(For my credentials you can note that I've had 4 permanent jobs since graduating in 2008, worked in 7 offices (including temp jobs), have been unemployed for a total of 10 months since graduating and have only used the skills I/scholarships paid Purdue to acquire in ONE of these positions. Feel free to count that as a fail or a win. Your choice.)
In my opinion there are two things in play that influence getting a job. There is pure luck and there is action or things you can actually do.
There is some choice involved in the things I consider "luck". We do make choices on where we go to school, where we live, the connections we make, but we can't always foresee if these are the right choices for the time. That's why I chalk them up to luck.
Things that I consider luck are:
- Your Alma-mater
I actually got 2 of my 4 jobs by just graduating from Purdue. There are plenty of alum in the Midwest that recognize the name and want to pay-if-forward by hiring a recent grad.
- Who you know
I got promoted to my job now because of the following happenings (I have to use real names so this won't get confusing):
I was hired on at Company R to be a temp receptionist. The current receptionist, Lindsay, was moving on to fulfill partial duties of the departing Marketing Director, Sarah. Sarah left to work in Marketing for Company W. Company W is where Mr. S used to work, so I know people there. I moved on from receptionist temp to full-time admin at Company R. When the dust settled after Sarah left, it was determined that someone should take over the duties that Sarah left and Lindsay was not intended to pick up (i.e. the writing duties). Sarah heard through the grapevine at Company W that I had a writing background and that I was currently working right under the noses of the Marketing department of Company R. Lindsay and/or Sarah passed the info along to the Marketing EVP and he said to me in the hall one day, "Hey, I hear you're a writer". The rest is history [and elaborated on in the "Action" (part 2) of getting a job].
- Where you live
I tried to get a job where my parents lived in Indiana right after school. I was unsuccessful because Indiana's unemployment was worse than Illinois'. I packed up my car and took my sis and bro-in-law up on their offer to live in their (finished) basement for a while and job search in the Chicagoland area. I drove up there with a packed car and an interview on the schedule. I got that job.
- The Economy
I don't have to tell you what it's like. I started college on the idea that "any degree is a good degree" and finished on the idea that "liberal arts was a waste of time/what the heck am I going to do now?" It's not anybody's game anymore. You can't just get a degree and hope for the best. Like I said, I graduated in 2008 at the beginning of the end of the "you can do anything you want" era.
- What you look like
Sad, but true. Prejudice does come into play in interviews. I found out after-the-fact, that a former employer of mine asked that the staffing agency send her "no one with an accent, as it's hard to understand them on the phone" for a receptionist position after the company sent her a black girl. Outrageous, right? The staffing company probably sent her an articulate woman and, hello, we are in Chicago... whites make up only 40% of our population! And that's just the race issue. Overweight, poorly-dressed and frizzy-haired girls get overlooked too!
What do you think about the things I consider luck? How were you just plain lucky in getting a job? What is this list missing?
I'll go through the ACTION items next Tuesday, so stay tuned!
