Getting Hired. A hiring manager at The Walt Disney Company shared a shocking LinkedIn post —12,000 people applied for a single Social Media Strategist role.
Let that sink in.
That means even if you’re highly qualified, you’re competing against thousands who have similar skills, education, and experience. A great CV? That’s just the ticket to enter the game. If 12,000 applicants felt confident enough to apply, then the odds are stacked against you. Let’s dive into some practical steps to getting hired.
Most career advice says:
✔ Optimize your CV for ATS
✔ Network more
✔ Build a portfolio
All good but not enough.
As a recruiter, I’ve seen what actually makes candidates stand out. Here’s what you should start doing today:
1. Start Freelancing—Now and Get Hired
A simple way to test if your skills are valuable?
See if someone will pay you for them. If the answer is no, you have work to do.
Freelancing isn’t just for side income. It proves that your skills have real-world demand. In 2025, the best career paths blend full-time roles with independent contract work. I stumbled into freelancing by accident. A friend saw my Facebook posts and asked if I could write articles for him for $5 per piece. As a broke college student, that $5 mattered. But more importantly, it showed me that my writing had value. Years later, I still earn from writing
Test your skills in the real world. See if someone will pay you.
2. Get Good at Creating Content
The internet runs on content. People who create valuable content build audiences. Audiences create leverage. Leverage creates revenue.
Some of today’s biggest influencers aren’t celebrities. They’re regular people who built authority in their field by creating.
Want to stand out? Start sharing insights, ideas, and expertise. Your future employer (or client) is watching.
3. Help Startups & Small Businesses
Most entrepreneurs need help with digital marketing, accounting, process development, but they can’t afford full-time hires. Offer your skills in exchange for experience. During school breaks, I helped my uncle sell goods in Kumasi. He got free labor. I learned how to handle rejection, how to negotiate, and how to persuade customers. Today, those same skills help me in recruitment.
Find a business that needs your skills. Help them. Learn as you go.
4. Learn AI—Before AI Learns You
By 2026, 90% of written online content will be AI-generated. We’ve already seen mass layoffs at companies like Meta, Google, and Amazon because AI does repetitive tasks better than humans.
Instead of fearing it, learn to use it.
- Use AI tools to write proposals, analyze data, or generate images.
- Experiment with free models like ChatGPT, Claude, or Perplexity.
AI won’t replace everyone but those who don’t adapt will be left behind.
5. Teach What You Know (Even If You’re Not an Expert Yet)
The best way to prove mastery? Teach someone else.
When I started in communications, I would test my presentations on peers before presenting to senior management. Each round of feedback exposed gaps in my knowledge. So I’d study harder. Simplify further. Teaching forces you to refine your thinking.
Getting Hired – Try this:
- Explain your skill in simple terms.
- Create a mini-course or blog post.
- Keep refining until it’s crystal clear.
When you can teach something well, you’ve mastered it.
The old job-hunting rules don’t work anymore. Those who adapt will thrive. Those who don’t? They’ll get left behind.
Thumbnail photo by cottonbro studio
