I just turned 32 and i graduated from college 10 months ago I have been looking for jobs nonstop for the past 7 months because I couldnt find anything in my field i had to move back home about a month ago I was able to get a fulltime job at a Marriott working as a receptionist at $15 an hour it’s not ideal but at least i have a fulltime job I’m actually doing very well at this job and all my managers say im very good at my job. But this isnt the career I want my dream has always been to work in marketing which is why I earned a business degree.
I went to a local navy recruiter and have considered enlisting I already did MEPS and took the ASVAB exams unfortunately I cant go the officer route because I graduated with a low GPA (2.7) and im too old.
Living with my mom has been really hard she constantly tells me that im going nowhere in life im really trying my best I just want to find a job in my field if I dont find a job in my field by march ill be going to bootcamp because I just cant deal with living with my mom much longer and I just want stability in my life.
I just feel lost atm I keep getting interviews for jobs but I always end up getting turned down after the 2nd or 3rd round interview. I feel like im starting to run out of time to make something out of my life I just want my own home and a decent paying job but it seems so unattainable.
Does anyone have advice?
6 comments
What is your field/degree in?
Does your university offer career assistance? What job would you ideally have in marketing?
When you’re interviewing, are you selling your ability to handle the job regardless of what comes up? Do you do practice interviews with friends? If not, do you have some friends you could do that with and get feedback?
If you’re getting interviews, your resume is decent, but if you’re not being ultimately selected, perhaps it’s a higher quality talent in the applicant pool or you’re not selling yourself well so ensuring proper sales technique for the interview phase might be helpful.
You’re working full-time and your Mom is doggin you – “she constantly tells me that im going nowhere in life”? Awful.
Your Mom has issues and you should look into moving into a more positive & constructive atmosphere. Can you find an affordable place w a roommate that you can cover w your Marriot salary while you look for a job in your preferred field?
I had odd sometimes shitty jobs until I was 30, now I have a thriving career and multiple side gigs. You have a degree and focus about what you want. It’s a pretty good job market still despite all the economic headwinds (inflation, etc) so lots of positions available.
Hit up your contacts, get a professional Linkedin profile going, and keep pluggin away. Don’t be afraid to start at the bottom of the ladder **as long as there is a clear path to advancement**. That’s what I did at 30 and now I make six figures.
I’d really consider moving out of your Mom’s ASAP. What shitty vibes to send toward your son.
Good luck.
Network, network, network. Reach out to friends and classmates from school. Reach out to your former professors. Meet with the career dept. work on projects, and post progress and comment on marketing leaders at least once per day.
Take on some marketing work pro-bono for a local non-profit or a startup, and ask for the rights to document the work in your portfolio in place of payment.
Put yourself to work actively networking for two hours per day, every day. On days where you have a couple more hours free, do some actual marketing work, and post about it or catalog it in your portfolio. Could be non-profit work, work with a startup, or simply your own project work just for the sake of ho ing your skills, testing out ideas, and getting feedback / traction on social media.
Be a marketer, that’s the best way to succeed in marketing. Don’t wait until someone offers to pay you for it. Do it yourself first, and show them that they *need* to pay you.
There comes a point when you realize that your parents don’t know any more than you do. Her negative talk, while hard to escape while you live at home, should not tell you anything. Unless she’s a Nobel Prize winner or a billionaire or something, she has a thing or two to learn about success as well.
The hospitality industry is not a terrible place for someone interested in marketing. Find out what you need to get promoted, learn the operation, find pathways within the organization. Marriott is a huge company that employs a lot more than receptionists. You are developing a good reputation in the company, one better than your GPA and resume would show to another employer. Still not your dream job? Maybe. But moving up will put you in a better place to get that job when you discover it.
Have to figure out a career and take steps towards it. Hard for anyone else to tell you what that is going to be, marketing, sales, accounting, it, data analysis, programming depending on interest.
Just wanted to add the max age for Air Force is 39 and they tend to have a lot of work that translates to the civilian world, it, contracts, business, etc.
For context, I didn’t figure my shit out until 37 when I went back to school for an accounting degree. I was desperate for a career due to child born that year, and I picked accounting because it’s something I can do and there’s a near guaranteed career if you are willing to work in public accounting. I spent the first year doing desperate shit like filing, bookkeeping and payroll for less than my previous career which topped out around $19 per hour. I spent my free time doing projects, learning software for my new career.
I’m mid/senior career level now after 4 short years, but I am still spending all my free time learning career related information and certs because I want to break 200k/senior management in the near future.