The short answer is that it's very hard and Jacqueline Hughes wants to help change this.
At the recent Social Media Lunch at Opal Divines, 3601 S Congress, the Examiner asked Jacqueline Hughes what was on her mind. Immediately she said that it's finding a job. She knows a lot of highly intelligent, qualified people in Austin that are having tough times finding jobs. And she's in that category herself.
But she's not despairing, she has a plan.
So, to try and remedy her jobless plight, she's taking to the streets with a giant sign on which will be printed her resume. The Examiner will be there to document her play to get public attention for her job search and she'll be tweeting the details out at @jacquelineslife as to what street corner you'll find her.
Watch Jacqueline talk about her plan and her qualifications for a job in the following video:
The Social Media Lunch is held every month at an Austin restaurant and Jacqueline thought this would be a good place to network and run her idea by other Austin social networkers. The Lunch was attened and sponsored by famed Adomatica.com blogger Robert Gilbreath and his coworkers at the Austin based Calendars.com who sat at the same table as the Examiner and Jacqueline. We hope to get to interview him in a future article. Most traumatic moment of the lunch came when the waiter was delivering fish and chips to the Examiner reporter and spilled a huge glop of tarter sauce directly on to the keyboard of the reporters Macbook Air. Fortunately, the keyboard had prophylactic protection in the form of a rubbery, clear silicon keyboard cover and nothing was harmed! Getting back to Jacqueline, she has a deeper explanation for her job quest, and this is how she explains it: "I am going to start blogging about society in general and this is going to kind of be an introduction into my life. It's not that we cannot find jobs but that we are working in the service industry to survive. My friends are not jobless but instead are working 3-4 jobs. This is not what they pictured themselves doing when they went away to college. I take on the CRAZIEST jobs sometimes. For example today a friend contacted me to write up a letter to be notarized to take someone to court because they don't have the time to do it and do not want to hire a lawyer. That is sometimes the kind of work I take on. Friends know that I just play online all day and so when they need something they immediately turn to me for my know how." Then Jacqueline elaborates even further and we begin to realize we're in on a rapidly evolving game plan, she really is an intelligent mind at work: "Every job posting I have come across has wanted experience and well how can you gain experience without a company giving you a foot in the door. Personally I am not really looking for a career. I don't see myself working for a company for 30 years because I do indeed plan on venturing out on my own. I first want to spend a day out there on the streets talking to people. Then next starting a contract career corner per se. I mean my goal was more or less a public service announcement. Gather my super intelligent friends with MBA's and have a group standing together. It would be an interesting experiment to say the least. I am interested in bringing people together and perhaps starting our own little ventures. I have considered starting many a things but I do not have the time or resources at this point to invest 40 hours a week into something when I myself need to survive. Anyways I am still trying to piece this all together." It's evolving in her mind, moment by moment and on her facebook and twitter. Don't worry, the Examiner will be there drag racing like hell to keep up with Jacquelines life.
Comments
Paul- thanks for joining us for lunch and for sharing this video/post with us. Hope you can make it next time: ez dot com/austinlunch
After viewing @jacquelineslife Twitter stream and photos, and Facebook pages looks like she's still living the college lifestyle. I can see why she hasn't gotten a job and it doesn't seem like she really wants to work for anyone but herself. She even says "Personally I am not really looking for a career." Why would I as a potential employer waste my time with her when someone else would appreciate the opportunity? She also says: "I am going to start blogging about society in general and this is going to kind of be an introduction into my life". Thanks, but I need someone who wants to do real, meaningful work.
I completely agree with Jack. To me, it seems like Jacqueline is more interested in partying, becoming "famous," and getting attention then finding a meaningful career. I mean, is it a surprise that someone who says they're not looking for a career because they would rather "venture out" on their own - without specifying what that is - can't find a job? Quite frankly, this article is giving her a platform that she doesn't deserve.
There are thousands of really hard-working people out there with mortgages, children, and real responsibilities without the leisure of trying to find jobs that "don't suck." I know plenty of 20 and 30-somethings doing meaningful full-time freelance work to prepare for independent careers. Why didn't the Examiner try a little harder to find one of them??
Blogging about your life isn't a career! Get over yourself, girlie.
Wow, okay after watching the video, I see this was an exercise in flirtation and flattery for the author, and an exercise in the expression of self-entitlement for the subject.
Total waste of time.
Jack and Ho-Mo must be pretty close minded. They are failing to see that a job is a job. Why is it a problem to market yourself?
Dummies
When I spoke about doing something like this at lunch and the Examiner asked to follow I said sure. I was more or less going to just raise awareness about the fact that I have many friends who graduated from college and are now working several jobs barely scraping by.
In the video I imply that I am not working. This is not true. I sometimes have 70 hour work weeks. I manage my own schedule and spend about 6-8 hours a day at a coffee shop either coming up with more work or working on things that I have been delegated. Much of the work I do is for small business's and start-ups that cannot afford to pay a big firm. I either a) hear about someone's ideas and agree to help or b) charge a very minimum amount.
I am VERY aware of the fact that I am more fortunate than most because I was born from a middle class family. I do not in any way take poverty as a joke and am currently working with Jessica Simmons on a documentary about poverty. www.howmuchdoyoureallyknow.webs.com/
Jacqueline,
You need to work on your elevator pitch.After watching your video I have no idea what you are looking for and what your skill set is. I blog about getting a job at HireAustin.org. Send me an email and I can give you some pointers.
www.hireaustin.org
And in addressing G-Mo about the subject of a "career" per se, many of my friends have been laid off from big companies here in town over the past few years. While a job with-in a big corporation is indeed for some, it is not necessarily for everyone.
Isn't it everyones goal to be able to work for themselves? Am I wrong for saying that I am not necessarily looking for a quote on quote career because I have aspirations of creating something for myself? Should I lie to potential employers looking to take me on for an entry level position that doesn't really speak to my interests without a firm basis of where I could end up within the company?
Yes I am young and still figuring things out. I completely understand your comments and concerns about the seriousness of this as at 1st it was a joke amongst my friends about the idea of me standing on the corner with my resume. I think even having the idea of doing such says something about our society and the economy and is worth examini
Terri,
This was an EXTREMELY casual impromptu interview. There wasn't any planning and looking back I would certainly change several things. I have managed to get my foot in the door with a few really amazing companies through writing, but do have a hard time in the actual interview process. I think this is a problem with many college graduates as we are trying to sell ourselves with our little experience and combat our nerves as we are being analyzed for employment.
Jack, I am guessing your company is probably not a good fit for her. I am also guessing that there companies out there that would like someone with Jacqueline's mentality. Sounds like you want a brown nose, not an independent thinker.
G-Mo, this article is giving you a platform too. I read your comments after watching the same interview. Frankly, you seem just lonely enough to get upset with a 20 something girl in Austin having a good time. It was obviously an impromptu interview that which she had not prepared for.
Hey! Put me in Gmo's mouth so you will both be quiet!
I guess it was silly of me to think of all the people less fortunate and willing to work at possibly inconvenient jobs to make ends meet. I also didn't realize "having a good time" was a job qualification entitling someone to the career of their hopes and dreams. Clearly, the Examiner is a bastion of intelligence for the Austin area.
This has turned into a right wing vs left wing fight in no time. Overly serious vs Reason, round 3, fight!
Again G-Mo I do work. Currently I bartend for several different companies, do event planning, concert management, write, am an election judge for the Travis county elections, work with a company that does test development for state tests and will probably be working with the US census. All these are on a contract basis and not consistent. I take on crazy jobs some times and am in a constant search for more opportunities. These are some of the few things I get paid for. In addition to this I am working on a documentary, studying social media, working on an iphone application, getting my real estate license and networking as much as I can.
Just because I do not yet have a mortgage and children does not make me a lesser individual. I have managed to keep my life as debt free as possible and I do not see that as a fault but as a smart choice at this point in my life. I most certainly feel for people who have children and mortgages and are struggling.
I want to hear more about the curbside career process and how it goes. I hope there is plenty of followup. Has anyone else ever tried this?
Well, it sounds like you've got it all figured out then!
This is just hilarious now. Good luck with your endeavours.
Jeff and Gay Mo....... get lost already.... shew
First, thanks to Robert and Calendars.com for hosting the luncheon. I took away a lot of great ideas, and I hope that others found value in my thoughts as well. To Paul, thank heaven for that keyboard cover, and thanks to the waiter for the comic relief of the look on his face when it happened. As far as Jackie, she's got some great ideas. I had the good fortune of sitting next to her at the table and found her conversation to be both intelligent and unique. She's a networking live wire and goes to a lot of meetups; she's well connected. I admire her ambition and her unwillingness to settle. To the potential employers reading this, you'd be the lucky one if she gave you an interview. To John E. who was also at the table. Thanks for opening my eyes.
I know Jacquie, and she is extremely brilliant. Conventional? Absolutely not. She thinks outside the box. If I could buy stock in Jacquie I would, she is one to watch. What is that app you are developing?
you can expect every video to have someone leave negative comment. its unoriginal, unproductive.. thanks for being the token "negative comment guy"
Lincoln-career corner as more of a PSA of underemployed college graduates
Jessiness-if I told you I would have to kill you. Joking.
Aha, what a dumb beotch. "I'm so super smart, how come no one will hire me???" Guess I'll just have to use all of my super valuable facebook and twitter skills to find work."
Quote: "I think even having the idea of doing such says something about our society"
Yes. It says there are too many idiots like you.
Thanks so much for your kind words George. Its nice to see that men still refer to women as "beotch's." According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 70 percent of all jobs are found through networking.
While I do not believe that facebook and twitter are extremely valuable in finding work they are indeed fantastic tools for networking.
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