raisedbynarcs123's journey

I am a 28-year-old male who has been in the same job since college for five years. In May 2025, I decided to shift my job search away from traditional white-collar roles and started looking for skilled trades or 'bridge' roles that combine some white-collar responsibilities with hands-on work. I've been using Google Gemini Notebook to aid my search, which suggested that most hiring in these fields would ramp up after Labor Day, as many workers would be on vacation. However, today is September 16, 2026, and I've experienced radio silence since mid-July, aside from one interview for a production scheduler position two weeks ago. I've faced several rejections along the way, but they have slowed down recently. Over the past two months, I reached out to some companies directly, but only received one response, which was an automated out-of-office message. I'm wondering if hiring will actually pick up in industries like manufacturing, construction, and energy, as I continue to seek opportunities.