Ghosting during the job search: it's the biggest pain point - and major shame trigger - for my job-seeking clients. As much as we can say, "don't take it personally, it happens to everyone," being on the receiving end HURTS. (I've been there, too!)

According to exclusive reporting by Hope King at Axios, 52% of U.S. job seekers were ghosted in the past year, and it happened at every stage after contact was made (24% after a screening call, 23% after an interview with the hiring manager, 12% after doing an assignment, and 12% after the final interview) - not to mention the *extremely* common radio silence after applying.

Ghosting happens, as King reports, because of:

- Sloppiness
- Avoidance of difficult conversations
- Stalling (ya know, "just in case"...)
- AND, a biggie that most people discount: the job doesn't even exist!

Yup, "ghost jobs" are *very* real: 70% of employers on the hiring platform Greenhouse had listed a ghost job, and about 20% of posted roles are ghost jobs! Not cool.

All to say: if you're being ghosted in the job search, you're not alone and it really IS NOT about you. Carry on and network steadily, which helps you find the REAL jobs.

But, more importantly, let's all push for treating humans with dignity at every step of the job search process. It's the least employers can do.