My banking classmate got fired in January. He now works part-time in luxury retail.
I was catching up with my classmate recently.
I had finally managed to get him an interview with my client, after months of searching.
Earlier this year in Jan, his role was made redundant in a global restructuring at his bank.
We're the same age.
We were university classmates.
So I've been helping him look for a job ever since.
Then he told me something unexpected:
He had taken a part-time job as a retail sales associate at a luxury brand.
I asked him:
"How come? I thought you'd been applying hard for banking jobs!"
He said:
"I've filed so many applications since February. Attended so many interviews. I still haven't received a single offer."
💬 His next reply made me sad but I deeply admire his determination:
"I felt like a failure waking up every morning for the past 9 months, doing nothing at home. It's a terrible feeling....waking up with nothing to do. Especially in my early 30s. So I decided to take this part-time sales role."
I told him:
"Hey. You're doing a good job. I'm impressed.
It takes courage to keep working while you wait for the right offer.
Honestly if I were fired and needed time to land back in my industry, I would have done exactly the same."
The market has improved slightly.
But I'm still trying hard to find him a role.
I hope I can land him something in the next 3–6 months 🤞
👇
If you were him, would you wait until you found a job in your original industry?
Or would you take up part-time work even if it's irrelevant to your career until something lands?
PS: If you're job hunting today, feel free to check out my guide:
📝 Fixing Your CV & LinkedIn in 1 Day
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