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Moving forward
Job title? No, thank you!
"This makes me wonder how soon someone will think up a far better notion for this 'visiting card' concept which has been around since at least Georgian times, and which today seems so distant from really connecting with people as the focus is purely on someone's job title rather than any meaningful information about that person. Is that how people see themselves? Just described as a job title?
I don't have a job title on my cards. Instead I have one of Hugh McLeod's cartoons on the back that expresses a tongue-in-cheek view of the world as I see it. While that might be a bit too abstract for some people, it might tell them something about me that a job title never could. Plus it's a great conversation starter." (NevOn)
I hate job titles. I had to come up with one for my article at elearningeuropa.info. I just wrote down communication researcher, but I don't think that reflects the things I'm doing right now.
Lately, a lot of people ask me what I'm doing right now (regarding work after graduation). My answer to that: well, a lot of things, where do you want me to start? A few weeks ago I started visiting my old fencing club again for the first time in eight years. People I know from back then ask what I've been doing during those years. My answer: well, a lot of things, where do you want me to start? People find it very difficult to place me. I did communication studies, but I'm not into marketing or PR. I tell people I connected communication and philosophy and right there I've lost them. People ask me what I do for a living. I tell them I try to create my own work in different kind of fields, and run experiments for free right now, and they're confused. For some months I've been thinking about a company name for myself to register officially. But what is a name that reflects all the things I am, am doing and want to do in the future? The same with printing good old business cards: what on earth should I put on the card? Every now and then I just tell people to Google on elmine, click the first hit and surf around on my weblog. Maybe that's all I need for now ;-)
I don't mind being jobless, I follow my passion!
Finding a job is probably not that hard. Finding a job that suits me is! Last weekend I met with some friends and explained the current situation: newly graduates experiencing great difficulty finding proper jobs. Their reaction was somewhat laconic telling me they had a tough time too. Yes, probably true, but at least they had different companies at the same time they could apply to. And they didn't compete with literally thousands of other applicants. And they have degrees in business administration and somehow those are the people that always seem to make more money and get the jobs. And they don't mind working for companies that don't care for the personal well-being of their employees (hey, we pay you more than enough salary so don't complain). Oh, and let's not forget that they don't mind living in houses that are too expensive.
I say no to all the above and that's why it's hard for me to find a paying job. But at least I'm following my own passion and my own path and I've never been happier in my live!!!
The lost generation
The Dutch government seems to be concerned with three issues: terrorism, safety issues and cutting down the costs. how we are going to pay for the pensions of (the baby boom generation). I'm not saying these issues should not be given attention (however, the government should have given these issues attention ten years ago!), but there are two huge issues for my own generation nobody seems to notice: finding a proper job and finding a decent place to live in.
One of the December issues of Intermediair , a vacancy magazine for the higher educated, talks about the lost generation. A survey showed that 14% of Dutch students that graduated in 2004 hadn't found a job yet. To put this number into perspective, the average unemployment rate for The Netherlands is 6.3% in October-December 2004. While this seems a huge problem to me (note that I still haven't found a paying job) and friends around me, there seems to be absolute silence around this issue. The people experiencing trouble finding a job now could get 'lost' according to Intermediair since they will lack experience in a few years time when the baby boomers (the generation born after WWII) will leave the companies by the dozen. By that time they will lack the experience AND are not fresh comers on the market, hence the lost generation. I'm one of them. What does this mean to me? I'm well aware of the problem and I'm looking for all kinds of platforms to keep me busy and give me working experience, even if I don't get paid for it. That is my way of dealing with it. But I see a lot of friends around me that need to make money to make a living (I'm in the fortunate position I don't) and are forced to do simple work, e.g. working in a call-center. It's them I'm worried about most, since they lack the time to create their own projects and end up having no proper working experience in a few years time.
Beside the fact that there are hardly any vacancies for starters there is another problem. I'm living in Enschede, two hours by train/car from Amsterdam, three from Rotterdam, two and a half from The Hague. Guess where most of the jobs are! Taking a job in these cities would mean to move there. But you're likely to get offered a one-year contract, meaning there is no way you could get a mortgage. Well, that's fair enough. The only problem is that renting a place is gonna cost so much that you're lucky to find something you can afford AND have your own bathroom. Even though I'm living with Ton, who has a fine income, we could not make a living in the Randstad up to our standards (and that is living together on a minimum of 90 m2 and experience a bit of nature around us). Houses are too expensive out there, either rentals or for sale. And that is not an issue for us alone. So not even the amount of vacancies for me is small, the amount is even smaller if I take into account that I actually can't move further west than Enschede. And what's the news reporting? Well, the trial against the murderer of Theo van Gogh began today. Guess what I've been seeing live on tele today?
My ideal job
Uhm... well maybe more of a description of my skills and the way I'd like to put my skills into action. Let me start with myself.
- First of all I'm a thinker
- I'm reflective on myself and on my environment
- I'm a reader
- I'm a learner
- I like to investigate
- I like doing research
- I like asking questions
My skills:
- I've got a MSc in Communication Studies. That doesn't tell you much:
- I'm well trained in conducting scientifically sound research
- I can conduct quantitative and qualitative research (I prefer the latter)
- I'm well trained and experienced in interviewing people
- I'm not only educated in Communication, but partly in Philosophy as well. Therefore I often reflect on more basic questions around certain topics.
- I'm technology friendly. That means I adopt new forms of technology rather quickly and look for the opportunities it brings and the impact and effects it can have on human behaviour and communication.
My beliefs and interests:
- My main interest is the use of communication technology in all types of settings.
- The way people communicate influences the reaction and attitude of the other.
- There should be more emphasis on relationships and communication along those relationships within organizations, whether profit or non-profit, private or public etc.: the way an organization communicates influences the attitude of their employees, customers and stakeholders
- I'm interested in the theories that develop around Knowledge Management.
- A good way of learning and sharing knowledge is by having good conversations (the sharing of visions, storytelling). Blogs are one of the possibilities to share knowledge and have good conversations asynchronously.
- I'm interested in education in general. Hence my project 'blog in the classroom'.
So what tells this about what I'm looking for?? First of all I'm more on the research side of the spectrum. I like digging in to a topic, question or problem and in the end come up with an answer or solution for it. My role in organizations is more of the advisor rather than being a manager. In the last few years I've been pretty successful in doing it my own way. I sort of sculpted my education myself, chose my own courses and created personal ones. My main fear when I work for some company is that I will have to let go of my own ideas and vision. Therefore I'm looking for a place in an organization where I can learn how the real world works (university is a very protective place to move around), but others appreciate me for my knowledge and ideas and take me seriously as a partner in conversation. The working field can be anything from e-learning to advising companies on their internal communication flow.
Job search continued
It's been a while since I last blogged about my search for a job. The good news is that just last week I had an offer from a university to enter their PhD-program. The bad news (but maybe it's good news as well) is that I rejected this offer. There are several reasons why I didn't take the offer, but mainly my gut feeling told me not to. In the past, I once made a big mistake not trusting my own feeling and relying too much on other peoples judgment. After a long period of therapy and building self-confidence I'm proud I made such a decision.
In the meanwhile I've been keeping an eye out for more job openings that only slightly catches my interest. Only now I've come to realize how much time goes into searching all the relevant vacancy sections (you know, there is not one single portal that searches all the others), skimming through the vacancies, deciding whether anything is relevant to me and after that writing a letter. My biggest handicap is that my skills and knowledge are on the intersection of multiple disciplines (e.g. organizational communication, external communication, psychology, social research, journalism, philosophy etc.) and therefore I have to search all the different sections of the vacancies.
The worst part I haven't mentioned yet: so many vacancies, yet so little for people who are newbies to the job market... I think I'll have to focus more on meeting the right people who can direct me in my search, based on trust. (BTW: I'm still working, rather thinking, on my 'ideal job-description'. Hope to publish it soon!)
Now what?
OK, I've got a degree. What does that mean? Does this mean I can find a better job than most people? So now I'm a communication expert, right. Let's see what companies are looking for at the moment in the field of communication. Oh, when I select 'communication' some companies seem to believe that I'll probably be able to be a software engineer. Uhm, I'm a communication scientist, anyone heard of? Oh, here's a company that is looking for a communication advisor. Oops, sorry, I don't have five years of working experience in the field. I just recieved my degree. Maybe I should aim less high, looking for jobs that don't require an university degree. Let's see....Ah, still in the software business. Nope! But here's another frightening word: marketing specialist. Most times I pronounced in the past the M-word it's not in a positive sense. I don't think I was brought to this world to sell other peoples business.
What am I looking for? On the one hand I have a vision, on the other a total lack of experience. Where can I find a job where I can learn about the real world and in the mean time don't get brainwashed by that same world and lose my vision? Is this Utopia or is it within reach?
