| > 1. What should I do to get to a point where I feel confident enough to actually send in applications? (I have never really been any good at LeetCode-type problems and have no personal projects to speak of.) We can't answer this for you, it's ultimately a question about how you feel. You're never going to satisfy every interviewer so I recommend trying to treat rejections as impersonally as possible so you can focus on trying to get stuff done without being overburdened by them. > 2. Will the 4-year gap and my choppy CV be a major hindrance to my hirability? (My employement history consists of 2 years at a consulting firm and 3 short startup stints of <1 year each.) If yes, how do I minimise its debilitating effects? Some people are going to care and some people aren't. For the sake of your sanity I recommend just telling the truth and accepting that it's going to screw you sometimes. > 3. I feel like I have the best chance of getting hired in the kind of roles I used to work at and those are the ones I'm interested in as well but in doing so am I restricting myself to a limited number of positions? Should I be spending my time in expanding my knowledge areas? (Although I feel like I know too little of anything else to ever feel confident enough to apply for an actual paid position in those roles.) If what you do is reasonably widespread I think you're fine to just focus on that. > 4. Is my timing bad? Is the current climate not well suited for someone like me to get back into the industry (though I have a feeling that no climate would be conducive to someone in my position.) Maybe. Maybe not. Ultimately, you're never going to have perfect circumstances in life, so worrying about whether they're ideal right now is only something you need to do if you have meaningful alternatives. It sounds like you don't really have those, so why worry? I don't think you need to go to a bootcamp, I recommend just getting your CV out there and seeing how it shakes out. If you get no traction, you can always drill into things then and try and debug. |
This strategy works best if you’re engaging with humans rather than human resources.
Seek out the hiring manager directly, or even the management if it’s a startup.