I’m in my last semester at college (University of Illinois, English major/Computer Science minor), and I’m experiencing extreme ennui. The only job opportunities I have are from connections in my home area of Chicago. I’ve had 5 internships doing software development, but I’ve still found it very very difficult to even get an interview anywhere outside of Chicago, because I have no connections (sending resumes in response to internet job postings has proven useless.)
I’d really like to move out west somewhere: Colorado, Arizona, California, Seattle, etc. Has anyone ever just moved without a plan? I figure I could get some crappy retail job to pay my rent and ramen noodles for a few months while I looked for an actual job. Has anyone ever done anything similar to this?
A few years ago, I decided to move from SoCal to Seattle. I’d a couple thousand dollars banked, so I rented a truck, packed up my stuff and moved. I’d done virtually no planning other than to book a room at Extended Stay and arrange a storage space for my things when I got there. I had no car, no place to move in to, and no job arranged. But Seattle has a great public transporation system, one of the temp agencies downtown found a generic office job for me within two weeks, and I found a place to live within a month or two (via a local roommate referral service). Within 3 months, I was pretty well settled and actually happier than I’d ever been in SoCal, so I think my story definitely qualifies as a success story for rash moves.
It was certainly no cakewalk, but it turned out surprisingly well for the little amount of pre-planning I did. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend such a rash move to others, but will say if you want to try something like that, just make sure you have enough cash to support yourself for at least a couple months. Other than that, take a look at what you have to lose and decide if you’re comfortable with the risk you’re taking. If so, go for it, and good luck!
I would expect that you would have a hard time getting an “actual” job because in general those are desirable places to live and you’d be going up against people with more experience or better qualifications who have decided they’d like to live there as well.
That certainly doesn’t mean I don’t think you should explore other places or bum around for a while. I’m all for that. I’m just saying that when you arrive at the conclusion that the town you’re in would be a great place to live, the odds are other people have come to that conclusion as well and companies can afford to be really picky about who they hire.
I more or less picked up and moved from Colorado to New York. I loved the outdoors but employment/career-wise it was stifling. I slept on my sister’s floor for a while, found temp work that led to a permanent position and so on. It’s worked out quite well, although there are certain things I miss about Colorado. On the other hand, now I can afford to do all the travelling throughout the west that I couldn’t afford to do when I lived out there.
Yeah, about a month ago. I had some issues going on at home in addition to not liking the job situation so I moved about a thousand miles, from a small town outside Chattanooga, to Lincoln, Nebraska, a city a good ten times the size of my hometown.
It’s been interesting trying to find work here. The job market’s a lot better here but that doesn’t mean much. Whereas back home, I couldn’t find anything outside of manual labor and food, out here I’ve yet to find anything since I’ve been focusing more on entry level office jobs and higher end retail.
In case you have the same difficulties, I would suggest moving in with a friend, if at all possible. I personally have moved in with another Doper (Yeah, I’m a huge geek) and he’s been kind enough to give me room and board despite my not being able to pay him as of yet. If it wasn’t for he and his wife, I’d either still be stuck at home or living in a shelter here… neither of which I particularly want to think about.
Yeah, that’s pretty much how I moved to Austin. I had an ultimate plan, I wanted to go back to school and the University of Texas is pretty good but mostly I just wanted to get out of Atlanta and move somewhere I could ride a bike. I did the crappy retail job for a long while and finally made it through school six years later. I’d say do it. Just be prepared to maybe work the crappy job longer than you might think. And keep your mind open for job opportunities that might not be in the field you originally planned.
Picked up and moved to Chicago, without anything, and did well.
4 years later picked up and moved to NYC with only one friend there. Did well.
Picked up and moved to Berlin, spoke hardly any German, lived there 14 years and did very well.
Picked up and moved to LA. Stayed 12 years and did nicely.
Picked up and moved to Las Vegas - am still here and no regrets.
So yeah…it sure can be done.
I always tell people to have enough money so you don’t HAVE TO work for at least 4-6 weeks. Find a small apartment in a neighborhood within walking distance of coffee shops and bookstores. Hang out and start to meet people and let them know you are looking for work. Even a small amount of networking, in small circles, produces amazing results.
It is a great adventure, and you quickly learn what you need to have in your life, and what are nice - but unecessary luxuries. And besides, if it doesn’t work out, go back home. Which leads to my last bit of advice - don’t burn any bridges when you leave!
I did exactly that after college. The economy was in the tank ('92) and I had fewer marketable skills than it sounds like you do, with 5 software development internships. I also had no car. Everything worked out fine and I never even had to live on ramen noodles.
You list a pretty broad territory in terms of where you’re interested in going. I would recommend paying attention to which areas have sizable software companies you could work for. Your initial gig would probably be on a temp or contract basis. A major city will probably have more opportunities for a “real” job than a resort type community. Some people get to work from paradise in technical careers, but that’s usually after paying significant dues. But you can probably swing it to work in a major city near paradise.
You may want to see if any of the Chicago companies you interned with have branches, customers or vendors in cities that will interest you. That could be a way to expand your network beyond Chicago.
I did this once when I was much younger (early twenties). I packed up my car and went to Northern Manitoba, and had a great time (except for meeting my one and only abusive boyfriend, but that’s not important now). I’ve never regretted travelling around and living outside of my family zone while I was younger - I had experiences that I never would have had if I just stayed where I had family and friends and familiar surroundings. One of the benefits of living a variety of places is that you know a good one when you find it, and you can settle down and enjoy it then.
I would, however, suggest that this is the kind of thing that is best done while you’re young - I’m pretty well-settled now, and I’m not likely to move out of Calgary any time in the forseeable future (what with having a house and mortgage and husband and all). Also, if you’re the kind of person that needs security and familiarity, it might not go too well for you. I thrive on change, so I just went and enjoyed the ride.
After a couple years of being horribly depressed at college, I decided I needed a break and moved back in with my mom while I looked for a job. I eventually found one (it took a couple months) and then immediately moved into the first apartment I looked at (a tiny studio in Flushing.) I lived there for a year, then decided I wanted a bigger place and so didn’t renew the lease. This time I took the third apartment I saw, a process which took an entire day, and I’ve been living here for three years.
After I make my first billion I plan to build a secluded ranch house in New Mexico or Arizona.
My girlfriend and I moved out here to Atlanta with a couple days notice. I’d emailed all my friends and the first one to respond with “Sure, you guys can stay.” is the first one we went with. We’ve done fine, started out sleeping on a dumpster mattress in my friend’s extra room and eating one box of Rice-a-Roni between us and now we have our own place with all kinds of toys to play with…
Which isn’t to say it wasn’t a lot of work. It was. We started out in shitty retail jobs where we had to come in at 5 am and work 10 hour shifts doing stocking, which basically meant 10 hours walking around and lifting. And that’s not even the whole story, we’d have to get up at like 4am and take the bus (or call a cab) in, then bus ride home, then walk a quarter mile back to the apartment. It was damn hard and I’d hate to do it again, but it can be done.
You have an advantage, though, you have some time to prepare and I would, if I could. I’d start checking out rent prices, roommate services, work opportunities in the area, maybe see if you have any friends or relatives you could stay with in the desired area, save up some cash. Yea, you could just kinda tearass off and do it, but I’d make some effort to prepare the way.
During my last year of college I knew I had to move somewhere get a job, make a life. I didn’t want to go to Boston, the nearest big city, I’ve always hated Manhattan, so I looked around and did a lot of talking with my friends, and eventually a bunch of us decided on San Francisco. I moved there in the summer of 1996 and never looked back. Granted I went with a group, not completely alone, but none of us had jobs or a place to live. We started out temping, living in some deeply crappy areas. But after a year…or two…or three we all settled into comfortable situation, to the point where SF became home.
I had never been to California when I decided to move out here, but I wanted to go some place young and hip and urban, and figured SF was it. I’m so glad I did it - I think moving far far way and making (or breaking) it on your own is hugely character building, and an important step after getting an education.
A year ago I sold everything but my clothes, and moved to the Philippines.
I had just gotten divorced, and I have no kids. I’m 40, and I am now the happiest I have ever been in my life.
I had broken up with my ex, and was feeling lonesome and guilty about my son not seeing his dad (dad moved to Colorado). I up and left on about a week’s notice. I rented a room with my ex at his boss’s house (we were platonic). I found a crappy job and wasn’t very happy, since I was still in love with him. Then I moved up into the mountains and had a couple crappy jobs. Then the ex beat the shit out of me and I came back to Chicago.
Done it twice. The second time, much like simple homer, I left because of a broken relationship, on two weeks’ notice, to the US. That didn’t work out, and I came back to Ireland after 6 months.
However, the first time, I went to Japan (and was therefore living off Ramen noodles too, but for different reasons!) on a wing and a prayer; couldn’t get work there, but went to Hong Kong, got a job, and ended up stayed in Asia for 3 years, having many and various adventures, and experienced absolutely the best time of my life. I actually experienced “joy” for a while there, which is quite a weird sensation!
Quit a great job in San Francisco and moved to Ireland on about six weeks’ notice with no job offer or work permit of any kind. It could easily have just ended up being a long holiday, but somehow I managed to convince a company to sponsor me. That was four years ago. It was the best decision I’ve ever made in my life.
Yeah. 8 years ago I was living in North Dakota which I liked except for the extreme cold. I had what amounted the shittiest week of my life. My GF was killed in a car wreck, was told that due to budget cuts my job would be ending in a “couple months”. There was more but that is not the point of this thread. The funeral was on a monday. Tuesday I was despondant but went to work anyway. Lunch time came around and I left to go eat. I just drove and the next thing I knew I was in Montana. I took a tour of the west for about 2 weeks most of that time stopping and hiking in the national parks in Utah. It really cleared my head but I never went back. I left everything I owned which wasn’t much being a fresh college grad. It was a truely life changing event.
I ended up in Tennesse at my brothers house. I have a completely new life. A better job. A new fiancee but I have never been as free as I was those 2 weeks in the mountains. Best move I ever made.
1996 upped and moved to England. Stayed five years. Had a great time.
2001 upped and moved to Ireland like our previous posters. Sure, 'tis all the rage. Still here and enjoying it, but wouldn’t rule out another future move completely.
I say do it. If you’re thinking about it and you don’t you might spend your whole life wondering regretfully about what it would have been like. If you hate it you can go back home and live your life safe in the knowledge that “somewhere else” resoundingly sucked.
One word of warning, though. I did have a rough time of it at the beginning. When I moved to England I was only 18 and spend the first few days crying with homesickness. After you have settled in and have a social life you tend to forget about that. So don’t be surprised if at the very beginning you find yourself at home on a Friday night with no idea what to do with the weekend. If you’re in anyway outgoing you get over that pretty quickly, but it can be a bit tough at the beginning. Good luck.
although i’ve not done what you’re thinking, but my brother sure has. he’s been successful getting good jobs in the IT business, by using ‘headhunters’ that specialize in IT and are experienced. now, my bro has a $110k/yr. lead systems analyst job near seattle (not microsoft) - he did a move from san diego, him and his wife, just like yours. headhunters have helped him on 4 or 5 occasions in the last 20+ yrs. convince those IT headhunters that you know your business, and it could give you that advantage you need.
there’s a real big shortage of chemists, nurses w/bachelor deg., and others fields - just in case - ha!!! just pulling your leg micahjn!
