Forums: How the hell do you get a job anymore?

I can honestly tell you that it is simply about who you know. Ask a friend to bother their boss and get you a job.

That's the problem for me, I hardly know anyone here. :/

BeeSull

I would stop aiming so low.

You say that you've volunteered before, well who for? Try to get a job with them. If they're a smaller organization without much hiring potential then go volunteer for a BIG organization that is hiring massively. Get a leg in. That is my advice.

Well I don't think it's "aiming low," if people with more experience then me are applying for the same "crappy" jobs as me. I volunteered at a zoo, and you need a LOT of experience to even get a chance to work there. Of course, volunteering is a huge advantage, and a great majority of the time the new people they higher volunteered there for years, but that won't suffice alone.

BeeSull

I agree with you. You get a job where you can get a job. There is nothing shameful about supporting yourself through hard, and often under appreciated, work.

This is more what I was commenting on, "I only apply at places that say no experience necessary." Why? Volunteer experience IS experience!

How long did you volunteer at the Zoo? Did you meet anyone there who could help you get in? If not, maybe you didn't volunteer there long enough or regularly enough. I'm not suggesting that you'll suddenly become a Zoo Keeper or an Animal Behaviorist. However, I think it's incredibly possible for you to sell tickets, work at a concession stand, the gift shoppe, or if you're really lucky maybe even help in some very minuscule way with the animals daily routines. (Even if it's only part-time, a few hours a week it will help you get a better job.)

If you don't think that there is any chance of you getting in at the Zoo, well then volunteer somewhere that you do think you'll be able to get in at eventually! Make sure that you ask them to teach you tasks that will be useful to you in your future job search.

GOOD LUCK!!! TONS OF IT!!! I wasn't trying to be rude or derogatory. I just get the sense from your original post and comments that you might be under selling yourself even to yourself! (Something we've all probably been guilty of at one time or another.)

I do forget that it is customer service sometimes. v.v; I'm also going to start volunteering at a retirement home with meals, so that's good, too.

Thank-you. :3

BeeSull

Yep! Customer Service is GREAT experience for getting a job too!

Aw! Old people rule! I can't wait to be old, not middle aged though LOL. I'm excited to be REALLY old. I bet those old people will keep you on your toes!

Good luck!!!!

DanniHutch

It's like a paradox. In some places (like near where I live) you have to have experience to get a job, but to get experience you need a job. I know a lot of people who look and look but never get hired, and some who just walk in and get the job. Idk why people do that, but I am just lucky my mom needed help and her company hired me as a part-time intern for her so I have a summer job while I am in college.

I know. >.> I'm trying to not get too discouraged, though. I mean part of it is definitely me; I've always felt inferior to everyone else, especially girls my own age. I'm sure this comes through in my body language. Between me and a girl with sparkly personality, they will obviously pick her. And even with all of that aside, everyone I know who got their first job with no prior experience got it because they knew the owners or workers some how. I don't really know how to fix my personality.

DanniHutch

Just keep trying, also I love your icon. You shall recieve a llama for it

Thanks.

Are you trying at any job you can think of? Fast food, hotel industry, hospital, retail? All the teenybopper stores love young people working for them, so that the clerks can relate to the target audience. At a hotel, hospital or restarant, even if you the only option available is an unglamorous job as a dishwasher or cafeteria lady, then by all means snag it. It's jobs like these that are perfect for getting your foot in the door when everyone else thinks they're "above" it. You can't be too picky in this economy. (Except maybe being the person who cleans porta-potties XD)

Believe me, I've been applying to all of those. I was going to apply to a clothing store in the mall, too, so we'll see. I just can't help but feel I come off a certain why that makes me less hirable then an ex-inmate. Or maybe I'm just getting self-conscious at this point.

Knightster

I got mine through apprenticeship. When I've finished the educational part of it, I asked if I could hang around and my boss agreed. That was about it

Unfortunately I can't afford to go to my community college right now, even if I knew what I wanted to study.

Knightster

According to US definition of collage, I haven't went to one either.
I went to what you yanks would call high school (I think) and after that managed to grab a
management apprenticeship.

Where you in some kind of management focused program or something? It's just that here, especially in my city, any internship I would want (likely involving animals/nature) would most definitely go to a student, because people come all over specifically for these opportunities. I'm not complaining, though, it makes perfect sense. And, to be honest, I don't know what other intern opportunities even exist here. I know that there are definitely good opportunities, though. I think the best thing I can do is just try to get as involved as I can while still searching for jobs the old fashioned way.

Knightster

I finished Business studies at collage and got sent to the company I work for now on work experience
(they kick you out of school for two weeks to work for free in a place of your choice).
I couldn't afford going to Uni but didn't want to get stuck in a shit
job forever so apprenticeship was perfect for me. Few weeks after starting apprenticeship search,
I asked my current boss whether or not he was taking apprentices, and here I am.

Marketing management is where I'm stuck at the moment.
Can't say it's bad, it pays and it's a relatively stable position which at 19, not many have.
However, I'd rather head towards more "hands on" kind of management in the future.

Do keep an eye on those courses. Cancellations are your friend, and who knows,
perhaps by a blind stroke of luck you'll land in position you want.

I guess the school systems are just entirely different. Once you graduate, you either find and entry level job and work up, or go to a college or trade school.
There really aren't any courses for me to take at this point. I was thinking of just taking some courses at my community college, but I don't know if I can afford it right now.

Elmida

I applied and got accepted, that's sort of it for me. I don't know how anyone else does it.

lightning-13

that's the thing, these days, they don't only demand experience - like, do your job with high quality, but also with the kind of service that is expected. To be able to cooperate, have good contact with customers etc, is desirable. But that feedback, that you sounded shy from the phone, I mean, everybody is shy because it's an interview and you want to do your best.. they were too harsh. What kind of jobs do you look after? is there a way to get better at this 'job'? do you have any contacts that could say something good about you?

I actually feel like I'm not that shy in interviews, so I don't know. I'm not exactly the most extroverted person, though.

I've been applying everywhere. Mostly I've been looking out for dishwashing jobs and other "less desirable" positions, but I'll apply anywhere. I think I might stress the fast food route a little bit more now, though. I was looking for volunteer opportunities locally, and I finally found something that could work (they are surprisingly hard to find). I do have some good referrals, and my sister is very familiar with all the local businesses. Still, I hate nepotism, even if it worked in my favor.

TokyoV