Surviving job hunting hell
This Is Uncomfortable
Marketplace
4.6 • 3.6K Ratings
🗓️ 15 January 2026
⏱️ 37 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Job hunting has a way of testing your limits. It can be hard not to question yourself (or spiral) when the process stretches on far longer than you imagined.
Reema is joined by career coach Phoebe Gavin and writer Rachel Meade Smith to talk about the emotional side of the job hunt -- practical ways to navigate it, and how to get through it without losing yourself.
Do you have a job hunting horror story you want to share with us? Or general work drama that you’d want advice on? Give us a call at 347-RING-TIU or send us an email at uncomfortable@marketplace.org.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hey everyone, I'm Rima Grace and welcome to This Is Uncomfortable. I'm very excited to be back in your feeds. |
| 0:08.7 | It's been a while. And before I get into this week's episode, I just want to share in case you haven't heard already, that we are starting something new with this show. |
| 0:16.9 | We are now weekly. So each week, we're going to bring you a new episode, pretty much all year round. |
| 0:21.6 | More conversations, more stories about money and how it shapes our lives and our relationships. |
| 0:27.3 | You know, with everything going on right now, I just want this to be a place where we can be in conversation more often, try to learn from each other, make sense of our financial lives together. |
| 0:37.1 | We're still going to share |
| 0:38.2 | intimate personal stories, but we're also going to bring on more experts, people who can help us |
| 0:42.7 | think through our relationship with money and what's happening in the economy. To hear more of |
| 0:47.5 | this new version of This Is Uncomfortable, be sure to check out the other episode we released today |
| 0:51.5 | that's in your feed. It's called How Much Money is Enough. |
| 0:55.4 | But for this episode, I want to get into something that you've been sending us messages about, |
| 1:01.1 | which is job hunting and just how hellish it feels right now. |
| 1:06.9 | Hi, this is Darcy. I'm calling about job hunting and my complaints. Most of the job posting seem to be fake. I also have been very frustrated by how long it takes people to get back to you, if they get back to you at all. I just feel like there's like a general lack of respect for applicants. |
| 1:29.2 | Hi, my name is Aitza. I have been quite frustrated for almost six months now that I have been |
| 1:36.4 | actively looking and haven't had any luck. It's quite frustrating to see something that matches your |
| 1:42.3 | profile. Do you get the interview, |
| 1:45.0 | and still be told, no, you know, you'd be such a great fit, but someone's always a greater fit. |
| 1:51.2 | Hi, my name is Caleb Traxler. I graduated recently, and I'm now trying to find a job in the current job market. |
| 1:57.8 | Overall, I think I applied to 350 to 400 jobs in the past month and have received |
| 2:02.7 | nothing. My student loan grace period is going to end in about six months. Hi, I'm Adrile. January 3rd |
| 2:09.6 | was when I got to let go, 2025 and financially it's been ridiculous. After getting evicted, I |
| 2:15.7 | stay in the hotel for two weeks and I went to a friend's house |
... |
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