The Art of Job Hunting

Out in the North American forests, a hunter sips their coffee in a tree stand at 5 a.m. and waits for the perfect prey to stumble into the cross-hairs of their rifle. They waits four hours or maybe even more when they spot it. There, right in front of their sight, is a large eight-point White-Tailed buck gnawing on some grass.

The hunter is stealthy as they grab their rifle, line up the shot, and take it. The buck tries to bound away, but he falls a few yards later, dead as a door nail. The hunter drags the deer from the forest and takes it to a meat processor, and has the choice to get the deer stuffed as a trophy.

You're more than likely wondering what the point of that story was. You see, the deer trophy to that hunter is a work of art. It's something they can mount on the wall or stuff the whole thing and display it, something that they can be proud of and say, "Yes, I shot that. This was my doing." Hunting in general can be seen as an art medium. In that respect, so can job hunting.

I know. It's a strange analogy, but work with me here.

Before a hunter gets a license, they need to determine what kind of prey they want to go after. For all intents and purposes, let's go with deer. A hunter chooses deer. You are the hunter. The deer is a real world job.

After you pick your prey, you have to go through the procedures of obtaining a hunting license and gathering hunting equipment. The hunting equipment symbolizes your workforce skills. The license is any experience or any degree you obtain.

You have your prey, your equipment, and your license. All that's left is the actual act of hunting itself, right? You have to start early, but not too early as you might miss something in the darkness, or a better opportunity down the road. You skulk trough the woods, and you notice a lot of tree stands or hunters muddling around. Remember, you are not the only hunter out there. There could only be one deer that travels through your selected patch of woods. You could all be vying for that one deer. It's best to put yourself out there ahead of time and get your equipment set up, so if that deer comes into your sights you can snag it quickly.

That brings up another point, though. You should make sure your equipment fits you and the prey you're going after. You wouldn't bring a rifle to harpoon a whale, or a harpoon to shoot a deer. Make sure your equipment matches the prey you want, and hone that equipment so you're better qualified to shoot your prey.

You are now that hunter sipping coffee at 5 a.m. while you sit in your tree stand and wait for the perfect job to cross your path. Your eyes scroll the landscape of online job postings, and you polish your resume so you can start shooting at jobs. 

Not every shot is a hit. Sometimes, successful hits aren't rewarded with instant gratification like a job offer (or the death of the deer, if you're keeping up with the analogy).

Sometimes, you have to follow the injury trail and keep after the prey before finally having it in your grasp.

It may take several hours, several days, or in some cases several weeks before you finally have your prey in your grasp. When you get it, though, you'll be just like the hunter who gets their deer mounted: proud, beaming, because for the time being, you have mastered the art of job hunting.

How I Look for a Job: The Prologue

For those who don't know, I am a senior journalism student at Pitt who will be graduating in April. From there, I'm looking to move on to a career in journalism or public relations, hopefully in Las Vegas. Now, I know it's a tough job market out there, especially when students have gone to specialized schools and programs for journalism and public relations that surpass my own education, but I'm not giving up. I've applied for six or seven jobs already, and I've heard back from one: The Wynn. I received a no for a position as a special events coordinator, but they said that I should look at other opportunities available through their brand, which as I type this I am doing.

Either way, I wanted to write a blog post about how I determine what jobs to apply for and which ones not to apply for. It's actually a really easy process for me.

1. I look at the title of the job. I'm a journalism/PR student. I'm not going to apply for a job as a data analyst or a financial consultant. I stick to keywords like "writer," "marketing," "social media," and "relations." Those are usually key indicators of a job my degree will be tailored for.

2. I look at the requirements. If a job needs 3-5 years of experience, I automatically say no (unless it's customer service, because I've been in that industry for five years). 1-2 years I apply, because I have 1-2 years of journalism experience or work in PR.

3. I finally read all of the job duties. Some job posts are tricky. They oversell their open position, or they throw in additional responsibilities/licenses that you shouldn't need. I applied for a special events coordinator job, and I was asked if I'd be willing to get a valid Nevada Gaming License if I got the job. Why? I would be a special events coordinator. I wouldn't be operating any machinery. As it turns out, licensing is a way to weed out the bad eggs in Las Vegas, because it was a mob/mafia hot spot before. It keeps things clean and fair for everyone, so I can't just give special benefits to family and friends. I also was looking for a PR job, and I got a post to be a sales consultant for a gift shop at a casino. They were overselling working at the shop by giving certain activities flair, like selling merchandise. If something doesn't fit or seem right, I'm skeptical and usually just bookmark the job for a later date.

What are your own specifications you go by when searching for a job? Let me know what you do in the comments below. I could always use more strategies!

Sources

I love talking to people and listening to their stories. I also love compiling stories of my own. Sources come in many shapes and sizes, and that's what I've dedicated this entire post to. You might be a journalist student if you encounter these types of sources:

1. The Blabber. This is the type of source who's extremely enthused about the article you're doing, and sometimes ends up telling you their life story instead of focusing on the questions you're asking. Try to polite steer the conversation as best as you can, but don't be rude. Chances are you may need this source again.

2. The Information System. This type of source knows everything about the subject of your article, and isn't afraid to tell you all about it. This source is slightly related to the Blabber in that they tend to talk a lot, but every piece of information could help with your current story and give you ideas for future articles, which is why keeping in contact with this source is a must.

3. The Micro-manager. This is the type of source every journalist tries to avoid dealing with, but sometimes it's just inevitable. This person loves to give you press releases, omit information, backtrack and even tell you what you should and shouldn't put in your story. Keep them as a contact, but only to obtain those precious press releases for a possible story idea or two.

4. The Delayer. This is the type of person who doesn't get back to you in the amount of time you need them to in order to get the information for your story. This person gives you a valuable lesson in keeping multiple stories open, and never assign yourself to just one source. It could spell disaster for you and your publication. This source, however, could make up for it with different sources to interview, so don't cut them to the quick immediately. Keep your options open, but never forget either. Try making appointments with them earlier, too. That helps.

5. The Neglectful Nellie. This is the type of person who never calls you back, never emails you...basically never responds to any communication with you or your publication whatsoever. You would have a better chance at getting a letter from San Francisco to Pittsburgh via the Pony Express than getting information from this contact. Chances are this person is a creature of habit, and they won't talk to you or anyone from your publication because of a bad experience or some other reason. It's better not to heckle them much, because that could hamper any kind of relationship you're trying to build with them. This is why you need multiple sources of multiple types.

I'm sure I'm forgetting a few of the other types of sources out there, but these are just a few I've run into during my time. Have any others you'd like to share? Leave a comment below or share this post and get friends involved! I'm curious to hear your opinion!

Keep Calm

Thanking My Mentors

I don’t have a formal mentor per se. I have several people I do look up to in my profession that have helped me along the way, and I would like to mention them and thank them for what they've done, whether they realize it or not and whether they read this or not.

First of all, I want to thank my senior English teacher. We had our ups and downs, of course, but she really made a impact on me. She was a journalism major herself, and she taught me about the many things I can do with my journalism like public relations and so on. I thought of journalism as this broad thing and I was confused about what I truly wanted to do. She set me straight, and I am where I am today thanks to her guidance.

Next, I want to thank my magazine editor for the experience. I've been with the Johnstown Magazine since May, and the experience I've gained is priceless. I've learned how to edit pages and how magazines run, plus I gained public relations experience as well and continue to do so. She’s been such a help and an inspiration that I feel much more prepared for next year, which is rapidly on its way as we speak.

Finally, I want to thank two of my professors: my journalism professor and my public relations professor. I had no idea what I was doing when it came to journalistic writing and public relations, even social media in general. I have changed as a writer, a journalist, a PR specialist, and even as a human in general. I feel completely prepared for my future career thanks to them, and I couldn't be more thankful.

My Professional "Aha" Moment

I already posted this to my Tumblr, but I felt it should be posted here too, to my professional blog. It explains how I got into the field I did, and the career choices I passed up along the way. Hope you enjoy!

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Rarely does a person enter the career they told their relatives they were going to go into when they were young (i.e. when they were asked what they wanted to be when they grew up). I certainly am no exception. When I was four I told my grandparents I wanted to go into meteorology, and here I am attending university for my last year for my Bachelor of Arts in Journalism.

The switch from meteorology to journalism wasn’t a simple transition. Between then, I had several different occupations in mind for what I wanted to be: a travel writer, an archaeologist, and a psychologist.

The idea for travel writing came after a three-week adventure through Europe when I was 12. I love writing. I’ve been doing it ever since I was 3 and trying to learn how to write in cursive. I kept journals throughout my life and wanted to have stories published and become a writer in general (in addition to the meteorology gig). I had to face the facts, though. Writing doesn’t pay the big bucks unless you were lucky. I severely doubted my luck.

Around the same time, I had aspirations of becoming an archaeologist. I had this fascination with Ancient Egypt as well as World War II. I wanted to go on excavations and find jewelry and other things, maybe some bombshells in Germany, something! I wanted to have my own little museum of treasures in my home, but I found out that you don’t really get to keep the stuff you find (darn that childhood rule of finders keepers). That idea flew out the window, and I began to think about becoming a psychologist.

Psychology was a rash decision itself. I always listened to other people’s problems and offered them advice (which I don’t follow myself even though it works for everyone else). I didn’t think about the amount of schooling it would take to get there, nor did I really know what field of psychology I wanted to go into. Thank God my high school offered journalism, or I wouldn’t be where I am today.

I suppose as a small point I should mention how I went from straight journalism to going for journalism with a public relations. I had to pick a related area, and I figured I could become a publicist for someone. Maybe I would move to London or New York, somewhere, and become Jason Statham’s or Jensen Ackles’ publicist (only in my dreams). I took Public Relations I at my university last year, and realized this was what I wanted to do. I now plan on graduating next year with my degree, and moving out to Vegas soon after.

The key lesson to take from this is not to settle your heart on one profession unless you are absolutely sure this is what you want to do and are dedicated to the chosen field. Do something you’re going to love 10, 20, even 50 years down the road. I’m planning on it, and I couldn’t be more excited.