job interview/ job articles/ work wardrobe

Jan. 12 Job interview:

Bank: Today I had a really important interview. I did a phone interview first. Then I was to go there in person. That's good that I did manage to get through the first round over the phone. Yesterday, on my day off, I went to look for the office. Today I went to it and got there an hr early, but there were stores around so I shopped a bit. I got off at the right bus stop this time.

The interview was 30min long. The shifts are Mon.- Fri. so that's good. So is the pay. There's no cap on commission. It kind of reminds me of The Office where they sell paper. There was an ep where Jim can't sell anymore paper because there was a cap on the commission. The duties are selling. There is going to be a couple weeks of training. It seems like a really good job.

A few pitfalls was that the interviewer was going through her list of questions, and some of it didn't relate to my prior work experience. I have some experience that's related to this position.

A good thing is that she will pass my resume to other locations that are closer to downtown. Those locations are hiring and they can call me for an interview. Even if I don't get hired at this location, she might still refer that I go to another location.

Jan. 13 Crazy trip: This trip was not as crazy as the one I had the other day. After work I took a bus that took me straight to Whyte Ave so I could take another bus to a job interview. If I had gone home, I would have left at 2pm to catch 2 buses. I decided to save myself a trip and time by going to Whyte Ave. I got to Whyte Ave by 1pm. So I had an hr to bide before I need to take another bus.

I went to Warp 1 Comics and Games. I've been there once. They sell the sci-fi stuff like graphic novels for TV shows like Warehouse 13 and Manga comics. I saw some Buffy and Angel figurines. They even sell Hello Kitty stuff like backpacks. There's Sesame Street and The Simpsons toys. Then I went to 4 Stroke Custom Culture. They sell cool clothes I would see at Le Chateau.

I checked out the convenience store Mac's and they sell sushi. I thought they only sold sandwiches. I also went to Esso, and they don't sell sandwiches.

Then I took the bus. I get off at the right street, because the bus driver said so too. I go to check the address of a place, and asked a woman where it was. She directs me to cross the street. I go to McDonald's and the workers said it's this way.

I enter a car dealership and she said I had to walk 5 more blocks that way. I was like: "Whatever. I'm not going to walk another 30min to get to this interview at a law office. I guess I could take the bus to there, because there was still ample time to get to the interview. I realized I didn't really want to go there. So then I called them at the bus stop and said I'm cancelling.

Question: I have to analyze: "Are you putting obstacles in front of yourself?" No, I just didn't want to go to it. I already went and made a big trip for a bank interview, and then another one to a sales associate interview.

Maybe if I left at 2pm from home, I would have gotten another bus driver and he would have gotten me to the right bus stop. I will say I don't regret not going to the interview. Yeah, well at least I didn't totally burn down that bridge with the law office. I could have simply not showed up, and they would think I'm flaky. Then they won't interview me again if I applied to them again.

Jan. 16 Call Centre #4: I got a callback from Call Centre #4. Remember how I got hired there back in 2010? I then was dismissed after a day because 9 completed surveys wasn't good enough. Also I was rushed and skipped a paragraph that I was supposed to read to the caller. They called me today to do an interview, and I feel nervous. I think it's the same guy who hired me 2 yrs ago because it's the same name and voice. I don't know if he's going to remember me.

I did meet him for a day and was dismissed. This happened 2 yrs ago. If he remembers me, he will ask: "Have you been here before?" I will straight up and say: "Yes, you dismissed me after I only got 9 surveys done. However, this time I will get way more completed surveys." I am nervous about it, but after writing about it, I feel a bit more calm.

Call Centre #3: I didn't feel this way with Call Centre #3. I did a day of training back in 2007. Then I was dismissed because they said they decided to hire someone else who didn't need as much training as I did. At least I got paid. I got hired there in 2009 and worked for 6 months until I got laid off. I wasn't nervous when I was hired back because there were new managers there.

Job articles: I got this from Job Boom. It's an article about building your online brand. Google yourself, and what do you get? I got my Facebook page and my Tracy's blog. This is a good article because it provides tips on creating your online presence like write a blog and create a profile on LinkedIn.

http://career.jobboom.com/career-planning/2011/01/11/16848346.html

Getting a raise: I got this from Alberta Job Centre: "How to Negotiate a Raise." Good tips about building a portfolio, and to know your employer and industry. Can they give you a raise if the industry is struggling? You may not get a raise, but you can get benefits. There are tips like: "Don't act entitled to a raise."

http://www.albertajobcentre.ca/content/index.cfm?objectid=AF31D989-2219-80B4-53FDCC3449F1ECD1&utm_source=Albertajobcentre.ca&utm_campaign=fdb0828d65-AB_Career_Jan_05_20121_5_2012&utm_medium=email

Another article: "Negotiating awesome benefits." It mentions signing bonus and vacation time.

http://www.albertajobcentre.ca/re/career-advice/career-advice/salary-advice/salary-advice--negotiating-awesome-benefits

"8 Things that can boost your pay" are education, years of experience, performance reviews. It did mention hazardous working conditions like working with dangerous chemicals:

http://www.albertajobcentre.ca/re/career-advice/career-advice-articles/salary-advice/eight-things-that-can-boost-your-pay

Here's an article about career portfolios like it should have a resume, references, and certificates:

http://www.albertajobcentre.ca/re/career-centre/career-tools/career-planning/career-portfolios

Work wardrobe: Here's one "Your Interview Wardrobe on a Budget." It's about clothes so it interested in me like something I would read in a fashion magazine. The article said: "Dress for the job you want, and not the one you have." It gives good tips about shopping in your closet and the store. Go to the tailor to get your clothes to fit you.

http://www.albertajobcentre.ca/content/index.cfm?objectid=CEADA768-2219-80B4-5311AE9B04BB35A5&utm_source=Albertajobcentre.ca&utm_campaign=b3ad3eaf2a-AB_Career_Jan_11_20121_11_2012&utm_medium=email

It reminds me of a Seventeen magazine article about going around passing your resumes. Wear dress pants, and not jeans. Wear a nice shirt, and that's not too revealing. Also reminds me of my brother's friend a couple months ago. He was looking for a job in the warehouse and he went around to pass his resume in the industrial neighborhoods. He was wearing the clothes like the coveralls and the steel toe boots that are needed to be worn to work there. He was able to get hired when he did an on-the-spot interview.

Blog article: I really like this article from Job Boom. It's about building a blog to make yourself more professional:

"Determine what you have to share that is of value. Identify what you’re passionate about and what topic will keep you motivated to keep learning more."

The Vertex Fighter blog is to get investors, writers, producers, actors to help me produce my script called The Vertex Fighter. Tracy's Blog is my personal blog. It's more like a portfolio that I'm a prolific writer because I have all these blog posts. It's also to get someone to hire me to be a writer for TV and movies.

http://career.jobboom.com/headlines-calgarysun/2009/08/17/10490026-calsun.html