When it comes to landing that perfect job, sometimes less is more. Recruiting experts warn that the practice known as "doomjobbing" can actually be dooming your chances of finding the best job for your talents. Here is a look at what this term means and how you can avoid it.

Doomjobbing Explained

In today’s tough economy, nobody would blame you for firing off resume after resume in the hopes of securing a better job. According to Golda Inquito, founder and CEO of The Talent Treehouse, a career strategy and talent advisory firm, “Doomjobbing is a vicious cycle of mass applying for jobs.” Most people mistakenly believe that they will eventually land an interview if they fire off resumes in rapid succession; however, that strategy rarely pays off.

Job seekers turn to doomjobbing as a coping mechanism when an overall sense of doom is guiding their job search. The practice is becoming more prevalent in the current job market, marked by great uncertainty and volatility.

Many job seekers keep casting a wide net with no success, amplifying the overall sense of hopelessness. Others may take every rejection personally, adding to their already growing self-doubt. Constantly being rejected naturally reinforces that sense of dread, eventually becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Negative Impacts of Doomjobbing

On the surface, doomjobbing may seem harmless. Many job seekers think, "What harm could come out of trying to open up as many options as possible?" However, recruiters and life coaches are largely in agreement that the practice can lead to poor self-esteem while also stymying career growth.

Aimlessly firing off applications can quickly evolve into a time suck that detracts from tasks that are more likely to lead to success. Consider the amount of time it takes to send a resume to 100 long-shot positions versus the time to tailor your resume to target five specific jobs. When it comes to the job search game, quality is almost always greater than quantity.

The scattershot approach can also erode your confidence so much that you struggle with putting together applications for positions that you are actually suited for. Spending too much time and effort on doomjobbing may feel like it is a productive use of your time. However, consider that this energy could be better used targeting open positions that have a higher chance of leading to an interview. What may seem productive is often just wasting time on jobs that are not a good fit for your skills.

At the end of the day, most job offers come from a human connection. It is easy to sit behind a screen and fire off resumes, as this avoids direct rejection. But you are not doing yourself any favors if you are not applying a targeted approach to your job search. Taking human connection out of the process also makes it more likely that you accept a job offer that does not meet your expectations, sending you back into the cycle of doomjobbing when you are forced to start the search again.

How to Break the Cycle of Doomjobbing

In order to break the cycle of doomjobbing, you have to first clarify what it is that you want from the job search. Inquito recommends going to LinkedIn and identifying 10 jobs that appeal to you, regardless of whether you are qualified. This simple exercise can clarify what it is that you are truly passionate about when there are no personal stakes in play.

It is also a good idea to set a time limit so that you are not wasting time on a task that is not yielding any positive results. For instance, maybe you want to limit yourself to scrolling LinkedIn for just 10 minutes per day. This also means limiting the number of resumes sent each week. Five is a good number of resumes to aim for each week, provided that each application includes a tailored resume to that specific position.

It may sound cliché, but networking is king. Networking can open up opportunities not available to the public. Inquito recommends, “Start networking before you need something.” In other words, do not wait until you are desperate for a job to comment on posts or engage in like-minded communities.

Lastly, it is easy to fall into the trap of letting the doom spill over into other areas of life. Just because things are not going as you hoped with the job search, it does not mean that your whole life is doomed. Making time for calming activities such as exercise, volunteering, spending time with loved ones, and self-care activities can go a long way in cultivating a positive frame of mind that will spill over into the job search.

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