# The Career Whispers The Career Whispers is a tech career newsletter with specific, tactical career experimentation ideas for tech workers. Coach Erika shares uncommon tips and takes on job searching, career shifts, and getting to the next level of thinking and behavior. Page: Feed: --- ## [🤫 Whisper #25: Meta Superintelligence. Scale AI. Human Data.](https://thecareerwhispers.substack.com/p/whisper-25-meta-superintelligence) _2025-06-22 · Coach Erika Gemzer_ Things seem irrational in AI land with $100M job offers that people are actually turning down, $14B investments, and CEO grabbing. Is it a bubble? What does all of this mean? ## [2024 Year-end AMA](https://thecareerwhispers.substack.com/p/2024-year-end-ama) _2024-12-23 · Coach Erika Gemzer_ 2024 was another brutal tech job market, and 2025 is looking like more of the same. Check these questions from active job seekers and answers from Coach Erika. Plus, ask your own question! ## [Avoid the sunk cost fallacy and make a career pivot (even in the current tech job downturn)](https://thecareerwhispers.substack.com/p/avoid-the-sunk-cost-fallacy-and-make) _2024-11-25 · Coach Erika Gemzer_ It's never too late to pivot your career, but in this market you need a robust plan. And that plan probably shouldn't solely rely on bootcamps, certifications, or formal education. ## [A winning formula for your next performance review](https://thecareerwhispers.substack.com/p/a-winning-formula-for-your-next-performance) _2024-11-15 · Coach Erika Gemzer_ Start with the metric (that you drove up and to the right). Put numbers. Then, show how you did it (with artifacts, ideally) ## [✨BONUS POST✨ Staying Sane while Job Searching in the Tech Downturn](https://thecareerwhispers.substack.com/p/bonus-post-staying-sane-while-job) _2024-10-15 · Coach Erika Gemzer_ A FREE 30-minute Lightning Lesson taught by yours truly. How we got here, what the market looks like right now, and the top 5 candidate adaptations that are landing people in jobs despite brutal odds. ## [How to answer the failure question in interviews](https://thecareerwhispers.substack.com/p/how-to-answer-the-failure-question) _2024-09-29 · Coach Erika Gemzer_ The context is the failure. The context is the failure. The context is the failure. Adopt this new mantra and you're starting on the right foot. ## [Job Search Diaries No.8―Principal Product Manager (Consumer Media)](https://thecareerwhispers.substack.com/p/job-search-diaries-no8principal-product) _2024-08-16 · Coach Erika Gemzer_ Lessons learned after 5 final round interviews and 154 applications over 8+ months job searching in media and tech for senior roles. ## [Land a job faster by job searching in your Zone of Genius](https://thecareerwhispers.substack.com/p/land-a-job-faster-by-job-searching) _2024-08-12 · Coach Erika Gemzer_ The counterintuitive job search approach wherein you narrow your opportunities to a select few. More wood behind fewer arrows. Kill shots, not shots in the dark. ## [If I pivoted my career, how many years of experience should I say I have?](https://thecareerwhispers.substack.com/p/if-i-pivoted-my-career-how-many-years) _2024-07-21 · Coach Erika Gemzer_ Professional experience vs relevant experience, some general heuristics, and where to put the unrelated experience in your resume. ## [Hire AI-Powered Professionals (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/uy03kltCgDNy) _2024-07-21 · **Sponsored**_ Browse public gigs, message candidates, and run video interviews — free to start. ## [🤫 Whisper #24: Candor == Kindness](https://thecareerwhispers.substack.com/p/whisper-24-candor-kindness) _2024-07-12 · Coach Erika Gemzer_ Direct feedback is the love language of growth. Sparing someone the truth robs them of the ability to adapt. No parenting. No shielding. Just direct feedback.