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Job Searching is Work, NOT Luck.

MaryLeave a comment

I walked across the stage at graduation with the knowledge that within the next month I would be starting a full-time job using the diploma they were about to hand me. I was told a multitude of phrases when I told people, family, close friends, and all of my mentors were very congratulatory, they knew how hard I had been working towards getting a job post-graduation. My roommates knew that I spent most of my free time applying for jobs and going on interviews that lead nowhere. On top of my school work (and work) applying for jobs was essentially a full-time gig for me.

Acquaintances, random people who felt obliged to ask me what I was doing post-graduation were less congratulatory and were far more likely to tell me how lucky I was. “You know not very many people graduate with a job lined up, you’re quite lucky,” was a response I got quite often. Let me tell you, luck had absolutely nothing to do with it. I had worked my butt off for 17 years in school, and I wanted something to show for it, more than a piece of paper. I worked extremely difficult to get a job- it wasn’t easy but you can do it.

Here are my tips for your job search:

  • Start sooner rather than later- it’s better to start early and know early then start late and no have anything lined up.
  • If it says 3-5 years experience and you’re just graduating college, apply anyway. Use your experience from school, internships, etc.
  • The worst that can happen is they say no. Trust me- you can get really far and they’ll say no and it’ll SUCK, but then you’ll get a different job and be fine. I know from experience.
  • Networking is important, knowing people helps, but at the end of the day, you need to sell yourself. Know your strengths and how you can help a company grow, that’s what will get you far.
  • Ask for help, see if your connections know of any places hiring or know of people that are top rated in your industry that can give you advice.

Work hard to work hard, but if you do something you love it’ll be worth it.

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Baby Boomers are the Best and Millennials are the Worst

Mary4 Comments

I am a millennial. Now before you try and fight me on it, just let me have it. I have done papers. I fall in the years of millennials so please don’t even go there. I’m not Gen Z. I am the “problem” generation.

I am constantly pulling HR articles for social media posting at work and so many I come across are about millennials in the workplace and essentially what a PIA we are. SHUT UP. PLEASE. SHUT UP.

Fact. I don’t care if a company gives me a t-shirt, lets me wear whatever I want, or has pets in the office. All of those are perks, but not the most prevalent ones. We still want retirement plans we still want benefits.

I don’t know why every person who is not a millennial knows what we want and I’m also very curious how you can generalize a whole generation. You simply can’t. We have Google, Facebook, Amazon, BuzzFeed, and all of the media giants of today influencing people’s opinions of millennials, but in all honesty, they’re just adding icing on the cake. Companies are taking their avant-garde ideas that they add as pluses to their other benefits, but are forgetting to give people the OG benefits that are expected with a salaried job.

Let’s take BuzzFeed for example, ask anyone interested in digital media between the ages of 15 and 25, I would say 80% of them would be willing to work for BuzzFeed and 90% would at least be willing to make an appearance in a video or have a Tweet quoted in an article. Yet, their turnover rate for a lot of their “successful” employees is extremely high. Search “Why I Left BuzzFeed” on YouTube and you will find a million and one reasons. However, most of these are either centered around not having enough money to scrape by, or not having enough control over their personal brand. Their casual dress code, puppies in the office, popular videos, and overall portrayed energy promotes an idea of ideal work/life balance and displays people who seem like they generally want to go to work. This is what people think of millennials

So take away the “millennial wants” from BuzzFeed, you would see the reality of the situation there. Less than thrilled employees, not making enough money, and you would see the reality of a high turnover rate. It’s the idea of the perks that appeal to millennials, but it’s not what keeps them. 

So just a question: Why are millennials treated like we are the glutens, goldfish, and idiots of the workplace? All we’re looking for is someone to leech off of until someone new comes along. We don’t have the focus or attention span to stay with a company very long. And last but not least, we don’t really know anything (on top of literally everything we have ruined like department stores and fancy napkins).

Social media, as much as I love and cherish it, has given baby boomer and gen x to become afraid of the power they do not understand and attack us verbally. Naturally, the hashtags they try to dominate with why we’re the worst are quickly taken over by millennial “trolls.” We are not the snowflake generation, we are just not afraid to stand up for what we believe in. We are not cry babies and whiners, we’re just saying what we think to a larger audience. I’m sure gen x and baby boomer did just as much complaining back in their day, they just didn’t have a platform that would allow it to be so widespread. Back in their day, it was 15 minutes of fame, not the kind of fame we see today and they’re scared.

Back off, let me live tweet your breakdown and go viral because of it. While you continue to complain about how millennials suck (on the internet when we use it too much apparently) you’re going to be missing a lot of success. Stop being a precious snowflake and realize that millennials are starting to dominate the workforce and there’s not much you can do to stop it at this rate. We aren’t taking your jobs, killing industries, or whatever else you want to blame us for. Next time, don’t ruin the housing market and maybe I’ll buy a house as soon as I have a stable job, but too bad you did. If you want something fixed, go shop at more department stores and fix it. 

Weekend Coffee Share: New Apartment

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If we were having coffee we would be sitting in my unmade bed (the sheets are in the dryer) with Leslie Knope, my new cat. If we were having coffee, I would probably make you help me move my dresser out of the living room and into my new room, once we finished our coffees of course

If were having coffee I would talk too much because I’ve been alone in my apartment for two days with only my cat to talk to. I would tell you all about my new job and how I’m so excited to dive in with the real work this week.

If we were having coffee, after I went on and on about my job, I might ask you how you’re doing and what’s new with you, but it is sometimes more like me just to keep talking about myself. So then I would go on and on about how this blogging transition has been hard for me and content creating has become difficult. Not because I don’t like it, but because I’ve just been in a rut with my thoughts and ideas. I’m either too ambitious or too underwhelming.

If we were having coffee, I would probably give your the mini tour of my new apartment, and it would definitely be a mini tour. I’d tell you how excited I am to have an office, but since we’re still unpacking it’s pretty much unusable. I would also show you the coffee maker so we could make a second cup. Then we would go back to my bare bed because the dryer takes forever.

If we were having coffee, I would ask you what I should wear to work tomorrow, and then tell you about my idea for a photo shoot of different work outfits but I lack a photographer, since that is what I do for others. I would also tell you about all the ideas for that I would need help to accomplish which is sometimes very frustrating.

If we were having coffee, I’d ask you for advice– what should I do with my life? Like yes, I have a job and I love it, but what should I be doing with the rest of my time, certainly not just watching Netflix and coloring like I have been. I just want to know what’s next.

If we were having coffee and our time was up, I would walk you to the door and thank you for coming. “I’ll see you next weekend my friend.”

Late Night Blogging with Mary: Part 28

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I am sitting on our living room floor with about a million and five papers scattered around me along with a host of cold meds, decaf coffee, and some soy and dairy free chocolate. I keep staring at my very out-dated to-do list hoping it will give me answers that it’s not going to give me. I already took my evening dose of melatonin, so my apologies if this is a little scattered, I have to be up at 4:45 to babysit tomorrow morning so better safe than sorry with taking it early.

I have a second interview tomorrow, I’m not one for publicizing this type of information as I see it to be jinx worthy, however, I put everything here and maybe it’s jinx worthy to not ask for your best thoughts. Really, I’m afraid of jinxes no matter what so no matter what I do, if I don’t get this job I’m going to blame it as a jinx on something.

The job hunt in general, has been stressful. I have lost count of the number of jobs I’ve applied for. I’ve stopped applying to anything not on the east coast because I don’t think anybody wants to pay for me to relocate. If you do, ya know, let me know, I’ll move anywhere.

Other than jobs I have a crazy short time until graduation and I honestly can’t believe it. Although cliche, it does it feel like just yesterday that I started this blog in conjunction with my college career. While I’m so excited to be done school and get out of the classroom and maybe even out of my parents house (no offense, just looking for new), I’m not quite as ready for bills and whatever else real adults have to do. I want to do all the fun things and skip everything I might ever have to worry about. Generally, I’m more excited than not.

I’ve been working a lot this year to get to a point where I’m comfortable. I should’ve spent less but I’m considering this my last few months to be a little reckless. I babysit ALL the time, less now than earlier this year, but still a lot. I also work at the marketing department at my school, and as an intern. There might be other things I’m forgetting but, it’s been good. I think it’s been helping me prep for the future of being busy. If I could be a professional nanny, it’s definitely something I would consider. However, I did not go to college to do that, so I should really use the skills I’ve developed to please my parents and myself.

Anyway, here’s a little bit of my word vomit for everyone. How’s you job hunt going? Any tips for me? Anyone successfully freelancing and have some advice? Let me know!

I’m Back (for Real)

Mary2 Comments

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It’s real. I’m going to blog again. My life has gotten crazy and my blog has definitely taken a back seat to all of my other commitments. However, this is something that I truly love doing so I’ve done my research, got Katie as my accountability buddy and from this point forward there will be a blog post every week until the end of 2016.

A lot has changed since I’ve been here last, I have a million jobs (that I love!!) I’ve been to DC (not really new, it’s too close to be new at this point), a few haircuts, and I turned 22. I am most excited about the later, it my Taylor Swift year and so far it’s been off to a good start especially since my haircut makes me feel like her.

By this point, if you are a reader, you’ve seen my anxiety post, so that’s new too. I have also gotten a new planner which I’ve created to be a blog binder as well. I cannot wait for the new year for a lot of reason, but a big one is all of the inserts that I can buy on Etsy, because IT’S A FILOFAX!! I found an affordable one at Michael’s and with the 40% off coupon, I couldn’t say no. Expect a post on that in the near future.

I’ve been doing a lot of research on how to be a better blogger. I think I’ve done more research on blogging this year than actual blogging. I hit a rut, acknowledged a multitude of times, and now I plan on really doing something about it. I have an accountability buddy, so really, I have no excuse from this point forward.

How do you stay motivated as a blogger? Any tips or tricks I should take into account? Let me know!!

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Late Night Blogging with Mary: Part 21

Mary9 Comments

late night blogging with mary

Have I said recently that I’m exhausted? The classwork is non-stop this semester which explains my unfortunate lack of posting. It’s a lot at once or like none, I just need to remember when it’s none to stay on top of it. But at the same time, when it there isn’t any homework to do there’s a million other things to do. Basically I’m very tired a lot of the time.

Let’s also talk about anxiety for a moment. I hate it. I hate when I’m fine for so long, then like it hits me like a ton of bricks. I just feel like right now there’s expectations of me from everyone and I’m afraid to disappoint people and then I have my own stuff to do and it leads to a mind overload. I also feel like it’s too early in the semester for this. I don’t know, hopefully it doesn’t stick around because I am too tired for this.

On a side note, I’m starting another blog for class, so I’ll be sharing that here too.  Once something is up, I’ll share the link. It’s a crafting blog and once the class is over, hopefully I’ll be in the habit so I’ll be able to do some more of those on this blog. However, I have to do 14 posts for that class, so there’s a chance that there will be less posts on here. I’m basically MIA anyway so maybe it won’t even matter.

I also have a little bit of a rant for this LNBM, Netflix on my iPad has not been working. It logs me out all the time, once an episode finishes I have to kill the app and sometimes login again just to get it to work. How am I supposed to hate Nurse Jackie if I can’t even watch the show?!

Speaking of Nurse Jackie, what a weird show. I’ve never hated the main character of a TV show so much. When I watched Gossip Girl, I disliked the main characters in a rotating fashion, every four episodes I didn’t like a new person, however, it wasn’t consistent dislike of anyone. Nurse Jackie, on the other hand, I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve actually liked her character. I don’t know if that’s how it’s supposed to be or if that’s just me. I really liked Zoey at first, but then all the sudden she’s a mini-Jackie. I just don’t know. Anyone else have an opinion?

What are your late night thoughts? Mine are: going to bed before my  mind literally explodes.

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3 Days 3 Quotes Challenge: Day 3

Mary3 Comments

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Okay so maybe I went the unconventional route with this challenge, and didn’t take it too seriously but that’s how I like to do life. This is a quote from one of my favorite TV shows “Parks and Recreation”. I think this quote is very suitable for myself, however I must also include family with friends.

Leslie Knope is an inspiration to all. Like talk about an empowering woman, Leslie is a powerful, amazing, positive, breakfast loving woman, and all around very inspiring to me, which is why I thought it was very important to make it my last quote. She’s just this huge feminist icon in my opinion, feel free to disagree, but when I think feminism I think Leslie Knope.

I think this just suits me and my love for breakfast foods, especially IHOP, and that sometimes, maybe I can prioritize that over people, but not really. They might almost be equal because whenever I talk to my friends from back home I just go on and on about how I miss IHOP.  However silly it may seem, it really holds some truth to it though. Friends and family, waffles, work.

I really appreciate the last part, always put work third. Work should never be the first priority because than nothing is going to matter, and I think people forget about that. There is this idea that work is what makes you money so it has to go first, but really what makes you happy needs to go first.

So my list would probably go: God, friends and family, breakfast*, school/blogging/work. I put blogging in the work category since it takes up so much time, more time than a hobby, but I thoroughly enjoy it. I do need to remember not to put it first, because I did have a tendency to do that when I was daily blogging. You need to put people and the things that really enrich your life first.

What would your list be like?

If you are confused by this post, be sure to check out yesterday’s and Sunday’s posts to catch up! Thanks again to Getting Through Anxiety for challenging me to this, I’ve had a lot of fun with it! I didn’t challenge anyone like I was supposed to, but I really encourage everyone to try it, it really makes you think not only about  your favorite quotes,  but about what they really, truly mean to you.

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*Half joking about breakfast being that high up on the list, half not joking.

 

I Will BE Successful

Mary5 Comments

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Yesterday someone had the nerve to imply that communications majors should be concerned about their futures, that we should be worried that there aren’t enough jobs for us. This came out of the mouth of a Marketing major, and I dare her to see this and question me about it.

I am a Communication Arts major, I am learning how to communicate. And while I worry day in and day out about what I want to be when I grow up, I am not worried about what I will become when I grow up. There are options. I’ve applied for internships in FIVE different fields because my degree is that versatile. I’ve applied in HR, Marketing, sales, PR, and just general communications, I could also apply for internships in newspapers, editorial offices, magazines, publishing companies, and websites like BuzzFeed, so don’t you dare tell me that I should be concerned about my future.

I am worried because I don’t know what I want to be, but I know I have options. I am not limiting myself to a concentration because of that reason. I will not choose marketing because that is so limiting. I can still take marketing classes and put that on my resume if I want, but I really don’t need to since I already had an internship in marketing and that looks better than any class I could take on the subject. I don’t want to limit myself to the digital realm, even though that does happen to be what I like, because what if I fall in love with print. Being a Communications major means I’m giving myself options. Choosing to be a Communications major without limitations allows me to explore even more options. If I was certain on something, then yes, I’m sure I would have a concentration, but I don’t need one, I will be successful in a plethora of ways without one.

I’m sick and tired of people verbalizing or implying that I will be a failure simply because of my major. I’m sorry, but every company needs to know how to communicate. I refuse to worry about my ability to find a job when I could walk into any office and say “I can help your office communicate better, look at my degree to prove it!” I won’t say they would give it to me, but my degree is useful. Don’t doubt me on this because I will fight to defend my decision.

I will not be the richest person in the world from this degree, but I can almost guarantee that any company could use me or someone like me.

So please rub your marketing, math, engineering, or any other degree in my face. Don’t worry, I won’t criticize it, but just know that I have a wider variety of options so stop criticizing me and implying that I’m going to be a failure. No matter where you go, someone like myself will be there communicating with the rest of the world what you are doing – we are a needed breed. Communications majors will never not be needed, a company will always need to communicate outside its doors with the rest of the world no matter what they do. For the public to know they need a service it must be communicated, whether that’s through print, online, marketing (which you can do with just a communications degree), or even just within departments we are a commodity. I am not worthless like you like to imply. I do not have a joke of a major, my classes might be a little easier than bio and chem, but I still work for my grades. You need a communications major in your professional world, never doubt it. Do you see engineers working in HR? Nope, communications. Believe it or not, we’re needed, I’m going to succeed so don’t imply that I will fail.

I refuse to fail, so say it all you want, but when you go out of your way to criticize everyone else’s decisions it shows your own insecurities. Evaluate your own life and choices, not mine.

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The Dreaded Question: What do you want to do?

Mary2 Comments

Today was the first day of classes, which still requires so many professors asking your name and major, and today career paths. That was a terrible question. What do you want to do? I hate it so much. I hate that I’m twenty and I have no clue what I want to do. I hate that I know a million things I don’t want to do but there’s not even a little part of me that knows what I want to do.

I hate saying in front of the class that I don’t have career goals because I look like I’m not ambitious, but I am, I just don’t know what I want to be ambitious about.  Whenever these questions come up I get anxious, I love thinking and planning ahead but I can’t even decide what I want to do and that’s stressful for me.

Whenever anyone asks me what I want to do that’s not my advisor (who happened to be the professor asking today) I usually just say journalism or something in the communications field. Not true, definitely something in the communications field but not journalism. If I say that though people will think I have some type of plan so I get less criticism from strangers if I just say that.

Now, since this scares me so much I take career tests ALL THE TIME! Like literally when I have free time I’m trying to find a new one to take that’s free. They all give me the same result: JOURNALIST! I don’t want to be a journalist. I don’t like the people who aspire to be journalists (besides Logan and very few others) they’re very rude and arrogant. I can’t stand arrogance. I don’t want to subject myself to that the rest of my life.

I think I worry about this so much because I don’t want to grow up looking forward to the weekends. I don’t want to think every Monday “not this again” or “When’s Friday?” it’s easily one of my biggest fears that I  will be waiting for the next time I catch a break. I don’t want to be one of those people who dreads going to work everyday, I honestly want to enjoy my job. I hate my job (not internship) at home and I dread going there every time I do. I hate that I’m waiting for time to pass, wishing for eight hours of my life to just vanish. I want to enjoy every hour that I can and if that means exploring every option of what I’m doing with my future that’s what that’ll mean. It terrifies me that I don’t know what I want to do but it’s better than choosing something to do and then hating it for the rest of my life I suppose.

No one ask me that question again though, okay? It really pisses me off. The permanent answer is I DON’T KNOW!

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The Always Looming Future.

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I would say since I left for college the future has not stopped looming over my head. The question of what am I doing with myself and my life is the forever question it seems. I go to class and do my work but I’m not passionate about it, I don’t know if I’m not a passionate person or if I just haven’t found anything to be passionate about yet. I’m so jealous of people who find something they love and want to spend the next 50 odd years doing.

I think about the traditional way of life, go to college, meet someone, get a job, get married (sometimes those two are reversed), work, have kids (falls in other places too), work some more, divorce maybe, maybe even remarry, maybe have some more kids, kids grow up, you retire, have grandkids then after hopefully a good 20 years of retirement you die. I hate that. I hate the traditional.

I want to graduate college and help people but if I have an internship at the end of college- which is the goal, I would hope that they would maybe give me a job or I would have to find a job in a field that I like which illiminates my ability to travel and help people right after college. I think once you get that job though you get stuck in a rut of work and life starts faster than you can blink and that’s what really scares me. I’m afraid that I’m going to blink and I’m going to be 50 in a cubicle with a kid in college and a husband and another kid at home. I would say this is easily my second biggest fear, the rut of life.

I think there’s about 20 blog posts of me this year just stressing out about the future. What I’m going to do, what it holds, what is going to happen with me as a whole and as a person and how people are going to affect me in the long run, where I’m going to be in five years. All of it is very overwhelming to think about. I tend to write it all here to get all of these thoughts out of my head because they more they stay in my head the more they drive me crazy. I hate not having a plan, I really hate the unknown. I hate that I don’t know if my glasses might not be in the store tomorrow, so the fact that I don’t know what I’ll be doing 10 years from now pains me.

I keep thinking that one day I’m going to wake up and I’m just going to know what I’m doing with my life and something is just going to fall into my lap and that will be it. I’ll just know what I’m doing, yet that’s not how life works, I feel like you either have an idea or you don’t, I have ideas they just aren’t practical.

I don’t know friends. These are the thoughts that haunt me.

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