Now that it's been a few months sine my graduation, I feel now is a good time for an update on the goings on in my life. I am horrible at keeping up with this blog it seems, much like a diary or a journal. But for me I don't update stuff until I feel like a significant amount of experiences have occurred or else you would be reading about my tomato plants every day.
Okay, first off is that I got a job at Red Robin, my favorite restaurant. I am a busser and while I bet some people turn up their noses or ridicule such a position I do not take it lightly. I am the one responsible for keeping the floor area in good condition so as not to obtain a reputation of being filthy as well as helping the general turnover for the servers. Because of that, I like to do my job as efficiently and quickly as possible for them to get more money. Yeah, it's not always glamorous. Working there has my dislike of mayo increasing tenfold and I'm starting to become wary of other sauces however having a "messy" job has not affected my love for working there. I love working at Red Robin. I don't think I can emphasize it more than using the 'l' word to help punch up my declaration. I love the atmosphere, I love the scenery, I love the guests (I haven't had to deal with a 'bad' one yet, thankfully), my coworkers are great people and I enjoy talking to them and getting to know them, and the managers are great. I truly believe that they care about all of us; they greet me every time I come in and if anything is wrong they offer up an ear if I need it. They even have a Giving Fund, which was what sold me on working there. A part of the workers' paycheck is taken out (if they decide to add to the fund) and put into a "pot" of sorts which is collected over time. Then the money is given to a Team Member in need in the event that something occurs such as a death in the family, the need for a new heater, a medical emergency, etc. For a first job, I think I got lucky for the mere fact that I don't hate it. (Pssst. Come visit. I like seeing familiar faces around.) Even though I enjoy working there, it is a part-time position and with my student loans needing to be paid off soon I recognize that I need a job that can give me more money so as not to panic when that time comes around. In a perfect world I would love to keep my Red Robin job and have another job that I could have for my student loans. Since graduation, like my classmates, I have been on the hunt for a job that can do that as well as work with my interests. The only difference is that they have found success in the entry-level workforce while I have not. Recently, if you saw my Facebook, I have applied and obtained an interview at Geico for a Customer Service Rep position. With my degree in one year I would have made the money I need to pay off my student loans completely (of course this is before gas and taxes and such). While Geico wasn't my personal choice for employment, I recognized the benefits and the advancement I could receive there and went to my interview with high hopes. After all, I must have impressed them to some degree to get past the phone interview and move onto the on-site interview. So I go to the interview and I arrive forty-five minutes early (I'm still looking at you for that, Mom), so I sit and wait and read. (Always have a book on you, folks.) Then those of us that are there for an interview move into a room off to the side and take a computer test where you pretend to be apart of a fake Insurance company. You take phone and e-mails queries and take the information from there, fill in the corresponding blanks, and then submit it and move onto the next one in the time limit. When you got past that there was a paragraph you had to transcribe as accurately as possible as quick as possible in a minute. I messed up my entire first line of the paragraph due to not being used to using a keyboard that is not part of my laptop and I was worried I was finished due to that alone but I moved onto an interview. Anyone who knows me knows that sometimes I get really nervous when speaking to people I don't know so interviews are tough for me. I have two ways of reacting: I talk too little or I talk too much. This time I felt like I talked too little but I did well because, from there, I moved onto the roleplaying part. The roleplaying part was where I was given a cheatsheet of a fake company and the lady who interviewed me would call on the phone in the room pretending to be customers of the company. Using the sheet I was supposed to help solve their problems and, maybe, try to get them to sign up for a new service to add onto their policy. Through the three roleplays I forgot one small thing, each different things, and I was nervous but I managed to get through that to sit down and experience what being a Geico Customer Service Rep was like. I put a headset on and listened to a rep handle her customers for an hour and fifteen minutes. From there I was interviewed by the head of the Department and talked about what the position would entail. I went through that and thought everything had gone well. They said I would hear from them in three to four business days so I waited for any news. Being asked about it day in and day out made me nervous about the response and how I did. Finally I got news in an e-mails...that I didn't get it. Right away I felt like going was a waste of my time. Why keep putting me through to the very end of the interviewing process if they didn't want me? I was frustrated and upset and sad and felt like a failure and a disappointment to my parents. They were so excited for me and then...nothing. It's why I didn't want to mention the interview in the first place, just in case I had to deal with this outcome. Ever since getting rejected I've stayed up nights worrying about getting a job in time to pay off my student loans. I mean, I don't want to have to get a loan for my loans. While I am happy to see all of my classmates and friends getting the jobs I wanted I constantly wonder "why isn't that me? How come I haven't had as much luck as them? When is it my turn?" People always saying searching for a job is tough but I don't think they're being extremely truthful about the matter so, here's my truth about it:
But most of all, the biggest thing I've learned this summer while (still) looking for that entry level job to help me out: as long as you build a support system whether it be through friends or family or classmates you will be okay. It may take a bit to get there, but you will be okay. As my cousin Ronnie says after my latest setback "God has a better one for you. Trust in Him." And whether you are religious or not, I hope you all take a little bit of what she says and truly believes that something out there, maybe something better, is shaping up for you. In the meantime, if anyone out there needs a recent college grad that knows about computers, editing, copywriting, blogging, social media, creative writing, organization, databases, computer science, the french language (reading, writing, speaking, teaching), internet research, transcribing, Microsoft Office programs, English-centered work (grammar, spelling, literature, analysis), and food-related knowledge send them my way. In the meantime I still have Red Robin and I'm looking at Target and Giant. Wish me luck. --Mack
1 Comment
Clocheryl Jones
8/25/2014 03:11:20 pm
You remind me of myself when I was younger looking for employment. I knew I was able to do the jobs but when I got in that seat across from the interviewer I would shut down. I had the hardest time selling myself until the job of my lifetime came along. There I was in the room with 200 other applicants and all they needed was 3 people. I went outside and prayed and got in the drivers seat and made myself relax. Guess what I got the job but my problems was just beginning.because it was what they call a mans job. They were determined to run me off and with my determination and strong will I stayed and now I am retired. Long story short hang in there your day is coming because you have the heart and determination.
Reply
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
About Me
If you ever want a good laugh, come see me. I find enjoyment out of a lot of simple things. Archives
November 2016
Categories
|