April 28: an ironic post

I haven’t been successful in securing a job for many months, so I am aware that this post is almost drowning in its irony.

Most people pick up the weekend paper, looking to reading the stories of local and the world, right?

In My house, thats wrong. It is picked up in the hope that this week, there will be a job I am successful in obtaining.

I am among the millions of people on this Earth who are on the brink of joblessness or have no jobs, but actively seek employment. I am a standard, middle class, Jo Blow.

Today though, I did something that I felt ceremonial. I deleted my email folder that had all the rejection letters in the hope that it will stop me brooding on it. I hope this will encourage some positive letters back.

I’ve had me resume re done, and I am constantly revising and individualizing my cover letter to try and appeal to my prospective employers.

So today I thought I would blog about my tips that I use to try and get a job.

#1: Check the job sites every day.

I use:

http://www.seek.com.au
http://www.jobsearch.gov.au
http://www.atel.com.au

#2: Find out what days are best for job applications in your area. In mine, it is Saturday and Wednesday. Saturday is the best though, with between 5 and 7 pages of jobs each week. Go through the job section front to back with a pen to mark any you’re interested in. Then go back to front to make sure you have not missed any.

#3: Resume drop. Drop your resume in to any store that you are interested in, and follow up on it about a fortnight later.

#4: Get your resume checked over, and redone if neccessary. This may cost you a small fee, but it is worth it to get a new or better job.

#5: Write a new cover letter for each application. You can use a template, but always double, triple, quadruple check it!

#6: Have a bunch of resumes printed out and in yellow A4 envelopes, so you can write the address on them, straight away, if they require to be snail-mailed. This way you only have to put in a new cover letter for each application.

#7: If you have email on your phone, set it up so you can email job applications if you see them in the windows of shops or advertised elsewhere. This way you can email straight away, with no procrastination. Easy!

#8: Set aside a time every week, soon after the paper comes out to do a whole heap of applications. Then set aside every day or night to go through the online sites. This way you never miss a job opening.

#9: READ THE JOB DESCRIPTION!!! You may need to go online for this, but it gives you the exact requirements for your application so you can address them. This is a vital piece that I learnt I was doing wrong.

I follow these every day, and I have hope. Which is something that every jobseeker needs to have. Don’t  lose hope, don’t get despondent. Somewhere, out there, is the perfect job for you and me.

That being said, I know its hard not to worry, get upset, get down about it. Trust me, I know. But we will get through it, no matter what, we will get through this.

I have applied for anything and everything. I will try anything once, then I will try it again just to make sure. I’m not fussy. I hate spending my days at home, with nothing to do but clean. I hate relying on Daniel for everything. It makes me feel like a leech. And even though I know its only temporary, it still makes me feel horrible.

I look forward to hearing your tips on job hunting. I’m sure between all of us out there, we can do well by each other.

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