Is it just me, or is this being out of work just become plum old? I realized that I hadn’t posted anything in my blog last night. I’ve been writing to an old friend and it made me realize that, those type of thoughts were more interesting. It may also have something to do with the fact that my brother asked if I could maybe write about something else. Hmm?
The thing is, I know most of us are bored with telling people we’re out of work and the type of position we are looking for (let’s be truthful here, don’t you just want to say “I’ll do anything” sometimes?), but that's where it is. I’ve been taking these couple of weeks off from job hunting. Have to admit that I cheated and applied for a couple of jobs. Just couldn’t seem to keep myself away from the siren call of all those emails from job boards. The hardest thing is to believe that there is that job out there waiting. But you know, we all need to go back to basics. Look this thing will turn around. It just has to. Companies still have growth goals. They are still are in business. Well most of them are. Sooner or later, hopefully sooner, they will start becoming aggressive again instead of stuck in fear and reactionary thinking. Then bam we’ll be the best thing since sliced bread again. Meanwhile, they are still hiring. We need to use all that competitive energy that made us good in our jobs and use it to land that perfect job we’re looking for.
Me, I’ve gone back to the gym. Back to basics, right? On top of that, I’m going to clear out a bunch of clutter this weekend, get organized, and then open the windows and air out the place tomorrow. It’s supposed to be in the 60’s where I am. But the thought is to get the positive energy flowing again. It is so important. Time to start refocusing on the job you want, not the jobs you don’t want. It is important initially to go through the jobs you don’t want so you can focus on the ones you really want. For me, it’s beyond time to do that. So folks, that’s my game plan for this week. I plan to bring in the New Year full of energy and hope that 2009 will bring back some normalcy. I am just to bored with myself to do otherwise.
Happy New Year Everyone!
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Friday, December 19, 2008
Isn't It Amazing
Lot’s of things are amazing I know. It’s the holidays, it’s snowing, they’re bailing out Detroit, but no what I’m referring to is the internet. You all are probably starting at this with a combination of “Duh” and “what is she smoking?” More specifically I’m referring to all the applications that have come through the internet and the implications on society, never mind our lives. In particular I’m talking about all the networking sites. All of you who are out of work have heard from all quarters at this point that we must network and therefore we have all become quite proficient with sites like LinkedIn.com. I know I’ve become connected with people I worked with 20 years ago! You have to be careful or it starts to suck you in, but there is real value. Recently my favorite boss ever wrote me a recommendation and a former client did too. Then a former co-worker who now owns his own company re-connected. Maybe something will come out of it, or maybe not. You never know where things will lead.
Speaking of which, that leads me to something else. I am giving myself a couple weeks off. Yup, I’ve promised a bunch of people that I will not look for any new jobs till the New Year. This raises an important point. Looking for work is hard. It amounts to constant cold calling and degrees of business development that I never thought I’d ever reach. I got to the point where I told my group that I was just so sick of interviewing. I believe that 2008 was a strange tough year and that I need a chance to let all the lessons land and be absorbed. Look, there’s not much you can do on the job front anyway, and I’ll be able to come up with a better campaign strategy. But hey that’s my advice, but you really should think about it. Just like you needed a vacation while working, you really need one now. Companies don’t give us vacation time out of the goodness of their little corporate hearts. No they do that because they want their workers to continue to be productive. If we want to continue to be productive in our search for the right job, we need time off. Therefore, I’m just focusing on friends, family, parties, cooking and reading good books for a couple of weeks.
On that note, I’m off to the kitchen to make some eggnog.
Happy Holidays Everyone!
Speaking of which, that leads me to something else. I am giving myself a couple weeks off. Yup, I’ve promised a bunch of people that I will not look for any new jobs till the New Year. This raises an important point. Looking for work is hard. It amounts to constant cold calling and degrees of business development that I never thought I’d ever reach. I got to the point where I told my group that I was just so sick of interviewing. I believe that 2008 was a strange tough year and that I need a chance to let all the lessons land and be absorbed. Look, there’s not much you can do on the job front anyway, and I’ll be able to come up with a better campaign strategy. But hey that’s my advice, but you really should think about it. Just like you needed a vacation while working, you really need one now. Companies don’t give us vacation time out of the goodness of their little corporate hearts. No they do that because they want their workers to continue to be productive. If we want to continue to be productive in our search for the right job, we need time off. Therefore, I’m just focusing on friends, family, parties, cooking and reading good books for a couple of weeks.
On that note, I’m off to the kitchen to make some eggnog.
Happy Holidays Everyone!
Friday, December 12, 2008
Whatever it takes to get through the day..
Hey, the way I reward myself is by getting to go in the kitchen and cook. That’s me and the reason I’m bringing this up is because this is a strange time of year, at the end of a very strange year. Always makes me think of the “Designing Women” episode where they’re sitting around talking about cards and one of the characters complains about the Hallmark commercials. You know, how they make you feel your life should be like that and because it isn’t you feel even worse. Well, I say focus on the things that do make you feel good and the Heck with Hallmark instead of Deck the Halls.
Anyway, I am really digressing here. I was really having a hard time coming up with something to write. Not only was it because I try very hard to write uplifting things and not add to all the bad news out there, but because there was so much bad stuff happening that I couldn’t seem to get myself to rise above it. Then a couple of things happened.
One of my friends called me to tell me about an experience she had at a networking event and asked that I write something about it on my blog. (Reminding me that people actually read this thing.) Have you all seen her comment? Have you had any similar experiences? A couple of things came to mind in hearing about this experience. First let me explain (if you want the description first hand go down to comments on my last posting) my friend was attending one of those ubiquitous networking events, which are so helpful, but can be rather stressful. She was speaking to this woman and as usually happens brought up the fact that she was out of work and asked if she could give the woman her card. Well, the woman refused to take it. My thoughts on the matter are these: First of all it’s about the other woman, not my friend. To be charitable perhaps she’s got some really bad stuff going on in her life. Secondly, the woman wasn’t too very bright (less charitable I know). We’ve been taught, to put those business cards in two pockets; one for the ones you want to follow up on, and one for those you’ll dump later. It’s a much nicer, smarter, and kinder way to go about things. Plus, people out of work are a very sensitive place right now. Do you know how much strength and courage it takes to go to these things, never mind working out a way to ask for someone’s help? If any of you have further comments on this I would love to see them.
The second thing that happened was I was speaking to a friend who reminded me that he read my blog. This in turn brought back to me the reason behind starting this blog. A lot of us are in our various homes isolated in front of our PC’s. Not only am I trying to increase a sense of community, offer helpful hints and shared experiences, but I am trying mainly to find ways to decrease/diminish that sense of isolation. YOU ARE NOT ALONE! There are bunches and bunches of people out there just like us and we are valued, experienced workers with a great deal to still accomplish and contribute. There, that’s what it’s all about.
Finally, this morning when I opened my email, I had a recommendation from a boss in my past that just absolutely blew me away. I had requested a recommendation through LinkedIn.com, which is an excellent idea, by the way. The reason I mention this is because not only is it hard to keep up with what’s going on in your industry, the longer you’re out of work, but I find the longer I’m out of work, the harder it is to remember doing a great job and being valuable. Reading this recommendation gave me a sense of purpose again. It was the little jolt I needed to get my tasks done. So along with the advice to take all the business cards, I’ll add writing recommendations is such a good thing.
This brings me to the kitchen and cooking. Now that I’ve finished the tasks on my list, I’m free to go into the kitchen and bake cookies. I have a new lemon cookie recipe I’ve been dying to try…Yummmm. I’ll put Gretchen Wilson’s “I’m here for the party” on my ipod, create lots of good smells and tastes. I sincerely hope you all can find something to make you all as happy as cooking makes me.
Anyway, I am really digressing here. I was really having a hard time coming up with something to write. Not only was it because I try very hard to write uplifting things and not add to all the bad news out there, but because there was so much bad stuff happening that I couldn’t seem to get myself to rise above it. Then a couple of things happened.
One of my friends called me to tell me about an experience she had at a networking event and asked that I write something about it on my blog. (Reminding me that people actually read this thing.) Have you all seen her comment? Have you had any similar experiences? A couple of things came to mind in hearing about this experience. First let me explain (if you want the description first hand go down to comments on my last posting) my friend was attending one of those ubiquitous networking events, which are so helpful, but can be rather stressful. She was speaking to this woman and as usually happens brought up the fact that she was out of work and asked if she could give the woman her card. Well, the woman refused to take it. My thoughts on the matter are these: First of all it’s about the other woman, not my friend. To be charitable perhaps she’s got some really bad stuff going on in her life. Secondly, the woman wasn’t too very bright (less charitable I know). We’ve been taught, to put those business cards in two pockets; one for the ones you want to follow up on, and one for those you’ll dump later. It’s a much nicer, smarter, and kinder way to go about things. Plus, people out of work are a very sensitive place right now. Do you know how much strength and courage it takes to go to these things, never mind working out a way to ask for someone’s help? If any of you have further comments on this I would love to see them.
The second thing that happened was I was speaking to a friend who reminded me that he read my blog. This in turn brought back to me the reason behind starting this blog. A lot of us are in our various homes isolated in front of our PC’s. Not only am I trying to increase a sense of community, offer helpful hints and shared experiences, but I am trying mainly to find ways to decrease/diminish that sense of isolation. YOU ARE NOT ALONE! There are bunches and bunches of people out there just like us and we are valued, experienced workers with a great deal to still accomplish and contribute. There, that’s what it’s all about.
Finally, this morning when I opened my email, I had a recommendation from a boss in my past that just absolutely blew me away. I had requested a recommendation through LinkedIn.com, which is an excellent idea, by the way. The reason I mention this is because not only is it hard to keep up with what’s going on in your industry, the longer you’re out of work, but I find the longer I’m out of work, the harder it is to remember doing a great job and being valuable. Reading this recommendation gave me a sense of purpose again. It was the little jolt I needed to get my tasks done. So along with the advice to take all the business cards, I’ll add writing recommendations is such a good thing.
This brings me to the kitchen and cooking. Now that I’ve finished the tasks on my list, I’m free to go into the kitchen and bake cookies. I have a new lemon cookie recipe I’ve been dying to try…Yummmm. I’ll put Gretchen Wilson’s “I’m here for the party” on my ipod, create lots of good smells and tastes. I sincerely hope you all can find something to make you all as happy as cooking makes me.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Hmm, What a Conundrum
You know I’m known as the Queen of job applications. I have this whole process I follow, which I’ll go into later, but sometimes even I can’t seem to find any jobs to apply for. We were talking about this in my networking group early this week. Is it a matter of there truly being fewer jobs to apply for (nowadays that’s always an issue) or is it, for some reason, in your mind? Does one feel like the all the jobs are, mind numbing, eyes rolling back in the head boring, or like you’d rather live out of your car, than do these jobs? Perhaps, you might feel like you’re not qualified. I especially liked the ad for Lifetime network operations that required the ability to write in English and Korean, for crying out loud! You really do need to put yourself in a certain place. I know I am having a really hard time doing that this week. I’ve only applied for three jobs so far, and one of those was from a company that approached me. On that point, it is worthwhile to post your resume on Monster.com. I’ve been approached by employers mostly from that website. With all that being said, why was I able to find fifteen jobs to apply for one week in November? You know there weren’t a whole heck of a lot of jobs then either. I think the answer is, you have to continue to be creative about how you go about seeking positions. If you continue down the same paths, day after day, they get pretty boring and you start to see more jobs that you aren’t really interested in. I find ideas on how to approach the application process from my local newspaper, “Tools help seniors on job hunt”, in “The Economist”, and even in the, dare I say it, printed version of the “New York Times”. I also put places like Omaha, Charleston, San Francisco, Miami, and Chicago in my search engines to see if there are more opportunities in those cities. I realize not everyone can relocate, but it’s a thought just to shake things up a little and to get other ideas when you feel like you’re running dry.
Before I forget, here is my process for applying for jobs. I actually created it years ago when I was unemployed, back in the day when you had to mail in a list of jobs you had applied for, just to get your unemployment check. Yes it was a bit more onerous back then, but I think it may have been too bad that they stopped asking for that sheet, because it did force me to actually aggressively seek employment. Anyway, I start the week with a “to do” list, one of the tasks being “apply for ten jobs”. This is helpful in a couple of ways; 1. Keeps you on track of things you mean to do and that’s not always easy. 2. Tends to give you a sense of accomplishment and of control over your life, which may be sadly lacking when you’re out of work. When I’m actually looking to apply for those ten jobs here’s what I do:
1.)Pull up the various job boards and sign in.
2.)Look for “new” postings.
3.)Keep my searches very broad. I find that if you make them too narrow you’re going by the engines definition and not yours and their version misses some great opportunities.
4.)Find a job, print the job description. If you don’t often times it’s lost when you’re transferred to the job site for application and it’s hard to capture correct items in your resume to match the job.
5.)Apply for the job. I usually only fill in the required fields, but it depends on how I’m feeling. I don’t give specific date unless asked for and I never give dates of graduation unless absolutely forced to. It ages you and your degrees, so beware unless you’re right out of school when it might be a good thing.
6.)Then I go to my job search spread sheet: (I was trying to attach here but can't seem to do it. I 'll keep trying or if you send me your email address, I'll mail it to you) and fill in fields.
7.)Finally, I put date I applied on top of job description and file in a folder for that month. This way, when they call you about the job, you simply go to your search sheet, find when you applied for the job, and pull it from the appropriate folder and do so much better on the phone because you know what they are speaking about.
That’s it. You’ll see on the sheet that I’ve also put tabs for recruiters, rejects, and interview notes. Hey it’s nothing more than what you’d do if job hunting was your job right? Wait. That is our job!
Before I finish, let me give you just a few pieces of advice for those of you who have just lost your jobs. Let it land. I don’t care if you hated the job or not, it still hurts. Wait before you make any major decisions. You might want to put together a spreadsheet of your expenses. It helps contain the panic, since it also gives you a sense of control. Finally, get out and get some exercise or do something that you’ve wanted to do for a long time, take a deep breath, and remember you’re not alone. You really aren’t. That was the main reason for me beginning this blog. Oh yes, go back and read my earlier blogs.
Before I forget, here is my process for applying for jobs. I actually created it years ago when I was unemployed, back in the day when you had to mail in a list of jobs you had applied for, just to get your unemployment check. Yes it was a bit more onerous back then, but I think it may have been too bad that they stopped asking for that sheet, because it did force me to actually aggressively seek employment. Anyway, I start the week with a “to do” list, one of the tasks being “apply for ten jobs”. This is helpful in a couple of ways; 1. Keeps you on track of things you mean to do and that’s not always easy. 2. Tends to give you a sense of accomplishment and of control over your life, which may be sadly lacking when you’re out of work. When I’m actually looking to apply for those ten jobs here’s what I do:
1.)Pull up the various job boards and sign in.
2.)Look for “new” postings.
3.)Keep my searches very broad. I find that if you make them too narrow you’re going by the engines definition and not yours and their version misses some great opportunities.
4.)Find a job, print the job description. If you don’t often times it’s lost when you’re transferred to the job site for application and it’s hard to capture correct items in your resume to match the job.
5.)Apply for the job. I usually only fill in the required fields, but it depends on how I’m feeling. I don’t give specific date unless asked for and I never give dates of graduation unless absolutely forced to. It ages you and your degrees, so beware unless you’re right out of school when it might be a good thing.
6.)Then I go to my job search spread sheet: (I was trying to attach here but can't seem to do it. I 'll keep trying or if you send me your email address, I'll mail it to you) and fill in fields.
7.)Finally, I put date I applied on top of job description and file in a folder for that month. This way, when they call you about the job, you simply go to your search sheet, find when you applied for the job, and pull it from the appropriate folder and do so much better on the phone because you know what they are speaking about.
That’s it. You’ll see on the sheet that I’ve also put tabs for recruiters, rejects, and interview notes. Hey it’s nothing more than what you’d do if job hunting was your job right? Wait. That is our job!
Before I finish, let me give you just a few pieces of advice for those of you who have just lost your jobs. Let it land. I don’t care if you hated the job or not, it still hurts. Wait before you make any major decisions. You might want to put together a spreadsheet of your expenses. It helps contain the panic, since it also gives you a sense of control. Finally, get out and get some exercise or do something that you’ve wanted to do for a long time, take a deep breath, and remember you’re not alone. You really aren’t. That was the main reason for me beginning this blog. Oh yes, go back and read my earlier blogs.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Tis the Season
Today I made a vow to take all of next week off. No gym. No job applications. No maniacal watching of the stock market. After all, it is Thanksgiving week and besides the week between Christmas and New Years, you can’t find a deader week in the US right?
Today, I was finishing up my job applications for the week, eleven so far, when my phone rang. OMG don’t you know it was the hiring manager for a job I applied for this morning!! Part of me was incredibly excited. After all it is a job really well suited to me. However, my other reaction was sfd!!! Just, when I’d managed to get myself into a place where I was OK with spending the rest of the year not expecting anything, they come along and get me all excited with hopes up again. The moral of this is, this job hunting business is not for the faint hearted. Oh boy isn’t that ever a true statement. Chins up everyone. I know I’ve said this before, but it only takes one yes. You just never know when it will come and you can’t win if you don’t play.
This year is so bleak that it’s almost funny in a kind of macabre way. If one tends toward dark humor, boy is this the year for it. Monday, I was sitting on my couch reading the paper (I know, I’m totally addicted), listening to the “Today Show”, when I realize that NBC is doing a piece on how the environment is being destroyed; drought in Australia, destruction of the barrier reef in some islands and melting of glaciers and resulting lack of water. All of a sudden, I was furious with NBC. I’m sure they’ve had this scheduled for a while and I did calm down before I placed any harassing phone calls. All I could think of was how about they give us a little light at the end of the tunnel? With everything else going on, they run this piece now? They did seem to cut it short over the week, so maybe some other poor souls did make the calls. After this I went to a networking session where we were given the advice to just network and not worry about applying for jobs. I came home and poured myself a glass of scotch that night. Then, the market dropped 900 points. Companies were announcing layoffs right and left. Holy Moly, even a Pollyanna like me has a really hard time keeping my spirits up. That’s when I came to the conclusion that it’s time for a holiday. It’s time for a holiday from everything. So what if you gain a few pounds. Those job opportunities will be there when you get back, believe me.
It is Thanksgiving next week, my favorite holiday of the whole year. Get together with friends and family, and eat all you want of favorite foods. Be there for them and let them be there for you. How can it get better than that?
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Today, I was finishing up my job applications for the week, eleven so far, when my phone rang. OMG don’t you know it was the hiring manager for a job I applied for this morning!! Part of me was incredibly excited. After all it is a job really well suited to me. However, my other reaction was sfd!!! Just, when I’d managed to get myself into a place where I was OK with spending the rest of the year not expecting anything, they come along and get me all excited with hopes up again. The moral of this is, this job hunting business is not for the faint hearted. Oh boy isn’t that ever a true statement. Chins up everyone. I know I’ve said this before, but it only takes one yes. You just never know when it will come and you can’t win if you don’t play.
This year is so bleak that it’s almost funny in a kind of macabre way. If one tends toward dark humor, boy is this the year for it. Monday, I was sitting on my couch reading the paper (I know, I’m totally addicted), listening to the “Today Show”, when I realize that NBC is doing a piece on how the environment is being destroyed; drought in Australia, destruction of the barrier reef in some islands and melting of glaciers and resulting lack of water. All of a sudden, I was furious with NBC. I’m sure they’ve had this scheduled for a while and I did calm down before I placed any harassing phone calls. All I could think of was how about they give us a little light at the end of the tunnel? With everything else going on, they run this piece now? They did seem to cut it short over the week, so maybe some other poor souls did make the calls. After this I went to a networking session where we were given the advice to just network and not worry about applying for jobs. I came home and poured myself a glass of scotch that night. Then, the market dropped 900 points. Companies were announcing layoffs right and left. Holy Moly, even a Pollyanna like me has a really hard time keeping my spirits up. That’s when I came to the conclusion that it’s time for a holiday. It’s time for a holiday from everything. So what if you gain a few pounds. Those job opportunities will be there when you get back, believe me.
It is Thanksgiving next week, my favorite holiday of the whole year. Get together with friends and family, and eat all you want of favorite foods. Be there for them and let them be there for you. How can it get better than that?
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Friday, November 14, 2008
Sometimes you’ve just got to laugh!
That’s what I said the other day when I saw that Morgan Stanley is laying off bunches of people. Please bear with me. I’m not trying to be insensitive to other people facing layoffs. Really. What you have to realize is that I interviewed with them in April and they blew me off after eight interviews for some lame reason. Then, two days later it came out in news that there were layoffs. Now, last week a recruiter called me about another job at MS. What am I going to do but say sure, submit my resume? Hadn’t heard anything from them and then I opened article on Yahoo news. Sure enough, there are more layoffs. That’s when I just started to laugh. What else can one do? It does seem to be my luck lately, that what ever company it is that approaches me, seems to be the kiss of death for them. Hmm, maybe I should analyze this a little more. Not!
I don’t know if anyone else is seeing this, but it seems to me lately that the people who are working are much more unhappy then those of us who aren’t. Maybe it’s just me. I do seem to have a hard time regretting the fact that I don’t have to set my alarm or that I’m not surrounded by stressed out people. I do think it is all in the mindset. It has always been my contention that I control how I view things and that things don’t happen to me, but that they are a result of some decision I’ve made in the past. I guess I just don’t like to feel helpless. I am mind you, the person who quit smoking because no inanimate object was going to make me go out in the middle of the night, putting my life at risk (this was after all NY in the 80’s). Oh no, not me!
Something happened the other day that made me realize that it’s not about me. I had stopped going to this nail salon because the owner always asked me in a hushed voice, “Have you found a job yet?” This is on top of all the old ladies in my building who are praying for me. Anyway, I went to the nail salon last Monday. (I was getting to look a bit wooly if you know what I mean) I was the only customer the whole two hours I was there! She did ask me the question, but with a quite different tone. I asked her if business was bad and she just nodded her head. That’s when it dawned on me. It’s not all about me or about us unemployed. Everyone’s getting hit in one way or another. I do kind of feel that it is our responsibly, as humans, to keep putting good energy out in the universe and to try to support others. It does make you feel good you know. By the way, I also feed the birds.
Speaking of those of us who happen to remember life in the 80’s, I found a couple of web sites in the local paper the other day. These websites are targeted at people over 50. That being said, just because these companies are 50 friendly, doesn’t mean that others can’t use them. Here they are: www.retirementjobs.com and www.retireeworkforce.com. I found jobs to apply for in both of them. Good jobs mind you.
As I was googling this blog, just to see how hard it was to find, I came across this other website. http://www.wisebread.com/seven-tips-for-the-newly-unemployed. It appears to be a little of what I’m trying to do on my blog. I’m including it because I think the more advice the better. Anyway, feed the birds or feed the positive wolf, but do try to have a good weekend.
I don’t know if anyone else is seeing this, but it seems to me lately that the people who are working are much more unhappy then those of us who aren’t. Maybe it’s just me. I do seem to have a hard time regretting the fact that I don’t have to set my alarm or that I’m not surrounded by stressed out people. I do think it is all in the mindset. It has always been my contention that I control how I view things and that things don’t happen to me, but that they are a result of some decision I’ve made in the past. I guess I just don’t like to feel helpless. I am mind you, the person who quit smoking because no inanimate object was going to make me go out in the middle of the night, putting my life at risk (this was after all NY in the 80’s). Oh no, not me!
Something happened the other day that made me realize that it’s not about me. I had stopped going to this nail salon because the owner always asked me in a hushed voice, “Have you found a job yet?” This is on top of all the old ladies in my building who are praying for me. Anyway, I went to the nail salon last Monday. (I was getting to look a bit wooly if you know what I mean) I was the only customer the whole two hours I was there! She did ask me the question, but with a quite different tone. I asked her if business was bad and she just nodded her head. That’s when it dawned on me. It’s not all about me or about us unemployed. Everyone’s getting hit in one way or another. I do kind of feel that it is our responsibly, as humans, to keep putting good energy out in the universe and to try to support others. It does make you feel good you know. By the way, I also feed the birds.
Speaking of those of us who happen to remember life in the 80’s, I found a couple of web sites in the local paper the other day. These websites are targeted at people over 50. That being said, just because these companies are 50 friendly, doesn’t mean that others can’t use them. Here they are: www.retirementjobs.com and www.retireeworkforce.com. I found jobs to apply for in both of them. Good jobs mind you.
As I was googling this blog, just to see how hard it was to find, I came across this other website. http://www.wisebread.com/seven-tips-for-the-newly-unemployed. It appears to be a little of what I’m trying to do on my blog. I’m including it because I think the more advice the better. Anyway, feed the birds or feed the positive wolf, but do try to have a good weekend.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Thank Heaven the Election is Finally Here
Don’t know about the rest of you, but I have had the hardest time focusing on anything else, but the election, the last week or so. Between checking on the market every 15 minutes and toggling to Realcearpolitics.com to check the polls, it’s amazing I’ve applied for any jobs at all. Here’s the good news, in the last week I’ve noticed a real up-tick in the amount of new jobs posted.
Here’s the bad news, if some people used to be mean and nasty before, guess what? They’re really letting their inner b#@ch flow now. I heard from two friends today about being given gratuitous, mean feedback. I’ve had my fair share of it as well. I remember at an interview in June where the interviewer yelled at me across the desk because he didn’t agree with my expert opinion on a part of the business. People asked me why I didn’t just get up and leave. It’s like you really relate to that deer in the headlights. Part of you just can’t believe the other person is acting that way. How does one react in situations like this? It depends. Me, I laughed and said thank God I found out then what a jerk he was rather than going to work there and then filed it away for when I finally write that book. I do firmly believe that we, ourselves, govern how we feel and how we internalize this feedback. Maybe it’s my inner b#@ch, but I’ll be darned if I’ll let this other person govern how I feel about myself. It is hard when you’re daily trying to keep up your confidence level, but don’t let the idiot buggers win! That’s what I believe!
OK, got that off my chest. Now, how about some suggestions for things one can do to further the search.
1. Apply for jobs: Here are some good websites to visit that I’ve found rather good at getting interviews: www.careerbuilder.com, www.indeed.com, www.linkedin.com. Please remember to be careful about personal details in resume when you post and it’s always a good idea to update your resume monthly. That way it pushes your resume to the top of the list for searching companies. I try my hardest to apply for at least ten jobs a week. I also print a copy of the job description, date it, and file it. I then put in on a spread sheet. This way when they call to set up an interview, you can remember what job was all about and what the requirments were. The spreadsheet helps you remember where you filled the job description and keeps you on track in your job search.
2. Network, network, network: The thing is, it may be embarrassing to tell people you’re out of work, but they can’t help you if they don’t know you need help. Plus there are so many people out there now, that it's almost like you're joining a club. The linkedin.com website is great for tracking down old friends and colleagues and asking for information on that company you’re interested in, for recommendations, or for just keeping your industry knowledge up to date. Other things that you can do are: toastmasters, your alumni association meetings, join clubs etc.
3. Don’t be afraid or ashamed to have a fall back. Things are kind of dicey right now and so maybe you will have to do something that you’re not thrilled about. It’s not going to be for life, believe me.
If while reading this you come up with other ideas, please send them to me and I’ll post them. I really do believe things will get better and that we are living in interesting times. I know, I know there’s a curse like that; “May you live in interesting times.” Me, I love interesting times. Looking back you usually find that, that’s when you were really conscious of living.
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