Entrepreneurship
The Moment I Quit Trying to Convince People to Hire Me
When it comes to our career, sometimes we literally have to take it with our own hands.
February 28th, 2019.
That was my last day of work as a grocery clerk at a national supermarket chain.
What was supposed to be a part-time, winter-season gig while I searched for an actual full-time role as a technical project manager turned into an eighteen-month full-time stint.
Granted, I did learn a lot. Customer experience. Store operations. Inventory control. Data integrity. Knowledge that would benefit me — and the companies— back in the office environment. I was grateful for that.
Hence, at some point, I decided to rely more on re-climbing the corporate ladder again at the market chain since none of the tens of job interviews worked out even though I hired three career coaches to help me.
During the last six months, I started my shifts at 3 AM in my ski jacket, retrieved inventory from a zero degree freezer, stocked the shelves on the floor, tracked more than 150 lines of product, and sent orders before the 7 AM deadline. Everyday. Afterwards, I spent another two hours in the freezer to organize it so that staff can actually walk in it.
At the store, I didn’t even have access to Microsoft Excel, so I had to implement a manual inventory control system that involved rewriting readable barcodes on the boxes, placing items on corresponding labelled shelves, and monitoring stock flow with pen and paper.
My efforts decreased spoilage by a third, freed up freezer stockroom space by half, and increased sales by 34%.
And yet, despite exerting triple the amount of energy of a typical grocery clerk, these results did not impress outside hiring managers.
Why?
The answer I received was because my accomplishment did not reflect my ability to achieve the same thing with more sophisticated technology. It was too outdated and primitive.
That irked me.
Because if I could do that with pen and paper, I knew I could have done so much more if I had permission to a more modern, computerized inventory system.
What about at the market chain?
As it turned out, company policy prevented staff from being promoted appropriately even when the individuals achieved things that were above their pay grade and seniority level. I was still just a grocery clerk.
I had grown restless, especially when I knew my know-how combined with my MBA education had surpassed those of my managers. My plan to re-climb the corporate ladder had backfired.
The next day, I strolled into work with my two-weeks notice.
The Moment I Quit
So for the third time in six years, I was in complete full-time job search mode…again, not that I ever stopped.
At first, I was excited about returning to the job market, armed with retail operations knowledge and my foundational expertise in data. I was looking forward to apply myself as a supply chain analyst.
I attended networking events three times nearly every week. I applied online. I sought out government resources.
My resume scored me interviews with an international dairy company, a major seafood distributor, even an global Fortune 100, among others.
Everyone told me I was doing everything I was supposed to do.
And still nothing.
To say I had become exhausted from the job search process was an understatement. My depression worsen as I became more desperate and resentful.
Finally, I woke up one morning, extremely pissed off.
At that instance, I had acknowledged the one advice I had not for years.
I had to take my career into my own hands and exclaimed, “If no one is going to give me a job, I have to give myself a job.”
That was the moment I quit the job search process. That was the moment I quit trying to convince others to hire me.
Next thing I knew, like a higher power descended on me, I felt completely free.
No more limitations. No more desperation. No more exhaustion.
I was now on a mission: to make it on my own.
That’s how Sunbreak Resumes started.
In the nine months I began my resume coaching business from October 2019, my teachings and revisions have served more than 30 clients nationwide, including a part-time photographer who got promoted to general manager, an executive who proved so much value on her new resume that she got herself off the furlough list, and a technical program manager who got hired by Amazon, all during the pandemic.
The Message
In all aspects of life, there is one principle we know but find hard to accept.
When it comes to people and relationships, we have no control over what other parties do. All we have control over is what we, as individuals, do.
We cannot stop a company from rescinding a position. We cannot prevent a department from conducting a courtesy interview because it is policy. We cannot force the hiring manager to hire us.
All we can do is put our best foot forward on our resumes and interviews.
Yet, particularly during this troubling pandemic, even that may not be enough.
Companies are laying off or furloughing like crazy. Many are on a hiring freeze. Another devastating amount do not even know if they can stay open.
So what are we, the job candidates, to do?
Well, perhaps the answer lies within each of us. Perhaps it is time to give ourselves a job.
Many of you might be thinking, “But I need insurance and benefit. I need something stable. I don’t have capital to start my own thing.”
Well, let me ask you this: would you crunch out those applications nonstop without income until that offer arrives? Or would you rather start a side gig out of your own house to get some money in and keep yourself sane?
Plus, do not forget that Airbnb, Groupon, and Uber all broke ground during the recession of 2008.
Two Maryland sisters who were furloughed when the government shut down in 2018/2019 started baking and selling cheesecakes to pay their bills. The Furlough Cheesecake is now a thriving, nationally celebrated, million-dollar business.
A group of Californian university students fixed a food supply chain issue crippled by COVID-19 and founded Farmlink. It has delivered over five million pounds of food to food banks allover the country as of July 2020.
And don’t forget the thousands of kid entrepreneurs who show up on Shark Tank to win big-time deals.
Insurance is the farthest thing from their minds.
Thus, you never know. That side gig might just be the thing that will end your search forever.
As for me, a few of my friends have asked me if I can sustain this type of work long-term since I do come from a technical background.
Honestly, I don’t know.
What I do know is this: 1) I write awesome resumes that get people interviews, and 2) I am mainly doing this work for my psychological health.
Through Sunbreak Resumes, I have regained confidence, self-worth, and purpose. It’s a great feeling.
So are you ready to give yourself a job? Comment below.
If you would like to receive more tips on how to improve your resume, you can get them at www.sunbreakresumes.com or you can follow me on my LinkedIn business page. Thank you.
