Daily Archives: February 1, 2008

The Career Contender – Introduction

The topic I have chosen to write about for the next 20 or so post is “Building a Better You: A recent college graduate quests for a job.” I figure that since I am going through the process and already doing research on it, that it would be a wonderful choice. My hope is that I can create a good resource for any one prospecting a new career. There should hopefully be tips for the young and 0ld , or at least a few refreshing points that one may have forgot. I created a rough table of contents that should give you an idea of where we will be going.

  1. Who am I?
  2. What do I want to do?
  3. Where do I see myself in 5 years?
  4. Resumes
  5. Monster.com and Careerbuilder.com
  6. Online Applications
  7. Cover Letters
  8. Interview – First Contact
  9. Interview – Preparation
  10. Interview – Appearance
  11. Interview – Composure
  12. Interview – Thank You Cards
  13. Interview – Call Back
  14. Interview – Basic Negotiating
  15. Interview – Contract Negotiating
  16. Interview – Finalization
  17. First Day on the Job
  18. Conclusion — Etc.

The series will start on Monday and a new section will be posted every weekday. If you feel passionate about a subject that is not included, please feel free to submit your ideas via email or in the comments section of any related post.

Happy Hunting!

Hung Jury

It would appear, even with 5 votes, that no conclusive direction could be found. While I was hoping to shove off this responsibility, it once again falls upon my back. At the time I created the list I was brainstorming ideas and put no real thought into which would be the best choice to blog about. Let me take this time to re-evaluate the choices. (Side note: I just realized I could expand the typing window. Genius!)

1. A Space Case: One man’s crazy journey in developing a computer game

While this topic will continue to haunt me daily and I find myself putting in small efforts here and there, it is an unrealistic goal at the moment given other priorities. Expect to see little snippets of work I do for this project as the days progress. (An example can be seen at the end of this post.) I feel that this topic would be best suited to be “blogged” about after I have more work to show or more experiences to share.

2. Building a Better You: A recent college graduate quests for a job

Hmmm…a topic that is….topical (har har) and is relevant to the majority of my reading audience.  This certainly seems like it would be a good choice.  How many posts could I really write on job hunting?  Answer: Lots.  People have written books about all kinds of aspects of job hunting.

3. Building a Better Body: The Great Ski Paradise Workout!

Another well suited topic given my situation.  Who wouldn’t like more information about working out specifically for waterskiing?  There certainly is a lot for me to write about this considering I am one month into the three month process.

4. Building a “Better” Tomorrow: The State of Politics

Just no.   I realized how much work I would have to put in to this topic to make myself happy.  This is a task I certainly would like to accomplish but right now I just don’t have time with everything else I should be doing.  When I do finally approach this topic, expect me to explain in detail my thoughts, feelings and supporting data.  This will likely end with me announcing my candidacy for presidential office.

5. Two for the Price of One: The joys of owning a Nintendo DS

Another easy topic to write about.  It doesn’t have as wide of a scope as some of the other topics, but it does have a lot of potential.  (Especially when I get into homebrew.)

6. Spending Money I Don’t Have: The process of building the computer of tomorrow! (All hypothetical.)

Specing a computer that I could possibly build in the future is too much of an emotional process.  I did it about two months ago when the 45mm processors were announced and I could barely contain my excitement.  It became easier when I noticed the $5000 price tag. My current rig is turning 5 this summer and in computer years that means it’s time for assisted living.  However, until the 45mm processors and DDR3 memory comes down in price…well I’ll need a better job than the one I have currently. (har har)

There you have it.  The options re-evaluated.  And the winner is…..

After the commercial break.

Damn you American Idol(itry)

I’ll tell you tomorrow who wins by making the first post.  It’s still not too late to really lobby for your favorite candidate.

As promised here is an image sample from the game I’m developing.  It’s a practice piece.  An experiment if you will in creating backgrounds and splash images.

starfieldtest