Working When Out of Work
While the United States economy as a whole has shown promise as of late, unemployment figures have lagged significantly behind other metrics on the road to recovery. This trend is particularly alarming to younger members of the community, lacking the relevant work experience to contend for desirable jobs fresh out of school. So often qualified individuals, thanks to no fault of their own such as study habits or natural aptitude, find difficulty in securing career-oriented work (excluding bartending/waitressing fall back options) directly out of college. With less jobs available market-wide, it follows than employers are receiving heightened numbers of resumes, even for entry level positions, from applicants who have advanced well-beyond entry level status in their career arc. What can you do as a young person with eyes on employment?Campaigns and local politicians are always looking for volunteers, rarely having too little work to go around. One problem for those seeking employment is enduring times of inactivity with nothing to show for it. Though youth unemployment may be an epidemic, employers still like to see some sort of involvement as opposed to resigning to inactivity. While you may not be compensated in dollars (or even cents), working for a politician can be a great chance to gain a valuable reference going forward, while demonstrating strong character through championing a cause and building basic networking and communication skills. Phone banking, for example, is considering tedious work, but a wealth of experience in the practice shows a high level of commitment and willingness to put in work, proven assets to potential employers.In some instances, volunteer work can turn into full time employment, if a situation within the office calls for a new hire, possibly circumventing the job board circuit all together. If nothing else, political volunteerism will help you to both market yourself and build connections to enhance future employment prospects.
