Getting a Job

Getting a Job

If you ask me, its too darn hard to get a job.  We've gone from eyeball to eyeball applications, to online resumes, phone interviews, and computer screening.  Does anybody really know if this leads to better decisions?  Or are we creating barriers to otherwise qualified people?

I don't know if I could get hired in today's world.  Luckily I am on the retirement side of the equation.  I have no resume. I was too busy doing things to write down what I had done. Maybe that's why there are twins.  One person does things and the other keeps the records.  Unfortunately, my memory isn't good enough to recall in detail all those things I might have done that would impress a prospective employer. But I must have done something.  Along the way I graduated from college and medical school and raised a family.

But if someone asked me what I did, I would say I got up and went to work.   I could get some help.  A young dynamic 20 something business school graduate from Stanford offered to help me put a resume together.  I guess they are taught this skill early now.

I feel sorry for young people. What if you interview poorly? What if you are in need of a second chance due to youthful indiscretions or other personal issues? Can a computer deal with this? How does a resume show that you are likely to be more loyal and appreciative of your job because you now truly recognize the value of the job?

I am told by business friends that they have trouble finding "qualified" people, as if their jobs are terribly difficult. Yet I look around and see what these employees do, and I do not find many jobs that can't be learned by a reasonably articulate person who is willing to work.  The job hunting process more closely resembles rush at college, than a true screen of abilities.

Sure your past history is important. But I think it's best to consider the resume as a supplement to personal interaction than vice versa.

Introduction

For some reason, I like to stir the pot. Who knows why.  Maybe it keeps the boredom away.  Maybe I like to find out what other people think, or how they react.  I am a scientist in my own way. Poke it with a stick and see what happens.  I've always been like that.  In high school I used to argue issues with my friend for the fun of it.  He was a bright guy (Stanford eventually, then Harvard). He could generally back me into a corner.  It didn't matter, because I enjoyed the  banter, and I learned things. Saw the issues in a different light.

I'm still like that.  It can drive you crazy. You say this, but I ask what about that and that?  Most people like to keep their beliefs.  Maybe they feel secure that way.  Why be challenged?  A common reaction is to laugh me off, because they know I am a pot stirrer.  Some will get angry, because they are very serious about their convictions. 

Sometimes if you engage me, we both will see something in a different light.  Who knows, we may even reach a compromise, or at least give each space to accept different points of view.  We can certainly finally arrive at the roadblocks.  Sometimes their is no agreement.  I find the journey fascinating not so much for the outcome, but for what I learn about humanity along the way. 

In this blog I will take a stance, and hopefully receive some comments to begin a dialogue.  Name calling will not be an adequate response ( although I will learn something about you). My favorite quote is attributed the the Kennedy's or Shaw:  "Some people see the world as it is and ask why? I dream of things that never were and ask why not?"  Try to be unconventional.  Look at it this way.