How to find a jobHow to find a job
Okay, okay. We all know that it's hard to find a job today. We've seen the statistics, heard our friends complain and felt the rejection as place after place we've been turned down. Sowhat can you do if you still need, or want to, find a job?
Well, there are a few basic steps you should take during your job search to increase your chances of finding a job. Keep in mind that there are no guaranteed methods, but even just trying to find employment can be a positive experience (depending upon how you look at it).
To Begin
Before you go out there asking people to hire you it's important that you know what skills you can bring to their business. For example, are you good with people, can you organize things well or do you have a head for numbers? Any skill that you have can be an asset to someone, you just have to figure out how to sell it. Here's a list of questions that will help you to figure out things you like and things you're good at.
1. Is there a certain type of work you naturally do well at?
example: gardening, selling a product, helping people
2. When you've done work in the past (not just work you got payed for) did you ever receive special praise?
example: a trophy or award for something at school, recognition for sports, community work or babysitting
3. Do people see you as the expert in any area?
example: math, computers, giving advice, organizing events
4. What jobs have you done before?
example: paper delivery, babysitting, any volunteer work, tutoring
5. Are you good at certian subjects?
example: peer counselling, science, PE
6. Do you have any hobbies that you like to do?
example: reading, mountian biking, working outdoors, walking your dog
7. Are you good in a crisis situation or would you rather avoid stress all of the time?
example: you just realized you have a report due the next day in school, do you take charge and get it done or freak out, throw something and then get it done late
8. Do you like working with the public?
example: working in a store or volunteering in the community
9. Do you like being in a creative environment?
example: people at your work would come up with ideas, create things, colour and the image of things would be important
10. Are you good in a team situation?
example: your working with other people to get things done, you must depend on them and yourself
Now, take the list of information you have from answering these questions and use it to decide what kind of environment you would like to be working in and what types of skills you have to offer. For example, if you work well under pressure that may be a selling point to a business, or if you like working with the public you may want to try and find a job where you would be meeting and working with a lot of different people, like in a retail store or at service job.
(keep this information, you will need it for writing or improving your resume)
Where to look for a job
Everybody wants to find a job they will like so in many cases people will print up their resumes and take them around to the types of businesses they would enjoy working in, like bookstores for example. I've tried this too, and what I found was that nobody offered me a job because nobody was looking to hire, and in a few stores I left feeling like a loser because the store staff was so rude to me. I'm not saying don't try this method, sometimes it works. I just think you ought to have a few more back-up methods to try incase your dream job isn't hiring.
Step One
You know the type of job you want (let's use working in a coffee shop as an example) and you know the area you want to work in, now what? You can drop off your resume to all the local coffee shops you would consider working in, it's a good start. What one of my friends did was pick two or three coffee shops he really like and then he just began hanging out there, talking to the staff and meeting the owner. I don't know if it worked because they liked him or because they got so sick of seeing him there they offered him a job, the important thing I learned is from his experience was to go after what I want.
take your resume around to place you like
Step Two
In some places knowing people and networking aren't always the best methods to finding a job, but in a small town like Squamish they are the only way to find a job (I'm not exaggerating, that much). When I first began looking for a job here I found it very discouraging. Many jobs weren't advertised in the paper or at the employment centre, and if they were the jobs went quick. I tried taking my resume around to different places but I just couldn't get an interview. I knew I had to try a new method.
I began talking to my friends and family. Asking them if they knew of anyone looking to hire, or if anyone they knew was leaving their job. I also began introducing myself to people and starting up conversations with store employees, the more people who knew my name and face the more chances I had at getting a job. Did it work? Yes, I was hired at a video store in Squamish because one of the girls who worked there remembered having a conversation with me about a movie I had rented. It pays to be friendly.
Step Three
Some of the best jobs I've had came from reading the government postings at my local Canada Employment Centre/Human Resource Development Centre. Most centres will have a board with new job postings, updated daily, and computer terminals with information from all across BC. The great thing about the job postings you find here is that the name of the employer, start date of the job and hourly wage will all be listed. That way you don't have to waste time phoning or mailing a resume in only to find out that the job starts two months from now, or that you get paid on commission.
Another benefit to these centres is that they have staff available to answer your questions. You may have to wait in line for awhile but if you need help at leat there is somebody there. They also have the latest provincial and federal job postings. This is great if you are a youth because during the summer a lot of youth employment programs are run. You usually want to start going in around May and June to find out about these jobs.
Step Four
Read the classifieds. Let's be honest, all of the other methods I've mentioned work, but most of the time you find your job by looking in the classified section of a newspaper. In Squamish, you don't have much of an option for papers. The Squamish Chief lists jobs posted in the Squamish area and the Whislter Question has classifieds for Whistler, but there really isn't anywhere else you can go for a job. If there's nothing in one of those papers you'll have to try one of our other methods.
For those of you in a larger community, or in a suburb closer to Vancouver, you can gather different papers from the areas you would be willing to work in and try to find something in their classifieds. When you're looking for a job be aware of anything that looks suspicious. Remeber your rights and don't give out more information than you need to (for example, I wouldn't put my social insurance number on my resume - you only have to provide it if you're hired).
look in the local paper's classifieds
be aware of anything that looks suspicous
don't go to an interview in a place that
you've never been, alone
Step Five
Just try anything and look anywhere. Go to your high school counsellor's office and ask if anyone has phoned looking to hire a student, try private employment agencies, if you're in college or university go to your students association for help. Be creative!
