As 2010 winds to a close, I reflect on yet another year spent in non-employment. It’s been strange to say the least.
The year started with me working at a small financial services company in which I was made to wear a tie. I did a super-last-minute project with a large ad agency making more per hour than I have ever done, and I worked a part-time job for a famous illustrator, and another over the summer which kept me exhausted and somewhat rich, but led no where. I had interns working with me, trying to get some self-initiated projects off the ground, and later took on a number of projects myself, some of which are still underway.
Also, the same slog with job apps and interviews.
Here’s a look at the numbers.
Jobs applied to: 185
Interviews landed: 9 (including the one already scheduled for January 2011)
“Converted” interviews that led to a period of work: 2
Number of interviews attended from personal contacts or close recommendations, which unfortunately led to nothing: 2
Full-time jobs offered: 0
Number of times laid off: 2
Number of on-site gigs that went nowhere: 8 (including the previous 2)
Number of on-site gigs arranged by placement/recruiting firms: 1
Number of full-time interviews arranged by placement/recruiting firms: 0
Conferences Attended: 3
The thing to highlight in 2010 is the number of times I’ve been laid off. On two separate occasions I was in a role that was freelance-to-perm, but after a few months it led to nothing. On the first occasion, the entire company folded, and I was actually one of the middle people to be let go. It was a lame job anyway, but I would have gladly collected a paycheck as an in-house designer there. The second hurt a little more because it was a large company with a constant workflow. This too was a freelance-to-perm job but only started as part-time, working three days a week. The position was eliminated after a corporate shake-up (following the new Executive Director arriving in July), but I have my suspicions that it was a tidy excuse to get rid of me personally, and possibly replace me with someone who is a better fit down the line. Perhaps that’s just my paranoia. The result of these layoffs is that it exhausted me. Not just the day-to-day exhaustion that you can sleep off or revive from with coffee, this is the deeper stuff that sucks your energy for months at a time. I know I shouldn’t but I sometimes lead with “I’ve been laid off twice this year” in conversations. It’s on my mind. I hope in 2011 I can make the interviews stick, no matter how few and far between they may be.
The most shocking number to the average reader would be the low interview rate from jobs applied. It ends up being about 4.5%. Depending on who you are, this might actually seem high, but there are some lurking variables in there. For one, I only apply to job postings that list the name of the company. There are maybe two anonymous companies in there, but generally I don’t do it. I also don’t look on Craig’s List for anything, just Coroflot and AIGA, and occasionally Media Bistro or some of the other sites.
My job application style has changes a bit over the years. In the past, I would construct long, elaborate intro letters citing my interest in the company and years of [relevant] experience. These days it’s a much more succinct form letter which includes the position title, the website referring it, the company name (just so I don’t confuse myself), and some links to my portfolio, blog, twitter, and side project blog. There’s a quick note about my attached resume and portfolio, and then a quick adieu. It’s very short. But I haven’t noticed a terrible drop-off in response rates; in fact, it’s the same. So I’d say this new method saves me time and energy, but with the same results, and thus it’s an improvement.
Word on the street is that no one reads them anyway. An assistant or junior member of staff will give it the slightest glance and then head to the resume and portfolio. Only if those materials are compelling are you passed on to the actual decision-maker. So all that prose is wasted on deaf ears.
