Life Before Noon: A Millennial’s Manual

I have recently been debating the advantages of applying to small companies versus big companies. Being the typical Millennial, I’ve always imagined myself at some wonderfully prominent, ever-expanding company that everyone would “oooh” and “ahhh” over when I announced I’d found a job there. I’d have a great big salary, tons of advancement opportunities and the right to be pretentious. Oh, the joys of working for a big company! I quickly discovered, however, that things aren’t usually what they seem.

Throughout my job hunt, I found the bigger companies are the worst at several things: being upfront with you, getting back to you quickly (or at all) and acting as if you’re actually important to them. After interviewing for almost two months and not actually receiving any offers, I naturally have been getting frustrated. How dare these people not get back to me even though I interviewed over two weeks ago! Don’t they know who I am? No, actually, they don’t. And they don’t necessarily care to find out. After all, if I give up and start looking somewhere else, they have a list of fifty others willing to take my place. With the economy in a downward spiral, the corporations definitely have the power.

After this frustration, I decided to apply to a smaller company of about thirty people. I got an interview a few days later, with the president of the company, and a job offer within a week. A whole new world opened before my eyes. There are places where people actually like potential employees and tell them they can make a significant impact on the company? Places where people will actually fight to have you join the staff? Is this possible?

It is, and I’m glad to say I’ve found such a place.

- Haley

While watching the news recently, I saw a report about the funniest, and most creative, way to post your resume – wear it.

DamnINeedAJob.com, a new Web site that’s all about the job hunt, allows people to create a shirt which boasts their skills and abilities, just like a resume. The $25 shirt, written as a type of cover letter, includes text chosen by the buyer and even starts with a hand-picked salutation. And to make sure no potential employer misses the message, the shirt boldly displays the words, “Damn, I Need A Job. Know of Anything?” across its front.

The creator, who seems to prefer being anonymous- I couldn’t find his name anywhere on the Web site- is completely changing the way people look for jobs, while at the same time poking fun at the “your next employer could be anywhere” mentality. He says the shirts attract so much attention that he’s started carrying around resumes to hand people who are interested.

Several new features have been added as the Web site gains popularity, including a blog, discussion forum for the unemployed and DamnINeedMoney.com, a collection of articles and other resources for those finding the job hunt difficult and tedious.

No word on if the idea has actually landed him a job, but I think he should get props for sheer creativity.

-Haley

I recently read the post, ˝Do You Have Regrets? What Should You Tell Your College Self?˝ by Tiffany Monhollon from Personal PR. I really enjoyed Tiffany’s ideas on what she would tell her college self. Many of her ideas are what I too would tell myself.

In particular what struck me was the section on ‘Broaden your horizons’ because it is a situation that I am in right now. No matter what happens abroad, I know that I can go back to Virginia and live with my parents and try something else if the international experience ends up not being up my alley. It’s the opportunity to try something different without too many repercussions is what makes the position that much more appealing.

Tiffany ends the post by asking what would we tell our college selves now. I would tell myself to take more chances. It’s not that I really regret anything that I’ve done or haven’t done, but if I could go back I would do so much more, whether it ended up being good or bad to just at least try it. The things that matter to me the most are what Tiffany writes about with relationships. The people I met throughout college are what I will remember the most, not the statistics test or environmental science lab. The good, bad and ugly relationships that developed during college are something that I will always keep with me.

Even though it would be fabulous to go back, it’s also good to take note and make the future that much better, knowing what we know now. I can’t go back to being 19 and terrified of what lies ahead, but I can realize what has and hasn’t worked and make my new chapter that much more memorable- and have this really be the best time of my life.

-Aida