Hey college ppl: Having problems finding a job?

Here are my ideas/suggestions if you are desperate for a job:

1. Shotgun approach – if you live in near an area with a lot of businesses, put together a resume, put on some nice clothes (long pants, nice shirt, etc) and go from business to business asking “Do you have job applications available at this time?” Leave a copy of your resume for every business even if they flat out say, “We are not hiring at this time,” because they might need you at some other time. If you do this for 10-15 businesses, chances of getting a call from at least one is significant enough to try. Hit a bunch and you might get a call from a few. Of course, don’t bring a shotgun with you.

2. Office supply businesses – There are several major businesses that specialize in office supplies. Looking for a job at one of these businesses may be beneficial for a couple of reasons. First, if you like talking and engaging with people or active engagement with clients in a retail setting, you may find working in this general retail setting to be tolerable. Second, if you are a student, working at an office supply business might not hurt, especially if they offer employee discounts on everyday stuff that you will need as a student.

3. Movie rental businesses – There are one or two major businesses that specialize in renting movies. If you don’t mind sorting, alphabetizing, engaging with clientele, and thinking about movies,  you may find this to be a bearable job if you can manage to get hired.

4. Public library – Similar to movie rental businesses, but with books in mind, if you don’t mind being around books then this might be a stable option for a summer or something. Knowing a bit about books wouldn’t hurt either. :) Public libraries may have you complete a small qualifications test along with or following the submission of an application and/or resume.

5. Chain grocery stores – Because I do not want to give any business the upper hand by suggested one over another, I leave the titles quite vague but if you think about chain businesses that are responsible for selling food products and only food products, there should be one or two businesses that pop into mind. The chances that what you and I are thinking are different are quite slim if we are both thinking about multi-state chain businesses. Seeking employment at these sorts of businesses may significantly increase your chances of getting a job. In fact, I believe that there is a chain grocery store that operates with an employee union (I wont mention the name), but realize that employment in any business with a workers’ union may be a solid method you can use to bring some steady income.

6. Tech savvy – For all computer savvy geeks and nerds out there, there are many chain and local businesses that have some sort of division of computer repair/service that may not require A+ certification or proof of higher education. If you know the difference between SATA, SCSI, and IDE or what a RJ-45 cable is, you may want to consider getting yourself down to the local tech store and applying.

7. Local drug store – Often local drug stores have general retail positions available. Find out where they are and go apply if you think it would work.

8. Pet stores/pet supply stores – if you like animals, businesses specializing in pet supplies may have general positions open.

9. Head shops - if you know a lot about different sorts of smoking accessories, or if smoking (legal things) is something that you enjoy, consider applying at a local head shop. You may find a job like this to be engaging and tolerable.

10. Book stores – there are a couple businesses that specialize in books. Similar to the library, if you like books, this might work for you.

11. Temporary work at public schools – often schools might hire general positions for the summer to do basic tasks like cleaning, organizing, building basic school-related stuff like tables, etc. Check with local public schools to see if there are openings if you don’t mind this sort of work.

12. Family connections – if your family knows anyone who owns a business, see if they are in need of temporary help. You hold a slight advantage for knowing them through the family.

13. Pizza/pizza delivery – always an option if you are desperate. But make sure they don’t take advantage of you to the point where you are just spinning your wheels without getting anywhere (literally or figuratively).

14. Ebay – if you know how to spot deals, consider Ebay. Especially if you have old valuables laying around that you want to get rid of. Ebay might be touch, and often is, but it can work if you know what you are doing.

15. Home improvement businesses – there are two or three businesses I can think of that specialize in selling home improvement products. Most of the time you have to be 18+ to work at these places because of the risk of personal injury from lifting and moving things and the use of machinery.

16. General goods businesses – there are many chains businesses that specialize in selling a little of everything. As a near last resort, consider finding work here. Pay may be lower than elsewhere, but it is money.

17. Tutoring – if you are really far ahead in one academic area and feel that you could accurately instruct younger and less skilled folk about your area of expertise, consider it. For example: Spanish tutoring, math assistance, basic music lessons i.e.: guitar, etc.

18. Coffee businesses – It’s pretty obvious which businesses specialize in coffee. Consider this an option if coffee is your thing, or you don’t mind being around hot/cold liquid all day.

19. Local nature center – if you live in an city with a local nature center with employed maintainers, you might find this to be a reasonable place to apply. Especially if you love nature and don’t mind the ‘gross’ stuff like worms, bees, and whatever else nature haters are commonly afraid of.

20. Major events staff – if you live near a place where major events always occur, you may want to look for employment there, as positions like parking lot staff, basic security, head counters, kiosk operators, etc may be available depending on the sort of even being held. This may be a good option especially during summer when a lot of major events like concerts and plays are going on while many are away from school.

–Notice how I didn’t mention fast food as an option. Sure, it’s your choice, but I wouldn’t recommend it. No offense to anyone who has worked in the fast food business, but have you ever had a good look at someone who works a fast food gig? They look really tired and exhausted and I can only imagine you might feel similar. Unless you are beyond despair, I wouldn’t seek out fast food as an employment option. The high caloric content in much of fast food and the type of people it often attracts just makes it potential pitfall if you have a managed diet or a particular lifestyle lacking the sorts of things found at a fast food business.

If you can’t find a job, it’s ok, you don’t suck if the thought even crossed your mind. Many are having a difficult time finding a job. Fortunately, I currently have a job, but that is because one of the above worked for me. I work at a computer repair store because it’s who I am and what I’m good at.

GOOD LUCK!!

How I could have done better as a college freshman…

This is a semi-short and to the point post about the mistakes I made as a college freshman. Ranges from stuff I should have brought, shit better left unbought, things I should have never done, to plain recommendations. I go to Michigan State University if you really want to know.

Helpful stuff to bring that is probably not on the packing list:

1. Electrical/Duct tape – comes in handy for its most obvious purpose: taping stuff to stuff.

2. Lots of AAA batteries – for TI calculators, alarm clocks, small electronics.

3. A real surge protector – huge difference between simple power strip and surge protector; no use crying over a surged hard drive.

4. Laptop chill pad – If your laptop has a fan on the bottom, consider one of these especially if you like lying in bed on your computer.

5. Toothbrush with a cover - probably keeps it cleaner, may help if flu/colds start going around.

6. External hard drive – consider around 500-750GB, especially if you have a large music collection and/or a laptop more than 2 years old. Retail tech stores will just rip you off. Get it online.

7. Pain meds – I’m no doctor…yet, but consider bringing asprin, strong/mild pain-killers, or other pills to make you feel better when in some sort of pain. PS: best to check the date too, I bought bottle of pain meds  come to find it expired 2 weeks later. :(

8. Something to safely cover your eyes with as you sleep – my dorm had a shitty glare at night. Could be similar for others and a pain in the ass if you are a sensitive sleeper.

9. Ear plugs – Bring them. They can make the difference between 4 and 9 hours of solid sleep.

10. Portable water jug thing – just something like a 2 gallon holder that you can fill and clean easy. Water is probably a good thing to have access to during long periods of sitting, studying, whatev. Better than walking all the way to a drinking fountain a billion times.

Useless shit to avoid buying (many packing lists have this stuff regardless)

1. Cheap vacuum cleaner – don’t need it. Get a good one or use the dorm’s.

2. Fatty foods, caloric snacks, sugary soda, – unless you need the calories or sugar, all the pre-packed snack shit is probably a horrible choice for a sedentary studious college student.

3. Land line phone – Come on…are you serious?

4. Ethernet cable & co-ax (cable-tv) cable > 25ft – unless you live in a huge open space, save yourself ridiculous cash by getting a reasonably sized Ethernet and coaxial (cable-tv) cable. Don’t let the sales rep convince you that you need 100ft of Ethernet cord to get through college comfortable. Trust me. You’ll be just fine.

5. Padlocks – Unless you are an anxious person or go to an unsafe or crime-heavy college, then skip it. Ever had a padlock in the bedroom at home? …Ok then, base it on your answer to that.

6. Useless lighting – Unless it makes you feel better, book lights, laptop lights, and lights not designed to be on a desk or illuminate a room are probably useless unless your dorm does not already have a light or decent windows (that’d suck).

7. Huge sound system – Dorms often have restrictions on how loud your music can get before they are going to come and tear you a new asshole. You don’t need 5.1 surround to sufficiently cover your whole room. Much less will do.

8. Dvd/blueray player – Watch it on your computer or buy a good enough tv to be able to hook up your computer. Cut out the middleman already.

9. Inkjet printer – Inkjets are horribly built and absolutely sickeningly expensive to maintain thanks to corporate America (thank Epson and HP)…instead look towards a laserjet, even if it is black and white. Term papers don’t need to be in photo ink unless you really want them to be.

10. Robe – Unless you already have or want one, you don’t need one. If you have community bathrooms in your dorms, just walk there in your underwear. If you leave for breakfast, put on pants. Robes (unless pink and embroidered with your name and a smiley) are completely useless.

Shit you should never consider doing

1. Pull all-nighter before a test – bad idea even if it seems good. You’ll regret it by morning, I promise.

2 . Rely on tobacco – if you smoke, that’s your choice. If you legally consume some sort of tobacco, I wouldn’t recommend relying on tobacco as your only source of stress relief. Instead, find several other activities that can also help reduce stress.

3. Eat with unregulated dietary habits – university cafeterias have lots of food, but much of it is unhealthy. It’s best to plan ahead so you don’t turn into a fatass.

4. Fully rely on public transportation system – unless you need to, don’t rely on a bus or car to get you everywhere. Excersize will probably do you more help than harm.

5. Skip class – class attendance is a powerful tool for learning and leverage. Even if your class sucks balls, still go. It’s important unless the teacher cancels. so…go to fucking class.

Basic recommendations

1. If you are a parent of a student reading this, fuck you, your kid should be reading this.

2. If you are a student, work hard to begin creating a healthy lifestyle for yourself, apart from your parents, that you feel is right for you/your beliefs.

3. Remember that your rights as a student have really changed between high school and college. Get familiar with your rights and fucking use and abuse them. They exist to be exploited.

4. Always put your health first while in college. If your basic health needs are not being met in order to accommodate school work, something is off-balance.

5. Fill out class evaluations and write actual, human comments. Scantron surveys are only bubbles, but it is good to do them for classes. Leaving comments is even better. It lets actual people know how actual students feel about a class.

6. Put the police non-emergency in your phone, even if you don’t think you will ever need it. Even though police are often seen as assholes, they have the capability of saving your ass. And they will. So put the number the fuck in there.

7. If you get into trouble with cops, no matter the shape or condition you are in, do not tell them anything or consent to anything at all, ever! Even if they threaten you with further legal action, do not consent. If you are in legal trouble, they will shit on your life. With that said, never resist arrest. If you are getting arrested, it is too late to intelligently maneuver your way out of something. Instead, remain cool and get a lawyer.

8. Enjoy college. Don’t drink too much.

9. Don’t drink illegally if you know you are going to get caught. (can’t say it any clearer than that).

10. Never ever, in any case, bring a weapon to campus. Weapons are dangerous, crazy, and often illegal to possess on campus. Check your university’s policies if you are unsure about what their policy is.

That’s it. Go devour college. Have fun. Don’t be a douchebag.

How to survive a Spanish class

For those who are doubtful to trust a stranger’s advice, I am currently in Spanish 300 in high school. If you have questions or concerns about anything that I advise in this post, please feel free to email me at trevbork (at) gmail (dot) com.

Learning Spanish has been one of the greatest privileges of my life. I have learned how to have confidence in my work, I have learned things about English grammar, I have learned to take notes, and the list goes on. What may sound weird is that three years ago, Spanish was one of my least favorite classes.

If you are in a place where you do not enjoy Spanish, it’s ok, Spanish is not for everyone. However, you should not let a course you do not like get the best of you. If you are struggling with the curriculum, or if you are thinking that you may soon be in over your head, allow the next several tips to become part of your Spanish learning habits.

Question: I have a hard time with memorization of oral presentations. What should I do?

Answer: I found that for myself, the key to solid and meaningful memorization was through reading the oral presentation aloud as you are preparing. Be sure to prepare the actual dialogue at least three days in advance (if possible…I know some courses are a bit more rigorous) and if it is permissible, prepare the visual presentations at least two days in advance.

If you read aloud, you will:

A. See the words you are to memorize

B. Hear the words you are to memorize

C. Be aware of the words you are to memorize

When you read aloud, or perhaps before you begin reading aloud, make sure you are pronunciating the word(s) correctly. If you do not know how to pronounce a word, read it, then highlight or take note of it, and ask a professional instructor, speaker, or teacher how to properly pronounce the word.

After you have read the word(s) aloud for at least two days, your next step is to write the words. A good technique to ensure solid and meaningful memorization is to write down what you are able to recite. Then compare your writing with the real dialogue and fill in the gaps and correct the errors. If there are major errors such as gaps in sentences, you should spend more time reading aloud and not worry about writing.

Question: I left all of my work for the last minute, and I have a TON of Spanish work due tomorrow. What should I do?

Answer: Waiting until the last minute is never a good thing. The results are hardly, if ever, good. Remember the ultimate goal of any curriculum is to learn the material. Grades are a separate entity used to measure performance on a completely different level from actual life-application or intellect. What you may consider doing at this point is to not worry about the grade you are going to receive, and instead, focus on learning. While remaining calm and relaxed, start from square one, and at no faster of a pace, begin reading aloud.

If you overload your mind with ton of new words it has never seen before, or if you do a half-effort job on ten pages of your workbook instead of doing a full-effort on five pages, chances are good that you will fail to retain any of what you crammed or rushed through.

However, if you take time to work from square one at the same pace that you normally travel, chances are good that you will be able to retain what you learn. The mind can only intake so much at one time. The more you give it at one time, the greater the likelihood becomes that the information being processed will not embed itself as deep into your mind as it would if you take in little chunks of information over a period of many small time periods.

Question: My schedule is so full, I don’t have time to study or do my assignments. What should I do?

Answer: The first thing to realize is that you are not alone with a busy schedule. Comparing who has the busiest schedule is impossible because everyone works and completes tasks differently. If you are feeling completely unable to study or complete your assignments, it’s time to analyze your typical day. Do this by writing or thinking about all the events in one day and highlight any brief or lengthy periods of free time, however long or short the period of time.

After you know all of the periods of free time in your day, find ways to integrate studying or working on assignments with that free time. Be creative with your ideas. Here are some ideas:

If you go straight from school to work on a semi-regular basis with little turnaround time between the two events, try to arrive at work 15 minutes early. Before you clock-in or check-in, or begin your work, spend your 15 minutes of free time studying. If you are unable to bring your textbook or workbook with you to your place of work, a good solution is to make a copy of the pages you need to study or complete. This way, you can fold up your assignment or study material and tuck it into your pocket when it is time to begin work. Now with your study pages in your pocket, every moment of free time or down time becomes a possible opportunity to study. If it is permissible by your manager or your supervisor (if applicable), you can pull your papers out during times of down-time or no work. You can also pull out the study papers during breaks or lunches.

Another study strategy to use at the workplace is the use of a digital recorder or MP3 player. If you find yourself with brief moments of free time on your hands at work, or if you are on a break or a lunch, you can record your reading (which hopefully is being done aloud), and you can review your recording by listening to it, and making changes and correcting errors. If you are bringing an MP3 player to work, it is a good idea to make sure that you have a microphone for your computer at home or a microphone or recording device integrated on the unit. If you own an Mp3 player without a recording device, chances are good that the manufacturer of your Mp3 player makes a peripheral recording device that you could either order online or pick up at your local retail electronics store. Also if you are bringing a digital recorder or MP3 player to work, you should make sure that you have a place to store and lock it so that you can prevent any loss or theft. The other highly important thing to make sure to do before bringing any sort of recording device or electronics to your workplace is to check with your manager or supervisor to make sure it is permissible to bring that sort of technology into the workplace.

For the most part, managers are understanding. If you explain to them that you are a student, and especially if you are a minor, chances are really good that you and your manager will be able to work out an agreement as to when and where you can study or review your schoolwork.

If it is not permissible to bring any outside papers or electronic devices to work, do not sneak them into work without expecting consequences. I do not encourage you to bend or break any rules, regulations, or policies that your employer may have. If this is the case, find other creative ways to review your course material. Perhaps you can play a mind game with yourself during periods of less work or no work. The mind game could consist of trying to remember as much course material as you can without looking at anything. Try to visualize the pages of you workbook and only review the words in your head that you are certain are correct. It is not a good idea to have doubts about a word and study it with redundancy because you are at risk for becoming prone to fusing your mind to a word or phrase that is incorrect.

If you have other responsibilities or obstacles which conflict with your study time such as a need to exercise, you can also use the Mp3 player strategy to solve your conflict. It is important to realize that the more you can surround yourself with what you need to learn, the more likely you are able to retain the information and be able to do well on whatever future assignment or exam that may exist.

Question: I have not paid attention in class for such a long time. I do not know where to pick back up again. What should I do?

Answer: First, talk to your teacher or instructor. Chances are good that your teacher or instructor is aware of your current struggle, and if they know that you have a sincere desire to change the way you participate, they will be more likely to offer other recommendations or advise. This will also allow the ability to express your problem to someone else which is sometimes a helpful technique for some people.

Second, if you can afford the expenses, find a tutor. Find a tutor that has been teaching for a long time, or has experience with adapting to alternative learning styles, or knows where you are coming from in terms of your struggle. If you can do this, chances are good that you will be able to pick back up again and rock at Spanish.

If you can not afford the expenses of a tutor, try finding someone who will give you tips or possibly even a volunteer tutor. Volunteer tutors are not always the best but they almost always help with academic support and motivation. If you can at least get someone to motivate you, this is key because if you feel good about your in-class performance or whatever you are learning, chances are good that you will soon be able to get back on your feet in times of academic struggle.

Question: I have a ‘bad’ teacher. What should I do?

The most important thing to do is to not take your anger or frustration out on a teacher, instructor, or peer. The teacher is there to represent the knowledge being taught in the classroom. If you are having a hard time with a teacher, talk to another adult, a friend, a trusted relative, etc about your struggle with a teacher. Do not confront the teacher about the problem as your first strategy.

After you receive advice from other trusted people, try to disengage yourself from the actual teacher and focus on what they are saying. If the teacher is rude, be bigger than the rudeness. You are there to learn, not to be negatively altered by the rudeness of a teacher. If the rudeness is out of line or inappropriate, seek necessary steps immediately. If a teacher is being overly mean or rude, you need to seek the advice of an administrative official, a human resources representative, etc. Make sure someone in a higher position of power knows about your situation.

The next thing to remember is to focus on learning and forget about defending yourself from the rudeness of others. If the rudeness is not to a level where you would seek external administrative help on the situation, make sure to ignore the rudeness and simply focus on being a student and/or a learner of the material being taught. If your physical safety is being violated, even if you are not being externally hurt, you need to talk to an administrator or higher power about this as well.

If the teacher or instructor is simply a ‘bad’ teacher – defined as someone who is unable to teach clearly, you should seek a tutor, or try to find help from another teacher. If you are unable to do this, talk with your instructor and ask for additional practice materials so that your instructor is aware of your desire to go beyond the requirements of the class, and that you can also have the advantage of additional practice.

If you follow the above steps, you will do well in Spanish. I can not guarantee anything, but I can assure that these steps have worked for me. If you have any comments about what you have just read, please feel free to comment on this. Your comment will not be blocked if it is in opposition to this article. Varying opinions are highly encouraged. Good luck.