Orientation: the chapter that turns shipping into hired

1. The promise

You'll know what this chapter sets out to do, what it doesn't cover, how long the assignment really takes, and which units are free versus paid. By the end of this short unit, you can calendar the work honestly.

2. The mental model

A hiring pipeline is the ordered set of stages a candidate passes through, from sending a resume to signing an offer. A funnel is the same pipeline viewed as a shape that narrows at each stage. Both words mean the same thing in this chapter.

Nothing in this chapter makes you a better engineer. All of it makes you a hired engineer. That's the trade. The capstone from Ch 29 is the artefact you talk about at every interview from here on.

3. You do it, with me

Open the Click to Career platform in your browser and find the Ch 30 index page.

(SCREENSHOT: the Ch 30 index page on the Click to Career platform — full window — the orientation unit highlighted, paid units shown with a lock icon)

This unit is the free preview. Every other unit in the chapter is paid. The chapter-end assignment is paid and gated.

Now open a spreadsheet tool you actually use. Google Sheets, Excel, or Numbers all work. Create a new sheet called "Job hunt 2026". You'll fill it in during 30.16. For now, just create the file.

(SCREENSHOT: a sample tracked-funnel spreadsheet with 50 rows, partially filled — full window — column headers visible: company, role, applied date, stage, outcome, notes)

Here's what the chapter delivers:

• A resume that survives a 30-second recruiter scan.
• A GitHub profile that says "competent" before the reviewer reads a word.
• A LinkedIn presence that does the minimum without the cringe.
• The seven coding-question shapes a junior is expected to handle.
• STAR scripts for behavioural rounds that don't sound rehearsed.
• A 90-second answer to "tell me about yourself".
• A 60-second answer to "why this company".
• Light system design for paste-bin-shaped problems.
• A mock-interview habit you can actually keep.
• The four moves of a first-job negotiation.
• A tracked funnel of 50 applications with real metrics.

Here's what the chapter doesn't deliver:

• Deep system design at scale. That lives in the standalone Question to Offer course (A$299), aimed at L4 and above.
• Senior-track salary negotiation.
• Manager-track interviews.

The honest time budget: about 4.5 hours of reading, 8 hours of active practice, and 4 calendar weeks for the assignment running in the background.

How to use the chapter: read 30.1 through 30.6 once before starting applications. Keep 30.7 through 30.13 open while interviewing. Re-read 30.14 through 30.16 weekly during the sprint.

One honest paragraph on the market. The junior market in 2026 is harder than it was in 2021. The pipeline still exists. Patience and volume both matter. This unit gets re-validated before each republication.

4. What you should be seeing

Three things in your head:

1. A resume, a GitHub, and a LinkedIn are the keys to the top of the funnel.
2. The middle of the funnel is coding rounds, behavioural rounds, and one light system-design round.
3. The bottom of the funnel is negotiation, then an offer.

If you can list those three groups, you're ready for 30.1.

5. Common stumbles

• You treat this chapter as a one-evening read. The assignment is a four-week project. Open your calendar before you start applying.
• You expect to be job-ready by the end of week one. Time, volume, and feedback are the inputs. The chapter sequences them.

6. You should know