Paul's Tech Talk

The Economic Quagmire: Understanding the Factors Behind the Downturn

PaulMarch 8, 2024

New Data Warns Major Layoffs Coming!

More Data Showing the Downturn of the Economy and I’ll be talking about it even more. I’ve been looking at the data and it doesn’t look good even if the Biden said we have all these jobs for people. Yet, I am seeing more and more in the the Warn Reports of the coming tsunami of job layoffs. It looks to be from 4/26/24 to 5/1/24 but I am also seeing some layoffs beginning in June also. Companies have 30 days to send out the warn reports to the US Government and that could be coming very shortly for some of the companies as soon as the end of this month if they have a deadline to lay people off by the of March or early April. I’ve already talked about why companies would do this but this just shows more and more that they are going to do this.

Google is even showing this

I hate to bring Google Trends into this but it looks like Google is showing even more signs of people ask questions like Jobs Near Me, Why can’t I get a job, or even Is the Job market bad right now? It seems to be be fluctuating and making me think there is more to this than Google isn’t being honest about. I suspect the US government is interfering with the data because they want us to not know the real truth. I’ve read and saw how they like to not talk the truth in the past and they seem to be doing that again. Last night it was looking totally different but today this looks like it isn’t even popular. Looking into this even more, I found one that looks interesting and showing that people are saying the same thing to Google: “I can’t find a job”

Job Market isn’t look good. Even I can see that but I also know it because I’ve had yet to find a job since I was let go in the last few weeks. In Depth Investigation of the Job Market and How it looks was something that I did to tell people that it is showing you that something is happening in the government and there isn’t the real problem that you are real. Understanding that you aren’t alone is the first way we can make it through these hard times. However this isn’t the only way you can do it, if you really are looking for a job. Should check out my Job Hunting Series to better help you get some more information on how to get a job.

There will be no soft landing

I know that I am seeing more and more that this will most likely be a Crash landing in economics or at the very least a really Hard landing that we will have to get through before everything get’s better. I don’t believe Biden is in his right mind to think that we don’t see him not being truthful. I also know that we should be expecting something to happen rather sooner than you might want to consider. I think we will se this before the Primaries coming up in the US and it will be a signal that you should vote the right way and tell the government that you want it to change. I don’t think we will get out this very easily and it might even be worse the the 2010 recession but that is just me.

Strategic Job Applications: How AI Can Be Your Secret Weapon

PaulMarch 4, 2024

How AI can build your resume

That’s something I’ve been exploring lately due to the fact that I’ve been having a really hard time finding a jobs of late and it looks to be almost a full time job. You have to apply to every job possible but you shouldn’t just apply and go to the next. It’s almost a competition to get the recruiter or Hiring manager to see your resume due to the fact that is large number of people applying for the same job and don’t get me started on the remote positions that are either already filled or people Applying to jobs that are just looking for the right person to join their cliche of people. The real question is How can AI help me in the job market? The simple answer is that it can help you build your resume and I’ll provide a few good ones to use to help you build or modify your resume to help get jobs online.

Jobscan.co — Will help you optimize your resume to make it easier for the online applications to get to the recruiter instead of being sent to the trash by the automatic job filtering system called the ATS(Applicant Tracking System) and that could cause you to not be seen by the employers.
wonsulting.ai — Is good at helping you build a new resume when the need arises. Some people say this is necessary for each and every applications. I am not certain that is needed because if you are applying to jobs that you have done in the past then you should be able to stand out anyways.
Rezi.ai — Is another good one that will do everything Wonsulting does but may be a better match to your needs. Each one has their own unique way to creating the resume but it is sure better to explore all available alternatives that may be available.
Resume.io — Will help with creating an eye catching resume for to get those recruiters that may see this. It however is just like every other one but may have some good free resume building templates that might be something you are looking for.

Can AI build a good Cover Letter?

Even when you are looking to apply for jobs, a good cover letter can help you in landing that interview the rest is up to you and I’ve been trying new ones recently due to need to be competition for finding that one job. I’d thought I would at least provide some good ones that I’ve tried recently that are free and can be used to impress that one hiring manager to giving your a chance.

Grammarly.com — is the one that I’ve tried recently and has been somewhat successful in helping me at least get noticed whether it is the best is the still up for debate by everyone. It however has been something I have been using on occasion to create good cover letters.
Coverletter-ai.com — Is good at using multiple ways to customize the cover letter and tweak it even more and change the writing styles which may help you to stand out. I’ve only used this once but someone might like to try it out due to what their needs are. It looks interesting and that much is something that might get those hiring managers to give your a chance.

For most of these are just the ones I have used. I however suggest you try the ones that you can use with the Resume builders part. Some or most of them will also create good cover letters to help you with creating a good cover letter also. I however haven’t really used them for that but it might be something to consider.

Can AI help me find Jobs?

That is the next question that I would like to address. It actually looks like it can and that can help you find jobs that you might not know about. Here are a few that might interests you in the future or now. Some of these are in beta and may not be something that you can use right now but something to consider in the future.

Sonara.ai (Beta) — is an AI-powered tool designed to streamline your job search process and automatically apply for jobs that match your resume and preferences. I’m in the waiting list for this one and have yet to try it out.
Careerflow.ai — Accelerate your job search with a personalized CRM! Keep track of all your jobs opportunities, applications, notes, contacts, in one single dashboard. They also have a good Chrome extension that might be useful for those who are looking for a job and keep track of all the ones you have applied for so you don’t apply to the same one twice.

As you can see there are several different options for you to use to help you find a job but it still takes effort to find that job and you will need to keep applying to jobs until you land that one job that you are looking for. However these AI tools will help you with your job searches and job applications to make it easier and faster to apply for jobs that you might be interested in. If you like this blog post don’t forget to sign up for more like this and other blog posts.

Job Scams that seem too good to be true

PaulFebruary 28, 2024

Photo by mohamed_hassan from PxHere

I received this Text

(270)900-7242

Hi, my name is Nyla Lucas and I am a Recruiter at Conill Advertising & Media.
Our company is looking for online part-time employees, job certification is easy and free
Can be done with any schedule you have, even on the weekends
Can I send you job details?

I can only guess what the purpose of this part-time job or Full Time Job is. After saying I would like more information this is what this number sent me. I won’t say this isn’t too original to say the least.

Requirements: Age 22 and above. We offer part-time ($80-300/hour) and full-time ($1800-3800/month) positions. All you need to do is help them optimize the hotel, increase occupancy rate, exposure and ranking, and attract more Many locals and tourists stay here. Flexible application options are available that can be adjusted to fit your schedule. No contract or investment is required; free training is also provided. Part-time and full-time flexible jobs available, with the option to work from home. If you’re interested, I’ll give you more information, okay?

If it’s Too good to be true?

Let me say this once and for all after this text, I started getting red flags everywhere. At the most I haven’t even could imagine making 80 to 300 dollars an hour. Let alone for a part time position and we are to optimize and increase occupancy rate, and even raking. How would that even work. So I went on the web and started to deep dive into this type of job. I however am sure it is just a scam but let’s first understand that they are trying to get me to use WhatsApp and draw me away from sending text messages. That’s my first question, the next questions is who is “Conill Advertising & Media” and why would they want to increase the revenue of these hotels. I found some more examples of this company on Reddit. I don’t know if this is just an AI putting in random people’s name or if they are real people. After deep diving into the name of the person who it claims to be, I am a bit concerned. Nyla Lucas which has a felony and ther such things on her record was the first person to show up in Google. Now let’s not go saying this Nyla Lucas is the same one but I suspect that if it was a different one then I wouldn’t be using that exact name while trying to recruit people. I went to the Reddit post and checked out other users name that claimed to be doing the same thing and I found these are high profile people, so I must conclude that most of these are people are just using these name to guile people into this scam. Either way, let me remind people if it is too good to be true, then any usually isn’t something you want.

Thanks to another Reddit Post, this does seem to be a scam. Please be careful and don’t fall for these types of scam, because you need your money to survive. If they ever require you to pay for something and promising to pay you back than that is another red flag and don’t accept anything that might be Crypto Currency such as USDT which one person from the Reddit Post comments is how they will pay you. I am not sure why people try these sort of things but I do know they aren’t going to get me on this type of scam. I usually ask a lot of questions about this and try to find my answer way before they can get any money from me. Remember the old scam I got years ago which came in as a check. That one I will never forget because it was truly one of those that almost got me until I read what they wanted me to do. I blog about this stuff so you don’t have to loose your money and get caught loosing money.

Is the 9 to 5 Work day obsolete or is it still in Demand?

PaulFebruary 27, 2024

Are you working 9 to 5?

That’s the real question right now for most people, I don’t say that lightly either. I am seeing more and more Jobs that are either to0 popular or are wanting to only work part time. This seems to be an ever evolving scenario. I’ve been looking for jobs the last few weeks and it just seems daunting and that brings even more problems to finding a job. Usually I don’t get to the interview process or I get to the first phone interview and have yet to get to the video interview where they want to ask even more questions that you can talk about what you know and what you’ve done to show them you have the qualifications to get the job.

GIG Economy

Is that really a thing, working as a freelancer or even someone who is only working for a certain amount of time? That seems to be where I’m seeing more and more jobs being posted and people applying to those types of jobs and hoping they get some kind of income to help them pay jobs. I’ve talked about this in previous blog posts but I am really curious as to what people are doing to bring in the money to pay bills and do what is needed to survive. Is this just going to be more and more people being homeless or people taking any jobs they can to survive and get by with.

Are we 90 days away from a recession?

If interests rates start to show we are going into a recession than we may also show we are also going into a depression. Even though United Kingdom has already stated they are in a recession and I can only imagine that Germany is going into the recession also. Are we eating like we are in a depression era? I am curious about that also are people eating foods that are cheap and trying to get as much out of the food than we used like Mac & cheese dinners and even Beanie Weenies, or even food that can be easily reheated and served multiple times that can help drag out the cost of the food in question.

Getting ahead of the Game

Even if we try to get ahead of this recession in the US it is bound to happen because of all that is going on. I am sure Biden administration and others in the government are keeping this public due to the coming elections and we will see this continue all the way up and past the election to make it look like we aren’t having issues but I’ve see others say the same thing, that it will happen and we may already be in recession. I can’t answer that right now but I do feel like I am trying to do what is needed but nothing seems to be happening as to finding a job. Are you having the same issues as I am? Finding a job is way harder than it used be the last few years. Is there anything we can do about it? Probably not no matter how hard we try or maybe we need to listen to more experts on how to get the job because they obviously know something we don’t know. it all means the same thing we can’t just wait and see what others are doing to survive. No matter what we are all here for the same reason to find a job and keep bringing in the money to support our family and ourselves.

Job Hunting 103 : Navigating pre-employment assessments and tests

PaulFebruary 26, 2024

Photo by mohamed_hassan from PxHere

Submitting Online Applications: Dos and Don’ts

How do I submits Job applications online? Is always the first question I usually get when I am trying to find a job. I want to make sure I apply in the right to get some kind of response and maybe a good interview possibilities. This will be me telling you how I apply and making sure I get the right response and possibly invitations to apply type of jobs. Each person will have different results depending on how they complete the process.

Do find the jobs that you want to do.
Do follow up with recruiters or HR after the interview.
Do write the applications as if you are the best fit.
Do create a resume that fits that job.

And

Don’t Just apply to any job you can.
Don’t be in a hurry to fill out the application
Don’t send a generic Resume.

Each employer will vary depending on what they may require you to do to get an interview, so you must read the job description and try to figure what they may need. You can also start filling out certain job assessments online by using the Indeed assessment portal. Like everything else this helps the employer know if you have the right qualifications and skills that they might be looking for. You can also do some more self assessments are something that you can do to prepare for some of this and this could ultimately help you identify what you might be good at if you haven’t already done that. Knowing what you are good at will help you get the job, Even though I said that in the other blog posts. This is how you can get a job that you might be good at.

Following the Job applications requirements will be something that no one can truly master because the employers sometimes makes it harder than it typically needs to be. They want to make sure you want the job and that can make it even harder to get the job. However once you have the job the satisfaction of saying you’ve got a job far out ways the hardship of getting the job.

Customizing Applications for Various Job Types

Why would you need to customize an applications? That is the first questions you might have, when you think about the whole purpose of the application. Some more interesting aspects of customizing the application is that makes it harder to any employer to track from employer to employer. Most of the time, they aren’t tracking people but if you have already applied to that company before it makes it a bit harder to look back at the other applications and associate it with the same person. After you decide which job you want to apply to, customize the applications or resume to make them see your the best possible fit for the job. If you do this right, you might get an interview with company and be offered a job.

Understanding Pre-employment Assessments

Knowing what the employer might want you to do like an assessments from your local state unemployment office or some other places. Knowing that you may need to be able to type a certain amount of speed or that you know how to handle customers. This tells the employer that your skills match what they might be looking for so this can be great way to show off your skills in the application process. You should do a background check on yourself, and even tell your references you are using them to apply for the job, that way they know to expect a possible phone call. Sometimes employers will call or just they asks for the references for one reason or another. I will say there is an good blog post from Indeed of what you might need to do for the pre-employment checks that you might need to do. Some other good places to look:

As you can see, there is so many things that must be done before you get hired that it is almost impossible to go through the whole process of talking about the pre-employment tests and assessments but this is generally just to help you understand what you might need to do to get that job offer either before the interview process or after the interview process and they want you to do the pre employment testing to make sure you are the right candidate for the job. So i can’t possibly talk about all the process. You’re going to have to do the research before you get through the whole process. However this is just a small bit of what you might need to do accomplish getting a job.

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