Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

In general, I'd agree with you, but here's the sad truth...

Olivier is having difficulty finding a job, despite applying for 'millions' of positions. That screams that there is something wrong. At this point, we could pat him on the head and tell him that everything will be fine, or we can put our critical hats on and try to find things that be blocking his dreams.

I'll agree that some of the feedback has been harsh, but the poor man ended his plea with the word 'help'. Sometimes the most helpful advice is the hardest to hear.



He says he needs help, he doesn't need everyone telling him how disapointing his entire resume is.

He needs people to let him know what they like and dislike about his profile. But that does also include mentioning what is attractive about his resume. Otherwise we might as well tell him "yo bro, tech isn't for you honestly" if there's nothing likable about what he's done.

He needs to find where his profile adds value and concentrate on that. Conversely, he needs people to let him know about what they think is his profile's weaker points so he can adapt. But asking for help and having everyone tell him the same thing that his interviewers have told him isn't what he's asking for. Is it ?

Some answers have been very helpful it seems (as simple as "well maybe you're applying for senior positions instead of junior ones" or "maybe it's your personality rather than your achievements"). But saying "yeah man; I'm sorry but none of your projects impress me, they're all at best avg" does seem kinda harsh to me. To the point where it might be detrimental to OP's motivation.

Back to the main question:

I think your resume is great, you clearly have valuable skills. Assuming you're applying to entry level positions (you're only 23), I would guess that it's everything besides your resume that isn't working out. Maybe it's your cover letter, it might not be transmitting what people want to read. You should be able to get interviews with your resume, I'm surprised you're not. Have you tried to contact people directly ? I mean as opposed to responding to job ads ?

Also, little tip, rather than saying you're the best at what you do and that's why someone should employ you, I would also add to my cover letter why you want to work for who ever you're applying it. Is it because you're in love with drones, with sports, with lingerie, with whatever you're gonna be working on if you get the job. Because employers are looking for devs that love the product they're coding. I'd rather code with someone avg but passionate about what he does than someone super good but that doesn't give a shit.

Anyway, don't give up bro, you're young and you're clearly not dumb, so it'll work out. Good luck !




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: