Job-searching woes

[reppu]

So um, I'm having a hard time with this "finding a job" thing. At this point, I'm 55% sure I'll go back home to America, but that's mainly because I can't think of anything else to do. One of the interesting things about applying to JET right out of college is that I don't have much life experience. I know how to find a summer job, but a real job? What, do you look in the classifieds section of the newspaper? Somehow, Monster.com seems like it would be too easy...

I kinda wonder how all my friends found jobs. Is there like, some magic book you consult? Ask a friend of a friend for something? Seems like that would have worked in better economic times, but these days I figure I'd be hard pressed. For some reason, I think I would kinda enjoy being a secretary. I wanna test my organizational limits and see how much planning I could do before I crack. Or working at a library. That would be a fun venture, organizing books and things.

But what if I stay in Japan? I know people use GaijinPot and OhayoSensei, but they haven't been helpful lately, so I wonder if there's something else? What if I don't want to do ESL teaching? Le gasp, yes, there are foreigners out there who don't want to teach!

I feel like I wanna put a billion options on the table and choose the best one. I jumped at the chance to join JET, and while I don't regret coming back here, I do wish I'd spent a bit more time making contacts back home that I could use now.

So says the worrywart. It doesn't help that I haven't updated my CV since 2004... @__@

Also, today I subsisted until 6pm on a poptart. And half of one at that. This is not unusual for me on the weekends. I'm surprised I'm not dead. I think the only reason I've lost weight in Japan is because my body is eating itself since I don't feed it. Maybe that's why my arms are more flabby? I'd gladly put on weight for more muscle...

Comments

[nekonezumi.livejournal.com]

For what it's worth, I got my first full-time receptionist job through a temp agency. :D You can just go into the temp agency and fill out paperwork and do a typing speed test and stuff, and request "temp-to-hire" status, and if the company you're placed with decides to hire you after the "temp" trial period, you're set, and you'll get the experience you need to apply for some higher-experience-level jobs. *nod* The temp agency does all the work for you in terms of hooking you up with a company that matches your skills and job preferences--they get a cut of your pay while you're temping, but after you're hired, of course, you're paid directly by the company that hires you, and not through your agency.

I know a bunch of people who had really good luck with this sort of thing, and it wasn't just for secretarial jobs, either. ^_~ Just something to consider, anyway.