On frustration...

Why is it that the more qualified you are and the more experience you bring to the table, the tougher it is to find a job?

To put it another way, why aren't employers banging down MY door?

I've only been actively seeking and applying for jobs since March 24. Still, I've been actively seeking and applying for jobs since March 24!!! Yes, on March 24 I sent out my first resume. And, granted, I sent it to nothing. I sent it to an abyss. I decided to send out "letters of interest" on the suggestion of a good friend and letters to some contacts my boss knows in Raleigh. It's not lost on me, by the way, that I'm quite lucky she's willing to help me out.

And nothing. Not one nibble. OK, well, I had a nibble, but then was spit out before I had a chance to interview. Damned internal hires! And I'm no longer sending out resumes into the great beyond. I'm applying for specific jobs. Jobs, it would seem, I'm either grossly overqualified for, grossly under qualified for, or jobs for which a leap of faith is required on the part of the hirer as I attempt to jump professional fields.

So, I sit here in utter confusion, wondering how I could be on the job search for over a month and have nothing to show for it. I've sounded all the alarms, brought as many people into my search as I can possible fathom. And nothing.

I know I have time. My guy need not be in Raleigh until August. There's time. Yes, there's time. But I can't help but shake the feeling it's between now and an inch that there will suddenly be "no time" and I'll be stuck where I am, beginning another cycle, making it ever more difficult to leave.

I just remember it being easier than this before. And now I'm more qualified than I've ever been. I have fancy words in my title, for chrissake! I have a graduate degree! Or is that the problem?

My boss shared with me the the other day that, for every $10,000 you make, it takes a month to find a job. Now, you can make a pretty modest salary in order to fall into a spiral of frustration just thinking about that.

And, really, it's my qualifications that are the problem. As I aspire to that Goldilocks of jobs, I'm either over applying or under applying. It was easier before because the world of entry-level was at my fingertips! The only other phone call I've received regarding my job search thus far was a contact making sure I was aware that I applied for an Assistant Director position (my current title is Director). It was your basic, "Um, did you READ the ad?" call out. And my bluff was clear. I simply applied out of frustration. This is the same girl, however, who applied to a job with "Vice President" in the title today. Hilarious.

It will be hard to find the right salary, the right level of leadership, the right everything. I've not lost faith, but I just need a bite to feel better. Just one big, delicious, juicy bite.