Chi Señires

Thoughts on looking for new opportunities

Since I switched companies, I occasionally get asked the question, "how did you [find a job]?" or, "do you have any tips [in looking for a new role]?"

The short answer to that is:

(and it feels like a cop out to say these since it seems so simple, but wala, yun lang rin masasabi ko eh)

For the long answer:

For the current timeframe of when I am writing this (which is near the end of Q1 2025), I just want to share: I was already job hunting around late 2023. Initially I was just doing it partly as practice and partly because I was already anticipating I might stagnate in my growth if I stayed where I was given my existing skillset. I was in a somewhat cushy corporate job, with good benefits even with dependents and also some room to grow withing the company. But I didn't think I would grow my design skills there, specifically in learning more about design systems. So I started searching for other places where I could potentially get that learning.

(As an aside, I also just want to mention here that I've voiced out my desire to get involved in design systems at the start of me joining my previous company, but as much as I kept fronting it and also kind of involving myself in things relating to our existing design system then, since I was hired for a different reason, I didn't get to exercise that muscle as much. I'm pretty sure people who worked with me before were not surprised why I eventually left, along with other reasons I will not mention here. 😛)

By start of 2024, I had some good news then: I was being considered for a role in a big company in Europe. They even paid for part of my trip then because I already had a scheduled trip to visit my partner for a few weeks. I got to know the potential team I was gonna work with, got a tour of the offices, and got to discuss possible offers with their HR. I was so excited to hear back from them then!

But to cut the story short, I ended up not getting the job because they ended up finding a local hire. Suffice to say, I was pretty down after that, and I didn't have the mental nor emotional capacity to continue looking for jobs then. It felt like a sayang moment for me.

After a few months though, I eventually found more reasons to start fixing my resume and portfolio again and go on an applying spree. (Or, let's just say I was reminded of why I started looking for new work in the first place lol)

I eventually found another company where I got to the offer stage, but I ended up not liking the offer they provided. What's more, another reason I was looking for new work was because I wasn't happy with the Return To Office setup that was being enforced with us. Like, I get if we're going back to the office to collaborate and whatever, but if all we're gonna do is tire ourselves just to sit down on hot desks and be on Teams majority of the day, count me out.

I continued my search, just still randomly applying to any job posting I would find every week. Every week I'd also get notifications that companies would not be continuing with my application, which I'll just be like, "alright, oh well, time for the next one."

Eventually I stumbled upon the job opening for where I now currently work, and ta-da! It worked out well for me.

What's my point here?

I just want to show that it's really going to take a while to get to where you want to be. Some people may be "blessed" with certain skills, talent, or connections and it gets their foot in the door of some places faster than others, but I daresay one can combat that with some of the same skills those other people would have, a mindset to learn, and brute force—AKA to just apply and apply and apply until you get into an interview, and then from there you do your best effort.

Regardless if it went well or not, there's learnings to be made for each email sent, each application filled up, each interview scheduled, each portfolio or case study review done. Some of the learnings may not even be about your own skills; it can also be about the companies or teams you're applying for. For example, I learned that even if a job role was listed as a mid to senior role, the interviewer for that position would still ask you the basic question of, "What is UX design and what is its difference from UI?" You'd think at that skill level, you'd be way past these questions, but I'll chalk that observation up more as a reflection of the level of understanding of the company trying to hire designers than a way to measure my own skillset.

Of course, other than brute forcing your way through job applications or to get into interviews, there also has to be some effort done on your end as the one applying to make it worth the while of the people who will be going through whatever it is you submitted. For my resume, I was given the advice that I should also note the business impact the work I've done has reflected back to the companies I've worked in, because that also gives off the impression that the designs and the work you've done over the years has worked and has been effective to some degree. For my portfolio, I was still using the same content I presented when I was still applying for my previous role (the one I was trying to leave) because even if I did have a lot of work done in that role and in that company, the type of work I was looking for was more similar to what I ended up being able to do at least a part of in the role I had before my previous role.

(If you're reading this and you're getting lost with the timeline and the mentions of "previous" roles, I apologize. But, I don't want to explain any further than what I've written. Essentially: if you know, you know. I don't hide my job experience anyway, so if you're curious, you can try to connect the dots based on some of the hints I've written out. 😆)

In my case, since both my resume and portfolio already got me to a point where I almost got an offer letter for a big company that was based in Europe, I figured, maybe this is already good enough, and I'll just keep on practicing my presentation skills. I only really got this reference because I kept applying for jobs and eventually got somewhere farther than just the first interview phase.

So to go back to the start of what I wrote, and to answer the question, "how did you find a job?", "do you have any tips in looking for a new role?", or to respond to some remarks I got from others like, "wow ang swerte mo", "sana all", "buti ka pa, ako hirap na hirap huhu":

Prepare your resume. Prepare your portfolio. Just keep looking. Just keep applying.

And also: don't put too much emotional weight on applying for jobs. Just put in enough effort. That enough is something you have to define for yourself.

It is what it is; you are simply just filling up a form and providing details about your previous experiences or your thought processes, or writing an email to share more information about yourself. But if you did your part and the place you're applying to either:

It makes sense to feel sad or disappointed. That's fine. You did put in some effort anyway, and it didn't result in what you were looking for.

But take note that on the flip side of these, recruiters and companies are scouring through lots of applications as well. Make it worth their while to go through your application. If they use some automated system and your application didn't go through, then that's either just not your time or moment, or it can also be a reflection on the side of the company that they're not putting that much effort into actually looking for talent they're seeking.

So it's not just you. It's a two-way street. And there are lots more places that are looking for talent. It may be hidden behind another LinkedIn Job Search filter, it may be found through networking either in person or online, or it may be found elsewhere.

It's tiring, yes. Both physically and emotionally. Take breaks when you can. But remember that you can only find something if you keep looking for it. It sounds obvious, but I think it bears mentioning because I worry that other people might be looking for some magic process or way to just land any job that they want to apply for.

Life doesn't work that way, and if you haven't realized that now, it's time for you to do so. But that also means that as long as you keep searching, eventually you'll find your answer.

Whether that's a new job, or a new direction in life, what matters is you tried and kept trying.