The ‘adulting’ guide to finding a job

This is a sponsored post in partnership with Monster.com and Her Campus Media. All words and opinions are my own

I have applied to hundreds of internships and jobs. I was the girl with the spreadsheet who spent all of my senior year of college in an anxious panic about having nowhere to go and nothing to do post-grad. Things worked out. But, finding a job was not an easy task. It was a never-ending process—and since I’m only in my twenties and am unsure of my career path, it still is.

Job hunting doesn’t have to make you eat ice cream out of the carton and lie on the floor in a hopeless state. It will probably never be fun, but there are a few ways to make it a hell of a lot easier.

1. Track what you apply for in a spreadsheet.

I know I totally overuse the phrase “game-changer” but let me tell you, this warrants the phrase. I tracked my job hunting and applications in a color-coded spreadsheet. This was wonderful for being able to see when I applied for something and whether or not I followed up. Plus, I was able to track when I heard back or if I didn’t.

It’s so easy to put together and it’ll pay off later! It’s also good to track things you want to apply for later and whether or not you remembered to follow up or heard back.

2. Expand your search.

Try typing in different titles, industries or types of work. You never know what you might find or what might actually be a great fit for you. Applying takes a bit of time and you’re not committing to anything.

3. Fix your resume.

Monster offers free resume assessments which basically helps you see what you could improve on or what mistakes you might have on your resume. IT even helps predict what a recruiter’s first impression of your resume would be, which is incredibly helpful to have.

4.  Tell your network that you’re looking for a job.

If you’ve got a professional network, let them know or post on LinkedIn. But, also let your general network know, too. You never know if your friend’s dad or professor’s sister could be looking to hire someone.

5. Actually read the responsibilities.

Is this something you really want to do? If not, is it on the track toward what you want to do? Monster’s job search engine tries to users to help them find a job that speaks to their passion…and they’re absolutely right about that. Of course you won’t become the EIC or boss right out of college, but make sure that the position is at least helping you on the path of your passion or helping you fund your currently a side hustle passion without entirely draining you.

6. Read company reviews.

You can do this on Monster and I absolutely suggest it. Like RateMyProfessors, take these with a grain of salt, but also take the time to read the reviews with certain details or honest opinions. Getting a feel for the office culture and company vibes is a good thing when deciding where you might want to work.

7. Know your worth.

Sites like Monster have salary guides and search engines which basically let you see how much people in your area (and in the nation) are getting paid for certain jobs. I honestly wish I’d found this sooner. Knowing this information can make you more confident when negotiating job offers and when searching to see what the average pay is. It helps you get a sense of the reality of your field.

…plus it’s kind of fun to see how much people in other fields in other places get paid, too. This is totally one of the mistakes I made while being an intern and is still one I struggle with now.

8. Make sure you’re happy with what your employers can Google about you (including social media).

It doesn’t matter if it’s private. This depends on your field and what you’re comfortable with. Obviously if you’re searching for a job in law, you won’t want any tweets or Instagrams of you drinking underage or smoking (you might not want that in any field, really). If you’re trying to work in social media, you’ll want your profiles to reflect you.

This doesn’t mean remove all traces of personality and smartassery! Feel free to leave in your sass, complaints about public transportation and memes. It shows that you’re a real person. Personally, if a company saw my Twitter and decided not to hire me based off of that…I can promise I wouldn’t have been happy there anyway.

Basically? Keep the personality. Cut the things of questionable taste and legality.

9. Stop comparing your job search to others’.

Guilty! So what if your housemate got a job because her aunt owns half of the company? And so what if your nemesis at school just landed your dream job. Of course it’s infuriating when you’re trying really hard to hunt for a job and other people are already getting jobs and making amazing connections. But, no one’s life is going down the same path.

I can promise that their job probably isn’t as glamorous as they make it out to be on Instagram. Be patient and stay in your own lane. Congratulate those around you, maybe hit them up for drinks down the line and keep on going!

10. Stop glamorizing your dream job/company and putting it on an unreachable pedestal of perfection.

Every year I manage to declare a new “dream job” at a “dream company.” This has changed many times over the years for a variety of reasons:

– My application for a dream position at dream company was received. They loved it. I took an edit test (for non-editorial folks, this is basically a sample of the kind of work you’d be doing to see if you’d be good at it or would like it.) I hated the edit test. I was miserable. Dream job? Eliminated.

– I started reading more about the company and realized it is an unstable disaster. (Pssst….Monster has some company profiles on their site which can be handy when it comes to seeing which companies you actually want to be at)

– I went to an internship interview at the company and it was so unprofessional and chaotic I realized I did not want to return.

– I grew out of the phase and realized I thought the company was a lot cooler than it is and their writing style is actually so far from mine I’d never fit in or be happy.

Basically, don’t lock yourself into a dream job or dream company. Keep an open mind. And don’t put yourself down either! My boyfriend gave me a lecture out of love after I kept saying my dream company (of the week) would never answer me. He told me that’s their loss—I’m an excellent worker and writer and if they didn’t hire me, so what? I’ll find somewhere who appreciates me. Plus, I am absolutely idealizing companies and jobs in my head. Absolutely right.

I ended up pushing a lot of companies off of their pedestal after that.

11. Spend some of your downtime getting motivated.

Some, not all. Job hunting shouldn’t be your entire life. Spend some time reading motivational books or listening to inspiring podcasts. Watch YouTube videos of people in your field. Get pumped up and absorb as much knowledge as you can even while you’re not applying for jobs.

One of my favorite things to do in between applying was researching interview questions or practicing doing mock interviews with my roommates.

How’s your job hunt going?