Over the last five months, Blake Isaacs has done everything he can to get hired.
The 30-year-old, who’s based in Chicago, worked for the same marketing company for nearly seven years before getting laid off in January.
“I’ve definitely sent a lot of applications,” he says, “I think I’m over 1,000 now.” He’s also tried getting referrals for jobs and asked family and friends for introductions to people who could help in his search.
But the process has left him feeling “so defeated,” Isaacs says, adding, “I know that everyone has a job to do and I am not on their list of priorities, but it’s been disappointing to see the lack of humanity on the other side.”
The experience, which he shared in a May post on LinkedIn, led him to coin a term for what he was feeling: the Glass Wall. “I see hundreds of job postings every day, yet applying to them seems to do nothing,” he wrote.
“Job seekers today are quietly pushed to the wrong side of the Glass Wall,” Isaacs said on LinkedIn. “We can see the job openings. We can see who is hiring. We even know which recruiters are working on each role. But we can’t access them from our side of the Glass Wall.”
The post went viral immediately. “I woke up and it had 80,000 impressions,” Isaacs says, “and by the time I went to bed it had 400,000.” He’s now seen just how common his experience is.
If you feel like you’re facing the glass wall yourself, here’s what experts recommend.
‘It’s not a reflection on you’
First, it’s important to remember you’re not alone.
Businesses are hiring at one of the slowest paces in the last 10 years, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. That could be as a result of uncertainty around policy like tariffs, for example, or because employers are experimenting with new tech like AI to see if it can take over some of their roles.
And “the fact that technology has invaded every part of the job search increases the frustration because it increases the workload on both sides,” says Julie Bauke, founder of career planning company The Bauke Group. Recruiters are so inundated with applications, it’s incredibly difficult to get to them all.
Given the external obstacles, remember that if you’re not hearing back from prospective employers, “it’s not a reflection on you,” says Octavia Goredema, career coach and author of “PREP, PUSH, PIVOT.”
“It’s a system that is potentially overloaded.”
‘You are making progress, even though you can’t see it yet’
Second, remember that people around you are still your greatest resource.
Ask yourself, “how are you spending your time?” says Bauke. “You ought to be spending at least two thirds of your time” connecting with people, whether they be new, like people in your alumni network you’ve never talked to, or longtime friends and family. You can also create opportunities for meeting new people, like volunteering.
After you’ve done one round of reaching out, don’t feel like you’ve necessarily tapped out that group of people. “Share an update on something that you have applied for recently, even if you didn’t progress to the interview stage,” says Goredema. “Sometimes when someone else sees the title or the type of company that you have targeted, it might spark another idea or suggestion.”
You can also ask those people if they need any help themselves. “Being able to pay it forward for someone else can help give you that feel-good factor, feeling valuable and helpful again,” she says.
Finally, remember that even if you’re not hearing back from employers, you’re still moving in the right direction. “Every application, every conversation, every interaction, every resume update is moving you closer towards your next opportunity,” says Goredema.
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