I did "everything right" but still couldn't land a tech job - so I built my own solution 💪
The "perfect" resume that got me nowhere
I did "everything right" but still couldn't land a tech job - so I built my own solution 💪
The "perfect" resume that got me nowhere
Here's what my resume looked like:
✅ Two summer internships at tech companies
✅ Good grades throughout university
✅ Multiple hobby projects built in my spare time
✅ Polished portfolio showcasing real projects with actual users
✅ Coding almost every single day this year (only 8 days off)
Yet after months of applications: Zero job offers.
Some interviews, lots of ghosting, and a growing sense that having a job is somehow a privilege I haven't earned yet.
The frustrating reality of today's job market
The worst part? Non-technical people keep telling me "AI will replace you anyway" while pointing to some flashy frontend demos with zero actual functionality or scalability. Meanwhile, I'm here building real software every day.
It's exhausting trying to prove yourself when the bar keeps moving. When you've ticked every box the career advice tells you to tick, but it's still not enough.
So I created my own opportunity
Instead of just waiting for someone to give me a chance, I built Woberry - a job tracking, resume, and cover letter building platform.
🔗 Check it out: [woberry.com]
What it does:
Streamlines the job application process
Helps build tailored resumes and cover letters
Tracks applications and follow-ups
Born from my own painful job-hunting experience
The brutal honesty
I'm making some money from Woberry, but not enough for stability or to move out yet. I'm living frugally and doing everything I can to avoid going broke. It's scary, but it's also taught me more about building real products than any internship ever did.
What I've learned
The traditional path isn't guaranteed - Even with internships and good grades, the job market is brutal
Building something real matters more than perfect credentials - Woberry users actually pay me, which feels more validating than any interview
Indie hacking isn't just a backup plan - It's a legitimate way to create your own opportunities
Looking for support
If you're also frustrated with the job market, or if Woberry could help streamline your job hunt, I'd love your support. Every user helps me get closer to sustainability.
And if you want to see what 350+ days of coding looks like, check out my GitHub: RaymondSWE
To anyone else in this position
You're not alone. The system feels broken right now, but that doesn't mean you are. Sometimes creating your own path is the only way forward.
This is a compelling story, especially because it highlights some harsh realities about today's tech job market. I completely agree that the traditional career path feels increasingly unreliable. I managed to break into Meta as an engineer without a bachelor's degree years ago, but that door is much narrower now. Big tech hiring has tightened significantly, with oversaturation and inflated salaries driving companies to actively shrink their workforce.
One thought, though: I'm curious about your decision to build Woberry. On one hand, you're acknowledging how challenging and perhaps even broken the traditional hiring path is. But at the same time, your product directly serves that traditional path. I'd love to hear your thinking behind this. Do you see Woberry as a temporary tool to navigate an imperfect system, or are you optimistic the market conditions might shift again soon?
By the way, I just recently left big tech myself, and your point on GenAI really resonates. Internally, I found the AI tooling for maintaining massive monoliths surprisingly underwhelming compared to external generative solutions. GenAI seems far better at helping developers build new, smaller projects rather than maintaining legacy codebases, at least right now. It'll likely change, but the current state still leaves significant gaps.
Great post overall, appreciate your transparency.
Really appreciate this thoughtful response! It's kinda wild how much the landscape has shifted. I remember starting study after corona started, when people had finished a 6 months bootcamp and got tons of offers. Now even with a MSc degree, and project that reached few thousand seems not enough, at least for me.
Great question about the apparent contradiction though. Honestly, Woberry started as just another hobby project that happened to gain traction when friends appreciated it. I'm doing my Masters partly to avoid being kicked out of my room and going homeless.
You're right that there's some irony in building tools for a broken system. But I see it more as, while we're stuck navigating this mess, why not make it less painful? I have tons of ideas for other pain points that frustrated me during job hunting, like those ridiculous logic and personality tests that have nothing to do with actual coding.
The real challenge is balancing a project that's growing while still surviving academically and financially. Some days it's overwhelming, but each user finding value keeps me motivated.
Your point about GenAI and legacy codebases is spot on too. The gap between marketing hype and actual utility in enterprise scenarios is huge. Even tools like Lovable look pretty fancy from the outside, but most are just hardcoded data with no real scalability. Then the average person thinks they're suddenly a software engineer who can build production-ready systems.
Excellent Raman. You echoed the sentiment of the current job market, and it can be appalling. I am glad you were able to build something. I am in the same boat and find it challenging to build my own SaaS product. However I am technically challenged. If anyone here would like to collaborate in building a scalable and profitable product, please ping or reply here. Keep up the great work ad good luck!
Thanks for the support! My hands are full with school and current projects, but feel free to add me on LinkedIn, would love to stay connected for any future opportunities.
Keep the good work. Good luck with the feature achievements
Thanks! I really appreciate the encouragement. Still grinding away on the new feature whenever time permits
Awesome stuff man! I'm in the same boat. Getting laid off from my job due to company buyout and have had no luck with job apps even with a resume others have told me looks great (multiple internships at big companies, good job, masters degree, published research). So, I also decided to take things into my own hands. Working on my first micro-saas and hope to bring in enough to at least fund the next product! Good luck with everything! This is motivating for me
I hear you. i am also working to take things in my control and build a SaaS product. if you like to collab or discuss any promising ideas, please ping me. Good luck!
Sorry about the layoff, but it’s exciting that you're building your own thing! Having done everything right by the book and still getting nowhere is frustrating. I would love to hear what you’re working on. Wishing you the best of luck.
Hi Raymond,
Taking a moment to thank you for creating such an incredible tool, It's a game changer. As a Virtual Assistant, I appreciate tools that help in my journey and growth. I will definitely recommend this tool for Virtual Assistants and Job Seekers alike. Congratulations on your success, and keep up the fantastic work.
Thanks, this means everything to me! I built it from my own pain points, but knowing it works for others feels incredible. Thanks for the recommendation 🙏
Awesome, nice to see you guys growing!
Thanks so much! 🙏 Really appreciate the support.