They know what requirements they've mandated for whatever job they're looking to fill. They see my resume and the cover letters I send.
Either they like my resume and want to talk to me, or they dont.
I'm curious what your resume actually looks like. Do you know how to put one together? If you're willing, you should black out or remove all of your personal information (name, address, previous employers, etc.) on your resume and consider uploading it on here to get
constructive criticism on it. If you're willing to make a thread about methods used to get jobs, consider putting your resume on here so those of us "in the know" can give you some helpful tips to make it stand out. You could send it to me via PM if you wanted. I know all about resumes and all the "tricks and trends" being on the other side of the coin now.
How many resumes do you have? Depending on the job, you should have at least two, if not more. If you're going into insurance or a similar position, you have your main resume, but if you want to get a part-time job or two (perhaps in customer service), you're going to have to have a separate resume so you don't seem overqualified. "Dumb it down" a little bit. Nobody's going to hire you if they feel you're overqualified since they figure you'll jump to a higher-paying job once it becomes available. Nobody likes a job jumper.
So... like I said, consider putting your resume on here just so we can look over the formatting, word usage, etc.
I think in my case.. my unemployment is a combination of three things.
1. My nerves, and simply not performing well at job interviews.
2. A lot of the jobs I'm applying for, are entry level, and I'm in competition with a lot of people who are 20 plus years younger then me.
3. Some of it has been bad luck too. I've mentioned about the job I interviewed for, where I would have represented labor union members in handling their insurance. and I was the only insurance agent there, and didnt get it. There was another job I had called about, and when they asked my employment history verbally, and I started telling them, the person told me I would have been a good fit, but then put me on hold and said "Sorry, the job has already been filled".
Similar to how you have your therapist to help you with your stuttering disability, find an employment consultant you feel comfortable with and practice job interviews. One of my friends had the same problem you had (not performing well at job interviews, being nervous, etc.), so... she practiced non-stop. If you want a job bad enough, are you willing to do more than everybody else to get it? Are you taking a course on performing better in interviews? Are you on LinkedIn? I mentioned that to you months back; have you made a profile? If not, well... your competition is. Basically, you need to be willing to do more than the hundreds of other applicants to get back to being employed. "Walk the walk" as they say.
Have a consultant give you practice interviews, or read up on it. There is a lot of literature out there to help you perform better at job interviews. Once you know the questions they'll ask you, you'll have great answers ready, instead of being stumped like you were that one time about your weaknesses.
As for the competition and people who are "20 plus years younger" than you, while you're not quite there yet, have you considered looking for opportunities for seniors?
You would probably have an advantage over the people older than
you. Since you're slowly approaching 50, consider looking into jobs for older people. You may be surprised and find yourself at the head of the pack on that one.
The frustration of the job search itself, and the thousands of resumes I've sent out that dont even get replies.
And, the issue of the whole "potential interview".
If I had to take two part time jobs, fine.
Another issue is.. how much it costs to live in NY
This is an advantage and disadvantage for you. You have countless more opportunities in New York than people do in other parts of the country, depending how low you're willing to go for a job. Would you work in fast food? Would you be a janitor? While some would consider those "menial" jobs, it's better than being unemployed. The longer you go without a job, prospective interviewers are going to start wondering about the long(er) gap between employment. It's kind of scary for the long-term unemployed today -- people who have been unemployed for six months or a year (or more)! They're at a huge disadvantage, so you really should consider taking any job you can since your current strategies aren't working so well.
At the same time, you have more competition than anybody else probably does living in New York. The better (and higher-paying) the position you're looking at, the more competition you will have. What separates you from other candidates? How would you answer that question? If I'm interviewing you, why would
you be the best at the position over anybody else? Just in general. What would you say to me if I was the interviewer? Pretend it's any recent job you applied for if that helps you answer that question.
I once got a position over 325 other applicants --
four rounds of interviews. At first, I didn't believe the GM when he told me, but he showed me the stack of them. Think of the job search like playoff baseball (since you're a baseball fan). Every round finds two teams going home while the better teams move onto the next round. The same applies to the hiring process. You have to be even
better than last time if you go in for a second, third or fourth interview.
When I get the emails advertising jobs, two things crack me up, although one of them is annoying.
I click a job, and it says "This job has expired". Its like, if the job has expired, why are you advertising it in the first place. I mentioned on here before about calling in reference to a job that had expired.
How fast are you at applying for jobs? Most of them will have a date when they stop accepting applications. However, they may have already started interviewing the very first candidates who applied, and one of those candidates may have stood out so much that they hired him/her on the spot. It's just like running a race. You don't want to be left behind, so focus on those deadlines.
Then.
"Avon Sales Representative".
That would be a kick lol.
Did you apply? Like I said about being a janitor or something similar, being an Avon sales representative would still be 50 times better than being
unemployed. At least when you apply for another (better) job in the future, they'd see employment stability at least.
Good luck.
