Job hunting and creative writing

I've been neglecting my blog of late, I know.  And what's worse is that I've been neglecting my blog for something that is definitely not a new frontier.  Being amongst the millions of unemployed (14-15% in my county by last measure) I am diligently doing the job search thing and submitting application after application.  Currently I have about 15 apps in with various organizations, which, for my line of work, is not bad.  The challenge has been how to maintain my own interest in chugging out applications ad nauseum, which really translates into a challenge to find that kernel of connectivity that makes me say, yes, this is a job that's worth trying for when every job in this economy is "worth trying for."  The other challenge is churning out cover letters to go along with each application.

Cover letters are interesting beasts.  They literally cover the application in the form of a tidy little lid that is a like a label on a soup can that gives the ingredients (you) and why the ingredients are the best thing since sliced bread.  Ignoring, of course, the analogy that sliced bread and soup are equally delicious, particularly when eaten together, I found myself in a bit of a conundrum.  I had been in a series of job where my performance, actions and work products spoke for themselves.  I didn't have to do anything and the next job, experience, project would fall in my lap.  Here I am, 14 years later, an understated professional faced with blowing her own horn.  All of a sudden, the superlatives that others dished out so readily on my behalf take on a new light as I examine and re-examine my work history and go through a self-affirmation process of saying, "Yes, I really did all those things and I deserve credit and I know what I'm talking about."  And I need to put those things in writing.  Not everyone can see me on the job.

So, all in all, blogging is a lot like cover letter writing.  It is creative in finding the interesting links between you and what piques your curiosity enough to write and it is a totally narcissistic, self-aggrandizing world that definitely forces this writer out of her comfort zone.

Resume:  http://www.linkedin.com/in/barbararich2009