The "where should we look for jobs" thread had some great posts, including a couple from an ex-CCI employee who went on to be a career coach and a great post from a Feb RIF who recounted his/her journey since then. Some asshole (I'm almost thinking that horrible Dani whatshername or her minions) started posting extremely long cut-and-paste articles from Wikipedia to try and ruin it. To what end? I don't know, but that's just total and complete BS so I'm starting the thread again with the most important posts. If they keep it up, I'll start another thread. Seriously, we are all scared and stressed and need good advice. We do NOT need predatory high-priced job search firms taking advantage of us! Go away you sons of beeyotches!
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Anonymous 19849 - thanks for re-posting. This was useful.
Same situation here. Was laid off and out of work for over three months. I got some good and some bad advice. (1) "It's a numbers game. Apply for anything under the sun until something sticks." Well, yes and no. Quantity is good, but not at the expense of quality. Don't apply for jobs you know you don't want, but more importantly don't be generic in your search and send out the same resume and cover letter to dozens of companies. You need to take the time to send a resume and cover letter that will get their attention and that matches the job description. Research the companies before you apply. Take the time to stand out from the generic applicants. (2) Don't bother with applying for jobs unless you meet the posted qualifications 100%, it's a waste of time." No, it's not. The job I eventually got had posted qualifications that matched mine at about 75%. I took the time to craft a good cover letter, ended up in the interview pool, and did well because I was well prepared for the interviews. Be smart and be discerning when it comes to taking advice. You know better than you think how these things work. Heck, you may have even been part of a hiring process before. Have confidence.
If you are in the Phoenix Metro market, I found a few job openings at Brookline College - send your emails to their DOE here: cpietkiewicz@brooklinecollege.edu
Best of luck everyone!
DO NOT, under any circumstances, PAY for someone to do a job search for you. The "hidden market" for jobs is a sham. Any good search firm that is out there will be collecting their fee from the company that will hire you. I was out of work for the better part of a year and had countless run ins with those bottom feeders, but never took the bait. Look around, visit other schools in your area, go back into your field of expertise, sell cars, but don't stop looking on your own. LinkedIn, Indeed, Jobing.com, college websites, etc...all have openings posted. CareerBuilder and Monster can be black holes and you may not hear anything. You need to put in the work, things won't just happen.
19864: yes, everybody has one, but not everybody IS one!
Cutting back on 401K is a really good idea. In normal times, you want as much as you can in there, but these are not normal times. The more you can put into savings, the better. Thanks for sharing and good luck no matter what happens. Stay positive. I was another laid off employee who has found a new job but almost exhausted my savings in the interim, and that was after cashing in my 401K and taking the tax penalty. The hardest part wasn't staying on a strict budget. It's actually empowering to find all the free or very cheap things you can do with your time. The hardest part was not giving up. We all hear about the long-term unemployed, and there are scary stories, but there are opportunities that pop up. You just need to be willing and able to take advantage of them when they do. Take care!
I've not been laid off yet but my family and I have been talking about what we can do to reduce cost. Until the day I am laid off, we are cutting back on all expenses and banking as much as we can. We looked into changing our cell phone plan, reduced our cable options, cut out eating out and started to cook more at home, doing more free family activities, we also cut back on the 401K contributions, and optional insurances.
Yes....asshole.....everybody has one
In case anyone is wondering about how unemployment works if you quit or are fired, this is a good article: http://www.forbes.com/sites/deborahljacobs/2013/09/03/unemployment-insurance-nine-things-that-may-stop-you-from-collecting-benefits/
I was one of the February RIFs and that is good advice. I was in shock and didn't do much for a few months. I'm still unemployed, but I've been working it hard and have had a few interviews at this point. It did really help when I expanded my search to look outside my field. One thing I was really glad of was that I had a good opportunity to reduce my expenses. I was laid off right before my 60 day period to get out of my lease. I downsized to a much smaller apartment (not the best neighborhood, but colorful and sort of fun in its own way). The day I was laid off I put in my apartment notice and canceled my cable, internet and land line, as well as my smart phone contract. I have a cheap "burner" phone that is pay-as-you-go and I don't use it much. I've caught up on my reading and go to the library or a free wi-fi spot to send in my applications. I have food stamps now and my savings are still holding up. It may seem sad, but I actually feel good. I think hiring is picking up since I'm getting more call backs, but it might also be that I'm being more confident and less picky in what I apply for. I feel like I was depressed for awhile but that's over and I feel relaxed and energized and ready to go back to work. For any of you laid off or worried about it, try to stay positive. The most important thing is to be confident and to see getting a new job as your current job. I wish you all the very best!
19767: Thanks, I'm ex-CCi and was a very successful career coach for several years. Unfortunately, I've moved into a different aspect of HR, so I'm not in a hiring position right now. It's a shame, because I worked with some awesome employees at CCi. One thing I forgot in my post below. Find out now how to apply for unemployment and food stamps in your state. It varies, and the rules vary, but you need to be prepared so you don't use the wrong date, etc. Know when and how to apply and do that as soon as you are laid off. Do not leave your job before then unless you have another one, even if the stress seems unbearable. Some states make it almost impossible to get unemployment if you quit. Hope that helped!
Some serious advice: now is the time to think about how you can cut back. You may be laid off tomorrow (seriously, CCi could declare bankruptcy soon) or it might be a month from now. Two things you NEED to be doing. Cut out all unnecessary expenses (do you have both a land line & cell, do you have an expensive cell package, do you really need more than basic cable, buy only what you need and buy cheap and in bulk, etc, etc). Also you need to be sending out resumes EVERY EVENING. Make sure yours has no typos and spend time to tailor your resume and cover letter for each job (yes, tailor your resume for EACH job). Spend TONIGHT making a list of job sites that you will check EVERY EVENING. Higheredjobs, Monster.com, your local paper's online classifieds, etc, etc. Apply for jobs both in and out of your field. Don't reject a job posting because you think you're over or under-qualified. Especially you ladies - studies have shown that women reject job ads unless they meet the qualification entirely, men don't do that. Have confidence! Don't wait! Good luck!