A Summer Journal — Field Notes on Job Searching When Everyone Else Has Checked Out
Paris, end of June. My smoked ice tea is delicious, and my friend is telling me that she really needs to start looking for a new job.
"I’ve been procrastinating. I just don't know where to start," she says.
I take a sip. "Well," I say. "Let’s get to work."
What I told her is what I'd tell anyone sitting across from me this summer, actively searching, quietly thinking about it, or pretending they'll start in September.
1. Summer is not the wrong time. It's actually a great time.
Everyone assumes hiring slows down in summer, that there is no point applying. And yes hiring does slow down, a little. But here's what that actually means for you: less noise. Fewer applicants. More room to be noticed. So show up intentionally, and with more focus than everyone who decided to wait until September.
2. Slow down before you speed up.
The biggest mistake I see is wanting to start by doing. Updating the resume, applying, optimizing LinkedIn. Before any of that: sit with the question nobody wants to sit with. What do I actually want? Summer gives you the space to answer that honestly. A slower season is an invitation to think before you act. Use it. Start a journal, mind map, set goals.
3. Your values are your compass. Find them before you move.
The people who struggle most in career transitions are the ones who start with the document and work backward to the person. Again, don’t start by doing. Start with you and what matters most to you, not what should matter, not what mattered five years ago. That answer is your compass for everything that follows. Without it, you're navigating without a map. Know your values, what you are seeking, but also what you do not want.
4. Tell everyone. Especially at the July 4th tailgate.
Several of my clients have found their next opportunity not through an application, but through an unfiltered conversation at a barbecue, a pool party, or a holiday weekend gathering. People cannot help you if they don't know you're looking. You don't have to make it awkward or heavy. Say it simply, say it lightly (but clearly): "I'm exploring what's next for me. If you hear of anything, I'd love to know." Then pass the potato salad and enjoy the fireworks.
5. Collect the warmth. Store it for winter.
Summer does something to people. More sunlight. More social energy. More moments where you feel, briefly, like the best version of yourself.
That feeling is not incidental. It's fuel.
Use this season to build something that will sustain you when the days get shorter and the search gets harder. Build a network and a support system, genuine relationships with people who know what you're looking for and want to help.
The energy you generate this summer is something you get to carry with you. Collect it deliberately. You will need it in the fall.
6. Use the slower pace to build, not just apply.
Take the course you've been wanting to take. Go to that networking event. Have the coffee with the person you've been meaning to connect with for six months. The people who show up in September having spent the summer growing, not just applying, are a different kind of candidate. They’re clearer and more energized.
7. You don't have to do this alone.
This is the one my friend needed most. She'd been sitting with this goal for months; turning it over privately, getting more and more stuck. The moment she said it out loud to someone who could actually help, her energy shifted.
A coach. A trusted friend. An app that asks you the right questions when no one else is around to ask them. Whatever form your support takes — find it before September. The search is hard enough without doing it in isolation.
Sophie Leroi is a career coach, co-founder of Space Between, and the person who will absolutely talk about your career pivot over a café crème in Paris if you let her, or on Zoom if that’s easier. Book a free consultation at spacebetween.ai or start with the Res/You/Me app.
