In this episode of “People in Transition”, we discuss what really happens inside the hiring process — and how understanding it can help you land your next role faster, smarter, and with far more confidence.

My guest is Dan Waskow, founder of OnPoint Job Search Solutions. With more than 20 years as a corporate recruiter for organizations like Dell Technologies, Fidelity Investments, Credit Suisse, Accenture, NASDAQ, and Madison Square Garden, to name a few — plus over a decade as a job search coach — Dan has seen the hiring process from every angle.

He knows exactly what recruiters look for… and why strong candidates often get overlooked.

If you’ve ever wondered:

• Why you’re not hearing back
• Why interviews stall
• Or how to position yourself strategically instead of emotionally

This conversation is for you.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Why recruiters don’t “connect the dots” for you — and how to clearly translate your background so they instantly see the fit.

• The truth about the job market — there’s no “good” or “bad” time to search, only busier and slower cycles. The candidates who consistently build relationships always win.

• The two pillars of a successful job search: Marketing and Storytelling. Master how you present your value and how you tell your career story, and everything changes.

• Resume strategy that actually works. Clean formatting. No colors. No text boxes. No graphics. Make it easy for both humans and systems to read.

• How informational interviews and virtual coffee chats create momentum. They’re not just conversations — they’re relationship builders that open real doors.

What an episode. Dan brings clarity, strategy, and straight talk to a process that often feels confusing and frustrating.

To learn more about him and his coaching services, visit myjobsearchadvisor.com.

🎁 Bonus for listeners: If you sign up for one of Dan’s coaching packages by the end of March, 2026, and mention you heard him on “People in Transition”, you’ll receive 15% off.

And if you found this conversation valuable, please share this episode with your friends, colleagues, and anyone in your network who may be navigating a career move. A simple share could make a meaningful difference for someone in transition.

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Welcome to another episode of People in Transition. I’m your host, Bob Gerst.

Today’s conversation is especially relevant for anyone who appears successful on paper—but feels burned out, unsettled, or quietly questioning what’s next.

My guest is Mallory Byers. Mallory spent nearly a decade as a top-performing sales recruiter at Salesforce, where she helped highly driven professionals secure roles at the highest levels. She understood the hiring process inside and out—and by all external measures, she was thriving.

Yet along the way, Mallory began to notice something that fundamentally changed the direction of her work. Even the most capable and accomplished people weren’t stuck because they lacked strategy. They were stuck because deeper forces were at play: long-standing patterns, chronic nervous system overload, and a version of confidence built entirely on performance.

Today, Mallory is a Career Breakthrough and Empowerment Coach who supports high achievers navigating career transitions, burnout, or layoffs. Her work goes far beyond résumés and interviews. She helps clients strengthen the person behind the strategy—by rebuilding self-trust, regulating the nervous system, and untangling subconscious patterns such as people-pleasing, perfectionism, and over-functioning.

Through her signature one-on-one program, The Inner CEO, Mallory helps clients stop outsourcing their worth to job titles and start leading their careers with grounded authority. As she teaches, you are the CEO of your life and your career.

If you’re in a season of transition—or sensing that the next chapter of your career requires a different version of you—this conversation will resonate deeply.

Topics We Discuss in This Episode Include:

• How tying your identity to your job impacts your career—and how to navigate that shift
• What it means to operate from survival mode, and how people-pleasing reinforces it
• Where imposter syndrome shows up and how it quietly influences decisions
• The connection between perfectionism, overthinking, freezing action, scarcity thinking, and a dysregulated nervous system
• How the inner critic drives overwork during a job search—and how to stay grounded without letting others dictate your direction
• Why layoffs are such a disorienting experience, and why “staying in your lane” may not lead to fulfillment or success
• Why you don’t solve issues of the mind with the mind—how working with the body changes the job search process
• What it truly means to take ownership of your career and embody your “Inner CEO”

This is a powerful and insightful episode, and there is so much to take away from Mallory’s perspective.

To learn more about Mallory Byers, connect with her on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/coachmallorybyers/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/mallory-byers-coaching/

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This week on "People in Transition", I had the pleasure of speaking with Rachel Spekman, a career strategist, therapist, and founder of Made for More Coach. Rachel brings a rare and powerful blend of experience—having spent years in corporate leadership, entrepreneurship, and nonprofit work before navigating multiple career transitions of her own into mental health and career strategy. You can learn more about Rachel and her work on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelspekman.

Rachel helps high-performing professionals who feel stuck in high-paid but soul-sucking roles reconnect with their values, strengths, and sense of purpose—without ignoring the realities of money, market demand, and impact. As a trained therapist who deeply understands corporate pressure, burnout, and identity loss during transitions, she fills a critical gap between traditional career coaching and emotional well-being.

In our conversation, Rachel and I explored what really shows up during a job or career transition—mentally, emotionally, and physically—and how job seekers can move from being passive candidates to confident experts. This episode is packed with practical insights, mindset shifts, and strategies for anyone navigating change, questioning their next move, or trying to align impact, income, and fulfillment.

Some of the Topics We Discussed in This Episode

• Somatic symptoms job seekers experience and how to recognize and cope with the physical signals of career stress and misalignment
• Using your feelings toward community, contribution, and problem-solving as guidance in your job search
• Impact vs. income: understanding what you can do, what the market needs, and where tension naturally shows up
• Positioning yourself as the expert, not a passive candidate waiting to be chosen
• The role of confidence in your job search and practical ways to build and display it
• What an internal resume audit is and how it improves both job search results and long-term job satisfaction

Also, go to her website, where there is a free training to support your job search - https://www.rachelspekman.com/

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