"I can't find any jobs."
Sometimes that's true. Sometimes the problem isn't that there are no jobs. It's that the search is too narrow.
One job title. One search term. One version of what the thing is supposed to look like. And when that exact door stays shut, it feels like there are no doors left.
So I ask: "What are you searching for?"
Sometimes the answer is the problem.
One student kept typing "cybersecurity analyst." Nothing near him. Meanwhile "IT support," "help desk," "junior security" and "SOC trainee" were all sitting right there. Same skills he was building. Different labels.
The chance isn't always missing. Sometimes the search is.
It's easy to do this with more than jobs. You get attached to one version of success. One company. One career path. One door. And when it doesn't open, everything looks closed.
Chances rarely arrive the way you pictured them. The internship becomes the full-time job. The side project becomes the business. A conversation becomes a way in.
Most of them come through someone who remembers you. A friend hears about an opening. A former teacher remembers your name. Someone thinks of you when something appears.
We're remembered for more than we think. Who showed up. Who worked hard. Who was easy to work with.
That's why I've never liked the word networking. It sounds strategic. Too much like using people.
It's simpler than that. Have real conversations. Stay in touch. Help when you can. Let people know what you're trying to do.
Because the chance you need may not arrive wearing the name you expected.
And that's exactly why you might miss it.