competitive salary and the glass ceiling
Most women today still think there' s a glass-ceiling as they call it preventing them from better jobs and better pay. I submit to them and anyone else, that supposed glass ceiling exists for just about anyone looking for a good job. What exactly is a good job anyway? A good paying wage? Enough to have money for the week without going broke. For me, I want a paycheck that can buy a new brand name computer right off the shelf. Either that or brand name accessories. Maybe new clothes like a couple pairs of pants, shirts, designer stuff and some shoes. I would imagine that would cost me roughly $400 or more in one fell swoop. Do most of you who work upscale jobs, degree or not, average about $1200 - $1500 a week? I suspect you do. So why am I on the outside looking in? That' s the question I' ve been asking myself since 1994, almost 13 years. My first two jobs were in high school, paid minimum wage, $5 - $7. The most promising one came in 1994, computer assembly for $8. Lame temp jobs after two years of unemployment came in 1996 and in 1999 the last job I worked lasted for roughly six years to 2005. Security. Or as some call it Rent-a-Cop, fortunately I wasn' t an armed guard, and had no desire to be. I would have assuredly shot someone or myself in frustration and disgust at life' s unfairness. So now I' ve spent the better part of a year and some change venting on this and every other job website there is with nothing to show for it. So I ask you my compadres, tell me. Tell me the truth. Am I supposed to smooch some balding white employer' s rear end to be where most of you wing nuts are? Is walking in on my hands and knees wearing designer business shirts, silk ties, and dress shoes what it will take for me to hear someone say : you' re hired ? You people keep telling me that I have a bad attitude, that much you' ve all stated ad nauseam. So I wonder to myself why any of you sponges say anything further than that, like give me some of your lame anicdotal stories about your interviews, how you all dressed, what you all said, what the interviewers all said to you besides asking when you could start a job. Maybe that reason is clear. Maybe I' ve offended you. When I use terms like Dilbert, idiot, screwball and uppity bobbleheaded sockpuppet, it gives off a stinging sensation. Partly because it' s true, but partly becasue it works for you. If so, the greater importance is that you tell me, maybe ( not now or in the near future ) should any of you admit it, I might decide to acquiesce. I suggest you stop asking questions because you don' t listen to any of the answers anyway. You' ve shown you do not care for anyone else' s opinion so we don' t care for any of yours either. Why don' t you get off your butt, stop complaining about everything that you apparently think is not your fault and spend more time looking for work and becoming productive. You are responsible for your life and how it has gone so far. No one else is to blame. You are responsible for creating your own security and there are a lot of ways to do that. I won' t get into those because that is obviously out of your realm of reality. How did I get into this Discussion? Perhaps you are responding to a message I posted on another Thread here or on another Forum! Basically I agree with PL. You need to stop philosophizing and analyzing everything and just get down to business. You' re making yourself crazy! Lets lay it out shall we. Here is what you are supposed to do if you want to earn a living that will allow you to afford anything that you have mentioned. Gain the skills that are required to perform the job that you want. This means that you will have to get formal education and certifications that will prove to an employer that you have those skills that they are seeking. By the way the other thing that this proves to an employer is that you have the where with all to stick to something. Lose the "know it all" attitude. You don' t know it all as has been amply proven by your rants on these pages and your inability to be gainfully employed. Lose the "world owes me" attitude. The world doesn' t owe you a thing. Neither does the rest of society. The only one who can provide you with even a springboard to mild success is you. If you are unwilling to follow the rules of engagement then you will fail, it is really very simple. Lose the "accept me as I am" attitude. Those of us who are in a position to hire you don' t have to accept you as you are if as you are doesn' t meet our core standards for hiring. Again learn the rules of engagement and follow them. To your own self be true only works after you have the position and money to tell the rest of the world to blow off. Right now you don' t so you will need to play by our rules. Which usually means acceptable communications skills, acceptable appearance (clean clothes, etc), acceptable skills. As to the other question; What is a good job? You will have to answer that one for yourself. Each of us have to answer that one and I suspect that the answer changes as we mature and gain wisdom. For some it will be compensation only. For others it will be intellectual challenge. Everyone will have different criteria for what constitutes a good job. For me it is intellectual challenge, freedom to act, variety in work, opportunity to learn, and compensation that matches contribution to organizational success. Once you read this new thread title, did you ever stop and think :no, I don' t want to read this twerp' s opinions. I' ve had enough of him. No, of course not, you just had to read it, and type out a lame response. If I' m really playing all of you for complete idiots, I suggest you stop falling for it each time by wasting your time. Never mind giving me suggestions, there' s one you should be getting. When are you going to stop with this Merit System garbage. Are you ( why am I asking this, I already know you are ) completely ignorant to American society or what? I didn' t get far in reading your nonsense before I had to shut my eyes off. It' s pretty embarrassing. So tell me, mighty philosopher, what category do you put rich people in? You know, the ones born into privilege, the ones who' s families get them opportunities right out of the chute. Never knowing what it' s like to have an opportunistic door slam in their face. I suppose you call them exceptions to the rule, right? Well guess what, that' s no longer what the middle class wants to hear anymore. In the age of outsourcing, more and more people are becoming resentful of that so-called minority class that is living' large while everyone else seems to be breaking their back for just a weeks worth of money. OK. Suppose I did each and every little mundane thing you said. Picture it. Two people sitting in an office of an employer. Me in the left chair, and someone else in the right. An employer walks in and after a few moments and gives the congratulatory handshake to that person, and I get the standard kiss off routine. Thank you very much but we' ve decided to go with someone else, we' ll keep your resume' on file for two weeks, two months, six months or a year. - I got a better idea, why don' t you shove it up your hind end. So what would you say to that scenario mighty philosopher? Shouldn' t have happened? Yeah you' re right, this isn' t a world where friends, associates, and even relations get the upper hand over someone new. It' s better to bury one' s head in the sand and believe in something called a merit system. The fact is that in every society there is a privileged class. That is just the way it is, nothing you or I can do about it and so why be bothered by it? I don' t worry about what or who they are unless they are depriving me of my personal freedoms, my personal rights, my personal opportunities, or anything else that is mine; they are not. No one hands anything to me, never have and likely never will. We all have to start somewhere and the majority of us do not start at the top of the heap. So we crawl our way up as far as we are able using our natural abilities and the intellect that we are given. There is no real secret to this. Those of us who desire a life beyond red beans and rice and a daily hardscrabble existence look around and figure out what it is that we personally need to do to thrive in the world that we live in. Ignorance of your surroundings is no excuse. Ignorance of the world is no excuse. All ignorance can be corrected with self-examination and education. Anyone who desires a better life can work towards that end. No one is guaranteed success only the opportunity to try. No one is guaranteed happiness only the opportunity to pursue it. No one is owed a job simply because they want it; they must also bring something more to the table their desire is not sufficient. Yes it is true that having friends (networking) helps. Yes it is true that having skills (education) helps. Yes it is true that having previous experience and knowledge helps and to gain these you start at the bottom. Certainly those who have worked to make themselves pleasant to be around will naturally have more opportunity as others will be more likely to give them a hand up. The fact is that success requires effort this is true of every facet of life whether it is career, marriage, friendship, or family - all require work and attention if they are to be sustained. As to your scenario. It happens. It happens to all of us. Those with an understanding of the world get that they won' t get every job they want. Sometimes because they aren' t the most qualified. Sometimes for other reasons - a friend of the boss, gender, race, etc. It happens and you move on. Want to be bitter that is certainly your prerogative but it doesn' t get you anywhere. The fact is that this is a capitalistic society. The basis of true success is MERIT. There are of course still countries that don' t operate under this system, they aren' t doing so well these days. So let me suggest that you look into the possibility of relocation where your lack of skills may let you better operate. Statistically very few people are born into wealth. Most started with nothing, took the risk, invested money in starting a business, and became rich. While that was happening, the poor were spending their time whining.
Perfect
"Statistically very few people are born into wealth. Most started with nothing, took the risk, invested money in starting a business, and became rich. While that was happening, the poor were spending their time whining." You' re right on your first point, but you obviously have neglected to consider those who do not have money to invest in starting a business. And that not everybody has always the same opportunities as the next person. Why do you despise the poor so much? Not ALL of them are poor by choice; some are poor by circumstance, and believe it or not, are trying to get out of poverty. And, believe it or not, simply trying hard to get out of poverty doesn' t always work. It is a fallacy that those who work hard and "play by the rules" will always overcome. | |
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