…So you’ve decided it’s time for something new. Congrats! (Seriously, usually this is one of the hardest parts to come to terms with.)
Now comes the tricky part: finding that something new while still showing up, doing your job well, and handling *things* professionally until you’re ready to share the big news.
We promise it’s 100% possible to conduct a job search that is respectful, protects your reputation, your references, and your employer who’s still counting on you.
But you need to approach this carefully. Here’s where we’d suggest you start.
Keep It Off the Company Clock (and your work laptop)
This one sounds obvious, but it’s the mistake we see most often. (Plus, it’s not exactly fair to the employer who’s still signing your paycheck.)
Your work laptop, work email, and work hours belong to your employer. Which means you should keep them for work, and keep your search on your own time and your own devices.
A few ground rules to live by…
- Use only your personal phone and laptop. For everything. Applications, emails, resume edits, all of it.
- Use a personal email address. But make sure it’s a professional one… No offense to anyone still rocking a college-era email, but it’s time.
- Don’t print your resume at work. The shared printer has outed more job seekers than you’d think.
- Search before work, after work, or on your lunch break. Off-site, if you can.
You don’t have to sneak around. Just make sure your current employer still gets the full effort they’re paying for while you plan your next move.
Update Your LinkedIn Quietly
Your LinkedIn profile does matter in your job search, but a sudden overhaul can raise eyebrows if your boss (or that one nosy coworker) is connected to you.
Here’s how to freshen things up without announcing anything:
- Skip the green #OpenToWork banner. Instead, LinkedIn lets you signal you’re open to new roles to recruiters only. (LinkedIn says it tries to hide this from recruiters at your current company, but it can’t guarantee it, so use it cautiously with that in mind.)
- Turn off profile update notifications before you start editing, so your network doesn’t get pinged every time you change your headline.
- Make gradual updates. A refreshed headline this week, a few new accomplishments next week. Small changes look like normal profile maintenance.
- Keep engaging like you normally would. Liking posts and commenting is fine. Suddenly connecting with every recruiter in Indianapolis in one afternoon? Maybe space that out a bit.
The “Interview at 2pm on a Tuesday” Problem
Trying to schedule interviews while working is where searching while employed gets the most real. Typically interviews happen during business hours, and you can only have so many “dentist appointments” before people start wondering about your teeth.
Here’s what we’d actually recommend instead:
- Ask for early or late slots. An 8am or 4:30pm interview is a totally reasonable request. Most employers understand you have a job.
- Use your lunch break for phone screens. Take the call from your car, not the break room.
- Batch your interviews. If you have a few in the pipeline, try to stack them on the same day and take one personal day instead of three random long lunches.
- Use PTO without over-explaining. “I have a personal appointment” is a valid, complete sentence.
- Don’t change your outfit mid-day. Showing up in a suit when you’re usually a jeans person is a dead giveaway. Pack a blazer in the car if you need to.
And a little encouragement: a good employer will respect that you’re being thoughtful about your current job. (If a company acts annoyed that you can’t drop everything for an interview, it might be worth walking away.)
Getting References Without Tipping Off Your Boss
Nobody expects you to list your current manager as a reference while you’re still working for them. Employers already know how this works.
Instead, lean on:
- Former managers from previous jobs
- Former coworkers who’ve since moved on
- Clients, vendors, or colleagues from other departments you trust completely
When an employer asks for references, it’s fine to say: “I’d prefer you not contact my current employer until we’re at the offer stage.” That’s a completely normal, professional request to make during the interview process.
One more thing to make your life easier: Give your references a little heads-up before you share their info, and ask them to keep it between you. No one really likes a surprise call, and the fewer people who know, the better.
How a Recruiter Keeps Your Search Confidential
Here’s something a lot of people don’t realize: working with a recruiter is one of the most discreet ways to job search.
When you apply on your own, your resume can end up in a lot of places you can’t control but when you work with a recruiter, you have someone managing all that for you.
A good recruiter will typically:
- Ask before your resume goes anywhere. You’ll know beforehand exactly which companies are seeing your information.
- Share the job details first. You can decide if a role is worth exploring before your name is ever attached to it.
- Check where you’ve already applied. So you don’t accidentally end up in the same company’s inbox twice. (It happens more often than you think… and if you’re having a hard time keeping track, we made this Job Search Tracker just for that reason!)
- Work around your schedule. Recruiters are used to candidates who can only talk at 7am or during a lunch break.
- Do the searching for you. Which matters a lot when you only have a few spare hours a week.
At That’s Good HR, a big part of what we do is helping people who are already employed, but ready for something new. We get that you can’t drop everything, and you also don’t want the whole office to know.
That’s exactly the kind of job search we’re built for.
What Not to Do on Your Way Out
These are the mistakes that can cost you a reference, a reputation, or even the job you still have so pay attention…
- Don’t check out early. Until you’ve signed an offer, your current job is still your job. Coasting gets noticed, and Indianapolis is a smaller professional world than you’d think.
- Don’t tell coworkers. Even the ones you trust. Secrets travel fast in an office, and you definitely want your boss to hear it from you.
- Don’t vent online. A frustrated post about your job, even a vague one, is easy to connect back to you.
- Don’t resign until the offer is official. A verbal “we’d love to have you” is not an offer. Wait for it in actual writing, with a concrete start date, and a cleared background check.
- Think about a counteroffer before you get one. If your current employer offers more money to stay, will that actually fix why you’re leaving? Decide now, while you’re thinking clearly. (We break this down in our post here: The Counteroffer.)
When the time does come, leave the same way you’d want to be remembered. A thoughtful resignation and a solid handoff go a long way. More on that in this post: The Dreaded Resignation.
Ready for What’s Next?
(Quietly… of course!)
You don’t have to choose between doing a great job where you are currently employed and finding something better. You just need a smart plan and the right people in your corner. (That’s us!)
At That’s Good HR, we’ve spent more than 25 years connecting Indianapolis professionals with Customer Service, Admin, HR, and Accounting & Finance roles, and we know how to keep a search confidential.
Browse our open jobs or submit your resume, and let’s talk about what’s next. We’ll handle it with discretion + care.
