Transitioning from office cubicle to the autonomy of remote work is no small feat, and Juliana's candid sharing of her transition, equipped with psychological know-how and recruitment acumen, is nothing short of inspiring.
She recounts the tactical steps that secured her place in the digital nomad pantheon, from preserving a safety net while freelancing to launching her own career coaching enterprise.
Our conversation is a treasure trove for those ready to transform their careers and seize the freedom that beckons beyond the traditional workplace.
Connect with Juliana:
Connect with Anne:
Transitioning from office cubicle to the autonomy of remote work is no small feat, and Juliana's candid sharing of her transition, equipped with psychological know-how and recruitment acumen, is nothing short of inspiring.
She recounts the tactical steps that secured her place in the digital nomad pantheon, from preserving a safety net while freelancing to launching her own career coaching enterprise.
Our conversation is a treasure trove for those ready to transform their careers and seize the freedom that beckons beyond the traditional workplace.
Connect with Juliana:
Connect with Anne:
Hey Nomads, welcome to Digital Nomad Stories, the podcast. My name is Anna Claessen and, together with my co-host, kendra Hasse, we interview digital nomads. Why? Because we want to share stories of how they did it. We talk about remote work, online business, location and dependency, freelancing, travel and, of course, the digital nomad lifestyle. Do you want to know more about us and access all previous episodes? Visit digitalnomadsdoriesco. Alright, let's go into today's episode. Hey Nomads, welcome to a new episode of Digital Nomad Stories. Today, I'm here with Juliana Robby. She is here to talk about her own digital nomad life, of course, but also to give us some really good tips on how to land remote jobs. She is a career coach for remote jobs, so she knows a lot about this topic. I've been following her for a while and I know that she has the best tips and advice for us today, so I'm very excited to have you on the show today, juliana Welcome.
Speaker 2:Thank you, happy to be here, Ani. Thanks for the invitation.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So first of all, can you share a little bit about where you are today, like where are we recording this interview, and kind of like what life looks like for you?
Speaker 2:I am today in Barcelona, spain, a sunny day, nice weather here, like most of the year. I actually lived in Barcelona before it started my digital nomad life, so it always feels good to come back. I have friends here. Like the city, I know how to navigate it well and life today is looking very flexible. I would say when I look back at times that I was going to an office and having a very structure and I don't know ordinary life. I would say it looks much more flexible now. It looks much more aligned to the way I want to live it.
Speaker 2:It's not perfect. I still keep changing things and my goals also keep changing and my struggles keep changing as I move into this digital nomad life and I go deeper into it. But yeah, I really like to be able to choose how I organize my day, my agenda. So yesterday, for example, I remember I started working at 11.30 am because I wanted to go to two classes in the gym and then I came back home, I went to the supermarket before took a shower. So, like I find I'm very lucky to be able to choose on a random Wednesday to start working at 11.30 am, it's true that I was working until 8.39, but I have this flexibility. So I think flexibility is a word that could define how life looks like for me at the moment.
Speaker 1:Amazing. That is absolutely the dream, right. I think that flexibility is what a lot of people are looking for, especially nowadays. So how would you then say what does your typical work week or week in general look like? Do you have a certain structure, with work and going to the gym, things like that, or free time that you use, or is it just really dependent on the week or maybe even a day, and you just it maybe changes a lot?
Speaker 2:It changes depending also on where I am, the location, the country and the city that I am and the options that are available around. So this year 2023, I've been very intentional about going to the gym and keep fit and be more physically active. So since the beginning of this year, I'm very proud to say that I have been going to the gym like most of the days, including weekdays, and this has given me a lot of energy. It just feels like I'm a morning person, so I'd like to start my day taking care of myself, doing something for myself. So journaling, a little bit of journaling this is something I have been doing for years already. I even travel with a small five-minute journal Paper book right, I travel with that. And, yeah, in the past 10 months, I have been going to the gym early in the morning, basically every day. So whenever I travel, I try to find a gym close by or, if I don't have access to it, I like to do yoga at home. So I like to start my day. The beginning of the morning, at least, is for myself. So I do some journaling, I like to do some physical activity and then I have breakfast, shower and then I start working. So most of the mornings look like that. But then it can change which class I do, where do I do my journey, if I go for a walk, if I do yoga at home, if I go to the gym and all of that, and then I like to work also in the morning.
Speaker 2:I'm very productive in the morning. I have a lot of energy. I can work from home, depending on where I am, if I have like a good, proper working table, silence and all of that. Sometimes I go to a working space, sometimes I go to a coffee shop. So it really depends on the kind of task I have to do. So as a coach I have a lot of calls with my clients, so I prefer to be home or in a working space that has a designated space for calls. I don't like to be talking in open space where other people can hear, because of the privacy of my clients and also because I don't need to worry about how high my voice is. I'm fully concentrated on the call and not like when I'm speaking too loud. So I prefer, like, quiet space for calls. But then if I have more admin tasks there are some creative stuff, content creation, whatever then I like to go to a coffee shop and to a working space, for example. So it really changes according to the task I have during the day.
Speaker 2:I like to meet friends for lunch it's an option or to work together with them or do some errands during the day. That's the flexibility that we can have, so I can easily go to the supermarket at 1 pm or I can go for a shop that I need to buy something at 3 pm. So this flexibility also depends on the day, depends on the need, depends on what I have to do, and then at the end of the working day sometimes I just stay home reading and relaxing. Sometimes I socialize, I go to some networking events, I'm going to meet some friends for dinner. I go for a walk, depending on where I am. So if I'm by the beach, I might go for a sunset walk or just read by the beach, or yeah. So I don't know, it depends.
Speaker 2:I try to keep a certain level of routine, because I figured it out. I don't know about you, annie, but the times I try to go completely crazy and have no routine and just go with the flow. It didn't really work out well for me. So a certain level of routine, like my morning routine. It really like centers me and gives me the energy that I need for the day. How is it for you? Do you have some kind of routine or you?
Speaker 1:go like Definitely no, I definitely do have a routine and I also like what you said, that you can be flexible within that routine. I also try to do that Like I have my work hours that can be working, or like I don't know, like my normal working hours, and then I can always decide you know what, I'm going to start late today, or I will stop early or in like I don't know, do a longer break in between or something like that. Or maybe start early, right, and also finish early. But I think for me, having a set like part of my day, that I, that my intention is working, at least that really helps.
Speaker 1:Like you said so also because then you don't feel like you're missing out on the place where you are at that moment, like the location, the destination. Because I used to do that more towards the start of my Nomad Live, where I was like, oh, we'll just, we'll see, and then when I was working, I felt guilty for not exploring. But then when I was exploring I felt guilty for not working. And now I never have that because I have those set hours that I quote unquote should be working, and then you know you can still decide not to do it. Yeah, if you can, right, If it's one of those weeks. So, yeah, no, I absolutely agree and I feel like we have a similar schedule.
Speaker 1:What I also love what you said of taking a moment for yourself in the morning before you start work. I think that is a really beautiful practice and it's also something that I quite recently started doing and I love it. It just it makes, makes my days feel so much longer, because in the morning you have you have all your energy and it's, I think it's a beautiful thing to spend it on something that is important to you, whether that is going to the gym or otherwise, maybe a hobby, but doing something for yourself. I think that's a really beautiful practice.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and that was a big change because I remember when I was going to the office there was one time specifically that I had to like drive to the train station to go to the office. Then I was taking the train, then I was taking the bus and then I was walking for like 10 minutes. So it was already like a long journey just to get to the office and be there at 9am. I was waking up very early, taking a shower, having a quick breakfast, starting all this journey. So I was already in action mode as soon as I opened my eyes and you know, by 9am I was. I was almost tired. It's like wow, I could go back to bed because it was such a journey just to get to the office.
Speaker 2:So now that I can structure my morning in a different way, it feels so empowering and it feels like, you know, this is one of the reasons why I changed my life, why I went remote, because I want to be more in charge of my schedule. I want to add those small things. For some people it might not be that important, but because I'm a morning person and because I know I'm my best energy, my best mood, my best creativity mode in the morning. It just feels right and feels like a pleasure to dedicate these initial hours of the morning to myself. For some people it might look like in the evening, right, but for me it's like the morning and it has been serving me very, very well.
Speaker 1:Amazing. So can you talk a little bit more about what you did before? You were a digital nomads, a career coach, like what did you, what did you do when you worked in an office and then, like, how did you transition out of that into the career that you have now?
Speaker 2:Yeah, so my background is in psychology. I studied psychology, I have a master in HR, so for 20 years almost around that I have been working with careers, job interviews, people looking for a job. So this has been my background and the topics I talk about every single day, but of course, it had different shapes. So I was working as a recruiter for 15 years. So I started with office jobs. I had different jobs or multinational companies, different countries and all of that I'm from Brazil. Then I moved to Spain. I lived many years in Spain and I worked as a recruiter for 15 years.
Speaker 2:And then at some point that was specifically end of 2013, there was some change in the company I was working for. There was some layoffs, and my manager at the time he said look, basically we have two options for you or you're going to need to, you know, let you go to layoff, are you going to be part of the layoff, or you we can change your contract to another company of the group. So you're going to do the same job, is still going to be a recruiter, but you won't be able to come to the office anymore because the office for this company is located in another city. This was back in 2013. And then I told him but then, where I'm going to work from? I had no idea, right, my mind couldn't picture that. And he said, well, I think you're going to need to work from home, let's see how it works. So there was no, it was not a remote company, nobody was working remotely. So I was one of the first, if not the first, doing that and I didn't know if it was going to work out, if I was going to like it. I have never done it before. But then I was like, yeah, instead of losing my job, let me just give it a try to it.
Speaker 2:So, first of January 2014, not by choice, but because of the circumstances, right, I started working from home, and it took me just a few months to start actually loving it. I was like, wow, this is perfect, I can do my job from home. I had two dogs at the time, so I was playing with the dogs, I was having lunch outside, so, you know, all those small things start being part of my life and I loved it. So it was really really good. But, funny enough, I didn't choose it. It just like happened to me and I started, you know, embracing it, and then I ended up moving to the city where the office, the new office, was located and I was like, okay, so I'm just going to go back to the office, right, that's the logic choice.
Speaker 2:And then I went back to the office for like a month and I realized, like, what is the point, like I don't need to be here. I did the same job that I was going to do at home, right, and I was a recruiter, so I was. It was still Skype at that time, so I'm a bit old here, but I was still doing Skype interviews, yeah, a lot of the time. So I was, you know, in the office, inside the room with the door closed, and I was like, no, it doesn't make sense, I'm much better at home. So after this one month back in the office, I went back working from home. So I experienced the traditional working from home.
Speaker 2:Then I start traveling, a little bit for pleasure, because I had to travel a lot because of work. But I start traveling for my own personal travels and trips and work from the different places that I was traveling to. And then at some point I was like you know what? I want to travel even more, I want to be even more in charge of my agenda. So I want to take my career to the next level. I don't want to be remote but attached to a location.
Speaker 2:So I took two years. It was 2018, 2019. My life went upside down. I hired a life coach. I was like thinking and designing what I was going to do next in my career.
Speaker 2:I considered several options and then I decided to start my own business. But in the meantime I was like I'm going to still keep my remote job. I started doing freelancer gigs and I started my own business. So at that point I was working like 12 hours per day. I was just working because I wanted to have incomes before I could remove my remote job. That was the fixed income I had at the time.
Speaker 2:So I did this career transition in a very intense way, but it made sense to me. I didn't want to just quit and then start looking. I want to create a new option while I still had safety net, let's say, of my remote job, and then at some point I quit my job. I remained with the freelancer gigs and then my own business, and then at some point I stopped the freelancer gigs and I started my business. So I went from working from home to traveling a little bit and working from time to time from different locations, to now that I have my own business as a career coach and I helped professionals to lend a remote job in their life as they want, with the flexibility that they want, and I can't even work from anywhere. So, yeah, that's where I am at the moment. That's not shall my remote story.
Speaker 1:Yeah, amazing, you really went through so many transitions. I feel like, you know, like working from home without even choosing it, but kind of like being pushed in that direction. You know, thank you, universe, for providing that direction, right, yeah? I had like looking back now, so that's so interesting.
Speaker 1:But then also going back to the office thinking, no, this is not it. And with the remote job that you had at the time, could you only travel within Spain or within Europe? Or how is that? Were there certain rules that you had to keep in mind?
Speaker 2:I had to talk to my manager and get like a verbal agreement, but I was traveling internationally also. Yeah, I was traveling internationally, but I was still. It was still, you know, I had to be in Spain at the time. That's why at some point I was like I want to take my career to the next flexibility level. Yeah, exactly. And then I started making all the arrangements.
Speaker 2:So I always say that to people like there are different levels and different ways that you can work remotely. So people might think, oh, a remote job looks like this, but there is no shape. There is no one shape that fits all. So some people just need the flexibility. I have clients like that. They say look, all I want is to be able to pick up my kids at school and to have lunch with them. That's more than enough. So a job that I can work from home is all that I need, and maybe when the kids grow up their needs for flexibility will be different. But right now for some people it's just like I just want to work from home. Some people want to be able to travel from time to time. So like a work case and a two, three months work case at summertime somewhere, that's all that they need, and some people like me, they want to be able to travel from anywhere. They don't want to have a fixed agenda, so an async company will be better for them, having autonomy through their schedule. But not everybody needs the same thing.
Speaker 2:So I experienced different levels of flexibility and different ways of working remotely, even regarding the contract. So first I was working as an employee to a company, so I had a remote contract working for one company and I added some freelancer gigs. So I had different clients that I was providing services to them. I was invoicing those clients, I was choosing the clients I wanted to work, the service I was providing, how long I was going to be with those clients, and then I started my own business. So I now definitely choose my clients to service. I have people helping me. I have a small team. So there are different shapes also that the remote work can have, depending on your needs, depending on the stage you are in your life, depending on how many hours you want to put, depending on the income you want to have. So there's a lot of flexibility out there that people might not see at a first glance.
Speaker 1:Absolutely. Yeah, when I started nomadding, my only kind of requirement that I really wanted was location freedom. I was like what I need to do or how much money I earn or what the actual work is, I just want to be able to do it from wherever I want to. That was the only thing I wanted. Then, when I reached that, I was like, okay, this is fun, but I feel like I also need a little bit more financial freedom, and I mean financial freedom in the sense that I could make enough money so that I could also pay for living anywhere. So I don't mean necessarily like being retired, but just making enough money in the job that I had.
Speaker 1:So that was like the second level for me. And then the third level for me personally is time freedom. So it is really fun to live wherever you want to live or travel around, but if you don't have the time to actually enjoy it and you're just staring at a computer screen all day, then is it actually that much fun? And I think for some people it also depends how much time you need to really enjoy a place. Like, probably for many people it is fine to work 40 hours a week and you know then the rest of the time enjoy a place. For me, apparently, it's not.
Speaker 1:But that's like the next level, I feel like I always say that I am mentally ready for retirement, just financially not yet.
Speaker 2:So maybe that's the next level of freedom.
Speaker 2:But, it's nice to think about your journey in different layers, right? So when you started, all you wanted was I want to be able to travel and to be whatever I want. And then, once you achieve that level, you kind of see around that there are other options so I can also make more money, so I don't need to use my savings. So you go for the next level and then when you achieve that, you're like now I want to work less hours because I want to enjoy even more the places that I am. So that's perfectly fine, and that's what I tell a lot to my clients. It's like your first remote job doesn't need to be the job you're going to spend the rest of your life. Like people are not thinking about retirement. Most of people, right, barely think about retirement. Like this job that I start today it's going to be the job I'm going to retire with. So it's the same approach with remote job. It can be a job that meets your requirements at the moment. It can be a job that will give you experience to start your remote career, to get a feeling of it, to see if it works out well for you or not, to learn the adjustments you need to make to play a little bit with it making some travels, maybe changing your schedule and going to the gym at lunchtime. I was talking to a client and she was like all that I want she'll be able to take a longer lunch break, go to the gym, go to the sauna, take a shower. Then I come back and I work. So for her, this is what she's looking for and that's how a remote job is going to serve her at the moment. Right, she's not thinking about traveling at the moment, but maybe in a few years she's going to consider that or depend on your personal situation If you have kids, if you have a partner, if you live with your family, if you live alone. So it can take so many shapes and it's okay if you start with a goal and then, during your remote or digital nomad career, you change the goal and you go for something else.
Speaker 2:I think that's the normal journey of life. If we knew everything already, it would be easier, but we don't have like a crystal ball. So as soon as you walk a little bit, you figure it out oh, there's more out there, or this is not making me happy anymore. Right, I want more. It was like this for me. So at the beginning it was fine to travel from time to time.
Speaker 2:Then, at a certain point, I was like I want to make traveling my lifestyle and my friends are like, oh, but you already travel a lot. So also be careful with who you listen to, right, because people from the outside they might say, oh, your life, they used to tell me that already. Oh, you're living in Barcelona, you have a remote job already, you travel a lot, your apartment is super cool, so you already have a perfect life. Why do you want more? But deep inside, I knew I wanted more.
Speaker 2:So I started surrounding myself only with people that were living the way I wanted to live.
Speaker 2:You know, instead of listening to people who thought that I had everything already, because I didn't feel like that, I was like I want to be surrounded, I want to learn from people who are in the next level. So that's when I started proactively attending digital normal defense. I was like I want to be with those people, I want to have conversations with them, I want to see how they approach life and their routine and all of that. So I intentionally started using my holidays at the time to travel to digital normal events and I was going before and staying longer. So instead of a three days event, I was staying maybe two, three weeks there to really experience and put myself into the situation of the next level of flexibility, because that's what I wanted to test it out to have in my life. So, once you know what you want, surround yourself with people who are living that reality, because that's going to make your life much easier and you learn from them, definitely definitely easier, absolutely.
Speaker 1:One of the insights that I had early on in my nomad life was, like I said, my first steps into digital nomad life was I just want to live wherever, I don't want to go home.
Speaker 1:That was the only thing, and I'll do whatever to make the money that I need to make, as long as it's online, so that I can just do it on my computer while traveling. That was the only thing, and in my mind I felt like I had to choose between a career or a traveling lifestyle. But after a few months, or like within that first year, I realized you know what. You actually don't have to choose, because there are people who are still very career focused and very ambitious and also working remotely and traveling, and I understand that that is exactly the people that you work with professionals who are really career focused, who want to work remotely. So it is a honours and possible. How would you say, does looking for a remote job for professionals? How does that differ from looking for a normal job Like? What are the main differences that we have to keep in mind?
Speaker 2:A normal job. Yeah, that's funny. A lot of people do this expression A normal job and then a remote job.
Speaker 2:A real job, a office job, a regular job, a standard job, I mean some things will be similar, right, you need to be good at what you do. You need to make a choice at some point. So forget about any remote job. Is fine for me, I just want to have a remote job. No, you need to net it down at some point. You need to target the companies you want to work for. You need to show up as a professional, so your resume needs to be good, your LinkedIn profile. You need to perform well in the interview. So this is the same for any job searching that you're doing, for a normal job or for a remote job. But when it comes to start your remote career, I think there are some specific aspects to consider, right? So one thing is to be open to different jobs that are not necessarily the jobs that you have done, because maybe if you try to translate exactly the job you're doing now to a remote job, you might find it A lot of jobs can be done remotely. So, especially now after the pandemic and all of that, it's much easier.
Speaker 2:But if you're not happy with the job you're doing now or with your career, don't make the mistake of I'm going to keep doing the same thing that I hate. That I have been hating for 10 years, but you know I have experience on it, so I'll just keep doing it. Don't do this. If you're going to change, make sure that you go for something that you like or at least that you don't hate. I always say that right. I believe that the change they should be for better. So if you have the chance to go for a new job, try to find something that brings you pleasure. That will motivate you to keep going, because, yeah, like. Why going for something that you know already that you don't like? So if you are happy with your career, with your background, with your studies, you just want to go remote, but you don't want to change your area, you actually like what you do, then go for it and search for similar job titles. That's the easiest way.
Speaker 2:But if you're not happy with your career journey, if you want to change, make sure you go for something that you like, or you think you're going to like at least, and check also the reality of the job market. So, instead of going back to the university, paying a super expensive MBA or waiting to feel 100% prepared, check what are the demands of the job market, what are remote companies looking for? So you can adjust the needs that are out there with something that you know, something that you like, something that you can easily learn, and then you make the career transition. So I think you should be very intentional when searching for a remote job, which is the opposite of what I see. Normally. People say I'm open to any remote job, as far as it is remote, right. So make some choices, and if you're flexible, it's even better, because if you're not only going for one job, you have more options, but still you need to make a choice.
Speaker 2:So, being intentional about it, and then you understand also what is interesting for remote companies regarding skills, regarding experience, and you make sure that you highlight that. So small things like communication, for example, that might seem obvious. It's like, yeah, I mean obviously that I can communicate, right, we are talking here right now. I send messages, I send emails, I write. It's more than that. So when you work remotely, some skills they are highly in demand, because lack of communication can be a big problem when you work remotely, right. So I sent you the email. I assumed you received it. I never checked and then you're late for the meeting, I didn't confirm the attendance. All those small things will make a big difference. So understand what remote companies are looking for, the skills, the experience, and then you highlight that in all your marketing materials, like in your resume, linkedin profile, when you approach a recruiter, when you're networking with someone.
Speaker 2:So start being familiar with the reality of the remote job market, because a lot of people they come to me and they say I have no idea what remote companies are looking for, which kind of jobs, and all of that when you need to start bringing this reality closer to you, if you want to be part of this reality, just like I did going to digital nomad events and started at the beginning I knew nothing, I knew nobody, I don't even know which kind of conversations I was going to have with those people. But once you go, once, twice, you start following them, you do a follow up, you start reading about it, you get more familiar. So get yourself closer to this environment of remote companies, people that work remotely. What do they do? Which kind of jobs they have? Can I connect with them? Can I chat with them? Can I eventually go in one informal online call with them? And the answer is yes, of course you can, and that's how you learn and that's how you create networking.
Speaker 2:So another thing that is important in this process of landing a remote job is creating networking with people who are working remotely.
Speaker 2:And this is funny because a lot of my clients, when they start the journey with me, they say you know, this networking thing doesn't work for me. I tried already but it doesn't work out or I don't like networking that's a very common thing or it doesn't work for me because my case is different, because my situation is different, and what they normally mean is like I send three code emails, I copy and paste the same emails, I send it to three people. They never replied. So Therefore, I'm assuming my conclusion is that networking doesn't work out for me, right? So there are different ways you do network and it will definitely open doors for you, not only professionally, but regarding friendship, regarding tips about where to go about cool companies, to work for, people you can meet when you arrive at a new destination, people that can introduce you to new people that might open doors that you have never thought about. So the networking part, both in the remote work, in the digital nomad work, are extremely important, right?
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely yes, I used to be one of those people who said I hate networking, but I think one thing you just said really stood out to me, which is there are a lot of different ways to network. Right, like sending cold emails yes, it's one way. Or having informal coffees with people that's another way. But, especially in the, in nomad world, there are so many events that you can go to, like conferences, like you mentioned, that you can go to, but also just being like doing the thing, being in nomad hubs, for example, and like literally you go to a cafe, you see 10 nomads sitting there. So it's really easy, it's? You always have something to talk about. Or my newest hack is staying in a co-living space, because you literally live with them for a certain time and you will automatically network. And it's really, it's really organic way to do it. It's not forced like Hello, this is who I am and this is what I do, but like it's a really natural, right yeah it's really natural, it's really easy and you automatically make those also deeper connections.
Speaker 1:So I think that's just a really interesting way to also keep in mind, like that's also networking and that can also you can also learn from those experiences.
Speaker 2:So I think that's a learn and have fun, make friends and develop your career and work together, do business together, know about a remote company that you have never heard about, and then you ended up being referred to that company. So there are so many possibilities that happen when you connect with people. So, as you said, there are levels. So maybe at the beginning you're just like I just need any remote job to start traveling and having more flexibility. That's fine. But I think it's nice to bring to your audience this light that hey, there is more out there. You can be a successful professional. You can be like a very business driven person.
Speaker 2:I am business driven person, I am ambitious, I have my own company. That's why I never really considered take a sabbatical year or being a backpacker and traveling. I wanted the travel part in my life but I wanted to keep developing my career because I like what I do, I like the impact I make. This career thing has been present in my life for so many years so I didn't want to leave it behind. So I was like how can I keep developing my career but bringing more of the things that I like? In my case it was the traveling part. So working remotely allows you to keep being an amazing professional, be paid what you deserve, but on the top of that, have the flexibility level that you want and it can look like working from home and pick up your kids at school, spend time with your dog, travel a couple of months per year, take care of a familiar that needs your assistance, or just travel like we do. So different shapes, different ways, and your own needs might change from time to time.
Speaker 1:Yes, I think. Huge takeaway for sure. I have one final question for you, juliana, before I let you go, because one thing I also hear a lot of people say, and I'm usually on the other side of the hiring process now, where I hire people into my company and for many remote jobs, literally hundreds of people apply for the same job.
Speaker 1:Oh, I know that so my question for you is how to stand out within hundreds and hundreds of applicants. How can I try to get my application as a remote job? How do you say that Remote job Stand out? Yeah, exactly Like as an applicant. How can I make my application stand out?
Speaker 2:Yeah, this is very common and I know examples of jobs that were posted like two or three days ago literally, and then you have 500 applicants, which is ridiculous if you think about it right. So I was a recruiter for many years, so I know a bit what happens on the backstage. So let me, let me just share that. I always say that let's pick up a 100 applicants, just to make the math easier. Out of 100 applicants, easily, easily, I will say that 60% of those people they didn't bother reading the job description. They don't care if they meet the requirements or not, they just click in, apply. Especially if it is a easy application process, like on LinkedIn, you have the easy apply bottom right, so you just literally click once, then a window pops up, you attach your resume and that's it. So in those cases especially, 60% easily of the people who applied, they don't meet the requirements, but they are there, so the number is there. So don't be impressed by those big numbers. Remember, out of 100, approximately 60, they directly will be eliminated because they don't meet the requirements. So you're actually competing with 40 applicants right Out of 11, out of 100, just as an example. Then I would say that probably 10% of those applicants. They are better than you, because probably there are people out there that are better than you. I don't know your profile, but still I can guess that. And then the real people you're competing it's like 30 people out of 100. And then that's when your profile needs to be better, the tasks you're going to do, the interview process and all of that. But just this initial comment, that don't get so impressed or don't get paralyzed by oh, if I see 500 applicants, then it's a waste of time, it's not worth it to apply. So you can apply.
Speaker 2:But what I will suggest is that before you apply, actually you start creating a relationship with people in that specific remote company you want to work for. So my suggestion is actually like don't focus that much into the application process, because that's the old way to land off jobs and remote jobs. The modern way is more through networking so people in that remote company. That's why we should target the remote companies we want to work for. They should know you before you apply for the job. And what do I mean by that? It's not necessary that you have to meet the CEO of the remote company in person. It might happen in one of the events that you mentioned right, but this relationship can be perfectly created online and LinkedIn is a great tool to do it. So, even before there is a position, you're already chatting, connecting, commenting the content of people who work in those companies, especially the ones who work in the department you want to work for. That's why you need to target at some point which kind of remote job you want to do.
Speaker 2:Not every remote job, anything is valid. So you can target a couple of job titers or areas or departments at least, and then intentionally network with people in those departments, so people that will be your future colleagues once you're going to work together, or people in one level above. So the hiring managers, because they are the decision makers. They are the ones that are going to choose between you or the other candidates. So, if you're already part of their ecosystem, if they know that you exist, if they know your name, if you have exchanged a few methods, eventually met in person when you apply for the job, your name won't be only one more out there. Like you are someone that they know. Or, even better, they might even say you know what? Just send me your resume and I'm going to send it directly to Human Resource.
Speaker 2:So you kind of shortcut, instead of going through the traditional application process and having your resume together with the other 500 people out there, you kind of take a shortcut which is valid, which is a correct way, so it's not that you are doing something illegal or not following the rules. So the referral process, for example, it is something that happens in companies. So if you can be referred by someone that works in that company, you shortcut the process and if they know you're ready, that also increase the chance that at least they want to interview you for their position. So I know it's scary to find a lot of people applying for remote jobs, but keep in mind that most of them are just applying, even if they don't meet the requirements, and they are doing nothing else.
Speaker 2:So if you combine that with the networking, with participating in events that are even online events like online job fairs, presentations or webinars that people from those companies do, that you can join and then you can ask a question, and then you can send a follow-up email and say, hey, I loved your presentation the other day. I learned so much. That's how you start appearing in a professional and natural way to those people and then, when there is a position, it's like, oh, maybe Yannick would be a good fit, and then they contact you and say, hey, yannick, there is a position in our company. Do you think you would be interested? I thought about you. How amazing is that people think about you for a position and you don't need to apply for it. So I would say don't worry too much about how many people are applying, and do other things outside of the application only.
Speaker 1:I think that's so smart. And I also just wanted to add one more thing. In my experience, the way I set up our hiring process in my company, if there are questions that are not required, or that's like the bonus points questions or I always do when I hire someone for bonus points you can create a short video just introducing yourself the people who do that. They literally get bonus points, and I don't think I've ever hired anyone who has not done that.
Speaker 2:So just put yourself, just saying yeah, just saying Little tip here.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think, yeah.
Speaker 2:So we need to go an extra mile, do a little bit more. You probably will stand out, and I understand that this can be complicated because some recruitment process they already take so long, they have so many steps and the job searching process can be exhausting. So I understand all of that and with my clients, we always try to optimize and identify the tasks that will make more difference. Right, that we have a big impact. So what you shared is amazing.
Speaker 2:One video presentation video that you record with your phone. It doesn't need to be edited. They're super complicated with a music background and you're paying someone to edit the video. No, no, just put your phone in a stable place, get a decent, lightening dress up properly, watch your background and you record a two minutes video introducing yourself, saying why you are motivated for that job, why you like that specific company, what you can bring to the table and send that together with your resume. You are saying that there's a private message on LinkedIn, whatever. That's exactly what you are saying. So it can be something that will take you 10 minutes thinking about the guidelines, getting dressed and all of that, and then the record is like two minutes. But those 10 minutes can be an amazing use of your time and it will make this impact that it just mentioned. Like wow, nobody that I hired didn't do this. So, in other words, everybody that I hired, they went extra mile some way. So those are the things that can make all the difference.
Speaker 1:Exactly, I think. Great tip. What I'm hearing you say is just not to apply to a hundred different remote jobs and just spreading yourself super thin and just apply for whatever. No, you target specifically the companies that you want to work for, the departments that you want to work in, and then for those limited amount of applications that you will send out, you also will have the time to go the extra mile. So what I'm hearing you say it's better to go the extra mile for a few applications instead of just sending out hundreds and just see what happens there, which I think is an amazing lesson Less is more, Less is more.
Speaker 2:Quality quality over quantity. Yes, quality over quantity.
Speaker 1:I love it. Well, juliana, thank you so much for being here today and sharing your own digital nomad story, but also sharing all your tips and tricks for landing remote jobs. I think this was an amazing episode. I can't wait to share it with our audience. Before I let you go, can you please tell us where we can find you online and where we can get all of your other tips? See where you're traveling to and just stay connected to you? Yes, sure.
Speaker 2:So if you search for Juliana Rabi, my surname is RABBI Maybe you can also share the links. I am very active on LinkedIn. It's my main social media. I'm also active on Instagram. I have a YouTube channel also. At the moment that are like, I think, 106 videos about remote jobs, career, job interviews and all of that. So those are the three main channels that people can find me LinkedIn, instagram and also in my YouTube channel. So just search for Juliana Rabi and you're going to find me there and say hi, say that you heard a podcast show and it's always nice when I know where people are coming from, so it feels really, really good. So don't be shy, say hi and say where you knew me from.
Speaker 1:Yes, and you can also click the links in the show notes, because I will put the links to all the channels that Juliana just mentioned in the show notes, so click there. Make sure to connect with Juliana. I got all her other tips because, like she said, she has over 100 videos, so much content for you to look into. So definitely do that, juliana. Thank you again for being here today, thank you for listening and until next time. And that's it for today. Thank you so much for listening. I appreciate it very, very much. I would appreciate it even more if you could leave a review on Apple Podcasts for me. That way, more people can find this podcast, more people can hear the inspiring stories that we're sharing, and the more people we can impact for the better. So, thank you so much if you are going to leave a review, I really appreciate you and I will see you in the next episode.