8 Horcruxes of Job Search in Canada. Part 4

Horcrux #6.

Job Searching as a Full-Time Job.

My job search in Canada officially started on June 13 and ended on August 10. For the first month, I made the mistake of trying to juggle my full-time job with a relentless job search in a new country.

Of course, I never imagined I’d quit my job without having another one lined up — who would even consider such madness? Especially in Canada, with two kids and my mom relying on me. In my entire life, I’d never faced a single day of unemployment.

“Madness?” fate smirked. “Just wait a month.”

The first month was grueling. Despite applying to 10–20 positions every day, I only received two invitations for Zoom interviews and one for a phone interview. I quickly lost morale, entirely convinced I’d be flooded with invitations.

Welcome to the new reality.

By the second month, after posting on LinkedIn, tailoring my resume, and rewriting my cover letter, I was averaging two to three meetings a day. That’s when it hit me: I could no longer morally justify trying to balance two full-time jobs — the job I loved at my beloved company, where I gave my all, and the second, unofficial job titled “Find Work in Canada or Die Trying.”

I realized I couldn’t deliver high-quality results while splitting my attention between two demanding roles.

This clarity often came late at night, when I’d lie in bed, tormented by the thought of all the things I hadn’t done: emails left unanswered, roles I didn’t apply for because I hadn’t customized my resume in time.

It was a nightmare that spiraled into intense stress, compulsive overeating, and a gnawing sense of failure.

I don’t believe in esoteric mantras like “say goodbye to the old to make room for the new,” but oddly enough, exactly 10 days after my last day at work, I received an offer from a major, well-known company.

I’ll never forget that day — on the eve of my birthday, I cried tears of joy for the first time.

Then I sat on the porch of our host family’s house, sipping a bottle of wine under the starry Canadian sky.

Jokes aside, the realization that job searching in Canada is a full-time job changed everything. It led me to take a massive risk I’d barely dared to think about — I quit without a safety net.

How would I describe that feeling? It wasn’t like diving into an ice hole or skydiving.

It was like playing Jenga, pulling out block after block — your house, your car, and now your job — without replacing anything to support the tower. And at the top of the unsteady structure sat my family.

I was terrified.

But I knew that if I worked hard enough, something had to happen.

I didn’t have another choice.

Horcrux #7.

Rejections and the Art of Analysis.

It’s absolutely essential not to let rejections get to you or destroy your motivation. Accept that there will be plenty of them.

In my case, there were a lot. Every day, I’d receive 3–5 rejection emails.

At first, I felt crushed. Then I noticed how it started affecting the quality of my interviews and my willingness to keep going. It’s tempting to throw in the towel and convince yourself it’s all hopeless.

But what then? The thought alone was unbearable.

So one day, I decided to treat each rejection as a learning opportunity. I began analyzing every step of the process — from submitting my application to the interview itself. Most of the time, I could pinpoint why I’d been rejected. Whenever I cut corners — rushing an application, failing to properly tailor my resume, or skipping the cover letter — those were the companies that sent rejections.

Canada doesn’t tolerate carelessness or haste.

Everything must be done thoughtfully, meticulously, and with a sense of purpose. Even when it feels unnecessary, always put in your best effort.

And always, ALWAYS use kind and professional language:“Would you please be so kind to…”“Hope you had a wonderful weekend and had the chance to enjoy the summer…”“Could you send me the documents at your earliest convenience?”“Thank you, I appreciate your help.”“Welcome to Nova Scotia, you’ll love it here!”

This is why I call this horcrux “Rejections and Analysis.” Observe carefully where and why rejections are coming from, and you’ll usually figure out the reasons yourself.

To track this, I kept a spreadsheet where I logged every step with each company — dates, notes, and comments.

It’ll make for an interesting story to tell my kids someday.

August 30, 2022.