New Job 2.0 (Aka "The Story of how I got Diablo 3 for free")

onesaint

Well done Iris! You're coming up to my neck of the woods and I'm heading down to yours (I'm in Torrance now)! Funny thing is I caught the worst flu in years, 3 days before starting my new job. I felt like hell and was all doped up for a nice "welcome to the team" luncheon.

Glad you nailed down what you want to focus on and are moving ahead with it. Also good to see you're not going to burn the candle at both ends for much longer. More time to study and get that much needed R&R.

petedude

Iristheangel wrote: »

BTW, here is my resume. It's pretty direct and not that fancy. The one I bring to interviews is condensed to one page but online, I let it be a little bit longer:
https://www.box.com/s/d7d8e8df6bd9b6df9ffa

That's IT??

Man, I ought to run mine through the shredder then. Your resume is the epitome of "less is more".

Forsaken_GA

Iristheangel wrote: »

BTW, here is my resume. It's pretty direct and not that fancy. The one I bring to interviews is condensed to one page but online, I let it be a little bit longer:
https://www.box.com/s/d7d8e8df6bd9b6df9ffa

Is that generated with WGU's online thing? If so, that's interesting.... the layout and formatting is remarkably similar to my own, and I've been using it for 10 years.

Only real difference is that I use a two column table at the top instead of a 3 column, and my header formatting differs a bit, and I don't have an other achievements section.

dave330i

Ivanjam wrote: »

Never played EQ, I was too loyal to UO to follow the mass exodus to EQ but I hear it is/was a great game.

I explained EQ to WoW players from time to time. They're response was always, "People paid money for that?!"

Iristheangel

@Petedude, Yep. That's it. I got rid of the Summary because I felt like it's easier to state your experience and bring up your skills during at interview. Also easier to craft your replies based on the job instead of pigeon holing your talents in the resume. . I tend to be somewhat vague on my resume yet a little more specific on my cover letter. As far as the Objective, I haven't put one on my resume for over a year. I feel it's implied that I want the job.

@Forsaken, Yep. That one is from WGU's online resume thing. I added the other achievements recently because I'm proud of my public speaking engagements and my experience is that employers would like to see that you have some public presence. Before that, I had the same format for over 10 years which was even more simple than that one. The old format landed me a lot of interviews as well but it was time to change things up.

Since I'm throwing out my resume, I might as well through out a sample cover letter I've been using. I use a few different ones. I've stolen some parts of various templates, added things of my own, etc:

Iristheangel
My Address


Dear Human Resources:


Your posting for a Network Engineer caught my attention as it seems an ideal match for my talents, interests, and experience. As a capable IT professional with a solid technical background, I believe I offer a set of skills that would benefit your company. With strong expertise and experience complemented by excellent interpersonal skills and a commitment to customer satisfaction, I would like to explore the possibility of putting my talents to work for you.


I pride myself on my ability to successfully take on new challenges and develop ever-expanding areas of expertise. In addition, with outstanding problem-solving skills combined with the ability to develop an easy rapport with users, I am someone who can adapt and learn new technologies quickly. I am effective in meeting goals even when faced with difficult circumstances.


I would like to work in a challenging environment where I can explore my capabilities and build a successful career as a Network Engineer. I believe that my qualifications and experience are a perfect fit for the position of Network Engineer in your company.


I would welcome the opportunity to further discuss this position with you. If you have questions or would like to schedule an interview, please contact me by phone at XXX-XXX-XXXX or by e-mail at (EmailAddress). I have enclosed my resume for your review, and I look forward to hearing from you.


Sincerely,


Iristheangel

Jasiono

dave330i wrote: »

Congratulations. For whatever reason, Diablo 3 isn't as satisfying as 2 for me.

You haven't played in diablo mode yet have you?

Roguetadhg

You mean inferno? It's the hardest difficulty.

Zorodzai

[Copies and pastes sample cover letter quicker than one can say 'plagiarism'..... ]

Iristheangel

Go ahead and copy it. I have about half a dozen I use. For entry to mid level jobs, you can probably get away with more generic cover letters such as that one. It basically lets the company know that you're capable of writing clearly and can sell yourself. I usually try to add a few details about the company in the body ("I am impressed by your company's load balancers and blah blah blah") to let them know I actually cared enough about their company to spend the 15 seconds Googling what they do and add a few strengths of mine that corresponds to what they are asking for on the job description.

radix

stopped playing my barbarian when i reached level 40 needed to start studying for my ccna thanks for the resume and cover letter gonna use it after getting my ccna and congratz

Iristheangel wrote: »

He then asked me if I had a choice, what would I pick to work on: Data, VOIP, or Video over IP. I, of course, said that I would love to get my hands on ALL of them but if I had to choose, I would go with data. He said that was the right answer.

btw why is data the correct answer? is like related to the company kind of thing?

Iristheangel

The right answer was saying that I would love to get my hands on everything, not that I picked data specifically. They were looking for someone that was willing to learn anything they would throw at them

Roguetadhg

Hmm, I wonder how many people are set in their ways that follow this website?

Jasiono

Roguetadhg wrote: »

You mean inferno? It's the hardest difficulty.

Yeah inferno. I haven't gotten it due to people around me saying the same thing you did. They were quite disappointed

petedude

Iristheangel wrote: »

I usually try to add a few details about the company in the body ("I am impressed by your company's load balancers and blah blah blah") to let them know I actually cared enough about their company to spend the 15 seconds Googling what they do and add a few strengths of mine that corresponds to what they are asking for on the job description.

I can see this going awry if you're using a template and not paying attention. . .

"I'm impressed by your line of transwarp conduits". Hit send. . . OOPS, that was a beauty supply company.

Earendil

Thank you Iris, I have learned a great deal from your posts. I am happy for your success in the IT world. I hope I also get a Network engineer job in the future.

Iristheangel

LOL. Yep. Moral of the story: Pay attention.

Using a template is good for about 80-90% of the body of the cover letter. The parts about how awesome you are, how you have proven skills, blah blah blah. It's up to you to add the extra "personal" touch for the company you're applying for.

lantech

You really have to be careful when using a template. Especially when you are coming close to ending a 12 hour shift. LOL

Congrats on the job Iris. Sounds like you landed a pretty good job. Best of luck to you.

Devilry

Iris, I am kind of late here.. but HUGE CONGRATS to you!

Sometimes unorthodox interviews is what it takes, gotta be willing to adapt to what is right at the moment.

Keep us updated!

veritas_libertas

Congratulations on the new job. Yes, I am jealous...

Mike-Mike

congrats....

I stole your cover letter

lantech

You're getting a lot of plagiarism on that cover letter Iris. LOL

Iristheangel

LOL. That's fine. I don't mind. I have plenty of other cover letters I can use.

Mike-Mike

Granted, I'm in KY, but... $50 an hour sounds crazy high... is that high there? or is that normal?

Legacy User

Yea thats what I was thinking $50/hr is pretty crazy and sweet for a position looking for a ccna just out of college that loves networking. Only thing that matters that you got it!

shednik

Congrats on the new job Iris! Welcome to the life of a network engineer

Iristheangel

I think part of why I'm getting paid so much is that it's a Fortune 500 international company and it's technically a contract. I'll have to pay the medical insurance and other stuff out own pocket but I get a lot more write offs because of it. If I stayed in Infosec, getting a $100K/year job wouldn't be that hard but I didn't expect to get into networking at such high pay.

$50/hour in Orange County/Los Angeles, California definitely isn't bad. That means I could afford to buy a condo in a busy area if I didn't want to commute or I could afford a nice house a little further out if I want to commute. I could probably afford the payments on a $30-40K moneyhole of a car that looks shiny but that's not my style. I'm frugal as all hell. I live in a not-so-nice and not-so-bad area paying $795 a month for rent, drive a new but economic car that I paid off this year, and I keep my credit card limits down to $1000. I'm used to making around this amount of money so I doubt my spending habits will change. I put everything extra away for a rainy day and I'll probably use a large chunk of it for a house in the next couple of years. On an average, Los Angeles' cost of living is about 17-18% higher than, say, Portland, Oregon but your pay is higher too so it usually balances itself out when you move between states. The most important thing about where you live is making sure that there are enough jobs wherever you move. I think the only place in California that is ridiculously expensive is probably Silicon Valley but there are still places on the outskirts where you can live at a decent price.

spicy ahi

Congrats Iris! I had to double check and see why I missed this thread in the first place but it's been a hectic couple of weeks here. Anyway, . Glad you can move into networking. I'm slowly moving away from that and into more IA management stuff and I can tell you right now, I pine for the days of logging into a switch/router, or sitting in the conference room with my fellow LAN shoppers with a couple of pizzas and a whiteboard to design or refine a project. Please keep me informed so I can live vicariously through you as I slog through mounds of paperwork, IA training certificates, and vulnerability scans *cocks gun, points to head*

Iristheangel

Thanks Spicy! What's next on your plate?

tprice5

Congrats! Not sure how I missed this one either.

lantech wrote: »

You're getting a lot of plagiarism on that cover letter Iris. LOL

It's going to be hilarious if in five years Iris is in a management position staffing a position with a candidate using her cover letter.

rwmidl

Well done Iris! Congrats!