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Any suggestions on how to get a job?


Gryphon
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Well, it's certainly not for lack of trying but I need a job. I need a job yesterday.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how I can get a job fast? Any job?

Ever day I Scour Monster.com, Flipdog.com and CareerBuilder.com. And, of course, a few others every other day. I send out at least a dozen resumes every day, usually twenty. I have scoured numerous books and websites on how to write and format your cover letter/resume and I'm up to speed on that.

I just can't get a job. I mean, *ANY* job. Heck, I applied to be a garbage collector and never heard back. I was a professional copywriter, technical writer and journalist. I have sales and marketing skills. I know Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Photoshop and just about all the software worth mentioning at a professional level.

And no one is so much as writing back to say, "No, thanks."

I am literally at a point where I have to take something - anything - or I've destroyed our lives. I got us into this mess. My wife is relying on me to clean it up. I've tried every day for three months. I planned for this day years ago, even saved up enough money to last through a year of unemployment. We're down to three months.

And yeah, I guess I do need to vent and share my sob story.

So. Any ideas on how I can get a job yesterday? Thanks.

Erik

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Sorry to hear that. Some suggestions you may wish to take with a grain of salt.

Concession person/ticket taker. Small rush, clean the lobby, two hour break between films.

Pizza delivery. Gotta have a good car that gets good gas mileage to be worth it but always a little cash in the pocket. (tips)

Civil service. Go down to your county or city personnel board and see if they have anything.

Temp service. See if a temporary service can hire you out. Some of those work to permanent jobs sometimes.

The first two are more for teenagers but that's all I got. Hope it helps.

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Always, always wear clothes to the interview. People say the first thing they look at is your attitude, but it's always whether you're wearing clothes or not. On a personal note, I recently applied to a gas station, the guy wanted me to stand out by the pump, clean peoples windows for them, and help them pump their gas if necessary. My thinking is, if you can't pump your own goddamn gas, you shouldn't be driving anyway. Needless to say, I didn't take that job. But, you should always wear clothes. That's important.

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quote:

Originally posted by Hades:

Always,
always
wear clothes to the interview. People say the first thing they look at is your attitude, but it's always whether you're wearing clothes or not. On a personal note, I recently applied to a gas station, the guy wanted me to stand out by the pump, clean peoples windows for them, and help them pump their gas if necessary. My thinking is, if you can't pump your own goddamn gas, you shouldn't be driving anyway. Needless to say, I didn't take that job. But, you should always wear clothes. That's important.

Well wearing clothes only gets you so far depending on the field of interest if you are

seeking a postion as a porn star for instance.

Anyway, in this economic period jobs are rarer than alien abductions.

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Firstoff, dont rely on internet sites. They usually get you nowhere.

The good ol' ads-in-paper work best, particularly if you show in person to apply.

My suggestion would be to look for call center jobs.. they are not as taxing physically and in general offer rather decent wages (and by that i mean if the minimum wage in your state is..say, $7.50 an hour, you will likely get 8,9 or 10 an hour in a call center..more if its tech support).

Pizza delivery is fast money but it wears you out quick, not to mention your car.

Good luck bud!

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Guest Grayfox

if i may add to this.

i recently just came off of a loooong job drought. all the advice i can offer is canvas canvas canvas.

start beating feet and putting in the applications everywhere. if you dont want to take a certain job thats offered to you because "it aint you" swallow your pride and take it. at least youll have cash in your pocket, benefits, and you can still look for a better paying job on your days off.

also most states have their own state job help website. the one here in illinois is pretty squared away. check this out to see what i mean. you check everything you can do from this huge list of abilities (sounds like an RPG) and employers take a look and youll get a notification if you get a hit or not. its kinda like monster or flipdog, but its waaaaaay better. i usually have around 3-4 hits a month.

good luck!

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Security Guard

Pizza Delivery

Truck Driver (always hiring if you have a clean record. Look for nearest CDL academy)

If you can wait 8 weeks, apply for a Merchant Marine license to work offshore. It pays about $4000 a month.

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Sorry to hear about it mate.

In much the same situation myself. I went self employed about 3 years ago and it has not been a good three years.

I have had a few occasions where I have been out of work all I can say is take anything that is out there - personally I got a job delivering pizzas for a local company which helped keep food on the table at least.

Hang on in there I know it's seems hard but keep your spirits up, something will come along

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Sorry to hear that Gry, I wasn't able to get a summer job either = kept on getting told that I need to know a certain language to get this job or that.. but I won't elaborate on that

Anywho try the military they will never let you down *Unless you fail the Asvab test, which you can't really fail it.. you can only get a low score, however im not even sure they'll allow you to try with those type of skills.. but ya never know*

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I know how you feel Gryphon, except I am getting quite a nice unemployment check every week.

First off, Monster and all of them are crap, they don't work at all.

You need to find your local newsapapers site and concentrate on that. If you absolutley are gonna use the internet for your job search.

the Temp agencies are a good advice as well, they are ALWAYS hiring people that have good MS Office skills.

If you are in absolute dire need, take ANYTHING that you can get.

At one point I was working 3 part time jobs to get the money to flow in, until I found the full time job I was looking for, then I walked away from the part time work and didn't look back.

Also, NETWORK, NETWORK, NETWORK...

If there is a group in your area with your industry in mind, go to their meetings, EVERY meeting and introduce yourself and make as MANY contacts as possible.

I am a member of the EMA,Electronic manufacturers association, ERA Electronic representatives Association and I NEVER miss a meeting. The contacts you make there are invaluable. If there are any open jobs, this is where you will learn that they exist.

80% of jobs are NEVER advertised, they are given to people that are recommended from within the industry.

NETWORK, NETWORK, NETWORK!!!

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quote:


Originally posted by Most:

The military will never let u down....


Really?!? Lets not even go down that path of discussion.

quote:


Originally posted by Hades:

Always,
always
wear clothes to the interview. People say the first thing they look at is your attitude, but it's always whether you're wearing clothes or not. On a personal note, I recently applied to a gas station, the guy wanted me to stand out by the pump, clean peoples windows for them, and help them pump their gas if necessary. My thinking is, if you can't pump your own goddamn gas, you shouldn't be driving anyway. Needless to say, I didn't take that job. But, you should always wear clothes. That's important.


Alright, knock if off Hades, this is serious!

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The first time I read it I thought he was serious...

Anyway the temp agency sounds good. I usually hit the unemployment office every year to see who is hiring.

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quote:

Originally posted by Supreme Cmdr:

Really?!? Lets not even go down that path of discussion.


Maybe i should create another topic about this SC, i'm a devoted defender of the military...i'll even defend the Navy...sometimes.

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quote:

Originally posted by Supreme Cmdr:

quote:

Originally posted by Most:

[qb] The military will never let u down....

Really?!? Lets not even go down that path of discussion.


No offense SC, but why do I get this feeling you had a bad experience with the military, or uhh should I just keep my big yap shut?
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quote:


Originally posted by Most:

Maybe i should create another topic about this SC,


No, lets not. The political and religion forums are bad enough.

quote:


i'm a devoted defender of the military...i'll even defend the Navy...sometimes.

Of course and there's nothing wrong with that.

Anyway I think people are probably reading more into what I wrote than I originally intended. Not that I care, but the point I was making is that I take exception to your statement about the military not letting him down. There are countless stories of the military letting people down than I care to mention. So, lets not wear blinkers on this ok? I've got nothing against the military; I simply took exception to your statement, thats all.

And no, I'm personally not ex-military either (unless you consider my stint in GALCOM, time served ); though several members of my immediate family (one such member is currently assigned to the White House, incidentally) are.

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I think Jag's advice is pretty good and I might add that Fox's reference to State employment websites is a good place to start. I think checking out municipal and county websites and personnel offices is a good choice too. Even with this shitty economy, cities and counties are still hiring. The key is an almost maniac like persistence. Call an update applications send thank you notes repeatedly.

Also ask your friends and relatives who work in midsized or large businesses to check the internal postings at thier jobs. Rather than simply listing references, ask each reference to write or sign a prewritten letter of reference.

If you have as many turndowns as you say you have, make sure you check to see how previous employers are verifying your employement. It seems as though someone has given you a less than sterling reference. If you had to leave a job under bad circumstances ask a coworker or manager to write a personal reference for you. This is not a professional recommendation but it can show that someone of authority thinks highly of you. If you cant do that ask if the personnel director can refrain from doing anything but verifying dates of employment. By law that is all are legally required to do, however some Human resource directors ask coded questions like " would you rehire this person to work for you?" If you suspect this is the case you might want to suggest you are hiring a lawyer to investigate possible defamation. I know this sounds drastic, but if someone is giving you a bad reference it is going to be very very hard to get a new job.

Lastly, if you have professional placement agency in town check it out. i know they charge a fee for finding you a job but it might be worth a shot. Don't get down on yourself. The most important thing you can do is remember that no matter how many no's you get there is a yes out there waiting. Don't let the negativity get to you.

When I first moved to Pgh I went seven months without a job, ate in a soup kitchen and cut grass for a living. If I learned one thing it was stay positive no matter what.Employers can smell the scent of desperation a mile away. Good luck and keep your head up.

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I think the guy meant personal presentation when he said 'clothes'.

And he's right if so. Showing up in a wifebeater shirt and pale jeans to a job interview will not get you the same points as the one that goes in suit and tie..even if you hold a doctorate in gizmotekniks and he does not.

The military aint bad either. The problem is that naasty 4 or 5 year 'contract'

"If you can wait 8 weeks, apply for a Merchant Marine license to work offshore. It pays about $4000 a month"

huh? links? Never heard of this.

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quote:

You forgot one thing DRILL SERGEANTS!!! Six weeks of them would drive anyone crazy!!


What are you talking about? 6 weeks? What is that?

Baby boot camp, how about 8 weeks and then 12 weeks for the marines.

6 weeks is NOTHING compared to that.

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