I decided to shorten the number of “parts” in my story. My first idea was to make part 4 a longer, more in-depth discussion of the unemployment era. I really think, though, that I have droned on about that long enough. Life has too many negatives in it as it is, no need for me to dwell on them.
So. To recap: I moved back to KC, I got a new job, I was let go right before my birthday and I was unemployed for a little over a month and a half.
During that month and a half, I spent countless hours searching for jobs and sending my resume to God knows how many companies. To say it was frustrating would be a bit of an understatement. I did not actually count the number of jobs I applied for, and I didn’t count the limited number of responses I received from my efforts, I will say this: the ratio of applications to responses/interviews was extremely one-sided. I’d probably give a rough estimate of about 30:1. That’s still probably not even right.
The job market out there is extremely sad, folks. Let me tell you: I applied for a slew of job types; assistant, HR, PR, communication, sales…. the list continues. I tried to stick to mostly entry-level positions. And you know what? Almost every entry-level position that I managed to contact said that I “wasn’t qualified enough” and “didn’t have enough experience” for the job. Seriously? Entry-level? Since when did entry-level positions require 3-5 years of experience? Am I missing something here? See, to me, entry-level means just that; a job that does not require previous experience after the applicant has graduated college. Even then, I did have a full year of experience working at a newspaper. So you’re really going to tell me that I didn’t have enough experience to qualify for an entry-level position?
I could write a whole blog entry on the job market alone, and how picky employers are when even looking for “entry-level” positions. At this point, what does a college degree even matter if it’s really 3-5 years of experience that is required prior to getting an entry-level position? But, I can save that discussion for a later date. Regardless of my frustrations, of being told that I was not qualified enough, of being told I was interviewing for one position when in reality I was interviewing for something entirely different, I managed to find a job that actually sounded interesting.
FINALLY.
After two interviews, and despite showing up to the second one on crutches (stupid ankles..), I managed to land a position as a law firm assistant. And as I am in the fifth week of my employment, I can say that waiting was definitely worth it. I love this job SO much more! The environment, the people, the work, all of it is so much better for me. I actually feel like I fit in somewhere. And it is something I never really pictured myself doing.
Sometimes you find answers in the least likely of places. When I chose to double-major in Journalism and Justice Systems, I really had no idea I would use the latter degree in my career. I envisioned myself sticking with journalism my whole life.
Kinda funny how things hardly ever turn out the way we expect them to. We all like to plan for the future, thinking we know or expect more about our futures than we really do. Life continuously throws you curves, both good and bad, and you realize that the unknown is truly out of your control. Brings to mind the phrase, “If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans.”
So far, surviving this major let down in my life has led to something better than I expected. I’ll take it. And I would relive it all over again 🙂
callmecalli 