This review was originally published on kirkusreviews.com.
An earnest but ultimately superficial manual for the job-search process.
Alife coach offers a Christian-centered guide to landing a dream job.
Yang, a self-described “finance guru for Millennials,” has created a guidebook for modern jobseekers. She begins by cataloging her own professional experiences, recalling multiple instances in which she applied for 50 jobs in a single day and received job offers in five days. She shares her unusual professional trajectory, which included working at Domino’s Pizza, doing foot-fetish modeling, bookkeeping, and starting her own financial services business. These experiences all inform her job-seeking philosophy, and she offers many tips here. For example, Yang states that, “Personal branding makes up 50% of your success in landing a job quickly,” and recommends using one’s full name professionally to improve Google search results and “control the narrative” of one’s story. She urges jobseekers to get professional headshots for social media; to employ a graphic designer to create a color palette and typeface for business cards, letterhead, and more; and to choose a “stylish” Zoom background for maximum impact. In addition, the book encourages readers to claim a domain name, create a website, and establish an email address with a custom signature. Blogging, vlogging, and writing books are highlighted as other ways to further elevate one’s brand. In addition, Yang provides a step-by-step overview of how to achieve “All-Star” status on LinkedIn and recommends a company for public-speaking instruction. Other tips for career advancement include developing new skills, embracing feedback, and always going the extra mile at work. Throughout, Yang infuses her advice with Christian theology: “It is in serving others that God provides us unbelievable opportunities.”
Yang’s title doesn’t allude to the book’s heavy religious influences, which may surprise secular jobseekers. Some of the author’s advice is useful, as when she insightfully notes that “Courage feels terrible” and goes on to explain that “Courage is the act of committing yourself to doing it anyway, despite the fear.” However, the book is hampered by several flaws. Some lines, for example, feel clichéd, such as “We can learn and do anything we set our minds to,” and a few chapter titles, such as “Better Managing Your Time for Increased Productivity” and “Doubling Your Productivity by Increasing Typing Speed” feel unnecessarily wordy. The utility of some tips, such as “Whatever you do, be fabulous doing it,” is questionable, and others seem counterproductive, as when she advises readers to submit job applications en masse, but “Don’t bother researching any of the companies. Just apply.” The book also shames sex workers, declaring at one point that “It’s disgusting for a woman” to make a living on OnlyFans. Other lines are puzzling, as when she discounts why a famous person might find it easier to get a job than someone unknown: “Think of all the people who are incredibly famous and well respected in their industry….Every company wants to snatch this person up before someone else. If it’s possible for famous people, why isn’t it possible for you?”
An earnest but ultimately superficial manual for the job-search process.
Reviewed by Tomi Alo