first post... JOB HUNTING!

INTRODUCTION
my idea's for this blog: spread experience and knowledge. i have many amazing friends, each of which has their own expertise. i think that we each have something to share, where my original idea was more along the academic side (inspired by intersections between different approaches such as a geographer working with an anthropologist), i believe we can first start approaching issues individually and later see how it goes. (to all those who don't know me, please know that i intentionally do not capitalize, outside of names of places generally, please do not take this as being illiterate).

FIRST SECTION: job hunting
although i am currently working pro-bono with the university of washington, i am looking for a job that will be able to provide me with a paycheck, which led me to a rather large dilemma: do i go to temp agencies to look, or should i focus principally on searching for positions on my own.

let's look at the advantages for each path:

A) with a temp agency, you are able to have other people proactively looking for positions that would suit your abilities. also, you are able to leave the job if it doesn't turn out to be what you are hoping for, essentially giving both you and the employer a "try out" time. another positive point is that you do not have to have a pre-existing relationship with the potential employer, as the temp agency is already connected with the businesses. another positive point is that this accelerates your ability to make a form of income, despite your positions not necessarily being closely aligned with your interest.

B) looking for positions on your own may make the company more likely to hire you, as it would be theoretically cheaper for them to hire you. temporary employees are sometimes looked upon as "lesser employees" unfortunately inside the company. by choosing the specific positions, you have a better chance for getting a position in your interests.

i find that although going through temporary agencies could provide you with a stigma upon you entering an occupation, they can indeed lead to good paying, full-fledged employment. in my opinion, should you have already spent much time looking for a permanent job, you can sign up with multiple temporary agencies in order to spread out your chances at finding a job. sometimes the agencies will have information regarding positions that aren't visible on sites such as craigslist, monster, or careerbuilder. temporary agencies specialize in particular sectors, or even employers. for example, if you're looking for supply chain positions, corestaff has contact with many folks inside amazon.com. if it's non-profit that you want, some smaller agencies such as woods and associates or molly brown temps can definitely help you reach out.

in conclusion, my opinion is that by hedging your bet by getting out there on many different job search engines, looking daily at positions, getting into contact with temp agencies can provide the best approach for finding a job... now, i'll just keep up my efforts 'til they pan out, and will post when i hear back. :)

abraços,
burnptcruisers

on a nerdy, theoretical level, i feel that i must discuss the current function of having "temporary work" in the marketplace. the market is supposed to be increasingly flexible, ideally providing for employees to move on when they no longer enjoy their profession, and providing flexibility for employers to drop expenses and man-hours when needed. however, this can help contribute to unemployment, especially in the cases of recession.

labor, unlike capital and money, is not as mobile as the popular proponents of the current macro-economic policies would like. take the example of a farmer, moving to a highly technologically based workplace: he'll have to invest time and money into retraining his abilities, imagine having to train to work with a computer if you are not so familiar with it initially!