Tag: helsinki design school

You’re going all the way

Mia1 Comment
be brave
Post title ‘American Science’ by Duran Duran

Recently on The daily post in daily prompt, there’s been words that are kind of hinting. Words like Believe, Risky, Ascend, Loyal and now Brave. It’s like they are trying to tell me something. All of those words have a meaning when it comes to job search. You need to believe in yourself and be loyal to your goals. Without some risk you’ll won’t get far. You want to ascend to the next level of your life and not get stuck. Most of all you need to be brave and that’s where I lack it. Sometimes I do feel brave though. Like when I went to see Robbie Williams this summer. From my point of view that is a brave move. I didn’t back down like I usually do. I just took the chance and went. I’m not into big crowds but it wasn’t as bad as I thought. I ended up having a really good time. I wish I could be brave like that more often.

Back in 2015, I wrote a post about my job search. Some things have changed since then. Like the photography and job search campaigns thing. The latter I skipped altogether. When you looked through a lot of job ads, they’re soon coming out of your ears. I can understand why some unemployed think job search is useless. I hate the writing part where you have to explain yourself why you’re the one the employers are looking for. Especially when I have to write them in Finnish. My mother tongue is Swedish so it shines through in my writing. At least that’s what my web design teacher told me. I’ve always thought my Finnish writing was alright but now I feel insecure. Maybe the reason why I haven’t got even an interview is because of the writing. I have got into education despite that so it can’t be it. Finnish is not the easiest language so it’s not that easy for Finns either. If I keep looking to work for someone else, all my skills I’ve learned so far will go to waste. Honestly, I’m getting fed up with this whole job search thing. The gaps in my work experience are probably too high but at least I wasn’t totally lazy. I did have those clients when I studied web design so I do have some experience in the field.

I don’t really know what to call myself anymore. Yesterday I did something I didn’t think I would do. I applied for an education for a graphic designer in the same school where I studied a photographer degree, Helsinki Design School. Applying doesn’t do any harm. If I don’t get in, it doesn’t matter. I’m still looking for work and if I did find one, I could still go to school. Some say this school is a joke and that the degrees don’t mean anything. Even though I didn’t get a job in photography, I still experienced things I wouldn’t normally do. Employers might not see the degrees worthwhile but in the end, it’s the skills of people that matter. I think in Finland, certificates are too important. Especially in design. There are different ways to educate yourself and you don’t need to go to fancy schools to learn. Jealousy is a problem in Finland.  If you have taken a simpler route to design, you get the look you’re not good enough. They don’t say it out loud but you know they mean it.

I see younger people’s work in design and I feel I’ve no chance in the business. I feel like Chandler Bing in Friends when he changes jobs and he started to work in advertising where all these young people worked. He felt so old and thought he didn’t have a chance. In the end, he did get a job there as a manager or something like that. In real life, you can’t get a job that easily if you have no experience or education. Employers are so into thinking about the future so they hire younger people. But how much do these 20 something know anything about life anyway? Of course, they should also get a chance but experienced shouldn’t be disregarded either. I wish I had the power to hire unemployees who’s been rejected for different reasons. But that’s too much for one person to handle. Being the employer is no piece of cake either.

As for what to call myself. I want to do something more than just designing websites. I wonder what people think of long job titles. How about web designer/photographer/graphic designer. Just designer doesn’t say much. It still feels weird to call myself a designer. They say you should stand out of from the crowd and that is it. I can do more than just one thing. The whole standing out is a bit strange. Aren’t we all a bit different in some way? I for sure hope there’s no one like me out there. I couldn’t handle two of me. At least I have been brave enough to be different and not walk the same path other people expect me to. I’m going all the way and it doesn’t matter what others think. Always follow the path you’ve chosen. That’s what I call bravery.

Tallenna

Tallenna

Tallenna

A good education doesn’t guarantee you a job

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succure
Source: http://www.edweek.org

Getting a job these days is difficult wherever you are. No matter what you study, it doesn’t mean you’ll get a job in that field. There’s always different excuses why you’re not getting the job you applied for. It’s either too many applicants or you’re not qualified even if you know you can do the job. No matter how you try to stand out, there’s always someone else who gets picked instead of you.

A lot of people send applications to hundreds of different companies but they’re not even getting interviews. What’s the point there? If you send the same CV’s and applications no wonder you don’t get any. Every job you apply for should be different. Sometimes not even that helps. You also need some luck. Or you have a large connection circle. But what if you don’t have neither of them. Should you educate yourself to something else where there’s work? There are jobs but never the one you’re looking for. I’m up to here with education. It’s a job or an internship I want. There is no other option.

Last time I had an internship was in 2012 and even that was only for 2 weeks. After that I have nothing. The problem is, there seem to be too many people doing creative work which is the one I’m interesting in. Especially photography but there’s no work for someone like me. I’ve started to think I’ll never become a pro. Even photography itself has become boring. Maybe I should just have it as a hobby. Why bother getting better if no one even wants to give you an internship? The studies in Helsinki Design School hasn’t helped at all. That was a lot of nonsense. They just wanted to cash in from students. Don’t get me wrong. I did get something out of it. But when it comes to work, nada. At least I did something and met new people.

That something can’t last forever though. Honestly I’m getting tired of it. I’m not getting younger and soon no one wants to hire me. First of all, I’m been out of the work environment for too long and secondly I’m getting too old for this shit (turning 39 this June) Even if I’m that old, I’m not very confident finding anything. You should never lose hope but at the moments I’m close to it. I’m going to a career coaching course next month where there’s gonna be about job searching, about your strengths and interests, among other things. I don’t know if that will help my case but at least that’s better than doing the same old things I do now.

Class reunion- to go or not to go

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want2come
Sheldon, Big Bang Theory

Class reunions, you either love them or loathe them. It depends on how much you liked school and if you had any friends. I’ve never been to one even if I did say I would come. This was the class where I didn’t enjoy my time at all. I was just glad I didn’t have to see those people again. But when it was time for the reunion I thought, I’ll show them I’m a different person. At the time I thought I would have something to brag about. In the end it didn’t matter. Why do I have to impressive these people anyway. I don’t care about them. They didn’t care about me. They’re the past and that has nothing to do with the future. So I decided I would not go and I have never regretting it.

Now it’s time for a reunion but this time it’s with my class mates from Helsinki Design School. Even though I enjoyed the time there, I didn’t find that “connection” with any of them. It would be nice to see them again though despite that but it’s in Helsinki and I’m not really into travelling there just for a few hours. The restaurant they chose is quite expensive too. The meeting day is also on a Friday and that’s when all the weirdos are outside. Then there’s the money issues. There probably will be another reunion one day. If I decide to go, what would I do there. Just sit and listen? I have nothing to say. They never asked me anything when the photography course was on so why would they ask me anything now? These kind of gatherings are a pain for an introvert even if it’s with people you know. I don’t even know them. They’re just ships passing by. I don’t even remember their names. Then again it’s never too late to get to know them. At least those people that can make it. It’s also quite interesting to know what they’ve been up to even if I don’t have anything to tell. But is it really worth going that far just to sit and listen. I don’t really care if they want me there or not. If I decide to go I’ll do it out of curiosity.

Then there’s the bus or train schedules. Will I found a suitable time, is also the question. I don’t know how long I want to be there. It’s less expensive to buy the tickets online in advance. But what if I don’t like it there. Then of course I can leave earlier. But if I like it there, it would be a shame to leave just because I have to catch a train or bus. The restaurant is open until 2 am but I’m not gonna stay that long. There will be another reunion so if I don’t go this time, there’s always next time.

Decisions has never been my strongest side. Should I stay or should I go, that’s always been a problem for me. I’m still thinking if I should go to this reunion. It’s at least 3 weeks until it happens so there’s still time to think about it.