Elliott Golden

I'm approaching my fifteenth year in strategic product management, and I had reached a point where I felt I was languishing in my job. I wasn't growing, I wasn't happy, and I knew I needed something different. My job search was scattered — I'd have bursts of inspiration where I'd apply to a bunch of things and get a decent hit rate, but I kept hitting walls in behavioral rounds.

The hard coaching was exactly what I needed. My first "tell me about yourself" recording was basically ripped apart — and rightfully so. Another pivotal moment was the clarity session where I allocated fictitious dollars toward different aspects of what I wanted in a job. I had never really thought about what I was looking for — I was just looking for something new. That exercise helped me focus.

I was a finalist seven times before I landed my role at Unite Us as a Group Product Manager. Each time, I had to reframe the rejection — if I did my best and they couldn't see my value, they made the best choice for them. Pretty much every aspect of landing this job was crafted by my program experience.

The program didn't do the work for me — it enabled me to be the best candidate I could be. The sweat equity is real, but the fact that I had to fight so hard to get here makes me value this opportunity even more.