Job Hunting Experience

Hello readers!
I feel its important that i wrote this post to share about some of my job hunting experience i had encountered so far.
I send out many applications, the challenging part for fresh grads is that, many company would not want to hire you because they are looking for people who have some job experience, or some related job experience.
initially i goes throug job agency as i applied a job through the agency, but instead of placing me to interview for the job i applied, the lady ask if i wanted to be one of their recruiter, the company was recruit express, infamous and well-known for being one of the sucky job recruiter agency, so don't ever approach them or apply any job that is posted under them.
Those who is working inside might have gone through 4 rounds of interview, i passed the third round until i was offended by their stupid branch manager which was the jurong outlet,
and rejected her when she called me to go for the final interview.
I am not even applying to be an air-stewardess, for goddess sake.
Well, its good for her to be direct but from what she say, i am observing myself the business culture. 

eg working at 8am and ending work at 6pm but don't expect to go back on the dot. 

working 6 days, and telling me something like if we train you, we expect returns.
i don't mind the tough/challenges that i might encountered working in such environment,
but i would like to understand the company culture, how they value their staff, but if that is what they say, if we train you, we expect returns, the relationship is no more than just, i am paying you, so i expect you to bring business for the company.
well, please get it clear that i do have a option not to work in your company as well.
I always feel this is what SME companies generally behave in such unprofessional manner, or maybe its just recruit express.

I have the thought of going back to the hospitality industry,

so i went to apply for a position in this small boutique hotel, i applied in the morning, received the call in the noon and got an interview the next day.

on the same day of interview, i got the job offer.
I feel it was too hush, that i ought to tell them to give me some time to consider the job offer.

but at that time, i was just eager to just get a job, which was a huge mistake.
Never ever rush into finding a job unless you know you are looking forward to it.
Because i ended up quitting on the second day of work. haha.
Before i start, i was going to work with a heavy heart, i still remember bf even drive me on my first day of work, i was not looking forward to it somehow.
True enough, when i first reported to work on the first day, my manager was being so frantic and i don't blame her because she was, afterall 67 year old already.

she brought me to a small office that look like a storeroom, which was going to be our office.

maybe its just me, but i used to work in a rather large scale hotel and the treatment is definitely not the same, you report to HR, and you received your own locker and key in a professional manner.

a lock that is confirmed double chop secure enough.

before you are being picked up by your respective department.

and you are being brought to the uniform area to take your measurements,

uniform to shoes are all provided.

but on my first day at this small hotel, the mgr did not prepared my work schedule because i was mainly her assistant, and she doesnt seem to know how to use the computer well..

uniform was provided half to me. and the locker was situated just behind a carpark lot, a mini storeroom. -.-

i used to work with team of supervisors, at least 6 including me, 7 to 8 asst mgr, mgrs, director

and over here, its just both of us.

and on the very first day, the hotel received a complaint from a guest regarding the cleanliness issue and she have been talking nonstop about it since morning, cursing the guest nonstop..

anad gettng stressed over NOTHING.

to me, all they need to do is upgrade the guest a better room, which they did, check for any issues that the guests might have in the new room,

offer some special amenties, apologies card and tada case closed!

its a very simple job that requires you to communicate with the guests,

maybe because i have seen even more serious cases than this, and i thought they are just making a fuss out of nothing.

most of the times when they read the email and start panicking, but when you went to talk to the guest,they might talk to you nicely too.

during the morning meeting, i see how the hotel owner's son getting stressed because the guest threaten to put it on tripadvisor.

when i follow the mgr whole day to check the room, the way she check is way too sloppy.

There are only 3 room attendant for the entire hotel, i used to manage 13 rm attendants, taking care of more than 150 rooms, even though this jobscope is very easy compared to what i used to work in previous hotel.

it is not challenging. it is boring.

i think any old person is suitable to take this job because its very slow paced.

i am used to running everywhere, coordinating with my previous excellent team of rm attendants,

the asst mgr does not have to worry that i didn't do a good job even though i was the youngest.

dont have to worried that i will have alot of remaining rooms left because i managed to give it out everytime unless they didn't give me enough manpower.

this was a drastic difference from what i used to do, even though the pay is higher.

which i started to question myself, is this what i want?

after i went back home on the same day, i drafted out an resignation letter and send via email,

so that was how i ended a day work in a small boutique hotel, i was quite lucky because i only need to pay either 1 day of salary for 1 day of notice to resign.

the HR called me the next day, they wanted to know the reason for me quitting, they thought i was being bullied, the mgr called me too but i just came up with another excuse that i went back to my old hotel.

after that, i have my fair share of going for interviews with other companies, 

i was looking to explore the education sector, there was this tuition centre which is a very rubbish place that i still WANT to called it as a tuition centre even though when the founder ask me whether i know what they actually do, i started saying somewhere that its a tuition centre helping other to improve their results especially months before their 0 level, whatever blah shit.

and thn he told me they are not exactly a tuition centre, but more of an enrichment centre.

wtf crap, and the whole interview process, i can only interpret him as sugarcoating his words, promoting to me his tuition centre.

it doesn't works on me because i study marketing and i know very well whether you are capable or you are trying to brand your tuition centre as a place where everyone yearn to enter.

one thing that i need to remind anyone who are looking jobs next time to ask the interviewer if you realised that the jobscope they mentioned is totally different from what they ask you during the interview.

for eg: asking you to tell them what is your dreams,

and asking what you want to achieve, and when you give the typical my 5 year goal interview answer, they prompt you to tell them what you really want, desire, a car, a bungalow, whatever the reason.

before they tell you a 9 to 5 job is not something you can achieve if that is what you want to 

so they start to tell you, its gonna get tough but you know its worth the effort.

i am very skeptical and i hate people asking me what i want, so i usually play along.

you ask if i want a car, ok yes a car.

i am just not comfortable sharing with strangers what i want.

so i can tell u yes, i am.

but when you offer me a second round with whatever shit director/mgr.

i rejected, cos you waste my time once, i am not letting you to waste the second time.

this happens when i apply for a marketing exec, but when u attended an interview without explaining to you the exact jobscope, its highly that you are being scammed into coming down to become some financial consultant or some MLM promoters or whatever.

the more you tell me i can become this and that, the more i will reject.
not because i find that it won't works, on the other hand, i know there are successful people who rely on this rice bowl to survive and getting what they want to achieve, but at this stage, i am not sure what i want yet.

so this stupid tuition centre asked me what is my dreams and while he emphasise they are not tuition centre, later on during the interview process, he explain that this job allow you to learn in many aspects, such as how to run a tuition centre.

SEE SEE! i told you not to sugarcoat your words because i am a marketing student!

if you are a tuition centre, just admit la! there is no point trying to instill the perceptions of your stupid tuition centre as a place that i should be honoured to work in.  disgusting.

but i didn't embarrased him, and he told me if he were to ask me to come down fr 2nd rd of interview, i would require to do some dreamboard assignment.

and i actually rejected the second round when the job agency called me, the agent insisted to let me take a look at the email, and i find it totally rubbish to ask me to do a presentation on telling them what is my dreams.

AGAIN. for the second fucking time.

to me its seem like some sales job underlying the main jobscope

giving me eg: want to own a car, drive a bmw blah whatever shit.

that make me really question what is the exactly jobscope, because when i asked a typical day in their working environment, he was talking nonsense and didn't answer my questions.

never be afraid of asking questions, because you won't want to be shocked at the difference of your expectations vs reality.

and i went on to another company, it was slightly better, the interviewer was more direct in explaining the jobscope, responsibilities, was a sales support role, so he answered me that it has nothing to do with sales and if i am keen to move on, i can, if not i can stay where i am, the guy is actually quite a good man, at least from what he told me, its sound legit enough.

but the problem is my expected salary.

i am not asking a high pay but a reasonable salary, that is the market rate,

he told me its reasonable, but when i went fr second round w HR,

the pay was slashed down super pathetic.

that was also the interview when i learned to ask if i can have some time to consider before giving them an answer.

so far i am actually quite fortunate that all the interviews i went, i would get either a second round or a job offer, but i rejected them either the pay is not decent enough or i just don't like.

so i rejected this job too in the end because of the pay and the working hours.

it was kinda of disheartening because most of my friends has got a job by then, and i was like the only one unemployed. 

but i was not going to settle for any less.

so i continued with mass sending of my resume and last week alone, i went for the highest record of attending 3 interviews in a day.

fortunately 2 interviews was 2 different positions in the same company.

there was a total of 4 interviews for that week,

and in this week, i received calls from all these interviews that are keen to hire me.

in fact after i interview for the 2 different position in the same company, 2 different hr personnel was handling the 2 different position, but 1 of them, the mgr called me up and asked me what is my decision after going the interviews, told her that i need time to consider, 

actually i love the way this company interview because they are very direct, straightforward,

the mgr ask me to do a brief introduction before going straight in telling me the position jobscope, responsibilities, no sugarcoat, no hiding, explained to me why they have this vacancy not become someone resigned but because the person have moved up to a higher position.
not the typical, why do you want to enter this industry, tell me your strength and weakness, whats your goal in few year time. zz
in fact i was rehearsing for the interview the night before, and was surprised when they don't ask me all of these qns but straight to the point. me like!

the other interviewer for the other position, also went straight to the point, and i think probably because it was an urgent position so if i were to tell them yes i am willing to take on this position, i would get hired.

but i didn't want to make a choice first because frankly. i apply these 2 jobs for fun,

i didn't expect to receive calls to go down for interview because there was like hundred over applicants for that position and even though i apply for many jobs, i dont get many interview down, but when i do get interviews, i do get job offers.

my focus was another job that i applied for quite sometime and they only get back to me on the same week, so i thought i just go and take a look,

but i became more interested in one of these 2 job position that i apply for fun.

but now that i have accepted this job, i am not treating it as child play lah.

lets name company A, B,C

so this company A, the hr manager was eager to ask me to make a decision between the 2 positions, even analysing for me the career path, but the more she wanted me to go for her position she handle, the more i choose the other one. HAHA.

not entirely the case la but i was looking at the career prospects.

i went for company B and C interviews too

company B, was also very direct and straightforward but the jobscope is a very routine job, 

so after i completed my interview with company C.

my choice was either the position with company A or with C,

because both are big companies.

when the hr from company A called me the next day, i told her i prefer the other position and she say okay she let her colleague know,

but i was wondering whether she would tell her, so i went to email the girl to ask whether i can have a timeframe to know if my application was successful,

and she called me like less than 5min after the email was send, which mean the lady is also cunning because she didn't tell the girl i prefer that position!

tmd. but nevertheless, i got that job and i am kinda of looking forward to it,

maybe the job get tough but the pay is a comfort for me la.

and i actually received phone call from company B to ask me go down fr 2nd rd of interview, which i rejected after i sign the appt of letter with company A already,

and i received a call from company C ytd, the hr informing me that they have interview all their candidates and wanted to offer a job for me,

when i have no job offer, there is none but when i have job offer, i got 3 to choose!

but since i have accept the job offer, i will still monitor the environment as well!
guess i shall end now.
till then!