The "J" Word

The unemployment rate in the United States was 9.50 percent in July of 2010. The labour force is defined as the number of people employed plus the number unemployed but seeking work. The nonlabour force includes those who are not looking for work, those who are institutionalised and those serving in the military.


I am but one.


I prefer to think I live in an evolved society where politeness is second nature. A place where people simply help each other as a matter of course. Add to that mix, a technologically advanced nation, where if you can dream it we can build it. So why has the employment rejection letter actually done a tail spin? Are not all applicants also possible customers of tomorrow? Is the goal to desensitize candidates until mere drones seek work there?

For the last two week I have earnestly worked at seeking gainful employment. Stop laughing. It's true. I set up a measurable task system to keep on goal. It has been an interesting free education!

A couple of months before closing my business, I was told by a prominent HR consultant, that none of my skills mattered. Self employed in a salon for over 18 years was an eight ball I would not be able to crawl from behind. She suggested trying fast food joints or a Target type stores or even Starbucks. I was crushed. Thirty years of skills reduced to selling fries with that cheeseburger (which I did gladly when I was 15). However, I saw her point. No boss but myself for 18 years, unless you count the 150 or so clients I saw each month. Still my third grade teacher (see I am young enough to remember the third grade, OK, maybe just this one thing because I to spell it aloud)taught us the meaning of perseverance. I have an excellent resume with what I thought was a succinct cover letter. After all, the resume really said it all. Apparently not, I was to discover.

Week one I wrote an endless array of requested essays on each company's mission. I signed up for no less than 6 company's services as a requirement for application. Took 18 psychological tests of 25 pages or more. One company required I sign up for Pay Pal on the off chance they took me on. It was all interesting but not as interesting as what the employment rejection letters of today have become.

Certainly my study has no scientific back up and is purely subjective, but here are a few things I discovered.

98% of the companies did not respond at all. It would be nice to know your email was at least received. Of these, 100% were start up companies (within the last 5 years)and of the 98% ALL were online commerce companies. I would have thought that a company that conducts all its business creating software, hardware, or the like might just come up with an automated response to the resumes submitted for a position. Some people have defended them saying these companies are inundated with resumes, but an automated program from a company designing programs, well just a thought.

I also discovered that I don't really care for describing my skill set as "fabulous" but not a good fit. It just translates to me as you sucked in our opinion, try Walmart. Just too fake.

There was one company, that shall remain nameless, that earned my awe. I sent a resume and cover letter for an open position via email. As I was still lifting my finger off the send button, I received a standard, polite yet firm rejection letter. Is that a record? 5 Seconds! Now that's an HR program that should be sold around the world. I am guessing they use a key word search scan on the cover letter or resume or both. Very Impressive. Of course, that just made me want to work there more.

The absolute worst letter read "We are seeking other candidates at this time." PERIOD. No salutation, no date, no feigning politeness. No pretending to keep my on file for six months. Obviously I had to adapt to this changed market. So change I did.

This week I researched what those key words might be and by god, they are in every cover letter. Business writing style has changed, at least in the job search area. It is a PR course in spin. Marketing yourself in a buyers market takes some creativity. It can be fun and a challenge. I find myself (and everyone else it seems) drawn to the most innovative new companies which should fine tune my skills at spin.

I also decided to diversify. I applied for a cashier in a large chain store part time. I was called in and hired in one day. A small needed Boost for the ego. At the same time decided to keep reaching. So my journey continues. An interview next week for a rewarding job in the non profit sector and several articles under review for a social media company to write for part time. I will continue to look for just the right mix of structure and creativity but will also be able to show I can work for someone else at the same time. Soon this UFO will be under the heading of finished projects. Let's hope it goes faster than the socks I'm working on.