Rejection Month

As of today I have been searching for employment actively for one month. Let me tell you this: once I get a job I'm going to dig my bear hands in and never let go. Looking for work when you are unemployed is extremely dissatisfying. No amount of unflinching optimism can prepare you for the monsoon that searching for a job releases on your self-worth parade. All you are left to do is retire to your tiny apartment for a solo pity party. (Not that I don't throw a great pity party, but eating a whole pan of brownies is getting harder now that I'm not a preteen.)

Here is the run down. I have had interviews with Hilton, Macy's, and Saks Fifth Avenue. I've also had telephone interviews with U.S. Bank and Well's Fargo. I have exchanged emails with MCAD. I have sent 31 applications out through Craigslist. I have accounts with Snagajob, Indeed, Monster, Minnesota State Jobs, Manpower Inc. as well as private companies. I have interviews to come with Marriott and Well's Fargo. 

My skills at cover letter writing are developing surely but slowly. I have a pretty succinct resume. I feel like I bomb my interviews. My confidence is not very high in that kind of setting. I actually told the people at Hilton that my long term goal was to act more like an adult. While that could be better than explaining that I don't promote the idea of expectation, because it only leads to disappointment; it was definitely a bad answer. My biggest issue with interviewing is that it's eerily similar to modern dating. They want you to sugarcoat your personality and then release whatever crazy you might have slowly rather than jump in with both feet and clearly labeled flaws. This is a big problem for someone who believes everyone should have labels that tell you exactly what your dealing with up front (like an FDA warning.)

With the Saks Fifth Avenue and Macy's interviews, I'm really glad I didn't get a call back. I don't think retail is a good idea for anyone who wants to earn a living wage. Retail is accepted wage slavery. People think of working in retail as the job someone holds down in college or high school while going to school full time. But, many companies cannot hire someone under 18. For many people retail is their reality. They hold down that crappy job selling you affluence wearing clothes they had to buy on sale, because otherwise they wouldn't be able to afford it.

On Monday, I'm going to Jabbok Family Services to see about volunteering as a tutor and mentor for kids grades 6-12. I'm pretty excited about the possibility of doing anything with my time that isn't in front of a screen. Wednesday, I have a group job interview with Wells Fargo in Bloomington.

My plans are to keep looking for work, but if I don't find anything by mid-July, then I am going to go back to school for a degree in Network Administration. I have a tour of Minneapolis Community Technical College in July. I really don't want to go back to school though. I want to live an understated life enjoying my time before I'm too old to enjoy anything.