Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Message from a College Grad

It's been a month since I graduated, and was flushed into the real world. For all you about to do the same thing this spring (and not jump into grad school), I have 5 tips.

1. It is no failure to move back in with your parents.
Yes, it is stressful. Yes, you will have to make sacrifices and it will really suck trying to get your parents to see you as an adult. However, the money you save will be everything. Soon loans will have to be paid, and that job you thought you'd get will not be there right away. New roommates aren't all they're cracked up to be. At least you know your parents as roommates and the problems they come with.

2. Post your résumé on CareerBuilder and other networking websites.
By this point, you should know the ins and outs of resumes and CV. If you don't, visit your college Career center to fix it up. When I did, I had employers calling me for interviews. While they weren't the exact position I desired, they were still jobs within my field of study and experience.

3. Keep your options open.
You likely won't get that high-paying dream job right off the bat. You'll probably have to start small so apply for internships and entry-level jobs in similar fields or with similar organizations. When you do get a position, don't treat it poorly. Work your ass off so if a promotion comes up more closely related to your passion, you can apply with great references.

4. Don't get down on yourself. 
Things won't happen right away, in the right order, or with the right people. Things also won't go your way. It's not anyone's fault and all you can do is keep trying. Eventually it will work out. 

5. Make a list.
Follow up with every place you apply. Make a list of potential employers (so you don't forget where you applied) and be sure to call. If you apply at the end of the week, call in the beginning of the next week to make sure they got the application, or ask the employer if they are looking for extra documents like transcripts or references. 
*Use the computer excuse. Many applications are online so call and say something like you didn't get the confirmation page. Then, once they confirm they have it, work in how interested or qualified you are for the position.

Friday, January 20, 2012

The Truth Reality Obscures

"Fiction reveals truths that reality obscures." - Jessamyn West

I've learned a lot this past year from friends and ex-lovers, and don't tell me it's too late to reflect. It's not. I will put these 12 things in novels one day.

1. As well-intentioned or innocent as you think you sound (especially in an argument or an emotional talk), you might not come off that way.
2. A person's feelings, once hurt, will not be unhurt no matter how many times you explain yourself.
3. Because you can't erase the past no matter how recent it was.
4. So let it go.
5. Know that sometimes things just don't work out.
6. And you can never know everything.
       Addendum: Actually, you probably don't want to know everything.
7. Moreover, when someone leaves you crying and broken, another person will be there to pick up the pieces. Whether that be a friend or flame, they will be better for you than one before them.
8. But don't mistake friendship and loneliness with feelings of affection.
9. Because a kiss in the night will change everything. See #3.
10. And loneliness should not be smothered out by a frantic scramble for attention. You must saturate in loneliness to find out what you really need, to become productive, and to regain a balance of feeling.
11. With great love comes great sadness, and with joy there is pain. Like good to evil, you must have both in your life to appreciate the whole.
12. Last, you cannot control everything (esp. your heart).

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Whites Only, What's Up America?

At this point, you've probably heard the story circulating on Yahoo News of the Cincinnati landlord who banned a black girl from her public swimming pool because "her hair products made the water cloudy" and she was only trying to protect her assets.

What's going on in America?

Politically Correct enthusiasts and racism. A news station, and I struggle to give it that credit, which is basically propaganda for the GOP. The middle class is dying out, but wait, you need to latest 52" 3D TV. All the while, TIME magazine names The Protestor the Person of the Year.

When the Middle East was rioting and protesting for freedom, our government was all for it. When Americans start to Occupy, the President turns his back. We're turning into a Police State, at least five civil liberties have been cut out.

We are citizens of noise, slaves to the media. We ingest disruption and distraction like it's water. We chug the paparazzi filth because, God Forbid, we don't debate the name of Beyonce's baby Blue. We know more about Cain's scandal than we do about his policies!

And Lord, do we NEED. We NEED that new television, it has 3D effects. No matter the debt crisis. It's about what you have and what your neighbor has. We NEED help, but we won't accept it. We NEED compromise but we want to give up nothing! 

We are a failing nation. Our leaders are stubborn children who have too much money to care about us, to get things done. They only care about what they have, what they can get, what they look like. Our candidates might as well be bickering over the color of their shoelaces than policies.

What we need to do is Unite. We need to get it together, to figure out what we really need and make that movement. Occupy, I applaud you for a wonderful start, but it is a disjointed force. There needs to be a list of drafted demands taken to our government.

Go.