Day 7 of 107: Back in the Deep End
Apr. 27th, 2023 08:56 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jakebeYesterday I had a conversation with L., my other life-partner, about what happened with R. He shared that he was also worried about me not taking the job search urgently enough, especially given the fact that the hiring process for tech companies tend to take *forever*. It was a good point that I hadn't properly weighted, so I conceded that it would be best to look for a job sooner rather than later.
An ex-manager now working at Instacart reached out to me about the possibility of working there, but like an idiot I didn't jump on the opportunity in time and it's likely gone now. I'm a bit bummed, but I'll take that as a lesson of what NOT to do, especially when relying on my network to find a position. If someone reaches out a hand, you take it as soon as you can.
So today I've set out to update my resume and at least send it to my Instacart contact to keep me in the mix. A fellow Community Manager who was also laid off has been giving me a steady drip of positions she thinks I'd be great for, bless her. I'd like to spend a little bit of time returning the favor as I can, especially when the search starts in earnest.
Another work-friend who had left Udacity some time ago reached out and we had a very nice video conference earlier today. She's a hustler, so I learned a lot about the attitude she's built for her success and she gave me a lot of great tips on job-searching, resume-writing, building a professional brand, and just sharing her own experience. It was an energizing meeting, and I'm so tremendously grateful she took the time out to help me.
It was also clarifying. One of the big things I've been seeing about job hunting is how important it is to go out with focus. You want to take as many shots as you can, but you also want to make sure you're picking your shots to maximize your chance of hitting a bulls-eye. It's not enough to come up with a resume that details your experience; your resume has to be adapted for each position, telling a story about how your previous work has prepared you to meet the requirements of your role. I mean, when I put it that way it seems obvious but it helps me to understand how I can build my "template" resume, then modify it when I'm applying to match the needs of the role.
She also recommends getting in touch with a human as soon as possible. If there's a hiring manager on LinkedIn, for example, you can reach out to them in a message to let them know you're interested. It's a great way of putting a "face" to a name, displaying enthusiasm, and the willingness to "go the extra mile". While I'm still not sure if I'll be able to get a job quickly, her advice has given me a lot more ammunition to make sure I give it my best shot. Now that I've made the decision to be active, it's actually exciting to roll up my sleeves and get to work.
There's still an awful lot to do. The home isn't as tidy as I'd like it to be, and I'd like to set out and start the month taking a real swing at restarting my writing presence. That means taking a bit to figure out The Writing Desk and also dipping my toes into regular posts on LinkedIn. At the same time, I'd also like to read a lot more, thinking about blog posts, essays, and short stories as a fellow craftsman. I need to rediscover how to see words as tools, and to think of myself as someone who just wants to get better with the ones he has.
Biscuit nibbled through a giant 40-lb bag of litter yesterday morning, spilling a great deal of it out onto the floor. He was quite pleased with himself when we woke up, sprawled out on top of it as comfortable as can be. I took the opportunity to give his area a thorough cleaning. I bought one of those enormous 55-gallon storage containers from PetCo and put the rest of the litter in that. I'm hoping I can find an equally giant Tupperware container so we have a similarly invulnerable place to put his hay. I'm not going to lie, it looks a lot better over there, but there's still clutter we can clear out with a little time and attention.
The "free" laptop I was given at work as part of my severance isn't handling the internet recovery process well at all. Some online research tells me that the most likely culprit is a corrupted security chip from the remote wipe, which sure, might as well be the case. I'll need to either use another MacBook to do an assisted recovery or take it to an Apple Store so they can fix the security chip and download the latest, greatest version of MacOS. L. has another MacBook so we'll try that option first, this evening.
We played our first session of Curse of Strahd last night! It was a bit of a bumpy start, but I already like the vibe of our party and I'm feeling good about my character. He's the last son of a minor Barovian house, and was charmed by Strahd into killing his wife and unborn child. Now, after a year and a day of morning at the family's estate, he's returning to begin his campaign of vengeance against an unstoppable foe. I'm a little surprised that all of us have chosen to be unquestionably good, if haunted, and that we're all bringing the pain as much as we're able. You just don't fuck around with Strahd.
Even still, my dragonborn Paladin was taken out in one hit by a skeletal horse kick. He had positioned himself in front of another party member to protect them from damage, and that's what happens I guess. Still, we have a Grave Domain Cleric in our party so he was stabilized after one death save. Whew.
Today and tomorrow I'll be fixing up my resume, setting up a few services to help me perfect it, and applying to jobs that have been sent my way. Next week I plan to start writing for The Writing Desk and LinkedIn while looking for work. It's good to remember that I can also think outside the box and look for work outside of tech.
An ex-manager now working at Instacart reached out to me about the possibility of working there, but like an idiot I didn't jump on the opportunity in time and it's likely gone now. I'm a bit bummed, but I'll take that as a lesson of what NOT to do, especially when relying on my network to find a position. If someone reaches out a hand, you take it as soon as you can.
So today I've set out to update my resume and at least send it to my Instacart contact to keep me in the mix. A fellow Community Manager who was also laid off has been giving me a steady drip of positions she thinks I'd be great for, bless her. I'd like to spend a little bit of time returning the favor as I can, especially when the search starts in earnest.
Another work-friend who had left Udacity some time ago reached out and we had a very nice video conference earlier today. She's a hustler, so I learned a lot about the attitude she's built for her success and she gave me a lot of great tips on job-searching, resume-writing, building a professional brand, and just sharing her own experience. It was an energizing meeting, and I'm so tremendously grateful she took the time out to help me.
It was also clarifying. One of the big things I've been seeing about job hunting is how important it is to go out with focus. You want to take as many shots as you can, but you also want to make sure you're picking your shots to maximize your chance of hitting a bulls-eye. It's not enough to come up with a resume that details your experience; your resume has to be adapted for each position, telling a story about how your previous work has prepared you to meet the requirements of your role. I mean, when I put it that way it seems obvious but it helps me to understand how I can build my "template" resume, then modify it when I'm applying to match the needs of the role.
She also recommends getting in touch with a human as soon as possible. If there's a hiring manager on LinkedIn, for example, you can reach out to them in a message to let them know you're interested. It's a great way of putting a "face" to a name, displaying enthusiasm, and the willingness to "go the extra mile". While I'm still not sure if I'll be able to get a job quickly, her advice has given me a lot more ammunition to make sure I give it my best shot. Now that I've made the decision to be active, it's actually exciting to roll up my sleeves and get to work.
There's still an awful lot to do. The home isn't as tidy as I'd like it to be, and I'd like to set out and start the month taking a real swing at restarting my writing presence. That means taking a bit to figure out The Writing Desk and also dipping my toes into regular posts on LinkedIn. At the same time, I'd also like to read a lot more, thinking about blog posts, essays, and short stories as a fellow craftsman. I need to rediscover how to see words as tools, and to think of myself as someone who just wants to get better with the ones he has.
Biscuit nibbled through a giant 40-lb bag of litter yesterday morning, spilling a great deal of it out onto the floor. He was quite pleased with himself when we woke up, sprawled out on top of it as comfortable as can be. I took the opportunity to give his area a thorough cleaning. I bought one of those enormous 55-gallon storage containers from PetCo and put the rest of the litter in that. I'm hoping I can find an equally giant Tupperware container so we have a similarly invulnerable place to put his hay. I'm not going to lie, it looks a lot better over there, but there's still clutter we can clear out with a little time and attention.
The "free" laptop I was given at work as part of my severance isn't handling the internet recovery process well at all. Some online research tells me that the most likely culprit is a corrupted security chip from the remote wipe, which sure, might as well be the case. I'll need to either use another MacBook to do an assisted recovery or take it to an Apple Store so they can fix the security chip and download the latest, greatest version of MacOS. L. has another MacBook so we'll try that option first, this evening.
We played our first session of Curse of Strahd last night! It was a bit of a bumpy start, but I already like the vibe of our party and I'm feeling good about my character. He's the last son of a minor Barovian house, and was charmed by Strahd into killing his wife and unborn child. Now, after a year and a day of morning at the family's estate, he's returning to begin his campaign of vengeance against an unstoppable foe. I'm a little surprised that all of us have chosen to be unquestionably good, if haunted, and that we're all bringing the pain as much as we're able. You just don't fuck around with Strahd.
Even still, my dragonborn Paladin was taken out in one hit by a skeletal horse kick. He had positioned himself in front of another party member to protect them from damage, and that's what happens I guess. Still, we have a Grave Domain Cleric in our party so he was stabilized after one death save. Whew.
Today and tomorrow I'll be fixing up my resume, setting up a few services to help me perfect it, and applying to jobs that have been sent my way. Next week I plan to start writing for The Writing Desk and LinkedIn while looking for work. It's good to remember that I can also think outside the box and look for work outside of tech.
