Want personalized career + job search support? Get an exclusive 1:1 strategy session when you
become a founding member of my newsletter (limited-time offer) 👉🏼 kkarenism.com/substack

Brenda Mao recently landed a mid-level promotion as an Alumni Engagement Officer at the University of British Columbia 🎉

To help and inspire fellow job seekers to build a career walking deck, she has shared her personal experience (in her own words) below:

When a mid-level role opened up on my team, I knew it would be very competitive as these opportunities don’t come around often. I wanted to make sure I stood out—not just as someone familiar with the organization, but as someone prepared, intentional, and ready to take the next step.

I had come across Karen’s career walking deck resources a few months earlier, and decided this was the perfect moment to build one for myself. During the interview, I pulled out printed copies out of my folder, and it completely threw the interviewers off (in the best way possible).

I received incredible feedback and was offered the role shortly after!

The career walking deck helped me guide the conversation from the very beginning, especially with the classic “tell me about yourself” question, which can feel awkward and distant. Having the deck gave me a clear, structured way to present my experience, strengths, and vision for the role. I even referred to it throughout the interview, like when answering “how would you measure success in this role?” using my 30-60-90 day plan.

Beyond being a powerful interview tool, the process of creating the deck was just as valuable. It pushed me to reflect deeply on my career journey, practice my answers, and build clarity around my goals. I felt more confident, less scattered, and genuinely excited to share my story.

I highly recommend the career walking deck to any job seeker. Printing it out and bringing it to the interview makes a strong and lasting impression. I remember reading a post from Karen that said we retain only about 10% of what we hear, but that jumps to 65% when paired with a visual.

A career walking deck not only helps you communicate more effectively, but it helps you be remembered!

Thanks for reading!

I hope Brenda’s personal story and experience with career walking decks has inspired you to build your own. Please get started here where I share examples, templates, and resources.

You can also find hundreds of daily tips on my LinkedIn (DM me if you have any questions).

Best of luck!