How I Beat the Interview Blues // A Little Secret (Secret Clinical Strength Stress Response)

So I've been introduced to this site called Influenster.  It's pretty cool & I seriously need to devote more time to it!  The break down is this: you post about what you know, give reviews, unlock badges, & apply for these things called Vox Boxes.  Every so often Influenster will offer you a chance to be a recipient of a Vox Box.  You fill out a survey to be considered for selection.  And I got picked!  You can see my little intro video here. This is the first part of a few little reviews on the products I was sent.  This box couldn't have been more perfect for me!  So, onto the post:

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I've been talking a little bit lately about my quest to find a full time job.  Most notedly, my post on Tuesday of reasons why you should hire someone with a creative degree in to your company.  I must admit, I'm a little bit rusty on the interview process.  What is your greatest weakness? I mean come on!  How fair of a question is that!?!?! Another one I don't care for is What are your salary requirements? I also don't like when that question is followed by just so we can make sure we're on the same page.  Well, tell me what page you're on so I can at least know if I'm walking into a trap!

After applying & applying (and applying, applying, applying) I've finally gotten a few calls back.  Only to be confronted with the daunting idea of an interview.  What is my greatest weakness? What are my salary requirements? It's best not to go unprepared - mentally & physically - into an interview.  When I got these calls the butterflies immediately hit me & the stress kicked in.  Here's how I try to beat the interview blues:

Know what they mean when they ask you those questions - I'm serious.  If you haven't already done so do a quick search of interview questions & etiquette.  Figure out what they are really trying to glean from your answer when they want to know your greatest weakness.  You'll have a better idea of what they may ask & a better idea of what you might say.  Of course, go into the interview as yourself, but doing this research will help you better communicate your best self.  Communication is always a plus.

Get a good night's sleep & start the morning off right - Usually I like to see if I can schedule mid-morning interviews.  I like to get up & get them over with!  Going to bed at a decent hour & waking up with enough time is always a stress reliever.  If you can't follow my lead, then just make sure you're rested.  Don't rush around trying to get to your interview.  It will only make the nerves worse!  I like to wake up, unwind, get a few things done, get ready, & go.  Fitting it into my natural routine makes it seem less like a daunting task.

Don't Sweat it - It's inevitable that you'll worry about this interview.  It's inevitable that you'll be nervous.  Those tips up there knock off half the battle but the other half is going in there confident.  I can't think of a better way to feel confident that when I know I look & smell good.  Nervousness = sweat and that can give you away.  Here's my Secret: Secret Clinical Strength.  After getting this little box to try out & being totally skeptical of it's stress response ability, I thought I'd give it a shot.  Deodorant is deodorant right? Well the serene citrus scent I had made me feel fresh, calmed me down, & made me feel ready to walk into any interview.  The scent isn't overpowering - no one can sniff you a mile away - & it keeps you fresh in these tough interview times.

Here's some more longwinded & sorta sappy advice for the road:

When it comes down to it whether you get the job or you don't get the job, the hardest part is knowing you are enough.  Yes, we need financial stability. Yes, we need to feel successful  Yes, we need to provide.  But in this time where interviews are few & far between, where you never see a face & only submit a resume, where it seems as if it's a dangerous game of chance, you are enough.  Count your blessings, think of what you have, consider how you've gotten where you are.  Seriously, at the end of it all...when I don't hear back, when I apply but never get a call, when I know my resume is being parsed by some company generated software I think of all the accomplishments in my life.  I think of all the laughs I've had, all the times I've made others laugh.  All the smiles, all the moments of happiness, & I know that I am enough.  The stress is knowing whether or not your interviewer can see what you bring to the table.  So be confident in yourself, know you are enough!

xoxo, Moe

ps.  Here are some great articles on stress relief sponsored by Secret.

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4 Reasons Why You Should Hire Someone with an Art Degree

So, yesterday I was anxiously waiting for a call.  A call for a job.  I've been looking for full time work since we moved & had the opportunity to interview for a fun, fast paced company last week.  Through the interview, the interviewer stated he was looking for a creative person to bring onto their team.  This got me thinking: Why should you hire someone who is creative? Why hire someone with an art degree in to a job that has nothing to do with art?  Well, this made me examine my qualifications & how my degree had affected my place in, well, the workplace.  Here are 4 reasons why you should hire someone with an art degree:

We are creative thinkers by nature - We don't see things as they are & can often approach a problem in a different way than others.  Some may say a fresh approach.  And as individual artists we see things a lot differently.  Some see things in parts, some see parts as a whole, others see how a whole can affect something else.  We never see things as they are.

We learned a lot in school - We took history classes related to all sorts of history.  And we were required to take it seriously.  I believe the broad range of classes involved in studying art help us see how parts affect the whole, how the past affects the future, & how things are similar or relate to each other.  This training in the evolution of art helps us to see how we can grow, what needs to be done to reach a goal, & helps us reflect on the past.  Overall, this training makes us great thinkers & reflectors: we know how we did what we did & why.

We can plan - Whether you're taking on a painting, illustration, sculpture, or logo you have to plan spatially & plan out ideas.  We're wonderful composers of ideas.  Again, we can bring parts together into a whole.

We're familiar with criticism & how it effects us and the end product - In art school, criticisms from teachers & fellow students are normal.  Because we identify strongly with our work we can take it to heart but we can also turn it around & execute something better.  We bring a drive to grow & to succeed to the workforce.  We also know how to give criticism.  We use words like less successful rather than this is bad because we know the value others have put into their work.  We use words that encourage rather than belittle.  That might make us good management material *wink*

I consider studying art to be one of the best decisions I ever made.  I believe I am well equipped to learn any new task, to approach things with a creative solution, to work well on a team, & to see all sides.  I wouldn't trade what I'd studied for anything.  I think I'm very lucky to have been able to make that decision.

xoxo, Moe

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Things I Miss About College

Yes, I am glad to be out but sometimes I reminisce & really miss it!  I loooooved my major, loved my friends, & had a grand old time.  Taking my Indiana Drivers License test on Tuesday not only set me back about 10 years when I first took the test (have to admit, I needed a review booklet from the lady at the counter!) but also made me realize how stinking glad I am not to take any more tests.  College was so fun for me not just because of the regular old college experience but also because I did actually learn a lot - both academically & about myself.

Here are the things I miss:

++ Old room mates & friends who came to visit.  Dharma Initiative parties. Dr. Mario competitions.  Duck Hunt.  LOST & family time.

++ the apartment I lived in Senior & (oh yeah) Super Senior year.  Both of them were awesome.  In the two bedroom one, my room was huge! Super Senior year, our 4 bedroom one had the honor of displaying a Rock the Block sign secretly dropped in front of our door by a secret society on campus.  My room there also over looked main street, was close to the bar & campus and was filled with some cool peeps.  (Check out my old roomie's Society6 shop if you don't believe me).  I also got to live above some shops......secret dream of mine.

++ That time the italian waiter sang to me & then kissed me in Florence.  Don't ever eat Linguini of the Sea if you haven't eaten it before.  You'll regret it & then won't eat for a day.

++BFFLs who are now getting or who have already gotten married! What?? I swear every year of college was a different experience for me.  It wasn't ever the same.  This chick in this picture was the first friend I ever made....now I'm going to be a bridesmaid in her wedding!

++That time a boy broke up with me & I fell apart.  Then I cut my hair & became awesome.  

++ this is still my favorite picture.

++Back when the campus activities board was coooool.....and not lame.  And I made the fliers for concerts, events, etc & practically lived in the student union.  And on Halloween a pretty rad professor, Dr. Jordan, would tell the campus ghost stories & I'd be creeped out.

++That time someone called my room mates & I 'not funny' at the aforementioned Halloween Ghost story telling my last year there.

++When there wasn't a Moe's Burritos under my apartment and you had to get nachos & tacos from the pizza place in the student union.   Also when there wasn't an Einstein Brother's Bagels & only the coffee shop in the Library.  For the life of me, I can't remember what was in Einstein's place in the Student Union.

++ Working until all hours of the night then coming in super early to the art building.  Double checking the class schedule so you could work in piece & not with the babies (those that weren't aren't majors or were Freshman).

++That time I cut half my finger off while working on my book binding final.  All I could think was 'don't bleed on the book!' I'm sure if there is ever a mishap, your first thought is 'don't bleed on the final!'

++ Realizing that a bad day in the art building is still better than a bad day in the real world.  I'd rather be miserable there than be some other major.

++ That time we brought my favorite band Liam & Me to school. I stood in the front row singing all their songs.  I'm not ashamed.

++ I am also very thankful, surprisingly, that I didn't have a boyfriend in college.....not for lack of trying!  It was a great way to learn about myself & grow without  having to worry about someone else. Just me.  I should have taken more advantage of it.  You know, the whole knowing what I know now.

++ The hope & belief that there truly was a job waiting for you after college.  That all the things you're doing are worth it.  And that after graduation you'd be successful & not working at someplace like Subway.  I really miss that hope.

All of this is sort of leading up to that last one.  I've been looking for jobs lately & I am stuck.  Literally I don't know what more to do.  I've formated my resume in a creative yet professional way to stand out from others.  I've used action words to describe my experiences, taken responsibility for my achievements, & (I think) all around represented myself well.  But I don't know what more to do to get noticed.  I did all the things right.  I took the jobs you take in college to prepare your for the real world. I took the fresh out of college jobs where you work hard for little pay & recognition until it pays off in experience.  I worked a wonderful job where I was able to learn so much, manage an office, create front desk procedures, use my creative degree, etc.  This job paid off in money & in experience......but apparently it means nothing that I managed an office, managed 4 calendars, booked student appointments, organized & maintained student files, recruited & enrolled students, designed a front desk procedure to train others, designed a cohesive look for their school catalog, brochure, etc, ordered supplies, made copies, & attempted to kept everyone's head on straight.  I took a receptionist position and turned it into an office management position.  But apparently this doesn't mean anything.

What do I do? How do I stand out? What do I say? What more do I include?  How do I get employers to consider me?  

I guess, for one of the first times in my life, I'm facing the fact that there isn't a right path. I've always been able to find work....any work.  But I'm too old to be working a job....I need to start thinking of a career.  But all I want to be is an artist.  I need some sort of employment that pays for me to do that until I'm on my feet.  Something in the Office Management field because it's fun, I can see myself doing it for a while, I like office stuff, & it's a break from being creative.  Why would I want to be demanded to be creative by someone else all day?  Being creative is something dear to me....I don't want anyone else controlling what I do.  But, why can't I find a simple office management job?  No one needs their phones answered? No one?

In college there is always a formula.  Hell, you can even calculate the items you can miss before you fail a test or even fail a class.  How many times have you heard others saying 'if I just get an 85% I'll pass the class' or the like? Heck I went through & calculated which questions I'd thought I'd missed on the Driver's Test so I could figure out if I needed to guess any other answers better.  I even used context clues to figure out the answer to one question based on the other questions on the test.

In real life there's no context clues.  You just gotta do stuff.  And it's this stuff that I don't know how to do.  I honestly, truly have no idea what more I can do to be hirable.  I've thought well 'what if I go back to school?' Then I'll graduate again, with even more debt, & still no job....oh, & there are tests aren't there.  Wonderful, right?

So, I don't know what to do.  I really, really don't.

Oh, and I changed my blog design...again.  I'm so indecisive!  I can't find anything that just says me.

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Sum Up Sundays: Job Hunting

This week has been a huge & busy week for me.

Things that needed to be mailed haven't been mailed 

(much apologies)

But I have been applying for jobs (& jobs, & jobs, & jobs)

hoping that I can find one & move to a place 

that has never felt more like home.

source

So that's been my week.

I've squeezed in making where ever I could

& I've applied for probably 15+ jobs.

being a big kid kinda stinks!

Oh, I've also kept up with 30 Days of Lists but no pictures still...gahhh!!

PS. Don't forget to check out the link parties in the Side Bar or click here!