How to land a job?

[TheKrusader]

Alright guys, I'm in high school and money is a bit tight for me at the moment. I have no car (but I do have a bike) and I really, really need to get a job. The only problem is...I don't know how. So for those of you who are in high school and have a job, do you think you could quite possibly give me some tips on how to get one? It would be a great help, thanks for reading.

[Panda]

I thought you asked how to give a hand job, I read things completely wrong.

Anyways, yeah, "handing out" resumes everywhere. Look at local craigslist ad's to people looking for resumes, since well, they mean buisness. LITTERALLY.

[Statua]

For my first job, I just looked around to see who was hiring. I don't mean sitting on my duff browsing the job classifieds, i mean getting on my bike and riding around looking for now hiring signs 'n' shit.

However, finding the place you want to work is a mere slice off the entire hiring pizza. You need to get the employer to like you and to want to hire you. You don't need a 3 page resume (or even a resume at all for stuff like retail clerk, fast food prep, or other similar minimum wage jobs) to get the employer to like you. I've had 2 jobs in the past 3 years. I worked at Subway for 1 and CO-OP Gas bar for 2. Here's how I landed both AFAIK.

At subway, I told my manager I'd be available for the rest of my time in high school (3 years) and that I was available evenings, weekends, and holidays. I provided references to people I did volunteer work with. The job requirements said "Fast Paced" so I wrote down "Able to work quickly and efficiently for long periods of time."

At CO-OP, I don't know how I got it but I've befriended my boss and we chit chat all the time (his office is right behind the till) and he's given me protips on how he hires new people. For school kids, he likes students who will be available for 2+ years. For full time, he likes people experienced in customer service jobs and who can work whenever. Basically, he likes people who are available.


So, to sum it all up, here's a list of things that could help you land a job:

-Properly fill out the application and tailor it to the job you're applying for.
-Get good references, particularly ones you worked for
-Let them know you wont be leaving within the next few months
-Be as available as possible (as in, your personal life isn't important. If you're off school at 3:30, you can work 4-11)
-If you plan to move away in the next year or two, good luck.
-Be prepared to work every holiday. In fact, state you are available every holiday if needed.
-Above all, be honest whilst trying to look like the perfect specimen who can work whenever possible.

[TheKrusader]

At subway, I told my manager I'd be available for the rest of my time in high school (3 years) and that I was available evenings, weekends, and holidays. I provided references to people I did volunteer work with. The job requirements said "Fast Paced" so I wrote down "Able to work quickly and efficiently for long periods of time."

You see, that's the part that confuses me. I can fill out an application and tailor it to fit the job description, but when it comes to meeting people in person, it confuses me. Am I supposed to randomly walk up to the manager and introduce myself, saying that I applied to a job online and hope that I hope he takes my application into consideration? What if the manager isn't even on the floor, do I just ask an employee there to fetch him/her for me?

[Statua]

Applications on paper are usually better though I personally am not familiar with online applications so they could be better. Not sure. Use the paper application and when you go to hand it in, ask for the manager, ask him/her a few questions about the job, what it's like, etc. Show them you're interested and not just some joe off the street looking for a job (though we all are, its better we keep that to ourselves though)

[Meatwad]

I got my job by coming in over 20 times, they finally gave me the job.