Hunt for a real job pt 2

This week my hunt for a real job was more stressful than last week. It started like it always does, with my daily emails from Monster, CareerBuilder, and an assortment of insurance companies. As I was going through the different job opening and applying, I found a promising entry level position with decent pay, hours, and location. I figured it must be too good to be true, but it wouldn't hurt to apply. So I did.

Had I known the application processes would take me three hours and only lead me to a staffing agency I am not sure I would have done it. But, as I was applying, I figured I had to be getting close to the end of this application. I mean, even The Never Ending Story ends eventually! It made me miss the days of Comcast and applying for shitty retail jobs. I thought 45 minutes was a long time! Jeez.

But, I set up a meeting with a staffing agent and it went extremely well. However, before I could meet with the agent I had to fill out even more paper work, sign a bunch of documents and watch a safety video with a test afterward. The video covered everything from the appropriate way to use the stairs (apparently the rail along the side of stairs is not just for aesthetics), how high my heels should, or better yet should not be, the jewelry I can wear, how to properly type, how to properly use a filing cabinet, and that I should not let people at work touch me. The test was on safety materials covered in the video and the general policies of the staffing agency. I am not sure what my grade was, but I hope I did well.

Regardless, I left feeling upbeat. I was stoked to compile a list of 20 start-ups that I would be interested in working for, it seemed like the woman I met with was also pleased with the possibilities of placing me.

Then, the next day happened. I got an email from the staffing agent telling me of an opportunity to start immediately. I had to turn her down because the schedule at my current job is out and there is no way I could get ALL of my shifts covered in such a short amount of time. The rest of the day was basically terrible and ended with me going into my work to check if I had accidently left my keys. I hadn't  My manager invited me to sit down and have a drink, but I politely declined telling him drinking in my emotional state was not the best of ideas.

I came to work the next day ready to work. After about five minutes, I knew I had made a huge mistake by coming in. I walked into the office and started sobbing. I told my manager I couldn't do it, that I needed to go home. He awkwardly put his hand on my shoulder, told me to breathe, shifted around so I could take a seat, and left the office to figure out how to run the floor without me. A few minutes later he came back in, told me everything was figured out and that I should head home. I did.

By Sunday, all was well, and then I went to work. My shift was ridiculous! It was one weirdo after another. One crazy situation after another. When my shift was finally over I couldn't have been happier to get out of there.

Now, Monday is where things get tricky. Sometime earlier in the week I had agreed to trade shifts with a coworker. I was supposed to start work in the morning and be on a double. Of course, this completely slipped my mind. I didn't realize I had missed my shift until 2:30 in the afternoon, when I checked my phone. I was greeted with a voicemail from my manager asking me where I am and why I didn't show up at my scheduled time. Suddenly it all came back to me. I had downright forgotten and screwed over my coworkers in the process.

Now, I still have to go in to work my night shift. I am not looking forward to disappointed look I am bound to receive, nor am I looking forward to the “what the hell is wrong with you” questions I am going to have to answer. I feel obligated to go above and beyond at work today, but I know doing that does not change what happened this morning.

This has been an extremely unsuccessful work week and hunt-for-a-real-job week. 

My hunt for a job...pt 1

The quest for a real job has led me into some ridiculous emails, awkward conversations with HR and the longest three minute conversation of my life.

An Insurance company has been trying to hire me for what feels like ages. They call and usually I let it go to voice-mail because I do not recognize the number. On this particular day I figured if I am looking for a job I should probably start answering phone calls from strange numbers. This was my first mistake.

The woman on the other end of the phone had an accent I can only describe as a cross between Chinese and Australian. It was obvious she was reading off a script and her words ran together in a fashion that madeitseemlikeshewasjusttryingtogeteverythingoutbeforeIcouldasktoomanyquestionsorhangup. Eventually she got to the point. Apparently, the point of this call is that my sales experience from six years ago is in line with the skills they are looking for, so I was cordially invited to attend a seminar. After all, who doesn't like seminars?!

So, I ask this woman what I would be doing specifically. She rambled on about something, but did not answer my question. I figured there must of have been a breakdown in communication, maybe a language barrier. So, I rephrased my question by asking her what my specific job title would be. Once again, she rambled on in a half coherent fashion and neglected to answer my question.

I knew I couldn't stay on the phone much longer as I had a meeting at my current job, which pays me in real money.  It was a slight relief when she finally invited me the seminar and gave me a date in time. I told her I didn't think I could make it, hoping she would get the hint and hoping I could finish getting ready for my day. Once again, the language barrier must have gotten in the way because she again invited me to the seminar with a different date, hoping to fit my schedule better. This time, I decided to be more blunt and tell her it wasn't about the date and time, it is the job offer that I am not at all interested in, and because I am not a heathen I thanked her and the company for their interest in me.

Before hanging up, she reiterated the growing market of much needed insurance in the Bellevue area and told me if I ever change my mind they would love to have me attend one of their seminars to discuss the growing Bellevue economy and opportunities to work with the elderly to negotiate with pharm companies and some other stuff I couldn't understand due to either a bad phone connection or the strangest accent known to man.