Job search strategy discussion thread

I am aware of all that. which is why I added "when you are desperate"

I'm just laying it down for people who are considering it. Call centers already have lightning speed turnover rates, but most of them come from people being utterly unprepared for what they signed up for.

Yeah, it seems like as long as you can put up with the mental stress and aren't totally incompetent, anyone can do that work, it's just that most people either don't find the stress worth it or are, indeed, that bad at it.

I'm fine for the moment, i may stress, it's just temp work, however, which is brings the continued stress of feeling like you're living on borrowed time. I just need someone to set me up permanent, is all.

I was looking at freelance grantwriting today, and that sounds awesome, although it's probably a shark-tank of competition. But the nice part is that you can get a start doing it as a volunteer, and can maybe get some successful fundings under your belt before trying to strike off on your own.

Applied for two other internships (one full-time, one part-time) at two groups in a city a few km from my place. In both cases, I've called and they told me I have to wait for the period of processing applications to end, before they call me to set an interview. They will likely be set next week (hopefully).

Good stuff.

Had a very promising interview yesterday. If i read their email right and they're not just being deceptively polite or something, they already think they want me back for a second round. Have another good-looking one today (where they called me hours after i submitted my application).

I feel so close.

Keep on keeping on, folks!

Waiting for whether I get a job in the risk management firm as my first job. Dad was helped out by business partner slash buddy to potentially get me a job at a local Mc Donalds place in Manila since it's going to be open soon in some other place as my "potential" first job if it goes well...

Not exactly the dream job I'm after, but I don't know if I want to stay there considering I made plans to study again to get back to university again and use the college credits as makeup.

Have to bus over to Baltimore tomorrow for an interview on Monday with a nice-looking place. Have to make sure i really wow them, though.

Made it! The neighborhood for the interview is incredible.

edited 28th Feb '16 3:11:18 PM by Ogodei

A nice view out the window is also a job perk.

Fuckers rejected me on a Sunday, that's like going out of your way to shit on someone.

At least it's a fast turnaround, and i didn't want to move anyway, but damn. $250 on that trip (though my parents covered $200 of that) down the damn drain.

When is this just going to be over? I've had 9 in-person interviews since i graduated, and only the temp job worked out, with the clock ticking on that.

Looks like the company got back to me via email and asked me if I'm still interested to be a research analyst. Also offered mee a job as a sub-editior, though an assessment is required.

Those sound like good offers, nice to hear you've gotten around to it.

Scheduled another interview for next week, had one and a phone screen this week, still plugging away.

Indeed. I was fucking scared that I can't get a job in my early 30s and the part time job my old mans cooking up is to help oversee a Mc Donald's branch somewhere in the Philippines.

I got a call earlier today from some place talking about a position in Human Resources, and they gave me an address and a person's name to talk to.

Then I googled the address to find it and it turned out to be from the same shitty real estate firm that 's called me before this year. They're apparently going by a different name now, but that was also the case the last time I went there. I think it was even the same person's name they gave me.

Basically what happens is they give you a time and place and even straight up tell you they want to interview you for a position, then you get there and it's a bunch of people in a room waiting around, after a few minutes you basically get shepherded into a big room with a bunch of people and then they feed you corporate propaganda and try to sell you on the idea of working for them, as an independent selling real estate, where you have exhausting work hours, only make money if you succeed in selling something, and you have no benefits whatsoever. On top of that you need to actually pay for a course in some institution (about 600 reais, a pretty hefty amount of money for someone who's unemployed) to even be able to work.

Like, how about no and fuck you for lying to me?

It was already a waste of time for me the first two times I got called for this (the only reason I even stayed for the bullshit the first time was because the business' name was different, and I didn't realize what it was), but I googled their name out of spite just now to commiserate with other annoyed people and didn't even think about people who must have received these calls but live much further away from me. I can get to and back from the place in question with like a 25 minute walk for each trip, but people actually waste bus money and much longer amounts of time to get there to be offered something that is basically useless for the vast majority of people, all based on a complete lie.

Sorry about the long story, this honestly just pisses me off.

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In other news, I am currently studying for an exam that makes you eligible for a government position. The pay and benefits are pretty good, certainly much better pay than I would get for pretty much any entry level job. I honestly have pretty bad studying habits but the exam is still two months away and I seem to be settling into a groove that makes it easier for me to get things done, so hopefully I will do ok.

My brother actually managed to get hired to work at a movie theater like 2 days ago, I honestly envy him because all my interviews usually led to nothing over the past few years, the only job i've been able to get is shitty call center work which I quit as soon as my trial period was done. I'm honestly getting concerned because I don't have a degree, and no job experience, and i'm already 23. I worry what will happen if I don't get something soon.

edited 10th Mar '16 8:26:03 PM by wehrmacht

Any employer who asks money from you is always a fraud, no exceptions. It's the ultimate red flag.

I'm sure you know this, I'm just stating it for the thread.

I'm 23, my degree is unfinished(read - might as well not have one) and I have like 5 months of official experience total. It's not uncommon, and I'm employed now. It's not impossible, though I absolutely understand that it feels like that, and I used to feel like that as well.

Focus on that exam, if it's for a job you really want.

Movie theaters are shiiiiiet jobs though... don't be that jealous.

edited 11th Mar '16 12:19:29 AM by Luminosity

I didn't have a good steady job until I was nearly forty. These things can be survived.

What werhmacht's describing isn't atypical for real-estate. The bottom-feeders of the industry are licensed independent realtors, people who aren't doing it 9 to 5 and aren't on anybody's payroll, which is why pay becomes 100% commission. What they'll then do is loop you into their network for sales leads so that they can have someone do the selling for them without having to take any responsibility for that person's failures (e.g., they never pay them anyway, that all comes from the transaction).

For someone really looking for work, it's about as scammy as those other "be your own boss" type situations, but it's good for people like homemakers who have some extra time on their hands and do a lot of networking (a "soccer mom" who talks with a lot of people and knows who's looking).

I don't really have an issue with the position itself, it's of no interest to me whatsoever, but so are a lot of other jobs. The scummy part is that they lie, scheduling an interview for you for a position that doesn't even exist, so you waste your time going over there and listen to them do their sales pitch, hoping that even if most people leave pissed off some people will either be suckered in by their lofty promises or they'll find one of the few people who are genuinely interested and have the connections and skills to actually make it a viable enterprise.

The second time I went there, the director put up a small presentation for I think about 20 minutes, and then invited everyone who wasn't interested to leave. I left pretty much as soon as he was done talking and so did most people in the room. Our country's economy is pretty shitty atm (what country's isn't amirite), so people want steady, safe work so they can provide for their families. Like I said earlier, people who are unemployed and struggling to get by waste time, money and other opportunities to attend this bullshit, so I just find it an incredibly skeevy form of recruitment that colors my entire perception of the company. If by some chance I ever WAS in a position to buy real estate, I certainly would be hesitant in purchasing anything from them.

So i think i was offered a temp-to-hire by the local Opera (Individual Giving and Data Associate, basically donor relations). Basically they're admitting that they're taking their sweet time looking for the right candidate, but they also need someone doing that work now, and they like me from the early candidates. They were very clear that it did not guarantee i would get hired at the end of it all, but pointed out that it would give me something of an inside track because then i would have direct experience in all the competencies of the job, and if they liked me and i showed a good ethic, then that helps put me above people they interview in the future.

Drawback is that i would be ditching my current temp job which would probably put me in the doghouse with them, but i told the Opera if they think they'll be working me later than April 22nd, then that's a win for me because the current temp job expires then.

They just want to make sure they can match what i'm getting paid, which, i kind of hope they could because if they hired me right now for salary, i'd hope to make at least roughly $5k a year more than i'm making now in the hourly equivalent. I would think that they have budget money right now to hire that position permanently, so really they should be able to pay me what i'd expect (which would be $30-$40k/year range) that shows they don't have the budget for the other, you would think, but companies are weird about that.

Fingers crossed, though. I could be on to something.

Got called back and was told that I'm still being considered as a research analyst.

When the topic went to salary, I asked about 30K Philippine pesos (647 USD), when I was asked why my jobstreet profile mentioned 25K pesos (530 USD). I went with brutal honesty about it.

Otherwise, it seems fine and I'll get another call on whether I'll be hired or not.

Temp-to-hire affair starts on Wednesday now. I've had a few other interviews in the meantime, though, and my eyes stay open for other stuff, but I may at last be starting something meaningful.

/ Good luck.

I'm considering doing a gap year by applying to a Gap Year contest, but I wanted to know if anyone has done a gap year and how and did you (general you) wrote your project/application form about.

Accepting that job offer now.

Don't know when I start working.

Your thing seems specific to Europe, quag. Here gap year is just an informal phenomenon.

New job's going okay, they're still noncommittal about making it permanent but things are rolling along well enough. I'm trying to nail down second round interviews at two other places, though.

Bump. Second round interview at the second place came through, i've got a salaried job! Months of interviews, at last it's all over, and soon i'll be able to go to sleep for a couple years.

Adulthood! Sweet, savory adulthood.