Thursday, January 24, 2013

A new direction?

I have a secret to share. Well, it's not really a secret, unless you've never been in this position, but I'll tell you anyway: job hunting sucks.

It may be one of the greatest evils on planet Earth. Right up there with maths. And mosquitoes (can someone please tell me what purpose these things serve? I can think of none except to torture humanity). 

It's not just the actual act of looking for jobs that is so horrible...although, it's not really fun and it is so easy to procrastinate that task in favour of fun things like reading about the tropes that appear in your favourite books, movies and TV shows (seriously, I've become somewhat addicted to this lately). 

And yes, writing the applications isn't much fun either, although if you're looking for a job in a certain field, you can kind of copy and paste and just change certain things to apply for that specific job. 

No, the worst part is the rejection letters. They come in the mail, in their little innocent envelopes, and if they have a logo on them, you just know immediately. And what was exciting for a moment (because who doesn't like getting mail? What could it be? A present? A cheque? Don't laugh, that did happen to me the other week, much to my joy) becomes a giant, soul-crushing, taunting... thing.

It just taunts you, like a giant YOU SUCK from the universe, and you really do feel like you suck, once you get more than a dozen of them.

It is hopelessly discouraging and the urge to just give in and stop applying is there, don't get me wrong. But I have no desire to be one of the many unemployed, living off Centrelink.

School starts next week, and yes, I am still unemployed. I'm hoping to get some casual work and/or tutoring once school actually starts; but I'm also looking at other things. I have many exciting things planned for 2013, many interstate, which requires money. And I really don't want to be back living at home and sharing a room with my brother for too much longer. 

At first, I was really against even the thought of applying for any job that wasn't teaching related. Because to me, it kind of felt like giving up. I have this beautiful Diploma of Education, and I'm not going to use it? 

However, now I'm at the stage where I'm looking past that. It's not a desperation thing (although having any job sounds good at this time), but I'm just starting to see that there are some opportunities and paths that I wouldn't mind exploring- even if they don't involve a classroom.

For example, writing. I love writing. I have since I was 6, and it's been a happy escape for me ever since then. And whilst I can admit that it's not perfect and can definitely be better, I can also admit that I'm good at it. I have many lovely friends who give me greater compliments than "good", but I'm not a good judge of that! (I'm a perfectionist, I admit it). 

If I had the chance to work in an area somehow related to writing or books, I might have died and gone to heaven. I love teaching, I do, and I can see myself doing it for 20 or 30 years. But I'm only 22. I've done one year, and I'm accepting and realising now that I don't have to do those 20 or 30 years in the classroom full-time right now. 

I'm not giving up on teaching in any way, but I'm just saying I'm not opposed to exploring other avenues in the next year or so. It would give me some great life experiences and new skills and allow me to meet new people. 

Food for thought, I suppose. (Note to self: It may be a good idea to stop thinking after 11 pm. It leads to rambling). 

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