Testimonials

Sarah was invaluable in helping my son find employment in this new world of job seeking.

He was hugely successful for the first six years after college, but when the company changed hands, entire departments were let go, including my son’s.
He applied for hundreds of jobs over the next six months, but he wasn’t getting anywhere. He had no idea that hiring practices had totally changed over the last decade, so he was using outdated strategies that no longer work. His confidence plummeted.

My husband and I decided we needed to help our son out, and after asking around for recommendations, we chose Sarah and Career Compass Pro.
Sarah met him where he was and, in just a short time, unearthed strengths he didn’t even know he had. At the same time, they worked together to identify what he needed to adjust and improve. She immediately gave him hope and bolstered his confidence. (This alone was worth every penny we spent!)  She connected him immediately with groups, contacts, and mentors in his field of expertise in low key social environments and taught him how to leverage and build his professional network.

Together, they reworked his LinkedIn page (others had told him was just fine as it was) and added key words that caught the attention of the company that just hired him!  Without Sarah’s guidance, he never would have come up on their search. She worked with him on his interviewing skills and polished him to perfection!

As needed, Sarah continues to provide support as my son settles into his new job. For example, he asked for guidance on how to present his accomplishments and advice to company leadership, garnering him immense praise from the CEO.

Now he has tools he can use for a lifetime – and a great job!

Darsi S., Bainbridge Island

I’m so glad I checked in with Sarah when a company offered me $20,000 lower than my goal. She helped me develop a professional, data-driven counteroffer, and now I’m being paid the salary I’d hoped for!

“Selling” yourself and your skills is really challenging, especially at the beginning of your career. While I was in college, Sarah got me an internship, and advised me on how to introduce my ideas to my supervisor, who then brought me into high-level meetings to present my proposals. She also coached me on my presentations. It was great experience that most of my peers didn’t have.

I also really recommend doing occasional check ins with Sarah to update your career goals and strategies and narrative – and sometimes just to get feedback on how to respond to on-the-job challenges. Having someone local who understands who I am, and what my goals are has made all the difference in my career!

Kate M, Seattle

Sarah, thank you so much for the invaluable advice you have given to my kids over the past many years.  I don’t know where we would be without you. My daughter is mildly autistic, and it was a true project to help her understand how to succinctly answer a question and successfully navigate her first interview. The lead interviewer later told me how impressed he was with her poise and preparation!

As a parent, I can provide all the guidance and instruction in the world, but find it is often not heard or heeded.  Sarah was uniquely able to step in and listen, trouble shoot and gently help them find their way.

We have so many resources for our young adults, like resume writers, academic advisors, headhunters, and college counselors, but Sarah fit a unique need for our family – help we couldn’t find anywhere else.

When my young adults were “stuck”, unsure what their next steps should be or how to make those steps, she was there to guide them. When they began to find their way, she was there to teach them how to interview, how to focus their resume on the career path they were choosing and all the intricate details in between.  Never did she do it for them, she did it with them and they have skills moving forward that will last them a lifetime.

Sundance R., Bainbridge Island

After a change in leadership laid off much of my department, I didn’t expect to have much difficulty finding a new position. I had 8 years of experience in a relatively niche field and senior titles for my last two positions. However, I applied to over 500 jobs across a variety of platforms for 9 months, and only got a single phone screen for an industry outside my field. My confidence really began to plummet, and all the advice I had been receiving (including from other career counselors) I was already putting into practice.

I don’t think most people understand the massive shift in the job seeker’s landscape over the past 5 years; with Applicant Tracking Systems and AI-“enhanced” candidate matching, applying online means writing more for machines than humans. I also discovered that posting fake online job ads is a common practice to assemble talent pools and project an image of growth to the market. Sarah’s methods helped with both getting past the ATS as well as building a strategic networking library to connect and maintain professional relationships with real people.

Sarah also helped me identify additional strengths and capabilities and phrase them in a context where their value is instantly apparent. Reworking my LinkedIn to reflect the additional skills I built attracted the attention of a recruiter for a position more senior than I had ever held. I was quite intimidated at first, but Sarah coached me on how to proactively demonstrate value when the conversation wasn’t hitting my strengths. I succeeded in getting this job, and I’m really glad – the pay is great, the opportunities for growth are large, and I’m only in the office two days a week! I also appreciated the availability of follow-up sessions when I needed advice on how to manage relationships and business dealings at this more senior level. Sarah’s cross-sectional experience in multiple fields and organization types really provides insights that I don’t think one could get anywhere else.

Cameron S., Seattle

I had never done a formal job interview before and didn’t know what to expect or how to prepare, but Sarah got me ready. She worked with me to formulate my answers and then we practiced until we both felt I was ready.

Her coaching made all the difference for me. I nailed the interview and was even able to answer questions I hadn’t prepared for. The organization made me a job offer within days, and they even told me what a great job I did in the interview.

Emily R., Bainbridge Island

I spent nearly two years job searching after college, and during that time I used career counseling services from my university, a local nonprofit, LinkedIn, my network, and other internet programs. Sarah was the only one (including my university’s career center, annoyingly) who actually knew what it was like to be struggling to make the leap between college and a career. I’m very achievement-motivated and trying to spend hours a day job searching despite having nothing but shame and stress to motivate me was not working out.

My biggest struggle during my job search was self-motivation and time management, and Sarah was willing to push me and keep me accountable as we worked on improving my resume and STAR stories. Her focus on crafting narratives in my resume and telling stories in my interviews was also something that I feel is missing in a lot of other career counseling, and something that I discovered I really needed to work on.

Almost disappointingly (because I wanted to learn more from her) within a few weeks of starting to work with Sarah, I finally got a job! While I couldn’t have done it without my existing network, Sarah was instrumental in making sure I aced my application and interview. Her approach to interview prep is so comprehensive and detailed that I felt way more prepared than I ever had for previous interviews, and she even helped me draft my follow up emails and thank you emails once I was offered the position! Thank you Sarah!!!

–Anneke T., Portland OR