u/Quirky_Grapefruit539

Half of you didn't do anything wrong. The system is rigged. Here's the data.

• 27.4% of US LinkedIn listings are ghost jobs (ResumeUp.AI)
• 81% of recruiters admit their employer posts them (MyPerfectResume)
• 43% of employers said the reason is to make the company look like it's growing for investors, competitors, their own employees (Clarify Capital)

Worst cities: LA 30.5%, NYC 26.7%, SF 26.0%. If you're applying to tech, finance, or media in those cities, one in three of your applications goes into a hole that was never opening.

4 red flags to skip a ghost job:

1. Posted 30+ days ago but "updated recently"
2. Vague JD with no specific tools or systems
3. No salary range
4. Same listing reposted month after month

All four = don't apply.

Ontario passed a law in January making companies disclose if a posting is for a real vacancy. California has one. The federal Truth in Job Advertising Act is in committee. Even the government knows it's a scam. Most employers don't care because penalties are weak.

Send 20 good applications to companies that are actually hiring. Not 200 to the void.

Been building a product for 15 months. It helps with resume optimization, cover letters, interview prep, and has an AI assistant that ties everything together.

Next on the roadmap is job matching through the AI so you can just ask it to find roles that fit your background. Then reach out to hiring managers directly through LinkedIn or email.

But honestly I think the biggest missing piece isn't any of that. Job searching is lonely and nobody talks about it. You can't tell your family how bad it really is. You can't post it on LinkedIn. You don't even know if what you're going through is normal or if it's just you.

So I want to build small private groups inside Placed. 4 to 6 people at the same career stage, anonymous, just being real with each other about their search.

Tell me why this is a bad idea.

A friend of mine told me something that stuck with me.

"I feel like I'm just sending the same resume to every job I apply for and I don't even know if that's the problem. Is my resume good or trash? I never find out. All I hear back is 'unfortunately we moved on with other candidates' never why. So do I tweak my resume? Gain more skills? Prep for interviews so I don't fumble when I actually get the call?"

No feedback. No validation. Just silence.

That conversation hit me and my co-founder differently.

Because I felt that too. As a graduate engineer I know that stress. The bad thoughts. The feeling of doing everything right and still hearing nothing back.

That's why we built Placed.

The name says it all. We want to help you get placed into the role you actually want.

No more guessing. No more sending the same resume into the void. No more fumbling interviews you worked so hard to get.

We're building this for everyone. And we're doing it out loud, sharing where we fail, what keeps us going. Every step of the way, we're in this with you.

If this sounds like your job search right now, you're exactly who we're building for.

Seriously, sometimes I really feel bad that why i spend 5 years in college and still end up doing odd jobs. All the entry level jobs i applied never heard back and even my corporate experince doesn't help. Is it just me or the job market is cooked.

I am still not losing hope, I believe in myself, and i am confident that one day some day i be able to land a job. The goal is to stay consistent and keep applyinga and better my skills.

Like my mom says, Good things take time.

Seriously, sometimes I really feel bad that why i spend 5 years in college and still end up doing odd jobs. All the entry level jobs i applied never heard back and even my corporate experince doesn't help. Is it just me or the job market is cooked.

I am still not losing hope, I believe in myself, and i am confident that one day some day i be able to land a job. The goal is to stay consistent and keep applyinga and better my skills.

Like my mom says, Good things take time.

Seriously, sometimes I really feel bad that why i spend 5 years in college and still end up doing odd jobs. All the entry level jobs i applied never heard back and even my corporate experince doesn't help. Is it just me or the job market is cooked.

I am still not losing hope, I believe in myself, and i am confident that one day some day i be able to land a job. The goal is to stay consistent and keep applyinga and better my skills.

Like my mom says, Good things take time.