For many recent college graduates, the difference between mindlessly applying for hundreds of job listings and spiraling within the endless chasm of the void is marginal at best. Fortunately, there are several key distinctions to help young job-seekers distinguish between the two scenarios:

1. You are surrounded by perpetual darkness, stumbling through the primordial ether between the fourth and fifth dimensions.
That’s not a job application, that’s the void!

2. You’re currently filling out a form for all the work experiences that you’ve already described in both your résumé and cover letter.
Although it might feel like you’re stuck in a realm where space and time have ceased to exist, that’s just another job application!

3. The very fibers of your soul are slowly being ripped apart by unholy forces that transcend the laws of physics.
Since the soul-destroying forces associated with job hunting still obey the laws of physics, it looks like you’ve found yourself within the Realm of Nothingness!

4. You’ve checked your email fifteen times today, and not a single employer has gotten back to you despite it being two months since you applied to their listings.
Close, but no cigar. You’re still in the third dimension!

5. The sweet singsong echoing out of the Black Gate is gently calling to you from beyond the fringes.
Watch out, you’re in the void!

6. Despite your 3.5 GPA from a top public school, internships, and standout extra-curricular activities, you still feel under-qualified for literally every posting on Indeed.
Certainly hopeless, but not quite as hopeless as being lost in the swirling vat of black chaos that is the Bottomless Pit of Ceaseless Torment!

7. You are caught in the cold embrace of Xggthraquru, the Endless God Who Lurks Beneath the Surface.
Could go either way.