New jobless figures were not encouraging as statistics were announced. New Hampshire is now experiencing its highest unemployment since 1994. During the month of January unemployment rose from 4.3 to 5.1 percent. That is the highest one month spike ever.
For me personally the last 2 weeks have been very quiet but as of Wednesday of this week rolled around I received several new prospects. Two are for jobs in New Hampshire and one in Boston. The commute into Boston really does not scare me. I actually enjoy riding the 'T'. In fact Jeannette and I went to Harvard this Wednesday and had lunch there at Bertuccis. She was off from her teaching because of a winter break. With me off we were 'forced' to enjoy ourselves together.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Week 8 of the Job Hunt
Job hunting sort of reminds me of the song from Fiddler on the Roof - matchmaker. The sisters are talking and say, 'She might bring someone wonderful, or handsome, or rich'. In IT work you could be employed in almost any industry like banking, or defense, or construction, or...
I got a call from a recruiter today who said she was representing a Harley Davidson franchise. Had I heard of Harley Davidson? I had to admit I was aquainted with HD. I have some friends who would give their right arm to work for Harley Davidson. I don't own a Harley, but at one time I owned a Honda 350. That of course is a crime to a Harley owner. The franchise was almost two hours from where I live and the salary they were offering did not make that distance seem small.
I couldn't help but to ask if the HD franchise would throw in a company cycle as a perk. We both laughed and then moved on. You never know what the 'matchmaker' will bring.
I got a call from a recruiter today who said she was representing a Harley Davidson franchise. Had I heard of Harley Davidson? I had to admit I was aquainted with HD. I have some friends who would give their right arm to work for Harley Davidson. I don't own a Harley, but at one time I owned a Honda 350. That of course is a crime to a Harley owner. The franchise was almost two hours from where I live and the salary they were offering did not make that distance seem small.
I couldn't help but to ask if the HD franchise would throw in a company cycle as a perk. We both laughed and then moved on. You never know what the 'matchmaker' will bring.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Networking is essential
On Thursday night I played indoor tennis with a friend and reviewed with him how the jobhunt is going. I needed the exercise and talking about the jobhunt I believe is helpful. I don't know whether my interview on Wednesday was successful or not. I think it went well. I answered all the questions appropriately and I believe the position is a good fit for me.
On Friday I had lunch with some of the boys from my last job at EMC. It was a payoff of sorts. Being from Southern California I am a fan of the LA Lakers. Since EMC is in New Hampshire there is no shortage of Celtic fans. Since the Lakers beat the Celtics last week they bought my lunch. They also mentioned 3 more people were let go from that project last week. At least 2 of these were whom I thought of as superstars. Go figure.
The message here is it helps to talk with people about the job hunt. Someone might have a lead or at least a word of encouragement or they just might buy you lunch. Thanks guys. Go Lakers!!!
On Friday I had lunch with some of the boys from my last job at EMC. It was a payoff of sorts. Being from Southern California I am a fan of the LA Lakers. Since EMC is in New Hampshire there is no shortage of Celtic fans. Since the Lakers beat the Celtics last week they bought my lunch. They also mentioned 3 more people were let go from that project last week. At least 2 of these were whom I thought of as superstars. Go figure.
The message here is it helps to talk with people about the job hunt. Someone might have a lead or at least a word of encouragement or they just might buy you lunch. Thanks guys. Go Lakers!!!
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
How many Do-overs can we afford
The New York Times says that Timothy Geithner will be having a do-over of Americas financial system http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/11/business/economy/11geithner.html
As I recall that plan was rushed through congress with the notion that something had to be done or our economy would go belly up. Does that sound familiar? It sounds just as familiar as today's newscasts. Now Geithner is talking about 2.5 trillion dollars or more to shore up the banks. Don't worry about the costs because it will include printing money. Shades of Jimmy Carter and the I word
Why are we rushing to spend 900 billion dollars on programs that won't create jobs anytime soon. One estimate is that every job created will cost $300,000. Not a very good return on our tax dollar.
Thats okay though because if it doesn't work we can just have another do-over. What will a do-over stimulus bill cost?
We really don't need this stimulus bill the way it is written. Take another month and find out what creates jobs. Then pare the bill down to a 'measley' 300 billion dollars and we and our children will be better off.
As I recall that plan was rushed through congress with the notion that something had to be done or our economy would go belly up. Does that sound familiar? It sounds just as familiar as today's newscasts. Now Geithner is talking about 2.5 trillion dollars or more to shore up the banks. Don't worry about the costs because it will include printing money. Shades of Jimmy Carter and the I word
Why are we rushing to spend 900 billion dollars on programs that won't create jobs anytime soon. One estimate is that every job created will cost $300,000. Not a very good return on our tax dollar.
Thats okay though because if it doesn't work we can just have another do-over. What will a do-over stimulus bill cost?
We really don't need this stimulus bill the way it is written. Take another month and find out what creates jobs. Then pare the bill down to a 'measley' 300 billion dollars and we and our children will be better off.
do it right the first time
One of the fun jobs I do is refferee basketball games. As such i try to be absolutely neutral and call them as I see them. I do have my political hot buttons, but I believe that I should support the president of the U.S. and our elected leaders. I have been rooting for President Obama as his term begins to do a good job for the country. As I pay attention to the sell given for the economic plan I am disappointed that the rhetoric is pushing this stimulous plan as a last chance without which we may never recover. It seems like reality is that this bill is fundamentally flawed, and should be pulled back and rewritten as a bill that actually will create jobs without expanding our national debt to enormous proportions. My father used to tell me that 'any job worth doing is worth doing right'.
Monday, February 09, 2009
Week 7 of the Job hunt
My contract supporting information technology ended December 17th. I did enjoy the Christmas holiday. The nojob situation was in the back of my mind as you might expect.
I have heard a great deal of negativity regarding the state of the economy. I can't help but believe the axiom that when your friend loses her job it is a recession but when you lose yours it is a depression.
Since December 17th I have talked to a number of recruiters and had numerous phone interviews. I have also had 3 personal interviews but no grand prize as of this writing. I have another interview this Wednesday.
It is my intention to begin recording some of the experiences I have while going through this process. Hopefully I will not be writing many articles labelled 'jobhunting'
I have heard a great deal of negativity regarding the state of the economy. I can't help but believe the axiom that when your friend loses her job it is a recession but when you lose yours it is a depression.
Since December 17th I have talked to a number of recruiters and had numerous phone interviews. I have also had 3 personal interviews but no grand prize as of this writing. I have another interview this Wednesday.
It is my intention to begin recording some of the experiences I have while going through this process. Hopefully I will not be writing many articles labelled 'jobhunting'
Saturday, February 07, 2009
Stimulus plan should be limited
My contract ended and I am looking for work. Even so I do not believe that the current stimulation bill in congress should be hurried through as President Obama is requesting. A bill for almost a trillion dollars in spending should not be rushed through the legislature. The impression I have is that our congressmen don't really know how this bill will actually create jobs.
I have seen reports that suggest that only about 13 cents on the dollar will create jobs. The rest appear to be for pet projects. The extra $25 a week unemployment will not make the difference for me but the fear of paying on that trillion in taxes for years to come is bothersome. It is easy to get into debt and then suffer for years trying to climb out of it.
My vote is for a bill that will truly aim at creating jobs. The bill should be around two to three hundred billion. That still seems like a lot of spending on top of the 700 billion already given to prop up the banks. Nix the rest of the stuff.
I have seen reports that suggest that only about 13 cents on the dollar will create jobs. The rest appear to be for pet projects. The extra $25 a week unemployment will not make the difference for me but the fear of paying on that trillion in taxes for years to come is bothersome. It is easy to get into debt and then suffer for years trying to climb out of it.
My vote is for a bill that will truly aim at creating jobs. The bill should be around two to three hundred billion. That still seems like a lot of spending on top of the 700 billion already given to prop up the banks. Nix the rest of the stuff.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)