Parasite temping

I finished a temp gig a week ago, and I feel like I am back at square one. This is week two of job hunting again. I'm really wondering about the wisdom of temping. While I have been in three different positions in the months after my layoff, my peers who were laid off at the same time as I have landed full time gigs.

In my last two temp gigs I wasn't referred to by my name but as 'the temp' most of the time. Being seen as disposable in a workforce where people are holding on by their fingernails is less than comforting. I found myself getting dangerously disillusioned in my last position

In the past temp gigs were not only a quick pay check but also a good way to get a foot in the door of a field I wouldn't typically consider. I've met great folks temping. But months later, and no full time job, and bills piling up I'm really wondering if this is best use of my time. Perhaps the worst part of temping is that it feels like a parasite. The work tends to pays just little enough to slowly drain my savings, so that now I need the temp work to stay a float.

So I'm starting all over again, this time with a couple job interviews under my belt, - we'll chock those up to practice- a bit more experience, and a lot more flexibility to take a position I wouldn't typically consider for a pay check and health insurance.

i'm a 32 year-old temp.

not that i'm bitter, but that gee I'd really like to say that temping was one of those things I did in my twenties. I'm begining to shift my focus to looking for part-time non-profit work, it's about time I used that MSW right? But I'm going to need some help transitoning back into it, SO who needs a weekend volunteer?

Phew temping. .

Phew temping~ Last week and the beginning of this week I was on a four-day return stint to my most recent temp position last week, and this week. Sadly on the last day I figured out that they were hoping I would fill in their admin assistant role. That job paid more, and had a much better commute. I’m kicking myself for not squeezing every little juicy detail out of my temp agency recruiter.

Today I started temping in the burbs, it’s a forty something minute commute for about a three to four month project. I’m relieved to no longer be juggling another temp position with interviews, drug tests, phone calls, and filling out forms for this position. The jury is still out on what I think of the job, but for the time being I really ought to find a way to keep the job hunt up.

Week 3 tempting temping

One of the suggestions many of the job hunt books I’ve scanned have is to have at least three different job hunting techniques. By only using one or two techniques, they surmise, can lead a job hunter to disappointment, disillusionment, and ultimately a loss of hope that one will ever find meaningful employment ever again. So I’ve been treading carefully bopping between networking, working with recruiters (temp agencies), doing online searches, and taking some classes to hone my skills. Professionally, the only successful career transitions I have ever made have been with temp agencies. While I may not find the work the most rewarding, I do find that I tend to do well in the positions they place me in, and the pay is always better than unemployment.

This week (week 3, 17 more to go!) has lead to some opening among temp agencies, where I get a call from an agency, they rattle off some job description, and ask if I’m okay with them throwing my resume in. I always say ‘sure!’ I’m really can’t turn anything down, even if the work is just making copies and typing with my toes.

From prior temping experience, I know it’s difficult to keep my job hunt up, and I can no longer count on recruiters to find something better for me. Recruiters help get your foot in the door, to apply for a ‘real’ position with in mega-conglomeration corporations. But one cannot trust a recruiter to find a dream job. So tomorrow I start flipin’ copies again, and maybe on the purple line continue to do the work of figuring out what my “dream job” might be. Perhaps one of these mega-conglomeration corporations will have a position that will be good enough for now.

I leave you with this question, is there such thing as a “dream job”? Or is it like a unicorn, a myth we tell children to keep them in school? Or in this economy is it more of an endangered species, they used to exist but have all been killed off?

The Ten Keys to Success at Job and Career Fairs

I'm heading to a career fair on Friday. There are three companies that have editorial openings, so I'm cramming on how to prepare for a job fair. This article seemed to hit all the points.

The Ten Keys to Success at Job and Career Fairs