Surf 'n' Turf does not refer to Steak and Lobster in this particular instance. Rather, you are going to spend some time "surfing" the net and hitting the "turf" in your search for gainful employment.
As promised, I am providing some sites to visit in the ever on-going job search. Some of these sites have come directly from the Internet. Some were picked up at job fairs and some from the unemployment office. All three are excellent resources.
General Internet Sites
I find that the site that is most helpful to me is http://www.indeed.com/. Plug in a zip code and key word(s) for your search and see what comes up. The more different key words you enter, the more jobs will show up. For example, I selected "printing" and had several jobs pop up for printing companies in my area. If you find a job that you are interested in but do not have the time to fill out an application for at that moment, you can email the job posting to your personal email address. And, if you are helping a friend look, you can email the posting to them.
The site will remember where you have looked, meaning that you can choose to see only "new" jobs that have been posted since your last search.
The best part of indeed.com is that it pulls jobs from other search engines such as Monster, Career Builder and Yahoo, making it nearly a one stop shop site.
Government Job Sites
These sites are targeted toward Veteran's but can be used as entry ways for everyone. For you older vets, remember that just because you haven't served in the last ten years does not mean that your service doesn't count. It does. Once a vet, always a Vet.
First, check with your local Veteran's Rep at the unemployment office. Your rep will have a specific list of sites that are relevant to your state. For example, if you live in Illinois, you may want to access www.work.illinois.gov/vetsopgm. This is just one example of a site for Veterans. Check each site out that is on the list your rep provides.
Other great options for vets are national sites. The President's National Hire Veterans Committee is in charge of http://www.hirevetsfirst.gov/. For those fresh out of the military, this is a site you can use: www.CareerOneStop.org/MilitaryTransition. If your interest is in "going green" for your next job, try http://veteransgreenjobs.org/.
Job Fairs
There are job fairs held in your area or an area close to where you live. Make every attempt to attend as many as possible. Chances are good that you can get some "face time" with a representative from one of those companies that you have already applied to. Do not be bashful. Introduce yourself and do a mini interview on the spot. You'll have about two minutes to put your good stuff out there so go in prepared to talk about yourself and how your particular skill set and expertise will benefit/apply to the job you are interested in.
Call In Some Favors
Finally, put your pride aside and ask your friends and acquaintances (yes, acquaintances too) if they can give you a heads up about jobs locally. Ask if they can put in a good word for you with someone they know who is the regional president of a company. You never know what can happen.
Stay Positive
Since I haven't said that yet in this post, I thought I should go ahead. Remember that a thorough job search takes at least four hours of dedicated time each and every day. Rewrites of your resume and composition of a cover letter can up that time by another four hours. Essentially, while you are looking for work, that is your job.
Up next...The Unpleasant Truth as I experienced it.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Those Darned Euphemisms
So, here we are. At home, waiting for the phone to ring and that golden interview to be thrust into our open arms. How did we get to this place? You know, after having worked for most of our lives and believing that our life experiences, insights and our hard work ethic would continue to serve us into our final 20 years of work life?
Well, most likely you, like me, were: Laid-off, Canned, Fired, Kicked to the Curb, Downsized, Outsourced, Axed, Bounced, Discharged, Expelled, Dismissed (out of hand I might add), Let-go, Terminated, Sacked, Booted, Given the Old Heave-Ho....you get the idea. The short answer is that, one day we were employed and the next day we were not.
Once the shock, anger and feeling of injustice wears off, what do you do next? There are several options available, all of which require some soul searching and honesty with yourself.
Are you in a position to be without a job for a few months? If so, assess what it is that you really want to do with the rest of your working life. Those dreams of doing something meaningful that were sidetracked for an odd assortment of reasons might rise to the top again.
If that is the case, take this Opportunity to get back on track. Seek out jobs that directly relate to those long ago stashed dreams. Be true to yourself this time around. It is frightening because it may mean a complete career change at a time in your life when being comfortable is looking pretty darned good. It most likely will mean a pay cut. Get over it. Get out of the comfort zone. You will be healthier, and happier, for it in the long run.
Go back to school and complete your degree. Update your knowledge so that you are current and can compete with the fresh-faced whipper-snappers who are also competing for Your Job. If you filled out a FAFSA for your child you will already be familiar with the process. You will be required to fill one out for yourself as well. Don't delay. A FAFSA can be amended to more accurately reflect your current income. Visit the local college and get the details. I find that they really don't bite.
If you are a veteran, seek out veteran's reps for help with updating a resume, going back to school (most colleges have a veteran's rep) and general support. Again, these reps are helpful and can bring you back to a zone that makes you suck it up and realize that this is an opportunity.
Be patient...without being a bump on the "waiting for a job to be handed to me on a silver platter" log. In this job market it is going to take some time and dedication on our part to get back in the saddle.
If you are not in a position to sift through jobs for the "right" job, apply for jobs that most closely relate to what you have already been doing, as well as those jobs that are on the "wish list." This is not a "scatter-shot" approach but is a broader scope which will, hopefully, gain quicker employment that is still somewhat satisfying.
Since this is the holiday season, be up front with your children, significant others and extended family, about your ability to give gifts this year. Don't try to pretend that you still have an income that is far better than the unemployment payments you are receiving. Realistic expectations are a must, both for those you love and for yourself. After all, it isn't about the gifts. It is about the sharing of time, laughter and love. Pretty simple. Leave your pride outside in the cold.
Above all, avoid pessimism. It is quite easy to fall off the cliff into the abyss. Do not allow yourself that luxury since it is quite self defeating. Stay positive and good things will come.
If, by now you are wondering if I am still unemployed three months in, the answer is "Yep." I am not being Pollyanna. I am working this all out just like you are. I continue to believe that there is a job out there with my name on it. There is one for you too.
Tomorrow, I'll give you some web sites that I continue to find helpful in my search for meaningful employment.
Chin up Buck-a-roos.
Well, most likely you, like me, were: Laid-off, Canned, Fired, Kicked to the Curb, Downsized, Outsourced, Axed, Bounced, Discharged, Expelled, Dismissed (out of hand I might add), Let-go, Terminated, Sacked, Booted, Given the Old Heave-Ho....you get the idea. The short answer is that, one day we were employed and the next day we were not.
Once the shock, anger and feeling of injustice wears off, what do you do next? There are several options available, all of which require some soul searching and honesty with yourself.
Are you in a position to be without a job for a few months? If so, assess what it is that you really want to do with the rest of your working life. Those dreams of doing something meaningful that were sidetracked for an odd assortment of reasons might rise to the top again.
If that is the case, take this Opportunity to get back on track. Seek out jobs that directly relate to those long ago stashed dreams. Be true to yourself this time around. It is frightening because it may mean a complete career change at a time in your life when being comfortable is looking pretty darned good. It most likely will mean a pay cut. Get over it. Get out of the comfort zone. You will be healthier, and happier, for it in the long run.
Go back to school and complete your degree. Update your knowledge so that you are current and can compete with the fresh-faced whipper-snappers who are also competing for Your Job. If you filled out a FAFSA for your child you will already be familiar with the process. You will be required to fill one out for yourself as well. Don't delay. A FAFSA can be amended to more accurately reflect your current income. Visit the local college and get the details. I find that they really don't bite.
If you are a veteran, seek out veteran's reps for help with updating a resume, going back to school (most colleges have a veteran's rep) and general support. Again, these reps are helpful and can bring you back to a zone that makes you suck it up and realize that this is an opportunity.
Be patient...without being a bump on the "waiting for a job to be handed to me on a silver platter" log. In this job market it is going to take some time and dedication on our part to get back in the saddle.
If you are not in a position to sift through jobs for the "right" job, apply for jobs that most closely relate to what you have already been doing, as well as those jobs that are on the "wish list." This is not a "scatter-shot" approach but is a broader scope which will, hopefully, gain quicker employment that is still somewhat satisfying.
Since this is the holiday season, be up front with your children, significant others and extended family, about your ability to give gifts this year. Don't try to pretend that you still have an income that is far better than the unemployment payments you are receiving. Realistic expectations are a must, both for those you love and for yourself. After all, it isn't about the gifts. It is about the sharing of time, laughter and love. Pretty simple. Leave your pride outside in the cold.
Above all, avoid pessimism. It is quite easy to fall off the cliff into the abyss. Do not allow yourself that luxury since it is quite self defeating. Stay positive and good things will come.
If, by now you are wondering if I am still unemployed three months in, the answer is "Yep." I am not being Pollyanna. I am working this all out just like you are. I continue to believe that there is a job out there with my name on it. There is one for you too.
Tomorrow, I'll give you some web sites that I continue to find helpful in my search for meaningful employment.
Chin up Buck-a-roos.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Middle-aged and Unemployed
Well, I find myself creeping up on 90 days of unemployment. My, how time flies when you are catching up on 10 years of Law and Order: SVU.
It isn't for lack of trying to find something meaningful, reliable and indoors. Indoors is big these days since my joints predict the coming weather patterns better than any computer can. I could, however, take something outside if it meant that I could maintain the lifestyle to which I have become accustomed: living in a house and paying my bills.
I have had a lot of time to think about how this has turned out and there are some benefits (seriously).
For example, I now have no excuse whatsoever for not accomplishing items that need to be done around the house. Gutter cleaning, leaf raking, closet de-junking, exercise. I have completed most of these things and many more (exercise is still on the "to-do list).
I have lost about 20 pounds, not because I have tried. Most likely it is because I am not guzzling an $800.00 dollar cup of Mocha Caramel Fruity Tooty Java Goody each and every morning on my way to work. I am not in an office that has such a broad variety of sweets that a dentist or two should be on constant stand-by, access to Chinese food of the Americanized type and stress. Stress is a big one.
Which brings me to a revelation that I have had, a not-so-small epiphany of the life changing kind. I didn't enjoy what I was doing. I detested the office politics, back-stabbing coworkers and the unwritten laws of who gets what kissed, when and how often.
The health insurance industry is, not so surprisingly, mainly female with the exception of the top brass. It is also a wickedly difficult arena to navigate, which surprised me since I am, and have been, a female all of my life.
I am a straight-forward sort. Give me a job to do and then get the heck out of my way. Give me a job to do and then hog-tie me and I get more than a little grumpy. I don't do "nuance" very well. I worked hard to make it in such male dominated industries as the print industry and the United States Marine Corps (Semper Fi). Male dominated industries are, from my experience, pretty straight forward.
I actually WANT to be successful, want to love my job as though it was an extension of myself, want to make a difference. Making a difference sure seems to be an out-dated ideology. Maybe I am a hippie hold over, a Beat generation wanna be, a graying T-Rex who still believes that putting your brain and heart together makes the best employee, leader and produces the best results.
I have many applications out on the web. Face to face would be better but the world has long since moved on from that archaic screening process.
During my next post I will begin a series of "lessons learned and helpful hints and tips" for those who find themselves in the same situation as Moi. Perhaps we T-Rexes can learn a bit from each other. In the meantime, stay positive and remember that there are others who are worse off than you are...for now anyway.
It isn't for lack of trying to find something meaningful, reliable and indoors. Indoors is big these days since my joints predict the coming weather patterns better than any computer can. I could, however, take something outside if it meant that I could maintain the lifestyle to which I have become accustomed: living in a house and paying my bills.
I have had a lot of time to think about how this has turned out and there are some benefits (seriously).
For example, I now have no excuse whatsoever for not accomplishing items that need to be done around the house. Gutter cleaning, leaf raking, closet de-junking, exercise. I have completed most of these things and many more (exercise is still on the "to-do list).
I have lost about 20 pounds, not because I have tried. Most likely it is because I am not guzzling an $800.00 dollar cup of Mocha Caramel Fruity Tooty Java Goody each and every morning on my way to work. I am not in an office that has such a broad variety of sweets that a dentist or two should be on constant stand-by, access to Chinese food of the Americanized type and stress. Stress is a big one.
Which brings me to a revelation that I have had, a not-so-small epiphany of the life changing kind. I didn't enjoy what I was doing. I detested the office politics, back-stabbing coworkers and the unwritten laws of who gets what kissed, when and how often.
The health insurance industry is, not so surprisingly, mainly female with the exception of the top brass. It is also a wickedly difficult arena to navigate, which surprised me since I am, and have been, a female all of my life.
I am a straight-forward sort. Give me a job to do and then get the heck out of my way. Give me a job to do and then hog-tie me and I get more than a little grumpy. I don't do "nuance" very well. I worked hard to make it in such male dominated industries as the print industry and the United States Marine Corps (Semper Fi). Male dominated industries are, from my experience, pretty straight forward.
I actually WANT to be successful, want to love my job as though it was an extension of myself, want to make a difference. Making a difference sure seems to be an out-dated ideology. Maybe I am a hippie hold over, a Beat generation wanna be, a graying T-Rex who still believes that putting your brain and heart together makes the best employee, leader and produces the best results.
I have many applications out on the web. Face to face would be better but the world has long since moved on from that archaic screening process.
During my next post I will begin a series of "lessons learned and helpful hints and tips" for those who find themselves in the same situation as Moi. Perhaps we T-Rexes can learn a bit from each other. In the meantime, stay positive and remember that there are others who are worse off than you are...for now anyway.
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