Update: Part-Time To Pass The Time

Hey Bloggers!

Well it's been a busy few days. Today I had orientation for the restaurant that I'll be working at and I start working working on Thursday...yaaay. I am still looking for another job and I'm planning on moving to Atlanta in September/October.

I am using my cousin to help me find a job in Atlanta. (The headhunter) Just asking her advice on who to contact, what to say, etc.

So here's hoping to not be

FUN-EMPLOYED!!

(sorry for the short post--my lil cousin, well not so little she's 17, is coming into town tonight. I'm going to take her in town to visit schools)

Great Find for Fellow GC Grads!

Hey followers! As usual, I was perusing the job sites and I found an excellent site for those in the printing industries/field. The site is called: PrintLink.com





Apparently they are a Graphic Placement group. So you upload your resume, put some info up and then someone is supposed to contact you if you fit anywhere. They also have job listings from all over the country that you can browse and apply for. I was just so excited about the site that I thought I had to share!!

Back to the job boards!!

Signing off, still yours and...

FUN-EMPLOYED!!

A Not So Helpful Job Site

Hello Blogger World. Haven't been up to a whole lot, other than diligently sending out resumes and anticipating ANY response. One job that I applied for, I can't stop thinking about. I really feel like I have a chance at getting this job. Entry-level, pre-press job I mean that's pretty much what GC has prepared me for!! I've started following them on LinkedIn and I feel like the next step would be to make connections with people at the company. However, I don't want to come off as desperate or arrogant. I really REALLY want this job.

I have an interview for a restaurant job today, no big deal. Just need to make some quick cash to pay some bills and start saving to move down to Atlanta. So I'm still going to say that I am "Fun-Employed." I hope that doesn't offend anyone haha. Times are tough and a job is a job.

As for the topic of the day. Job sites (as I previously posted) can be very helpful. However, one job site that I had joined is really not working for me. The site is called "JobFox."

This is what my public profile looks like to employers:





Since my most recent job was working at chili's too on campus, apparently the site classifies me as a food service worker. There's nothing WRONG with working in food service, but that is NOT what I want employers to see when I'm trying to apply for jobs in graphics. Plus I can't change it because I would have to take it off of my resume so that the site wouldn't read it off the resume. They also keep sending me jobs for hotel and food service that I DON'T WANT! And the actual graphics jobs they do send me are for people with 4+ years of experience when the job site CLEARLY lists me as less than a year experience (thanks--I guess all my class work doesn't count either).

JobFox also keeps sending me emails for upgrading my resume (for a mere $100). Gee thanks but no thanks. I've said no MULTIPLE times, yet they keep sending me emails about it. They're almost as annoying as the Mary Kay lady!!

Well I must go get ready for my face to face interview. I just wish it was for a full-time real job position.
So I am still considering myself

FUN-EMPLOYED!!

Getting My Creative On!

Hey! Sorry I took the weekend off, but I'm back! Today (as usual) I applied to a couple new jobs. I'm hoping that a lot of people are lulled into the idea that "it's the summer, no one's going to do any hiring now" and I'm the only one applying to jobs. One can dream right? The fact is, it's been six months since I've graduated. So that means, the loans have been piling up. Life is really starting to stress me out. I want to move to Atlanta soon, but CitiBank is looming over everything that I do.

On a lighter note...

I worked out a little bit. Did some pilates and walked the pond; just trying to get all this weight off my mind. I did pilates while I was at Clemson during one of the toughest semesters. I ended up getting Dean's List that semester. I really feel that pilates made me slow down for an hour and just BREATHE. I just find it very relaxing and calming. Walking the pond is also the same kind of therapy. I feel that it's very important to get out and breathe during the job search. Sure you can apply to jobs all day, but you can't do it everyday. Looking for a job is almost as tiring as actually HAVING a job.

I also worked on a logo for a friend's production company. My best friend Shannon is starring in an independent film called "Sunblocked." This is her first lead role and it is her friend Jess's first film (outside of film school). Here is the poster for the movie (I didn't design this--disclaimer)



















Check out the trailer:




Jess's production company, AstroPiano is brand new and she also has a couple of student projects up on youtube that are also pretty good. She's a sweet girl and she just got married last week!! Congrats!! They are planning on wrapping up in August and premiering the movie, in Harvard Square (Boston). So if you happen to be in the area you should stop by! I am actually going to be an extra in one of the scenes--we're going to be shooting on Saturday!! Haha it's my acting debut!!

So lots of exciting things and lots of not so exciting things in the world of Fun-employment. I try to stay on the positive and I won't give up my dreams.

Still signing off

FUN-EMPLOYED!!

Online Job Searching Part Deux

Ok so I just got the runaround from a couple of sites today. This is what happened when I attempted to apply to just ONE job:

1) went to Indeed.com -- searched "Production Artist"

2) saw a job posting that I liked -- clicked on it, read the description, wanted to apply

3) clicked on "apply now" button

4) was redirected to ANOTHER job site that required registration to that site in order to apply

5) registered, had to wait for email with password reset

6) clicked on the reset link, ok I'm registered...wait, where did the job go?

7) went BACK to Indeed.com to find the job, clicked on the "apply now" logged in etc.

8) job site tells me WAIT!!! you can't apply to the job unless you post your resume!!

9) filled in the skills, education, contact info fields; click confirm ok done...o wait...where did the job go again?

10) AGAIN went BACK to Indeed.com to find the job (by now I'm doubting if I even want this job)

11) I am finally!! allowed to apply. Writing a note to the employer, only 300 characters? Not enough room to even tell them about my internships! (which the resume website omitted)

So I really don't think I am getting any call/email back for this job. Although I feel like I put in a LOT of work just to apply. I have a feeling that I'm going to have to make a move to Atlanta if want to be even considered for a position. I just don't like the idea of moving down there with no job prospects. If I move I want it to be for good; I don't want to have to move back to my parents' house, defeated.

But, I digress...must get back to the job boards!

Signing off (I have ONE reader!)

FUN-EMPLOYED!!

The Wild World of Online Job Searching

So as you know, I am currently searching for a job. I have my resume on several sites. I really don't know how on earth people found a job without online job sites, but of course people weren't moving from job to job as quickly as they do now. The downside to ease of use is the mass influx of resumes and cover letters that employers have to read. Therefore, employers are quick to overlook those that don't stand out. There are many job search sites out there, you just have to sort out which ones will work for you and put your resume at the top of that huge stack.

Here are just some of the job sites that I am on:

LinkedIn: the Holy Grail of Networking

According to my cousin (who is a headhunter in NYC) the key is to NETWORK, NETWORK, NETWORK!! Her advice was to get a recommendation from a previous employer (check) and to join some graphic design groups (check). I even joined some new grad groups and job searching groups. She also advised me to find a company I wanted to work for--but I just don't know what companies to look at yet. I feel like networking is much better if you have more experience and have actually started a CAREER and not a JOB.

(and yes that picture is me with my sweet purple Clemson diploma)

Monster.com: Probably the biggest job search engine out there, but Monster has the probably the pick of the crop. They always have new jobs (even though I have yet to hear from ANY of the ones that I've applied for). On this site you can enter in your job and career goals and they will automatically match up jobs in your area or in any area you wish to browse. It's also helped me to focus on the kind of job that I want and what I want to work towards.

CareerBuilder: Also a very big job search engine and it was the only one where I heard back from a job (the interview that I had a couple weeks ago). CareerBuilder actually matched my resume to them when they looked for potential employers--pretty neat! However their job search leaves something to be desired. Most of the entry level jobs that show up are sketchy marketing schemes that look almost as bad as Mary Kay...

(No picture, all business)

Job.com: Ok this was a random find...even though the website was kind of a "duh" moment...This website seems pretty legit (I'm from Boston we say that). I do need to explore this site a little bit more. I tend to favor Monster because I have the password saved (I'm SO bad at remembering passwords, it is ridiculous). Job.com usually sends me job matches every week via email, but they also tend to send me "supplemental education" emails. No, I do NOT want my Associates' Degree...I have a B.S. (Not that there's anything wrong with an Associates' Degree!)

(see all the crazy education ads??)

So these are just a few sites that I'm on. I'm also on YahooJobs, JobFox and iHirePrint to name a few more. I've also sent my resume to several graphic recruiters in the Atlanta area. IF for some crazy chance I finally get a follower (Come ON!!) let's network!

Here's hoping that SOMEONE soon will see my resume and be impressed!

And so, still signing off

FUN-EMPLOYED!!

Mary Kay Is The Only Company Willing To Hire Me...ugh

Ok so I've been in Atlanta for about a month. My boyfriend's parents are separating and he needed me...

SO after celebrating my 24th birthday, yes I know--almost a quarter of a century, it's finally June. And with June comes...The first payment of my student loans (o joy). Yes audience, it has been a whole six months since my graduation and I am still ...(f)unemployed. I tried to find a job in the Atlanta area, however, the only bite I had was a lady tricking me into going to a Mary Kay Information Session. How did she trick me? She started out by calling me cute. Then she said she worked for an internet start up company and she knew a woman who was an art director. At this point, she has my full attention. She tells me to come to a "networking session" and from what I understood it was a bunch of women from the area that networked. So after driving to the Weston Hotel in Atlanta, I discovered that the only "networking session" going on in the hotel was a Mary Kay information session. Damn. I sat through that entire thing while my poor boyfriend was forced to sit at the hotel bar and drink. I had never felt so stupid as I sat through this "session." I looked around and it was a lot of younger girls like myself. I will admit that it seemed a little too good to be true as they flashed their expensive clothes, purses and shoes. The woman who got me to come tonight kept repeating over and over again how she lived in the same neighborhood as Usher (the singer) and she told us stories about how she believed God wanted her to be a Mary Kay Lady.

Seriously...So I told this woman that I am not a permanent resident of Georgia and that I couldn't make any decisions right there without talking to my parents; she was ready to sign my name right then and there. After getting home, I was delusional--thinking "hey I could actually do this!" I talked to my mom (way past her bedtime) and she told me to think about it. I went to the blogs!

I found this interesting website: www.pinktruth.com

They talked about the deception that Mary Kay uses to bring in new people for their somehow lawful pyramid scheme. My jaw dropped. Everything, from how they acted to how they dressed, was all about getting more people into the Mary Kay System. I was insulted. I was so offended that this woman lied to get me to this session and then all the glitz and glamour faded away from the idea. To this day, she STILL emails me about training.

In other jobless news, I had an interview two weeks ago. Sounded promising, they called ME to come out for an interview. I flew back from Atlanta just for this interview. Long story short--they "decided to go in a different direction." They felt as a MARKETING CONSULTANT FIRM, that they wanted someone who was more into sales as I, they also felt, was more of an ADVERTISING focused person.

So total count: hundreds of jobs applied for, two interviews, no call backs and zero job. I'm about to lose my mind.

However, I did volunteer at my mom's schools last week to take my mind off things. It felt like I had an actual job again. I just want to be able to work, to have a job, to make some money, TO MOVE ON TO A NEW LIFE!

I'm sorry my blog, but I promise to update more. I just wish I could get some readers. I think it's time to start branching out!

Still signing off my readers, as...

FUN-EMPLOYED!