I am on the job hunt. No, I am not down on my luck. No, I am not waiting to snatch up the first thing that comes along to start putting the cash back in my wallet. I am looking for the right opportunity to come along.
Come September I will be married to a wonderful lady who is killing it in her career in Washington, D.C. Naturally that means I am packing my bags and joining her in the political landscape that is our nation’s capital. A beautiful city that is full of life, history and traffic (who planned the streets in this town?!), D.C. is filled to the brim with dreams of changing the world. That means I’m not alone here. Trust me, I’m going to change the world. Being in D.C. you just have to compete with a few more people for that opportunity.
I transitioned out of my previous job nearly a month ago. Being a young, resilient and overall adaptable guy, fresh with a college education and a few years of experience under his belt, you might think it would have been an easy task to jump in to the world of the hunt and find something greater! Eh…
From the moment I left my job, the fear set in. It’s difficult jumping from a world of complete certainty in a town that you love into the tedious duty of finding a job in a big ol’ city with a cost of living that looks like it is trying to show off how tall it can get. It’s like a kid at the doctor’s office standing on his tip toes and stretching his neck to prove he is actually taller than all his friends. The first thing I had to do was sit down, breathe and think the entire situation through.
The first thing I decided was that I was not unemployed. I just became my own boss. “That’s awesome, Roman!” you might say. Nay, nay. I am a jerk. I make myself work ridiculous hours and I give myself impossible deadlines. I put immense amounts of pressure on myself, and become very frustrated when I can’t meet my own exceedingly high expectations. The main perk is that boss Roman, very much like myself, loves food and is sparing when it comes lunch time.
“At the center of your being you have the answer: you know who you are and you know what you want.”
I set out on re-branding myself. This included my web portfolio, resume, physical portfolio, social media presence and even the way I spoke to people. I had to reevaluate who I was as a designer and as an employee. I wanted to effectively establish my professional identity, and I set out on the most effective way of presenting that to people who did not know me. That simple task took longer than expected, but it has been one of the most rewarding things I have done in a long time.
Then I moved on to letting people know who I was. I began, not by applying for jobs and talking to people, but by reading other peoples blogs and articles to learn from the experiences of others. The job search is not the newest craze. There are people, far more experienced myself, who have recorded their job hunt experiences for the benefit of others. I enlisted their help, and I am glad I did.
Once I began applying for jobs, I was so incredibly hopeful. But with the job market being over saturated with recent graduates and other employees who have been laid off, it’s easy to become discouraged with the vast array of competition. I know, I know. I have only been at this for a month. It’s tough though. I have learned a lot in this month, and I know that I still have a lot more to figure out. For now I am loving the ride, and I am excited to see where it will take me!