When you start working for a company, you find out how much you do not know. As Michael Franti sings in Say Hey, "It seems like everywhere I go, The more I see the less I know." That summarizes why many times in an interview you will hear that the company is looking for experience. But, how do you get experience if no one will hire you? How do you develop "the lessons of scar tissue?" That, indeed, is the classic dilemma!
Building your skill set is, normally, not a short-term task. You have to take the long view. Consequently, just getting your foot in the door can be one of the best ways to start your career. The job itself may not necessarily the most overriding aspect of being there. Whatever the job, it gives the employer an opportunity to evaluate how you approach your work life and your decision making capabilities. More importantly, with your foot in the door, you have an opportunity to make contacts that were probably beyond your purview before. Those contacts can potentially help you move your career forward either at that organization or another organization.
To gain experience, many times you have to think outside the box to get to your goal. For example, if you want to get into the investment field, but have no experience, you might try becoming a credit analyst at a bank to develop analytical skill sets. Some of the best Wall Street analysts I have known over the years did not graduate with a Finance degree. Instead, they came out of industry such as a pharmacist becoming the Institutional Investor (II) All-Star Drug Company Analyst and an oil company employee becoming the II All-Star Oil Analyst. Many of the Wall Street economists I knew had previously worked in number-crunching jobs for the Federal Reserve Bank. These analysts and economists utilized their background experiences to develop skill sets that allowed them to move their career to a different level.
The French author and philosopher Albert Camus wrote, "You cannot create experience, you undergo it." So, think outside the box then get out there and experience!
As a recent graduate of the Bachelor's program here at Eastern, and soon to be graduate of the MBA, I find this to be an especially frightening thought for many of the younger students. Many undergraduates feel that only after graduation will they begin to obtain real-world, applicable experiences. So, they inevitably wait out their years as a student only to find that getting what was really necessary was pre-work job experience.
ReplyDeleteThe conundrum, of course, is how to get that experience. As Don Gher mentioned above, he has known plenty of people who's experiences were derived from jobs and fields not related in the least to where they are working now. My feeling is that companies, while some may like related work experience, do not necessarily discriminate on the basis of TYPE of experience; but rather distinguish between those who have QUALITATIVE and APPLICABLE experience.
Too many people focus on the traditional outlets for experience (intern, prior jobs, etc.). To show your innovation and creativity I would encourage others to embark on a non-traditional path of gaining insight into your future career. Research studies, personal failures and ambitious beginnings all more than qualify you in another company's eyes as being a potential hire candidate.
For example, while interning at a major Wall Street institution might be great for a finance major moving forward, it is hardly the deciding factor when applying for a job. An individual that is able to properly document and concisely explain his experiences in terms of application to the interviewer is worlds ahead from the individual that cannot detail and expand on its validity.
I was interested in knowing whether or not others who have been out into the workforce and such have a similar opinion on the matter? I see it as such do to the people, companies and experiences I have gone through; but in no means do I think that it is equal across all planes.
I feel that personal motivation and drive is the leading indicator to a company of whether or not you will hold a position within the walls of that corporation.
Finance 101--I wholeheartedly agree--experience is where you find it and is what you make of it. But you can take it further. As an example, if you are a student, you can participate in any number of charitable endeavors, which could not only help build experience but also open up a whole line of new contacts. Many of these contacts can be highly placed in organizations, potentially providing an additional networking venue. If you are both volunteering at the same place, you already have a shared interest.
ReplyDeleteStudies I have seen over time indicate that networking provides the greatest portion of new jobs, as opposed to other ways such as answering ads on Monster, etc.
An example near and dear to me is our youngest daughter. She was a 2003 U of Washington grad with an International Economics degree and spent time going to University in France where all the courses were taught in French. Our oldest daughter was a financial analyst in the Starbucks Treasury Department and the younger daughter decided she wanted to work at Starbucks corporate, as well. She first became a Starbucks barista while in college. After graduation, she took an entry level job in Starbucks Corporate supply chain in an area that mainly had employees more artistic in nature working simply so they could pursue other activities away from their job--thus not highly motivated to advance. She, on the other hand, was able to be "on the ground" and to network. After a year, she was up against 182 other applicants for a Starbucks financial analyst slot. As she was being interviewed, the head of Supply Chain (one of the top 5 company execs) walked by and saw her being interviewed. He stuck his head in the door and told the interviewer, "If you don't hire her, I do." She got the job and, later, became a Product Manager for Starbucks' Seattle's Best Coffee unit helping with development and marketing of new products as her barista and retail background came into play.
She was recently married and her husband is a Villanova undergrad with a degree in Environmental Engineering who worked as an Engineer for a couple of years. He returned to school and received an MBA from Georgetown then was recruited by Starbucks Consumer Products. After a stint of doing work centered more on acquisitions, they now live in Amsterdam and work for Starbucks Europe as he is setting up European Coffee Distribution.
Net-net, there is no substitute for hard work and perseverance, but if you can overlay networking, you increase your odds considerably.
People often laugh that I must know everyone in the world. I'm pretty sure I don't, but I have had jobs that truly relied upon networking. None of which were in my career path, but I found I had a gift for meeting people. I have maximized this gift into one of my greatest employment assets and one that has helped me make vaious career advancements. The network helped me to strengthen my ability to adapt. Volunteer organizations seek me out for board service because of my network and varied experience. People may laugh about my network and unique experiences, but I find I'm one of the first to be called when they need employment advice or leads. Who's laughing now?
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