Holy grail of Personal CRM Tools

(Photo credit @stilclassics)

#careertip

One of the biggest challenges I see for my clients in their job searches is staying organized, when you have multiple applications out, you’re networking with all types of people, and then juggling interview prep + offer timelines. Most people are job searching while still working a full-time job & doing all sorts of other personal projects. And job searching in tech & startups is already a non-linear process – so adding structure on your side will help you feel more in control & help reduce stress. 

When you look for a tool(s) to support you in keeping organized, there are 4 important steps to keep in mind: 

1. Track everything: You will need to keep track of (a) all of your job applications and (b) all of the people you engage with (whether during networking or the application process). Then you can use that data to identify your conversion ratios (from application to 1st interview, from 1st interview to 2nd interview, from cold email to networking call, etc). 

2. Develop your process steps + cadence: Most jobseekers send out a flurry of applications or networking emails & then wait for…ever. You should plan to stay proactive wherever possible, and make sure to outline a specific process whereby you keep these tools updated and you have a cadence for follow-ups. 

3. Build in time for analysis + reflection weekly:  If you’ve done the first two things, you’ll have some good data to analyze your job search process. What has worked well? What hasn’t worked well? Try to stay objective here – I have had multiple clients who immediately assume that no response means no interest. Stepping back, it’s easier to observe that the company just got a round of funding and might be overwhelmed with processing the flood of applications. Then, you can decide how to strategically raise your profile to a recruiter, via a referral or a direct InMail or some other option. 

4. Ask for objective counsel: We all stress during a job search. Am I a good fit? Will this be the right next move? Did I apply to too many places? Or not enough?? This is where a coach or a networking contact can be helpful. A networking contact can help give you insider information about the company you are applying to or in process with (for example, the recruiting team is overwhelmed or there is a hiring freeze, etc). A coach can help you stay objective while processing that new information & help you evaluate your best next steps. We can also help you assess your overall process, so you can stop worrying & rely on the strategies & processes you’ve built. 

Now, let’s look at some specific suggestions on tools you can use to stay organized, depending on your level of time and investment. 

• Simple

  • Best: Google Sheets

    • We all have gmail accounts & Google Sheets make it very easy to have 1 tab for tracking applications, 1 tab for tracking people, and 1 tab for tracking your stats. It’s also accessible on any device to make updates on the go.  And it’s free.

  • Runner-up: Paper or Excel

    • For some, just using 3 simple pieces of paper will help you get started without getting lost in trying to build out the best-ever job search application tracker. And for some unknown reason, others like to use Excel (ugh). 

• Intermediate

  • Best: Notion or Todoist

    • I love how clean Notion looks and how easy it is to add various kinds of objects to a page (like a database on the same page as a bulleted list). It’s also free. You can find job search and CRM templates in their Template Gallery. My only drawback is that it has limited integrations, so you will need to visit it daily to view tasks (vs having them appear in your Google calendar). Todoist is a great, clean task manager. It has multiple integrations to other tools/platforms to help keep you in sync. 

  • Runners-up: Coda, Airtable, Trello

    • I’ve used all of these at some point. Coda has online docs but seems more geared towards teams/enterprise these days. Airtable has always felt just a bit too complicated to build upon. And Trello drove me nuts with only having the one view of my work (the kanban) vs offering the ability to toggle between multiple views.  

• Deluxe

  • Best: Dex + Clickup

    • I have found the holy grail of personal CRM tools after a long & arduous search of the entire Internet. Dex is an incredibly simple, powerful & affordable personal CRM platform. It is a YC19 graduate & the founder is very responsive to product feedback. I use Dex to track my people engagement and Clickup as my project tracker. I love how flexible Clickup is. And while it can be overwhelming at first to navigate all the features, I’m happy to share a job search template if you’re interested. 

    • Note: I highly recommend both of these tools because of the features they offer, not so that I can make any $ via my referral links. But if you like them as much as I do, it can’t hurt to share a hat tip for the info. 

  • Runners-up: Relatable 

    • With the shutdown of my former CRM Contactually, I was invited to join Relatable’s beta. While I enjoyed the intros feature and the focus on building a personal (not business) CRM, I wasn’t a fan of how it displayed your follow-up tasks. Others are raving about it so I wanted to share (tip: mention you used Contactually and you’ll get off the waitlist quickly).

• Others to consider

  • Project Trackers: Asana, Monday, Smartsheet

  • Free CRMs: Hubspot, Zoho CRM

Q&A and Recommendations

(Photo credit @jontyson)

This week is a bit of a hodgepodge collection of Q&A advice & tool recommendations & job/intern/training links to help you navigate the current hiring landscape & remote work environment. Enjoy!

Q&A

• Should I be networking right now?

  • Yes, I think it's fine to be networking. Many employees have had at least two weeks to figure out their new working at home situation, and might be ready to accept networking emails/calls.

  • One thing to consider: how to balance being persistent and pestering. Right now, it's helpful for you to be diligent about following up as everyone is juggling many things. However, you don't wait to follow-up as quickly as you might normally - I'd wait at least a week in between follow-ups, maybe even two weeks.

  • Also, if you do end up on a call with a contact, it's ok to start the call with a general 'how are you handling remote work right now?" I find that most of my calls/meetings right now default to starting with a similar question. Phrasing it this way makes it easier to acknowledge the global situation & focus on the work-related aspects of it, vs veering too far into someone's personal details.

• Is anyone hiring right now?

  • Yes, there are multiple companies who are in need of help -- areas that come to mind include: ecommerce platforms/distribution channels; remote work/productivity software; CPGs producing household goods like toilet paper/cleaning supplies; tech companies powering the streaming services & the internet backbone itself

  • Scroll down for additional links to jobs

• If I have received an offer from Company A and I'm still interviewing with Company B, should I tell either of them about the other?

  • Yes! It's good practice to keep your recruiters informed as it gives them the best opportunity to be your advocate and help you get the best offer from their company. However, you don't need to share all the details with each of them, only the pertinent info they need to move things along.

  • First, I suggest you call company B and tell them you just received an offer from another company and they have given you a deadline of X date (that's all you need to share). Tell B that you remain interested/excited in interviewing with B, and would appreciate the chance to complete the interview process with them on an accelerated timeline. The recruiter will then be able to tell you if it's possible for them to accelerate your interview process to meet A's deadline, or not.

  • If B needs more time, you go back to A to ask for a short extension to their deadline (based on what time B told you they need), so that you are able to complete the interview process with one other company & thus fully evaluate both career options.

  • Most times, as long as recruiters see you are working with them in good faith, they will try to help you as best as they can.

4 Productivity "Survival" Tools/products I've been using & recommend

• Headspace

  • I became a Headspace devotee about 5.5 years ago when my father became ill and I moved home to help take care of him in the months before he passed away. One of the best gifts from Google was the Search Inside Yourself class. I'm proud to say I'm on day 473 of a daily 20-minute meditation streak. Great quote from the MindfulMBA: "Mindfulness is leadership training because it teaches you how to continue through discomfort, uncertainty, and even chaos. It trains you to be the calm in the middle of the storm."

• Focus@Will

  • Founded by neuroscientists & musicologists, the Focus@Will app alters subtle music characteristics to help you focus longer. Using the Focus@Will app is like flipping a switch on in my brain that sends me into super focus mode. I've been using it for at least 4 years and find it amazingly helpful to put on headphones and just focus. My preference is the Ambient channel. I just saw that they are offering 50% off memberships too!

• Stand Steady X-Elite Pro

  • I bought a desktop standing desk a week ago as I have gotten so tired of sitting at my desk all day. Brilliant choice. This one is very easy to use & relatively inexpensive for the quality of life it provides! Not sure yet about buying other items (like an anti-fatigue mat) - will keep you posted!

• Clickup

  • I think I found the holy grail of project management tools. I love how highly structured and infinitely flexible Clickup is for managing projects. I especially love the ability to have a list, board, calendar AND gantt chart view of a project, without having to pick one like many other tools force you to do (I'm looking at you Asana and Trello). Still working on the best practices but thus far, it's been amazing (is it too much to say my heart pitter-patters when I think of Clickup? Maybe that's the cabin fever talking...)

(Note: I am an affiliate for these tools -- tho I only recommend products I *actually* use often!)

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