Under pressure

I grew up in a blue-collar city in central Connecticut whose biggest claim to fame is "Ted's Steamed Cheeseburgers," a burger joint that was recently featured on "Man vs. Food." From my senior class, I was one of a handful of students who went to college out of state; by sophomore year, most of those said students transferred to a Connecticut state school. The rest of my class that didn't even bother to attend college either got pregnant or got into drugs or in some cases, are currently trying to launch rap careers. The only school-related activity that generated much interest was football; most of the other student sports teams and clubs were met with empty bleachers and low participation. My guidance counselor encouraged me to go to UConn (his alma mater) because it was affordable, with little direction as to what else was available to me. An unusually large majority (I've heard 70 percent) of the teaching staff grew up in Meriden. My favorite teacher, the one who used to always joke about how bad things were, later quit her job and moved to London. A year later, she returned to my high school.

The reason I'm writing this is because I had always prided myself on my ambition. Don't misunderstand me, I know that Meriden, Conn. isn't the ghetto; a lot of other college students had much more difficult experiences growing up. (I couldn't imagine attending a high school that even had metal detectors.) However, it was far from the kind of nurturing environment that pushed you toward anything. Everyone is just so comfortable with the status quo, nothing ever gets accomplished. This was not the type of high school where even the "smart kids" did much. The valedictorian didn't get into the Ivy League; she went to UConn. It's hard coming back during the holidays because you can't really catch up with people who haven't done much growing up. There's nothing to "catch up" about. This is why I love college so much. There are so many people who are DOING something. People who are adding to the conversation. People with ambition. People who want a better life for themselves.

This is something that I grapple with as I try and find a job because my biggest fear is that I will end up just like every one of my former classmates.

I don't want that to happen.

Cover letters

For someone who's always prided myself on humility, penning cover letters can be a very difficult process. I never realized how hard it was to talk about yourself. Some people find that task relatively easy, but I believe that there is a fine line between confidence and arrogance. And I've consistently made a point to never cross that threshold.

Obviously, that is not what writing a cover letter is about. A cover letter, from what I gathered, is supposed to highlight your accomplishments throughout college and to provide evidence to a potential employer that you've been using your time wisely. I've been trying to sound enthuastic about my skills without sounding too cheesey, but that's another hard part of the process. Additionally, because I've been applying to a wide range of jobs, from marketing/PR to online editorial positions, each one asks different qualifications, and I've had to write individual letters in order to draw attention to specific skills. (Maybe part of me thought that I could just write one generic letter and send it off by changing the employer's name. Not the case.)

Fortunately I feel like I've finally found my "cover letter voice" and don't have to tweak too much when it covers to writing them.

Inventive business strategy? Or just stupid?

The Week magazine announced they are guaranteeing advertisers that consumers will not only see their ad, but also remember it.

“We were trying to think, what’s the most accountable thing you could do?” said Steven Kotok, president of The Week. “This is a way they can say when they buy The Week, they know it’s money well spent, because we’re guaranteeing it will be among the most effective ads they purchase,” Mr. Kotok said.

In contrast, television companies don't even guarantee advertisers that a viewer will even be in the room when an ad airs, according to the article.

I'm skeptical that such a guarantee will catch on with other media companies, since it's actual logistics still seem unclear.

Applied for Job No. 4

This time as a Publicity Assistant for HBO in New York.

People keep telling me to stop focusing on the city so much. However, doesn't moving to a small town kind of feel like giving up?

Link to my podcast

I recorded an audio podcast discussing my current job search. Listen if you dare.

Fingers crossed!

Dear Jeffrey,

Thank you very much for your application and for your interest in [Company name].

It will take a while for us to evaluate your application. Your patience is greatly appreciated. If we find that your qualifications match our needs we will contact you for an interview.

Thanks again for your interest in employment with [Company name].

Regards,

Human Resources

[Company name]

Applied for Job No. 3

I just sent out my official third job application. Now, on its face, it doesn't sound like a big deal, except for the fact that I actually think I have a shot this time. I wrote the strongest cover I've written so far and since it's explicitly an entry-level position, I am actually qualified! It's for an online marketing position at Random House in New York, which is a field I haven't really considered before, but I'm definitely willing to try and learn. I read the job description and it definitely sounds interesting. The waiting game is probably the hardest part. Hopefully I will hear something within the next few weeks, but in the meantime I will continue looking and hopefully applying to more jobs. Last night, I spotted one as a Publicity Assistant for HBO, which I'm planning on sending out an application for later today.

Confessions of a 20-something Job Seeker

The most frustrating aspect about the job search is not finding anything that's appealing to me. I've been checking the usual suspects (Indeed.com, Monster.com, JournalismJobs.com, Mediabistro.com, etc.) every few days (though I should probably change the frequency to every day), and maybe choose one or two jobs at most that I'm both I'm actually qualified for and that interest me.

Maybe I'm being too picky, which is entirely possible. I've already limited my job search to New York, but it's possible I should be more open minded. In fact I found a job posting just a few minutes ago in Seattle working at the Seattle Weekly as Web Editor. Sounds like I actually be qualified for it too. Could I make it on the West Coast? Who knows. The thing is, I've always seen myself as a New Yorker even though I haven't spent an extended amount of time there. Whenever I visit the city, it's like everything just fits, and as corny as this sounds, the world is alive with possibility. I see a future amid that chaos. MY future.

Sorry for going all LiveJournal just then.

Anyway, what makes it especially difficult is the fact that even though my resume includes two internships at the Boston Globe, along with two and a half years of editing experience on the school newspaper, it still fills like it's not enough. Most of the Web editorial jobs I've found require audio and video editing experience. Most of the writing jobs are for small town papers located in the middle of nowhere. In the suburbs. (*shudder* I get the chills just thinking of living in a city with less than 650,000 people in it.) I'm a city boy.

But there you go. Maybe I'm being small-minded. Maybe I'm not. Though I think it's too early to start giving up on your dreams and just accepting whatever gets thrown your way because it's easy.

So when will the paywall go up?

The New York Times Public Editor Clark Hoyt addressed the recession's impact on the newspaper on Oct. 31, writing about the Times' recent announcement that they will cut 100 jobs from the newsroom. This will reduce the staff size to 1,150, which he noted, still makes The Times the largest newsroom in the nation. However, this announcement comes on the heels of Time Inc.'s announcement on Oct. 30 that it will cut about 540 jobs from its company.

Hoyt recognizes the changing landscape of the media field, and notes that the Times is still dedicated to producing quality journalism. He brings up how Times executives are still mulling over putting content behind a pay wall, a controversial solution that's been toyed around for some time. Hoyt quotes Times Executive Managing Editor Bill Keller as saying, “We’re within weeks of a decision.”

And the fallout...

So two days ago, it was reported that the U.S. economy had lifted itself out of the reccesion. Not so fast. On Oct. 31, leading Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph E. Stiglitz said the U.S. recession is actually "nowhere near" an end, and the small growth rate that the U.S. saw in the third quarter won't continue into 2010, during a address he gave in Shanghai. He credited most the progress that's been made to the $787 stimulus package that was infused into the economy in February. Additionally, Stiglitz said the U.S. made a huge mistake in not nationalizing the banks in the first place.

We have this very strange situation today in America where we have given banks hundreds of billions of dollars and the president has to beg the banks to lend and they refuse,” Stiglitz said. “What we did was the wrong thing. It has weakened the economy and has increased our deficit, making it more difficult for the future.

President Barack Obama and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke both vehemently opposed the idea back in February.