Jobless - What my Search Taught Me

At the beginning of October 2013, I was in my comfort zone. Steady job with an employer I considered family. Working Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm with lots of time to see family, make plans on the weekend and live a comfortable life.

Despite my level of comfort with my life at that time, somewhere deep inside I was restless. I didn't know it at the time, but now looking back I think maybe I chose not to know it. I had been working the role of Extended Stay Sales Representative for over three years and despite improving my numbers year over year, 2013 had been a tough year. The hotel had taken a different direction in a push to improve the Average Rates and that had made achieving the lofty targets laid out for me a little more difficult. Subsequently I found myself missing my monthly targets consistently which severely affected my motivation level. The hotel had compensated for these higher targets by expanding my job parameters to include non-extended stay smaller corporate accounts. This gave me something concrete to work towards and I will always be grateful for that diversification from which I learnt a lot those last few months.

So when the hammer fell on Halloween 2013 (Oct 31st), I wasn't too surprised. To be fair, the situation was handled wonderfully well. I had never been in such a position before and I feel that all the powers that be at One King treated me with the same utmost respect that I had given the hotel for the previous six years.

Being the positive person that I am, I immediately consulted with Lauren, family and friends and came to the conclusion that this was a necessary change and an opportunity to turn my direction back towards hotel operations and specifically the Front Desk. After taking a couple of weeks to lay some groundwork for my job search I dove into it with the eagerness and anticipation of bigger and better things to come.

Fast Forward to June 2014 and I was still jobless. It was not an easy experience to say the least. I thought that with my educational background and varied experience at One King, it would have been a walk in the park. What it turned out to be was a up and down journey with lots of hours spent alone with just my thoughts. I came to several realizations:

1.   My Education Didn't Carry The Weight I Thought It Did

The five years I spent at George Brown College obtaining my Hospitality Operations Degree were five of the best years of my life. The thing is, most employers while taking it into consideration, cared more about what practical experience I had under my belt versus how many text books I had read. Therefore with Front Desk being my priority in the job hunt, my lack of previous Front Desk experience hurt me.

2.   Job Hunting Is More Quality Over Quantity

At first my focus was sending out as many resumes as possible. I sent out hundreds and not ONE of them came back for an interview request. My search took place all over the world with applications sent out for jobs internationally as well. The day I started to narrow my search and focus in specifically on organizations I wanted to target, my results improved and I began to get calls for interviews.



3.   Moving Might Not Have Been the Best Thing

In January 2014, we received confirmation that Lauren was pregnant and this immediately led to me reconsidering my thoughts about a move out of Toronto. I came close to obtaining a dream position with a terrific hotel in downtown Vancouver doing three interviews with them. This was in February 2014 and with everything that followed during her pregnancy, I am very glad that I never got that position. I would have moved without her initially and not only would it have been tough for her, I would have been extremely distracted in Vancouver and that could have affected my job performance significantly.


4.   Being Creative About My Job Experience

Now this definitely doesn't mean make up my job experience. As I was going for a Guest Services position at the Front Desk and I didn't have any previous actual Front Desk experience, it was critical that I found ways to connect my work as Extended Stay Sales Representative with the Front Desk. The fact is while my job was mostly Sales related, it was a unique market segment to work as it did involve maintaining strong relationships with my guests as well as working closely with the Front Desk to ensure that my guests were looked after during their stays. Convincing potential employers that my lack of Front Desk experience was not a hindrance and that my sales experience was actually a benefit was the most challenging part of the hunt.

5.   Be Truthful to Yourself

December is not the best time to be job hunting and that lull in the market carries over well into January. It was a tough time to search and I was getting no hits. There was a time from mid January through to the first call I got from that Vancouver hotel where I was asking myself some seriously difficult questions. For the first time in almost seven years I was questioning my abilities, my career choice and my own personal career choices over the past few years. Its extremely easy to fall prey to these darker and more negative thoughts that come when things aren't going the way you'd like. I realized that these conversations I was having with myself were necessary. They were difficult questions and in order to move forward I needed to think about them and answer them truthfully.

6.   Support is There When Needed

This leads me to my sixth and final point. I want to pay my respect and humble appreciation to my family, friends and loved ones who were there for me on the darkest of my days. In the end, that was my journey to take and mine alone. However I can point out multiple meaningful and deep conversations with both my parents that helped me get through those moments. My mother in law for the countless jobs she searched for and sent my way. My friends who were behind me all the way whether to boost my confidence or just simply to make me smile when I needed it. My brother for continuing to inspire me on a daily basis. When I needed to escape, he was there. My wife Lauren's continuous support throughout everything. She backed every decision without blinking and unconditionally loved me in the most negative of days. When Vancouver looked like a possibility she was all for it despite being on the most incredible nine month journey of her own with all the uncertainty it brought.

Finally I'd like to thank my baby girl Zahra. Even though she had not entered into the world as yet, she was my inspiration. I can safely say that being off for the first six to seven months of Lauren's pregnancy and having a chance to support and share with her through those times was the single most rewarding experience of my life until that point. Knowing that my efforts were all going towards creating a future for Zahra gave me the best motivation anyone could ever ask for.

I can't wait to see what that future holds!

Till next time....