Sam DeMase - Author of Power Mood | The Career Coach With 800K Followers Says Hard Work Won't Save You

➡️ Join 321,000 people who read my free weekly newsletter: https://newsletter.scottdclary.com ➡️ Like The Podcast? Leave A Rating: https://ratethispodcast.com/successstory Sam DeMase is a career coach at ZipRecruiter and the author of \*Power Mood\*, whose direct, incisive approach to career advice has built her a following of more than 800,000 people. At ZipRecruiter, she draws on rich, real-time labor market insight to help professionals navigate an evolving job market with clarity and confidence. Her work challenges one of the most deeply ingrained beliefs in professional life: that hard work alone is enough to guarantee success. In this episode, Sam unpacks why effort by itself so often fails to translate into advancement, what truly drives visibility and career growth in today's workplace, and how to cultivate the confidence and strategic thinking needed to take ownership of your career trajectory. ➡️ Show Links https://www.instagram.com/apowermood/  https://www.linkedin.com/in/samdemase/  https://www.apowermood.com  ➡️ Podcast Sponsors Hubspot - https://hubspot.com/   Huel - https://huel.com/scott (Code: scott) NetSuite - https://netsuite.com/scottclary/  Framer - https://framer.com/design (Code: SuccessStory) LinkedIn Ads - https://linkedin.com/scottclary  Cohesity - https://www.cohesity.com/datacloud  Whatnot - https://www.whatnot.com/ Monarch - https://www.monarch.com/ (Code: success) Cash App - https://cash.app/ (Code: cashapp10) MyFitnessPal - https://podcasts.myfitnesspal.com (Code: SCOTT) Plaud - https://plaud.ai/success (Code: success) Odoo - https://www.odoo.com  ➡️ Talking Points 00:00 – Intro   04:12 – Why So Many People Hate Their Jobs   07:02 – The Career Ladder Is Dead   12:35 – Why Hiring Feels Broken   14:28 – How to Get Promoted   18:07 – Find an Advocate at Work   22:39 – Apply for Reach Jobs   24:17 – The Worst Career Advice   25:17 – When Your Company Undervalues You   28:38 – Sponsor Break   31:54 – Should You Stay, Quit, or Freelance?   34:03 – Is Quiet Quitting Ever Okay?   37:40 – When Companies “Catfish” You   39:42 – Why Everyone Should Try Entrepreneurship   40:50 – Turn a Bad Job Into an Opportunity   45:18 – Why You Don’t Know Your Strengths   49:10 – Passion vs. What You’re Good At   52:06 – How AI Is Changing Work   53:31 – Sponsor Break   56:48 – How to Land an AI-Era Job   59:22 – The Human Skills AI Can’t Replace   1:03:37 – The Future of Remote Work   1:06:25 – Build a Values-First Career   1:10:31 – How to Use AI in Job Applications   1:15:13 – Hiring in the New Job Market   1:19:24 – Is Job Hopping Worth It?   1:21:04 – Sam’s Best Career Advice