Report: 95% Of Grandfathers Got Job By Walking Right Up And Just Asking (The Onion) (credit score, interviewed)
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I have had my parents, grandparents, and co-workers tell me how they would walk in and get hired the same day. I don't even know the last time I turned in a paper application. The process is definitely lengthy and inefficient, at least IMO.
I'd be filthy rich if I got a dollar for every time I heard from some Baby Boomer: "I moved out and lived comfortably at 18, so you can too" or "I paid my own way through university without having to take out loans or getting into debt, so you can too".
People, times are a-changin'. So many Baby Boomers like to remark that the current generation is "entitled" and "lazy" when they cannot find a decent-paying job that allows them to live at a reasonable standard of living. These Boomers need to get a grip on reality -- the economic landscape isn't what it once was anymore. You can no longer just walk down the street to the shop in the corner and get hired.
Yep, apparently my parents walked to school for MILES, UP a hill, BOTH ways, every single day with crumbs for food and rags for clothes. ;-)
I have had my parents, grandparents, and co-workers tell me how they would walk in
(proceed to identify the owner or decision maker, engage them in conversation, demonstrate
some useful capacity or describe some actually pertinent skill and then) get hired the same day.
The process is definitely lengthy and inefficient, at least IMO.
It requires more effort than sending emails that's for sure.
But it DID work and will still work today too... if you actually have something to offer.
I'd be filthy rich if I got a dollar for every time I heard from some Baby Boomer: "I moved out and lived comfortably at 18, so you can too" or "I paid my own way through university without having to take out loans or getting into debt, so you can too".
People, times are a-changin'. So many Baby Boomers like to remark that the current generation is "entitled" and "lazy" when they cannot find a decent-paying job that allows them to live at a reasonable standard of living. These Boomers need to get a grip on reality -- the economic landscape isn't what it once was anymore. You can no longer just walk down the street to the shop in the corner and get hired.
The people in the interview were not baby boomers, they were baby boomers parents, so take your boomer bashing elsewhere. Every old person is not a boomer.
Agreed - also, even small companies require online applications in most cases, though I suppose if you're lucky you might be able to walk in the door and get a resume to somebody before being escorted out.
Having worked for both a huge company (more than one, actually), and a small one, I can agree that the smaller companies have huge turnover and once a culture of rot sets in, it is nearly impossible to fix it since the company has no hope of weathering the storm like a larger one.
The most recent place I worked was a small business - 80 people at max - and it was rotten to the core. The company culture was toxic to a degree I've never before seen. Every department hated every other department, decisions were made based upon personal gain and damage dealt to one's rivals, and company management was not fit to run a lemonade stand. Hatred, bigotry, idiocy, and nepotism were the orders of the day, and more effort was often spent ranting about "black people" or shoving tongues down the throats of office romances vs. actually doing one's job. Not surprisingly, the first strong breeze that came along - the sequestration and government shutdown of last year - sent the place into a tailspin from which there will be no recovery.
As for me, I vowed "never again" when it comes to that type work environment. Life is too short to spend surrounded by lunatics who would gladly see the company burn to the ground if it let them "get even with that guy in Purchasing / Shipping / Inspection / Programming / etc."
The last placed I worked at was like this, but it was a large company of a few hundred employees. The problem is the place sold collectables through mail, so it was a dying business, and the mid level managers who were promoted by not quitting after years discourage any ambitious ideas that differ from theirs. My co-worker got fired because he didn't meet eye to eye with my manager, and he was a bright kid and worked 10 hours a day. All she did was create context with projects that will fail, then boom, he got rid of her with no problems as the people above her never took time to investigate why she had 3 people come and go within a year under her. I quit as I agree, life is too short to be miserable. I'm much happier now.
It requires more effort than sending emails that's for sure.
But it DID work and will still work today too... if you actually have something to offer.
People just ignore emails, and you usually can't get the email of a decision maker off google. Most are company email address, and usernames vary a lot. That email contact on a company website is some general email address that goes to the customer service team, and it's usually a blackhole. My experience with customer service team is to only handle disgruntled people, not job stuff.
Also most online job apps say please don't contact us now too. Managers have distance themselves from the process by outsourcing it to online apps with some headhunter agency to handle the initial steps. That's my biggest problem is dealing with recruiters and headhunters as they are worthless. They ask stupid questions like, "Do you consider yourself a person who likes to work in teams?" Then when you ask any substance question to them you always get this answer, "That is a great question for the hiring manager!" I got lucky my current job started with my direct boss, not a recruiter, not some corporate HR lackey who is only good for asking about the mission statement and the company's vision.
I'd be filthy rich if I got a dollar for every time I heard from some Baby Boomer: "I moved out and lived comfortably at 18, so you can too" or "I paid my own way through university without having to take out loans or getting into debt, so you can too".
People, times are a-changin'. So many Baby Boomers like to remark that the current generation is "entitled" and "lazy" when they cannot find a decent-paying job that allows them to live at a reasonable standard of living. These Boomers need to get a grip on reality -- the economic landscape isn't what it once was anymore. You can no longer just walk down the street to the shop in the corner and get hired.
I can hear you moving out but frankly fair percentages of graduates have no debt at all.
I think what much of this really stems down to is planning. Back then there was no need to plan, things were just given out. Now you have to plan.
We can talk about education and experience with each other all we want but those that don't plan for anything aren't going to do much. Those that do...do. I don't mean packing a lunch for work but if they can plan, weeks, months maybe years ahead of time.
The people in the interview were not baby boomers, they were baby boomers parents, so take your boomer bashing elsewhere. Every old person is not a boomer.
Where did you see a direct reference to the Onion article? I was only commenting on my own experience, branching off from the flow of the thread.
When I was in outside sales a few years ago, many businesses would have signs stating something along the lines of "No Walk-Ins Accepted". Now, a good friend of mine is out of work and frustrated because he hasn't been without work for more than three weeks at a time since he started working (he's 43). He told me the other day that he's been walking into businesses because he wasn't getting any responses from his online applications. In the spirit of this thread, I called him up and asked how his door swings were going. (He did chuckle when I mentioned the Onion article, BTW.)
He did say that some of the people were friendly - but most were slightly less rude than if he'd been swinging doors to sell a product. He did say he'll continue to do it one day a week, because - what else does he have to do? - but the idea that one can just waltz into a business and walk right out with a job offer is highly unrealistic. Thankfully for him, his father is empathetic because he himself was job-hunting after taking early retirement from a job that he had worked for 35 years. Whereas many older people are so far-removed from the process that they have no clue how much it's changed, my friend's father saw first-hand 1. how difficult is is to secure employment than it was years ago, and 2. how much crap the newer generations are taking from employers. Just as a one-call close is unrealistic in sales, it's even less so in this capacity. And, of course, the more lucrative the prospect, the more hoops you have to jump through. With a few exceptions, the businesses that are looking to hire people on the spot would be the kind you look to as a last resort.
When I was in outside sales a few years ago, many businesses would have signs stating something along the lines of "No Walk-Ins Accepted". Now, a good friend of mine is out of work and frustrated because he hasn't been without work for more than three weeks at a time since he started working (he's 43). He told me the other day that he's been walking into businesses because he wasn't getting any responses from his online applications. In the spirit of this thread, I called him up and asked how his door swings were going. (He did chuckle when I mentioned the Onion article, BTW.)
He did say that some of the people were friendly - but most were slightly less rude than if he'd been swinging doors to sell a product. He did say he'll continue to do it one day a week, because - what else does he have to do? - but the idea that one can just waltz into a business and walk right out with a job offer is highly unrealistic. Thankfully for him, his father is empathetic because he himself was job-hunting after taking early retirement from a job that he had worked for 35 years. Whereas many older people are so far-removed from the process that they have no clue how much it's changed, my friend's father saw first-hand 1. how difficult is is to secure employment than it was years ago, and 2. how much crap the newer generations are taking from employers. Just as a one-call close is unrealistic in sales, it's even less so in this capacity. And, of course, the more lucrative the prospect, the more hoops you have to jump through. With a few exceptions, the businesses that are looking to hire people on the spot would be the kind you look to as a last resort.
The unrealistic expectations is a common problem nowadays. You see too many "leaders", aka managers, come to you and ask for a weeks worth of work to be done in 30 minutes. Then they expect constant 200% growth a year, and if you fail you'll get fired. I work in the finance industry, and I see stocks go down 10% one day because their earnings only show a 20% growth over a 25% growth. The fact the strong growth wasn't good enough which kills the stock is ridiculous. Heck, I see stock get a good gain when a company lays off several thousand people as that is short term money. That is our problem nowadays is we are an instant gratification society. If we don't get everything we want right now, we get antsy and want blood. It's sad really how no one can wait a little bit to get something great.
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