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Location: The edge of the world and all of Western civilization
984 posts, read 1,192,051 times
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I hope to get advice from people who have moved by choice, not because they were forced to move:
About three years ago my company got hit hard by the Recession and they let people go left and right, myself included. Jobs were so tight then I eventually had to move to Oklahoma to stay with family to get back on my feet. I've not only recovered my losses, but have saved up more than I've ever had. I feel the time is right to move, because it's very grating on me living here and it's not the kind of place that will ever grow on me. The problem is I'm not sure why I seem to have more difficulty getting interviews now than I did when the economy was worse (and I mainly applied for jobs out of state then too). I think the fact that I'm not local is working against me. My field is a bit more specialized (marketing, publishing, etc.) and I do have a graduate degree and relevant work experience, so it's not like I'm looking for jobs that would have a massive surplus of local candidates, such as sales, administrative duties, etc.
In any case, I'm not sure what to do. My company is local and does not have operations outside of Oklahoma, so transferring isn't an option. The cities I'm considering would be a tremendous difference in cost of living (namely New York, Washington, Boston and San Francisco). Though I can afford to move to those cities and get by for several months, it concerns me that I may not find a job fast enough. Ultimately I would have to come back to Oklahoma and try to rebuild my savings and try to move again if I couldn't find something. I haven't ruled that out, but it's not my preferred option. So my question is for people who moved willingly, NOT people who took a job transfer, promotion, etc. Do you have any suggestions? At this point I'm open to anything. Thanks in advance.
Not exactly what you are asking, but perhaps you can go about this in the opposite direction...
Are there any companies in the places you would be interested in moving to that have a presence in the city you live in now? Change jobs before moving rather than after, ask for a relocation after putting in 6-12 months?
Location: The edge of the world and all of Western civilization
984 posts, read 1,192,051 times
Reputation: 1691
Quote:
Originally Posted by DubbleT
Not exactly what you are asking, but perhaps you can go about this in the opposite direction...
Are there any companies in the places you would be interested in moving to that have a presence in the city you live in now? Change jobs before moving rather than after, ask for a relocation after putting in 6-12 months?
I'm just asking how people who didn't want to stay where they were pulled off a move, not because a job transferred or promoted them there.
I thought about that, but was concerned that it would burn me out. There are some hubs here. Chase Bank comes to mind, because they have an office downtown. Aside from that, I think most offices downtown are local companies, not hubs. Mostly it's retail/service jobs, like Macy's (New York), Hilton (Washington) and Pottery Barn (San Francisco). Is it feasible to get a second job in customer service at one of those and move up quickly? They won't have any office positions here.
Best suggestion: get on with a national company, like Chase, and transfer.
Second best suggestion: be content with where you are and either get a new hobby or some new goals so that you have something else to focus on. The economy where you are is better than a lot of other places.
I'm just asking how people who didn't want to stay where they were pulled off a move, not because a job transferred or promoted them there.
I thought about that, but was concerned that it would burn me out. There are some hubs here. Chase Bank comes to mind, because they have an office downtown. Aside from that, I think most offices downtown are local companies, not hubs. Mostly it's retail/service jobs, like Macy's (New York), Hilton (Washington) and Pottery Barn (San Francisco). Is it feasible to get a second job in customer service at one of those and move up quickly? They won't have any office positions here.
People who pull off a move without a job lined up first most likely have at least couple of things going for them:Enough savings to get them through at least six months, a skill set that makes them somewhat easier to employ wherever they go, enjoy risk taking or have a plan b to fall back on in case things fall through.
I do think it's feasible to get a second job in customer service and move up. It is very similar to what I did when I decided it was time to leave the city I lived in. My company did not transfer or promote me, I simply let them know I was interested in moving to a specific area where we had several locations and to please set me up for a transfer if a suitable opening came up in that area. It took about six months from the time I made my initial request until I got my opening. I stayed on with my company, but there's no reason you couldn't do a similar move and continue to look for something better once you got to your desired location.
I'm just asking how people who didn't want to stay where they were pulled off a move, not because a job transferred or promoted them there.
1-sold car for cash
2-moved to nyc
3-slept on friend's floor for 3 months which is how long it took to find a job and an apt.
dont think i could have pulled it off without help as my funds were limited. otherwise you'll need some extra funds and deal with living in a crap neighborhood for awhile.
i've also applied for jobs in places before i moved there. you could start that now before you move anyway.
Location: The edge of the world and all of Western civilization
984 posts, read 1,192,051 times
Reputation: 1691
Quote:
Originally Posted by Meemur
Best suggestion: get on with a national company, like Chase, and transfer.
Second best suggestion: be content with where you are and either get a new hobby or some new goals so that you have something else to focus on. The economy where you are is better than a lot of other places.
1-sold car for cash
2-moved to nyc
3-slept on friend's floor for 3 months which is how long it took to find a job and an apt.
dont think i could have pulled it off without help as my funds were limited. otherwise you'll need some extra funds and deal with living in a crap neighborhood for awhile.
i've also applied for jobs in places before i moved there. you could start that now before you move anyway.
I could research national companies and see what's available here. It would likely need to be a second job, because quitting my job for what's available here would likely mean a huge drop in income. The second option hasn't worked out for me.
I do have plenty of money to move and live without work for awhile now, it just makes me uncomfortable. I may do it anyway though. I've been applying for jobs since April, but I'm just getting impatient.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DubbleT
People who pull off a move without a job lined up first most likely have at least couple of things going for them:Enough savings to get them through at least six months, a skill set that makes them somewhat easier to employ wherever they go, enjoy risk taking or have a plan b to fall back on in case things fall through.
I do think it's feasible to get a second job in customer service and move up. It is very similar to what I did when I decided it was time to leave the city I lived in. My company did not transfer or promote me, I simply let them know I was interested in moving to a specific area where we had several locations and to please set me up for a transfer if a suitable opening came up in that area. It took about six months from the time I made my initial request until I got my opening. I stayed on with my company, but there's no reason you couldn't do a similar move and continue to look for something better once you got to your desired location.
If I were to find a temporary roommate situation I could probably make it a year without any type of job. I've had interviews in some of those cities, but was never given a clear reason why I was rejected. I do think it could be a good sign if I'm getting interviews despite being 1,500+ miles away. Plan B would mean coming back here, and I think that's the most worrisome part, because if that happened I would be here for a long time while trying to recover again. I think after my job search this evening I'll start getting a list together of companies based in cities I want to live in so that I can see what opportunities they have here.
Best suggestion: get on with a national company, like Chase, and transfer.
Second best suggestion: be content with where you are and either get a new hobby or some new goals so that you have something else to focus on. The economy where you are is better than a lot of other places.
Third suggestion: do what makes you happy. Don't stay where you are not.
If you feel it is time to move, start planning. Many jobs advertised may say "no relocation covered" but i have seen TONS that say something like "If you are planning to relocate, please include relocation timeline with your cover letter" or somehting like that.
I know someone who just decided to move here, and 30 days later she was here...with a job. She started applying at temp agencies and was persistant. She came out for an interview, was hired, and a week later she arrived with her stuff in her new apartment.
Moving isn't that hard.
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Location: The edge of the world and all of Western civilization
984 posts, read 1,192,051 times
Reputation: 1691
Quote:
Originally Posted by ElleTea
Third suggestion: do what makes you happy. Don't stay where you are not.
If you feel it is time to move, start planning. Many jobs advertised may say "no relocation covered" but i have seen TONS that say something like "If you are planning to relocate, please include relocation timeline with your cover letter" or somehting like that.
I know someone who just decided to move here, and 30 days later she was here...with a job. She started applying at temp agencies and was persistant. She came out for an interview, was hired, and a week later she arrived with her stuff in her new apartment.
Moving isn't that hard.
That's another outlet I've looked into. I know I'm worried because that unemployed period is still pretty fresh in my mind, but I think I will research more into moving without a job. I do know from experience Washington is the safest bet, because I've had more interviews there than anywhere else, including OKC despite being local. Do you have more details about your friend's situation in that second paragraph?
That's another outlet I've looked into. I know I'm worried because that unemployed period is still pretty fresh in my mind, but I think I will research more into moving without a job. I do know from experience Washington is the safest bet, because I've had more interviews there than anywhere else, including OKC despite being local. Do you have more details about your friend's situation in that second paragraph?
What kind of information would you like?
She and her SO decided they were tired of winter and wanted to move. They chose Phoenix after about a month of researching places, and they already had a friend here. She looked up temp agencies in the area and sent her information, then followed up with all of them until one of them finally gave her an interview. She flew out here, interviewed, got the job, found an apartment before heading back, and a week later they arrived with their stuff. She started work.
IMO temp agencies are the best bet. I had 5 or 6 "working" for me when I was job hunting and found a job pretty fast (granted I was already here, but I know it is possible if you haven't made the move yet). Just let them know your intentions about moving and when. My BF also got hired via a headhunter before he moved. Yes, many are temp-to-hire, but some will place you direct hire as well.
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