# No place will hire me



## AffinityWing (Aug 11, 2013)

Recently, I've been wanting to find my first job but I can't seem to find any place that will get back in touch with me after the initial interview. I don't understand what I'm doing wrong...I've improved in terms of SA quite a bit recently - making eye contact more than I ever have before, trying to speak as clearly as possible, and I am sharing openly (albeit very, very little) experience I have had at school doing public speaking, helping teachers, etc. when asked about it. 

I know it's probably still quite early (I've just began job-hunting a few weeks ago) but I've already applied and been interviewed at a number of places, and every time I am just left with being told I will be called back or there are not enough hours available (Which is pretty hard to believe for very entry-level fast food and retail jobs, isn't it?). I guess I just can't compete at all with someone who has held three or four different other jobs like this, but I didn't think it would be this difficult to even get my foot in the door. 

A year or so ago, considering how deathly afraid I was of even making an initial phone call, I'm happy to see I've come this far but it is disappointing and frustrating when no employer still seems interested in giving me a chance. 


Unfortunately I don't have any referrals or previous work experience to provide whatsoever, other than for one retail store recently which my mom had me write down a couple of friends she has that she knew had worked there. The woman who interviewed me instantly told that she isn't confident hiring me without having any prior experience and that she feels the job will be too difficult for me. 

I thought these places hired almost anyone and required no prior experience at all, so how am I supposed to be hired by any of them? I really don't understand..I feel I am dressing/physically presenting myself appropriately, speaking what I know, and still nothing. 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!


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## Blue Dino (Aug 17, 2013)

Keep trying, again and again and again and so on... With holiday season looming, they will likely be more desperate and much less picky with their hires.


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## AffinityWing (Aug 11, 2013)

Blue Dino said:


> Keep trying, again and again and again and so on... With holiday season looming, they will likely be more desperate and much less picky with their hires.


Thank you. I had a feeling they're just hiring alot less now, since I have someone I know from school that has also been looking everywhere and hasn't found anything. He's also never had a job before, only paid work around home from his family. Ideally, I wanted a job as soon as possible since I need money very badly for college so I'm very eager to start.


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## scarpia (Nov 23, 2009)

I have never understood how people get their first job. Employers want people with work experience. That was a lot of what I ran into. Especially if you are in your 20s and looking for a first job - that's a HUGE red flag. One guys said I had to fill out the section of the application and list my previous employers. It was inconceivable to him that a 22 yo guy never worked. I got jobs by lying on applications and making up places out of state and saying I worked there. That also got me fired from jobs. It's not a good scene.


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## veron (Apr 29, 2009)

Yeah, it's pretty ridiculous for what sort of jobs people require you to have experience. When I was looking for my first job, I came across things like slipping leaflets into people's mailboxes - and they wanted someone with experience. If you're eager to start soon, maybe you could look for jobs that are less desirable (and hence with less applicants), like night shift.


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## komorikun (Jan 11, 2009)

Is the economy bad in your country?


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## AffinityWing (Aug 11, 2013)

scarpia said:


> I have never understood how people get their first job. Employers want people with work experience. That was a lot of what I ran into. Especially if you are in your 20s and looking for a first job - that's a HUGE red flag. One guys said I had to fill out the section of the application and list my previous employers. It was inconceivable to him that a 22 yo guy never worked. I got jobs by lying on applications and making up places out of state and saying I worked there. That also got me fired from jobs. It's not a good scene.


One of the reasons I'm in a rush to at least find something before I graduate, because I know it will get only get more difficult later on. I feel quite embarrassed to have never worked at 20. Maybe that really is one reason employers aren't giving me a chance? Yeah.. that's why I'm very hesitant to lie, because I don't want to suffer for it later on. Plus, I am quite a bad liar. :afr I've started looking at temp agencies and volunteer places, so if nothing else, I'll try starting there.



veron said:


> Yeah, it's pretty ridiculous for what sort of jobs people require you to have experience. When I was looking for my first job, I came across things like slipping leaflets into people's mailboxes - and they wanted someone with experience. If you're eager to start soon, maybe you could look for jobs that are less desirable (and hence with less applicants), like night shift.


Unfortunately, night shift isn't an option for me at the moment because I'm going to have to rely on using my mother's car at the moment since I don't have my own and she works night the shift so she will need it. I've looked into some temp agencies, but my options seem to be getting quite limited since she will only let me apply to places close by, only about 5 or 10 miles away.



komorikun said:


> Is the economy bad in your country?


I'm not quite sure.. I'm in the U.S. I've heard unemployment has been quite on the rise in my city in particular and of course we still have alot of problems with even recent college grads finding jobs. I suppose I feel grateful to not be stuck in the getting called both "overqualified" and "under qualified" position, then.


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## Blue Dino (Aug 17, 2013)

AffinityWing said:


> Thank you. I had a feeling they're just hiring alot less now, since I have someone I know from school that has also been looking everywhere and hasn't found anything. He's also never had a job before, only paid work around home from his family. Ideally, I wanted a job as soon as possible since I need money very badly for college so I'm very eager to start.


Yeah seasonal holiday jobs generally are the best way to get your foot into the door, or at least have some recent experience to show for when you apply for the next job.


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## scarpia (Nov 23, 2009)

Lion Heart said:


> affinitywing you should apply to a grocery store...they typically glance over the not having experience thing...but you could also lie about it and make something up I don't think you have anything to lose by doing so


NO NO NO!! You have lots to lose. I mentioned that I got caught doing that once and it was a very bad scene. They can hire you then check. That's what happened. My boss always yelled but one night he did it every 5 minutes - sneaking up in back of me and yelling something. Then the other manager on duty was glaring at me with a look of pure hatred, like I had raped his daughter. The next day I saw the schedule and I was not on it. If they fire you they are supposed to give you a paycheck on the spot, but they didn't do that. I started to tell the manager that I would resign but before I could say anything he just screamed at the top of his lungs. It scared the crap out of the secretary who was there. I was always afraid that if that guy ever saw me again he would mow me down with his car.

There are supposedly services like careerexcuse that give you fake job references, but I don't know anyone who has used it.


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## lil_tails (Aug 13, 2018)

gonna becom hobbooo


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## Paper Samurai (Oct 1, 2009)

Keep applying, it's more about numbers than anything else tbh. I know it's a little disheartening when you don't get a call back, but there's always something out there if you keep at it.


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## Alex4You (Jun 19, 2017)

First of all, I'm happy to hear about how your SA has improved! It's awesome that you are working to get better and not letting mental illness control your life. Keep it up!

So anyway, I wouldn't feel bad about not getting a job yet. Yes, many of those types of jobs do hire almost anyone, but that really depends on the place. There are also a lot of places that like to hire people with more experience. You just haven't found the right place for you yet. There are so many jobs available if you know where to look and I guarantee that some of those jobs would gladly hire you.

Try looking for places that say "help wanted" or that post ads saying they need employees. Some employers simply might not be hiring anyone right now. It kind of depends on where you live, but most people live near places that are actively trying to hire new employees. The important thing is to keep applying to jobs. It's taken me a couple months to get a job before. 

I'd say keep applying to retail jobs or fast food type places, etc. Most of those places don't care about prior work experience and are used to being peoples' first job. I think literally ANYONE has the ability to find a job if they apply to enough places and put some effort into it. I'm sure you'll find a job very soon.


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## Mondo_Fernando (Jun 26, 2014)

AffinityWing said:


> Recently, I've been wanting to find my first job but I can't seem to find any place that will get back in touch with me after the initial interview. I don't understand what I'm doing wrong...I've improved in terms of SA quite a bit recently - making eye contact more than I ever have before, trying to speak as clearly as possible, and I am sharing openly (albeit very, very little) experience I have had at school doing public speaking, helping teachers, etc. when asked about it.
> 
> I know it's probably still quite early (I've just began job-hunting a few weeks ago) but I've already applied and been interviewed at a number of places, and every time I am just left with being told I will be called back or there are not enough hours available (Which is pretty hard to believe for very entry-level fast food and retail jobs, isn't it?). I guess I just can't compete at all with someone who has held three or four different other jobs like this, but I didn't think it would be this difficult to even get my foot in the door.
> 
> ...


The no experience thing starts into teens. Into 20's you should havē job experience already. Usually parents get kids working in their teens.

If have no job experience they have to train you. If you quit because can't handle it, cost's the business money in training you that they usually can't afford to do again (why she was hesitant to do so). That is usually why they are picky.

Work experience says to them the length you have stayed with another company. They usually want someone who will stay for a while. You have to show them this with something you have done, even if done without pay and mention it on your CV. If have looked after someone (sick or disabled), helped out (volunteered), etc. Otherwise you are an unknown to them. They won't take risks on än unknown person.

With CV, make sure you match it to job position. This is one of the complaints commonly heard from business owners where CV doesn't match job position. Some hire no one if they can't find someone to match the job position.

This can be done by "finding your niche" (look it up on the internet) which helps to fill in your CV and helps you find the right job position that suits you.

The info on what job position suits you is then matched to job position specs (search for job specs that match your CV, then apply for the jobs that do match your CV). Less chance of getting rejected that way, as less chance of picking the wrong job for you.

If want to avoid interviews, competing with others, cold call places that you think would match what job suits you / CV and ask for jobs. Usually you can catch business owners before they advertise the job which bypasses the interview stage.

Usually a job agency gets first dibs, so a job agency that deals with people with anxiety, disabilities (if can find one and they do exist, but not sure if they do in the US).

Job agency that helps people with anxiety, disabilities, etc can teach you what you need to know with finding your niche, etc.

Anyway, I hope the above is of some help.


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## AffinityWing (Aug 11, 2013)

Thank you very much everyone. I found one data entry job position in an office and one kennel technician position at a boarding kennel. I'm expecting to get interviews and/or call backs from them, or any of the other retail/fast food places I have applied to. I feel like something is close, maybe a sixth sense? LOL Well, either way, I'm planning to keep looking. Hopefully some place can hire me!



scarpia said:


> NO NO NO!! You have lots to lose. I mentioned that I got caught doing that once and it was a very bad scene. They can hire you then check. That's what happened. My boss always yelled but one night he did it every 5 minutes - sneaking up in back of me and yelling something. Then the other manager on duty was glaring at me with a look of pure hatred, like I had raped his daughter. The next day I saw the schedule and I was not on it. If they fire you they are supposed to give you a paycheck on the spot, but they didn't do that. I started to tell the manager that I would resign but before I could say anything he just screamed at the top of his lungs. It scared the crap out of the secretary who was there. I was always afraid that if that guy ever saw me again he would mow me down with his car.
> 
> There are supposedly services like careerexcuse that give you fake job references, but I don't know anyone who has used it.


I'm so sorry that happened to you. I hope it has not affected future employment opportunities? Since I'm a bad liar, this is why I'm afraid of doing it even more. This Catch 22 of starting is bad, but I would be much more unable to live with the guilt of having lied.



ANX1 said:


> This can be done by "finding your niche" (look it up on the internet) which helps to fill in your CV and helps you find the right job position that suits you.
> 
> The info on what job position suits you is then matched to job position specs (search for job specs that match your CV, then apply for the jobs that do match your CV). Less chance of getting rejected that way, as less chance of picking the wrong job for you.


Hm, I don't think I have many options to chose from at the moment, since it's my first and I'm still a college student. That's why I don't want to be picky at all where I start, as long as I start somewhere. I'm just willing to work as hard as necessary! :smile2: Well, preferably I wanted something that would be a challenge for my SA because I know the exposure may really help, but I may end up finding one that will be more isolating at the moment. Ah, well I guess that is fine if I can always find something else later.


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## Kevin001 (Jan 2, 2015)

You'll get hired soon . I remember applying to like 20 jobs once before getting hired.


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## scarpia (Nov 23, 2009)

AffinityWing said:


> I'm so sorry that happened to you. I hope it has not affected future employment opportunities? Since I'm a bad liar, this is why I'm afraid of doing it even more. This Catch 22 of starting is bad, but I would be much more unable to live with the guilt of having lied.
> 
> .


It was pretty much par for the course. People have always treated me like crap. Future employment opportunities? It didn't matter. I had no opportunities anyway. A few years later when I got locked up in a psych hospital for punching a child molester I was able to get a slightly above minimum wage food service job. But again I had to lie on the application to meet the qualifications.


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## WillYouStopDave (Jul 14, 2013)

For whatever reason, getting that first job seems to be tough for a lot of people and is even worse for people with SA. I filled out many applications when I was in my teens and never even got a call. I was even willing to start with jobs I didn't even really want or seemed like they'd really suck. I didn't even get to an interview. 

I would guess that between the ages of 15 and 19 I probably put in 50-60 applications and never got anywhere like that. The first job I actually managed to get was a security guard job at a hospital and the only reason I got that was I took a computer repair course that promised job placement at the end of the course. Naturally, they didn't guarantee job placement in the computer field. Just A JOB. So basically, they MADE that happen because they were obligated to. And also it helped that I was pretty good friends with one of the women who worked in the office at that "college".

It was a dreadful job actually. In those days working security in an ER lot was boring AF. I literally just had a radio and wasn't allowed to leave the post unless I had to go to the bathroom. Later they moved me to the nurses parking lot, which was out by itself about a half a mile away from the hospital. There wasn't even a shack there for the guard. So I just had to sit in my car all day long in 100 degree weather every day and call in once every so often. 

Later, I moved to a different state with one of my cousins and he was good at getting jobs so he helped me get a fast food job. 

Generally, if you're willing to work fast food, you can usually get a job doing that but you might have to pester them a bit. If you put in an application and you don't get a call, go in and buy something and ask the person at the register to speak to the manager. If the manager you talk to doesn't do the hiring, ask them when the hiring manager works. They usually don't have a system set up for this to deter that kind of thing so they will just tell you when you can catch the hiring manager working.

The store I worked at, the store manager did the hiring and he always worked on Saturdays. Sometimes that made the difference if someone came in and asked him for a job on the spot. It's not very professional and it's awkward but it could work. I've seen it work.

Besides, if you're willing to work fast food, you WILL have a lot of awkward stuff to deal with. Just getting the job is the least of your worries.


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## AffinityWing (Aug 11, 2013)

Well, I think I may have finally been hired somewhere! I have been exchanging messages with the owner of the pet kennel and she said I could start this weekend. I'm a little unsure if I will be able to do certain things like walk the heavier dogs, but the boy who was showing me around there said I could leave them to him and I can take care of the smaller ones. Some of the locks seemed much older and harder to unlock unless it is in a certain way, but I guess that will just be a matter of getting used to.



scarpia said:


> It was pretty much par for the course. People have always treated me like crap. Future employment opportunities? It didn't matter. I had no opportunities anyway. A few years later when I got locked up in a psych hospital for punching a child molester I was able to get a slightly above minimum wage food service job. But again I had to lie on the application to meet the qualifications.


I'm sorry to hear that. Are you still in school? I went through a period of becoming quite the nihilist because of what people had done to me in the past, but I realized there are are quite a few good people in the world and ones I could relate to alot, SA or not. (I ended up meeting multiple people I suspect may have had it, though.) My mother keeps telling me to lie or at least exaggerate on them, because "that's what people here do for their first job" but for some reason this is something I'm just very unwilling to be dishonest about.



WillYouStopDave said:


> For whatever reason, getting that first job seems to be tough for a lot of people and is even worse for people with SA. I filled out many applications when I was in my teens and never even got a call. I was even willing to start with jobs I didn't even really want or seemed like they'd really suck. I didn't even get to an interview.
> 
> I would guess that between the ages of 15 and 19 I probably put in 50-60 applications and never got anywhere like that. The first job I actually managed to get was a security guard job at a hospital and the only reason I got that was I took a computer repair course that promised job placement at the end of the course. Naturally, they didn't guarantee job placement in the computer field. Just A JOB. So basically, they MADE that happen because they were obligated to. And also it helped that I was pretty good friends with one of the women who worked in the office at that "college".
> 
> ...


Would you say any of these jobs have helped with your SA in any way?

Since you mentioned fast food, I ended up getting a call today from one of the McDonalds I applied to. I guess I may keep trying to get more interviews in, in case I find anything better but I don't see how that place could be in any way better than the kennel that just hired me other than the fact it will be much closer, the hours can be more flexible (The kennel wants me to start at 7:30?!), and I'll be able to start full-time much sooner. Maybe it will help with my SA more, since it will be a less isolating job than with the kennel but the opportunity to work with animals there could significantly help my depression.

An interview I had at one local fast food chain also never called me back, but I wasn't that surprised since I was overhearing the guy before me that came there to get interviewed and he was listing experience at three or four other fast food places. The manager was already talking to him about the "workplace culture" and everything so I very much assume he got the job. I guess I had the misfortune of being showed up from the very beginning.  There's just no competition with someone like that.

That's what I've heard, that most of these job landings, even for minimum wage, happen with connections. I thought I had absolutely no one to help me with that, but my stepdad was the one who found me this job at that kennel because one of the workers there works under him, so I'm really grateful.

How much did you get paid for the Security position?

I figured it's the least of my worries, but I'm confident in trudging through anything that may come afterwards. I've already told myself I don't even care anymore if it is a miserable job, as long as I can just start one already, since I will not be planning on staying at it anyway. I'll use it to try and find something better. :smile2:


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## WillYouStopDave (Jul 14, 2013)

AffinityWing said:


> Would you say any of these jobs have helped with your SA in any way?


 Do you really want to know?

Let me put it to you this way. We're all different. I think they made my SA worse but that's me. That's not you.

I would advise you (however) if you do manage to get a min wage job, don't get stuck there if you know you can do more. I got stuck there because (on an intellectual level) I knew for a fact I didn't have any better options. The last thing you want to do if you know you can do more is find yourself still working a fast food job after several years.

Use it to get some basic spending money and some experience dealing with people and working and references. Just remember that it always looks better if you already have a job when you're trying to get another job. So even if it's only a min wage job it's going to look better if a prospective employer sees that someone is paying you. If you quit a job and you wait six months to try and get another one, they're going to wonder what happened and what you were doing in that time. That's what you don't want. That's the only real reason to get a min wage job. Just to establish an employment history and have some basic income while you figure out what to do.



> How much did you get paid for the Security position?


 Oh that was ages ago. That was like 1991. It was whatever min wage was at the time. The main reason I gave up on it was because of other issues I had going on (chronic insomnia and complete inability to sleep on a schedule and get up in time reliably every day). It was a matter of time before I got fired.


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## GiftoftheGaffe (Oct 1, 2018)

Some things you could do to help your situation:

-Volunteer. Not only will this help you with getting a reference and some experience, it will hopefully make it easier for you (socially and professionally) to slide into your first job.
- Tailor your CV and covering letter. If possible, ring the company beforehand (such as a store) to get the name of the manager so you can be a bit more personal which may win you some brownie points. 
- Apply in person. I know a lot of job applications are done online, but for some places (even if you see it advertised online) it may be worth going in and asking them if it's a convenient time to discuss the position with them. Try to remember not what they can offer you, but what you can offer them. 


Lastly, just keep trying. Send. Send. Send. Applying for a job is like having a job. I still apply for new jobs even at my current job. Also, don't get disheartened. There are unemployed graduates. There are unemployed tradesmen/women. It's a mixture of luck, timing, confidence, experience, persistence, location, competition...


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## komorikun (Jan 11, 2009)

WillYouStopDave said:


> *Generally, if you're willing to work fast food, you can usually get a job doing that but you might have to pester them a bit. If you put in an application and you don't get a call, go in and buy something and ask the person at the register to speak to the manager. If the manager you talk to doesn't do the hiring, ask them when the hiring manager works. They usually don't have a system set up for this to deter that kind of thing so they will just tell you when you can catch the hiring manager working.
> *
> The store I worked at, the store manager did the hiring and he always worked on Saturdays. Sometimes that made the difference if someone came in and asked him for a job on the spot. It's not very professional and it's awkward but it could work. I've seen it work.
> 
> Besides, if you're willing to work fast food, you WILL have a lot of awkward stuff to deal with. Just getting the job is the least of your worries.


I don't know if that is true anymore. Almost all medium sized to large businesses require an online application. The days of applying in person are pretty much over except for very small companies. The corporations have long complicated applications, some even have personality tests.


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## railcar82594 (Mar 1, 2016)

q


komorikun said:


> I don't know if that is true anymore. Almost all medium sized to large businesses require an online application. The days of applying in person are pretty much over except for very small companies. The corporations have long complicated applications, some even have personality tests.


Right, I think it's more true it's harder to do a walk-in these days. All the fast foods and franchise restaurants, stores and businesses seem to have an online application siphon first, where it's easier for managers to weed out resumes and applications that appear to have less experience or a bunch of bogus items on the resume. So SA people with little experience or unwilling to fib on the resume have a disadvantage. Then there's the testing which seem to have more office-politic-savvy questions than ever before, then the interviewing which can be cliquey.

That said, OP, there are probably still some independent family stores and restaurants/businesses that would be ok to walk-in and approach, even though less so these days. Being young is still an advantage so cheer up and good luck with your current prospects.


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## Nekobasu (Apr 22, 2018)

i need a regular bloke for my upcoming YouTube channel. Wanna try out?


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## twitchy666 (Apr 21, 2013)

why remote voice require tactile? cannot touch. fingers don't fit through copper lines which are needed by aerials tooo

get in?

cannot smell the other's excrement 

contact?


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## Nick Attwell (Jun 16, 2014)

AffinityWing said:


> Recently, I've been wanting to find my first job but I can't seem to find any place that will get back in touch with me after the initial interview. I don't understand what I'm doing wrong...I've improved in terms of SA quite a bit recently - making eye contact more than I ever have before, trying to speak as clearly as possible, and I am sharing openly (albeit very, very little) experience I have had at school doing public speaking, helping teachers, etc. when asked about it.
> 
> I know it's probably still quite early (I've just began job-hunting a few weeks ago) but I've already applied and been interviewed at a number of places, and every time I am just left with being told I will be called back or there are not enough hours available (Which is pretty hard to believe for very entry-level fast food and retail jobs, isn't it?). I guess I just can't compete at all with someone who has held three or four different other jobs like this, but I didn't think it would be this difficult to even get my foot in the door.
> 
> ...


Might be an idea to go self employed Affinity

Just find a demand nobody else has thought of, or very few people cover & away you go


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## Nick Attwell (Jun 16, 2014)

I used to have a franchise, which is part self employed, under the wing of the franchise company 

For example, with Dairy Crest being a doorstep milkman

As part of a franchise, you are not on your own; you have the backing of the franchise company


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## WillYouStopDave (Jul 14, 2013)

komorikun said:


> I don't know if that is true anymore. Almost all medium sized to large businesses require an online application. The days of applying in person are pretty much over except for very small companies. The corporations have long complicated applications, some even have personality tests.


 Many McD's are privately owned franchises. It's actually fairly rare where I live for any of them to be corporate stores. Sometimes one guy owns like 3-5 of them in the area. They all do things a bit different. Some of them are very lax with doing things the corporate way. For example, the one I worked at looked nice from the customer area but when you got into the places customers never see, everything was falling apart. That would have never been tolerated at a corporate McD's but you could tell very little had been done there since at least the 1980s.

Yes, they do try to make people go through the online application thing but I chased it down fairly recently and it seems that you can actually still walk in and ask for an application. I haven't tried it (because I don't want to work at fast food anymore) but it's always worth a shot if someone just wants a job and their applications are getting ignored.

At any rate, as long as the place you want to work is a public business where you can actually talk to the employees, you can probably always get some kind of tips on getting hired from the employees if you talk to them and tell them you don't have any work experience and you're trying to figure out how to get an interview. A grocery store, for example. The employees are all over the place. Who knows? They might actually help someone and let them use them as a reference. I think that Costco is one of those places that is easier to get hired if you know someone who works there. I mean, that's a better than average job and they don't hire just anyone. They don't like taking chances on unknowns.

I think these places are always hiring. They've made the process of getting to and past the interview much more complicated but I see plenty of useless people working everywhere. Anyone who is actually willing to work would get hired eventually if they can find a way to get past having their application ignored because of no experience/references and so forth.

Was in the grocery store yesterday and the hiring manager was talking to someone near the register where I was and he said he had two interviews to do and one didn't show. If I really wanted to work there I'd have asked him right there if he would interview me. He might have said no but so what? He was there and he was already planning to do an interview that didn't happen. There's usually a way to get around normal procedure if you can talk to someone who can help you out.

That was the store where I was thinking about working until I found out they do a "team huddle" every morning and you have to jump up and down and be noisy and act excited about working there. I've seen them doing that at like 6:30 in the morning several times and it was freaky. No way I'd be doing that for a min wage job. :lol


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## AffinityWing (Aug 11, 2013)

WillYouStopDave said:


> Do you really want to know?
> 
> Let me put it to you this way. We're all different. I think they made my SA worse but that's me. That's not you.
> 
> ...


It seems sometimes more places start calling back when you already get hired somewhere. :lol It makes you think do all of them have some sort of covert connections that they use to **** with you?

I've been deathly afraid of working at fast food, for some reason even more than retail, so not going to lie.. I actually got much more visibly nervous on the interview I had for it. I'd much rather do delivery, but I'm not good with getting around and I'm not a good enough driver yet.

At the moment, I don't have many intellectual options either because I had to take a temp. leave from college to figure myself out a little bit. I'm not particularly smart in anything, either. :frown2:



Nekobasu said:


> i need a regular bloke for my upcoming YouTube channel. Wanna try out?


Cool, I've been interesting in Youtubing a little bit before but if it's to be a vlogger I'd be way too camera-shy. LOL Then again, I'm very voice-shy too so I don't see how it could work out. :crying:



Twocky61 said:


> Might be an idea to go self employed Affinity
> 
> Just find a demand nobody else has thought of, or very few people cover & away you go


Since I'm studying Japanese at the moment, one of my goals in the future is to start up a blog or something of the sort for paid translations. I could use the extra money while I do it as a hobby. I've thought about trying to send in my writing somewhere, but most job offers for that seem to want technical writing on subjects I don't know a single thing about and am not qualified to write for.



WillYouStopDave said:


> That was the store where I was thinking about working until I found out they do a "team huddle" every morning and you have to jump up and down and be noisy and act excited about working there. I've seen them doing that at like 6:30 in the morning several times and it was freaky. No way I'd be doing that for a min wage job. :lol


That's terrifying! I would have nope'd right out of there. LOL I feel bad for the workers there, that must be so humiliating.



komorikun said:


> I don't know if that is true anymore. Almost all medium sized to large businesses require an online application. The days of applying in person are pretty much over except for very small companies. The corporations have long complicated applications, some even have personality tests.


Speaking of personality tests, I was shocked to find the questions being asked on them. They have made some of them really clever in that there are no seemingly wrong answers on all of the questions, and alot of the answers would seem pretty close to eachother. I've heard they don't affect hiring decisions, but I find that to be bull****. Alot of rate yourself from 1-10 questions saying things like "I am a confident person", "People would describe me as cheerful and friendly", and "I always follow rules without question" most likely to know you will be their corporate monkey. :roll


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## WillYouStopDave (Jul 14, 2013)

AffinityWing said:


> Speaking of personality tests, I was shocked to find the questions being asked on them. They have made some of them really clever in that there are no seemingly wrong answers on all of the questions, and alot of the answers would seem pretty close to eachother. I've heard they don't affect hiring decisions, but I find that to be bull****. Alot of rate yourself from 1-10 questions saying things like "I am a confident person", "People would describe me as cheerful and friendly", and "I always follow rules without question" most likely to know you will be their corporate monkey. :roll


 That's rather bizarre. I mean, are they actually trying to create an unemployment crisis or what? I could maybe understand that if it was a good job but if they're doing that for little crap jobs, that's insane. Just when you think it's all in your head, they prove it isn't.


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## Nekobasu (Apr 22, 2018)

AffinityWing said:


> Cool, I've been interesting in Youtubing a little bit before but if it's to be a vlogger I'd be way too camera-shy. LOL Then again, I'm very voice-shy too so I don't see how it could work out. :crying:
> 
> Since I'm studying Japanese at the moment, one of my goals in the future is to start up a blog or something of the sort for paid translations. I could use the extra money while I do it as a hobby. I've thought about trying to send in my writing somewhere, but most job offers for that seem to want technical writing on subjects I don't know a single thing about and am not qualified to write for.
> 
> l


As far as the Youtubing, trust me I am shy as hell, but I am still gonna try. You don't know what you can do unless you try.

As far as Japanese, my late fiance was Japanese, I am not fluent but she taught me a bunch.. If I went to Japan I could at least find my way around lol


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## scarpia (Nov 23, 2009)

AffinityWing said:


> Well, I think I may have finally been hired somewhere! I have been exchanging messages with the owner of the pet kennel and she said I could start this weekend. I'm a little unsure if I will be able to do certain things like walk the heavier dogs, but the boy who was showing me around there said I could leave them to him and I can take care of the smaller ones. Some of the locks seemed much older and harder to unlock unless it is in a certain way, but I guess that will just be a matter of getting used to.
> 
> I'm sorry to hear that. Are you still in school? I went through a period of becoming quite the nihilist because of what people had done to me in the past, but I realized there are are quite a few good people in the world and ones I could relate to alot, SA or not. (I ended up meeting multiple people I suspect may have had it, though.) My mother keeps telling me to lie or at least exaggerate on them, because "that's what people here do for their first job" but for some reason this is something I'm just very unwilling to be dishonest about.


I finished school at 22 with a bachelor's in chemistry. Could not get a chem job or ANY job. Had a hard time applying anyway. SA was too severe. Interviews went very badly when I got them.

When I was a food service manager years later I saw people lie on applications by stretching their time of employment to make it look like there were no gaps in employment history. Lots of employers don't like to see gaps.

The kennel job would be great for someone with SA. A fast food job would be good exposure to help you get over it though. Some people can't get over it and even get worse with exposure. You are young, so you have a chance to become a normal human. If that's what you want.


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## WillYouStopDave (Jul 14, 2013)

scarpia said:


> When I was a food service manager years later I saw people lie on applications by stretching their time of employment to make it look like there were no gaps in employment history. Lots of employers don't like to see gaps.


 I think one reason for it is they know that being unemployed probably doesn't scare you and you might just stop showing up or only show up when you want to and then they'll be stuck with having to either fire you or just put up with it.

I mean, common sense is that if someone can actually be unemployed for more than a few weeks, they obviously have another source of income. Which means that a job doesn't mean the same thing to them that it does to someone who has to work or else.

IOW, it probably scares them/makes them nervous. I can see the whole routine of having to fire people occasionally getting very ugly and scary for the person who has to do the firing.


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## WillYouStopDave (Jul 14, 2013)

scarpia said:


> I finished school at 22 with a bachelor's in chemistry. Could not get a chem job or ANY job. Had a hard time applying anyway. SA was too severe. Interviews went very badly when I got them.


 That kind of surprises me. My sister dated a guy who went to college for chemical engineering (unfortunately, she didn't marry him). She says that now he has a massive house and like 3 new cars. I get the feeling those are the types of jobs where there aren't that many people who can do them. I'm surprised they'd not hire you if you were qualified.


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## scarpia (Nov 23, 2009)

WillYouStopDave said:


> That kind of surprises me. My sister dated a guy who went to college for chemical engineering (unfortunately, she didn't marry him). She says that now he has a massive house and like 3 new cars. I get the feeling those are the types of jobs where there aren't that many people who can do them. I'm surprised they'd not hire you if you were qualified.


Chemical engineering is totally different than chemistry. It's an engineering degree, not a science degree. There is only a little overlap between the studies. In college chemistry is in the arts and sciences program while engineering is in the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences. The course work is totally different.









https://www.bachelorsportal.com/art...-choosing-between-science-and-technology.html

Engineers make more money than scientists generally. My father was an electrical engineer and he made more than I do. But engineers have to move around a lot for their jobs. He spent 6 months away in CA once when I was a kid.

I wasn't in it for $, I wanted glory so I wanted to be a scientist.


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## Nekobasu (Apr 22, 2018)

AffinityWing said:


> Recently, I've been wanting to find my first job but I can't seem to find any place that will get back in touch with me after the initial interview. I don't understand what I'm doing wrong...I've improved in terms of SA quite a bit recently - making eye contact more than I ever have before, trying to speak as clearly as possible, and I am sharing openly (albeit very, very little) experience I have had at school doing public speaking, helping teachers, etc. when asked about it.
> 
> I know it's probably still quite early (I've just began job-hunting a few weeks ago) but I've already applied and been interviewed at a number of places, and every time I am just left with being told I will be called back or there are not enough hours available (Which is pretty hard to believe for very entry-level fast food and retail jobs, isn't it?). I guess I just can't compete at all with someone who has held three or four different other jobs like this, but I didn't think it would be this difficult to even get my foot in the door.
> 
> ...


I worked for years in management, basically I was the guy who interviewed folks, hired and fired. If you want, feel free to ask me for advice okay?


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## AffinityWing (Aug 11, 2013)

WillYouStopDave said:


> That's rather bizarre. I mean, are they actually trying to create an unemployment crisis or what? I could maybe understand that if it was a good job but if they're doing that for little crap jobs, that's insane. Just when you think it's all in your head, they prove it isn't.


I was choosing as much of the "extroverted" and "talkative/social" kind of answers as I could, though I said I didn't want to lie because, well...that's where I admit even I didn't dare to put anything like "introverted" or "quiet" since I thought that would be an immediate red flag for them to not take me. (If they really do pay as much attention to the answers as I think, though I doubt it.) So hopefully that wouldn't cause an embarrassing, caught-in-a-lie situation on an interview just from how I end up acting. :frown2:



Nekobasu said:


> As far as the Youtubing, trust me I am shy as hell, but I am still gonna try. You don't know what you can do unless you try.
> 
> As far as Japanese, my late fiance was Japanese, I am not fluent but she taught me a bunch.. If I went to Japan I could at least find my way around lol


What kind of channel are you planning to have?

I really don't believe I have any of the visual or entertainment appeal at all to be a Youtuber, so I would probably be cringey as hell, but it has seemed kind of fun. There is a Youtuber I really look up to, TheReportofTheWeek, who I find very unique and inspirational. He may act out of the accepted social norm in some ways, like always wearing dress suits even when going to fast food places for his reviews, but I've seen pretty much nothing but positivity and love from his fans because of his kindness and motivational words/insightful world view.



Nekobasu said:


> I worked for years in management, basically I was the guy who interviewed folks, hired and fired. If you want, feel free to ask me for advice okay?


Thank you! What sort of things should you look out to say or not say on an interview? What are some signs I can know of that I didn't get the job? (Since I had one that confused me alot..I left thinking I was sure I got the job, especially since my interviewer had asked when I would be available and said word for word that I could start, yet she never called back.)


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## AffinityWing (Aug 11, 2013)

I'm currently wondering if I should quit the job I was hired in at the dog kennel. It seems like it would be wonderful, but I am suspicious since the owner has barely told me anything since hiring me and I ended up showing up on the day and time she told me to, but she wasn't even there. wth Even the others working there didn't seem sure what to do, and I had to leave because there was no one to train me. The whole thing seems very disorganized. Plus they expect me to be there by 7:20, which is more early than I can afford due to not having reliable transportation or a car at the moment.


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## komorikun (Jan 11, 2009)

AffinityWing said:


> I'm currently wondering if I should quit the job I was hired in at the dog kennel. It seems like it would be wonderful, but I am suspicious since the owner has barely told me anything since hiring me and I ended up showing up on the day and time she told me to, but she wasn't even there. wth Even the others working there didn't seem sure what to do, and I had to leave because there was no one to train me. The whole thing seems very disorganized. Plus they expect me to be there by 7:20, which is more early than I can afford due to not having reliable transportation or a car at the moment.


That's really weird.


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## AffinityWing (Aug 11, 2013)

komorikun said:


> That's really weird.


I asked where she was and I was told she had a stomach bug, but I didn't hear anything about that from her. We had a very short conversation on the phone, only about a few seconds, and that was it. She's left me on "Read" with my texts now. I was also supposed to be payed for the hours I showed up to look around, but I haven't heard anything about that either. Erm, all this doesn't seem very professional... :stu


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## The Phantom Pain (Oct 6, 2010)

You should try Amazon. They hire anyone with a pulse. Literally. And there's no interview.

The draw back of this is their work culture is ***.


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