Unemployed and Exacerbated

[Maria Ventresca]

Hi, I'm 19 and have somewhat recently dropped out of college due to not being able to handle it with my condition. It's only now that I've been diagnosed and am taking steps to getting the help I need. I've been living with my parents who have been very supportive, and have been looking for a job to take steps to better integrate with society. I've been applying via online applications, and I'm just very frustrated, I've applied to so many places and have gotten so few call backs and even fewer interviews, and I just want to get out there and be productive and get better. Any advice for finding jobs or dealing with the frustration?

 

[zurb]

Just don't give up is all I can offer.
Ask around friends, neighbours. If you can manage it, do door to door. The human touch works, and personal contacts are more important in western culture than we often give credit. More companies are requiring online applications, but sometimes its just to fulfill the requirements of the hiring process. They may have already chosen - maybe by family contacts.

Each time I've been unemployed, its taken about six months to find a job.

 

[Slothra]

This is pretty much how I felt for a long, long time. I find that taking that desire to be productive & progress in society, and redirecting all that energy to finding ways to deal with any emotional/social problems you have, has helped me in my job search. I feel a lot more confident dealing with the process of application, now, which helps my chances. I had a job at Target for some time because of this.

 

[AsheSkyler]

It is next to impossible to get randomly hired unless you hit it lucky. Your best bet is asking around friends and family if they know somebody at a job who's hiring. Back in the spring, I put in at 30 places online, and two in person at the only places that had enough sense to still do paper applications. One of the paper applications called me in for an interview, only one of the online applications sent me a rejection email. Never heard from any of the others.

Got any exploitable tricks you could take advantage of in the mean time? Selling on Etsy or eBay, or something?

 

[wyverary]

I feel your pain. I've tried college several times, all with disastrous results. Somehow, through some miracle, I managed to land the part-time job I have which I have held for two and a half years, with the help of SSI disability. Finding a job is more a game of luck than anything. You just have to keep putting in applications. I don't know where you're from, but is there a way you can qualify for assistance from a job readiness center? I've been going through one and they have proven extremely helpful trying to get me back into school (if only said school would stop being a butthead) and I've also been taking classes on how to fill out applications and practicing interviewing skills. You just have to keep trying, keep trying, keep trying. Today's economy, that's all you can do; it's rough. But I think you can do it if you have the patience for it. Best of luck!

wyv