Ask a Career Advisor: Is Rage Applying to Jobs a Good Idea?

The job market and employment space have been on a rollercoaster ride over the last few years. Employers and job seekers alike have examined work life with fresh eyes during and after the pandemic, coining viral terms like The Great Resignation, The Great Reshuffle, Quiet Quitting, Quiet Hiring, Quiet Firing – and lately – Rage Applying.

You may have even heard that rage applying is the new quiet quitting. But what is it, and will it help or hurt your career? We asked Lori Cole, Certified Career Coach and Advisor at iHire, to share her take.

What is rage applying for a job?

“Rage applying is when you are so unhappy, stressed out, and burnt out at your job that you apply to tons of openings in a short amount of time,” said Cole. “Essentially, you’re fueled by your high level of dissatisfaction and decide to take matters into your own hands – fast and furiously.”

Also known as “mass applying,” upset employees are firing off resumes for as many jobs as they can find because they’ve reached a breaking point – their workplace becomes unbearably toxic, they’re passed over for a promotion, their suggestions and ideas go unnoticed, or some other final straw.

Is rage applying the new quiet quitting?

Quiet quitting is when an employee scales their efforts back to the bare minimum. They stop going above and beyond at work and set tighter boundaries for themselves to avoid burnout and reduce stress.

“Rage applying and quiet quitting are two behaviors common to unhappy employees, but they’re drastically different,” said Cole. “You could think about rage applying as the next step after quiet quitting doesn’t cut it. You tried to ‘act your wage’ to maintain work-life balance, but still reached a breaking point anyway and mass applied to jobs out of frustration.”

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Is rage applying to jobs a good idea?

Now that you know what rage applying is, should you do it?

“While looking out for yourself and your career is never a bad thing, quickly applying to jobs in a state of anger likely won’t work in your favor,” advised Cole. “You need to be careful and methodical when completing applications, and this takes time. To get interviews, it’s important to customize your resume and cover letter and ensure you’re following application instructions correctly. If you rush, it’ll be evident to hiring managers.”

If your goal is to apply to as many jobs as possible in a short amount of time, you won’t be focused on the quality of your applications or if the jobs are actually a good fit for you. And if an employer calls to schedule an interview with you and you don’t remember applying to their job or what their company does, that’s not going to make a good first impression.

“The desire to take action is perfectly normal, and it’s likely very therapeutic to channel your energy somewhere,” continued Cole. “Instead of rage applying, consider simply searching for and saving jobs that interest you and returning to them later with a clear head. Or, work on updating your resume and cover letter but don’t hit ‘send’ just yet.”

Have more burning job search questions? Get expert advice from iHire Career Advisors in our Job Seeker Resource Center.