Job Hunting... My 2 Cents... Now Add Yours....

[Stuie]

So I have I have seen people on here looking for jobs, I have a friend and a sister-in-law in the same situation. Finding a job is hard, and it sucks.So I thought I would organize my thoughts and experience and give my 2 cents worth. For those looking for a new job, the first thing I can tell you is you need to get a few books to read.

“What Color is Your Parachute” by Richard Bolles – This book opened my eyes, in my approach and my options on how to find a job. I literally only made it 3 chapters in before I devised a plan. It’s updated every year.

“The Go-Getter” by Peter B. Kyne – Short Fictionalized story that with WCISYP, helped me craft a good plan

“48 Days to the Work You Love” by Dan Miller – Although this isn’t a step by step guide it’s quite inspirational on how to approach what direction you wish to go.

“QBQ!” by John G. Miller – I throw this out there as it’s more of a cleanup of your approach to work itself. I read periodically when I get lethargic in what I am doing.

Now I want to step back and take a look at my work history.
1[sup]st[/sup] Job – Referred to by Friend of the Family.
2[sup]nd[/sup] Job – Got by talking to a guy at a coffee shop about a new place opening up.
3[sup]rd[/sup] Job – Newspaper Ad.
4[sup]th[/sup] Job – Newspaper Ad.
5[sup]th[/sup] Job – Referred by Friend of the Family
6[sup]th[/sup] Job – Had a company create a position just for me.
7[sup]th[/sup] Job – Heard whispers and swooped in and got it.

Now Jobs #3 & 4 were probably the 2 most soul crushing jobs I have ever had. As you can see I found about both of them from the same place. By the time it makes it to the paper it’s a job they need someone who can show up on time and pass a drug test.

I want to focus on my mind shift that got me to Job #6. Job #5 was a job I liked, my first one in my degree field. I enjoyed it and loved it, even though I didn’t make a whole lot of money. I worked on a great for a college, and at the end of the grant would be absorbed by the University. Then the IT Director retired and then they brought in someone they never should have. I will skip all the crap that followed this change and just say it motivated me to find a new job.

I started reading 4 books I mentioned during this search and realized Newspaper, Craigslist, Monster, Careerbuilder and a ton of other sites just had nothing I wanted. They weren’t listing high paying IT jobs anywhere. That combined with what I was reading I decided to find my own job. Stats say it’s all about how you know and I got a lot of my jobs that way. This time the well was dry and I could find nothing. Then I had my idea of finding a new job.

The Plan: “Hail Mary, Mail Bomb”
1 – Box of Envelopes
2 – Reams of Paper
$40 worth of Postage

I picked 10 companies that might utilize or need an IT person, that wasn’t directly IT. I wrote a great cover letter that focused on my skills and how I can help make their business succeed. I looked up my 10 in the phone book and web. Any name listed anywhere got a letter with the cover letter and a copy of my resume. One place thought it was great. “We got your letters, all 22 of them. If you take this much initiative in other areas of your life you will do well” Out of the 10 companies I got 7 job interviews. Out of the 7 interviews I got 5 offers. The offer I took there wasn’t even a position. This accounting firm created it just for me.

I have since moved on to my current job that I heard about from friends. But I still maintain when the well is dry. The “Hail Mary, Mail Bomb” is the way to go. There are other approaches as well discussed in several of the books.

My Uncle helps place Veterans in Jobs after they leave the service. He told me the best piece of advice to give anyone is to lock down their Facebook Profile. Even if you have nothing controversial or incriminating on it, lock it down tight. Lock it down so no outsider can see it. He said, it’s the number one the reasons he has been given on why a company won’t hire someone he is trying to help place.

More Reading Selections:
“Rhinoceros Success” by Scott Alexander
“Quitter” by John Acuff
“Fired to Hired” by Tory Johnson
“Good to Great” by Jim Collins
“No More Monday” by Dan Miller
“Flipping the Switch” by John G. Miller

That's my story and my 2 cents. Add yours to help those looking for work.

[boludo]

I will add another tip. It seems common sense, but you will surprise the number of people who send me resumes when applying for a job with unprofessional e-mail addresses. You can open an e-mail account for free, so take the time and create one that’s just your name and last name (even if all you are doing is adding the e-mail address to the top of you cover letter or resume).

[mustang67n]

I have to agree 100%, stuie. It's a lot about who you know. Every job I've ever worked has been because I knew someone who introduced me to an owner/manager of the company, except for one.

The one time I didn't know someone, I'd simply had good luck and walked into a store asking if they were hiring and a district manager was there and liked me. Hired me on the spot. The other times I'd known someone and it helped immensely.

The way I look at it.. if all you're doing is filling out apps online, you're really not putting that much energy into finding a job. Showing the extra initiative (like sending 22 letters to one company) shows that company how driven and determined you are.

If you put the energy out, you're bound to have things come back around for you.

[Chreees]

All I can say is:

1. It has a lot to do with what you know, as previously stated. This is actually how I got into the hotel business in the first place- My dad trained a woman who's uncle owned a hotel, and she knew he needed a new front desk clerk. Went in and got hired on the spot. The rest is history.

2. Persistence, persistence, persistence. Don't give up.

3. You may have to settle for something less than ideal temporarily until you can find something better. I think one reason why people scream about there not being any jobs is not the fact that there are no jobs, it's that people are too picky. In my weeks of job hunting, I can tell you there are a shitload of sales and insurance jobs out there. That's not what I'm looking for, I'd rather stay where I'm at currently, but for somebody who is desperate, it's a job and they should take it until they find something they like better.

[mustang67n]

^ yes.. definitely. I'm working as a pizza delivery driver now. It's definitely far from ideal, I spend a lot of money and time fixing my car, but it's ultimately paying the bills and is still leaving me some to save money while I look for a new,better job, or go back to school..

Gotta take what you can get and bide your time sometimes

[Pavo21]

right when i saw this chris you poped in my head, now i know this is a LONG shot. Have you thought of going back to school and changing ur degree well getting a new one so almost like a double major? or get a different minor like a AS in something to get your footin the door? since you have no kids its just u and ur wife it cant hurt. Just want better for you.

[Chreees]

I feel like more and more everyday it doesn't matter how much college education you have. I have friends with masters and doctorates who can't find jobs. So while I have thought about it, I decided I'm just going to try to find a job for now. If things aren't looking much better in the next two years, hopefully I will have saved up some money and can go back. That's my main deterrent- money.


Tapatalk'd via iPhone

[brphotoakes]

While education may not matter now a days, it still does play a decent role in the hiring process. Knowing people also helps, but that is just your foot into the next round of application pools. Education is something that shouldn't be overlooked. Maybe you wont find a job in your desired field, but it will grant you a bigger pay rate most of the time. The entry level position I applied for was open to people without degrees starting at 525/wk. But, since I had education on my side, I amlooking at about 100 or so more a week. Granted I am in my field of study (indirectly) and my education helped secure me the job, my education landed me the extra pay.

Persistence is key. It may seem a bit old fashioned, but even sending a thank you note to your interviewer after your interview not only shows them you are interested in the job, but also value the fact that they took their time to interview you.

[Tyler]

I have been looking for a REAL job for about 2 years now and have tried every possible way I could imagine. I've gotten a few bites from applying to University jobs but those are so hard to get as they generally have a pool of 10-50 thousand (yes, no joke, they really have this many). If you're lucky some university jobs will filter based on some guidelines, like the highest tier degree you have. After that it's all luck that the manager sees your application before someone else with slightly worse or equal credentials as you. I have noticed that since I added my MA degree and my TEFL certification I've been getting a lot more call backs than when I had just my BA degree. Also, returning to school and posting a higher GPA than your undergrad always looks better because it shows you're serious about your education, willing and able to put in the effort to improve and just generally willing to complete a goal and be committed. Also, don't be afraid of some programs like Teach For America, Teach Kentucky, Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, or job placement sites. I would stay away from Monster.com and other such resume sites as the only companies that will contact you through them are online job scams 95% of the time, 3% shit jobs and maybe 2% real opportunities. Always, always, ALWAYS follow up on an application 4-5 times. Do it. You may think you're bugging them but they become familiar with your name and how serious you are about the job.

[ezxen]

not 2 cents but stuie with book would you recomend starting with?

[Stuie]

what color is your parachute.