Soooooo there's a difference now?
There’s one thing I’ve noticed lately at most of the unemployment blogs that I frequent – the amount of articles posted has slowed somewhat. Now I attribute this to the “dog days” of summer when most of us are getting out into the sunshine and are working on those “healthy tans” while waiting for the phone to ring. But here in Boise where the Thunderstorms roll in on a regular basis and the threat of rain is ever present that’s just not feasible. Right now it’s 59 degrees and it looks like rain is in the forecast for the day, so weeding the backyard might be out.
But over at The405Club there is a new guest article written by Stacey Burgay that just tickled my funnybone. Remember a couple of posts back when I compared HR Directors to the Mean Girls we all used to hate in High School and that trying to get a new job was like dating in High School? Well Stacy has taken that a step further in her article entitled He’s Just not that into you…
No, I’m not talking about A GUY, I’m talking about THAT COMPANY. I’m on day 4 of my extreme self-challenge to find work before my unemployment runs out. I don’t have any work booked till August. What’s a girl to do? I consider myself a Producer, so I’m going to produce myself a job.
There are certain companies that I have been writing letters to and calling for years. I call these companies CRUSHES. I want them but they do not want me. They don’t even know that I exist. If only they would give me a chance and get to know me…
There is the NEW GUY, a company that I didn’t know of but sparks my interest immediately. I introduce myself to the new guy, there some’s flirting only to find out in the end that he has a girlfriend or boyfriend. No positions are opened right now but maybe check back in year. This company leaves a lasting impression and a longing of a love never obtained.
In-between CRUSHES and THE NEW GUY, I have the DATE GUY, he’s normally a short-term position with no benefits, it’s never a bad experience, just not one that results in any long term work. Then there is the ONE NIGHT STAND a quick job offer that is thrown my way to make a few extra dollars. This ONE NIGHT doesn’t even require skill or a resume. If you don’t respond fast enough to his advancement he goes for someone else.
Yes, this all comes from 4 days of calling people, sending resumes, meetings and applying for random CL jobs with very little response or interest. I even got a “sorry we got a lot of responses and don’t need any more help” FROM A JOB THAT WAS HELPING A SCHOOL OF ROCK MOVE FROM ONE FACILITY TO ANOTHER. I can’t even get a job carrying guitars? Doesn’t matter I really wasn’t interested in it anyway.
Oh how I long for THE ONE, that one company, that one right opportunity, the one right collaboration that will open doors of possibility for me. Where are you? How do I find you? How do I get you to meet with me, return my phone call or answer an email?
I think we have all asked that question at one point or another in our lives and it didn’t matter if it was concerning dating or a job search. But I have some others to throw into Stacey’s mix:
There’s the SPEED DATER who interviews potential new boyfriends or girlfriends, one right after the other in order to find the “perfect match” and settle for something less when it doesn’t show up. Relationships don’t last very long with SPEED DATER as they are afraid of commitment, which is why they are back doing interviews again after only a couple of months when it “didn’t work out.”
Then there’s THE DRAMA QUEEN, a company that you’ve interviewed with several times, you’ve met the President of the Company and the CEO and it’s looking like you’ve finally found THE ONE only to discover that they had their eye on someone else the entire time and was just using you to make them jealous. In the end you try to get over this fact by convincing yourself that they made a big mistake and that their relationship will never last.
There’s also the company that’s OUT OF YOUR LEAGUE, you know, the company that you would love to work for and you know you could have a lifetime of happiness, only all of your “friends” actively tries to discourage you from even sending in your resume because you don’t have the right experience, education, or skills and they tell you that they are “trying to help you” when they tell you you’re not good enough for them?
Or is that just me?
Then there’s THE EX, the jobs you used to have only to walk away from or they dumped you saying “it’s not you, it’s me” when everyone else said it was you. You sometimes wonder about calling them back and getting in touch with them again, you know, just to see what’s new? Only that never really works out as you soon remember why you walked away in the first place, or old wounds of being dumped are re-opened again and you realize that there is no going back.
Then there’s the ONE THAT GOT AWAY, the best job you ever had in your life. Only somehow you screwed up and you can’t ever figure out how. You can’t figure out what you did or said or didn’t do or say to make them break it off with you when times were hard. You know that if they had just stuck it out with you that both of you would have been happy. But then you discover that they’ve moved on, never giving you a second thought.
So in that sense, trying to get a job these days is a lot like dating. It’s no wonder why I’ve been underutilized for 6 1/2 years, I couldn’t get dates even when I was single as evidenced by the fact that I went 0-for-High School! I got lucky in college though and met Wifey in a class that we were both taking. She was dating a real douchebag at the time but still, we became friends and I began to resign myself to a lifetime of lonely Holidays and renting Porn for companionship (talk about one-night-stands!) Eventually though the douchebag really screwed up, and guess who was there to lend a shoulder to lean and cry on? Yup, little ‘ol me. Anyway one thing led to another and yadda yadda yadda and come January we will have been married for 15 years.
Now, why can’t I find a job, or even a career like that? Why can’t I get a company who wants to make a commitment? The fact that I’ve been married for nearly 15 years should show them that I’m capable of making a long-term commitment and working at a relationship, shouldn’t it?
The more things change, the more they stay the same I guess…….
