summer recruiting season 2026

the past half year of my life has felt like a blur. wake up at 8am, go work at my internship until 5pm. after work, doomscroll ASU frat leader mogging clavicular for an hour (or few). then, start job hunting. i’ve applied for 300+ job posting with little success. i’ve started eating leetcode for breakfast, lunch and dinner. i’ve developed an addiction to checking my emails. i’ve stopped going to the gym consistently. i’ve started to find myself up at 3am just staring at my monitor. the blue light is the only thing keeping me awake while i rewrite my resume again and again. the months started passing by me, my linkedin feed filled my other people landing FAANG+ companies, no prospects.

finally i’ve had a stroke of luck earlier this year. dream companies of mine, like Coinbase, Stripe and HubSpot reached out for interviews. i remember getting the fattest dopamine hits seeing those names in my inbox. things were starting to look up.

for a second, i felt like where i was supposed to be. maybe the past few month’s prep was worth it. however, one after another, all the processes fell through. failed an interview, head counted after the final interview, head counted before i could even schedule the final interview. specifically, right after failing Coinbase, i cried like a little bitch LOL.

at that point, it wasn’t just about the job. it was the realization that i’d traded my health, sleep and sanity for a “maybe” that turned into a “no”. i had already projected myself into the job before even landing an offer, i can’t lie i wanted to go to SF so bad for Coinbase. in my head, i already saw myself at seaside bakery, sipping strawberry matcha latte, laufey in my wired earbuds, and hitting the geek bar.

but when i really think about it, this was still so much better than last year. i’m in a position i would’ve killed for last year, interning at Shopify. i’ve met so many incredible people through this grind. i’ve built a network of people who get the struggle, and understand the specific flavour of brain rot that comes with 3am leetcode sessions, and who remind me i’m not just a walking resume.

it’s so easy to get caught up for the “next big thing” and forget your worth, but PLEASE remind yourself you are more than an application status.

that being said, i’m going to keep building, but differently this time. i’m not building out of desperation anymore, i’m building because i actually give a damn about the systems i’m creating. i’m taking my past learnings and looking ahead. i’m choosing to prioritize my health because the gym and sleep schedule are non-negotiable.

the strawberry matcha in SF is still the destination, but i’m actually going to be in one piece when i get there. i’m putting back on my wired earbuds, turning on Esdeekid, and will keep it pushing.

Originally posted on LinkedIn.