What Recruiters Know That Job Seekers Don't

Career Contessa

In this episode of the Career Contessa podcast, recruiter-turned-coach Emily Durham breaks down the realities of job searching in 2026, challenging candidates to shift from passive online

Key takeaways

• Emily Durham advises splitting job search efforts 50/50 between online applications and proactive networking to bypass applicant tracking system volume.
• She warns against using AI to write resumes, noting it strips away the unique human voice that hiring managers actively seek in creative or people-forward roles.
• Durham recommends spending four of every five hours on networking and referrals when stuck in a high-volume application cycle with zero callbacks.
• On salary negotiation, she stresses getting candidates on the phone to ask for more, noting professionals leave an average of $1 million on their careers by not negotiating.
• She advises treating recruiters as internal advocates who can often upgrade roles or adjust compensation beyond posted ranges if a candidate demonstrates strong interview performance.

Main topics

• Job search strategy in 2026
• AI in hiring and interviews
• Networking and referrals

Notable quotes

Security is unfortunately dead, at least in the interim.

Conclusion

The episode delivers actionable, human-centric job search strategies that

Transcript preview

Speaker 1 (0:00) Hi Contessas, welcome to the Career Contessa podcast, your shortcut to being more fulfilled, healthy, and successful at work. I'm your host Lauren McGoodwin. If you've applied to dozens of jobs and heard nothing back, wondered whether networking actually works anymore, or felt completely overwhelmed by all the conflicting job search advice online, today's episode is 100 % for you. The job market has changed dramatically over the last few years. Candidates are navigating AI-powered hiring tools, increased competition, shifting employer expectations, and a constant stream of career advice on social media. It's never been easier to find information, and somehow it's never been harder to know what advice to actually trust. That's why I'm excited to welcome Emily Durham, better known to millions online as Emily the Recruiter. Emily is a recruiter-turned-career-coach, content creator, and author of the new book, Clock In. No BS advice for getting ahead in your career without losing your mind. Through her work, she helps job seekers understand what actually happens behind the hiring curtain and how to build careers that support their lives, not consume them. In today's conversation, we're talking about what recruiters really look for in 2026 and beyond, the biggest mistakes candidates make during their job search, and how to network without feeling transactional, plus what salary negotiation advice still works and why Emily believes there's no such thing as a dream job. Whether you're actively job searching, considering a career pivot, or simply want to future-proof your career, this episode is packed with practical advice you can start using immediately. And now, this is the Career Contessa podcast. Hi, Emily. Welcome to the show. Thank you so much for having me. I'm jazzed to be here. Okay, so for people who maybe don't know about you and don't know about your background, tell them how you became, quote, Emily the recruiter, which is really how you're most well known. And maybe what you've learned along the way with helping millions of people navigate their careers through social media. It's kind of an interesting way to be the career Speaker 2 (1:52) coach. I love that. I love that I have an accidental stage name. But truly, I had worked in human resources and mostly in recruiting for all of my career. I had fresh out of school, landed in a recruitment role. and just fell head over heels in love with it. And as I continued to grow, and especially as I started moving industries from finance and investment banking all the way over into tech, it just became so clear how much information was gatekept, especially if you were early in your career. And a lot of the advice translates to every stage, but especially the little things like, are people reading cover letters? How do I negotiate? And really kind of seeing that gap in education is what inspired me to start posting online. Speaker 2 (2:34) happened very quickly. It was a little bit of an accident. I had posted one podcast episode, which at the time it was hardly a podcast episode. It was really there to help folks prepare for interviews with me. And that went viral and then went viral on TikTok. And I was like, oh my goodness, am I going to lose my corporate Speaker 1 (2:51) job? Speaker 2 (2:51) Is this where they tell me to pack my bags? But I got super lucky that I worked at an employer that was incredibly supportive of me having. a side hustle and advocating for that information. So I was able to kind of build up socials into a full-time gig. And now that's my core focus. So I do a lot of the education online, in-person workshops, lots of speaking gigs, really just analyzing the job market and helping people get and stay ahead because holy moly, is it rough out there. Speaker 1 (3:20) It is. And it's really changing all the time. I think the advice, you know, even like 10 years ago when I was a recruiter, you could say something. It was pretty good, pretty much going to be true six months later. Now I feel like and maybe it's really good that a lot of the platforms that people are providing advice on our social media because you're checking them daily because like the advice could change daily. Also back in like when I was a recruiter, layoffs were like not a thing in the way they are now. And so I do feel like. when you're a job seeker, you kind of feel like you're always a job seeker, even if you are in a job. And that's like a very different mindset shift. But also when people are looking for advice, they are sort of thinking about like daily career advice now more than ever. Speaker 2 (4:03) 100%. Security is unfortunately dead, at least in the interim. And I think it's really shaped, A, how we're showing up at work and B, to your point, how we're thinking about things long term. There's no more, you know. I've got a job and I'm going to stay here for 25 years because they're going to pay me well and protect me. Like we've seen what they did to our parents, our cousins and our friends. And it doesn't look like that's slowing down. Speaker 1 (4:24) Totally. Okay. So like you said, you were on the recruiting side for many, many years. I'm curious, what did you see as the biggest misconception that job seekers had maybe when you started out in recruiting and also right now in today's job market? It's interesting. They're different, but somewhat the same. So when Speaker 2 (4:42) I first started in recruiting, I would say the biggest misconception is that if you don't meet every requirement on the job description, you surely shouldn't apply. Like, I would still say that reigns pretty true. But I think that's something we all, you know, at some point, I'm sure people have heard. But I would say today, the biggest misconception is that people are even opening your application. Like whether it is an AI heavy applicant tracking system or it's not, the sheer volume of candidates that recruiters are getting make it really difficult for them to review every single application. And there is that misconception that AI is throwing up your resumes and reprioritizing this. And for some companies, that might be true. But for a lot, that's actually not the case. It still leans really heavily on the human moving through these things. So my big piece of advice there is we cannot just apply for jobs and hope for them. best anymore. We need to be a wee bit more networking forward. Speaker 1 (5:35) Okay. So talk about that a little bit. Like if you were to be coaching someone who's job seeking today, maybe let's paint the picture. They've been in their job for five years, so they haven't job searched in a while. They've been doing well, but they're just ready for something different. What do they do? I mean, is applying online really just like not worth it? Do they start with networking? What would you say to someone in that situation? Speaker 2 (5:56) Well, you know what? The good news is nothing is a guarantee in a good and a bad way. So applying for jobs online doesn't mean that you're not going to hear back. It just means we need to rejig our strategy. So first things first, let's update your resume. Please avoid making it in your AI tool of choice. You're going to hear a lot of people online say like, just update it in AI. I would not do that. It's going to read like AI. It's not going to read like a person. And that's actually, especially in creative or people forward industries, a massive detractor. And you have to remember, AI's mission is to help you get the sum of what is good. It's not going to make you unique and great. So let's update your resume with all the great work that you've done. Then start applying to jobs online. I'm a big fan of Indeed. I think Indeed's response rate, from my experience, has been higher than other job search platforms. What I would say is it's not about you not applying online. It's about you doing that while networking. So if you don't have a network right now because you've been in this job for a while or maybe we just don't know anyone, that's okay. You've got a couple options. The first is hit to LinkedIn. And as cheesy as it is, I want you cold reaching out to people. That still works. only one in every 10 people is going to respond and that's okay. All it takes is one. The next is you'd be shocked how many people in your social life might have a connection. This is where you text the girls and you say, do you know anyone who's looking in marketing or do you know anyone who works here? You'd be surprised how many organic connections you can make through that. But now more than ever, I am such a huge fan of small localized events. very anti-career fair these days. But going to small networking events in your city, oh my goodness, is that not the best way to meet people and make those in-person connections? Because the goal is while you're applying to as many jobs as you can, you're having conversations and you're casually floating in. I'm actually looking for a new role. Do you know anyone who's hiring? Or your company sounds incredible. If there's ever an opportunity, can I send you my resume? So really getting that in-person seal of approval is what's going to help ensure your resume gets opened when you apply. So all hope is not lost. You're just, instead of applying to jobs and waiting to hear back, we're going to split our time 50-50. Speaker 1 (8:03) It's interesting. I feel like one of the... I don't know, common things you're referring to is like you want actually to be sending your resume or have opportunities that you are sharing your resume with as many people as possible. Right. And so basically what you're talking about is like, what are the opportunities? Is it cold networking on LinkedIn where you attach your resume? Is it going to the event with paper resumes? I know that sounds so old, but you never know, you know, asking your friends for the networking advice. And so what's interesting is I feel like people make a resume and then they're like, well, I like. I don't want to share it. I only share it with the online job application. And what you're saying is like, no, share your resume with as many people as possible. Totally. And if you feel like that feels Speaker 2 (8:43)