Step-by-Step Process To Land Your Next High-Paying Job In 75 Days

by | Aug 30, 2023 | Job Search

A Quick Note:

Hi! My name is Gaurav Valani. I’m a Professional Career Coach, former Executive and Entrepreneur. 

I’m truly grateful to be able to be in a position to say that since 2016, I’ve had the immense pleasure of helping over 670 professionals land high-paying jobs at companies they admire, doing something they love, while also securing life-changing job offers. 

It’s not the offers that I’m most proud of, but rather how these offers changed their lives! They became more confident, they used this momentum to keep growing personally, they invested in themselves, they invested in their financial future, they gave back to their communities, they bought their first homes, took much-needed vacations, and so much more. 

We’ve had some great stories like this one here, of Chiara who spent 8+ years working retail, never making more than $65k, breaking into tech and going over  $170k in less than 3 years. 

Or Amisha, who was unemployed for 1.5 years, struggling w/ her confidence because she couldn’t land a job, never made more than $148k, to securing a job with PayPal in less than 67 days of working w/ me and landing a $233k offer (that’s just base alone). 

I could keep going… but the point is, stories like these bring me a TON of joy and fulfillment. 

I know it’s a rough time in the world right now w/ all of the layoffs, which seemingly have no end in sight, and because of this, I want to show you how to achieve similar results, and use this guide to forever help you with your career journey. 

Below is the exact strategy that I helped each of my clients implement into their job search process + included resources that you’ll need for each step. 

I spent a lot of time putting this together, and I hope that it serves you! 

Wishing you all the best,

Gaurav Valani

The Step-by-Step Process to Landing Your Next High-Paying Job in Less than 75 Days without Spending Countless Hours Applying 

(increasing salaries by $74,500 on average in 2023)

 

Step 1:

It’s important that you get clear on exactly the type of role that you want to go after. You never want to put yourself in a position where you’re chasing different positions at the same time. Not only do you put a lot of extra stress on yourself to have to keep changing your resume for each role, but it’s also completely ineffective. 

Here’s why it’s ineffective: If your resume/LinkedIn profile does not clearly articulate the one role you’re a fit for, then a Recruiter and/or Hiring Manager will not want to speak with you. Most hiring managers prefer someone who is a specialist rather than a generalist. 

Remember: The man who tries to catch two rabbits, catches none. 

  • Tip: Stick with one skillset (don’t go for a CSM role while also going for a PM role, too) 
  • Tip: The ONLY time you can go after two different roles is if/when there is an overlap between the two roles, such as Project Management and Program Management
  • Resource: If you’re unclear about how to identify the ONE role that you should be going after, you can watch this video. It’s Part 1 of my coaching program that ONLY our paid clients get access to, and you can watch it completely for free to help you with this step.

Step 2:

Research what the market is paying for the role you’re going after 

(Resources: Levels.fyi, Glassdoor, Salary.com, Comparably Salary Tool)

  • Tip: Factor in total comp, too, so that you know how to intelligently negotiate on the back end and what variables you can negotiate (such as equity, bonus, sign-on, etc).,
  • Tip: Knowing your value in the open market also allows you to know what to say when a Recruiter or Hiring Manager asks you: “What’s your salary range?”
  • Tip: Once you know your range, use this script the next time a Recruiter/HM asks you about your salary range

 

Step 3:

Study 15 to 25 job descriptions of the role you’re going after so that you get a clear understanding of what keywords to include in your resume. 

Just like how websites rank on Google by Search-Engine-Optimization, your resume ranks on the job boards by Keyword Optimization. The more optimized your resume is, the higher it’ll show up on a Recruiters search, thus increasing your odds of getting a call/email from them. 

  • Tip: Use tools like Jobscan.co to help you keyword optimize your resume. 
  • Tip: If you achieve a 60% – 70% score or higher – you’re good. You don’t need a 100% keyword optimized, it’s nearly impossible to achieve. 
    • They intentionally keep your score on the lower side, so that you sign up for their services. Don’t fall for this trap.

Step 4:

Now you’re ready to write your resume using the research you found from Step 3.

Here’s EXACTLY what you’re resume needs to include:

#1: A well-written summary that excludes fluff language Fluff language is ANYTHING that cannot be measured (ie., “fast learner”, “hard worker”, “passionate leader”, etc.,)

#2: A skills/tools section ← this helps with keyword optimization

#3: Responsibilities and Achievements:

  • Tip for Responsibilities: 
    • If you’re unsure of what responsibilities to add, it’s simple: Use the top 5 to 7 responsibilities that you’re seeing in the job descriptions. Another reason why studying job descriptions is key. The more you see the same responsibilities showing up over and over, that is your indication that you should be including it onto your resume. 
  • Tip for Achievements: Include quantifiable metrics of success that are specific to the roles you’re going after in your resume
  • Tip: Metrics can include helping the company save $x or increased revenue by $x amount, or grew monthly active users from 700,000 to 3.3M by implementing xyz strategies, etc.,
  • Example of a quantifiable metric for Customer Success roles: Increased ARR from $3M to $7.3M in 19 months through implementing strategic upsell opportunities while maintaining a 9.3NPS score and 3% churn
  • Tip: Include 3 to 4 achievements directly under your responsibilities section
  • Example of a well-written resume/LinkedIn Profile <– this is one of the highest converting resumes/LI profiles from our program 
    • Notice how EACH of her accomplishments have a quantifiable metric 
    • Another example of a well-written resume/LinkedIn Profile ← This is a client from our program who after working with us landed 3 amazing offers after interviewing with 5 companies in under 70 days. His resume was stellar. 

NOTE: The resume is the #1 area most people get stuck or have a hard time with. I want to stress something here:

Use the templates/examples I shared above to help you build yours, but don’t let yourself stay on this step for too long. Your resume is not what is going to get you the job. It’s the words that come out of your mouth that will (more to come on this part). 

Again, even if you don’t have the absolute best resume in the world, using the strategies above will still allow you to stand apart from the majority of job seekers. You def got this! 

 

Step 5:

Revise your LinkedIn profile to mirror your resume (if you’re stuck writing your resume, use this tool)

    • Hint: The first thing a Recruiter or Hiring Manager does after receiving your resume is look you up on LinkedIn. 
    • Tip: Have a strong header and professional picture 
    • Example of a strong header: Project Manager w/ 7+ years of experience managing highly complex projects from inception to launch | 93% of projects delivered ahead of schedule and under budget
  • Example of a header:

Step 6:

Post your resumes onto the following job sites: BuiltIn, Angel.co, Levels.fyi, Indeed, ZipRecruiter

  • Tips: There are many other boards, but this is a great start. Having your resume on the job boards allows you to have exposure to as many Recruiters as possible. 

Step 7:

Join Slack Communities, or FB groups related to your specific skill set

     

    {Pause}:  How are you feeling?? Hopefully GREAT! Let’s just do a quick RECAP before we go any further. 

    • By now, you should know EXACTLY which roles you’re going after
    • You should know the salary range for those roles
    • You should know how your background/experiences/achievements speak to those roles
    • You should have studied 15 to 25 job descriptions of the role you’re going for
    • Based on that research you should have written a resume/LinkedIn profile which includes:
      • Well-written Summary w/ no fluff
      • A skills/tools section
      • Responsibilities
        Achievements
      • You should have revised your resume to mirror your resume
      • It should include a professional or close to professional profile picture
      • It should also include a strong header
      • Resume:
      • LinkedIn:

    I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE COVERED THAT… LET’S CONTINUE….

     

    Step 8:

    Value-Added Reach Outs

    Something to be mindful of: The name of the game when you start your job search:

    • Is not: “how many jobs can I apply for today or this week?”
    • But rather: “how many conversations can I get started with a person of influence each week”

    Don’t start the process with applying. Instead reach out to senior leaders, or hiring managers who work at the companies you want to apply to. 

    Send them a message either via LinkedIn or Email and tell them let them know you researched the position and include 3 to 5 ways you can make an impact at their company (see pics below for an example of a solid outreach message)

    This is purely a volume game. Here are the stats you want to hit:

    • Message 3 to 5 senior leaders per company that you want to apply to
    • Message 3 to 5 Recruiters per company that you want to apply to
    • Example: 20 companies x 6 to 10 messages = 120 to 200 messages
      • If you can get out 120 to 200 messages, you should expect to hear back from 30% to 40%
      • That is MORE than enough

    Now let’s say 30 responses lead to 10 interviews… THAT’S not only realistic!! But it’s 10 interviews that you never would have got had you sat there and JUST applied

    Stat: Using these outreach scripts + following each step prior to this, our clients are averaging a 43% response rate and on average, this is leading to 5 to 7 interviews w/ 5 to 7 companies

    When you’re interviewing w/ multiple companies, it naturally takes pressure off of you to “Have to land this job!!” because, even if 2 or 3 don’t work out, it’s totally fine, you still have another 3+ companies you’re in the process with. 

    • Tip: The success is in the follow ups. I recommend sending 3 to 4 follow-up notes before moving on. 
      • Space out each follow up note by 5 business days. 

     

    Step 9:

    Begin practicing your interviews

    • Hint: If you’re working through a Recruiter – ask the recruiter to provide as much info about what the hiring manager is looking for (tangible skills, intangible skills, experiences, etc.,)
    • Hint: You want to have + practice as many stories as possible that are specific to what is being asked for in the job description 
    • Resource: Use this resource to help you prepare for interviews (38:00 mins mark)

     

    Step 10:

    Intelligently negotiate the right offer using the data you collected from step 2

    • Hint: Never just say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to an offer right away. Rather, ask them if they could meet you closer to the range you’re seeing from your research and don’t forget to negotiate other components of the offer (title, base, equity, sign-on, etc.,)
    • Resource: The end of this video shows you exactly what to say when you enter negotiations and how to do it (47:00 mins mark)


    Final Resources:

    Resource #1: A Training Video that Breaks Down Each Step Above
    I know this will seem like a lot… BUT… if you want to learn how to put ALL of this together and apply it to your job search just watch this video – it gives even more resources/scripts/examples than mentioned above.

    Resource #2: Apply to Work with Me
    If you feel you could benefit from working with me then when you’re ready, you can apply for a call with me using this link.

    Resource #3: My Free Coaching Program
    I also have a free career coaching program where my team and I host weekly coaching calls, bring in Guest Experts, and provide additional tools that can help your job search headed in the right direction. If you’re interested in this, then  join my free coaching program here

     

    Final Thoughts: 

    If you apply the steps above, it will be really hard not to find FAR BETTER RESULTS  than utilizing the traditional approach of simply applying-and-praying. 

    The worst-case scenario is that it doesn’t work (but that is impossible in my opinion if you’re following the steps above)… but the best case scenario is that you land a job at a company you admire, doing something you love, getting paid what you’re worth. 

    You just need a proven system that brings predictable results. 

    And what I outlined above is THE system. 

    Remember: You’re only one job offer away from changing the entire trajectory of your life. 

     

    You. Got. This!

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