FanfromKenosha's Blog

Alright, I'm going to give everyone a little personal insight on what its like to be someone my age who is unemployed, and searching for jobs. First of all for the people who don't know me, here are some quick facts about me.

*23 yr old male from Kenosha, living at home with his dad (oh joy!! <-- sarcasm)

*Graduated from high school with my diploma and went to college for two years. Left college with a certificate in web design. Only reason I went for a certificate instead of a degree in something like computer science is because of my dyslexia in math. No matter how hard I tried or studied, I would always fail math tests, even with the help of tutors. So I know I wouldn't be able to get anywhere quick.

*Worked at a golf course for 5 years (left in Jan 2007 to look for full time work)

So this is where my problems start. In order to help me find a job, I applied to temp agencies. Not just one or two temp agencies but at five. I applied at Adecco in Kenosha and in Milwaukee, Kelly Services, PA Staffing, Employment Solutions, and Trinity Staffing. With their help I was able to land five jobs. They had me working at a bank for two weeks (was fired, they didn't train me properly,) at a athletic center, doing telemarketing to sell memberships (lasted 2 weeks,) at an assembly line in Racine (I left after one day due to language barriers,) at a call center doing surveys over the phone (quit that job also,) and finally at SC Johnson doing product testing. SC Johnson was the best one, I worked for a month (was originally suppose to be 2 days,) and I was making $12 a hour. There was even hope that I may get put on another assignment making $15 a hour. Well the other assignment went to someone else, and my time at SC Johnson ended. Since then I have been looking for jobs and getting more and more frustrated every day. The job market is horrible, there is nothing for someone like me to apply to. I am looking for office work, because I have a bad back, and I can't be bending or standing all day. I have a lot of years of experience with customer service and working on computers. I have keyboarding skills, and skills at using Microsoft Office and Windows OS platforms. I was also thinking with SC Johnson on my resume, I would be able to land a job faster, since thats such a reputable company. Unfortunately I am wrong. This is what upsets me, I obviously have experience to be able to get myself working in an office, but the companies think otherwise. I am always getting rejected and told I don't have enough experience. No companies are willing to train to anyone anymore. So how are people my age supposed to get their foot in the door and get the experience they need in order to get these jobs. It is so frustrating!! As I said before, I'm 23 years old, its really upsetting knowing you're still living at home with your parents, when you know other people your age are out living on their own making anywhere from 15k up to 30k, if not more. It is even more annoying when you have an 18 year old friend who is in college, and is able to get the same jobs you're looking for with in two weeks of them starting their search. I even considered moving to Milwaukee, but now I don't think I can do that, because I wouldn't be able to support myself, because of my dwindling bank account. What am I doing wrong? If anyone has any ideas or suggestions, I will take them into consideration. I am just getting so frustrated not being able to find a job, so I can finally get out on my own and support myself.