I got one interview out of so many jobs I apply for, but I didn’t know it was for a management position the ad said no experience was all right. I’ve only had about 3 months experience in retail, which isn’t enough for anyone it seems like to me.
I do call backs and they say the manager isn’t in; you aren’t experienced enough, etc.

How do I stand out when other people are obviously more qualified then me?

First off you’re applying for a job in what many consider the most competitive job market in decades. So naturally you’re going to have to work a lot harder just to land the interview, let alone the job. I am positive you’re not exactly thrilled to hear that, but it can help you if you’re willing to put forth the extra effort and back it up with hard work.

The first step to getting your job is to pick the field of work you’re interested in. Most often with teenagers this includes basic retail, food services, etc. For yourself I would recommend keeping with retail as you have some basic experience in that. First thing first is to pick the top 10 stores / companies you’d like to work at and find out if they’re hiring. Be realistic when looking for companies, Microsoft & Facebook aren’t likely to higher teenagers with out a degree, so pick jobs that match your qualifications.

Once you find out which ones are hiring spend a good 2-3 hours reading their website, not shopping but reading. For example read their about page, their blogs, mission statements, and anything else you can find not to mention new articles if there are any. You want to know what the company / store does and what their goals are, their goal or mission statement often can give you great insight to what keywords to put in your résumé that will help you land the interview.

Speaking of your resume after you have done research and think your ready to submit a resume stop yourself. Open your resume and redo it. Tailor it so it fits the company your applying to; make sure you do this for every company you apply to. According to job application reviewers one of major turn offs to an application is a mass-produced resume, which handed out to every company and is the exact same. Since you don’t have a massive experience make sure your resume focus on your skills and not your experience, and supply facts, which support those skills. For example I am very talented in web development but I haven’t worked with a design firm for more then a few weeks, so I would show a few awards I have won as it adds creditability.

Like just as important if not more important to your resume is your Cover Letter, each resume you submit NEEDS a cover letter and a custom one at that. Your cover letter is the first thing your employer will see and it often is the item, which will sink you or swim you. I am not exactly good at explaining the cover letter process so please refer to here: Click Here!

They will be able to walk you through the creation of your cover letter.

Then once you’re all done make sure to double check your work and submit your resume. Follow up as need be, but once you land your interview make sure your prepared. I personally recommend once you find out you have an interview do some more research about the company and refresh your memory as you want to know about the company and if can come to the interview with a few questions in regards to the company, like how their expanding their reach to the east coast from the west etc… If your one of the people who aren’t a great people person then make sure you have a friend or parent conduct a number of practice interviews asking you typical interview questions. This will help prepare you for the stress and questions of a real interview.

I know this wasn’t exactly the best article on how to improve your job search so I am including some additional reading materials.

Resumes:

http://www.groovejob.com/resources/resumes/tips.html

http://www.ehow.com/how_5474486_build-perfect-resume.html

Cover Letters:

http://jobsearch.about.com/od/coverlettersamples/a/coverlettsample.htm

Interviews:

http://careerplanning.about.com/od/jobinterviews/Job_Interviews.htm

I need some advice – About three months ago, when I was at my friends house my sister went through my ipod and found out from a conversation I was having w. my friend that my boyfriend of 9 months and I were having sex. That night… my two sisters, & my mom sat me down and confronted me about the situation. They didn’t yell at me or anything but they told me how the truly felt about my boyfriend. They also banned me from going to his house…

My mom being the paranoid person that she is set up a doctor’s appointment to have blood-work done because she was convinced I had a STD. I am fine, and the blood-work came out good. Although everything is ok she is STILL not letting me over my boyfriends house.

I tried everything even using the excuse that he was going to tutor me. I don’t want to sneak because I don’t want to make the situation worse if she finds out I went behind her back and went there. Where I live there is nothing really to do… Just the mall and movies and my boyfriend and I are in the process of looking for jobs, so this all makes me upset because I want to see my boyfriend more.

I miss him. I talked to my mom about it, but every-time I bring it up she avoids the subject and I don’t know what to do anymore. I feel like she doesn’t trust me, but what does she expect me to be a virgin forever? She needs to let me grow up. I feel like I ran out of options… I want to be able to go to my boyfriends house again… what can I do to convince her to let me go there?

Well first and foremost I would like to use this opportunity to remind the readers of our website if your scared of something getting out make sure you don’t message it, and if you do make sure you clear your history and empty the trash can! If you don’t your just asking for problems to arise, people have a nasty habit of searching through people’s files.

It sounds like you’re in a tough position, your mom and family obviously don’t approve of your choice of a boyfriend. It sounds like it’s something larger then just not liking the way he dresses, to me from past history of friends your mom has a valid reason for wanting to keep you away from him… and maybe you should consider sitting down with her and having a heart to heart. Find out what she doesn’t like about your boyfriend and what her concerns are about you two dating.

I do know your 18 so you’re a legal adult in most countries in the world, that being said if you live with your mom your likely living under her rules. If you go behind her back your going to look like a disobedient teenager who is rebelling and let me tell you, you will be caught and the punishment will be far worst then it is now. You’re not going to be able to create an excuse to visit his house, because yes parents were teenagers and yes they messed around in the past so they have first hand experience.
Like I said before your pretty much stuck, but you may be able to sit down with your mom and talk to her and explain that your growing up and you know that she’s worried and you want to do what you can to remove that fear so she can begin to trust you to handle your life. I think you’ll get pretty far with that, considering how she handled the news of you’re past “adventures”. I know communicating isn’t the solution you were looking for but talking things out is your best chance at not having to go against your mother’s wishes. As always please feel free to keep me up to date and let me know if you have any questions.

So my boyfriend and I broke up a few months ago because he refused to believe that I was telling the truth about something I said to one of my friends. I was just casually talking to my friend (who is a guy) about work. My friend then joked about it to my boyfriend, twisting it, and making it sound like I was being a slut, and worst of all, my friend jokingly said that I had come onto him, which I DID NOT.

I’ve tried to speak to my boyfriend and explain the situation. He refused to believe me and called me a liar. We broke up.

He knows what happened now and said he’s sorry and wants to get back together with me, but I don’t know what to do.

It worries me that his immediate reaction was to think I lied to him when I have never lied to him about anything in the 7 months we were dating. Plus, while we were dating, he lied to me about not going to prom, but I saw the pictures of him and another girl on his facebook. To his credit though, my friend who goes to his school said my boyfriend had an awful time and felt really guilty…but he still lied to me about it.

I am so confused and conflicted. If anyone could help, it would be really appreciated.

Based on the way you still refer to him as your “boyfriend” and not your ex-boyfriend it seems to me that you still care about him. That being said it looks like your concerned about having those feelings for him. Which i honestly believe is a wise thing to do, and being conflicted and confused isn’t always bad especially when you take the time to sort out those emotions and concerns.

To start off he’s in the wrong far more then you are, it’s amazing to believe he didn’t sit down and take the time to talk with you in regrades to your “friends” comments. I would say that a healthily relationship the right thing would do is speak with each other. He seemingly had some major fears or thoughts about something being wrong with your guys’ relationship. Then add-on the fact he lied about prom, which even if he didn’t enjoy, he hide from you. He has some major problems.

My recommendation is if you truly still care about him and you think there’s something there, sit down and talk with him and explain you know about prom and if there’s any chance of you two working out he needs to come clean. You also should tell him that you both needs to work on trust and communication to hopefully avoid events like this. If he’s not stepping up to the plate and putting forth effort i recommend removing yourself from him, if he won’t change once there has to be a major event to make him change. I hope everything works out for the best for you and your ex-boyfriend, feel free to keep me up todate!

I spent the day with my ex-boyfriend on Saturday…

We just recently broke up, maybe a little less than two months ago. We dated for three years prior.

He is literally up and down. He says he still likes me, and loves me not in love with me anymore…obviously. But he wants to be single and doesn’t want to be tied down. That information would have been helpful 2 1/2 years ago.

I asked him if he was happier…he said no….and I asked him how he would feel if I ended up getting a boyfriend (which I’m not going to for a very long time unless it is him. but theoretically if I got a boyfriend) and his response was “Well, I wouldn’t like that… at all…” But he was the one to break up with me!

Then, for my birthday he got me an expensive gift. More than 300 dollars, that’s not the way you treat someone that you aren’t interested in.

But then on the other hand, he wants a “change in atmosphere and a change in lifestyle. ”
ugh…

Everything that he is saying and doing is very contradicting.

And I’m still really, really in love with him. Which is the worst part.

So. What in the world is he trying to do??? I don’t get it…

and I was wondering if any of you do…” - colour4, teenspot.com

Sounds like you’re in a very frustrating position that being said I can as a guy understand both his side as well as yours.

To put it simply; he’s not sure of what he wants. It sounds like you both had a vary successful three year relationship; I know from my own personal experience that is not an easy thing achieve. I also know from my own personal experience when you’re in a long-term relationship during your prime dating years you start to worry that you’ve missing something or someone. Most people seem to think that there’s no way to really know besides taking a break from their existing relationship. I think a lot people especially those who have seen or experienced a divorce first hand are extremely prone to this concern.

His actions from what you have described show passion for you still. What can you do? Well to be honest there’s not a whole lot you can do. As always I recommend sitting down and talking to him, and be very straightforward and blunt. You want to be clear with the conversation and explain that your confused by what he wants, and let him know you still care about him. Hopefully have a very direct person to person conversation can at least give you some direct insight into his goals and what he’s seeking for.

What you can’t do is stop your life for him, even if he tells you straight to your face he is interested in you still. That is unless he wants to restart the relationship; the last thing you want is to be toyed with. “If you love someone let them go, and if it’s meant to be they’ll find their way back”, if it’s meant to work out it well. You may just need to nudge it ahead a little.

Please keep me updated, – John Mathews!