So something that I figured would only take place in my fantasies actually happened today...in reality that is. I had an interview, a real live interview with a person on the other end of the phone. The employer was kind enough to grant me a phone interview due to the fact that at the moment I'm all the way on the other side of the country. So this was kind of like a gift actually because I initially applied for the position way back in February so of course after a few weeks I forgot about and it and counted it as just another casuality of my own personal job war. So with a complete lack of expectation I checked my email for the last time Friday afternoon before the weekend when I give myself a break from obessively checking for a "If you just do this, you'll no longer be unemployed" message. What was there in that little inbox was big. It was an email from the employer that I subitted an application to all that time ago. He said that the nature of the admin support position had changed a bit to include more technical aspects such as website maintanence and in-depth knowledge of MS Outlook. He said that over 300 people applied the first time around and that if you're still available and have these skills than we have the weekend to apply again. Well, at first I was like..."oh great, I know next to nothing about those things." But I know a fabulous second chance when I see one. 300 applicants, this is what I've been up against. Other than fireworks and laser beams how do you compete with that? It's crazy.
First I figured that because he was literally giving us 2 days to do this that my odds would by default go up. It would be highly unlikely that all 300 and some applicants would A) even see the email in time, B) all still be available, and C) have the skills to even be considered. So I decided to shed the job-grumbles attitude and do what I can do over the weekend in order to make this a viable option. This particular employer and I have the Peace Corps in common so there's no way I'd let this slip by. So over two days I researched, I learned, I crammed, I practiced in order to at least put on my resume that I have basic knowledge of these technical things...which was totally true. Well, behold the power of effort and a little luck, only 40 of the original applicants reapplied and he narrowed them down to 6 for an interview, of those I was one of...that's what he told me when he called to set up the interview. So the next day when he called for the actual interview he told me right away that I am now one of 5. So he scratched someone off that list real quick. All in a few days I went from 0% chance at anything, to about 16% and then to 20%, which is closer than I've been in over 4 months.
The interview went very well, I can't imagine doing any better, as far as the technical stuff was concerned I was sure that what I did was much better than saying something like "well, I have no experience with those things whatsoever" and then having nothing else to say during a long awkward silence. I mean I think I dazzled him on everything else, when both you and an employer were Peace Corps volunteers there's definitely a pre-set connection there. I think I've earned a little break.
Well, the waiting game is in full swing though. He said he hopes that by Friday afternoon, today, he would have selected 2 of us for a final interview and let everyone know where they stand...it's 5:30 already in DC and haven't heard anything. While logically I know I have no way to know where I stand amongst 4 others of whom I know nothing about or what the boss has been doing all day to make this decision, I still can't help but turn and spin my performance around in my head over and over again. And trying to figure out of it's a positive that I still haven't recieved a call or not, which of course has no real answer for me at this point. He might not even be able to make a decision this week, he had to cram in all these interviews...oh well, I don't know. I guess as the next few hours go by and nothing happens it might actually be a relief because it gets less and less likely that he'd call today and I can stop willing my cell phone to ring and can sink back into the warm gooey satisfaction that I must still be in the running for a sweet job in DC.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Finger Dexterity?
well, I've given up on the government job search, by the time I get one of those it'll be time to retire and collect social security anyway, not that those checks would be substantial considering I would have spent my entire adult life working to find a job instead of actually working and contributing to the system...
So I decided to expand my prospects a bit and start looking for something in Arizona where I'm kind of stuck living with my parents instead of just focusing exclusively on DC, because I lost count after 20 some applications, I'm sure it's close to 30...When I was filling out an online app for a job here in AZ I realized that I'm totally exasperated by the process because I almost had a mental blow out when I had to submit a resume as well as fill out a "work and education history" form, which to me is like the dumbest thing ever...THAT'S THE POINT OF THE RESUME!!! Have one or the other..but both?? I'd rather one be left out so that the review process goes faster and then that's all the faster I get my rejection email or just no response at all. I'm convinced some companies make their online application system extra hard for whatever reason...this particular one made you fill in the information in those little boxes that you can type in, but with every time that I tried to move on, a message would pop up in those ominous red letters "there are illegal characters in the text" ILLEGAL characters?!? So basically I had a dash and a semi colon...punctuation other than the basic period and comma was apparently against the law, but I removed the incriminating evidence and still couldn't move on, I kept clicking the submit button and that menace of a message kept coming up...like seriously?? As if the process isn't painful enough, I have to be worried about being arrested for using punctuation? I was taring my hair out...then my computer lost it's Internet connection and lost everything that I did get done anyway, that set the tone for a pretty foul mood that I simmered in all damn day. I almost had a melt down over some basic administrative assistant job for a company that I barely knew anything about.
That was the moment when I realized that it wasn't just that particular incident that made me lose it, but the idea that I'm actually still engaged in this process...over and over and over and over again, painstakingly craft the cover letter that no one reads, tweak the resume at some attempt to catch someone's eye..which is just a total crap shoot anyway, then email it either to get an auto response or nothing at all...that's usually all I have to do, but then there are those with the online system with the separate application form aside from the resume so I'm forced to regurgitate or if I'm particularly into it, find a way to say the same damn thing about my job experience in a slightly different way in order to play the game...you know the game...the "I didn't just copy the information from my resume, I went above and beyond to show that I'm driven to set myself apart from the 700 other applicants" game. I shouldn't have to set off fireworks and laser beams to get someone to spend more than 2 seconds looking at my application...all of these employers are saying the same thing in their auto responses to applications..."we have an enormous amount of applicants, we can't do this, we can't do that, no phone calls, don't bother us because we're the only ones in the world that are busy." Well for crap's sake then lessen the time to submit applications, there is no reason that a job needs to be open for applications for 2 months...that's ridiculous, even a month is too long. It's a known fact that many employers barely look at the cover letter, more like skim it to find something dazzling...like 45 years experience or a more mildly interesting font than Times New Roman.
I think if we go back to basics like a good old resume, shorter application listing times, and less emphasis on the cover letter than the exasperation factor of this process just might come down a notch or 12. Employers need to stop skimming 432 applications for one position and spend a little more quality time on the fewer applications they would get with shortening the time to submit. They could use the time to call in a few more applicants for an interview, I mean if the basics are on the resume than it might actually be more productive to meet the person face to face rather than just throwing out their cover letter because it didn't catch the eye within 1.3 seconds, or at the very least craft an email that lets us know the status of our applications and the opening itself. Some do that with their online systems, and I just got a lovely reject email the other day, but I've found this to be the exception, not the norm.
Oh and Finger Dexterity is an actual attribute and requirement listed in some job descriptions for clerical and office positions, but for the more demanding administrative support jobs simple finger dexterity won't cut it because as the crafter of that job announcement demands, you must posses the ability to "grip and lift various items within the office." So the stiff-fingered and gripping impaired need not apply.
So I decided to expand my prospects a bit and start looking for something in Arizona where I'm kind of stuck living with my parents instead of just focusing exclusively on DC, because I lost count after 20 some applications, I'm sure it's close to 30...When I was filling out an online app for a job here in AZ I realized that I'm totally exasperated by the process because I almost had a mental blow out when I had to submit a resume as well as fill out a "work and education history" form, which to me is like the dumbest thing ever...THAT'S THE POINT OF THE RESUME!!! Have one or the other..but both?? I'd rather one be left out so that the review process goes faster and then that's all the faster I get my rejection email or just no response at all. I'm convinced some companies make their online application system extra hard for whatever reason...this particular one made you fill in the information in those little boxes that you can type in, but with every time that I tried to move on, a message would pop up in those ominous red letters "there are illegal characters in the text" ILLEGAL characters?!? So basically I had a dash and a semi colon...punctuation other than the basic period and comma was apparently against the law, but I removed the incriminating evidence and still couldn't move on, I kept clicking the submit button and that menace of a message kept coming up...like seriously?? As if the process isn't painful enough, I have to be worried about being arrested for using punctuation? I was taring my hair out...then my computer lost it's Internet connection and lost everything that I did get done anyway, that set the tone for a pretty foul mood that I simmered in all damn day. I almost had a melt down over some basic administrative assistant job for a company that I barely knew anything about.
That was the moment when I realized that it wasn't just that particular incident that made me lose it, but the idea that I'm actually still engaged in this process...over and over and over and over again, painstakingly craft the cover letter that no one reads, tweak the resume at some attempt to catch someone's eye..which is just a total crap shoot anyway, then email it either to get an auto response or nothing at all...that's usually all I have to do, but then there are those with the online system with the separate application form aside from the resume so I'm forced to regurgitate or if I'm particularly into it, find a way to say the same damn thing about my job experience in a slightly different way in order to play the game...you know the game...the "I didn't just copy the information from my resume, I went above and beyond to show that I'm driven to set myself apart from the 700 other applicants" game. I shouldn't have to set off fireworks and laser beams to get someone to spend more than 2 seconds looking at my application...all of these employers are saying the same thing in their auto responses to applications..."we have an enormous amount of applicants, we can't do this, we can't do that, no phone calls, don't bother us because we're the only ones in the world that are busy." Well for crap's sake then lessen the time to submit applications, there is no reason that a job needs to be open for applications for 2 months...that's ridiculous, even a month is too long. It's a known fact that many employers barely look at the cover letter, more like skim it to find something dazzling...like 45 years experience or a more mildly interesting font than Times New Roman.
I think if we go back to basics like a good old resume, shorter application listing times, and less emphasis on the cover letter than the exasperation factor of this process just might come down a notch or 12. Employers need to stop skimming 432 applications for one position and spend a little more quality time on the fewer applications they would get with shortening the time to submit. They could use the time to call in a few more applicants for an interview, I mean if the basics are on the resume than it might actually be more productive to meet the person face to face rather than just throwing out their cover letter because it didn't catch the eye within 1.3 seconds, or at the very least craft an email that lets us know the status of our applications and the opening itself. Some do that with their online systems, and I just got a lovely reject email the other day, but I've found this to be the exception, not the norm.
Oh and Finger Dexterity is an actual attribute and requirement listed in some job descriptions for clerical and office positions, but for the more demanding administrative support jobs simple finger dexterity won't cut it because as the crafter of that job announcement demands, you must posses the ability to "grip and lift various items within the office." So the stiff-fingered and gripping impaired need not apply.
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