Sunday, April 24, 2011
The Six Stages of Unemployment: No. 3: Fear
There are some things you should be afraid of.
Jumping into a fire (except possibly to save a life), consuming poisons, engaging in unwarranted fisticuffs, and trying to make sense of a conversation with someone who's drunk come to mind.
Should you be afraid when you no longer have a job?
Yeah!
Not having a job means your resources are limited in monetary and social terms. Not having a job means you have a reduced means of contributing to the world, at least in a conventional sense.
If you're NOT scared by those prospects, you're not paying attention.
What is the advantage to fear?
Fear helps us avoid reckless behavior in dangerous situations. That's good. It enhances our potential for survival.
However.
Fear also inhibits actions. Fear can immobilize.
As observed in past posts, lack of action is not a great path to take when engaged in a job search.
You need to be methodical and cautious, since your resources are at risk of being diminished or possibly depleted.
So you must accept the reality that this is a scary situation. But you can't let that stop you.
About seven years ago, I attended my first faculty in-service shortly after being hired at a new college.
During the "what did you do with your summer?" round-Robin, my new peers talked of travels, books coming out, family adventures, making films, applying for grants, and so much more.
At the time, my admiration was unbounded. I thought, "wow, these people are fearless."
While I still admire these people and their achievements, I no longer see them as fearless.
I've come to realize that they simply don't let their fears stop them.
When we are trying to replace a job, fear is not only natural, but inevitable. After all, getting the job in the first place was a big adventure, and it's easy to see having that position usurped as being powerless. Nothing generates fear quite like being without power, or seeing yourself as such.
But you must, as Yoda says, control your fear.
Act!
Take deliberate steps to change your situation. But while being deliberate and exercising reasonable cautions, don't let those cautions hinder you from taking new risks. Yes, the stakes are higher. But more to lose also means more to gain.
Next: Stage four, unless something happens between now and then.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
How the wheel squeaks: networking and informational interviews
I haven't posted here for a bit. This blog is about coming to terms with the job search process, and sometimes that calls for a scattergun volley of the frustrations in the process. Other times it calls for introspection.
As I've worked with career counselors at one of my alma maters in the last few weeks, I'm beginning to realize an unexpected benefit to the part of this process at which I'm worst: networking.
The whole thing about networking and informational interviews eluded me. It seemed opportunistic.
You should be able to get a job on your own merits, right?
Sure.
But one of the up sides of the networking/informational interview thing is that those skills are also part of your merit set.
You're not hired solely due to your professional acumen in a field, unless it's a rare field in which you work in total isolation. You're also hired because your personality contributes something to accomplishing the goals of the organization that's taking a chance on you.
So continuing to hone the skills of being yourself through these two processes is also part of your career search.
It's also emotionally healthy.
One of the things that's most daunting about being out of work is that a big part of your life is gone. That's isolating. The more you can do to be in the world, the better off you'll be.
Doing informational interviews and networking, while not primarily social activities, both help to flex your social muscles.
When you do get another job, and you will, you're going to have to hit the ground running. It's in your best interests, and your employer's, to be as prepared as you can. Being in the world and interacting with others in any professional capacity is a great step in that process.
Like any muscle, it moves better when it's used more frequently.
As I've worked with career counselors at one of my alma maters in the last few weeks, I'm beginning to realize an unexpected benefit to the part of this process at which I'm worst: networking.
The whole thing about networking and informational interviews eluded me. It seemed opportunistic.
You should be able to get a job on your own merits, right?
Sure.
But one of the up sides of the networking/informational interview thing is that those skills are also part of your merit set.
You're not hired solely due to your professional acumen in a field, unless it's a rare field in which you work in total isolation. You're also hired because your personality contributes something to accomplishing the goals of the organization that's taking a chance on you.
So continuing to hone the skills of being yourself through these two processes is also part of your career search.
It's also emotionally healthy.
One of the things that's most daunting about being out of work is that a big part of your life is gone. That's isolating. The more you can do to be in the world, the better off you'll be.
Doing informational interviews and networking, while not primarily social activities, both help to flex your social muscles.
When you do get another job, and you will, you're going to have to hit the ground running. It's in your best interests, and your employer's, to be as prepared as you can. Being in the world and interacting with others in any professional capacity is a great step in that process.
Like any muscle, it moves better when it's used more frequently.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
The Six Stages of Unemployment: No. 2: Rejection
I know this paints a grim picture, but one of the requirements for being out of work is being rejected. That's what you do now. You get people to say no to you, as often as possible, until, to torture an overburdened cliche', you get to yes.
Because unless it's a job offer that you decline, which is rather uncommon in today's market, as long as you stay out of work you're going to hear two things repeatedly.
The first is"no".
The second is "not yet".
Every CV sent out, every interview that does NOT end with a job offer is a rejection, if you look at it as a binary. It's yes or it's no.
Either you're hired or you're not.
And after a while, "buck up, little camper" wears a bit thin.
This is where it gets really tough. Every day can seem like another long dark night of the soul.
How do you weather it?
Again, let yourself feel it first. Work through those emotions as honestly and quickly as you can. Then get back to work, if you've stopped for that part of the process.
The work:
Ask yourself the necessary questions. Is my material up to snuff? Do my CV, cover letter, portfolio and references say what I want them to say about me as a professional?
But don't JUST look to yourself. consider external possibilities, or you run the risk of magnifying every aspect of your life into a series of failures. And down that path lies doom. Wallowing in despair has an indolent appeal to some, but the pay is lousy. So look to external, as well as internal, factors in your rejections. Some, possibly many, of the reasons you're not hired may have little or nothing to do with you.
In that sense, although it's a major part of your life, it's not necessarily personal.
They might have had someone else in mind for the position all along. The interviewer might have had a lousy day. The interviewer's own job might be at risk. In some (very few) cases, the interview process is just a way of building a pool of available applicants in anticipation of a later turnover, or possibly with an eye towards an internal restructuring.
The thing is that even if you ask, you can't always know.
And the way I see it, it's fine to ask. If the company in question has decided on someone else, trying to find out what factors went into the decision is valid. It has a couple risks. You might be seen as a sore loser, or desperate.
Sidebar: I've never understood why it's bad for someone in a desperate situation to seem desperate. It's not a poker game, it's your career. So long as you don't bring your emotional issues to the interview table and embarrass the interviewer, I see nothing wrong with being quite clear that you both want and need the job. Why else ould you be asking for it?
But by asking why you were rejected, you can learn not only about any missteps in your job search dance, but possibly learn a bit more about the career in which you seek to advance.
The second thing, "not yet", can be much harder to hear.
"We don't have anything for your exact talents at the moment" implies that the organization may have a need for you down the line. All well and good, but most people looking for work have imminent needs.
When you hear this, it's vital to plan a time frame to check back with them. I often make such inquiries when told this. If you are given a time frame is vague, or no specific time frame at all, pick an arbitrary time based on industry trends. In most cases, 4 - 6 weeks is a reasonable time to check back. Then immediately add that follow-up to your datebook, planner or whatever organizational tool serves your process.
Next: Stage 3.
Sunday, March 6, 2011
The Six Stages of Unemployment: No. 1: Shock
Jobs are a bit like relationships. We gripe about them nonstop, and when they end, we're more than a bit sad and often surprised.
Think about it. You're used to a set of conditions and have built significant parts of your life around them, even if you don't always care for them. And when they do stop, even if it's your idea, your sense of comfort with a part of your own life is taken away. And the longer you were at the job/relationship, the deeper the shock, even if it is coupled with the relief of something unpleasant ending, as is sometimes the case in such circumstances.
What do you do?
First and most important, start dating again.
Begin looking for work immediately. This process will be full of fits and starts. Asking for something that you recently took as a given in your life takes some adaptation on your part.
Also, know that even though it's crucial, accept that you may not be able to do this particular thing right away.
You've just been handed a pretty significant setback. Your whole life has just been reshaped. Its akin to being whacked upside the head with a two by four. Not everyone has the wherewithal to stand right up and run a marathon, which is what you must do in a job search.
The core message of all these posts is the same. You're going to feel bad about it. Not accepting that will extend the process and feel worse.
Dealing with the shock is the hardest.
Talk to your friends and family nonstop. You'll want to talk about things besides being out of work, just so they'll put up with you. Nobody wants to listen to a broken record forever. But the less time you spend out of your own head, the sooner you'll be better. This will also give you the advantage of perspective. When you have a big new problem, reminders of other peoples' problems will help you keep balance. These reminders will also help you remember that you still have something to offer, especially if you can be of help to someone else.
There's much more to say on this, but this will serve for now. I must get back to work on my cover letters!
Next: step two.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
The Six Stages of Unemployment
Well, you don't have to hanged by the neck until dead to see your way through being out of work.
Fortunately!
But when you do lose your job, some things you don't anticipate will happen to you.
Your life will change in ways you don't expect, and at the time, probably don't want.
Much like Elisabeth Kubler-Ross's theory on dealing with death, I've broken the process down into six stages. Strangely, just as you adapt to being without work, so too you must go through a grieving process when you get work again. Some parts of the cycle will recur when you are once again employed! This is because your life is again changing in unexpected ways, and you have to acclimate to yet another way of living.
 |
| Dr. Kubler-Ross, late in life |
1. Shock
2. Rejection
3. Fear
4. Immobilization
5. Desperation
6. Resignation
This is much like Dr. Kubler-Ross's five steps of dealing with death, but it has some distinctions. Also like that cycle, you may not experience these things in that order. But odds are you will experience them all.
That makes sense, because when you have your job removed from your life, someone has died- the person you were when doing that job in those circumstances no longer exists.
The important thing about this is to not be a brave soldier.
Wallow in it. Not forever, but long enough to deal.
Unless you have the will of a machine, you're going to feel bad whether you acknowledge it or not. The sooner you get it over with, the sooner you can get back to the work of your life.
Also, bear in mind that some of that work does not stop when your job is taken away!
In the next couple weeks, I'll explore each of these steps.
If you disagree with my take on this, have at it! A job search, like democracy or life itself, is a work in progress, not a place for easy answers!
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Disproportional curves
 |
| jumping though hoops indeed! |
1. The less skilled the job, the longer the application. I recently filled out a 25 page application and a 100 item questionnaire for a retail job. I guess they want to be sure you're not going to steal some trinket, or that you're savvy enough to give the required answer to the questions.
Silly.
But we do it anyway.
The corollary of this is the paradox of a credit check as a condition of employment. If you're potentially working with sensitive material or with funds, this makes a measure of sense. But when people are out of work, their credit invariably takes a hit, since their revenue stream becomes inconsistent. So if your credit rating goes down because you're out of work, and it adversely effects your potential to be hired, you can't get a job because you need one. Several states have done away with this unreasonable practice, and others are working on it.
2. Does it strike anyone else as odd that there's a disproportionate curve to having work? If you have work, it's usually easier to get more. As my friend Connie Moore noted, people don't necessarily want to hire you because you're the best for the job. Many people want to hire you to prevent someone else from hiring you. It's a strange kind of one-up-manship. It's not necessarily that they want your skills so much as they want someone else to not have your skills. If you doubt that, next time you're employed, tell your supervisor that you've had another offer. Odds are they'll match it.
Your skills haven't changed. Your value to the organization hasn't changed. The only difference in your skills is that someone else wants them.
3. Conversely, once you are not working, it's much harder to start again. Depending on your skill set and the marketplace, it's almost always easier to change jobs than it is to get a new one when you don't have one.
4. The phrase "not working" has pejorative connotations. It can be read as not functioning, or broken. When someone doesn't have a job, presuming the individual remains sufficiently motivated to keep their hand in in their chosen profession, their skills are just as valid. Let's lose the stigma associated with joblessness, shall we?
Proper terminology can be our friend. I recall the old Emo Phillips joke: "I lost my job. Well, I didn't actually lose it. I know where it is. But I go there and there's this other guy doing it!"
5 By the same token, it's crucial to respect potential employers, not just because they might be able to grant you a means to a livelihood, but because they're also human beings, and they have their own set of problems and crises that transcend the send CV - interview - thank you note - month later follow up that is now de rigeur in the job search dance.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Job Fairs and surprises
For example, yesterday I attended a Job Fair at a local for-profit college.
I thought it would live up to Bart Simpson's axiom, that it's possible for something to suck and blow at the same time.
My previous experience with such things has been less than satisfactory. I've been exposed to people trying to talk me into schools I had little or no interest in attending, menial jobs with little pay and no future, and the brutal and unrewarding (to me, at least) world of cold-call sales.
This time it was different.
A different batch of employment options. A different batch of employers. A more receptive and less mercenary batch of recruiters.
Everyone was honest. Everyone was genuinely respectful and enthusiastic.
And I met a number of people with whom I might be happy working.
I even got a very real lead on my favorite type of work, teaching college!
So what was different this time?
The economy was different. It's been at least a decade since I last attended one of these.
My skill level was different. Last time I went to a job fair, i was unfocused, trying to find ANY job, with career experience that no longer worked in a changing marketplace.
Most significantly, I was different.
It reminds me of the old Mark Twain joke: "when I was 18, my old man was stupid. By the time i was 25, I was amazed at how much smarter he'd become."
I don't pretend to understand everything. But I think I've learned that the cynicism and fear that I used to use to shield myself from my own real or perceived inadequacies didn't work. I also learned a bit about respecting people who chose paths in life other than mine. In being more open to them, I learned that I could get more from experiencing them. I know how hokey that sounds, but it has vast application to the job search process.
Employers, at least smart ones, don't hire resumes or recommendations. They hire people.
That doesn't mean your qualifications don't matter. Those are what get employers to listen to you as a candidate in the first place. But once your CV has their attention, they're not talking to a piece of paper, they're talking to you.
Give them someone worth talking to.
Monday, February 14, 2011
What if I fail?
"It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well have not lived at all, in which case, you fail by default."
J.K. Rowling Speaks at Harvard Commencement from Harvard Magazine on Vimeo.
A couple nights ago, I was sitting with a friend, giving a lovely bottle of wine a mercy killing, slow, easy and inevitable.
As is the way of such nights, we talked of hopes, frustrations and fears. Always fears.
So many fears revolve around my temporarily stalled career.
As anyone who is out of work will tell you, your professional life may be on hold, but the rest of your life strolls along, oblivious to the problems posed by the former.
We talked of strategies, possibilities, and how this circumstance can strip you down to your core self, as Ms. Rowling addresses here. She also directly addresses the very real problem of a creative individual trying to endure in a world that does not always value creativity.
That's a bit of a conceit. What do creative people do? In essence, as Laura Dern's character said in an episode of the great series The West Wing, we try to get people's attention and hold that attention as long as we can. While we have their attention, we try to tell them the truth.
And if we're skilled AND lucky, we are given coin for our efforts.
Imagine the audacity. I did what I wanted and expected to profit from it! As though life was to be enjoyed, not dutifully trudged through!
So a truth and some coin.
If we do not phrase that truth in a fashion palatable to the buyer, whether through our lack of control of our craft or their disinterest in our wares, we don't make a sale. We don't make a sale, we need that most blessed and cursed of things: the day job.
You know, the one you're not supposed to quit to be an artist. Or a writer. Or a musician.
Funny, nobody tells an aspiring architect, lawyer or doctor not to quit their day job. The presumption is that those professions are paths to success. But creativity as a path to success is at best a worry, at worst a shame for the loved ones of those who navigate that path.
A creative life has numerous rewards. It also has the potential for crashing failure.
Back to Ms. Rowling. Fear of failure can be a motivator.
So what if I fail?
What actually happens when we fail?
Well, depends on what we're trying to do.
If we're trying to thrive in the world and fail at that, we risk our health, our relationships, and our personal stability. This can have an adverse effect on those who care about us, to say the least. They can be as confused and upset by your circumstances as you are.
As a case in point, within the course of three days, I had the same close friend tell me she feared I was clinically depressed and then that that she feared I was oblivious to my situation, a contradiction I would have found amusing if it wasn't so irritating.
But unless you really have your home taken from you or fall prey to a malady that does you permanent harm, these conditions are all temporary.
The work of life is balance. The tight-wire of being unemployed or underemployed is more precarious than some, but it can be walked, however gingerly.
The challenge for those of us with a burn to create is twofold. Work for someone else while you work for yourself. It takes twice the drive of someone who only wants a job and time off to spend with loved ones (mind, I'm not sure such people exist- few if any are that apathetic, that they fit the sad model of the opening Rowling quote).
If you are smart, talented, driven and lucky, not necessarily in that order, you may be able to replace the part of the equation that says "work for someone else" with "surivive on your creative work."
That world has a very different set of rules. More on them later.
For now, don't worry about failing.
You will fail. We all will.
And this is good.
Once you have survived that, in the words of Alan Moore, there's nothing left to threaten with.
You are free.
J.K. Rowling Speaks at Harvard Commencement from Harvard Magazine on Vimeo.
A couple nights ago, I was sitting with a friend, giving a lovely bottle of wine a mercy killing, slow, easy and inevitable.
As is the way of such nights, we talked of hopes, frustrations and fears. Always fears.
So many fears revolve around my temporarily stalled career.
As anyone who is out of work will tell you, your professional life may be on hold, but the rest of your life strolls along, oblivious to the problems posed by the former.
We talked of strategies, possibilities, and how this circumstance can strip you down to your core self, as Ms. Rowling addresses here. She also directly addresses the very real problem of a creative individual trying to endure in a world that does not always value creativity.
That's a bit of a conceit. What do creative people do? In essence, as Laura Dern's character said in an episode of the great series The West Wing, we try to get people's attention and hold that attention as long as we can. While we have their attention, we try to tell them the truth.
And if we're skilled AND lucky, we are given coin for our efforts.
Imagine the audacity. I did what I wanted and expected to profit from it! As though life was to be enjoyed, not dutifully trudged through!
So a truth and some coin.
If we do not phrase that truth in a fashion palatable to the buyer, whether through our lack of control of our craft or their disinterest in our wares, we don't make a sale. We don't make a sale, we need that most blessed and cursed of things: the day job.
You know, the one you're not supposed to quit to be an artist. Or a writer. Or a musician.
Funny, nobody tells an aspiring architect, lawyer or doctor not to quit their day job. The presumption is that those professions are paths to success. But creativity as a path to success is at best a worry, at worst a shame for the loved ones of those who navigate that path.
A creative life has numerous rewards. It also has the potential for crashing failure.
Back to Ms. Rowling. Fear of failure can be a motivator.
What actually happens when we fail?
Well, depends on what we're trying to do.
If we're trying to thrive in the world and fail at that, we risk our health, our relationships, and our personal stability. This can have an adverse effect on those who care about us, to say the least. They can be as confused and upset by your circumstances as you are.
As a case in point, within the course of three days, I had the same close friend tell me she feared I was clinically depressed and then that that she feared I was oblivious to my situation, a contradiction I would have found amusing if it wasn't so irritating.
But unless you really have your home taken from you or fall prey to a malady that does you permanent harm, these conditions are all temporary.
The work of life is balance. The tight-wire of being unemployed or underemployed is more precarious than some, but it can be walked, however gingerly.
The challenge for those of us with a burn to create is twofold. Work for someone else while you work for yourself. It takes twice the drive of someone who only wants a job and time off to spend with loved ones (mind, I'm not sure such people exist- few if any are that apathetic, that they fit the sad model of the opening Rowling quote).
If you are smart, talented, driven and lucky, not necessarily in that order, you may be able to replace the part of the equation that says "work for someone else" with "surivive on your creative work."
That world has a very different set of rules. More on them later.
For now, don't worry about failing.
You will fail. We all will.
And this is good.
Once you have survived that, in the words of Alan Moore, there's nothing left to threaten with.
You are free.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Temp on!
So about this job I had last weekend....
It was a 2-day temp job, answering phones, fielding walk-in questions, compiling survey results and generally minding the store at a motorcycle show.
Fun people, good working conditions, if anything, I could have stood having more to do.
Still, I filled the terms of my contract and then some.
Made a couple quick bucks- not a fortune, by any means, but it does help!
Now about temping.
Temping is having someone else sell your services and take a cut for their efforts. The employer contacts the agency, who in turn provides the labor (you) from a pool. It can be a very good deal for all concerned. The entity for which the work is done has minimal employer responsibilities, the employee makes some money and so does the employer.
And in rare cases, like that of my niece, working for the agency itself can become a career!
As an old girlfriend of mine once noted, temp agencies are de facto pimps.
That's a bit harsh, but there's a measure of truth in it.
But at its best, temping is advantageous to the employee too.
It allows you to try a job on for size. It gives you time to assess your place in the work world in general, and in the structure in which you are placed specifically.
In short, temping can be a transitional device for getting back into the work force.
Temping can serve a great many other functions.
When I was working as a temp at an insurance company one summer, I met a woman who worked as an archeological illustrator. There were only a couple dozen people in the world in her profession. She'd go on digs and draw the findings, making notes and a different kind of record than one could get through photography or handling the artifacts in question, the latter not always being practical. During the off season, she picked a place she'd never lived before, or on rare occasion, one she knew and liked, and temp till the season for digs started up again and she was called to another nation to dig (though she sometimes got digs in the US).
This unorthodox example offers another possibility of temping. It affords an employee the opportunity for a very different life.
We're not all meant for the business world, and the labor classes are slowly getting easier to thrive in, but not there yet (more on that in another post). It's good to have a structure available that recognizes that.
It's like clothes shopping. How can you know if it fits if you don't try it on first?
Temping isn't really a career, it's a hundred related careers.
The down side is that temps don't always have work for you.
Then again, these days, who does?
As always, it's a question of choosing a path and walking it till you find another that suits you!
It was a 2-day temp job, answering phones, fielding walk-in questions, compiling survey results and generally minding the store at a motorcycle show.
Fun people, good working conditions, if anything, I could have stood having more to do.
Still, I filled the terms of my contract and then some.
Made a couple quick bucks- not a fortune, by any means, but it does help!
Now about temping.
 | |
| Anthology based on the concept of a superhero temp agency |
And in rare cases, like that of my niece, working for the agency itself can become a career!
As an old girlfriend of mine once noted, temp agencies are de facto pimps.
That's a bit harsh, but there's a measure of truth in it.
But at its best, temping is advantageous to the employee too.
It allows you to try a job on for size. It gives you time to assess your place in the work world in general, and in the structure in which you are placed specifically.
In short, temping can be a transitional device for getting back into the work force.
Temping can serve a great many other functions.
When I was working as a temp at an insurance company one summer, I met a woman who worked as an archeological illustrator. There were only a couple dozen people in the world in her profession. She'd go on digs and draw the findings, making notes and a different kind of record than one could get through photography or handling the artifacts in question, the latter not always being practical. During the off season, she picked a place she'd never lived before, or on rare occasion, one she knew and liked, and temp till the season for digs started up again and she was called to another nation to dig (though she sometimes got digs in the US).
This unorthodox example offers another possibility of temping. It affords an employee the opportunity for a very different life.
We're not all meant for the business world, and the labor classes are slowly getting easier to thrive in, but not there yet (more on that in another post). It's good to have a structure available that recognizes that.
It's like clothes shopping. How can you know if it fits if you don't try it on first?
Temping isn't really a career, it's a hundred related careers.
The down side is that temps don't always have work for you.
Then again, these days, who does?
As always, it's a question of choosing a path and walking it till you find another that suits you!
Thursday, February 3, 2011
The difference between a job, a career and work?
I got a new job.
It's not a BIG job, only part time. A nine-month contract to work on a special event. Total remuneration: $3,000.00.
It's not going to help me a lot. Financially, it will reduce my unemployment benefits short-term.
I don't care.
I like working! I like being able to get something done in the world, I like the challenges and frustrations. I get to interact with new people, established colleagues and professionals from a field related to work I've done before.
Since this is related to work I've done before and want to do again, it can also be seen as part of my career.
A career (dictionary):
noun
an occupation undertaken for a significant period of a person's life and with opportunities for progress.
• the time spent by a person in such an occupation or profession : the end of a distinguished career in the navy.
• the progress through history of an institution or organization : the court has had a checkered career.
• [as adj. ] working permanently in or committed to a particular profession : a career diplomat.
• [as adj. ] (of a woman) interested in pursuing a profession rather than devoting all her time to child care and housekeeping
So the career is not just about the work, it's about choice and duration. That implies a great measure of control. But consider the following supplemental definition:
verb [ intrans. ]
move swiftly and in an uncontrolled way in a specified direction : the car careered across the road and went through a hedge.
I like that. It also says a career is an adventure. As defined by a former intimate of mine, an adventure is anything that CAN kill you, but DOESN'T.
So a career is a wild ride through long-term work of your own choosing.
So what's work?
Dictionary:
noun
1 activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a purpose or result : he was tired after a day's work in the fields. See note at labor .
• ( works) [in combination ] a place or premises for industrial activity, typically manufacturing : he found a job in the ironworks.
2 such activity as a means of earning income; employment : I'm still looking for work.
• the place where one engages in such activity : I was returning home from work on a packed subway.
• the period of time spent during the day engaged in such activity : he was going to the theater after work.
3 a task or tasks to be undertaken; something a person or thing has to do : they made sure the work was progressing smoothly.
• the materials for this : she frequently took work home with her.
• ( works) Theology good or moral deeds : the Clapham sect was concerned with works rather than with faith.
4 something done or made : her work hangs in all the main American collections.
• the result of the action of a specified person or thing : the bombing had been the work of a German-based cell.
• a literary or musical composition or other piece of fine art : a work of fiction.
• ( works) all such pieces by a particular author, composer, or artist, regarded collectively : the works of Schubert fill several feet of shelf space.
• a piece of embroidery, sewing, or knitting, typically made using a specified stitch or method.
• (usu. works) Military a defensive structure.
• ( works) an architectural or engineering structure such as a bridge or dam.
• the record of the successive calculations made in solving a mathematical problem : show your work on a separate sheet of paper.
5 ( works) the operative part of a clock or other machine : she could almost hear the tick of its works.
6 Physics the exertion of force overcoming resistance or producing molecular change.
Pretty much as expected, aside from the last one. Work is forcing change. A career is a wild ride through long-term work of your own choosing. So a career is a constantly changing wild ride, ideally one that pays reasonably well!
In order to have this ride, someone has to agree to employ you. That's called GIVING you a job. I don't see where the giving part comes in, since it's a barter of services for specific remuneration. Seems to me it's more like contracting for a job, ANY job, no matter how big or small. If it's a gift, it's a gift to both parties, the employer and the employed.
Now what's this job thing?
Dictionary again:
noun
1 a paid position of regular employment : jobs are created in the private sector, not in Washington | a part-time job.
2 a task or piece of work, esp. one that is paid : she wants to be left alone to get on with the job | you did a good job of explaining.
• a responsibility or duty : it's our job to find things out.
• [in sing. ] informal a difficult task : we thought you'd have a job getting there.
• [with adj. ] informal a procedure to improve the appearance of something, esp. an operation involving plastic surgery : she's had a nose job | someone had done a skillful paint job.
• [with adj. ] informal a thing of a specified nature : the car was a blue malevolent-looking job.
• informal a crime, esp. a robbery : a series of daring bank jobs.
• Computing an operation or group of operations treated as a single and distinct unit.
verb ( jobbed, jobbing )
1 [ intrans. ] [usu. as adj. ] ( jobbing) do casual or occasional work : a jobbing builder.
2 [ trans. ] buy and sell (stocks) as a broker-dealer, esp. on a small scale.
3 [ trans. ] informal cheat; betray.
4 [ intrans. ] archaic turn a public office or a position of trust to private advantage.
Then, considering all meanings, a job can be thought of as something difficult, sometimes deceptive (as in surgery), sometimes immoral or illegal (as in bank job). But most often, it's a duty.
So to work at a job that supports your career is to do your duty to yourself in the constantly changing wild ride of your career.
When you look at it that way, the stability of the 50-year gold watch job seems rather mundane.
Here's to my new job, the latest leg of my wild ride!
Of course, since it's VERY part time, I still need a job!
It's not a BIG job, only part time. A nine-month contract to work on a special event. Total remuneration: $3,000.00.
It's not going to help me a lot. Financially, it will reduce my unemployment benefits short-term.
I don't care.
I like working! I like being able to get something done in the world, I like the challenges and frustrations. I get to interact with new people, established colleagues and professionals from a field related to work I've done before.
Since this is related to work I've done before and want to do again, it can also be seen as part of my career.
A career (dictionary):
noun
an occupation undertaken for a significant period of a person's life and with opportunities for progress.
• the time spent by a person in such an occupation or profession : the end of a distinguished career in the navy.
• the progress through history of an institution or organization : the court has had a checkered career.
• [as adj. ] working permanently in or committed to a particular profession : a career diplomat.
• [as adj. ] (of a woman) interested in pursuing a profession rather than devoting all her time to child care and housekeeping
So the career is not just about the work, it's about choice and duration. That implies a great measure of control. But consider the following supplemental definition:
verb [ intrans. ]
move swiftly and in an uncontrolled way in a specified direction : the car careered across the road and went through a hedge.
I like that. It also says a career is an adventure. As defined by a former intimate of mine, an adventure is anything that CAN kill you, but DOESN'T.
So a career is a wild ride through long-term work of your own choosing.
So what's work?
Dictionary:
noun
1 activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a purpose or result : he was tired after a day's work in the fields. See note at labor .
• ( works) [in combination ] a place or premises for industrial activity, typically manufacturing : he found a job in the ironworks.
2 such activity as a means of earning income; employment : I'm still looking for work.
• the place where one engages in such activity : I was returning home from work on a packed subway.
• the period of time spent during the day engaged in such activity : he was going to the theater after work.
3 a task or tasks to be undertaken; something a person or thing has to do : they made sure the work was progressing smoothly.
• the materials for this : she frequently took work home with her.
• ( works) Theology good or moral deeds : the Clapham sect was concerned with works rather than with faith.
4 something done or made : her work hangs in all the main American collections.
• the result of the action of a specified person or thing : the bombing had been the work of a German-based cell.
• a literary or musical composition or other piece of fine art : a work of fiction.
• ( works) all such pieces by a particular author, composer, or artist, regarded collectively : the works of Schubert fill several feet of shelf space.
• a piece of embroidery, sewing, or knitting, typically made using a specified stitch or method.
• (usu. works) Military a defensive structure.
• ( works) an architectural or engineering structure such as a bridge or dam.
• the record of the successive calculations made in solving a mathematical problem : show your work on a separate sheet of paper.
5 ( works) the operative part of a clock or other machine : she could almost hear the tick of its works.
6 Physics the exertion of force overcoming resistance or producing molecular change.
Pretty much as expected, aside from the last one. Work is forcing change. A career is a wild ride through long-term work of your own choosing. So a career is a constantly changing wild ride, ideally one that pays reasonably well!
In order to have this ride, someone has to agree to employ you. That's called GIVING you a job. I don't see where the giving part comes in, since it's a barter of services for specific remuneration. Seems to me it's more like contracting for a job, ANY job, no matter how big or small. If it's a gift, it's a gift to both parties, the employer and the employed.
Now what's this job thing?
Dictionary again:
noun
1 a paid position of regular employment : jobs are created in the private sector, not in Washington | a part-time job.
2 a task or piece of work, esp. one that is paid : she wants to be left alone to get on with the job | you did a good job of explaining.
• a responsibility or duty : it's our job to find things out.
• [in sing. ] informal a difficult task : we thought you'd have a job getting there.
• [with adj. ] informal a procedure to improve the appearance of something, esp. an operation involving plastic surgery : she's had a nose job | someone had done a skillful paint job.
• [with adj. ] informal a thing of a specified nature : the car was a blue malevolent-looking job.
• informal a crime, esp. a robbery : a series of daring bank jobs.
• Computing an operation or group of operations treated as a single and distinct unit.
verb ( jobbed, jobbing )
1 [ intrans. ] [usu. as adj. ] ( jobbing) do casual or occasional work : a jobbing builder.
2 [ trans. ] buy and sell (stocks) as a broker-dealer, esp. on a small scale.
3 [ trans. ] informal cheat; betray.
4 [ intrans. ] archaic turn a public office or a position of trust to private advantage.
Then, considering all meanings, a job can be thought of as something difficult, sometimes deceptive (as in surgery), sometimes immoral or illegal (as in bank job). But most often, it's a duty.
So to work at a job that supports your career is to do your duty to yourself in the constantly changing wild ride of your career.
When you look at it that way, the stability of the 50-year gold watch job seems rather mundane.
Here's to my new job, the latest leg of my wild ride!
Of course, since it's VERY part time, I still need a job!
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Book review: I Found A Job!
In my ongoing reassessment of career, I occasionally turn to job search manuals, which I have found to be of limited help in the past.
This time out, I looked for one such manual/self-help book that said something more pragmatic than the rest, one that honestly addressed the daily needs of a job seeker.
Marcia Heroux Ponds' I Found a Job! is half of that book (note: two separate links there, one for the author,the other for the book).
My big problem with these books is simple. They fail to recognize the reality of the situation. This one is more practical than many, but still has a myopia that's chafing.
Case in point.
It's great advice to save up six months of living expenses in anticipation of being out of work. Pounds recommends nine months to a year's worth as a more pragmatic goal. Well, it's quite pragmatic, but people don't always have that luxury. Some paychecks aren't sufficient to that end. And sometimes things happen so suddenly there's no time to prepare. So if you're out of work and haven't already done that, it's worthless advice.
Along the same lines, yes, it's a good idea to present yourself professionally at all times when you're unemployed. It's true, you never know what situation will spontaneously become a job interview. It happened to me a few weeks ago, submitting an application for a PT gig and suddenly finding myself chatting up the manager about my career goals and the skills I have to offer. Me standing there in jeans! I addressed the situation directly, acknowledging that this is not appropriate attire for an interview, and was reassured by the manager that yes, she was aware of that and that it wouldn't count against me. I pointed out that my clothes were clean and in good repair, and we have a nice chuckle about it. Situation saved. I still have a shot at that job, which won't open up for another few weeks and could serve me well for a long time.
So what's wrong with that advice then? Why not present professionally at all times? Seems reasonable.
Sure it is.
But.
Well, you should as much as possible, but when you're out of work, your resources diminish and it's not always possible. When you have fewer resources, you have to plan their use very strategically.
To end a sentence with an infinitive, it also depends on what kind of work you're out of.
That's my big problem with this book and many like it. They presume that everyone is a business professional with an established career. There's little or no acknowledgment of people who have unorthodox career paths or don't work for Fortune 500 companies.
Again, this book is better than many in that respect. There's a chapter devoted to carving out your own career path. There's some laudable and pragmatic advice for folks considering a freelance career or a business startup. And I suppose there are unemployed people who have the resources to buy a franchise, one of the options Ms. Pounds suggests.
But like much of the advice in this book and others of its ilk, it's not always practical. Yes, networking is a good idea, one I practice as much as possible, though I prefer to think of it as nurturing friendships and seeing career growth as a happy dividend of that. But I'm sorry, when I'm managing limited funds, I'm not skipping off to the local coffee shop daily as she suggests.
In fairness, it needs to be noted that Ms. Ponds is a business columnist for the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, and so is likely to approach the issue from a corporate standpoint. But we're not all in the corporate world, and it would be refreshing to read a job search book that fully recognized that fact.
This may seem harsh and nitpicky, but there are realities that people who are in a job search have to face.
This book is better than many in facing these realities, but it seems largely aimed at people looking for high-end jobs. That's not all of us, and it shouldn't be. Despite a largely practical chapter on managing finances while job seeking, this book glosses over a crucial fact.
Yes, looking for a job is a job. But it's a pro bono job. While you have this job, you are your only client. And in many cases, you can't afford to pay yourself what you're worth.
Negotiating the strategies of daily life with a reduced or no income while looking for work requires tremendous strength and a great skill set, including the capacity to strategically approach a crisis.
Those skills and strengths are of great use in many, dare I say, most jobs.
The challenge is getting an employer to see them!
This time out, I looked for one such manual/self-help book that said something more pragmatic than the rest, one that honestly addressed the daily needs of a job seeker.
Marcia Heroux Ponds' I Found a Job! is half of that book (note: two separate links there, one for the author,the other for the book).
Case in point.
It's great advice to save up six months of living expenses in anticipation of being out of work. Pounds recommends nine months to a year's worth as a more pragmatic goal. Well, it's quite pragmatic, but people don't always have that luxury. Some paychecks aren't sufficient to that end. And sometimes things happen so suddenly there's no time to prepare. So if you're out of work and haven't already done that, it's worthless advice.
Along the same lines, yes, it's a good idea to present yourself professionally at all times when you're unemployed. It's true, you never know what situation will spontaneously become a job interview. It happened to me a few weeks ago, submitting an application for a PT gig and suddenly finding myself chatting up the manager about my career goals and the skills I have to offer. Me standing there in jeans! I addressed the situation directly, acknowledging that this is not appropriate attire for an interview, and was reassured by the manager that yes, she was aware of that and that it wouldn't count against me. I pointed out that my clothes were clean and in good repair, and we have a nice chuckle about it. Situation saved. I still have a shot at that job, which won't open up for another few weeks and could serve me well for a long time.
So what's wrong with that advice then? Why not present professionally at all times? Seems reasonable.
Sure it is.
But.
Well, you should as much as possible, but when you're out of work, your resources diminish and it's not always possible. When you have fewer resources, you have to plan their use very strategically.
To end a sentence with an infinitive, it also depends on what kind of work you're out of.
That's my big problem with this book and many like it. They presume that everyone is a business professional with an established career. There's little or no acknowledgment of people who have unorthodox career paths or don't work for Fortune 500 companies.
Again, this book is better than many in that respect. There's a chapter devoted to carving out your own career path. There's some laudable and pragmatic advice for folks considering a freelance career or a business startup. And I suppose there are unemployed people who have the resources to buy a franchise, one of the options Ms. Pounds suggests.
But like much of the advice in this book and others of its ilk, it's not always practical. Yes, networking is a good idea, one I practice as much as possible, though I prefer to think of it as nurturing friendships and seeing career growth as a happy dividend of that. But I'm sorry, when I'm managing limited funds, I'm not skipping off to the local coffee shop daily as she suggests.
In fairness, it needs to be noted that Ms. Ponds is a business columnist for the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, and so is likely to approach the issue from a corporate standpoint. But we're not all in the corporate world, and it would be refreshing to read a job search book that fully recognized that fact.
This may seem harsh and nitpicky, but there are realities that people who are in a job search have to face.
This book is better than many in facing these realities, but it seems largely aimed at people looking for high-end jobs. That's not all of us, and it shouldn't be. Despite a largely practical chapter on managing finances while job seeking, this book glosses over a crucial fact.
Yes, looking for a job is a job. But it's a pro bono job. While you have this job, you are your only client. And in many cases, you can't afford to pay yourself what you're worth.
Negotiating the strategies of daily life with a reduced or no income while looking for work requires tremendous strength and a great skill set, including the capacity to strategically approach a crisis.
Those skills and strengths are of great use in many, dare I say, most jobs.
The challenge is getting an employer to see them!
Monday, January 31, 2011
"So tell me about yourself...."
What a boring question that is.
The answer's not boring, but the oft-repeated question is.
Well, okay.
Here's every job I've ever had, in chronological order, starting at age 11!
Gas station attendant
Bakery order packer
KFC cook
Road crew worker
Trucking crew assisant
Burger King cook
KFC cook again
Accounting assistant, Public School bus garage
Retail clerk, Sears Automotive
Foundry worker (shakeout, grinder)
Plaster caster
Dishwasher
Bartender
short order cook
prep cook
Theatre usher, janitor, box office and concession worker
Theatre manager
Receptionist
Factory line worker
Medical kit assembly
Retail commission sales
Assistant manager, video store
Personal care attendant
Papermaking assistant
Art exhibition setup
Teaching assistant, summer program
Adjunct faculty, technical college
Adjunct faculty, art college
Crew leader assistant, US Census
Adjunct faculty, art college
So what's the point?
Very few of us have direct paths, yet the job hunting process is geared towards only recognizing specific, directed skills.
"have you done this all your life?"
"Not yet..."
This is in part due to marketplace strictures. After all, if you have a choice between someone with 45 years of direct experience and someone with 45 years of transferable skills, it's likely that you'll hire the former.
But you could be doing yourself a disservice.
Someone with a wide range of experience knows how to adapt to different environments. That person also has skills and confidence in a wide range of areas. You're missing a bet by not hiring that person!
Of course, this is a call for an employer to hire me, but it's also a general call for a new vision on the part of employers.
Not giving someone a chance to use any of their skills wastes all those skills.
Photo from the Library of Congress Archive!
The answer's not boring, but the oft-repeated question is.
Well, okay.
Here's every job I've ever had, in chronological order, starting at age 11!
Gas station attendant
Bakery order packer
KFC cook
Road crew worker
Trucking crew assisant
Burger King cook
KFC cook again
Accounting assistant, Public School bus garage
Retail clerk, Sears Automotive
Foundry worker (shakeout, grinder)
Plaster caster
Dishwasher
Bartender
short order cook
prep cook
Theatre usher, janitor, box office and concession worker
Theatre manager
Receptionist
Factory line worker
Medical kit assembly
Retail commission sales
Assistant manager, video store
Personal care attendant
Papermaking assistant
Art exhibition setup
Teaching assistant, summer program
Adjunct faculty, technical college
Adjunct faculty, art college
Crew leader assistant, US Census
Adjunct faculty, art college
So what's the point?
Very few of us have direct paths, yet the job hunting process is geared towards only recognizing specific, directed skills.
"have you done this all your life?"
"Not yet..."
This is in part due to marketplace strictures. After all, if you have a choice between someone with 45 years of direct experience and someone with 45 years of transferable skills, it's likely that you'll hire the former.
But you could be doing yourself a disservice.
Someone with a wide range of experience knows how to adapt to different environments. That person also has skills and confidence in a wide range of areas. You're missing a bet by not hiring that person!
Of course, this is a call for an employer to hire me, but it's also a general call for a new vision on the part of employers.
Not giving someone a chance to use any of their skills wastes all those skills.
Photo from the Library of Congress Archive!
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Keep on Working!
This is work, but it's also a joy.
But then, most work is, in one way or another.
Bear with me.
I'm jobless at the moment. But I still have plenty of work to do.
I'm far from alone in these things these days.
Yet most advice I get, from professionals or acquaintances, despite being very well intentioned, drives me up the wall. there's things about this situation that you don't fully get unless that's where you are.
So rather than fume about it, I've decided to try to come to terms with the situation and my response to it.
This blog is an ongoing record of my attempt to understand and thrive in a world that's always eluded me (by choice, design, or a combination of the two) - the world of business and money. I'm no stranger to various kinds of work, but parts of that world... hmm...
Two or three times a week, circumstances permitting, I will post thoughts and updates. I'd like to see something pragmatic on these issues. Most books or professionals in the field address the situation of unemployment and underemployment in a way that seems to miss something. So I'd like to offer more of an insider's view.
Sometimes it will be philosophical, sometimes sad, sometimes exuberant. These are tough times, and hard to understand. I'll post strategies and results, and invite my readers to do the same.
I'll try to make it worth reading, and fun to read. It will be honest writing, but nobody likes a sad chick, so I'll keep it balanced.
I'll leave this opening salvo with a song I've always loved. It's on point, but I'm really nowhere near as morose as the song suggests!
But then, most work is, in one way or another.
Bear with me.
I'm jobless at the moment. But I still have plenty of work to do.
I'm far from alone in these things these days.
Yet most advice I get, from professionals or acquaintances, despite being very well intentioned, drives me up the wall. there's things about this situation that you don't fully get unless that's where you are.
So rather than fume about it, I've decided to try to come to terms with the situation and my response to it.
This blog is an ongoing record of my attempt to understand and thrive in a world that's always eluded me (by choice, design, or a combination of the two) - the world of business and money. I'm no stranger to various kinds of work, but parts of that world... hmm...
Two or three times a week, circumstances permitting, I will post thoughts and updates. I'd like to see something pragmatic on these issues. Most books or professionals in the field address the situation of unemployment and underemployment in a way that seems to miss something. So I'd like to offer more of an insider's view.
Sometimes it will be philosophical, sometimes sad, sometimes exuberant. These are tough times, and hard to understand. I'll post strategies and results, and invite my readers to do the same.
I'll try to make it worth reading, and fun to read. It will be honest writing, but nobody likes a sad chick, so I'll keep it balanced.
I'll leave this opening salvo with a song I've always loved. It's on point, but I'm really nowhere near as morose as the song suggests!
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