Overall stability is the wrong thing to look for when you’re thinking about your next role. Instead, break down what specific elements of stability matter to you and what instability you are willing to live with and do a cost-benefit analysis of the paths and roles you’re considering.

It’s harder than ever to land a job just by hitting apply off a job board. It’s also lonelier than ever, with job searches taking longer, AI steamrolling most of the process, and for many, the grief of an entertainment landscape that isn’t the one we dreamed about. Learning how to ask for help is the single most important thing you can do in your job search.

One of the biggest complaints we hear from job seekers is that they know networking is critical to their success, but their network is tapped out and unhelpful. Their contacts say they will help and nothing materializes. No one they know knows anyone else they can introduce them to. It’s all fruitless. But there’s more to the story here, and more often than not, job seekers get trapped in negative self-talk and circular thinking. Here are some things to reconsider as you network.

Whether you’re trying to grow your network, learn about potential roles at companies of interest, identify a new business lead, hire an employee or consultant, or find a referral for a job opening, going down the rabbit hole of LinkedIn search can be really useful, if you know how to use it.

This week, we sat down with Jesse Krim, the founder of JAK Media Group through which she consults with creators and brands as a YouTube Creative Director. She is also the founder of The Industry Shift, a curated networking event connecting traditional TV professionals with creators and YouTube insiders to shape the future of media.

Layoffs bring a wave of emotions to those who are directly impacted, different emotions to the people who stay in their roles, and a third set of emotions to those who’ve been in the market for a new job (especially those who are unemployed). What steps can you take if you’ve been laid off, if you anticipate being laid off soon, or if you want to help those who have been laid off.

Once upon a time, there was a ladder. You started as an assistant - either PA, in a crew department, or on a desk - and you worked your way up in a straightforward way. Whatever your ladder was (PA → Production Coordinator → UPM; Assistant to Lit Agent → Assistant to Studio Comedy VP → Coordinator, Comedy Development → Creative Executive; Writers’ PA → Writers’ Assistant → Script Coordinator → Staff Writer), you could see how one role would lead to another and focus your job applications on growth. But growth looks different now.

Searching for jobs takes a lot of time and effort, which, let’s be honest, a lot of of us lack the bandwidth for! Whether you’re employed and trying to land somewhere else, balancing a search for full-time work with freelancing or fractional work, or emotionally exhausted from too many months of unemployment -- can you just outsource the whole thing? 

With traditional film and TV shrinking and consolidating, the creator economy is growing, and companies are experimenting with a lot of new formats. There are jobs for creatives and production professionals! But they don’t look quite the same as the jobs you’ve held in the past, so if you’re applying for roles in emerging media, your resume will need to communicate you’re absolutely capable of succeeding in these new types of roles. Here are some key things to include on your resume if you can do so truthfully. 

Even if you know what you should be doing to improve your job search, it’s not always easy to break old (bad) job search habits! This is especially the case when you’ve been searching for a while and desperation starts to set in. Here’s a breakdown of the top 3 the bad habits we’ve seen and how you can get back on track if they creep up on you:

We hear all the time from job seekers that as part of their plan to make a career transition to a different side of the entertainment industry, they want to start back at the bottom and become an assistant to work their way back up. There are times when this makes sense, even if it's not necessarily easy to do so. But most of the time, career transitions don't need to be as drastic.

In nearly every interview, the first thing an interviewer will say is simply, “Tell me about yourself.” This is usually the most important part of the interview, because it gives you the opportunity to set the tone of the meeting and make a great first impression. It's crucial that you have a clear and concise elevator pitch ready to go.