Why Bluffing Confidence May Be Key to Your Job Search

Why Bluffing Confidence May Be Key to Yur Job Search Sarah Schell, a data scientist, and Alex Hsu, a software engineer, are well aware of the challenges that come with being a women in tech. Working in a male-dominated field, they both understand that in some environments, theyll have to work extra hard to make aya their voices are heard. Thats why, understandably, Schell and Hsu werent sure of what to anticipate when they began working at GameChanger, a sports tech company that builds apps for youth teams and their communities.I was worried it would be a confluence of bros, Schell admits, while Hsu says she worried it would be a very classic stereotypical bro-type culture. But both have found the opposite to be true. Whereas many women in male-dominated industries struggle to make their voices heard, Schell and Hsu have felt empowered since day one.Schell, who began working in a brand new position managing and analyzing data at GameChanger about five months ago, says shes had a lot of latitude in defining what my role is. In contrast to her last work environment, which she describes as more academic and hierarchical, Schell has found GameChanger to be a distributions-mix with a bunch of smart people trying to figure things out. Its less of a credential-based environment. In fact, she came to GameChanger in part because she was looking for a collaborative workplace culture where thered be room for growth.GameChanger is Hiring Browse Opportunities.Like Schell, Hsu who works on programming specific features for GameChangers iOS and Android apps says that she loves the companys collaborative culture and that the company has cross-functional teams. A lot of companies say that they do, but we actually execute it really well, Hsu explains. Ill be in meetings with people from other departments where were talking about our user base, and I get to have a lot of input into our features, and I can push back if I think something isnt technically feasible.Thats something that really attracted me to GameChanger, Hsu adds. You get a lot of say in what youre building day-to-day. You get to be involved in the decision-making process.She also notes that you dont have to know anything about sports to work at the company. We joke that the only sport one of our main engineers is knowledgeable about is Quidditch. We have a lot of cool tech challenges whether or not you like sports. Every Friday at 5 p.m., we have what we call demo day. People are encouraged to present their work to the company, which fosters transparency and people are proud of what theyre working on.In addition to getting a say in some key decisions, all new employees are paired with a buddy who helps with the onboarding process. While you might normally worry about asking too many questions when youre a newbie at work, GameChangers buddy system is designed to assuage those very concerns. Beyond feeling supported by their peers, Schell and Hsu describe this kind of welcoming culture throug hout the very top levels of leadership. I think the leadership here is very self-aware about what its like to be a woman in tech, says Schell. Ive been really impressed with our CEO he speaks really candidly about ansicht issues and wants to do it right.She and Hsu have some sage advice for women job seekers try not to let any insecurities get the best of you, particularly if youre job searching in a male-dominated industry. If I see people who are objectively less qualified than I am, and theyre doing things that Im not, those sort of disparities are motivating to me. I bluff confidence at times, and its paid off for me.Hsu agrees that you should force yourself to apply for jobs that interest you even if you dont feel 100% qualified. The worst thing that can happen is you dont get an interview, she says. I think its scary to put yourself out there, but it ends up being really worth it.If you want to join Schell and Hsu and their amazing colleagues at GameChanger, this is your chanc ethere are plenty of job openings at the company, and theyre looking to bring on more women like you--Fairygodboss is proud to partner with GameChanger. Find a job there today