| Photo by Peter Fogden on Unsplash |
Have you ever gone job hunting?
It’s that time again — time to dive back into the world of job applications and resume building. We’ve all had those sit-down conversations with friends who share how they landed their dream jobs, assuring us we can do it too. It feels like taking a nice shower, putting on your best clothes, and going to a speed dating event recommended by your happily married friend of ten years. You know, the “love will come when you least expect it” situation. That’s what looking for a job feels like right now. I’m sure anyone reading this has felt the same way recently.
Ha! Let me tell you a story.
Earlier this month, I decided to change my career trajectory. Most of my experience has been in healthcare, but I’m still young and have time to explore other options. I discovered a passion for writing, culture, and community action, so I have been refocusing. I deleted my old LinkedIn profile and created a new one. I updated my resume to reflect my new path as a content copywriter, making note of my career change, and began applying for journalistic internships.
Now, here comes the funny part. Have you ever heard of BairesDev? I hadn’t until this week. Their site describes them as a software development and data science company. I saw a job posting on Google for a “Social Media Copywriting Intern” and thought, why not?
As I began applying, I filled in my previous work experience and salary expectations. They asked for my very first work experience, which was odd because I started working at 15, and writing “Supreme Pizza” down didn’t seem like the best option. So, I listed an Administrative Assistant Internship I did during my junior year of high school. Again, note that I have much more experience that is not only more recent but less relevant to the field I’m trying to break into.
Nevertheless, I persevered. They wanted a video or voice recording summarizing my work experience. I thought, “Okay, this is getting extra,” but I completed the voice recording. I was then directed to an assessment to “boost my profile.” I reluctantly started and encountered questions like, “If Josh usually makes 20 cents per glass of lemonade and typically sells 10 glasses, how much would Josh make if he sold 15 glasses for 10 cents less?”
So, like an idiot, I finished the 20-question assessment. When I was done, I was taken to a portal with other evaluations. While trying to delete this new “profile” I made for the website, I wondered what the hell happened to my job application. So here I am, chuckling to myself, writing about it.
In the midst of all this, my reactivated LinkedIn profile couldn’t be verified because it had already been verified before. So, every time I send a connection request to a fellow copywriting peer, they probably think I’m a scammer.
But you know what? It can only go up from here. The moral of this long-winded story is that even though struggles and confusion arise when making changes, it doesn’t mean you should give up. So here I am, still writing and hoping to find something that brings me contentment and fulfillment.
| Photo by Austin Chan on Unsplash |
Until next time. :)
Comments
Post a Comment