Stop "Helping" Me with Job Hunting

[Greenday]

I appreciate people trying to help me and all, but it's really tiring. Look, I just spent a year working seven days a week, 12 hours a day. That's more than double the regular job works. I'm just tired. I graduated college, then went off and worked my ass off while everyone my age was still out having fun. Yea, I took a whole month vacation on the other side of the world. No, that isn't enough time. I'm not lacking money. The money I saved isn't going to get spent that fast. Yea, I'm going to blow all my tax return money on a new car, but not counting that money, the car is only going to cost me around $2,000 extra. That still leaves me with a fair chunk of change that will take me a long time to spend.

My aunt has been trying to "help" me find jobs. She'll go on usajobs and anything that involves the word "scientist" is forwarded to me. My mom doesn't understand why I won't apply to those jobs. It's because I'm not a biologist. I'm not a physicist. I'm not a software engineer and I don't do computer science. Hell, one of the jobs she sent me was the job I just worked. I don't want to go back to Afghanistan any time soon. If I wanted to stay so badly, I wouldn't have quit. Just because I'm a scientist doesn't mean that I can do any kind of science job. I'm a chemist, specifically forensics.

My mom will look over my shoulder while I'm checking the random forensics websites and give me crap for not applying for every single posting. Sorry, 99% of these jobs lately have been for supervisors. I'm 24 years old and I barely have two years worth of experience. That does not qualify me for a supervisor position. I'd never work for a 24 year old in my field. No 24 year old has enough experience to be running a lab properly.

Another aunt just called me today. She was talking to a friend who works for a government contractor that is based locally. She told her friend that I was looking for a job and her friend said to give her my resume. That's great and all, but my aunt can't even tell me the name of the company or what kind of contracting they do. How does it make sense to apply for a job with a company I don't know who they are or what they do at all? My mom said it'd be good for something in the mean time. I don't even know what "it" is. What if it's construction? What if it's software engineering? I can't apply for stuff if I don't know what I'm even applying for!

[DrFaroohk]

I finally got people to quit doing that to me.

I didn't mind so much when it was a job I might actually be interested in and be able to do.

But I get like an aunt or something going "Hey I see that the bank is hiring a new Loan Manager."

Yes, that's exactly right up my alley! Except for the education and experience part of it. Good idea. High school diploma and 5 years at a c-store. I'm totally qualified!!!

[AdminAssistant]

Errrgggg.

Yeah. Fiance and I are moving. He's actually already moved; he got a job doing tech support at a small company. Not moving together has pretty well effed up our finances, but, had to take the job. My plan has been to maybe work part-time, but focus primarily on writing my dissertation, so that I can go out a get a 'real' job. This does not compute with people, apparently. There's a horrible community theatre down there, and the director finally quit. (Good, she was awful.) I had FIVE people contact me within a span of 48 hours. A) I'm not really well qualified to work in arts administration. B) I would rather teach high school drama than work at a community theatre. and C) I don't want a full time job! I want to finish school, so that I can go and get a 'real' job!!

[fireheart17]

C) I don't want a full time job! I want to finish school, so that I can go and get a 'real' job!!

According to some of the comments down here whenever the word "teachers" is mentioned in the media, teaching doesn't seem to be a real job either...

(teaching student here)

[bara]

Your aunts sound like they work for the search filters at a few of the online sites I used to be signed up for.

Keep spamming you with jobs you:
A. Arent qualified for.
B. Arent even in the same field you work.
C. Have applied for already 6 times and not once received a phone call.
D. Wouldnt take unless they offered a million a year upfront with no take backs.

[Rageaholic]

I've often had it where I would be bugged to fill out one specific application. I'd fill out five others, but would still be bugged to apply to that specific place. It's annoying because there really isn't anything special about it. In fact, I'd probably be better off not working their, but it's being treated as if it's better than all the other options.

Meh, it's all a crapshoot anyway.

[KellyHabersham]

One of the guys whom I used to chat with online was kind of bad about doing stuff like that - one example being that he worked for a cable company at the time, an position in the office he was based at opened up (it was a secretary-type job), and he was REALLY encouraging of me to apply for it.

Problem was, the said office was on the other side of town, and it was not possible to get there by bus. (at least, not from my particular area) The guy meant well, but he kept forgetting that I had to factor in transportation when it came to where I applied.

[tropicsgoddess]

I understand the intention behind it is good and all, but to continuously do that and more so that the stuff they send you is well out of your league is ridiculous and you have every right to be annoyed about it. Have you told them to kindly back off yet?

[Greenday]

Have you told them to kindly back off yet?

Yea, I've told them. Then they act all shocked and offended.

[draco664]

Yea, I've told them. Then they act all shocked and offended.

Ah. The old I'm-only-trying-to-help-you're-being-ungrateful offence. It sucks when family go down that route.

It's worse when combined with a wilful ignorance over what kind of job you are looking/qualified for. My sister has been guilty of offering my services to her friends looking for help with 'computers' because that's what I do, isn't it? (No, as a matter of fact, I don't do mainframe application development, despite it being done 'on computers')

Unfortunately, unless your relatives are willing to be educated on the details of both what you want and what you are qualified for, you're going to have ongoing problems until you land a job. If they stop pestering you with jobs you can't apply for, you'll get a sullen he-didn't-want-my-help-he-obviously-doesn't-want-a-job mood that's almost as bad.

In either event, good luck with the job hunting. May you land a job that both challenges and satisfies.

[Greenday]

I'm a forensic chemist. They all know that. I'm not sure what's so hard about figuring out what I can and can't do. It's pretty obvious I can't do physics and I can't do most biology jobs or it should be obvious.

[Dreamstalker]

You could be running into what happened with my old job coach; they have no idea what your field actually is, so they steer you to any jobs that they think are even remotely related (my field is computer forensics and fixing stuff, due to my 'disability' I got steered toward clerical work as she didn't think I was capable of much more--talk about a motivation-killer).

I've been pointed to usajobs a couple times, and dislike the site. It used to be navigable, then they did some update and now the filter I was using doesn't work properly and the application process is stupidly convoluted (even some government types I talked to on my job hunt don't like it).

[Greenday]

I've been pointed to usajobs a couple times, and dislike the site. It used to be navigable, then they did some update and now the filter I was using doesn't work properly and the application process is stupidly convoluted (even some government types I talked to on my job hunt don't like it).

It's one of the main sites I use and it works pretty well for me. But most of the jobs are either supervisor level or some crazy research stuff.

[Dreamstalker]

They might have reworked it since I last logged on, but right after they changed things over it was a mess. Most of what I'm finding there is either way above my skill level or clerical-type stuff.

While I am a fast learner there's no real way with online applications to say "I can learn this this and this, here's what I need" (some employers don't want to bother with anyone who they think needs any training).

[NateSean]

Adding to the discussion: One thing that was prevalent when I was down on my luck and pounding pavement is that people who pointed me in one direction or another believed that "I would get the job anyway" if there was something I wasn't qualified for.

The main qualification, of course, would be driving. Since I can't drive there is no point in even applying for a job where driving is required as they would certainly hire someone who can drive over hiring someone who can't.

This is all pretty straight forward logic of course, but if I didn't follow up on the lead I was just "being negative".