Getting a job, advice?

[† RazorDan]

I'm 16, and I've realised I need a part time job of some sorts. Any tips on getting one?

[† Emotional Outlet]

Apply everywhere you possibly can. Every fast food joint, every retail store, every ice cream parlor... Ask friends and family members--one of them will likely know someone who needs someone to help out with something, or they can hook you up with a job somewhere. Dress decently, haha. If you have any piercings or weird hair colours, either do something about it or target places that don't mind. There's a lot of websites out there dedicated to interview etiquette.

One of my friends didn't want to work fast food or retail--he wanted to work at a dealership. His mom told him to suck it up and just work at Burger King, but he kept applying to different dealerships. He did finally get a call back from one of them, so don't think that if you don't want to work fast food that you're SOL.

My husband says that persistence is key, especially since a lot of them will give you the runaround and talk about "experience" (every job hunter's favourite paradox--how do I gain job experience if not through the job?). Don't get discouraged if people keep turning you down--it's bound to happen.

If you have any marketable skills that don't require a job like art or programming, you could take a look at doing commissions. My husband is a talented artist (digital and musical) and programmer, so I told him when he gets out of the military and starts going to school full-time, he should look into doing commissions and the like.

[† Ferocia Coutura]

Remember if you get an interview, go into it with the mindset that your gonna kick ass. My manager says he liked me from the get-go because I kept eye contact and kept the conversation flowing, instead of letting him give a one-sided explanation of the job.

[Kasoivc]

I hooked up at a pizza parlor that my brother worked at for about a year. I've been there for six months now, as of 2012 - minimum wage went up; on top of that, I was recently given a raise for my outstanding dedication (on top of the fact that I'm one of the more capable members of my Hoagy Station at the pizzaria). Sometimes its a pain working fast food but I find it fairly interesting, it's not complicated or anything, but it does put a little mental stress on you for awhile until you can become comfortable with it. So far the things I've done: burned spaghetti pots, set one of our oil fryers on fire (left it on while I started to clean out the oil), doofed a few orders here and there (that was more in my beginning month or two of work).

I'm considered a veteran now since I made it beyond 2 months without quitting or showing lack of skill.

Fast foods will kill you because they are a hit or miss. You either are good, or you're not. That's my two cents. I work with two underclassmen from my school; it drives me incredibly furious at how scatterbrained the two are. One girl cannot absolutely do anything unless she is intensely focused on ONE thing, blind and unobservant of the surroundings around her, and the other is a guy who is the stereotypical "I'm going to go into work and half ass everything to get my pay."

Part time or full time, a job is serious business; do what you're expected to do because you're being paid, being paid is the incentive and motivation, not doing that in my opinion forfeits your ability to even be considered for raises or praise.

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Edit: Like Shazi noted, I hear eye contact in interviews are key, holidays are even a good time to find small part time jobs. In my case, I was hired on the spot as a temporary part timer, which eventually turned into a complete part time job because I completed training at an expedited date. (I was trained to close the store before I was even fully capable of making pasta tickets...).

[† Talena Mae]

First you will need a resume. even if it is just your school details and hobbies, it helps get them to know a little about you.

Go for a fast food place they seem to always be hiring, and when you go for an interview look sharp as you can! ^.^

[Kasoivc]

Dress attire, I went in wearing blue jeans, white shirt underneath a button up. Fast food places don't require very much imho. Now if it's something like a secretary, that''s a whole different ball game.

[† RazorDan]

thanks for the tips guys! and yeah, Im good with interviews, just finding the job is difficult lol

I do want to work in retail and I'd prefer it over a fast food place. I have a resume, or a CV, but do I just drop it off at a place that has jobs available? or do I arrange a meeting or something?

[BushidoSkeleton]

Dont take your penis out in the interview, they dont like that.

[idl12]

Dont take your penis out in the interview, they dont like that.

I smell experience in those words.

[† Talena Mae]

thanks for the tips guys! and yeah, Im good with interviews, just finding the job is difficult lol

I do want to work in retail and I'd prefer it over a fast food place. I have a resume, or a CV, but do I just drop it off at a place that has jobs available? or do I arrange a meeting or something?

You go up, ask to talk with the manager, ask if they are hiring, if so hand over your resume ^.^ simple as! ^.^

[† Mute point]

Keep your shirt tucked in, go down with the ship, and never abandon a member of your crew.

Oh wait.. That's starship captain advice... Um... I think everything I'd have to say has been covered, except for one thing...

Play to your strengths. Make them see beyond your inexperience, or any preconceived notions that you may not be able to do the job. And if you find a place you really really want to work, Keep calling them every couple of days asking if they have had a chance to review your application, or your interview. Eventually they'll get tired of hearing you on the phone (or in my case it was seeing me in their office) and either grant you an interview, or tell you to give up because they aren't hiring you. If the second, then move on to the next place on your list.

[Krogothwolf]

You go up, ask to talk with the manager, ask if they are hiring, if so hand over your resume ^.^ simple as! ^.^

And even if they aren't you should drop off a resume anyones, you never know when some guy will whip out his penis at work and get fired, or quit randomly. So it doesn't hurt to drop of a resume anyways.

[darkmonster]

I think at your age, you should work on kind of educational job like in library. so look around in your school

[Kasoivc]

I think at your age, you should work on kind of educational job like in library. so look around in your school

Egh. Not really, Dan already noted fast foods are a nono; the only reason I can stomach working at a Pizzaria is because I'm well-knowledgeable about the operation of our business in terms of how to prepare and bag everything. Fast food joints are a hit or miss, and judging from regular characteristics of someone - it's easy to tell who will be bad at the job. I was hired, and as all newbies are - they're trained on the spot, washout period being the first week or two. I got to keep my job because one of the few guys who were there already was fired because he just wasn't up to snuff. You can't take nine hours making one order when by the end of the night you have a total of 450+ (and those are combinations of pizza, salads, spaghettis, and hoagies) not just generic pizza and two liter of soda.

Like I said before, some people aren't really supposed to work at fast food joints, we cycle through new people like every two months because they're just looking for a quick paycheck or two. It's frusterating working with people who have no clue what they're doing. I don't mind answering quick questions about how certain orders are made but when you've been there for longer than a few weeks and the only thing you can do is slowly recognize orders, than we have issues - especially on busy weekends.

In fact, we're preparing for Lent soon and fish is going to be a pain since it takes 4 minutes for us to fry one fish.

Libraries around here, usually dominated by old ladies.

Tutors - my school doesn't pay students to be tutors, rather it's part of a academic excellence program, it just looks good on your transcript for college.