How I got two top tech jobs with only two job applications
Job seekers today often apply to as many jobs as possible thinking that boosts their odds of success. I've personally found the opposite approach is more effective.
This post shares my approach to get hired as the 2nd employee at Laskie (which Elon Musk acquired to turn into X Hiring) and as a Senior Product Manager at Braintrust (the largest decentralized talent network with $120m funding raised from Coinbase and Tiger Global).
The steps I followed are:
- Spend most of my time finding the job I'm confident I can add the most value, based on my past experience
- Craft an incredible cold email to the CEO and/or hiring manager, and use my portfolio to show my relevant experience
For example, when I cold emailed the CEO of Braintrust, I didn't have "Product Manager" anywhere on my resume.
It didn't matter though, because I focused on my portfolio in the pitch, where I had all of the equivelant experience. I showed how I've actually already done the work they needed, which was more powerful.
Here's the email.
Here's the breakdown of where each link[1] went:
- "matchmaking product" linked to Hire
- "SEO growth engine" linked to Showcase
- "Portfolio" linked to my overall portfolio
There were at least over 100 other applicants for the two PM roles.
Within an hour, the CEO intro'd me to the VP of Product, who booked an interview on my calendar for two days later.
During the interview when we were discussing my past work and what needed to be done at Braintrust, I shared details about the relevant projects. Then I followed up afterwards with links to the projects in my email and thanking her for the call.
My portfolio enabled me to do things the other candidates couldn't, which was showing how good of a fit I was for the job versus just telling.
Takeaway
If you want to boost your conversion rate from job application to interview, and through the rest of the hiring funnel, build a portfolio and link to your posts in the application and through the rest of the process.
A portfolio is a commitment to build. It's a time investment to craft each project well, but you'll have that professional ammo for the rest of your career. It will help you in job searchs, once you're hired to gain more influence with the org, and countless other ways when you want to reference your past work.
Fortunately Showspace is free and makes the portfolio creation process far easier. Now get building! 😃
[1] When I sent this email in 2021, my portfolio lived on my personal website, but of course now I'm showing you Showspace links.