It's Going To Be An Exciting Day!

Job hunting certainly is a ride! Here's an idea of what job hunting looks like:

March 3^rd: Applied for first job of the hunt. I thought I was going to get this job. In fact, I honestly thought I was going to skip this whole job-hunting process and move from one job to the next…I foresaw a smooth transition – HA!! I waited for a call about an interview. Instead, several weeks later I received an e-mail saying I was not being considered for the position…ouch!

April 7^th: Last day at job. I focused on the job hunt.

April 8^th-Today: Floored by the generosity of people/supporters around me (shout out to Hope Community Church)! I have had referrals for many open positions. People have found out what I’m looking for, then they’ve kept their eyes and ears open…AND they’ve sent me job openings they’ve seen. Wow! I am thankful for those people in my life! I have wanted to accept many jobs for the simple fact that someone referred me to that job and I wanted it to work out so badly. God has been gently reminding me through this process that I need to be patient, not a people-pleaser. So, patience it is.

Middle of April: Applied for a number of jobs with a well-known company in Minneapolis. I heard great things about them and know a person who works for them. I poured time into finding good-fit jobs and writing great cover letters.

Beginning of June: Hadn’t heard from them for any of the positions, wrote them off as being a big fat NO.

June 9^th: Got an e-mail from them wanting to set up a phone interview.

May/June: Decided to start checking craigslist for jobs. I don’t really like looking there because there are so many scams and postings from staffing agencies. It takes a lot of time to weed through and find legitimate posts from actual employers. My general rule is that the post has to have the company name listed. If the company name is listed, I can find their website and double check the craigslist ad is a legitimate post. While I waste a lot of time weeding through, I have found a few legitimate posts and have applied to those companies.

June 13^th: Got an e-mail from one such company. They would like to schedule an interview for Tuesday, June 14^th at 3:00pm (in the meantime, got a response back from the June 9^th company, they want to schedule an interview for Tuesday, June 14th at 2:00pm).

So, after months of job searching, I now have two great options (from what I can see so far) for employment, and they want to do interviews an hour apart --- seriously? Well, in that land of multitaskers, you make it work. Here’s how this is going to break down today:

8:00: Write this blog post

9:00-Noon: Prep for both interviews: get resumes ready, StrengthsFinder info ready (if you haven’t taken the StrengthsFinder, you really should. It’s a great tool!), make sure I’ve read through and understand the job descriptions, and research each company online. Research goes a long way in an interview and employers are impressed when you already have a general knowledge about their company.

Noon-1:30: Get ready for in-person interview. Picking out something to wear is always so difficult. In this case, based on the website and the e-mails I’ve been receiving, the company seems to 1) know how to have fun and 2) be professional while doing it. So, this calls for a fun, but professional looking print shirt and black pants to keep it neutral. It’s the best I can do to balance the two. And yes, this much thought does go into my interview outfit (I won't even write about how much thought goes into how to do my hair)!

2:00: First interview (this one is a phone interview). E-mail said expect a 20-30 minute conversation, so I will mentally prepare for 45 min. to be safe.

2:35: Leave for second interview (an in-person interview). If first interview goes long, I’ll have to finish it in the car.

2:36: Use all brain energy for finishing up a good phone interview AND not getting lost on the way to the second interview.

It’s going to be an exciting day!

A Job for a Season

AKA: a seasonal job!  When I started my job at the garden center/nursery/greenhouse, I was super stoked!  I’ve been behind a desk for six years and this was an opportunity to not only work and get paid, but also to learn about a growing passion of mine…gardening.  So, my seasonal job began and the lessons learned are countless.  Alas, I am going to attempt to name a few as they come to me:

1)   Customer Service is HARD work!  I challenge you, when you are being served by another person, to do everything in your power to see them as a person.  I’ve seen rude in almost all of its forms and I can tell you, trying to finish out a day greeting every person with a smile and treating them well when you’ve just been treated like dirt…is hard!  Show grace and kindness to those serving you, you may just turn their day around.  And if they haven’t been having a bad day, you may be just one more reason they can enjoy their job that day!

2)   On a sale day, I see four kinds of people: The folks that don’t say much-they just pay and leave, the folks that are super excited about their savings, the folks that argue with you because they don’t think the amount on the computer is ringing up as enough of a sale price as they’d like (usually these people have read the ad well and have found every loophole possible - they generally treat you like an idiot in the process), and the people that scoff in disgust even at the sale price.  Please make every effort possible to be one of the first two – it makes our lives easier, and I’m sure it will improve your quality of life as well!

3)   "Seasonal Job” in the gardening world means May - Beginning of June, not May - September (hmm…that makes this whole job search thing a little more of a priority!!)

4)   The last expected day with a chance of frost in MN is May 15^th

 

5)   A whole slew of other gardening knowledge that you’ll just have to ask me about if you want to know more!

So, there you have it - my small bit of knowledge in the land of seasonal customer service.  As I wrap up that job, I continue to have many experiences to share in the job-hunting process.  So, until next time…