Genesia said:

he spoke the voice of the it experiences; that annoying; a piece of advice: escapes from boss's wives like her

Depending on your field, meow, you have a built-in moderate- to high-level professional milieu all around you by virtue of your being in college.

My best gigs have come not from a perfect resume, good references and an aggressive solo job hunt (all of which are important), but rather from impressive classroom/co-curricular performance and academic faculty and staff who were all too excited to pitch me to their established network of professionals.
[Edited 6/9/09 18:16pm]

ingamilo said:

these ads totally made me think of you and this thread

those ads are awesome
but they don't help much.

sammij said:

I know

ZombieKitten said:

I think Genesia made the most concise point--play the game.

If you're talking about making money, pure and simple, you have to adapt to the system that has the money & gives it out.

There are a lot of methods, but you will have to conform to them a bit. This does not make you lose yourself to wear a suit or to cover your tattoos, or even speak the lingo of the profession. It just gets you ahead.

sell drugs meow!

Job: Just over broke
Find something that u can turn into a busniess 4 yourself if possible.

Genesia said:

This is the best advice.

JustErin said:

Absolutely. In particular, I want to echo that comment about sticking with a job for a year. Unless the atmosphere is absolutely poisonous or you have an opportunity you can't turn down, you should stay with a company for a solid twelve months. I definitely place work history above anything else when I look at candidates: Not experience appropriate to the position, necessarily - more so a visible history of seeing a commitment through. If I see a resume littered with 6-8 month job terms, my first thought is that the person is a non-committal malcontent.
[Edited 6/10/09 10:53am]

damosuzuki said:

Definitely. And if it IS experience appropriate to the position it's even better. That's why having a goal is so important. Focusing your energy will pay off eventually, though it may take time.

ZombieKitten said:

Is that you and Max?

Lammastide said:

I'll agree that connections are very important when competing with a million other people that are just as qualified for a position as you. I got my foot in the door of my current job because I had known and worked with one of the editors at a previous company.

Graycap23 said:

that is sooo hard. Its great to do something you love, but be ready to be broke for a while.

damosuzuki said:

My niece turns 16 tomorrow and already has a nearly two-year work history at a locally owned custard/burger joint. (That's right - she got a paying at job at 14.)

About a year ago, I asked her how she liked working there. She said, "It's okay. Not very challenging, though." I told her, "Look at it this way. You work this kind of job now, so you won't have to work it later. Stick with it, get an education, and you won't have to worry about your future."

I will never understand young people who think they can just start at the top. (That's a general statement - not saying anyone here fits that description.)

sextonseven said:

Good point there. A connection shouldn't trump qualification (though unfortunately it does sometimes), but it darned sure can expedite putting it in the interview chair.
[Edited 6/10/09 18:23pm]

sextonseven said:

if it weren't for the kid's frowning face, I'd say yeah! OMG!!!

Are you good at anything?? I'd suggest self-employment if that's the case... It's risky as hell and hard as @#%$%^ but when it works it's the best feeling in the world!!

ZombieKitten said:

I did like a lot;it's this teaching type that encourages me in this forum
>1 lesson: maintain the humor
thank you and I find very useful your piece of advice for the boy

RenHoek said:

yes! forget the institutions; the hierarchies; the bosses; .... the genésias

ingamilo said:

Problem is that it takes money to make money.

JustErin said:

A work ethic helps, too.

Genesia said:

Exactly. You have to be willing to bust your ass, make sacrifices and yes conform to be what you're expected to be...at least at first, but establishing that kind of clout takes time.

I can closely relate to Imago's first bit of advice -- except my path wasn't military.

Find something you like love to do and would for low pay (to start) but that exposes you to a whole lot of new skills, gives you the opportunity to develop leadership skills and -- most important -- exposes you to a host of people who can serve as mentors, peers and references. Always, in this job especially, be willing to do far more than your job description requires.

Be willing to relocate, after a year or two in that position, for a job that is even closer to your ideal. If you find it, apply for it -- even if you think you're nowhere near qualified for it. If you get turned down by the person hiring for it, communicate with him or her to let them know: 1) You seriously like what that job entails, 2) you're persistent and are willing to go the extra mile (which your resume should bear out) and 3) you're willing to make connections with people and are someone to keep an eye on.

As someone who's managed and mentored a bunch of folks, I can tell you drive and ingenuity are worth their weight in gold to someone looking to hire. I just wish I'd been more so when I was younger. This movie is a great one to watch:

JustErin said:

These days you really need to have a very specific skill-set, unless you are a super people person management material jack of all trades (like the master ) who can handle just about any position where lots of people need to be "managed" - even then I guess that is a pretty specific skill-set. Gone are the day where you could get a general arts degree in Ancient Greek history and english or something and get a job over someone else because you have a tertiary education.

ThreadBare said:

Andy, be serious. You are not trying. You are whining. What is it that you want me to say to you, hmm? Do you want me to say, "Poor you. Miranda's picking on you. Poor you. Poor Andy?" Hmm? Wake up, Six. She's just doing her job. Don't you know that you are working at the place that published some of the greatest artists of the century? Halston, Lagerfeld, de la Renta. And what they did...what they created was greater than art because you live your life in it. Well, not you, obviously, but some people. You think this is just a magazine, hmm? This is not just a magazine. This is a shining beacon of hope for...oh, I don't know...let's say a young boy growing up in Rhode Island with six brothers pretending to go to soccer practice when he was really going to sewing class and reading Runway under the covers at night with a flashlight. You have no idea how many legends have walked these halls. And what's worse, you don't care. Because this place, where so many people would die to work, you only deign to work. And you want to know why she doesn't kiss you on the forehead and give you a gold star on your homework at the end of the day. Wake up, sweetheart.

Thanks for the tips everyone, but I'm afraid not much of it is useful to me. I don't have a goal of any kind, I don't know what I want to do, and what I'm good at is a pretty narrow field, and school takes money and the education I do have has already put me so unbelievably far in the hole.

Many of you gave tips that would only be applicable if I had some kind of job that actually allowed for advancement. Sad to say, but I'm still working the same minimum wage service and retail type jobs I was 10 years ago. I really have no idea how to get out of that cycle. There's nowhere to move but sideways in jobs like that. I had an interview last week at a certain retail store (sammi knows where) and when they called back to decline me, said I was overqualified.

I really do need to figure something out though, because this financial situation just isn't funny anymore. My ribs are visible through my back now.

meow85 said:

Well, do realize we're in an unusually tight job market right now. That's one factor. But, honestly, the friendliest market won't help you without some tenacity and personal discernment.

What are you studying in school? Do you love it? What do you love?