If this is your first time reading this series, check out part one right here: The Chronicles Of An Entry Level Candidate.
As Entry-Level Candidates there is one word that makes us quiver in fear of being eternally impoverished and a starving-but-no-longer-college-student:Experience.
Is it just me, or does it feel like there is some beautiful Fountain of Experience, for lack of better terminology, that applicants who get into their careers immediately out of college have found?
Now, I knew that majoring in Communications would be tough. It’s very broad, and as for the media facet of it,(that I was applying to along with every other Millennial in the World), it would be competitive.
I was told by more than 50 relatives that it’s a tight industry and it’s all about who you know, and to a degree, it absolutely is. I was not the only one of my friends, however, struggling to find an “Entry-Level” Position that required entry-level experience.
What I mean by this is: to become a Receptionist, I needed 2-3 years of office experience, to become an Assistant, I needed to have been responsible for managing the schedules for 4+ reps at any given time for the past 1-2 years. Hell, even to become an Intern I needed 2 other strong media internships on my resume.
Luckily for me, I had two internships at different Long Island Radio Stations, so I was covered; but when it came to getting paidfor what I wanted to do, the search for a genuinely entry-level position seemed endless.
So where were people finding it? I sure as anything didn’t know. Then it hit me. I have all of this experience… in a matter of speaking.
I handled the schedules for dozens of people! They weren’t “reps,” exactly, they were more like McDonald's Employees, and actually they were definitely McDonald’s employees… but hey, improvise.
I have the ability to maintain a professional work ethic in high pressured situations because I know what it’s like to have the kitchen forget to make Table 22’s Nachos, and they’ve already been waiting 15 minutes. While I’m apologizing profusely, Tables 23, 24, and 25 all get sat and need drinks.
I can definitely handle dealing with clients from all different backgrounds, because how can you possibly get more versatile than dealing with 2-year-olds by day, drunk radio station listeners by night, and everyone in between?
Experience using Social Media? Check.
Ability to work under tight deadlines? (Um, procrastinating, college student with 3 jobs and no time to write a silly philosophy paper until the night before)… Check.
How to make copies? Check.
Make a reservation? Check.
Excel? Well, it's still iffy if I'm being honest, but YouTube can teach you anything, so... check.
I was perfect! I may not have had the truest form of experience that they were looking for, but I had a work history and ethic that I could definitely use to my advantage. It's just a matter of how you spin it.
I was one of the cynics who said that all of the other graduates who had been fortunate enough to land their "adult" jobs already, must have lied on their interviews and their resumes.
The momentI realized my own situation, and how all of my experience would go hand-in-hand with the credentials that employers were seeking, the more interviews I was able to secure as a result of it. I finally realized that I was good enough and that they weren't asking too much of me. I didn't have to lie or con my way into something, and I presented myself with confidence (keyword), knowing that I would succeed in any number of these roles.
The moral of the story is never sell yourself short, in fact, always upsell yourself. You're an excellent candidate. We may not be 30 (which you must be in order fulfill their requirements), but we've certainly worked our asses off to get where we are, and we can't give up now.