I'm totally aligned in spirit and have a track record of starting project after project because no one else does. 

But I find that for most of the projects that I wish existed, you either need money or fame to get them started. I don't mean a bit of money for the rent but like $1m to incentivize downstream projects or the kind of fame that allows you to beat the cold start problem because it lets you motivate enough people to all try something new.

I'm putting my own projects on the backburner now to focus on applications that can put me in a position where I'm better able to fund them.

I agree with this.

It seems to me that people are spending a lot of time (as in months and months!) applying for extremely oversubscribed things that they hope will gain them experience and a track record. EA is getting bottlenecked by application evaluation.

The huge personal resource investment needed to make you look good and succeed on a really competitive resume, interview, application process etc - can probably be better spent on effective volunteering, assuming you're *actually* relatively good at the work. The counterfactual difference in world impact is huge - rather than being a resource investment you're a resource contributor. And it will also gain you experience and a track record.

On a related note re: CEEALAR, anyone who wants to do some fundraising for effective charities is welcome to come upskill, connect, and get productive at CEEALAR for the Effective Giving Organiser Retreat 6th-9th February 2026 at the EA Hotel, Blackpool, UK. This retreat is free, with all meals and accommodation included. Run by me, with appearances from One for the World and Giving What We Can. https://forms.gle/E4Kqp32TUnG4DcVa7 to sign up. Disclaimer: I paid CEEALAR for this event out of my pledge money because it's part of the work I'm doing to get effective giving volunteer fundraising back on the EA community map.

Lastly I want to agree that CEEALAR is amazingly cost-efficient and impactful, and the fact that they have to go through this song and dance every single year it seems (thereby distracting their organisers from cracking on with the object-level work of training and incubating EAs and EA organisations) is clearly a major red flag about the short-termist nature of EA's grantmaking systems for anyone looking to set up physical EA infrastructure in future. I would like CEEALAR to be able to stop applying and get to work.

 It's great to hear that being on the front foot and reaching out to people with specific offers has worked for you.

I actually want to push back on your advice for many readers here. I think for many people who aren't getting jobs, the reason is not because the jobs are too competitive, but that they're not meeting the bar for that role. This seems more common for EAs with little professional experience, as many employers want applicants who have already been trained. In AI Safety, it also seems like for some parts of the problem, an exceptional level of talent or skill is needed to meaningfully contribute. 

In addition to applying for more jobs or reaching out to people directly, I'd also recommend:

1. broadening your search to a wider array of roles.
2. apply to impactful work that is not on the 80k job board. most impactful jobs arent run at orgs where most people are ea.
3. get a few years of training under your belt and come back to these jobs, with I think a much higher chance of success. (see my post here)

I realise short timelines makes this all much harder, but I do think many people early in their career do their best work in the environment of an organisation, team, manager, etc.

Great post, strongly agree. Here are 3 posts I share with people who are in a similar position to what you describe, but yours will be the 4th one from now on!

How Unofficial Work Gets You Hired: Building Your Surface Area for Serendipity
There is No EA Sorting Hat
Why experienced professionals fail to land high-impact roles (FBB #5)
 

I second the point about the EA Hotel, its a great place to get work done if you don't have a financial runway! (Though people should pay for at least part of their stay unless they absoluately can't)

Solid advice, concisely put! 
I think you may have chosen this title for emphasis, but I would say that applying for jobs can still work and I wouldn't recommend people to just stop completely, but I agree it's longer timelines and much lower chances. If I were looking for a job now, I think I would spend 10% applying for jobs and all the rest of the time increasing my surface area for serendipity and doing directly what you're talking about. 

Thank you for this. Career transitioner here, spent weeks applying to roles I'm marginally qualified for instead of working on what I'm actually positioned to do: AI governance consulting for EU startups navigating the AI Act.

Your point about "immediate, direct action" hit hard. I have a mentor meeting in 2 days for this venture. Going to stop the application cycle and focus there.

Would love to hear more about your journey if you're open to connecting.