I saw a post on LinkedIn this morning that touched a nerve and sparked some thinking.
“I have 35+ years experience and I can’t find a job that pays over $20 an hour.“
I don’t like LinkedIn. I’m not even sure it’s a necessary evil. The toxic positivity and “every moment is a life lesson” attitude, to say nothing of the ever-present brand building, feels contrary to being human. There’s no beauty. There’s no poetry, no song. Just endless commodification, Darwinian capitalism distilled to its final and most soul-crushing form.
This is not a knock on Colleen Paulson’s post. I do sometimes find useful nuggets of information, like ideas for improving a resume or writing a better cover letter. And Colleen’s post this morning brought me back to a conversation I had with my mom last week.
“Everyone wants a job that pays more,” my mom said, “and you’re not going to find one. No one’s finding jobs that pay better.”
Even entry-level marketing positions in York and Harrisburg are paying more, sometimes significantly more, than I was making at Diamond. Short of taking a job at McDonald’s — and, given my visual issues, that would not be safe for either me or them — it would be almost impossible to find something that pays less. Well, other than a seasonal position at GameStop.
It was a strange and cold conversation to have with her, one I’ve not been anxious to repeat.
I’ve applied to five jobs this week — and already been rejected from one of them — and I have several more bookmarked to review and work on tomorrow morning.
We carry on.
Let’s close with happier thoughts.
Art deco, Jazz Age posters? For a Sesame Street version of The Great Gatsby, perhaps?
Cookie Monster looks across the bay and his heart yearns for the distant cookie he can never have.
Boats beat on against the current, and cookies make everything better.