First of all, you may be paranoid (either in a metaphorical or clinical sense), and everything actually is progressing “normally,” if there is such a thing as a normal job search. But no one out here has the ability to diagnose that.
Second, no one out here (including me) has enough information to determine what is happening in your job search or why. And if you have no clue what’s going on, certainly none of us do.
And so, your very appropriate need to get “any pointers on how to find out.”
Apparently, you’re getting interviews, and apparently relatively regularly. Thus, your resume, cover letters (if you use them), LinkedIn profile, social media presence, and your telephone (and possibly Zoom if you use it) presence, all seem okay.
So, we can guess that something is going off the rails after employers get to meet you and talk to you in person or on Zoom. This is where I would look for a problem (assuming that there is a problem, again because you or we have no way of knowing if there is at this point).
If I were you, I would search out 5 or so trustworthy friends who you are convinced will tell you the truth (not what you want to hear or all the platitudes folks throw around) and ask them and pester them and force them to tell you if you’re doing something in your person-to-person interaction that is turning off employers. And I would also try to get informational interviews with 5 or so employers in your field and specifically ask them for the same feedback as you’re asking from your friends, even, perhaps, if they will do a mock interview with you in order to give you feedback (if you ask 5 employers to mock interview you, you’ll be lucky to get 1 to accept, but it’s worth a try, particularly if you can meet them through referrals).
I’m guessing that something is happening during your interviews, and since it is occurring regularly (otherwise you would be getting job offers every once in a while) the interview is where I’d look for problems.
It sounds like one thing that may be happening here, is that your job search consists primarily, or completely, of finding advertised jobs and formally applying to them. This is perhaps the most inefficient and ineffective way of job searching. This method presents you (and every job seeker) as a commodity, as just one other faceless cipher in a faceless crowd, and is, in my experience, a terribly frustrating way to seek employment.
To your question:
If you have not already done so, I encourage you to delve into the concept of networking and informational interviewing, and start setting up informational meetings with employers, and see if that doesn’t change things around for you. You’re not going to be applying to numerous advertised jobs, but only to advertised jobs for which you are superbly qualified and which match you and the skills you are offering. Start by reading these 2 books: The 20-Minute Networking Meeting by Perez and Ballinger, and, Switchers by Graham.
Hope this helps.
Oh, by the way, just because we’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not really tapping our phones. :)
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