What's Next?!

Ok, so I've neglected the blog a little lately and I'm sorry. I know it went against my original intentions to ALWAYS keep you informed of the good and the bad, but I've been in such a slump the past two weeks that the bad just seemed too bad, too whiny to post. The stress of school work coupled with the sinking realization that the "G" word (graduation) is quickly and truly approaching left me a bit down in the dumps, not to be overly cliche. I have always been somewhat of a control freak, (ok total understatement, I AM a control freak, I like to things in order and I need to have a plan) so the prospect of giving up my beloved routine and my life at SLU in exchange for, well nothing right now, is nerve racking and absolutely anxiety-provoking.

However, I finally took my own advice, NETWORK, NETWORK, NETWORK. My cousin Barry Shrage is the President of Combined Jewish Philanthropies in Boston, and has said before that he would be willing to help direct me to people and organizations after I graduate. I'm extremely interested in working for non-profit organizations, especially for organizations whose values I share and missions I support. My own Jewish community has always been a major influence on my life and a strong support system as I was growing up. My love of the Jewish community inspired me to begin looking for/applying administrative assistant roles within Jewish organizations to get my feet wet and see if this is an area I would like to work in. 

This morning I got up the courage to email Barry and ask for his input and advice. I don't know why I have such a hard time asking for help, but it has never been my strong suit. Anyway, long story short, and with Sarah's reassurance, I sent him an email with my resume attached. To my surprise, Barry called me about 10 minutes later eager to be of help and promising to send my resume out to some people he knows. Whaaaaat? I feel SO lucky! Could this be the break I've needed? Whether anything comes from it or not, this  is the "PULL RACHEL OUT OF HER SLUMP NOW"that I've needed. I'm suddenly re-energized and reinvigorated and admittedly excited at the opportunities that will certainly come, if not from this from something. and they will come, I'm sure of it. 




 

I spent the first part of last weekend in NYC for EECD NY and my two, very much anticipated, interviews. I nervously practiced answering potential interview questions in my head the whole train ride to the city, and even found myself making a game out of trying to write down as many positive character attributes about myself as I could. Dorky, I know. As it turns out, while I'm not so optimistic that I'll get jobs out of the weekend, I sure left with some valuable experiences. 

For starters, how about the Alumni Networking Event. I walked by myself into a room full of important-looking alumni and knew almost no one. If finding the courage to walk up to strangers (involved in their own conversations) and introducing yourself doesn't build character, then what does? I also  managed to navigate the subway by myself uptown, downtown and uptown again. The  interviews themselves were nerve-racking. The first was nothing like I expected, and I struggled to get the interviewer to give me a chance to actually talk about my experiences. Awkward. The second interview went much better, despite an embarrassing snag in the middle. Out of nowhere my voice cracked and left, and I found myself coughing/choking while trying to answer a question about how I work as a team. Uhhhh. The interviewer asked me if I needed water while I, turning bright red, tried to recover my voice. What a fluke. I'm hoping that the embarrassment didn't hurt my chances too much, and I felt that I at least articulated myself well for the rest of the interview. But the whole time all I could think was, "Really Rachel, REALLY? Did that just happen?!" UGH. Luckily, the interviewer seemed impressed by the end of the interview, but I was left frustrated. She informed me that there were no positions available at this time, and I would simply be added to the company's college recruiting database. "Perhaps there would be something available in a couple months?" she said. I was left with one final character-building moment, sitting at a cafe near penn-station to grab lunch by myself. It was the first time I'd ever sat down and eaten by myself, and it's something I've always feared. Silly, I know, but true. I soaked in the atmosphere on Fashion Ave. before my long trip back to Canton. 

While I may not have found a job, I did gain valuable experiences--and to me, that made the weekend a success, no matter what. Character Building. I feel like they're will be a lot more of that in my future.

My post a few weeks ago about identity theft/job post scams, rang a little to close to home in the middle of last week. A scammer caught a hold of my innocent, somewhat naive, and very much job-wanting roommate. Her desire to be employed overcame her common sense after receiving a congratulatory message that she had been selected as the top candidate for a job she applied to. One more tiny step and the job would be hers, the email promised. She was directed to a website to fill out a credit report, just so the company could "be sure she managed her finances well." In a moment blinded by the supreme prospect of having a job, she typed in all of her information, bank account and social security numbers and all.

A few hours later she went back to research the company--which didn't exist. The phone number given was disconnected, the website wasn't there, and the person who signed the letter couldn't be found. The horror of what she'd done sunk in, and her embarrassment was more intense than her shock. She couldn't believe she was taken advantage of like that, and that she had been naive enough to fall for the scam. Luckily, she realized the fraud quickly enough to shut down her accounts and avoid too much damage being done. Lesson learned and time to be extra careful. It's hard to accept that people will hit you while you're down (I mean, how sleazy to pick on the unemployed!) but it happens, and we have to be aware of the scams out there. Some things are too good to be true, so be careful if you get a job too easily, or an employer wants information that they shouldn't need. 

p.s. T-minus 3 days until my interviews for ECCD in NYC! 

    I've used the analogy before, but job searching is truly the definition of a roller coaster ride; It has it's ups and downs and bumps in between, it's both thrilling and terrifying and sometimes it makes you want to vomit and other times it's exciting and fun. Last week, my best friend rode full-speed into the low, sickening blows of the roller coaster and got rejected from the job that everyone was sure she would get. She had the qualifications, the network connections, the experience, and the passion on top of a carefully composed cover letter and a phone interview that left her confident and glowing. I was already preparing myself for losing my best friend to her new research job in Wyoming...too far away from me in my selfish taste, but cheering her on all the same. She was the perfect candidate, the job was hers. That is, until five days later when she received the most generic of rejection emails--not even getting the courtesy phone call she was promised.
    Her eyes welled with tears as she read the note that clearly was the same to everyone who had applied, her name stamped at the top, and ending with a dangling, "good luck in the future" leaving her feeling slightly shattered and even more hopeless. "If I can't get the job that I'm qualified for and have personal connections to, how am I going to ever get any job?" she bemoaned. I, usually full of cliches, quotes, and comforting advice, was at a loss for words. She was right. She should have gotten that job...now what? More disappointing news from other friends, made for quite the pity party/ben & jerry's feast in my townhouse living room last night. My friend Heather finally burst out with her own, homemade analogy. "Guys, it's like playing soccer," she urged. "Sometimes you have to take 10 shots on goal to make just one. But every time you make that shot, you think it's going to go in, it has to. Sometimes, a lot of times, it doesn't go in. But you know that  you'll eventually get the ball into the net, make that goal--that's why you keep playing the game." We all burst out in laughter from her sudden, motivational soapbox speech. But she was right, and her words were perfect. We resolved to stop feeling sorry for ourselves and start taking  more shots on goal and that was the end of the self-pitying...though we did finish the ice cream.




P.S. Less than 9 weeks to graduation. ahhhh!

Guess what?! I landed 2 INTERVIEWS through ECCD NY, both at major publishing firms! The endless resume revisions and cover letter editing is finally starting to pay off. And now, it's finally starting to click and my hard work feels worth it. Yes, there is still a long road ahead, more jobs to apply to, cover letters to write, but in the meantime at least I know that putting in your all does get results. Not to mention, I can now feel confident that, contrary to my prior beliefs, I am a qualified candidate and companies do want to interview me! So now, I'm doing a little preemptive spring-break basking-- in the bragging rights, and it feels so good.

Let the interview prep begin!

It's been hard enough as it is trying to find positions to apply to that I'm actually qualified for but then I find out this: job-search scammers have been on the rise due to the economic recession. According to an article in Time Magazine (link below), authorities have seen a surge in new cases of scam artists advertising fake jobs in order to steal personal information from innocent job seekers. Are you kidding me?What kind of cruel person takes advantage of those who are already unemployed? Websites like craigslist are particularly vulnerable to fraudulent postings. However, there are a number of ways to spot job scams. Check out the list below, and the article from Time Magazine and make sure to be a cautious searcher. No experience required and starting salary of 100,000 IS too good to be true. Time Article

20 Sure Signs that a Job Post could be one of the Craig's List Job Scams

1. It has a generic, over-used or vague job title. Admin Assistant or Customer Service Rep are popular ones.
2. The jobs that indicate that "Telecommuting is Ok". This attracts many people and gives them more responses.
3. They fail to list a specific location for the job - i.e. they list no location under the city or area that you are searching.
4. They list a salary or hourly wage that seems too good to be true or too specific like $13.64 - 34.23 / hour. What the...?
5. They list it as a government job.
6. They post a job with a title that doesn't match the description.
7. They use strange sentences or misspellings.
8. A search for that job title in Google - example "Admin Assistant Craig's List" and comes up in many other cities with the exact same job post. Because Craig's List is free - they can easily post the same bogus job post in every city.
9. If the description has a bunch of exclamation points and promises high income in one week.
10. If the description boldly states "No Experience Necessary" but has a promise of high pay.
11. There is no job contact information. A quality job post will tell you who to email or give you a valid company website.
12. A link that is to a home business or multi level marketing opportunity website. This isn't a JOB - but a business venture. If you were looking for a home business opportunity you would have searched that category.
13. A link that redirects you to another site.
14. A link that takes you to a job membership site and asks you to register.
15. A quick response to your email inquiry that tells you they have reviewed your resume when you didn't even send it.
16. A quick response to your email inquiry that leads you to another website that promises you more job openings - like government jobs. Click after click - nothing but a time waster...
17. A response to your email inquiry that asks you to sign up for a web-conferencing service so you can be part of a training call.
18. A response to your email inquiry with a name and company that does not exist.
19. A response to your email inquiry from someone in a foreign country looking to hire people in the United States to handle accounts payable or receivables.
20. The same auto response to all of your emails. There isn't a real person at the other end of the email account. 

Information from:  Hubpages.com

Ok, so hopefully 21 isn't mid-life...but crisis and meltdowns certainly sound fitting (though, perhaps dramatic) during this whole job search process. 


prime example-- facebook post from my best friend over winter break:
"dear rach, i just had my first job search meltdown :( probably going to be the first of many. i misssss you, i neeeeeed you. and i will see you tomorrow, but you should still chat with me tonight, love love" 


First job search meltdown...of many to come? Yes. Amidst job database after database, changing key words, and locations in hopes of finding something new, the results can  be over (or under)whelming. Coupled with pressure from family and friends, plus maintaining your campus activities, job, and coursework, finding a job often feels like a fifth class. It's absolutely stressful--no wonder my friends and I are all taking turns being emotional wrecks. But enough negativity and complaining. It's time to pull myself together--and for you to pull yourself together-- and get in the game. Sending in the first job application was the hardest, but now, little by little, it's getting easier. The more proactive I am, the better I feel, and the fewer "mid-life crisis" I have. Worrying about next year without actually doing anything is useless. Put the fear behind you and crank out some cover letters. Now, let's just hope all of the hard work pays off...