How-to
Why is your resume not getting interviews?
A silent job search almost always has one of five causes, and they are checkable in order: your resume does not parse, it does not match the JD, it does not show evidence, it is not tailored, or your volume expectations are off. Run the diagnostic top to bottom.
Step 1
Rule out the parse problem
Copy-paste your resume out of the PDF into a plain text editor. If sections scramble or contact info vanishes, the ATS sees the same mess. Fix layout before anything else.
Step 2
Check keyword overlap with a real JD
Compare a posting’s recurring nouns and verbs against your resume. Under roughly half overlap, you read as "not relevant" to both the ranking algorithm and the skimming recruiter.
Step 3
Check evidence density
Count the bullets that contain a number — team size, users, dollars, time, percentage. Fewer than half means your resume makes claims without proof.
Step 4
Check whether you are tailoring
If you cannot point to what you changed for a specific application, you are sending a generic resume — and generic loses to targeted at any volume.
Step 5
Check the funnel math
Single-digit response rates are normal; competitive fields run 1 interview per 30–50 applications. Twenty silent applications is thin evidence; a hundred means revisit steps 1–4.