I applied to over 6,000 jobs and relied on a food pantry after being laid off. Here's what finally got me hired.
· Business Insider
John Huân Vũ
- John Huân Vũ applied to more than 6,000 jobs after being laid off from PayPal.
- To get by, he relied on a food pantry, SNAP benefits, Buy Nothing groups, and his church community.
- In the end, he found a job not through job boards, but through a work connection he'd previously helped.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with John Huân Vũ, a senior consultant at Visa who lives in San Jose. He previously worked for PayPal for 10 years before being laid off in 2024. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
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When I got laid off from PayPal in July 2024, I was in complete shock.
The next day, it felt really weird not to be working anymore. For about the first week, I tried to accept what had happened and figure out my next steps.
After that, I started applying for jobs — a lot of jobs.
Over the next 16 months, I applied to more than 6,000 jobs across over 2,000 companies and completed dozens of interviews, all of which I tracked in a spreadsheet.
As my husband's and my financial situation deteriorated, I had to completely rethink how I searched for jobs. We relied on a food pantry and weighed difficult decisions like selling our house or looking for opportunities outside the US. It was one of the hardest stretches of my life.
The job market has changed since I last applied for a job
Before I was laid off, my husband and I had planned a six-week trip to New Zealand for the following December, as part of the paid sabbatical I earned after 10 years at PayPal.
After the layoff, we debated canceling it, but decided to still go, in part because I was somewhat optimistic about my chances of landing a job. By the time I got home, I was starting to get afraid because the job market seemed so difficult, so I ramped up my applications.
I used job boards like LinkedIn and HiringCafe to find openings and applied using autofill tools whenever they were available. If there was a job I felt at least 50% qualified for, I applied. On my busiest day, August 17, 2025, I applied to 88 jobs. I never paid anyone — nor used an AI bot — to submit applications for me.
During this process, I learned that the job market had changed dramatically since the last time I'd looked for work, over a decade earlier. I found myself being interviewed by AI and learned that some job postings disappeared within 48 hours or after the first couple of hundred applications. Every morning, I checked job boards and professional Slack communities to find and apply for new openings before they disappeared.
I also realized my old résumé wasn't enough anymore, so I completely revamped it for applicant tracking systems and cut it from two pages to one.
Those changes helped me get more traction, but I still struggled to land an offer.
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We almost had to sell our house
As the interviews started adding up, I kept coming up short. The longer my search went on, the more the whole process felt like a nightmare.
My husband owns an interior design business, but without my income, we had to start making some difficult decisions. After reviewing the spreadsheet I'd used to track our finances for years, I realized that if I didn't find a job soon — or if my husband didn't change jobs — we'd likely have to sell our house.
To save money on food, we relied on Buy Nothing groups, coupons, and SNAP benefits. I also learned so many ways to cook a potato, to keep our food budget as low as possible.
We even relied on food pantries. I'll never forget interviewing for jobs while sitting in my car waiting in line to pick up food for the week. It wasn't uncommon for me to arrive at the food pantry two to three hours before it opened to ensure I was the first person in line, and then hurry home for an interview.
The only way we got through that period was because of my church community's support, along with the people who helped us through Buy Nothing groups and the food pantry. We couldn't have done it alone.
Relationships made the difference
During my job search, I posted on Facebook about the challenges I was facing. One of those posts caught the attention of someone I'd met through work years earlier, while he was at Visa and I was at PayPal.
Our relationship went beyond work. Back in 2022, when he was preparing to move from Brazil to the Bay Area, I shared tips about the area and helped him get acclimated.
In October 2025, 15 months after my layoff, he reached out about an opening for a senior consultant position at Visa. My first reaction was that I might not be fully qualified for the role, but he encouraged me to apply anyway.
Later, I learned he'd advocated for me with the recruiter and interviewers, remembering my work ethic, how I communicated with people, and that I got things done.
My final interview with a vice president happened last November, on my 40th birthday. A short time later, I got the offer.
After 16 months of unemployment, I was finally working again.
My advice for others looking for work
One piece of advice I have for other job seekers is to take an honest look at your résumé. I was always protective of my résumé, but revamping it turned out to be one of the best decisions I made.
Also, the human side still matters. Looking back, improving my résumé and continuing to apply helped me get interviews, but someone remembering my work is what ultimately changed my life.
My job search reminded me how important it is to help other people whenever you can. Now, I volunteer at the same food pantry that helped me during my unemployment. To me, it's a beautiful full-circle moment.
Do you have a story to share about looking for work? If so, please reach out to the reporter via email at [email protected], or via Signal at jzinkula.29.
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