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Networking, Targeting May Help in Search
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Edited questions from Career Tracks, Mary Ellen Slayter's online discussion about workplace issues.
Washington: I'm a recent law school graduate who has yet to secure my first job. I'm growing desperate. I've sent out 330 résumés to the Hill, feds, nonprofits, trade associations, campaigns and law firms. I've even applied for bartending and waiting tables, only to be told I'm overqualified. What do I do?
Are you just mailing (or e-mailing) résumés blind? Or are you networking through professional associations, your law school's alumni group, etc? You need to think quality, not quantity.
Completing a single federal job application can take a full week, so I have a hard time believing you're putting the right level of effort behind pursuing jobs at carefully selected employers.
And no one is overqualified to wait tables and tend bar in Washington . . .
How do you leave a job, when you know your boss will go out of his way to destroy you if you leave? How do you manage to put a good foot forward when the one person overseeing your work will certainly not provide a reference or recommendation?
Get a reference from another co-worker, preferably someone who is your boss's equal or better.
Not working well for one person doesn't doom you to a lifetime of unemployment.
