When I was laid off from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), I counted my time there to the day: 4,060 days (11 years, 1 month, and 12 days). Today I'm counting something different. It has been one year, yes one full year, since that farewell, and I'm still looking for my next career move. I’m in disbelief that it has been an entire year.

For more than a decade I worked to advance CPB's mission of universal access to public media. Working with local stations and hearing about the impact they made in their communities told me I was exactly where I needed to be. When CPB lost its federal funding, that chapter closed for me and for many of my colleagues. At the 100-ish day mark, I wrote about what was keeping me grounded. Building a routine and giving myself grace were at the top of that list. So was volunteering with an organization that provides food and toiletries to unhoused individuals, which reminded me that my value isn't tied to a job title. All of that still holds. But a full year looks different than 100 days, and I want to be honest about what this stretch has actually felt like.

The emotional wear and tear is real

Nobody prepares you for what repeated rejection does over time. Applications that never get a response. Interviews that feel promising and then go quiet. Weeks with no interviews. Each one on its own is manageable. Stacked together over months, they start to wear you down, and there have been moments when I have felt close to hopeless. If that's where you are, hold on. I know you're tired of the encouraging words. I am too. But I would rather say it than pretend this part isn't hard.

Some days the energy just isn't there

There have been days when my to-do list was long, there were jobs I needed to apply for, and I simply didn't have the energy to do any of it. That gap between what needs to get done and what you're able to give is one of the most frustrating parts of this season. I have had to accept that those days will come, and those low days don’t erase the work I have put in.

Keep some normalcy, even when nothing feels normal

This season isn't normal, and most days it doesn't feel normal either. I've tried to hold on to pieces of normal life anyway. Some weeks that means forcing myself to keep my social calendar, even when staying home would be easier, just to stay out and about and connected to people. It's not always what I feel like doing, but I'm almost always glad I did it.

It's not you! The job market has changed

This is a tough job market, and it's different from anything I and many others have seen. Technology has changed how hiring works. Applications are screened by automated systems before a person ever reads them, and talented, experienced people are getting filtered out in the process. When you're on the receiving end of that silence, it's easy to start believing you aren't valuable or worthy. That belief isn't true. A tough market is not a verdict on what you bring.

Change the strategy when it stops working

If the approach you've been using isn't producing results, it may be time to try something different. That could mean targeting a different type of role or organization, leaning more on your network than on job boards, or considering contract and interim assignments that put your skills to work while you keep searching. A different path in can still lead where you want to go.

Build something that's yours

This year I put real work into Boundless Travel by Shawn, my boutique travel advisory business. Travel is my passion and helping others experience the world has been fulfilling. Working on something I own has kept my skills sharp and given me a sense of forward motion on days when the job search didn't.

Where I am now…

A year in, I'm still reminding myself to give myself grace, still volunteering, and still searching. If you're in a similar season, whether it's month 1 or month 12, you're not alone. Progress doesn't always look linear.

Here comes my plug...I'm focused on business operations, program and project management, and strategic operations roles, preferably with mission-driven organizations but open to others. If you know of an opportunity or someone I should connect with, I welcome the conversation.