your ideas and suggestions about what you should do instead of sending out angry applications.

So stay with us. When we return, Brandi Oldham will continue to share her advice on why you need to stop sending out angry applications and what to do instead.

When you are ready to apply for jobs, your resume needs to be ready, too.

Go to macslist.org/topresume.

The experts at TopResume will review your resume for free.

Go to macslist.org/topresume.

Learn how you can improve your resume on your own.

Or hire TopResume to do it for you.

Go to macslist.org/topresume.

Now, let’s get back to the show.

This is Find Your Dream Job, the podcast that helps you get hired, have the career you want, and make a difference in life.

I’m your host, Mac Prichard. I’m also the founder of Mac’s List. It’s a job board in the Pacific Northwest that helps you find a fulfilling career.

Every Wednesday, I talk to a different expert about the tools you need to get the work you want.

Find Your Dream Job is brought to you by TopResume. TopResume has helped more than 400,000 professionals land more interviews and get hired faster.

Get a free review of your resume today.

Go to macslist.org/topresume.

You have a really bad day at work.

It’s so bad that you want to quit your job.

So you go home, and you start applying everywhere.

Brandi Oldham is here to talk about why you need to stop sending out angry applications.

She’s the founder of Talent Career Coaching. Her company helps individuals, teams, and entrepreneurs in all aspects of the career journey.

Brandi joins us from Vancouver, Washington.

Now, Brandi, before the break, we were talking about why you need to stop sending out angry applications. Let’s talk about what to do instead, and again, you’ve had that bad day, you’re frustrated, and you think it’s time to change jobs.

One of the first steps you recommend, instead of sitting down at a job board like Mac’s List, and beginning to send out apps, is to talk to your employer about the source of the anger that’s inspiring those applications. Tell us more about this, Brandi.

Brandi Oldham:

Yeah, so the first thing I would actually recommend is if you are having a bad day, don’t go immediately to your employer. We need to do what I call a little bit of defusing of that frustration, and what I would recommend that you do, you know, get off work, head out the door, head home, and do something for your mental health. So, I know self-care is the new buzzword. There’s a lot of different ways you can do self-care, and it really depends on who you are.

But I’m gonna give you some tips and tricks here for things that I have found really help my clients. So the biggest thing that you want to do when you’re having a bad day is you want to start to reframe the way that your brain is making connections. So, you want to invite energy or focus into your brain to show yourself, I can actually look at things differently than the way I’m looking at them right now.

So, for example, that might look like coming home and cooking a recipe you’ve never tried before. Taking a walk around your neighborhood. We’ve got a puppy. Maybe you’ve got a dog. Take your dog with you and focus on finding everything on your walk that’s a certain color. So maybe you pick yellow today. Daffodils are out here in the Portland area. So every time you see a daffodil, start counting how many of those you see.

You may go on a walk in your neighborhood every single day. But I guarantee you’re probably not looking for certain things while you’re on that walk. You’re just kind of in the moment. That’s gonna help you to start to reframe the way that your brain is looking at things.

Once you’ve done that, it tends to help you start to see things in a new light, and, yeah, if there’s something that’s going on at work, maybe try to reframe. Okay, based on what happened today, is there something that I could’ve done differently to make this different? Is there something about this situation that I’m grateful for? Is there something about this situation that having a conversation with my manager or someone in a support system position could help me alleviate or work through this challenge?

Maybe it’s just a bad day. We all have bad days. Or maybe there’s something that’s really tapping into this idea that I’m not being challenged in a certain way, or I’m having to overcome something that really shouldn’t be a barrier. And how can we eliminate that from my day-to-day work?

Mac Prichard:

Once you’ve done those activities that help you reframe your energy and how you’re looking at things, and then you’re asking yourself those questions that you just suggested, Brandi, what’s the best way to do that? Should you do that on your own? Should you journal? Talk to a friend? What have you seen work?

Brandi Oldham:

Well, lots of things. I know that journaling works for most people. I will be the first person to tell you journaling is the hardest thing for me. So, I empathize out there with anyone else who’s, like, journaling. I just can’t do it.

But you can try different tactics. So maybe it’s sitting down with a friend and talking it through. I’m all about getting a good friend out there to kind of help vent it out. But also make sure that person that you’re sitting with is someone who is not gonna give in to just a negative spiral. But is actually going to help you try to reframe or learn differently about the situation.

If you decide to journal, for those of you that can sit down maybe with a nice glass of tea and just get to writing, more power to ya’. If you’re like me, I love doing to-do lists and pros and cons lists. It does a similar effect to journaling, but it just doesn’t quite feel as daunting. So that could be an option for you, as well.

The other thing I’ve encouraged some people to do, if you’re creative, draw. Put together a collage board. Do anything that’s kind of removing yourself and allowing you to work through those thought processes around those things. Whatever works for you is okay. But just do something to get yourself moving through those frustrations.

Mac Prichard:

You mentioned venting a moment ago, and we’ve all had those bad days, and it helps to kvetch a bit. But how can you, as you pursue these activities you’ve suggested, like journaling or talking to a friend, avoid getting trapped in that negative spiral? What are your best tips for avoiding getting trapped in venting alone?

Brandi Oldham:

Yeah, put on some great music. So if you’re maybe cooking that dinner, put on a song that’s gonna give you a little bit of uplift, or sit out in the sunshine for ten minutes, hopefully, if it’s sunny where you are, or if you’re in the Portland area, summer time’s great for this. Sit outside. Soak up some of that sun. But really try to do something that you know is going to be good for yourself.

A lot of my clients talk about, they come home, and they do what’s called the couch swallow, where you sit on the sofa, and you’re watching Netflix until you go to bed. That’s probably not going to help you when you’re in that vent mode because your brain can just roll or completely distract. Which at the end of the day, we do need to work through that feeling if we’re going to try and make our career move forward for us.

But, so that’s what I would say. Really try and find something that’s gonna inject some positivity there. Music, for me, is one of the best ways to do it. But there’s a lot of different ways you can do that.

Mac Prichard:

So you’ve taken two steps here. You’ve looked for ways to reframe what happened. You’ve looked for ways to explore issues that might be going on, whether you’re doing that with a friend or through journaling or other ideas that you’ve shared with us.

But maybe it’s time to talk to your boss. How do you know it is the time to do that, Brandi? And that’s a difficult conversation. How do you get prepared for that?

Brandi Oldham:

Oof, absolutely. The other thing I would say, too, is if you need a coach, that is a great person to put in your corner. I have a couple of clients who would probably tell you, Mac, that “I call Brandi to vent on the really bad days.” And that’s okay. I’m in a safe space where my information’s not going anywhere. You can let it all out, and then I can help you reframe and draft that conversation.

If a coach isn’t a possibility for you, really take some time to think through, “If I’ve got a problem that I’m facing and I need to go to my boss, and I need to get this addressed”, you want to come to those conversations with possible solutions. Because I’ve got to tell you the best person who knows you is you. Your boss is gonna do their best, hopefully, if they’re a good manager, to try and support you and get you on the right path. But, honestly, they can’t see in your brain as much as you wish they could.

So being able to come to your manager or come to someone with a solution of saying, hey, this person on my team is really doing this behavior that’s making my job really hard. A solution might be, can I work in a private conference room two hours a week to be able to knock this thing out? So that way, I’m able to keep moving forward on this project. I need dedicated quiet time.

Or whatever that might look like for you. But coming to the conversation with, here’s the problem, here are some solutions that I think are going to help me. Are you open to exploring these alongside me?

Mac Prichard:

A final suggestion you make as an alternative to sending out angry applications is to get clear about what you want both in your job and your career. What do you have in mind here, Brandi? And why is this important, especially in this situation?

Brandi Oldham:

Well, the one thing I would say here is I’ve been in that situation where I didn’t know what I wanted. I, at one point, applied to over two-hundred-and-fifty job applications before getting into this career field. So if you’re listening to this call and you’re like, oh, that’s definitely me, or, oh, I’m not that bad. You’re in good company.

But what I would say here is, when you’re trying to apply for a job, if you don’t know what you want, the person on the other side of that table can’t help you get there. Let me rephrase that one more time or say that one more time. If you don’t know what you want, how can anyone else put you on the path to get there?

So some of the things that you can do if you’re really struggling, and you’re like, I just don’t know what I want to do with my career, is informational interviews. Mac, I know you’ve talked about this before on the podcast. It’s on your website as well. I talk about it with all of my clients. Get curious.

Find people around in the community that you think, hey, they’ve got an interesting job, and I want to know more. Sit down with them for a cup of coffee and ask, how did you get there? What is your day-to-day like? What does the future of this career look like?

When you’re sitting down and talking to people, you’re gonna get a very good picture of what’s actually available out there for you. And then you can take that and decide, yep, this aligns with what I want to do, or absolutely not. We’re gonna try something else.

And if you’re intimidated by doing one-on-one conversations, on my blog, I have the Talent Spotlight series. It’s a written version. It’s a good half-step if you’re someone that gets really nervous meeting the people in person.

Mac Prichard:

I love that advice, Brandi, because I think when you do go through that process, it can confirm for you that you’re in the right position, but it can also tell you that it is time for a change, and it helps you get clarity about where you want to go next.

Well, it’s been a great conversation. Now, tell us, what’s next for you?

Brandi Oldham:

Yeah, so here at Talent Career Coaching, we are expanding the coaching team, and that means I’m gonna have some more time to work on some online courses. So that’s what’s next for me, is I’m gonna be creating content and doing some self-lead courses to be able to serve more people in this environment.

Mac Prichard:

Well, terrific. I know listeners can learn more about your upcoming courses and your other services by visiting your website; that URL is www.talentcareercoaching.com, and you also invite listeners to connect with you on LinkedIn, and as always, I hope they’ll mention they heard you on Find Your Dream Job when they do so.

Now, Brandi, given all the great advice you’ve shared today, what’s the one thing you want a listener to remember about why you need to stop sending out angry applications and what to do instead?

Brandi Oldham:

Yeah, you are your own best advocate in your career. So take the time, invest in yourself, and do applications and job searching that align with who you are and where you want to go. Don’t allow yourself to fall into the trap of just submitting applications everywhere. Really focus in on what matters to you and what’s going to make a difference for your career.

Mac Prichard:

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Next week, our guest will be Crystal Granger.

She’s the total rewards and equity manager at Bob’s Red Mill. It’s an employee-owned company that makes natural, certified organic, and gluten-free milled grain products.

You’ve received a job offer. Congratulations!

Now it’s time to talk about money.

Join us next Wednesday when Crystal Granger shares tips and tricks for responding to a salary offer.

Until next time, thanks for letting us help you find your dream job.

This show is produced by Mac’s List.

Susan Thornton-Hough schedules our guests and writes our newsletter. Lisa Kislingbury Anderson manages our social media.

Our sound engineer is Matt Fiorillo. Ryan Morrison at Podfly Productions edits the show. Dawn Mole creates our transcripts. And our music is by Freddy Trujillo.

This is Mac Prichard. See you next week.