Current Job Market Frustrations and a Reframing Thought

The 2025 Job Market is a Wild Place for the Job Seeker

The job market feels like a hall of mirrors right now.

You have years of great professional experience, a relevant degree or two, and extra certifications — and you’re still left wondering if you somehow got lost at the entrance. Job applications vanish into black holes. Silence drags on for weeks. When you do hear back, it’s often an auto-rejection after you’ve poured hours into cover letters, assessments, and even interviews. You’re not alone. I’m right there with you.

Transparently, I am writing this from the middle of it, not from some triumphant “I got the job!” ending. I don’t have a neat bow to tie this up with. And maybe that’s the best part of sharing this here and now. Too often, career advice comes from the other side of the tunnel — where people forget just how dark and confusing it feels inside.

Lately I’ve noticed how easy it is to slip into what psychologist Stephen Karpman called the “Drama Triangle” — a dynamic of victim, villain, and hero that he first described in 1968. In a layoff or job search, it can sound like this:

The victim: “I’m powerless. I’m stuck. I’m invisible in this market.”

The villain: “These companies are cruel. Recruiters are cold. The system is broken.”

The hero: “If only I apply harder, network smarter, get one more certification, I’ll save myself.”

Sometimes I play all three roles in a single day. The triangle gives the illusion of control and clarity, but really it just keeps me stuck in a story about blame and rescue. The truth is, the job market doesn’t care about my drama. It isn’t based in morality. Some things are simply outside my control right now.

Here’s the surprising thought that has brought me a comforting reframe in this season of drama: What if this season is an intermittent retirement — my very own Season of Freedom?

Not a permanent one, of course, but a pause in the middle of my working life where — thanks to the emergency fund I built — I have a little breathing room. I can go for walks in the middle of the day. I can read. I can write for this blog. I can spend time with my kids. I can sleep more. None of that erases the frustration of unanswered applications, but it does remind me that this time isn’t solely about loss, it’s also an opportunity for life.

I think that’s why the phrase brings relief. It reframes this chapter from being solely about failure and uncertainty into being about something I never would have given myself permission for otherwise — a freaking break.

I don’t want to sugarcoat it. The job search right now is tough, and if you feel exhausted, discouraged, desperate, or angry, you’re not alone. I’m right there, too. But maybe part of surviving it is stepping out the drama triangle cycle and letting this season, however unwanted, carry the nuance of its heaviness with its unexpected blessings.

Have you recently — or are you now — experiencing your own season in the Drama Triangle due to an unforeseen circumstance? I’m right here with you, and right here for you. Let me know in the comments, or send me a private message. Your story matters.