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I currently live with my parents in Central Fl but in a couple weeks I'm moving in with a family member who lives in a very rural military base town in a different state. I'm doing that because after I graduated two weeks ago, my parents financially cut me off and I've been living at home but I'm unable to do anything because I don't have a job. I've been looking for a job in CFL for months, I started looking before I even graduated, but haven't found a single thing.
The relative who I'm moving in with has really been the only supportive and realistic person during this time (my parents are like "why don't you have a full time job yet?"). But the area is VERY rural. The town is literally a military base with like... cows and deer all around.
I'm just wondering, should I go in debt a little bit and move somewhere besides the rural town that may have more job opportunities? What if I just packed up and moved to Atlanta or something without a job lined up? I'm worried of getting stuck in a small town.
To be honest, I'm totally "average" on paper. Graduated with a degree in Economics (that was probably my first mistake), did ok in school but didn't graduate with honors or anything special. I worked part time at minimum wage jobs throughout high school and college but never interned because I was always taking classes and working. I held a few leadership positions in organizations on campus.
I'm a really hard worker and an honest person, and I learn things really quickly. How do you get from the online job application, to the interview?
Will living in a rural area affect my ability to get jobs? Should I lie about my address on my resume? Should I just pack up and move somewhere?
I'm open minded, the only thing I know is that I do not want a job in sales - there's nothing wrong with working in sales, but if you knew me in person you would know that I'm just not a salesperson. I get along great with other people, but I just can't sell things.
What should my next step be? Is it ok for me to be unemployed right now while I'm searching for full time jobs? Or should I at least pick up a part time waitressing job or something?
I grew up in a rural area and I can understand how hard it is to find a job, any job, much less a job in your field. But no, I would not recommend moving to a random area and incurring debt, trying to establish yourself. That is a huge risk and the debt can rack up fast. I would instead suggest you just do your best trying to get a job either at your current location, or your relative's, and then save up as much as you can. Yes absolutely, take a part time job waitressing or something in the meantime. Frankly I would think that would look better than having zero employment history. If you think you can pick up such a job easier at your parents' then you might want to stay there.
Once you have a savings cushion, you can then consider moving someplace totally new. I myself relocated to a totally new place without a job lined up several years ago. It worked out well, but my husband and I made sure we had about six months' living expenses saved up before we moved.
I grew up in a rural area and I can understand how hard it is to find a job, any job, much less a job in your field. But no, I would not recommend moving to a random area and incurring debt, trying to establish yourself. That is a huge risk and the debt can rack up fast. I would instead suggest you just do your best trying to get a job either at your current location, or your relative's, and then save up as much as you can. Yes absolutely, take a part time job waitressing or something in the meantime. Frankly I would think that would look better than having zero employment history. If you think you can pick up such a job easier at your parents' then you might want to stay there.
Once you have a savings cushion, you can then consider moving someplace totally new. I myself relocated to a totally new place without a job lined up several years ago. It worked out well, but my husband and I made sure we had about six months' living expenses saved up before we moved.
Yeah, my only problem with part time waitressing or retail sales associate jobs is that I've been doing that since I was 16 (so for 6 years now). I have a college degree and I've worked for six years, at what point should I stop settling for these jobs? I want to learn something different and have a career. My biggest fear is getting stuck.
It's pretty much set in stone that I'm moving to that rural area, I love my parents, but I can't live in their environment anymore - it's too negative and there are just some issues going on here. Will living in a rural area hurt my chances of finding a job? I'm more than willing to drive for an interview and relocate pretty much anywhere.
When you say this relative has been "supportive," do you mean they aren't holding you accountable? Just because your parents question you about jobs doesn't mean they aren't supportive.
Yes, you should be working while you are job hunting. You need income, and you need experience and connections. The last thing you need is to meet a soldier from the base and, well, you know ...
Job search online, spend the money you have to make it to interviews. That's the best advice I can offer. I've worked in rural areas, and also lost my job in one. Very hard to replace or find a job in a rural area. You're better off seeking employment in greener pastures.
When you say this relative has been "supportive," do you mean they aren't holding you accountable? Just because your parents question you about jobs doesn't mean they aren't supportive.
Yes, you should be working while you are job hunting. You need income, and you need experience and connections. The last thing you need is to meet a soldier from the base and, well, you know ...
My parents not being supportive I guess is more about them having their own more serious issues to deal with right now, which has made living here really difficult. I don't want to get dragged down by the drama, and this relative would be letting me live with them without me paying for rent, which is something that I'm struggling with right now by living with my parents. A lot of the problems are somewhat being taken out on me, kind of bringing me down. I haven't lived at home in about 4 and a half years, so moving back in and having it be like this is really difficult for me.
So I guess moving has become more about... living at home in a dramatic situation where I'd have to be contributing to paying for rent and food vs. living with my relative who is more stable/no drama, and not having to pay for rent and food, so I guess I could be saving more.
I mean, is it smart to get out of negative living situation? Or is it worth it to just suck it up until I find a full time job? I've only been back home for two weeks but they've been two of the worst weeks of my life with everything that has been going on. I don't want it to impact me or my abilities or chances of finding a job, but yeah I'm totally worried that living in a rural area, though it may be good for me mentally, will get me nowhere.
It is hard to establish a career in a rural area anywhere. If you can live with this family member, than maybe you should move. You are still trying to jumpstart your career and in a rural area that is really hard to do.
If you move to a larger city, you need to have the job lined up before moving, especially since you admit you have no savings.
Wherever you decide to live, find any job available and save up your money to move to a metro area later on where most of the entry level jobs are. Whatever you decide to do, if I were you, I would take any job, even part-time as your goal is to save up your money and be more independent by moving out on your own.
You are still quite young, so you have options, but you need to bring in any kind of money you can as having money gives you more flexibility. Without any money set aside, you are depending on other people and in this case family.
OP could move to a random metro area (do you need or have a car? Atlanta famously has lousy public transport. How about Houston?) and yes, waitress or tend bar while working on getting the life more together. Working food service *again* is a lot different from no job at all. Also, food service is a fairly sociable job and might lead to some good connections. I'd always rather lift a tray than have no income.
The military town sounds like a losing idea unless there are some kinds of jobs on the base for civilians. Likely local people have grabbed all such jobs, and OP would end up with no prospects and only a roof (someone else's) overhead. In a metro area, there are temp agencies, places to get certificates, etc. Ways to move. It takes more than a roof to get going. I strongly suggest that food service in a metro area is the way to get going. Best wishes.
It's hard to live in a negative, stressful environment. But I don't think that moving out to the middle of nowhere is the answer. If you live in a very rural environment, you will be shooting yourself in the foot. Careerwise, you will get nowhere fast. Living far away from everything will make it very hard for you to get to job interviews and find work.
Stay at home and make job hunting your full-time job. Stay out of the house as much as possible to avoid the drama. Leave in the morning, and return at night. Do your research at the library. Take exams for federal/state/county/city jobs in places you'd be willing to move to. Speak to people in the career office of your college to see if they can help you.
Get a part-time job. Part-time jobs you should consider include cashier, bank teller, and house cleaning. In many areas, house cleaners can make $10-20+ per hour, depending on the area. If you're embarrassed about doing housework, just don't tell anyone. Who would know unless you told them?
Yeah, this is all really great advice. I'm definitely going to find another part time job. I guess after reading things on this forum and other places online I had it stuck in my head that if I started working these jobs again I'd get stuck, never have a real career, etc. Everyone always says your 20's decide your future in terms of career, and I'm about to be 23 and don't have anything going for me. I wasn't born/raised in the Central FL area, my parents moved here, so I don't have many connections here, or anywhere really.
When it comes to searching for jobs online, I've had 0 luck. I've had people critique my resume and cover letter and all that. Can I just leave my rural address off my resume? What if I used the address of another relative who lives in the metro area I'll apply for jobs in?
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