# Need to start looking for a job... kinda overwhelmed **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 13, 2011, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457 "2011-01-13T15:43:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/41 "2011-01-17T17:25:56Z")
Yeah, totally agree. A conspiracy between HR people and recruiters have made resumes somewhat meaningless. Unless someone has uncommon skills or experience, a standardized form would suffice for technical positions. And the HR/recruiter types may even eliminate creative resumes. It’s going to vary with the position, but I’d rather see a personal letter of recommendation from an employer than another resume with a list of TLAs in the skill section. ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/42 "2011-01-17T18:32:36Z")
A few more thoughts: Some companies will have people reading resumes. Some people will have computers read resumes. Try to balance yours to work either way, if you don’t know the specifics of the company you are apply to. Applying for a job at the local grocery store is very different from applying for a technical position at IBM. The advice in this thread is a mix of both. Make sure you take the right set of advice for the job you’re applying for. I feel like there should be a third item there, but I can’t imagine what to put… -D/a ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2011, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/43 "2011-01-17T18:36:13Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > Either my reading comprehension processor is on the fritz or **Zebra** explicitly said to provide a list of keywords separated by slashes. Or maybe mine is. > [@](#): > > …believing of themselves to have the makings of an “highly motiving aerodynamical engineer looking for an enovative position in space,” (a genuine quote that came from one of our self-identified top minds.) Highly motiv[at]ing aerodynamical engineer? Dude, this guy motivates _other_ engineers. Who cares if he doesn’t know how to spell? ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2011, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/44 "2011-01-18T10:07:51Z")
> [@rocking\_chair](#): > > resumes for dummies has a great chapter on how to translate the multitude of things you do as a stay at home mom to corporate speak. > > for example, domestic specialist or home management. time management for doing more in less time or tight schedules. budgeting experience for developing home budgets. > > home based skills could include peer counseling, arranging social events, conflict resolution, problem solving, decorating, solid purchasing judgment, planning trips and relocation, communicating. I may be in the minority (it would be useful to know if that’s the case), but If I got a resume from some who described themselves as a “domestic specialist” or claimed “budgeting experience” because they were a SAHM, I would not be impressed. Most of us are “domestic specialists” and are responsible for managing a home budget. People with paying jobs have toilets to clean at home, groceries to buy, and bank accounts to balance. Trying to dress up activities that _all_ responsible adults do with unnecessarily fancy language is just plain annoying. There’s nothing wrong with saying “2005-2008: Outside the paid workforce while caring for small children at home.” A potential employer who sees value in that will be able to figure out on their own that taking care of children full time is a valuable occupation and can impart certain skills. A potential employer who doesn’t believe that is not going to change their mind because someone says they have “conflict resolution skills.” ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2011, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/45 "2011-01-18T17:44:11Z")
> [@CairoCarol](#): > > I may be in the minority (it would be useful to know if that’s the case), but If I got a resume from some who described themselves as a “domestic specialist” or claimed “budgeting experience” because they were a SAHM, I would not be impressed. Most of us are “domestic specialists” and are responsible for managing a home budget. People with paying jobs have toilets to clean at home, groceries to buy, and bank accounts to balance. Trying to dress up activities that _all_ responsible adults do with unnecessarily fancy language is just plain annoying. > > There’s nothing wrong with saying “2005-2008: Outside the paid workforce while caring for small children at home.” A potential employer who sees value in that will be able to figure out on their own that taking care of children full time is a valuable occupation and can impart certain skills. A potential employer who doesn’t believe that is not going to change their mind because someone says they have “conflict resolution skills.” I agree with this. If I see inflated or stylized titles to describe something less official, I start to question everything else. “Led a team of people..” might indicate you were the first one out the door during a fire alarm! I need employees that I can trust. -D/a ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2011, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/46 "2011-01-18T20:13:28Z")
> [@rocking\_chair](#): > > resumes for dummies has a great chapter on how to translate the multitude of things you do as a stay at home mom to corporate speak. > > for example, domestic specialist or home management. time management for doing more in less time or tight schedules. budgeting experience for developing home budgets. Don’t bother. As far as any manager is concerned, you weren’t in the workforce. You are better off just explaining the gap as being a SAHM than trying to shoehorn in some description that tries to make it look like an actual corporate job. And since it sounds like the OP’s SAHM period was before her education and work experience, I see no reason to include it at all. As a hiring manager, all I need to see is 2 years work experience and a college degree. When you say “freelance”, freelance what exactly? And what was your degree in? The OP should target her job search towards work that is relevant to that experience. And what do you want to do long term? It helps to have some sort of idea of a plan. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2011, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/47 "2011-01-18T21:39:04Z")
My degree is in art and longterm I’d like to be a studio painter. I freelance in a lot of things. Mostly web/graphic design but I’ve also done video producing/editing, book editing, proofreading, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2011, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/48 "2011-01-18T21:59:47Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > My degree is in art and longterm I’d like to be a studio painter. I freelance in a lot of things. Mostly web/graphic design but I’ve also done video producing/editing, book editing, proofreading, etc. On that note - if you need to come up with current work experience but can’t get it because you don’t already have it, check out some small charity organizations. One of the guys I’m working with right now owns a print shop and is very artistic. This makes coming up with signs, logos, etc. very easy. But most small charities don’t have this luxury. You may be able to contribute to a good cause while building up your resume. -D/a ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2011, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/49 "2011-01-18T23:14:37Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > As for being crabby, it’s a fair cop. You’d be crabby, too, if you spent three days going through a stack of three hundred supposedly vetted resumes (i.e. those who met the keyword criteria of the recruiter) and came up with about a dozen mediocre potential candidates. You would absolutely not believe the number of people who are “experts” with over “10,000 hours of experience” in the latest computer simulation or CADD tool even though they’ve been out of school only two years and worked four or five contract jobs in engineering meatgrinders for a few months apiece. And every single one of them is a “highly motivated self-starter.” > > Stranger If you turn the vetting process over to a computer keyword search, don’t complain when the jobless start playing to the computer. Yes this is the info I was given. I was taught this by the New York State Unemployment Office. They talk to employers and find what people have to do to get their resume read and apparently, this is it. Now I realize that it is general information and that each company is unique. For instance they told use that the computer will pull 10 to 15 to be read by a human and you read 300. This info is just to get your resume to a human, who is probably going to reject you anyway if you don’t have the work experience or the necessary certifications. Some places like the flowery language or require it, not all. Most of them will care about spelling. (not all) Then you have to get through the interview but first you have to beat the computer. The thing is, the ability to write a resume is not a job requirement for any position I’ve ever applied for but without that skill you can’t get a job. In other words you’re not looking for someone who can beat the computer and write a great resume, you are looking for an engineer. It’s a lot like politics. The skills required to win an election are different then actually governing. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2011, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/50 "2011-01-19T16:41:26Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > My degree is in art and longterm I’d like to be a studio painter. I freelance in a lot of things. Mostly web/graphic design but I’ve also done video producing/editing, book editing, proofreading, etc. I’m not sure what “studio painter” means, but it sounds like sitting in your appartment, cranking out paintings and selling them. That’s something you do in your own time until you make enough that you can focus on just that. I don’t know that much about your field, but I would imagine you would need a portfolio of web and graphic design work you have done. You would also want to add a section in your resume highlighting which technologies you are competant at (Photoshop, etc). Then I suppose you start calling up design shops and other companies that hire web developers and graphic designers. Blind-sending resumes to companies web sites is probably the least effective way of looking for a job. You will constantly hear people complain about sending 300 resumes and never getting called for a single interview. Hiring managers do not, in fact, want to review a thousand crappy resumes. So if you can get your resume right to the person actually making the decision, you will usually be better off. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/51 "2011-01-20T05:26:59Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > I’m not sure what “studio painter” means, but it sounds like sitting in your appartment, cranking out paintings and selling them. That’s something you do in your own time until you make enough that you can focus on just that. I want to work from home making paintings and selling them/putting them in galleries, yes. And that shouldn’t be a problem in a couple of years when my husband is done with his residency and working full-on as a podiatric surgeon. It’s just this time between now and then when I need to find a job to help out with the finances. I’m figuring generic office work would be fine for now, if I can just get it. ---
**Author:** ![lorene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/65b543/32.png) [@lorene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lorene)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/52 "2011-01-20T17:23:27Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > It’s just this time between now and then when I need to find a job to help out with the finances. **I’m figuring generic office work would be fine for now, if I can just get it.** Bolding mine. See, the problem is, you’ll be up against people who have been doing generic office work all this time and for whom that is their skill set and their career goal. Have you thought of something like an art supply store or someplace like that? ---
**Author:** ![stretch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@stretch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stretch)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/53 "2011-01-20T19:29:34Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > I’m figuring generic office work would be fine for now, if I can just get it. As \*\*lorene \*\*says, you are competing against people who are in this for a career. When they interview for an office person, they want someone who will sit there for the next 20 years and not make any waves. You are not that person. You should try frame shops, art and craft supply stores, copy centers (because people need artistic folks to help them do layouts), things like that there. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/54 "2011-01-20T20:31:36Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > If you turn the vetting process over to a computer keyword search, don’t complain when the jobless start playing to the computer. > > Yes this is the info I was given. I was taught this by the New York State Unemployment Office. They talk to employers and find what people have to do to get their resume read and apparently, this is it. Now I realize that it is general information and that each company is unique. For instance they told use that the computer will pull 10 to 15 to be read by a human and you read 300. This info is just to get your resume to a human, who is probably going to reject you anyway if you don’t have the work experience or the necessary certifications. As it happens, I’m looking at this type of resume right now. All it has is some contact information, a short list of “areas of expertise”, a section of “professional experience” that lists employers, generic job titles, and dates (but no description of work performed), and then most of a page of slash-delimited buzzwords. Aside from demonstrating that he knows some industry-specific terms, I have no idea what his twenty years of experience actually encompasses, and worse, no specific projects or work experiences to talk to him about in a phone or face interview. Do you think this resume is going on the top of the stack? If he’d worked this same list of words into contextual descriptions of his actual experience (which would be picked up by a resume scan-master just as easily) don’t you think the resume would be significantly more useful to the human interviewer who is eventually going to read it? > [@Zebra](#): > > The thing is, the ability to write a resume is not a job requirement for any position I’ve ever applied for but without that skill you can’t get a job. In other words you’re not looking for someone who can beat the computer and write a great resume, you are looking for an engineer. You may not be writing resumes in your new position, but that doesn’t mean that the skills that are used in writing a cogent and appealing resume are not also used in most jobs. Most professional positions require at least a modicum of written communication aptitude, organizational skills, and the ability to break down a problem or issue into succinct and manageable bites, which are the same skills used in writing a good resume. This is the reason I actually pay as much or more attention to a cover letter as a resume when so accompanied; although the content of the letter is usually a semantic null of pleasantries and affirmations, it can offer a wealth of information on not only the candidate’s ability (or lack thereof) to write in a professional and to the point manner, but also his ability to judge the audience, perform some basic research about the company and position, display reading comprehension, and otherwise demonstrate that they would be suitable for job requiring not only specific skills and technical expertise but also capable of communicating clearly with coworkers, customers, and the outside world. A letter that comes with a cover letter will probably get at least a call or e-mail response even if it isn’t a good fit, just to offer feedback and encouragement, and if I can, even a lead or suggestion on possible jobs. A generic buzzword-filled resume like the one mentioned above is just going into the shredder. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2011, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457/55 "2011-01-21T01:42:33Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > I’m figuring generic office work would be fine for now, if I can just get it. What you are looking for is some variation of a “receptionist” or “administrative assistant” job. There really is no such job description as “generic office worker”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-to-start-looking-for-a-job-kinda-overwhelmed/567457.md?page=2)