Well its been a week, almost to the minute, that I became the Unemployed Career Woman. Although this week has posed many ups and downs, I am confident that someway-somehow, I will always end up on my feet.
Although the ultimate goal is full-time employment, I do have bills to pay. Using my resources, I was able to get a part time job at Victoria Secret. Why Victoria Secret do you ask? First I am not a big shopper for lingerie, so I won't spend my paycheck there (if I was working at a costume jewelry/purse/clothing store- I would still owe the store money at the end of the month!!). Next I already own a lot of black clothes, so I am all set for work clothes. Lastly I have always enjoyed the retail sector, so I plan to have fun at this job.
Yes I feel that I deserve a job in my field and I will keep my eye on the prize until I find it. However I am also humbled by this situation and I appreciate any help or opportunity that I can get.
In the meantime, ladies come visit me and I will help cover the Ta Ta's!!
Hello are you hiring?
Monday, February 28, 2011
Saturday, February 26, 2011
I got on the Scale Today
Apparently being unemployed increases your appetite (who knew?!?). Spending the week eating Girl Scout cookies, potato chips, and licorice to make myself feel better (I kept telling myself how much I deserved them after the week I just had) wasn't one of my wiser ideas. Although I did snack at work, I justified it by taking the stairs. Ninety-two stairs up to my office. Ninety-two stairs going down to the casino. Ninety-two more stairs back to my office and...well you get the idea. The only exercise I have been getting these days is walking from the kitchen to the couch. Maybe an occasional flight or two of stairs if I am doing laundry, but then again I don't need to do much laundry because I don't have anyplace to go.
So I am thinking that I may need to motivate myself a little more in the days to come. The permanent butt mark on my couch is screaming out at me to give it a little break. Maybe I will as soon as I finish eating my ice-cream....straight out of the carton of course. And Mr Scale you win this round, but I will get you next time.
So I am thinking that I may need to motivate myself a little more in the days to come. The permanent butt mark on my couch is screaming out at me to give it a little break. Maybe I will as soon as I finish eating my ice-cream....straight out of the carton of course. And Mr Scale you win this round, but I will get you next time.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Late Night Infomercials
Yesterday my wonderful dog decided to eat my remote control. I can tell you that I was far from impressed. So last night I was watching a show on a cable network and as soon as it was over there was an infomercial. Because I was bundled up nice and cozy on the couch, I was too lazy to get up and switch the channel. For one hour I was intrigued about how to buy and sell "notes" and make $6000 in 20 minutes. For $39.95 I could be the proud owner of the 4-set DVD kit. Hmmmm...sounds s little too good to be true. Following this infomercial I was then interested in how I could look 10 years younger with this revolutionary youth serum. That was only $39.99 a month if I sign up for automatic deductions for a year (or course that was in the fine print on the bottom of the screen). Before I turned in at 2:30am I watched one last skit about the healthiest dog food around. Again that $39.99 price point jumped out...this time for a 25lb of dog food.
Is this the stuff I missed by going to bed at a reasonable time to get up for work?
Is this the stuff I missed by going to bed at a reasonable time to get up for work?
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Answering those "Confidential" Ads
As I have been scouring the internet for possible jobs I am noticing more and more positions that are listed by "confidential" companies. Of course these are the positions that sound most appealing to me. However when they are advertising a sales/marketing job, is it REALLY a marketing job or is it for door to door magazine sales. And when the ad states must have good interpersonal skills, is it a customer service job or is it "inter-personalizing" at a strip club doing a lap dance. Then if you do find one that may be legit, you are now mailing your personal information and employment history to a PO Box. Who knows who you are sending it to? I am thinking it may explain the crazy phone, email, and snail mail offers that I am now receiving asking me to work from home IF I pay them $487 for their "At Home Start-up Kit". Hmmmmm.
Reality Sets In
When they say time heals all wounds, I begin to wonder how much time I will I need to feel better. Day 3 of unemployment was the roughest day yet. I woke up once again with a big pit in my stomach. I remember waking up in the mornings wishing that I didn't have to go to work. I would wish I could sleep in and be lazy watching episodes of Tyra and Judge Judy all day. Now I wake up early wishing I had a job to go to.
To make myself feel better, I decide to take a stroll around the mall to visit some old colleagues and to put feelers out for jobs. As I passed my favorite shoe store, I decided to go in and take a look. As soon as I started looking at the dress shoes it occurred to me.....I have no place to wear these shoes to. This feeling of dread then engulfed me.
I then proceeded to meet some former co-workers. Although it was nice to see them, it only reminded me that I no longer work with them and soon I will completely be out of the loop of the workplace. Again, the pit in my stomach rang out.
Once home I called it a night and went to bed, tears still rolling down my face.
To make myself feel better, I decide to take a stroll around the mall to visit some old colleagues and to put feelers out for jobs. As I passed my favorite shoe store, I decided to go in and take a look. As soon as I started looking at the dress shoes it occurred to me.....I have no place to wear these shoes to. This feeling of dread then engulfed me.
I then proceeded to meet some former co-workers. Although it was nice to see them, it only reminded me that I no longer work with them and soon I will completely be out of the loop of the workplace. Again, the pit in my stomach rang out.
Once home I called it a night and went to bed, tears still rolling down my face.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
PMS x 10....that's the Emotion for the Day
I feel like I have PMS x 10 today. The emotions running through my head are interesting. I am laughing and feeling better one moment, I am angry as hell the next minute, and then I am keeping Kleenex in business again the next. Again I had a restless night so I am sure the insomnia isn't helping things. I had the pleasure of dreaming of the individual who fired me. Unfortunately he was dominating me in my dreams too. I was hoping that somewhere in my dream a handsome superhero would come in and fight for me, then whisk me away to his secret penthouse in the sky. However I guess that only happens in the movies.
So first order of business, its time to update my resume. I guess it was pretty much updated since I had just worked on it a few months ago. But there was one main change......I had to remove the word "present". My last job did not contain that golden word. My start date and end date both have...well a date. This was the big realization that I was officially unemployed and not "presently" working for an employer. How would future employers take this? Was she fired? Did she quit? Was she laid off? Does she just not want to work? Let's just say that I hope they read cover letters so that I have a chance to plead my case.
I then began the online search. I posted my resume on a few job sites with the hopes that my one little resume would stick out from the 100,000 that employers are exposed to. I then browsed a few jobs. Hmmmm, truck driver, door to door sales, telemarketing, machinist, bus driver? I am not feeling too hopeful at this point. I keep reading....server/model, electrician, babysitting. Still nothing is jumping out at me. Just as I am feeling pretty frustrated I do the next best thing, I retreat to lunch with a friend. She offered to treat.
So first order of business, its time to update my resume. I guess it was pretty much updated since I had just worked on it a few months ago. But there was one main change......I had to remove the word "present". My last job did not contain that golden word. My start date and end date both have...well a date. This was the big realization that I was officially unemployed and not "presently" working for an employer. How would future employers take this? Was she fired? Did she quit? Was she laid off? Does she just not want to work? Let's just say that I hope they read cover letters so that I have a chance to plead my case.
I then began the online search. I posted my resume on a few job sites with the hopes that my one little resume would stick out from the 100,000 that employers are exposed to. I then browsed a few jobs. Hmmmm, truck driver, door to door sales, telemarketing, machinist, bus driver? I am not feeling too hopeful at this point. I keep reading....server/model, electrician, babysitting. Still nothing is jumping out at me. Just as I am feeling pretty frustrated I do the next best thing, I retreat to lunch with a friend. She offered to treat.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Day 1 of Being Unemployed
Since everything happened so quickly and so VERY unexpected I could do nothing but cry and lay in bed wondering how this happened. I did manage to call family and friends and let them know what happened and ask them for their support. I then did the only other thing that I could think of, I posted on my facebook page that I was eagerly in search of employment. ANY employment! Luckily I did get a few good leads and support. It took the sting off just a little bit.
I then wanted to go online and search for local jobs...again ANY jobs. However my tear ducts had other ideas, and as I typed on my laptop the tears continued to flow so hard that I thought I might short something out. I then curled back into the fetal position praying that the day would end and that when I would wake up and this nightmare would be over. Unfortunately it also plagued my dreams and left me dealing with the situations that caused this sudden unemployment.
I then wanted to go online and search for local jobs...again ANY jobs. However my tear ducts had other ideas, and as I typed on my laptop the tears continued to flow so hard that I thought I might short something out. I then curled back into the fetal position praying that the day would end and that when I would wake up and this nightmare would be over. Unfortunately it also plagued my dreams and left me dealing with the situations that caused this sudden unemployment.
What Just Happened!?!
Well as I left off in my last post, I was heading back to my previous job at the casino in the sales department. The funny part was, that although I was getting burnt out with this position and eventually left to try new things, I was so very happy to be back. I quickly learned that the grass isn't always greener on the other side. I was happy to be back and ready to face all of my former challenges.
On the night before my first day back, I treated myself to a trip to the salon for a overdue hair overhaul. I then picked out a favorite outfit, and went to sleep early eager to start my day. I arrived at work bright and early and proceeded to the HR department to get all of my necessary paperwork. It was so nice to see familiar faces. It was also nice to see my former co-workers, who were much more welcoming that the previous employer.
Over the next hour, many events took place that would leave my head spinning and leave me unemployed (with nothing on the back burner) for the first time in my professional working career. I was terrified!
On the night before my first day back, I treated myself to a trip to the salon for a overdue hair overhaul. I then picked out a favorite outfit, and went to sleep early eager to start my day. I arrived at work bright and early and proceeded to the HR department to get all of my necessary paperwork. It was so nice to see familiar faces. It was also nice to see my former co-workers, who were much more welcoming that the previous employer.
Over the next hour, many events took place that would leave my head spinning and leave me unemployed (with nothing on the back burner) for the first time in my professional working career. I was terrified!
I See Dead People
As I mentioned in my last post, I had just stared a new job that wasn't really a good fit for me.
After week one of the new job I was feeling as though I made a huge mistake. This was only confirmed when I saw a patient die right in front of me. Up until this point my biggest fear in the world wasn't spiders or snakes, it wasn't even heights, it was seeing a dead person. My biggest fear had come true and I was traumatized. After the incident , I was kindly consoled by my co-workers. I was told "you work in a nursing facility...what did you expect?"...as they walked away taking pleasure in my terror. This only confirmed that I indeed had made a bad decision.
Because this incident happened on a Friday,I had the entire weekend to think about this patients (and mine) misfortune. However I am not a quitter and deep down I felt as though I needed to face my fear,so on Monday I went back to complete week two of my new job.
Week three was not going much better. Instead of being out of the building doing sales calls, I was in the building reading charts and determining if patients had "bugs". I was doing admission applications that were as many pages as my mortgage loan, all while I had no clue what I was doing. I had reached my max stress limit and was very displeased with my co-workers. I was the black sheep of the facility, and everyone knew it.
As luck would have it, just when I had reached this boiling point I get a text message from my previous employer asking if I was ready to come back yet. I sent a text back saying "as a matter a fact I am". From there I was immediately in touch with my former boss and within an hour I was rehired and ready to go.
Although going back to my old job was not the ideal scenario and my job security there was unknown.....it was a job and one that I was familiar with. And the biggest bonus of all.....I DON'T see dead people.
After week one of the new job I was feeling as though I made a huge mistake. This was only confirmed when I saw a patient die right in front of me. Up until this point my biggest fear in the world wasn't spiders or snakes, it wasn't even heights, it was seeing a dead person. My biggest fear had come true and I was traumatized. After the incident , I was kindly consoled by my co-workers. I was told "you work in a nursing facility...what did you expect?"...as they walked away taking pleasure in my terror. This only confirmed that I indeed had made a bad decision.
Because this incident happened on a Friday,I had the entire weekend to think about this patients (and mine) misfortune. However I am not a quitter and deep down I felt as though I needed to face my fear,so on Monday I went back to complete week two of my new job.
Week three was not going much better. Instead of being out of the building doing sales calls, I was in the building reading charts and determining if patients had "bugs". I was doing admission applications that were as many pages as my mortgage loan, all while I had no clue what I was doing. I had reached my max stress limit and was very displeased with my co-workers. I was the black sheep of the facility, and everyone knew it.
As luck would have it, just when I had reached this boiling point I get a text message from my previous employer asking if I was ready to come back yet. I sent a text back saying "as a matter a fact I am". From there I was immediately in touch with my former boss and within an hour I was rehired and ready to go.
Although going back to my old job was not the ideal scenario and my job security there was unknown.....it was a job and one that I was familiar with. And the biggest bonus of all.....I DON'T see dead people.
Diary of an Unemployed Career Woman
I am creating this blog to track the progress of finding a job after unfortunate events left me unemployed for the first time in my life. Since this is a completely new situation for me I thought I would track my progress, high points, and I assume low points in this search. I hope that by blogging I will keep things in perspective and force myself to take responsibility of my future fate.
A little background information about myself. I am a 30ish, career minded woman. Since graduation from college in 1999 I have been gainfully employed. I was very fortunate to have been hired straight out of college. I started my first job at a public transportation authority. The pay wasn't great, but coming from a girl who was only making $5.50 an hour, having a "salary" was wonderful.
After 6 years working for my first real employer, I ventured on to job #2. Job 2 was a dream job. I worked as the Marketing Director for a mall. What woman doesn't was to spent 40 hours at a mall and get paid for it? The job was fun and exciting but the stress level was very high. My employers expectations were unrealistic at times. I would work night and day trying to make my facility the best it could be. I wanted it to be the premier shopping destination in the tri-state area. As hard as I worked the stress finally caught up with me and after 3 years I decided again to venture on.
Wanting to take a break from corporate life, I took a mindless job that paid terrible. However I did love going to work each day. After my brief hiatus I was ready to move back into corporate America.
The next job moved me from Pennsylvania to Texas. Again I was the Director of Marketing and Business Development for a mall. However this mall had many challenges. The first being their location was in Midland, TX. A town that's main industry was oil. The town smelled of oil and who's motto was "There are no trees to block the view". In addition there were many Spanish speaking residents, a language that I should have probably studied more when I was in college. Saying that I was out of my element would be an understatement. So after a small stint, I ventured back to Pennsylvania.
Once I moved back home I started a temp job immediately. I wanted to have a steady income and I figured a temp job would allow me to keep looking for a more suitable option. A few months later I again landed a great job at a local casino. My primary job was to promote the casinos 3 dining outlets. I worked endless days and night to coordinate banquets, events, and dinner meetings. The hours were awful and the pay wasn't much better, however I was passionate about my job and my clients. I excelled in providing the best dining experience in town. I took full responsibility for my guests from the date of booking until they paid their final bill.
Due to changes that the casino was going through, I wasn't confident that my position wouldn't be a casualty. So after a discussion with my supervisor, I decided to try a new venture.....and this is where my trouble began.
A little background information about myself. I am a 30ish, career minded woman. Since graduation from college in 1999 I have been gainfully employed. I was very fortunate to have been hired straight out of college. I started my first job at a public transportation authority. The pay wasn't great, but coming from a girl who was only making $5.50 an hour, having a "salary" was wonderful.
After 6 years working for my first real employer, I ventured on to job #2. Job 2 was a dream job. I worked as the Marketing Director for a mall. What woman doesn't was to spent 40 hours at a mall and get paid for it? The job was fun and exciting but the stress level was very high. My employers expectations were unrealistic at times. I would work night and day trying to make my facility the best it could be. I wanted it to be the premier shopping destination in the tri-state area. As hard as I worked the stress finally caught up with me and after 3 years I decided again to venture on.
Wanting to take a break from corporate life, I took a mindless job that paid terrible. However I did love going to work each day. After my brief hiatus I was ready to move back into corporate America.
The next job moved me from Pennsylvania to Texas. Again I was the Director of Marketing and Business Development for a mall. However this mall had many challenges. The first being their location was in Midland, TX. A town that's main industry was oil. The town smelled of oil and who's motto was "There are no trees to block the view". In addition there were many Spanish speaking residents, a language that I should have probably studied more when I was in college. Saying that I was out of my element would be an understatement. So after a small stint, I ventured back to Pennsylvania.
Once I moved back home I started a temp job immediately. I wanted to have a steady income and I figured a temp job would allow me to keep looking for a more suitable option. A few months later I again landed a great job at a local casino. My primary job was to promote the casinos 3 dining outlets. I worked endless days and night to coordinate banquets, events, and dinner meetings. The hours were awful and the pay wasn't much better, however I was passionate about my job and my clients. I excelled in providing the best dining experience in town. I took full responsibility for my guests from the date of booking until they paid their final bill.
Due to changes that the casino was going through, I wasn't confident that my position wouldn't be a casualty. So after a discussion with my supervisor, I decided to try a new venture.....and this is where my trouble began.
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