Today is Saturday

For the last 4 months I've been unemployed. The cause of this is a mix of cause and circumstance. First and foremost, the economy in Nevada is facing an unemployment rate exceeding 14%. So even for those people who desperately want a job, there simply aren't that many to go around. Secondly, I've been waiting for the job I really want. I really want to work at the Apple store. Not because it's a great paying job, but because it's the kind of job I could believe in. Selling coaching paid the bills, but I was never passionate about it. I am very, VERY passionate about Apple technology. Finally, I want to be my own boss. The problems with that idea are twofold. First, I'm not the only one. In this economy there's scores of people more qualified than I am trying to get the same work. I am stuck in the classic catch-22. Without experience no one will hire me but the only way I'll get experience is if someone hires me. The hiring process at Apple has been insane. Thus far, I've had 3 different interviews. The first was in the store, I think I nailed that one because I got the second, group interview. I did two things the rest of my group didn't. First, during the role-play I offered up sells, and second I knew the products well enough to pitch them without looking at the noted they'd given us to use. So I made it to the third interview. A panel style where I didn't overly stand out, but I did well enough IMHO. Then came the background check. For those who have not been following my story, earlier in the year I decided that the corporate polices of Capitol One were abusive enough such that I chose not to pay them. This has thus far knocked off over 100 points to my FICO score, and affected my credit to the point I literally can't finance a toaster at Best Buy. I'm worried that all my effort the past several months will have been for naught. I'd imagine a position handling money requires decent if not good credit on the part of the applicant. This snafu never crossed my mind until they asked for my info. According to the nice young lady at the panel, we'd hear from them one way of the other by Friday but no later than Monday. I haven't heard anything yet, so I'm now operating under the assumption that my effort to get the job was in vain. So what's next? I've been living off my parent's for the last 4 months and frankly, I'm sick of it. Starting Monday, I'm taking any job I can get. Including sales. But wait you say, didn't you say you'd never again be in sales for the rest of your life, consequences be damned? Indeed I did. And that remains my stance. I hate, hate, HATE sales. But I must accept reality. And the reality is that the sales game is unique. I've literally seen people hired less than a week out of prison, people with warrants, probation, and all sorts of marks against them make good, and even great money. That's all I care about right now. If I could, I'd be running my own company, setting my own hours and producing a great product people would embrace. But the fact is, I'm broke. I'm mooching off my parents, and I'm sick and tired of waiting. I will make more in a good week in sales than I will in a month waiting tables, or flipping burgers. So here's the plan. I'm going to wait for Apple until Wednesday. If I haven't heard from them by then, I'll assume they've rejected me. I'm going to start looking to every sales floor(probably telemarketing but you never know) in town for opportunities. Therein lies another unique trait of sales floors. The cost to them to hire someone is so minor, that they'll take a chance on almost anyone. That's my "in." I'm a proven salesman and all I need is a chance. Once I'm hired, I'll be working on 3 different fronts. First, I'll be going in every day when the doors open. And staying until they close. I'm not hungry. I'm STARVING!!! Secondly, my iPhone will be redirecting calls to my prepaid phone. My prepaid phone has no features at all besides calling and texting. And both are inordinately expensive. That's exactly what I want. That'll help me keep focused. Finally I will have my living expenses slashed. No lunch, very small breakfast, and small dinner. I estimate that I have almost 300 days of calories stored on my person if I cut my daily intake 1000 calories. It'll suck but the number 1 thing I'm wasting money on day in and day out is food. I have one goal for the next 6 months. Pay off ALL my debts, and save money. The number to remember is $1,200. That's the cost of a new(I want the warrantee) MacBook and the fees to register for the iOS developer program. In the interim I'm going to use my laptop to learn website programming languages. Especially php, java, perl, and ruby on rails. This will come in to play when I begin to freelancing to break the chain I'll have to my job. Also, the more I know about programming before I dive into iOS the better. By summer next year I want to have freed myself from the burden of working for someone else forever. I'm going to miss my birthday deadline but so be it. Life starts when you decide to start it. I was rejected by my old job. I was rejected by my dream job. The next time I leave the employment of a company, it'll be because my business has begun. So it was written, so it shall be done. Because one way or another, I'm goin' up! :) $$

G'nite.