Pkchukiss - Reality Wine

Finding a job is tough. That I know. But finding a temporary or part-time job that you are able to hold for only a maximum of 3 months while trying not to let your contact details fall into the hands of multi-level marketing or single level marketing companies, not to mention trying to do this with a bare-bones GCE “A” level certificate, and your chance drops from significantly hard to significantly impossible.

Up till this point, I have been calling up the advertisers in the classified advertisements almost everyday, and do land interviews, but curious enough, there is always somebody who manages to land an earlier interview time, and gets chosen, even before I leave my house. For your consideration, I usually call around 8am, when most fixed line phones advertised usually go unanswered, so I am quite sure that being an early caller helps, but it gets annoying when the interviewer calls to cancel later in the morning after all the meetings have been lined up, and I suddenly find myself with enough free time to have trouble killing it, yet insufficient to go home.

(I always end up in the arcade shops, but don’t spend during these times. It sounds ridiculous to be spending money while seeking to earn some, so I just watched the other patrons play.)

Then there are those mysterious advertisements that promise high-earnings, and a “passive income”. I came off the phone from them extremely disatisfied. The person on the other side of the line refused to state explicitly whether they were SLM/MLM when I asked them so, yet insisted that I go down to visit the company for myself. Discounting that interviews are the norm for all jobs, their responses were highly suspicious: MLM companies try not to reveal that fact over the phone, but instead persuade people to go down to the company, so that the salesperson may apply their deceptive techniques to get the victim to join in.

When they called me back a few more times, I refused to answer my phone. Thank goodness for caller-identification! Which interviewer would persist in calling potential candidates who have not even gone through an interview, if they were not either desperate, or MLM?

I got quite annoyed, so herein lies tips and tricks to look for a temporary job without getting accosted by MLM companies.

The Call: It is easy for them to get your phone number, unless you have subscribed to line non-identification. You could either buy a pre-paid mobile card, or use the services of a call-back operator (if your incoming calls are free). These operators work by first calling your phone, and then calling your target number, and linking both of you up. When you use the service, the person receiving your call will only see the number of the calling system. Now MLM marketers can no longer do their follow-ups.

For cell phones, call around 8am, fixed line phones from 8.30 - 9am onwards. If you call around 10am, you are on your own.

Taking down details: It is tough enough to land an interview, but you usually need to know some vital details about the job, since the advertisements in the newspapers usually do not mention the nature of the job, and the commitment required. Having a pen and paper with you while you make the call not only makes it easy for you to write things down, it also impresses upon the callee your enthusiasm and readiness by taking down notes. Find out:

• The callee’s name and contact number. You would want to call her if you lose your way when travelling to the interview location.
• The name of the company. You will need to look up details on the company prior to the interview, so that you can impress the interviewer with knowledge of what he already knows.
• The address. Even if you know how to get there, don’t mention this to the callee. It gives you a convenient excuse in the event that you somehow get held up somewhere, and was not able to turn up for your interview on time.
• The nature of the job: Details about what you would be expected to do, and the commitments required. This helps avoid wasting both of your time if you know that you cannot cope with a 7-day work week. It also gives the impression that you are curious and excited about the opportunity.
• Dress code: You don’t want to be over-dressed or under-dressed. It is less deadly to be over-dressed, but if you are wearing t-shirts and jeans to an interview for office work, you are bound to look indifferent. Wearing will immediately blend you into the working environment right away, making you look even more suitable for the job.
• The time. Obvious enough.
• Do not discuss about the potential salary. It puts you in the league as other job seekers as predictable and shallow. You don’t want to look as if you are looking for a job for the money (even though you really are).

Your File: Using a file to hold all your important certificates, resumes and testimonials will keep it in its crisp and mint condition (you did keep it that way, did you?), and impress upon the interviewer that you are neat and keep your things tidy. (It won’t matter to mess your desk up after you get the job; you have already been hired!)

I know that taking advice from somebody who hasn’t landed a job himself sounds weird, but you have got to admit: these tips do make sense, and you really need all the edge you can get, given that I am also in the game!

[tags]job hunting, job interviews, part-time jobs[/tags]

Filed under: Tips and Tricks