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proceed with caution

Happy Tuesday 📰  Job seekers, this is a reminder to be cautious when a *recruiter* reaches out to you. I recently had one that seemed legitimate but something just didn't sit right with me. They were being evasive to questions that I shouldn't have had to ask, so I opted to do a little digging. I went to the hiring company's website and couldn't find the job they were recruiting for. I did, however, find an HR contact and a person with the title who the job reported to. I emailed both explaining that a recruiter had reached out to me and while I would 100% respect their hiring process, I was trying to verify if the job/recruiter was legitimate. The HR person emailed me back (thank you!) indicating that they had no such opening and they did their own recruiting. In short, they were not working with any outside recruiters. If you think something's off, stop. I got lucky in that the *recruiter* mentioned the company they were supposedly working for, most don't giv...
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how many postponements are ok?

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#MerryMonday  ðŸ“° I was supposed to have an interview with HR this morning at 8:00. I received this email about 10 minutes before the interview was supposed to start 🙄 I get that things come up, but this is the third time this interview has been postponed and honestly, if it's this hard to get through the first interview, what would working there be like? I haven't replied yet but I'm leaning towards the "thanks but no thanks" route... #JobHuntingChronicles #KnowYourWorth
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keep going...

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Happy Thursday 📰 Success looks different for everyone. If you're looking for a job right now, success may seem far off. Keep going. #freelancer #FreelanceWork #FreelanceLife #WorkFromHome #RemoteWork #CatSitting #CatSitter #WorkLifeBalance #JobHuntingChronicles
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become a possibilitarian

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Happy Wednesday 📰 I've mentioned that someone in my family has been trolling my job search lately and she ramped it up yesterday via text with what I call a "but apology". You know what I'm talking about, "I'm sorry, but...". They start to apologize then add "but" and proceed to state their opinion as to why they really shouldn't apologize because they're right. It's not an apology at all and everyone knows it. I've been told by several people that I should just block this particular family member, not only on Facebook but in my phone as well. Truth be told, I'd have every right to do that but at this point, I'm just trying to ignore her. Don't get me wrong, I'm not ok with what she's doing, and despite my trying to let them roll off my back, her words do hurt. My instinct is to defend myself and list everything I've done to try to find a job: outline every job I've applied for, give her my list o...
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when the trolls are close to you...

#MerryMonday 📰 I have someone trolling me in my job search. First it was a 6 a.m. text on a holiday weekend, then it was a comment on one of my Facebook posts (that had nothing to do with my job search, freelancing, or cat sitting). I'm trying to turn the other cheek but it's hard because this person is in my family and obviously there's a different dynamic in play... It's impossible to get some people to understand just how tough this job market is, more so if they haven't had to look for a job in decades. If you know someone looking for a job, please don't offer unsolicited advice. Don't ask "have you tried this?" or tell them to "get a job". If asked, by all means give your best advice (maybe qualified with "it's been x number of years since I've looked for a job but..."), otherwise stay quiet. Job seekers, are you being trolled by someone you know? How do you handle it? #JobHuntingChronicles
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hang in there

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Happy Thursday 📰  I took this picture on my walk this morning. A walk I went on after a virtual interview was postponed. Again. No reason was given and at this point, I don't even really care why. It's hard for others to understand why I'm more interested in freelance work as opposed to getting "a real job", but this morning is a big reason why. Postponed interviews, canceled interviews, being ghosted after multiple interviews, roles being advertised again - these are just a few of the things job seekers are constantly dealing with. At least with freelancing things seem to go at a decent pace. You apply, you get a call/message/email, you meet (oftentimes virtually), you get hired or you don't. You're not subjected to an antiquated hiring process that takes weeks or even months to get through. Unfortunately I don't have enough freelance work so I continue to apply to full-time jobs as well. Something has to work out, right? Eventually... #freelancer #F...
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here's what I've read lately on getting a job

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Happy Wednesday 📰  These are a couple of the most recent books I've read on job hunting. I'm Gen X so I'm not sure if it's good news or bad news that I've already been doing most of what these books suggest and am still looking... Obviously, no one has all the secrets to getting hired and people can really only speak for themselves on what works and what doesn't, what's liked and what's not (for every "do this" post by a recruiter or hiring manager, I usually see at least one post stating "don't do this", it's definitely confusing). As job seekers, it's up to us to be our authentic selves and do what's comfortable for us. Getting advice is fine but in the end, we're the ones applying for the jobs and sitting through the interviews, if we act like someone we're not, we're not being fair to ourselves or employers. Hang in there job seekers. May better days be ahead for all of us. #JobHuntingChronicles ...
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