I’ve never had a hard time learning the nuts and bolts of how to perform a new job. Plunk me down with a manual, or show me how to do something once or twice, and I’m usually good to go.

Where I usually struggle is all the soft stuff: how to read the social norms and the hierarchy of the new place I’m in. Even in a small workplace, there are “go to” people. Then there are folks who don’t want to bother with a new person no matter what. There are the gossipers, and there are the rabble rousers. There are proper channels to go through for certain things, whether it’s time off, office supplies, or meeting arrangement.

I don’t make new friends easily either. I can do it, but it’s hard and I usually stumble a fair bit. Working a new job is like that too. I’m aces at getting the job done; it’s all the other extraneous office “stuff” that I have difficulty with. Don’t even get me started about the topic of Office Politics. That’s a subject I just don’t even understand! Why expend all that energy and time? Ugh. I deal with Office Politics by the “Staying Out of It” method. I just try to get along with everyone, even people I don’t especially like on a personal level.

I’m getting to the point at the New Job where I’ve been shown how to do the basics of the actual “work” part of the day. I’ve stumbled a little with the social stuff, but I’m navigating that as best as I can. I have a tough time making mistakes, but owning up to them and putting them behind me seems to be the best way to handle them.

Apparently being an adult and taking responsibility for one’s actions seems to be the right thing to do. Huh! Who woulda thunk it?

It had been 310 days since I had lost my full time, benefitted gig. I’d been on 32 face to face interviews and numerous phone screens. I estimate I’ve answered the “What are your weaknesses” interview question over 50 times.

Finally, it all paid off. I was offered a job on Friday.

The pay is good. The employer is actually thriving in this tight economy. The benefits are amazing. O health insurance, how I have missed thee. (sniffle) I really, really like my prospective boss. I think I’ll be able to learn a lot from her. This job is a departure from my previous career path, which is scary but  exciting. It will point me in the right direction when I go back for a Master’s Degree later this year.

Oh yes, tuition reimbursement… come to Lisa.

It really hasn’t sunk in yet. I got the call on my cell phone on Friday afternoon while at my temp gig. My coworkers were ecstatic. They were clapping in glee and hugging the stuffing outta me. They have seen me schlepping my suit and heels and hose to work so that I could change mid-day to go to interviews. They have listened to me tell job search war stories, laughing politely and occasionally groaning and saying,” Lisa you didn’t really say that, did you?” I think they were as ready for me to move on as I was.

Today is the first Sunday in a year that I haven’t searched the local want ads online.

Today is the first day in a long time that I feel hopeful. It feels good.

Tuesday night we had a little snowstorm that left about 3-4 inches on the ground. I wasn’t able to get the drive cleared before work yesterday morning, so I planned to take care of things as soon as I returned home.

I was rolling though the subdivision at about 5:15pm, and I noticed that almost all the driveways in my ‘hood had been cleared already. I thought to myself, “damn, how did everybody get these done so quickly? didn’t anyone have to go to work today?”

Um, apparently not…the Michigan unemployment numbers came out yesterday, and it’s not pretty: 9.6%

That’s about 1 in 10 people out of work. Those numbers don’t even take into account people like myself, who are working but not at their full capacity. They also don’t count people who have just given up looking for a job at all.

And then, there was news this morning that the Big Three automakers are extending their holiday shutdowns well into January of 2009. My money is on at least one of them not calling back a huge number of workers, probably Chrysler.

Me? I’m just hanging on. I’m trying to remain hopeful about my most recent job lead without obsessively checking my phone and email. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the temp agency could find me something to do after this gig officially ends on January 14. Because, well, the unemployment benefits fund here in Michigan is in the red, too.

It takes a lot of focus and strength to not panic about things here in Michigan. It’s rough here. Ow.

I had an interview at a medium-sized employer last week. The interview started of kinda rocky; I had some “I don’t know’s” as answers to some rather crucial questions. However, since I am the interviewing-est person in all of Michigan, I was able to rally and save the interview.

I was able to save it so well that I was called to give the written A-OK for some background checking. I take this as a good sign, because places in this economic environment won’t spend the 50 buck on a criminal check on someone they aren’t very interested in. And finally, leading a very dull and uneventful life will pay off. My background and credit are clean as a whistle.

I know that they are looking to have someone start in early January, and since the holidays are coming up, I’m assuming a decision will be made pretty quickly.

I am keeping my fingers crossed. Tightly. A job would be the best holiday present I could get.

In my continuing saga of searching for a job, I have secured a rare bird indeed: an interview in the fourth quarter.

It’s on Friday, with a fairly large local employer. I’m qualified for the job, I think. I’m a little rusty on some of the fundamentals, since I’ve been out of my field for about a year. But, I’ve been buckling down and doing a little cramming to bring myself up to speed. I’ve alerted my newly-overhauled references that they may get a call in the near future, and who it may be from. Tomorrow night I’ll press my suit. Friday morning I’ll give myself an internal pep talk.

The pay is not so great, but slightly better than what I am making now. It’s steady work, but there would be little hope of internal advancement.  It’s unionized, so it’s fairly secure. There would be access to health insurance and some tuition reimbursement (hello, Master’s Degree). I could see myself hanging in there for a few years until the economy gets better and I get me some more learnin’.

—-

It’s been interesting to watch how my acceptable criteria for a potential job has declined over the past year. I used to be all: “I want to make more than I did at the nonprofit!” Then, “Well, equal to what I was making or a little less would be OK.” Now, I’m down to “Oh, a 25% pay cut from what I used to be making? That will have to work.” Health insurance is non-negotiable. Tuition reimbursement would be a veritable godsend.

—-

I’ve been struggling about how to answer the perennial interview question: “where do you see yourself in 3-5 years?” I know that employers want someone with some ambition, but not too much. You don’t want to scare a potential boss with the idea you want their job, or that you’ll jump ship as soon as a better opportunity comes along.

I used to have a good grip on where I wanted my career to go. When I first busted out with my business degree, I was full of ideas and goals and gusto. But this year of underemployment has rocked my world. To plaster a smile on my face and say all the things I used to say, about wanting a job with growth potential and opportunity, seems insincere and hollow. I’ve tweaked my answer a bit to reflect my changing attitudes, but it’s tough when all I want to say is: “I just hope I’m still working in 3-5 years.” Because frankly, for the past 3-5 years, it’s been hard even to accomplish that here in Michigan.

Kris Dunn, aka the HR Capitalist, has written a great article entitled: “You Want Fiscal Responsibility? Ask Your Candidates if They Use Coupons from Subway…” In this article, Kris tells the tale of Matt Bonner, a player for the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs. The man makes about three million dollars a year, but drives a 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix. And yes, as the title of the article implies, he uses coupons at Subway. Uses them vehemently, in fact.

Turns out that Matt Bonner is not a really flashy basketball player. He has good fundamentals, works hard, and is a consistently good contributor to the team. Who he is off the court, a practical guy, is certainly reflected on the court.

In my less experienced (aka younger and stupider) days, I didn’t realize that Work Lisa and Personal Lisa were two sides of the same coin. They probably weren’t, really, in my early days of working. Heck, Lisa wasn’t really mostly done cooking till her late 20’s. However, those two sides are now fully entwined, especially with regards to fiscal responsibility.

I used to work for a nonprofit organization. I was responsible, among many other things, for ordering office supplies for the organization. I had asked if there was a budget for such things that had to be adhered to. I was told, “nah, just order what we need.” Hmmm. Okay?

From the get go, I took it upon myself to order only what was absolutely necessary. I cleaned and organized the supply closet. I searched for the best prices on things that we used regularly. I negotiated discounts for items that could be delivered at regular intervals. When there was a huge Bic pen sale for 29 cents a dozen, I stocked up. I urged staff members going to conferences to avail themselves of all the free pens and post-its they could carry home.

One day, I got some flak from someone about the quality of pens I was ordering. I looked the complainer in the eye and said, ” You want a better quality of pen? Bring it from home.”

I felt that every penny that wasn’t going toward things like rulers, notepads, and pens could be spent on something more operationally necessary. I didn’t think this way because I was told to, or because I was given a hard and fast budget to stick to. I thought this way because I was erring on the side of spending a company’s money like it was my own. Ownership equals responsibility.

In this time of economic crisis, one would think that hiring managers would be asking fiscal questions in interviews, even for traditionally non-fiscally-related jobs. I can tell you as someone who has been interviewing for the past year that this isn’t happening, and it should be.

I have joked, on occasion, with my sweetie that I have interviewed at every potential employer in the county and am up to making a second round, for some of the same jobs.

I fear those statements, made in jest, are about to come true.

I applied for a position earlier this year and made it very far into the selection process. I had a Big Interview and my references were checked. However, I didn’t land the job.

I noticed that the position is open again, and now I am in an odd place: how do I graciously ask to be reconsidered? I still think that I’m qualified, and could do the job well. I really liked the team I met, and thought they were a talented bunch.

I don’t want to come off as desperate, or on the flip side, over confident. But I truly would like a second shot  at this particular gig, and I’m not gonna be afraid to ask for it.

Well, once I hone a carefully crafted phone message and cover letter. Let’s not be rash, after all.

Via the AP:

“Michigan’s October unemployment rate surged to 9.3 percent, its highest rate since July 1992 and six-tenths of a percentage point higher than September’s jobless rate of 8.7 percent.”

…and…

“Michigan appears to be on track to have the nation’s highest annual unemployment rate for 2008, a distinction it nabbed in 2006 and 2007. The year-to-date average jobless rate through October was 8.1 percent.”

I’ve gotten a few emails from folks who read this blog and say, “Awwww Lis, it can’t be that bad.”

Numbers don’t lie. It is that bad.

Today, I have a phone interview with a Very Large Local employer. This place employs many folks in the area, and is a cornerstone of the local economy. I’m fairly stoked about the job I’m interviewing for, since it is actually in my field of expertise.

Of course, my anticipation is tempered by the fact that this will be the third time that I’ve interviewed at this particular place. I’ve been up for two other jobs, so this third time will either be a charm, or it’ll be “three strikes and you’re out,” like at another local employer. Yah, I’ve sorta given up on those other folks. I can take a hint, and their business is in the crapper anyway. So, pfffft to them.

As always, I’m keeping my fingers crossed. The coming winter and holidays have me a little stressed out, and I’d like a more permanent place to hang my hat 40 hours a week.

Spoken by one of my peers at my temp gig:

I’ll be damned if I ask one of those cold nasty bitches over there about this.

(with accompanying thumb jab toward the Other Side of the office)

Alrighty then.

I’m thinkin’ that it might be a little late for, um, a team building session?