Walking to dinner last night, my right slipper strap snapped.

Right there on the sidewalk.

Had two choices: hobble back home or walk the remaining four blocks with one shoe on, one shoe off.

I kept walking.

Barefoot on one side, properly shod on the other.

Got some weird looks. But I made it to dinner on time.

Sitting there later, it hit me how this mirrors what I see with UX job searches.

Most people treat their career like my broken slipper situation.

Something breaks in their approach—maybe they're not getting responses to applications, or their portfolio isn't landing interviews.

Instead of adapting and moving forward, they hobble back to safety.

Back to the same job boards.

Back to tweaking their resume for the 47th time.

Back to waiting for "perfect" conditions.

Career Creators do something different.

When the standard approach breaks, they don't retreat.

They adapt.

They build relationships directly with hiring managers.

They create their own path to the table.

Sure, it might look unconventional to others.

Just like walking barefoot down a city street.

But they get where they're going.

While others are still at home, fixing their broken slipper.

The broken slipper wasn't the real problem.

The real problem would have been letting it stop me from getting to dinner.

Same with your career.

The broken application process isn't your real problem.

The real problem is letting it stop you from getting to your dream job.

If you're ready to create your own path instead of fixing broken systems, Career Creators opens again later this month.

12 weeks of building direct relationships with decision-makers at your target companies.

No hobbling. No retreating.

Just a clear path forward.

Reply "Path" if you want early details.

Joseph

P.S. I did eventually get proper shoes. But dinner was excellent, and I arrived exactly when I planned to. Sometimes the unconventional route is the most reliable one.