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I'm just about to end my Junior year at AHA, and I want to enter my senior year with some work experience. I've been trying to look around for a good part time job in the general area. I was hoping to find work in a small business instead of something like Macy's or Shoprite, but I'm willing to look into anything available. This will be my first job, so I'm not quite sure where to begin my search.
Any suggestions?
[I would prefer the are to be around towns like Closter, Creskill, Demarest, Dumont, Emerson, Harrington Park, Hillsdale, Northvale, Norwood, Oradell, Paramus, River Vale, Washington Township]
I think this is something that will take effort and you will need to be up to doing a lot of asking in person and accepting lots of rejections. My daughter was in a similar spot last year. Dress nice and go to the small businesses in the area and ask about employment. It may help if you are open to some limited hours after the summer. But businesses will appreciate your effort if you walk in and nicely/confidently ask about a job. Some will blow you off real quickly, some may even be a little rude, but most will be nice and may even have suggestions if they don't have a spot for you. My daughter was a nervous mess the first couple time, but then got calmer and better with practice. She visited at least 30 businesses and filled out 7-10 applications (and eventually got 2 offers).
Remember to follow up. After that initial visit, you may be forgotten or the application may get buried. Be the person that visits again and/or follows up with calls to whoever you spoke/applied with. Businees owners love to see initiative and want to see that you really want the job.
When I was your age I started working in the pharmacy department at my local CVS in Norwood. I actually grew to like the work quite a bit, found it very interesting and moved on to another independent pharmacy, eventually got my technician certification and all. I don't work in pharmaceuticals now, but it was definitely an interesting experience and could turn into something you would want to make a career out of.
I think this is something that will take effort and you will need to be up to doing a lot of asking in person and accepting lots of rejections. My daughter was in a similar spot last year. Dress nice and go to the small businesses in the area and ask about employment. It may help if you are open to some limited hours after the summer. But businesses will appreciate your effort if you walk in and nicely/confidently ask about a job. Some will blow you off real quickly, some may even be a little rude, but most will be nice and may even have suggestions if they don't have a spot for you. My daughter was a nervous mess the first couple time, but then got calmer and better with practice. She visited at least 30 businesses and filled out 7-10 applications (and eventually got 2 offers).
Remember to follow up. After that initial visit, you may be forgotten or the application may get buried. Be the person that visits again and/or follows up with calls to whoever you spoke/applied with. Businees owners love to see initiative and want to see that you really want the job.
Good luck!
To HalfFull's good advice, I want to add one more detail.
Even if one of your good friends is also seeking a job, DO NOT go together in search of an opening.
When employers are faced with two teens who say something like...We are looking for a job...the response will almost always be "no", even if there is an opening.
I think that the most likely reason for this type of negative reaction is they might fear that hiring two friends would result in more socialization than working, but that is just conjecture on my part.
Those are all nice towns in Bergen with NICE BIG YARDS.... BIG YARDS that need maintenance! We pay $35-45 a clip to have a landscaper just come and MOW our lawn. HOWEVER, if I have some local kid knock on my door and maybe charge a bit less (considering they are not 'professionals'), I would say EASILY we (and most) would say YES! Let's say you charge $30 for your average lawn, assuming using owner's lawn equipment and signing on no more than 6 houses a day, would yield $120/day. Get at least 2 friends, maybe borrow some equipment from your parents/friends/neighbors that will help maximize your time.
Get on a schedule COMMIT and do it 5 days a week, so as not to be overwhelmed and you now have $720 CASH split by 3 = $240/week, for 25 - 30 hours a week of work.
Key is schedule accordingly, so you're doing homes that are close by and of course do the best job that you can. Don't slack, otherwise folks will be going back to the professionals. Offer a couple of added services, like mulch or basic planting, watering, etc. Do some basic research as to how to properly mow a lawn, mulch, things like that. THIS IS TRUE WORK EXPERIENCE. You can actually even put in your college bound resume how you started a business which is worth GOLD! You can even have friends help you with some type of cool app that can help you schedule maintenance.
And if you build enough of a clientele, you can actually sell YOUR client list/business next year.
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