I spent so much time writing and rewriting resumes in 2013 that I was mentally and emotionally drained every day. Workshops and counsellors will tell you to focus on a particular industry or type of work. Yeah, that's great, but when you desperately need work??
I've been there; it was exhausting. It was also depleting my confidence at such a fantastic rate that my mood was about as predictable as a yo-yo. Part of the reason I only received 5 interviews out of over 100 applications is probably also due to the fact that I was applying everywhere. One of the reasons the career planning workshop and "What Colour is Your Parachute" were so helpful is because they made me focus on what I really wanted to do with my skills. Constant rejection makes you start to think you don't have any and that's not a positive place to be when you're writing resumes.
I'm lucky enough to not be desperate yet, but because I was before (and could be again) and it was such a waste of my time, I want to offer some advice: settle down, breathe and focus. What are you after? A good job? A better job? A paycheque? Figure that out before you drive yourself nuts.
Here are some tips for getting work; not necessarily for getting your dream job, but just getting a job that can get you a paycheque.
#1: Downplay your skills/experience/awesomeness
This can be painful. Right after graduation, in 2013, I applied for a job and felt it would be better to remove my education. I cried. I was almost 40, had just worked my ass off in university and now I was applying for something I needed "some high school" for. The point is that if you are desperate for work, you will need to adjust your resume accordingly. Put yourself in the hiring manager's shoes. Even if you have zero interest in working your way up, if you are more qualified for the manager's job than they might be, do you think you'll get an interview? Would you bring in you to possibly take your job away in the future? Not likely.
#2: You don't always need a resume.
I answered an ad in '13 by showing up. A motel in town was looking for someone to work the front desk and in my patchwork quilt employment history, I have also worked the front desk at a hotel. I walked in to inquire about the posting and was told to bring my resume to another person on Monday morning. I showed up again (having forgotten to bring it) and talked with the manager about my experience. She asked when I was available for training and boom, I had a job. Never discount the importance of face-to-face interaction.
#3: Be ready to work.
Whatever you're applying for, especially if you're stopping in, be ready to work. If you need safety boots and a tool belt, show up at 7:45am in that. I brought in a resume to the first hotel I worked at where I got my front desk experience dressed for an interview. The person who took my resume asked me if I had time to wait and she came back with the general manager. "It must have been pretty important" he told me "to pull me out of a meeting". That lack of putting me at ease aside, I had waitresses in a large hotel before so I had some experience in the industry. He interviewed me then and there, asked what shifts I could work (having already done my due diligence with day care availability) I informed him I could be available six days per week from 7:00am until midnight. He said he could work with that and asked when I could start. I had a job.
#4: Talk to people.
It wasn't my dream job but my mom worked at the post office. I did not want to work there. However, I had turned down a job and been unsuccessful getting the one I wanted, already given notice at the motel and now I needed one. It was a cover-off position but they had someone out on medical leave so it was full-time. I stayed for seven months, through Christmas and I applaud anyone who does this job because it's not as easy as it looks and very few people respect the fact that you do it. (Oh, and it pays less than $40 grand a year, in some cases much less, so quit with the "they make so much money" BS.)
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