Can anyone help me find a job?

In a few short months I'll be graduating and looking for a job. Unlike many of my classmates who will be leaving the safe confines of school and finding their way in "the real world" for the first time, this is not my first rodeo. However, I can remember like it was yesterday when I was a brand new job seeker. The recollection makes me laugh, mostly at the bumbling, stumbling young man that I was, but I can also think back to some lessons learned that are still helpful today.

Let me first say that when I looked for my first job I had absolutely no idea what kind of a job I wanted. How that could even be possible after 1,460 days in university is puzzling and unexplainable even to this day, but these are the facts.

My initial "strategy" towards finding a job was to take no action whatsoever. I learned quickly that this was a poor plan, but in case I had missed the lesson, my mother was happy to remind me no less than 400 times daily. Though it was sometimes difficult to listen through the nagging, I did hear her say that I should try to meet with people who might help me figure out my career path.

Great idea! But who?

A family friend was working in advertising in Toronto and agreed to meet with me to see if he could be of assistance. This meeting didn't produce a job offer nor even any career ideas, but he did suggest I meet with his client who owned a sports marketing company. Without knowing it, I was networking.

The first things I noticed about "Pete" when I had my meeting was that he wore a suit, a baseball cap, and no socks. It was quickly established that the man with no socks was also the man with no job openings and I worried that our meeting would be a waste of time for both of us.

While I'm sure my stated career objective ("I have absolutely no idea what I want to do") was in no way impressive, it did give us a starting point for our conversation. He told me his story about landing his first job-as a counsellor at the YMCA, working with kids. He said it was far from his "dream job", but he knew he wasn't going to be there forever. After a few months, he got to know the parents of the children and one day, one of the fathers said there was an opening at his company, IBM, selling typewriters and suggested he apply. He got the job and learned how to sell, a helpful skill for nearly any career. Through his contacts at IBM he landed a different job and learned new skills, repeated the process several times and years later opened up his own company.

Pete told me that since I didn't know what kind of job I wanted, that I shouldn't be too picky. "Take any job that offers the chance to learn and start to build your network," he said. Pete also changed my mind about taking a job in sales. The ability to sell is required for success in nearly every job-the ability to sell yourself, your ideas, to persuade people...it's all sales!

There were many lessons learned that day:

1. Mom was right-talking to people is a great way to gain insight and get helpful advice when deciding on a new career.
2. Networking is a great way to find a job, but is not limited to finding a job. Think of networking as a way to get advice, find a mentor or learn about industries. And ALWAYS look for ways to give before you get.
3. Don't be so picky when looking for a job that you overlook opportunities to gain valuable skills or rapidly expand your network. Jobs are stepping stones, so don't expect perfection before you've gained experience.
4. The ability to sell is always valuable.
5. If you own the company, no one cares if you wear socks.

Oh, and this time I know what type of job I'm looking for.