u/ExpensiveShelter1061

Need some perspective because I think I’m getting in my head 😅

I interviewed for a Founder’s Office role at a startup. Had my R2 on Monday, and HR actually confirmed the very next day that I’d been shortlisted for the next round. She mentioned they were trying to get panel slots for the interview.

It’s now been 3 days and the round still hasn’t been scheduled. I followed up this morning and she said they still don’t have slots yet and asked for time till the first half of today (did not get back still).

The next interview is apparently with an SVP-level person, so logically I know senior leadership calendars can be messy. But I’m starting to get paranoid that maybe they’re losing interest / keeping me warm while evaluating others.

Has anyone experienced something similar where scheduling itself took time but the process still moved positively?

Recent tier-1 MBA graduate (2024 batch) with ~4 years of experience (1 year in ops, ~3 years pre-MBA in software engineering). Was laid off recently and have been actively job hunting for ~2 months.

So far, I’ve interviewed with ~9 companies:
• Reached multiple 2nd rounds
• 1–2 processes went up to 4–5 rounds
• No offers yet

Trying to understand:
• Is this timeline/pattern normal?
• How long does it typically take to convert at this stage?
• What should I focus on to break through (interviewing, networking, positioning, etc.)?
• Also, how do people manage mental health during this phase? The repeated near-misses + uncertainty are starting to take a toll.

Would really appreciate any perspectives.