I’ve had many rejections, but I don’t take most of them personally. I know the market is saturated. Still, I do always wonder, “What if I had done x differently?” It’s true that I don’t apply the same way every time. I don’t always send a cover letter. I’ve applied to multiple roles inside the same company. I’ve used AI to help me edit my own words because, at some point, I stopped trusting myself to write something people want to read. But without feedback from the folks I’m trying to get a job from, the only thing I’ve been able to do is tell myself stories about why I’m not a good fit, if they even saw my resume in the first place (looking at you, ATS).

With those stories, I’m doing my best to adjust and make edits where I feel I may be missing out on opportunities to showcase my work and myself as a designer and a potential teammate. If you’re curious, some stories I’m telling myself now (true or not) are: I’m too old, I don’t have household name recognition to my work history, I’ve stayed in my current role for too long, I don’t have enough compelling work to show for my years, I’m a jack of all trades but a master of none. These, along with my desire to improve my portfolio and resume, have led me to create this catalog. 

Below you’ll find a collection of website and resume[soon] iterations that I’ve been through since starting my job hunt late 2023, earnestly in 2024. Included is the number of jobs I applied to with that particular combo and how many folks said no.