Job Search Trauma Is Real—Here’s One That Stopped Me Cold

I've worked with hundreds of job seekers, and I've heard their stories—the frustration, the confusion, the heartbreak.

🔹 You upload your resume just to be forced to retype every word into the application system.

🔹 You prepare for interviews, send thank-you notes, and then... ghosted.

🔹 You get a random DM from a recruiter or a vague email from HR that leads nowhere.

But I recently heard one that made me stop cold.

A true WTF moment.

A job seeker—who doesn't even have the green "Open to Work" frame—gets an InMail from a recruiter.

No big deal, right?

Except…

She saw the message AFTER she got a phone call from that recruiter—on her WORK number.

Let that sink in.

A recruiter cold-called her at work.

At her current job.

Without warning.

On a line tied directly to her employer.

Are we serious right now?

What happened to boundaries? What happened to discretion? What happened to ethics?

I hear stories every day—stories that show just how broken, disconnected, and tone-deaf the hiring process can be.

Maybe it's not just the process that's baffling.

Maybe it's people.

We can—and must—do better.

For the sake of trust, professionalism, and human dignity.

If you're job searching right now and feel like you're trapped in a maze with no map, you are NOT alone.

I see you. I hear you. And I'm fighting alongside you.