get a part time job

Not long ago I went around town asking different places if they were hiring anyone to work over Christmas. I got a few application forms, but I’m not expecting them to actually hire me. I’ll be 16 in a few weeks so I’ll have to wait untill then before I turn in the forms, as most places won’t hire anyone under 16.

A close family friend runs a chocolate store and I’m going to work part time during the holidays. I’m not sure if this counts XP.

man, as soon as i turn 16 and have left school – im gonna go job hunting like !

I hate my job! If I wouldn’t have a life I would love it because it’s actually cool, but I can’t stand it! I’m stuck in front of a desk all day long…all day!!! I have no time for anything…huh…

I finally got a job as a checkout chick… I’ve been working there for nearly 2 weeks now… around 4-5 shifts a week and then one day of uni. I hate work. But, I love getting paid. Monies monies monies!

OK, so the job didn’t work out. I just couldn’t feature working part time while I’m still working full time.

does anyone work at a tanning salon in the long beach area??

I never had a regular job before. I had those one-day jobs, one from the government and another at a local museum. But that was it in terms of getting paid. As my friends always said, I was a volunteer-whore.

I took a break from school and really needed a job to fund my tuition for when I go back. So I searched… and searched… and searched.

It was very frustrating.

I got my first interview in June of last year. It was for a ‘Middle-Ages’ theatre extravaganza (I prefer not to say what it is, you figure it out heh). I was late unfortunately because I had no idea where the place was. I was disheveled (it was really hot and humid that day) and probably did not look at all professional.

The lady that interviewed me looked imposing and somewhat pissed at me. She had an eery resemblance to that one contestant from Hell’s Kitchen (Jen?) to the point that every time I saw the show, I always shuddered in remembrance of that unforgettable interview.

INTERVIEW 1
Firstly, my father used to be a telemarketer. I saw first-hand how much straining it can be mentally. I VOWED never to be a telemarketer because of that.

Lo and behold, the first thing the lady says to me is “this is basically a telemarketer position.”

With that said, I just felt dejected and couldn’t come up with the excitement and enthusiasm they were probably looking for. Suffice to say, first interview… first rejection!

Then from September-November, I got two one-day jobs as mentioned above. I think I must have earned about $200 from those one-day jobs… more than I ever earned in two weeks at my current job. So it wasn’t so bad!

At the end of October or the beginning of November, I get a call from a local farm team of a sports team I adored. It was a promotions type position.

INTERVIEW 2
My interview got moved once because of an ‘incident’ in their office. I only found out when I got to their office that there was an ‘incident’.

I remember asking one of the staff members there if they saw the man that was supposed to interview me (let’s call him Adam). They told me about the ‘incident’ and one of them offered to call Adam. They seemed like laid-back people and Adam (being good-humored about it) offered to re-schedule my interview.

One of them even joked, “You came when he’s not here, you’re hired!”

And you know what… I thought so too. It would have been swell.

The interview finally happened and it was the quickest interview I had. Adam didn’t ask much questions and I’m no good when the interviewer basically asks four questions and expects you to carry the conversation.

I didn’t sell myself too well. On top of the fact that I looked rather young (and was rightly so).

So I didn’t get the job.

That was frustrating. Rejections hurt even for entry-level, almost minimum-wage jobs…

CRAIGSLIST
Around the end of November, I noticed a posting in Craigslist. It was for this fast-food store that sold breakfast products.

When I first started the job search, I had this ideal part-time job in my mind. I wanted a small store, with a small employee base so I could get to know my co-workers and get good references from the owners/managers.

That’s all I really wanted to get out of the experience (other than money of course). It wasn’t like this was going to be my career.

I emailed them this hilarious email that was over the top in enthusiasm. It said something like, I love the goals of your company. I can offer you my enthusiasm. And… I’d love to be part of such an exciting establishment.

It’s embarrassing to look back and read it but letters like that – where it’s so over top and so brimming with enthusiasm – make you stand out. It seems to work too though… it’s just very embarrassing afterward.

I had an inkling that they would respond. My email was so in praise of their company that they had to respond either way. And I was fine with that… I was getting used to the rejection and I was just sending my resumes/cover letter(email) left and right. If this company didn’t respond, I was going to keep sending those out. At the same time though, I think I was getting a bit weary… all my friends who started out without a part-time job already got hired and I was the only one left still searching for one (it was already November/December!).

INTERVIEW 3
They interviewed me I think in the first week of December. I scouted the location first (because I had no idea how to get there) and googled as much information I could about the company.

I was so nervous and anxious.

On the day of the interview, I was going to wear what I wore to INTERVIEW #2 but decided, I’m going to wear Red. I know there are tips out there stating never to wear red but I figured, “This is a minimum-wage job. If they don’t like who I am, then the company was not meant for me.”

And so I wore my favourite red sweater.

I came at 10:30. I passed by the owner and I think she glanced at me but didn’t realize it was me. I went to the counter and asked the worker there if she saw the manager (let’s call her Bonnie). She said I just missed her and to wait for a few minutes – she was just buying something from the drugstore.

So… I felt awkward to just be standing there so I left the store and went to some other shop. My heart was pounding.

Then when I saw Bonnie walking towards the store, I casually walked behind.

We had our interview in their cafeteria (it was a fast-food establishment afterall). She asked if I wanted a drink and not being rude, I said yes. Unfortunately I was dead-broke and was thinking at the back of my mine, “Oh crap, do I have money in my debit account?” But when I was bringing out my debit, she waved it off… “Don’t worry about it!”

The interview went surprisingly well. She said she was really intrigued by my resume. I asked God to help calm my nerves and I think he did. I don’t remember half the things I said in that interview but it was WAY better than my previous two interviews.

At the end of the interview, she was really excited. She even said, “I really like you!”

RESULTS
A week passed and I was having a lot of angst. I really wanted to know either way whether I got in or not. I was trying to psych myself and comfort myself just in case I didn’t get it.

It’s hard to put your hopes up (in getting a job/excited for it) only to be rejected.

I finally emailed about a week after my interview and she emails me back saying she was actually going to call me that day to offer the position.

SUCCESS!

NOW
The first few months in that job (my first ever regular job) was tough. I wanted to quit a few times but I knew if I just stuck to it, it was actually going to be really fun and easy. (The story about those first few months deserves its own post.)

Anyway, I’m happy to say that this August will be my 7th month with them. The job is now ridiculously easy despite messing up here and there and dealing with sometimes irate customers. I love the owners and the co-worker I usually work with. It’s been a blessing to be part of that company.

Yeah, it may have taken my about six months to find that job but it was worth all the rejections.

Sometimes you just have to keep going and keep on searching for that job because they do exist in the world.

I have to leave at the end of August because I’m going back to school but I’ll always think of these last seven months as an enjoyable phase in my life – where the only thing that mattered was getting the orders of the customers right.

I could use the money.

FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!

I HAVEN’T even applied to any in the past few days FUCK@!