The Virtual Woman: A Woman's
Weekly Guide To Cyberspace
The Virtual Woman is an anomaly. I have a 30 second commute (the amount of
time it takes me to fire up my computer) and then, when I "arrive" I surf
all day looking for links to help out my readers. The Virtual Woman has THE
dream job. But this did not happen overnight. I understand the struggle.
So I have decided to spend some time this week helping readers out by
answering questions about job and career resources on the web. Remember, I
answer a variety of questions from readers throughout the country so feel
free to drop me an email (or, a snailmail)--my information can be found at
the end of the column.
Dear Virtual Woman:
I am feeling nervous
because I hate my job but I don't know if I leave that I can find another
job. I don't want to stay just because it's safe but I don't want to go
hungry either. Do you know of any resources online that might be helpful to
someone in my situation?
- Safe But Unhappy
Dear Safe:
First off, you need to realize that no one is really "safe" anymore. Those days are long gone and the only place The Virtual Woman is able to view this level of job security is in front of the television with a bowl of popcorn watching re-runs of Leave It To Beaver.
Okay, that's the bad news.
The good news is there is no shame in today's job market in changing jobs or even in changing careers. Employers may even wonder what's *wrong* with you if have not had a change in the past 5-10 years (my human resources pals call these people who hang around at one company for a long time, "tree huggers.")
So...surfs up! Turn on your computer and let's get going on your research.
First off, I suggest that rather than focus on the "perfect" job, let's go back to the basics of job-searching. The Career Development Manual (http://www.adm.uwaterloo.ca/infocecs/CRC/manual-home.html) can guide you through the various steps of evaluating yourself and your career options---from self-assessment through the full career choice process. You can also check out another excellent resource called Career Find-O-Rama, located at http://www.review.com/career/find/index.cfm. This site was developed by The Princeton Review and it allows you to search on professions to get a complete profile of what life would be like if you pursued a particular career. I ran a search on the word, 'writer' and came up with excellent information on topics like daily life, paying your dues, salary ranges and major associations.
When you are ready, you will want to select some sites that post actual jobs. You can find a comprehensive list of where to go for job postings at http://guide.wwwomen.com/jobs/ (look for Job Listings under the Best Pics section) or you can also use the popular Riley Guide at http://www.dbm.com/jobguide/
Dear Virtual Woman:
I am sick of my job
and know its time for a change but I am in my late forties. I am concerned
about how much my age is going to impact my career search. Is there a
resource online that I might find helpful?
- Flirting With 50 , St. Paul, Minnesota
Dear Flirting:
While you won't find instructions to discriminate based upon age written into any company handbook (it's illegal), unfortunately many corporations subtly or subconsciously reject candidates at the site of even a few gray hairs or some tiny wrinkles.
Only recently have people over the age of 35 started to go online in force so there has not been a great deal of content for "older" folks. I was able to find information on an offline networking group that maintains a nice, well organized site. Forty Plus (http://www.fortyplus.org) is a non-profit self-help group of executives and professionals over 40 who are currently in career transition. The main page is hosted by the Northern California chapter but it is not just for this area. The site lists all their regional chapters and you're in luck-- there is a chapter in St. Paul.
Dear Virtual Woman:
I was visiting San Francisco last year and I met the man of my dreams. He's incredible. We've been doing the long distance relationship thing but it has gotten very tiring. So I have decided to move to Northern California! The reason I am writing to you is because I wanted to see if you knew of any specific online job and networking resources for this area.
- I Left My Heart in San Francisco (and I need to find a job so I can go back there and retrieve it)
Dear Heart:
You are in luck! The Virtual Woman has found the perfect online spot for you. Bridgesonline (http://www.bridgesonline.com) is a job and networking site for professional women in the Bay Area (or ones that want to get there!) Not only will you find fresh jobs posted daily on 20 different message boards, you'll also find a comprehensive list of Bay Area/Northern California corporations along with their job opportunity pages. Additionally, this site offers a variety of other extremely useful resources like links to salary surveys, information about a variety of local women's networking organizations and guided tours to other useful career sites.
Happy Surfing!
Find these links and more at WWWomen.Com (http://www.wwwomen.com) the web's largest search directory of topics for women online. Email the Virtual Woman with your Internet questions or send snailmail to: WWWomen.Com, Attn: Virtual Woman, 3701 Geary Blvd., #325, S.F., CA 94118. Copyright, 1998. WWWomen, Inc. All rights reserved.
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