Thursday, August 7, 2014

Rant of the Day: Job Hunting



I did another vlog today and this time it's a rant!

If you'd like to watch me rant about jobs, you can do so here.

If you prefer to read my rant, here is the text version for your perusal.

Hi everyone! Lanie here.
 Today I want to talk about something we’ve all probably been through.
 Unless you’re a rich trust fund kid whose dad hired them straight out of college and put them on the fast track to CEO.
 But you probably aren’t that. So you’ve probably had to endure the job search.
 Sometimes, finding a job is easy. Sometimes, it isn’t so easy. Usually it’s the second one. Especially if you have a resume like mine, which has the word theatre in it a lot.
 Here’s some backstory:
 In March of this year, I left my job at an awesome theatre company in the Chicago suburbs. I left for a lot of reasons. Mostly, because it was a part time job with unpredictable hours, which lead me to unpredictable pay. At 25, I was ready for a more stable job. I was lucky enough to be able to take a little time off to reevaluate my life plan, so I left that job for some R&R, and a wedding. I had my wedding and still wasn’t having any luck finding a job. So I’m still here, mostly unemployed.
 I think the most frustrating thing about job hunting isn’t finding the job opportunities. With my wide skill set, there were plenty of jobs for me to apply for. The problem was, I wasn’t hearing anything from anyone once I applied for them. That can be really disheartening when you’re applying for maybe 5 jobs a day and putting a lot of time and thought into cover letters and your resume. I have spent countless hours wondering what I’m doing wrong only to come to the conclusion that, as far as I know, I’m not doing anything wrong except maybe not being pushy enough when I apply.
 Hello, I was calling to check up on the job availability I applied for 2 weeks ago. [pause] Yes, that’s me. [pause] Yes, I did call last week. [pause] Hello? Hello?!
 That can be really frustrating. Both for me and for the prospective employer. So, unless I know my email is not going to solicit a response, I generally don’t like to call employers after I’ve applied. From watching my previous employer go through the hiring process, I know that most (if not all) of the resumes and cover letters will get reviewed. If you’re getting a call, that means you made an impression, which points the finger right back at me.
 So, as you can see, the whole process has been very frustrating. And I’m on my last nerve with the whole thing.
 Maybe I’ll just be a housewife
 I can’t be a housewife. It’s 2014. So I have to do something differently.
 So today I went to a staffing agency, took a bunch of administrative tests that tested my typing speed and skill, customer service knowledge, and logical thinking skills. Now they’re going to try to find a job for me. And maybe they can do a better job than I can. I don’t know.
 But this whole thing would have been far less discouraging and frustrating if I would just get an email back about a job every so often. To know that my resume is being seen and appreciated, even if you don’t pick me for the job.
 And that has been my rant of the day. Remember to subscribe for more from me. And follow me on Twitter and Facebook at the links below. You guys are awesome and I appreciate you listening to me. If you have any opinions or comment on my rants or anything else I post, don’t hesitate to comment or respond with a vlog of your own.
 This is Lanie. Out.
You can see all of my vlogs by visiting my YouTube channel.

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