My first attempt at trying to write some more comedic/stand-up related content. Having a poetry/storytelling background, and googling how to write a punchline were definitely helpful in this endeavour!
“Can I have some more sour cream with that?”
Being a server
An adventure embarked on while trying to figure out which road to take combined with a love of people and food,
Even the most quirky of people can survive.
Running trays, bussing tables, and picking up after people can sometimes be a pain,
But the love for making people’s day takes all!
I walk into work smiling every day
Even when my family gives me a hard time right before starting my shift.
My coworkers ask me, “how are you so happy all the time?”
And my answer is, “laughing is my anti drug and talking to people is my sanity!”
This one time, when I first started the current job I have, I had the worst table of my life.
The four guests who appeared to be of some sort of Indian descent asked for the most complicated order I’ve ever seen. And don’t forget about the extra jalepenos… grilled and seasoned to perfection… and extra spicy…
And some extra sour cream with that!
The next day, the manager tells me I got 4 bad reviews the previous night.
I guess the sour cream was as sour as their attitude… and their tip!
The day before I quit my first serving job, one of the managers said serving wasn’t for me.
Guess what I did by accident a few hours later?
Spill an entire pot of soup in the soup warmer instead of the container inside the warmer and then tell the other manager that I quit about an hour later… Oops!
I enjoy serving,
But I wonder where my next adventures will take me…
Maybe I’ll become the next “Mama Julia”
The world may never know…
Oh shit, my table just got sat!
Showing posts with label career. Show all posts
Showing posts with label career. Show all posts
Thursday, March 7, 2019
Tuesday, February 5, 2019
Rebs Is In Search Of...
Please use some of my referral codes (for Uber, Lyft, Instacart, Dosh, Circle, Square Cash) by clicking here!
Help support my endeavors by donating to paypal.me/rebeccaduxler or cashapp at $RebeccaDuxler
Technical Writing: $30 an hour and up
Resume Writing: $20 an hour and up
Content Writer/Blogger: $20 an hour and up
Scholarship Essay Writing: $20 an hour and up
College Essay Writing: $20 an hour and up
College Paper Writing: $20 an hour and up
College Paper Editing: $15 an hour and up
Cover Letter Writing: $20 an hour and up
Proofreading: $20 an hour and up
Personal Chef: $25 an hour and up
Posting your items on Ebay, Offerup, Facebook Marketplace, etc.: $20 an hour and up
Social Media: $25 an hour and up
Flow Classes: $15 per person per class
Literary Classes: $10 per person per class
Storytelling and Flow Performances: $25 per performance and up depending on distance
Babysitting: $20 an hour and up
Dog Walking: $15 per 30 minute walk, $25 per hour walk
Cat Sitting: $50 per night and up
Help support my endeavors by donating to paypal.me/rebeccaduxler or cashapp at $RebeccaDuxler
Technical Writing: $30 an hour and up
Resume Writing: $20 an hour and up
Content Writer/Blogger: $20 an hour and up
Scholarship Essay Writing: $20 an hour and up
College Essay Writing: $20 an hour and up
College Paper Writing: $20 an hour and up
College Paper Editing: $15 an hour and up
Cover Letter Writing: $20 an hour and up
Proofreading: $20 an hour and up
Personal Chef: $25 an hour and up
Posting your items on Ebay, Offerup, Facebook Marketplace, etc.: $20 an hour and up
Social Media: $25 an hour and up
Flow Classes: $15 per person per class
Literary Classes: $10 per person per class
Storytelling and Flow Performances: $25 per performance and up depending on distance
Babysitting: $20 an hour and up
Dog Walking: $15 per 30 minute walk, $25 per hour walk
Cat Sitting: $50 per night and up
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
When Dreams are More than Dreams
What do you want to do when you grow up? Do you want to be an everybody, or do you want to be extraordinary?
While graduating from college with a computer science degree, I thought for the longest time I wanted to be a computer programmer. My parents were blown away when I got a job out of school making bank. They thought I was "super successful", even though I was dying inside and did not like my job. I would be sitting at my desk doing the work I needed to and once I was done, I found myself writing stories, poems, recipes, researching my desired creative avenues, and applying to be on various TV shows. I knew my destiny in life is to create. While I have been involved in computer programming since I was 12 years old, I have taken my writing and performing adventures more seriously since I first started writing at age 15.
After I left my job out of school on my own terms (I am not one to burn bridges unless absolutely necessary), I was ready to make my own career instead of trying to fit a mold. I thought Uber and Lyft were the answer to "working on my own and making it big", but it turned into a failed business venture. I tried obtaining some freelance gigs in the meantime and had minimal luck (better than zero, but not enough to solely freelance). I sold a bunch of my belongings on the internet and have had luck reselling some stuff, but was not making enough to survive solely on that either. After 2.5 years of struggling (from February 2016 until July 2018), I decided to take the summer of 2018 off working completely in order to take a step back and truly find myself. I had a bunch of money saved up, which I spent all of it having fun and making some poor choices in between. My parents saw me as a "failure" because I wasn't going the traditional job route.
After a technical writing job blew up in my face in October 2018, thinking technical writing was ultimately what I wanted to do once I left my IT job, I still knew it was my destiny to create and make people happy. Sadly, in this capitalistic society, you need money, so I decided to get a job as a server and spend more time thinking what I really want to do. While I enjoy my server job and luckily have been working on finding balance to find time to work vs. create, I want to find the best way to maximize the skills I have and turn that into the most income possible. Some people take jobs just for the money, but I know when I do that, I get fired right away, which is a waste of everyone's time. Plus, getting fired sucks big time!
Success isn't a 9-5 job. Success is turning what you want to do into the greatest possible income. I want to be like the Bruno Mars song, "Millionaire" and "I want to be a millionaire so freaking bad". At restaurant land, I am maximizing my time there while learning valuable professional skills and making connections with other coworkers. Making connections is a more valuable experience than making money, even though money is nice and you need money to survive.
My next most valuable skill besides the knowledge of technology (which I still love and still want to write about) is writing. At this point, while working on turning my personal endeavors from writing and performing into a "full-time income" (ex. my blogs/websites, freelancing for other people, my youtube channel and various other creative content I write/sell/post on my own outlets, posting on other people's blogs and getting paid, writing my own books, etc.), writing for an income while turning my own thing into a career is what I want to do. It is possible to turn your dream into a reality. Don't give up or listen to other people's negative feedback. If you do what you want to do and follow your own set path, you will be happiest and live the most fruitful life. It is never too late either. You got this. It is time to create your own path!
While graduating from college with a computer science degree, I thought for the longest time I wanted to be a computer programmer. My parents were blown away when I got a job out of school making bank. They thought I was "super successful", even though I was dying inside and did not like my job. I would be sitting at my desk doing the work I needed to and once I was done, I found myself writing stories, poems, recipes, researching my desired creative avenues, and applying to be on various TV shows. I knew my destiny in life is to create. While I have been involved in computer programming since I was 12 years old, I have taken my writing and performing adventures more seriously since I first started writing at age 15.
After I left my job out of school on my own terms (I am not one to burn bridges unless absolutely necessary), I was ready to make my own career instead of trying to fit a mold. I thought Uber and Lyft were the answer to "working on my own and making it big", but it turned into a failed business venture. I tried obtaining some freelance gigs in the meantime and had minimal luck (better than zero, but not enough to solely freelance). I sold a bunch of my belongings on the internet and have had luck reselling some stuff, but was not making enough to survive solely on that either. After 2.5 years of struggling (from February 2016 until July 2018), I decided to take the summer of 2018 off working completely in order to take a step back and truly find myself. I had a bunch of money saved up, which I spent all of it having fun and making some poor choices in between. My parents saw me as a "failure" because I wasn't going the traditional job route.
After a technical writing job blew up in my face in October 2018, thinking technical writing was ultimately what I wanted to do once I left my IT job, I still knew it was my destiny to create and make people happy. Sadly, in this capitalistic society, you need money, so I decided to get a job as a server and spend more time thinking what I really want to do. While I enjoy my server job and luckily have been working on finding balance to find time to work vs. create, I want to find the best way to maximize the skills I have and turn that into the most income possible. Some people take jobs just for the money, but I know when I do that, I get fired right away, which is a waste of everyone's time. Plus, getting fired sucks big time!
Success isn't a 9-5 job. Success is turning what you want to do into the greatest possible income. I want to be like the Bruno Mars song, "Millionaire" and "I want to be a millionaire so freaking bad". At restaurant land, I am maximizing my time there while learning valuable professional skills and making connections with other coworkers. Making connections is a more valuable experience than making money, even though money is nice and you need money to survive.
My next most valuable skill besides the knowledge of technology (which I still love and still want to write about) is writing. At this point, while working on turning my personal endeavors from writing and performing into a "full-time income" (ex. my blogs/websites, freelancing for other people, my youtube channel and various other creative content I write/sell/post on my own outlets, posting on other people's blogs and getting paid, writing my own books, etc.), writing for an income while turning my own thing into a career is what I want to do. It is possible to turn your dream into a reality. Don't give up or listen to other people's negative feedback. If you do what you want to do and follow your own set path, you will be happiest and live the most fruitful life. It is never too late either. You got this. It is time to create your own path!
Tuesday, May 31, 2016
Finding Your Rainbow Road
Sometimes, I feel like I run away from my problems instead of treating it like the boss level of a video game. Other times, I feel like making a “Grand Theft Auto” type getaway is quite necessary.
Right now, I’m at a point in my life where I want to figure out who and what to keep as integral components. It seems like a lot of people “be getting married and having kids and settling down and having a dog and a 9 to 5 job and playing family” and within the past year, I left a serious relationship, quit my corporate desk job, and find valid, but fake excuses to bail out of family events. I am, however, very lucky to have a chosen family!
A lot of people around me, including my twin sister, are all starting to couple up. I on the other hand have decided to focus on myself. While I am about to go get my second chance at a proper trip to Cedar Point in the next few days, the last time wasn’t so unicorn and rainbow filled. When me and “Voldemort” were about to go to Cedar Point, I was elated to finally live one of my childhood dreams; I also was on the verge of dumping his ass. Long story short, he was a very manipulative, unhappy person who enjoyed picking trivial arguments with me and not returning the favor in bed. We were only in Ohio for 2 days, but at least I had made sure to save a batch of my “special extra chocolate brownies” for the trip. The trip started with a, “hey, so you’re driving the entire way there” right as we were about to leave. We stopped at a Dunkin Donuts to get coffee and noms for the road and I began munching on my special brownies behind his back. I made sure to also eat some every rest stop we took and every time he left the room or turned his back. By the time he was ready to head back to Chicago, there was still another hour or so left before park closed, which I wanted to capitalize on. The more he upset me throughout the trip, the more I continued to keep contact with my “peanut gallery” in order for me to talk myself into breaking up with him. For the record, I had never broken up with someone on my own where it hasn’t been a mutual breakup before. He was being a jerk and decided to stay in the car while I walked around the parking lot for about 20-30 minutes, played a quick round of Dance Dance Revolution, went to the bathroom, and made a mad dash back to Millennium Force (a record-holding coaster with a steep and high drop). Unfortunately, the ride broke down several times while I was in line and I ended up waiting an hour and 45 minutes. During that time, I received several angry texts from him, most of which I ignored. After his display of waiting by the exit with disdain and refusing to talk to me for the car ride, I fell asleep in the car, woke up, got back into my apartment, and broke up with him that night. About 36 hours later, I ended up back at his apartment, grabbed my stuff, and “ghosted him” (stopped replying to him).
Not only do I need to be treated well by people I let into my life closely, but I also need to be treated well by my career path. When choosing to be a web developer, I was always a bit skeptical about staying in the IT field. As soon as I walked into my nice shiny job out of college, I was aboard the SS Sinking Ship, set to un-anchor itself at an undefined timeline. I’ve always been a high achiever and have experienced my fair share of failure, but never to this extent. When I was in school and had difficulty in a given class subject, I’d go to the professor and receive adequate assistance. I thought when at work and you experienced difficulty in a particular subject, you were supposed to ask your manager. However, asking the manager questions meant the project getting reassigned to a “cheap Indian laborer” contractor. After a few of these incidents, I began reaching out to others on my team, as well as networking a bit further. As soon as everyone was too busy to help me since I was unable to figure out how to complete the assignments on my own, I displayed a facade of productivity and success while internally, I knew I wasn’t contributing much of anything except for spreadsheets and install meetings. As soon as those weren’t good enough for my manager, my motivation went down the toilet and I felt the urgency of, “I need a new job and need to get out of here”. I ended up finding a new role, but within the same company; I did need to sneak through a few corners in order to attain the position, but it worked out and off I was to a building further south into the city. Minus the displeased manager and task reassignment, my new team wasn’t much different. I was still very unmotivated and felt the “I need to get out of here” urges. I ended up vanishing to go for many “walks” and there were a few times I went grocery shopping during work hours. My success facade walls were beginning to be broken down. A few months later, it was almost time for reviews. From midyear review to final review, I hadn’t completed a single significant task, including an assignment spanning across 8 months that lulled due to my coding program crashing beyond repair. I ended up deciding to put my technology “career” behind me and basically ghosted out of my job to everyone besides my manager and HR. Now, I’m significantly happier, am driving for Uber, performing a lot more frequently, and trying to figure out what I want to do with the rest of my life. I have not been treated poorly by any customers yet either.
Hardships are definitely difficult to face. Even though these experiences were necessary for wisdom’s sake, sometimes, you need to play ghost and do you in order to find true happiness!
Right now, I’m at a point in my life where I want to figure out who and what to keep as integral components. It seems like a lot of people “be getting married and having kids and settling down and having a dog and a 9 to 5 job and playing family” and within the past year, I left a serious relationship, quit my corporate desk job, and find valid, but fake excuses to bail out of family events. I am, however, very lucky to have a chosen family!
A lot of people around me, including my twin sister, are all starting to couple up. I on the other hand have decided to focus on myself. While I am about to go get my second chance at a proper trip to Cedar Point in the next few days, the last time wasn’t so unicorn and rainbow filled. When me and “Voldemort” were about to go to Cedar Point, I was elated to finally live one of my childhood dreams; I also was on the verge of dumping his ass. Long story short, he was a very manipulative, unhappy person who enjoyed picking trivial arguments with me and not returning the favor in bed. We were only in Ohio for 2 days, but at least I had made sure to save a batch of my “special extra chocolate brownies” for the trip. The trip started with a, “hey, so you’re driving the entire way there” right as we were about to leave. We stopped at a Dunkin Donuts to get coffee and noms for the road and I began munching on my special brownies behind his back. I made sure to also eat some every rest stop we took and every time he left the room or turned his back. By the time he was ready to head back to Chicago, there was still another hour or so left before park closed, which I wanted to capitalize on. The more he upset me throughout the trip, the more I continued to keep contact with my “peanut gallery” in order for me to talk myself into breaking up with him. For the record, I had never broken up with someone on my own where it hasn’t been a mutual breakup before. He was being a jerk and decided to stay in the car while I walked around the parking lot for about 20-30 minutes, played a quick round of Dance Dance Revolution, went to the bathroom, and made a mad dash back to Millennium Force (a record-holding coaster with a steep and high drop). Unfortunately, the ride broke down several times while I was in line and I ended up waiting an hour and 45 minutes. During that time, I received several angry texts from him, most of which I ignored. After his display of waiting by the exit with disdain and refusing to talk to me for the car ride, I fell asleep in the car, woke up, got back into my apartment, and broke up with him that night. About 36 hours later, I ended up back at his apartment, grabbed my stuff, and “ghosted him” (stopped replying to him).
Not only do I need to be treated well by people I let into my life closely, but I also need to be treated well by my career path. When choosing to be a web developer, I was always a bit skeptical about staying in the IT field. As soon as I walked into my nice shiny job out of college, I was aboard the SS Sinking Ship, set to un-anchor itself at an undefined timeline. I’ve always been a high achiever and have experienced my fair share of failure, but never to this extent. When I was in school and had difficulty in a given class subject, I’d go to the professor and receive adequate assistance. I thought when at work and you experienced difficulty in a particular subject, you were supposed to ask your manager. However, asking the manager questions meant the project getting reassigned to a “cheap Indian laborer” contractor. After a few of these incidents, I began reaching out to others on my team, as well as networking a bit further. As soon as everyone was too busy to help me since I was unable to figure out how to complete the assignments on my own, I displayed a facade of productivity and success while internally, I knew I wasn’t contributing much of anything except for spreadsheets and install meetings. As soon as those weren’t good enough for my manager, my motivation went down the toilet and I felt the urgency of, “I need a new job and need to get out of here”. I ended up finding a new role, but within the same company; I did need to sneak through a few corners in order to attain the position, but it worked out and off I was to a building further south into the city. Minus the displeased manager and task reassignment, my new team wasn’t much different. I was still very unmotivated and felt the “I need to get out of here” urges. I ended up vanishing to go for many “walks” and there were a few times I went grocery shopping during work hours. My success facade walls were beginning to be broken down. A few months later, it was almost time for reviews. From midyear review to final review, I hadn’t completed a single significant task, including an assignment spanning across 8 months that lulled due to my coding program crashing beyond repair. I ended up deciding to put my technology “career” behind me and basically ghosted out of my job to everyone besides my manager and HR. Now, I’m significantly happier, am driving for Uber, performing a lot more frequently, and trying to figure out what I want to do with the rest of my life. I have not been treated poorly by any customers yet either.
Hardships are definitely difficult to face. Even though these experiences were necessary for wisdom’s sake, sometimes, you need to play ghost and do you in order to find true happiness!
Monday, December 21, 2015
Sail at the Shooting Star
Meanwhile in short poem land... Sail at the Shooting Star! I wrote this to represent my desires to feel like I'm making it in this world!
=================================
Whenever I see people who’ve climbed to the top already,
I wonder why I haven’t reached the peak yet…
I wonder why I haven’t reached the peak yet…
I’m sure there are plenty of people who go through the routine of waking up, doing whatever in the bathroom, eating breakfast, going to work, coming home, eating dinner, watching TV, and going to bed.
But I want more, even if it means losing my sanity a little.
But I want more, even if it means losing my sanity a little.
When my eyes see the light each morning, I feel like I end up writing the same thing in my journal,
As I travel merrily on my way to nowhere.
Is there really a yellow brick road this movie speaks of, to lead me to the land of destiny?
The place where I pave my own path,
Acknowledge my accidents,
And move forward frequently?
As I travel merrily on my way to nowhere.
Is there really a yellow brick road this movie speaks of, to lead me to the land of destiny?
The place where I pave my own path,
Acknowledge my accidents,
And move forward frequently?
Being forced to fly on the isle of my creators,
I had to navigate the stormy skies alone,
Thinking there’s no finish line,
While still sailing away.
I had to navigate the stormy skies alone,
Thinking there’s no finish line,
While still sailing away.
Resilience guides me through each sorry letter thrown in the shredder,
And each match lost with no damper in my spirits.
I will never accept a knockout,
Even if every ounce of me is broken.
And each match lost with no damper in my spirits.
I will never accept a knockout,
Even if every ounce of me is broken.
The warrior’s spirit tells me not to be like Violet,
Otherwise I’ll turn into a giant exploding blueberry sentenced back to start.
My guru tells me if I wait for the shooting star, I'll be able to snap the right photo!
The goal is near,
Just keep plugging away
Because when resilience wins,
You win!
Just keep plugging away
Because when resilience wins,
You win!
Friday, August 14, 2015
Programming Career Misadventures
As a young twenty something millennial, when you're around this age, it's the perfect time to go soul searching, especially for what you want to do the rest of your life. Some people have their big break sooner than others, but you want to do everything you can to make it your time as well. It's not an easy road to get to the top, and I am not quite there yet. I thought I knew what I wanted to do from an early age, but when I got into my field, I confirmed with myself my heart is somewhere else. I'm not going to give up and want to share my story of how I at least got to where I am now so others can feel like they aren't alone in this. Enjoy!
=================================
Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to be happy all the time hand have everyone else around you feel the same? But how do you get yourself into the proper environment away from drama, especially one conducive for following your dream and being able to go soul searching?
For much of my life, I thought I wanted to be a web developer, sit in a desk, and live the life in my safe cushion job. Little did I know, when I entered the workforce, this environment would be much different than I expected, for worse.
When I was about 12 years old, my twin sister and I had created our first website under the direction of our childhood friend, Kyle because him and his older brother taught themselves how to code and became experts. Kyle and Ryan would show my sister and me their newest creations, but wouldn’t exactly explain what they did. Thus, my sister and I went to the library to check out some books on web development and Photoshop. Unfortunately, I felt the progress with understanding the coding was slow and passions lied elsewhere at the time. I was still curious, but not enough to be super serious about it; something felt like it was missing in terms of my passion for programming. Down the road, Kyle helped us create 3 websites, which we basically only know how to make small tweaks and add content. When high school came around, I had wanted to try taking a programming class. Since my math scores were high, it was recommended for me to register for the advanced level. That was a complete mistake; I ended up only passing the class with lots and lots of help from a tutor and having a friend who gave me the answers to the number of assignments I fell behind on and wouldn’t have been able to complete otherwise. After that, I adopted the mindset of “this stinks, let’s see if I do any better in college and wait to take classes then”. That of course also ended up being a horrible idea, but I triumphed anyway.
I ended up studying Web Development (with a business minor) at Illinois State University. When it came for my first programming course, bad luck struck me once again. Programming was much different than I expected it to be and something still felt like it was missing. Not only was my passion not glowing, but my grade in the class went down the toilet due to handwritten coding exams being an awful experience for me, as well as not fully understanding the material. Thanks to my resilience, I took the class again instead of dropping the major, but requested to take it with another professor and earned an A. I had a similar, but worse issue with my first actual web development class, but was stuck taking the class with the same professor and barely passed the second time. Despite the evilness of handwritten programming exams, my overall grade point average was pretty high for the department and enough to be eligible for all scholarships and internships/jobs. I was still excelling in the department nonetheless. I earned several scholarships, eventually ran the club, raised money to send myself and 3 others to a national conference almost singlehandedly, setup a career fair, worked as a TA for one of the professors, did the research symposium and mobile application development contests, and I was basically the face of the IT department my senior year. I was having a lot of success, but the thought of web development being my niche still sat funny with me. I still loved programming, but other hobbies of mine give me more of a spark and enjoyment.
With the job market being rough, I had a goal of landing a (corporate) job before graduation; I achieved that goal about 3 weeks prior to graduating. When I walked into the door at my first big girl job on day 1, everything started as feeling like unicorns and rainbows. I felt successful, on top of the world, and like a champion. A few short months later, after a lot of post-graduation depression, personal issues, and difficulty getting myself up to speed with my workload, the rainbows rapidly faded as I did everything to avoid being jaded. More time elapses at my job and I needed a change in scenery, which later led me to doing an internal transfer to a different team with a more compatible manager. It didn’t take long for the rainbows to fade again. I began realizing how badly I was failing at my job and have been taking action to find and create a positive change for myself. I also became aware that the cubicle life is not my dream either.
Resilience has been my best friend for as long as I can remember. The farther I fall in my career in IT, the more accepting I am of failure. But why would I accept failure? I didn’t lose everything, nor have I lost this fight because I am still going. I haven’t totally fallen on my face, but with failure, I have realized and confirmed with myself that web development isn’t my calling. Failure means to learn a lesson from lack of success and continue to move forward. I may not be following my dreams from sitting in a desk, but sitting in a desk temporarily enables me to have the means to reach my dreams. Dreams exist, and are real, reasonable, advanced thoughts of the desire for achievement which humans heavily crave. Then how the heck am I going to follow my dreams? For now, here I am, standing before you, putting myself out there, and telling you my stories of the craziness that is my life. The more I plug away at that and keep resilience in my heart pocket, I will in due time find the key to unlock my treasure chest and pay it forward in honor of all of those who helped me reach the top with a smile. That’s the true meaning of success!
Sunday, April 20, 2014
6 Ways to Thrive at an Internship or Career Fair
Meeting recruiters in person is being a step ahead of the other candidates who apply cold. You of course
need to make sure to prepare an advance for the fair in terms of becoming knowledgeable about the
companies you want to talk to, see which companies are attending the fair, and bring lots of patience with
you because you know you're going to be waiting in plenty of lines. Make sure you prioritize your time in
order to be able to talk to every company that you have on your list. That doesn't mean talk to every
single company, but select a handful of companies that you may want to work for and go ahead and talk
to them. If you have extra time at the end, feel free to talk to whoever else you want to as well. Don't talk
to every single company for no good reason. You need to be somewhat picky in order to get a job you
want, but only be selective until you are absolutely desperate to get a job (ex you're running out of time
before the internship hiring period ends for all of the companies). Here are 6 steps on how you can thrive
at an internship or career fair:
1. You should always treat an internship fair like an in-person interview, except it's usually a precursor to that. Dress to impress (business professional, meaning to wear a suit), give a firm handshake, and you're off with a smile and enthusiasm towards attaining the ultimate job for yourself!
2. Make sure you've done your research about each company that you plan on talking to because you may get asked questions to test whether or not you know anything about the company (ex where their headquarters are). Also, some companies make their applications available online prior to the fair. While you're doing your research, check if the company has their application available. If so, definitely apply prior to talking to them. It will impress the company with your level of interest in the job. Who knows, maybe they'll schedule an interview on the spot! It is possible for that to happen, so be prepared! I have seen it happen and it has happened to me as well!
3. Don't get discouraged if the company decides not to talk to you because your GPA doesn't meet their requirements or if they automatically tell you that you don't meet their qualifications. Still apply online if that happens. You never know. You can blow them away with your technical skills, portfolio, or other outside professional experience that they may have missed when initially glancing over your resume!
4. Be prepared with everything that you could possibly need on hand, such as extra resumes, business cards, pen/paper, a portfolio, and a bag to carry the random trinkets that you're given. Make sure to bring at least 2 resumes per company that you plan on talking to. Also, you should print your resumes on resume paper. Some career centers have some. Otherwise, you can find it at Wal-Mart or something like that. You never know. You may end up wanting to talk to more companies than expected. Bring a portfolio to store your resumes, pen/paper (in case you want to take notes while talking to the company, or right after), your business cards (which you should also bring), and a place to hold the free goodies you're going to get from all of the companies you talk to. They will give you little “knick knacks” such as flash drives, $5 gift cards to somewhere, hats, post it notes, etc. Recruiters will notice those "little things", such as using resume paper and bringing a portfolio and know that you have gone the extra mile in terms of handling yourself professionally! It also shows preparedness!
5. Bring your arsenal of questions. Even if you've talked to that particular company already at another fair, asking questions continues to tell the recruiter how interested you are in the position. Bring 2 or so questions each subsequent time you talk to them. If this is your first time talking to that particular company, bring at least 3.
6. The very most important thing to bring with you to internship fairs is your “30 second commercial”, which takes place right after the initial handshake usually (or right after the recruiter asks you your year, major, what type of internship or job you're looking to apply for, etc. and glances at your resume). When you give your 30 second commercial, you say that you're a (year) majoring in (major). Your goal is to work in your company for (whatever position(s) you plan on applying for). You are involved in (list extracurricular activities). I love to (list hobbies). You are a leader of (something, if you are). You love and are very passionate about what you do. Your greatest strengths are (ex being very flexible). Basically, just emphasizing what you love, your goals, and your strengths in order to best sell yourself. You want to brag, but don't blab. Don't put the recruiter to sleep. Imagine someone who just won't shut up and you are just nodding your head pretending to care. You don't want to end up being in their shoes having someone nonstop blab to you!
So here's how it goes:
When it's your turn to talk to the recruiter, introduce yourself, give a firm handshake, smile, and be ready to sell yourself while being yourself. Just before giving your thirty second handshake, tell the recruiter what position you want to apply for. Next, ask if they would like a copy of your resume (and a business card) and hand it over to them. Afterwards, start the conversation by giving your 30 second commercial or by answering whatever the recruiter asks you (ex the “are you eligible to work” questions and if you know anything about the company). After all of that, since there is a line, the recruiter will ask you if you have any questions; you are ready to ask away. With those questions, try to embark in a good conversation. Whether it's about the company or hobbies you share, try to connect with the recruiter you're taking to. When you're done, ask for a business card and how you can apply (if you haven't already). When you're done, shake their hand, thank the recruiter for their time, and you're off to conquer the rest of the fair!
1. You should always treat an internship fair like an in-person interview, except it's usually a precursor to that. Dress to impress (business professional, meaning to wear a suit), give a firm handshake, and you're off with a smile and enthusiasm towards attaining the ultimate job for yourself!
2. Make sure you've done your research about each company that you plan on talking to because you may get asked questions to test whether or not you know anything about the company (ex where their headquarters are). Also, some companies make their applications available online prior to the fair. While you're doing your research, check if the company has their application available. If so, definitely apply prior to talking to them. It will impress the company with your level of interest in the job. Who knows, maybe they'll schedule an interview on the spot! It is possible for that to happen, so be prepared! I have seen it happen and it has happened to me as well!
3. Don't get discouraged if the company decides not to talk to you because your GPA doesn't meet their requirements or if they automatically tell you that you don't meet their qualifications. Still apply online if that happens. You never know. You can blow them away with your technical skills, portfolio, or other outside professional experience that they may have missed when initially glancing over your resume!
4. Be prepared with everything that you could possibly need on hand, such as extra resumes, business cards, pen/paper, a portfolio, and a bag to carry the random trinkets that you're given. Make sure to bring at least 2 resumes per company that you plan on talking to. Also, you should print your resumes on resume paper. Some career centers have some. Otherwise, you can find it at Wal-Mart or something like that. You never know. You may end up wanting to talk to more companies than expected. Bring a portfolio to store your resumes, pen/paper (in case you want to take notes while talking to the company, or right after), your business cards (which you should also bring), and a place to hold the free goodies you're going to get from all of the companies you talk to. They will give you little “knick knacks” such as flash drives, $5 gift cards to somewhere, hats, post it notes, etc. Recruiters will notice those "little things", such as using resume paper and bringing a portfolio and know that you have gone the extra mile in terms of handling yourself professionally! It also shows preparedness!
5. Bring your arsenal of questions. Even if you've talked to that particular company already at another fair, asking questions continues to tell the recruiter how interested you are in the position. Bring 2 or so questions each subsequent time you talk to them. If this is your first time talking to that particular company, bring at least 3.
6. The very most important thing to bring with you to internship fairs is your “30 second commercial”, which takes place right after the initial handshake usually (or right after the recruiter asks you your year, major, what type of internship or job you're looking to apply for, etc. and glances at your resume). When you give your 30 second commercial, you say that you're a (year) majoring in (major). Your goal is to work in your company for (whatever position(s) you plan on applying for). You are involved in (list extracurricular activities). I love to (list hobbies). You are a leader of (something, if you are). You love and are very passionate about what you do. Your greatest strengths are (ex being very flexible). Basically, just emphasizing what you love, your goals, and your strengths in order to best sell yourself. You want to brag, but don't blab. Don't put the recruiter to sleep. Imagine someone who just won't shut up and you are just nodding your head pretending to care. You don't want to end up being in their shoes having someone nonstop blab to you!
So here's how it goes:
When it's your turn to talk to the recruiter, introduce yourself, give a firm handshake, smile, and be ready to sell yourself while being yourself. Just before giving your thirty second handshake, tell the recruiter what position you want to apply for. Next, ask if they would like a copy of your resume (and a business card) and hand it over to them. Afterwards, start the conversation by giving your 30 second commercial or by answering whatever the recruiter asks you (ex the “are you eligible to work” questions and if you know anything about the company). After all of that, since there is a line, the recruiter will ask you if you have any questions; you are ready to ask away. With those questions, try to embark in a good conversation. Whether it's about the company or hobbies you share, try to connect with the recruiter you're taking to. When you're done, ask for a business card and how you can apply (if you haven't already). When you're done, shake their hand, thank the recruiter for their time, and you're off to conquer the rest of the fair!
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