{"id":6636,"date":"2026-08-12T09:07:40","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T09:07:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=6636"},"modified":"2026-08-12T09:07:40","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T09:07:40","slug":"harriette-cole-how-do-i-encourage-my-son-after-400-job-rejections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=6636","title":{"rendered":"Harriette Cole: How do I encourage my son after 400 job rejections?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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DEAR HARRIETTE<\/strong>: My son is having a difficult time finding a job after graduating with his computer science degree. He graduated last May and still hasn\u2019t been able to land a job after applying to more than 400 job postings.<\/p>\n

Read more Miss Manners: On every birthday, these friends demand a payout<\/a><\/p>\n

He has been beside himself with anxiety, stress and embarrassment. Not being able to find a job has heavily affected his mental health, and it\u2019s hard to see my son this way.<\/p>\n

He was such a motivated student throughout college and worked incredibly hard to earn his degree. He completed internships, participated in coding projects and even spent months preparing for technical interviews because he thought those things would help him stand out.<\/p>\n

Despite all his hard work, he either gets rejection emails or never hears back from employers. I keep reminding him that the job market is difficult right now, but I can tell those words aren\u2019t enough anymore. He worries the longer he\u2019s unemployed, the less likely companies will be to hire him.<\/p>\n

As his mother, I feel helpless because I want to encourage him, but I don\u2019t know what else to say or do. I hate watching him lose confidence in himself after everything he has accomplished.<\/p>\n

How can I help my son through this difficult time?<\/p>\n

\u2014 Saving My Son<\/em><\/p>\n

DEAR SAVING MY SON<\/strong>: I have two ideas for you. Have him go to a career center where he can present his pitch for a job to get their feedback. Ask them to review his r\u00e9sum\u00e9 and cover letter to see whether they can recommend edits to make them stronger.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

Also, if he is applying for jobs through online job sites that are completely generic, he should remember that thousands of people are competing with him. It\u2019s time to turn to businesses where he might be able to make a personal contact \u2014 either by personally taking his application or otherwise finding someone to deliver his materials to in person.<\/p>\n

He may want to consider volunteering at a local nonprofit that needs support. He could create an internship for himself where he uses his skills, which shows that he has been working while unemployed. He would legitimately be doing a job as close as he can to his interests as he continues to search. This should help boost his confidence.<\/p>\n

Read more Dear Abby: The bride wants a simple wedding but the mothers have hijacked the plans<\/a><\/p>\n

DEAR HARRIETTE<\/strong>: I am coming out of a few months of depression that feels more traumatizing now than it did in the moment.<\/p>\n

Now that I have an opportunity to look back, I realize how much stress I was enduring. Honestly, I\u2019m proud of myself for making it through such trying times.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

As I\u2019m working through the aftermath, I find it difficult to release the internal tension that the situation caused. I\u2019m still having panic attacks, although they are getting less frequent. In a way, my body feels like it\u2019s still processing past experiences, even if my mind is in the present.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m considering starting therapy again; however, therapy is usually more than mental help for me \u2014 it\u2019s also a physical relief. I was thinking about picking up a sport as well as a way of working through the physical tension.<\/p>\n

What activities would you recommend for depression recovery?<\/p>\n

\u2014 Recovery<\/em><\/p>\n

DEAR RECOVERY:<\/strong> I am not a therapist, so I strongly recommend you ask yours for specific ideas. I can say that clean eating, drinking lots of water and moving your body are important to overall mental health. The simple act of walking is excellent for your body and mind.<\/p>\n

Harriette Cole is a lifestylist and founder of DREAMLEAPERS, an initiative to help people access and activate their dreams. You can send questions to askharriette@harriettecole.com or c\/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.<\/em><\/p>\n

Read more 9 new Bay Area ice cream destinations for cooling down while it\u2019s hot out<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

He was such a good student, and now he’s so stressed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5384,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6636","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advice"],"yoast_head":"\nHarriette Cole: How do I encourage my son after 400 job rejections? - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=6636\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Harriette Cole: How do I encourage my son after 400 job rejections? - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"He was such a good student, and now he's so stressed.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=6636\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-12T09:07:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6636#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6636\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"Harriette Cole: How do I encourage my son after 400 job rejections?\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-12T09:07:40+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6636\"},\"wordCount\":687,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6636#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/934295b22278f63640af5eb98e8b862d.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Advice\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6636#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6636\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6636\",\"name\":\"Harriette Cole: How do I encourage my son after 400 job rejections? 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