The job search has become increasingly discouraging and depressing as of late. I have personally had to expand my search beyond PR or Marketing jobs related to my field of interest to just any old job that will pay the bills. The well is so dry.
My current potential prospects are the Disney Store and The North Face. Retails stores that are currently fast approaching grand openings at my local mall.
It's hard to hold a Bachelor's degree from a private college in New England at age 22 and not feel like I'm regressing by working at a retail store. I haven't worked retail since I was in high school. I recommend to anyone that is about to do what I'm about to do that there is something you need to keep in mind - your desired career path.
So I got a degree in Public Relations and I'm about to work at a retail shop in a mall. How can I reach my goal of obtaining a professional PR related job? For one, I have to keep searching and applying. And in my case, I still need experience. I need an edge that will push me ahead. I need experience at a firm. How do I do this?
My internship that I was sure was a "sure thing" was not. Quite deflating. I was banking on it as my crucial experience and step-up into the industry. My next move will be to see if I can shadow someone in the industry. Next best thing to actually interning...I hope.
In my job search I have found job placement firms. For those of you who are fresh to the game and unfamiliar, these firms (if they like you) take you on as an employee and keep you posted when a temporary job pops up within your qualifications. If you are hired for the position you are paid through the job placement firm. Your and their hope is that you find full-time employment through them.
Right now, I am "employed" by two job placement firms - Hollister Inc. and Beacon Hill Staffing. Don't feel bad if you work through two or more firms. When you fill out an application at a staffing agency there is a section asking if you are searching through any other firms.
I have noticed something very interesting that both job placement firms share - all of the people I saw coming in for interviews were women. Young women, older women, different ethnicities. But all women. What does this mean? Are more women losing their jobs than men? Are men searching for jobs through other means? Is it easier for a man to find another job or their first job? The people that work at the firms are equally men and women from what I saw. Hollister is located only in Boston, while Beacon Hill is located around the country.
If I had to guess why I have only seen women seeking employment through job placement firms, I have two conclusions:
1. Women tend to work jobs that are more on the creative side - Communications, Advertising, Marketing, Public Relations, etc. These are the fields that have been heavily affected by the recession. Perhaps women are being laid off not because they are women, but because they just happen to work in the most expendible fields.
2. Women with boyfriends, husbands, partners, etc. are beginning to have to find a job because their significant other has been demoted or laid off.
These are just my conclusions but seem to make the most sense.
My job journey continues to challenge me to think outside of the box. Mostly, it has challenged my spirits. I have been very discouraged..angry..sad. I have felt hopeless, depressed, deflated. Useless. Worthless. Like a stray cat left out in a rain storm and the door has been shut and locked in my face.
But to be honest, lingering on these feelings will get me nowhere.
Stay positive. Stay focused. I can do it. We can do it.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Hide and Seek
First off, I'd like to apologize for the horrible grammar and misspellings in my last entry. I guess I can't multi-task watching Hollywood's Best and Worst Plastic Surgery's while blogging.
So, where else can you search for a job besides searching online? Well, not every fabulous job will be found on a job search engine. I highly recommend networking. Believe it or not, people found jobs without the Internet years ago. *GASP* Yes..it is true. How did they ever get by? Well...they networked! Talk to people! That and the newspaper. But I have found that searching some newspaper websites have lead me right back to Monster. Sadly, I haven't searched a real-life newspaper. But hey, prove me wrong. Give it a shot.
My best results have come from talking with people. Ask the advice of people that have been working for over 20 years. Then talk to people that have just joined the work force. What has changed? What's the same? I believe the answer will vary depending on your field of work, but overall I believe you will hear similar words of wisdom.
You must research the company you are interested in. Show tenacity. Perseverance. Dress professionally. Always bring a pen. Be prepared. Know what you want to say and anticipate questions you may be asked.
You literally have to prepare for an interview like you would for your history final. Study. Write down notes.
And if you're really lucky, you won't just get advice. Perhaps they could steer you in the direction of a job to apply for or another person you could network with.
Now, the hidden jobs? Figure out what you want to do. Ok? Now find multiple firms/businesses that offer that job. Your contacts should be able to help you develop a list of companies. Never be afraid to ask for help. People want to help you. Search for the websites of these companies and check their "Career" of "Contact" pages. They often list job openings you may not find listed anywhere else. If they don't have any jobs listed, email them your resume anyway and express interest in working with their company. It can't hurt. They will most likely retain your resume for future employment opportunities.
Warning: This blog was written while watching X Files: I Want to Believe
So, where else can you search for a job besides searching online? Well, not every fabulous job will be found on a job search engine. I highly recommend networking. Believe it or not, people found jobs without the Internet years ago. *GASP* Yes..it is true. How did they ever get by? Well...they networked! Talk to people! That and the newspaper. But I have found that searching some newspaper websites have lead me right back to Monster. Sadly, I haven't searched a real-life newspaper. But hey, prove me wrong. Give it a shot.
My best results have come from talking with people. Ask the advice of people that have been working for over 20 years. Then talk to people that have just joined the work force. What has changed? What's the same? I believe the answer will vary depending on your field of work, but overall I believe you will hear similar words of wisdom.
You must research the company you are interested in. Show tenacity. Perseverance. Dress professionally. Always bring a pen. Be prepared. Know what you want to say and anticipate questions you may be asked.
You literally have to prepare for an interview like you would for your history final. Study. Write down notes.
And if you're really lucky, you won't just get advice. Perhaps they could steer you in the direction of a job to apply for or another person you could network with.
Now, the hidden jobs? Figure out what you want to do. Ok? Now find multiple firms/businesses that offer that job. Your contacts should be able to help you develop a list of companies. Never be afraid to ask for help. People want to help you. Search for the websites of these companies and check their "Career" of "Contact" pages. They often list job openings you may not find listed anywhere else. If they don't have any jobs listed, email them your resume anyway and express interest in working with their company. It can't hurt. They will most likely retain your resume for future employment opportunities.
Warning: This blog was written while watching X Files: I Want to Believe
Monday, June 22, 2009
Eenie Meanie Minie Moe
Where does one look for a job? Through thorough and diligent research I have discovered the secret...There is NO one place to search for jobs! They are everywhere. Some are in plain sight and some are hiding. This is why people push you to network and be persistent. For every job that is listed online, there are jobs that are hiding. If the job is hiding, there's a good chance it is quite coveted. What I mean by "hiding" is that the job opening is not publicly posted or is not easily found in job searches online. Just because you can't find your dream job in a Google search, doesn't mean it's not out there.
You can skim the job market by conducting searches on job sites such as Monster, Indeed, MediaBistro, Yahoo HotJobs, etc. My warning: Beware of scams! I can not caution you enough. There are a couple ways to tell if the opening you are looking at is a scam.
1. The more credible the website is that you are searching for jobs on, the less likely you will run into scams. But they will pop anywhere. If you begin to notice throughout your search that a company is advertising job openings constantly, it is probably a scam. You have to ask yourself, why are they always seeking employees? Maybe they are a quickly growing business, but most likely they have a quick employee turnover rate. Not a good sign.
2. If it looks like the ad is screaming at you via Times New Roman? No good. The company you want to work for will not search for employees through Oxy Clean-salesman tactics. If the ad is trying too hard to win you over, it's probably not worth your time.
3. After you apply for a job, if the company is interested in you they will contact you. A phone is a great sign. Emails aren't bad either. But if they email you and are pushy for a response? Don't waste your time going in for an interview.
3 1/2. I went in for an interview in a town just south of Boston. Sometimes a long commute is worth it, but if it's over an hour the pros better out-weigh the cons. When I arrived, I was greeted with a warm welcome and taken to a small room with multiple chairs with papers placed on top of them. Red flag 1. I was early so I spoke with the man interviewing me one-on-one. He began discussing the job and saying that he is looking for hardworking "rockstars". Red flag 2. If they start to sound like your fifth grade baseball couch, get out of there. I then got around to asking him how much the job pays. He replied with "What do you mean?" DANGER WILL ROBINSON! DANGER! How many answers are there to a question like that? That's unacceptable. The icing on the cake was his speech on how he didn't believe in a base pay. SEE YA!
4. Always do research on the company you are applying to. If they don't have a website, you should be wary. It's 2009 and this is America. Unless you're living in a cave in the Himalayas, you should be able to find a business with a website. If you do find their website, see if they have a page that explains what they do and who their clients are. A lot of sites will write so much by saying so little. It's fluff. But what do they do? If it's not obvious what the company does, don't follow through with job application. And if they can't list who their clients are? Diddo.
5. Always search reviews on the company you are interested in. If the weird "scam" pops up, go no further. I had just accepted a too-good-to-be-true internship at a "record label" (I say record label tentatively because they can hardly be considered that) and a mentor emailed me to a link to a blog announcing them as a scam. I read it, took it into consideration, and went into my internship with my eyes and ears open. I quit two weeks later after I realized they had maybe five employees and over 20 unpaid interns. The environment was extremely unprofessional, profanity was heard more often than not, there was no dress code, and my job was to spam musicians on MySpace. It was a good experience. Honestly. Now I know that not every business is legitimate.
Where else can you search for jobs? How do you find hidden jobs? Well, I'm going to go eat some stuffed green peppers and get back to those questions soon enough.
You can skim the job market by conducting searches on job sites such as Monster, Indeed, MediaBistro, Yahoo HotJobs, etc. My warning: Beware of scams! I can not caution you enough. There are a couple ways to tell if the opening you are looking at is a scam.
1. The more credible the website is that you are searching for jobs on, the less likely you will run into scams. But they will pop anywhere. If you begin to notice throughout your search that a company is advertising job openings constantly, it is probably a scam. You have to ask yourself, why are they always seeking employees? Maybe they are a quickly growing business, but most likely they have a quick employee turnover rate. Not a good sign.
2. If it looks like the ad is screaming at you via Times New Roman? No good. The company you want to work for will not search for employees through Oxy Clean-salesman tactics. If the ad is trying too hard to win you over, it's probably not worth your time.
3. After you apply for a job, if the company is interested in you they will contact you. A phone is a great sign. Emails aren't bad either. But if they email you and are pushy for a response? Don't waste your time going in for an interview.
3 1/2. I went in for an interview in a town just south of Boston. Sometimes a long commute is worth it, but if it's over an hour the pros better out-weigh the cons. When I arrived, I was greeted with a warm welcome and taken to a small room with multiple chairs with papers placed on top of them. Red flag 1. I was early so I spoke with the man interviewing me one-on-one. He began discussing the job and saying that he is looking for hardworking "rockstars". Red flag 2. If they start to sound like your fifth grade baseball couch, get out of there. I then got around to asking him how much the job pays. He replied with "What do you mean?" DANGER WILL ROBINSON! DANGER! How many answers are there to a question like that? That's unacceptable. The icing on the cake was his speech on how he didn't believe in a base pay. SEE YA!
4. Always do research on the company you are applying to. If they don't have a website, you should be wary. It's 2009 and this is America. Unless you're living in a cave in the Himalayas, you should be able to find a business with a website. If you do find their website, see if they have a page that explains what they do and who their clients are. A lot of sites will write so much by saying so little. It's fluff. But what do they do? If it's not obvious what the company does, don't follow through with job application. And if they can't list who their clients are? Diddo.
5. Always search reviews on the company you are interested in. If the weird "scam" pops up, go no further. I had just accepted a too-good-to-be-true internship at a "record label" (I say record label tentatively because they can hardly be considered that) and a mentor emailed me to a link to a blog announcing them as a scam. I read it, took it into consideration, and went into my internship with my eyes and ears open. I quit two weeks later after I realized they had maybe five employees and over 20 unpaid interns. The environment was extremely unprofessional, profanity was heard more often than not, there was no dress code, and my job was to spam musicians on MySpace. It was a good experience. Honestly. Now I know that not every business is legitimate.
Where else can you search for jobs? How do you find hidden jobs? Well, I'm going to go eat some stuffed green peppers and get back to those questions soon enough.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Runners To Their Mark..
There is no such thing as starting to look for a job too early. I began in January, almost five months before graduation. Three warnings before you start the job hunt: 1. By starting to look so soon, you will run across many job openings looking for immediate hire. This doesn't help. 2. If you're just blindly clicking and applying for jobs without keeping track, do not expect much by the way of results. 3. If you don't have a proper resume and use the correct key words in your email greeting or cover letter, you won't be noticed.
Like any ambitious, hard working daughter I began my job hunt months in advance. I always plan ahead and that is how I have run my life for over 22 years. I believe I received my coveted internship at The Big Talker 1210 in Philadelphia because I applied for it in October. I didn't actually complete the internship til the following summer. Planning ahead is key. But for a job you would like to have waiting for you the day after graduation? You can only hope. Some are lucky. Some are me. Don't be discouraged. Patience and Persistance.
There's nothing wrong with applying for as many job postings as you can. The more hooks you cast, the greater chance you'll have of catching a fish, right? I believe by doing this you exhaust yourself and begin to see every job posting as just another blur in the "jobisphere". You begin to apply half-hearted, in turn not presenting yourself properly. I recommend choosing 5-8 jobs a week that you really feel a connection with. Email them your resume along with your best greeting. Within the week, follow up with your application. Call the company you applied to and ask to speak with their HR department or, even better, directly call the person that posted the job opening online if that information is available. You need to prove how hungry you are. Don't just tell them you are driven and results oriented. SHOW them. When you call, explain that you have applied for *insert job title* and were curious of the status of your application and ask if there were any questions you could answer.
Resume. There is no cut and dry proper way to write a resume. I have asked the advice of many professionals and have received different and contradictory response. I do recommend asking many different well seasoned professionals for their advice. I spoke with the Recruiting Officer at Raytheon and the owner of Dynagraf, to name a few. They proved to be of great help and really got my resume to where it needed to be. I learned that keywords are the most important. When a person in HR is looking over your resume they will briefly skim it, they don't have time to read your life story. It's all about using the right words that will stand out and catch their eye, "results oriented, multi-tasker, great oral and written communication, fluent in Microsoft programs, etc." Make your resume pop.
Like any ambitious, hard working daughter I began my job hunt months in advance. I always plan ahead and that is how I have run my life for over 22 years. I believe I received my coveted internship at The Big Talker 1210 in Philadelphia because I applied for it in October. I didn't actually complete the internship til the following summer. Planning ahead is key. But for a job you would like to have waiting for you the day after graduation? You can only hope. Some are lucky. Some are me. Don't be discouraged. Patience and Persistance.
There's nothing wrong with applying for as many job postings as you can. The more hooks you cast, the greater chance you'll have of catching a fish, right? I believe by doing this you exhaust yourself and begin to see every job posting as just another blur in the "jobisphere". You begin to apply half-hearted, in turn not presenting yourself properly. I recommend choosing 5-8 jobs a week that you really feel a connection with. Email them your resume along with your best greeting. Within the week, follow up with your application. Call the company you applied to and ask to speak with their HR department or, even better, directly call the person that posted the job opening online if that information is available. You need to prove how hungry you are. Don't just tell them you are driven and results oriented. SHOW them. When you call, explain that you have applied for *insert job title* and were curious of the status of your application and ask if there were any questions you could answer.
Resume. There is no cut and dry proper way to write a resume. I have asked the advice of many professionals and have received different and contradictory response. I do recommend asking many different well seasoned professionals for their advice. I spoke with the Recruiting Officer at Raytheon and the owner of Dynagraf, to name a few. They proved to be of great help and really got my resume to where it needed to be. I learned that keywords are the most important. When a person in HR is looking over your resume they will briefly skim it, they don't have time to read your life story. It's all about using the right words that will stand out and catch their eye, "results oriented, multi-tasker, great oral and written communication, fluent in Microsoft programs, etc." Make your resume pop.
Graduation
I graduated from Champlain College on May 9, 2009. I believe it will go down in history as the worst year to graduate and begin looking for a professional full-time job. Even living outside of a major city has proven to not be of any use. The job well is dry, but I continute to squeeze that stone until water leaks out. Do I have a choice?
Thousands of people are taking this journey with me. At first it was exciting, similar to the first day I had braces put on my front teeth. It was new, unknown, and I've seen everyone else do it before me. It's my turn! But I quickly realized, just like braces, that it becomes irritating and a major eye sore when things don't straighten out immediately. In the past, I have always believed things will work out for the best. Everything falls in to place. I have faith. But for the first time, in a long time, I'm beginning to have my doubts. It's hard to maintain high spirits when they are constantly being knocked down. Luckily, I have a strong team of supporters rooting me on. Even strangers want me to succeed. It helps.
I invite you to follow me as I tred my own career path. I'm sure my failures and successes are relatable to all. I will share my advice, what has worked and what has not. How to watch out for scams and who can be trusted. I hope that by sharing my job journey I can reach others that are also fighting the same fight I am. Let us help ourselves by helping each other.
All aboard The Recession Depression: My Journey to Find a Job.
Thousands of people are taking this journey with me. At first it was exciting, similar to the first day I had braces put on my front teeth. It was new, unknown, and I've seen everyone else do it before me. It's my turn! But I quickly realized, just like braces, that it becomes irritating and a major eye sore when things don't straighten out immediately. In the past, I have always believed things will work out for the best. Everything falls in to place. I have faith. But for the first time, in a long time, I'm beginning to have my doubts. It's hard to maintain high spirits when they are constantly being knocked down. Luckily, I have a strong team of supporters rooting me on. Even strangers want me to succeed. It helps.
I invite you to follow me as I tred my own career path. I'm sure my failures and successes are relatable to all. I will share my advice, what has worked and what has not. How to watch out for scams and who can be trusted. I hope that by sharing my job journey I can reach others that are also fighting the same fight I am. Let us help ourselves by helping each other.
All aboard The Recession Depression: My Journey to Find a Job.
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