Wednesday, March 02, 2011

From Borders and Beyond....what's next?

Hey everyone...I think I just ran into a spiderweb, logging back into my blog, but hey! Everything is in constant motion and sometimes you gotta get side tracked by life before you realize life is sending you right back to where you originated.
"So what's your point, you ask?"
Take for instance, my situation....In case you live under a rock or in the woods with a cult, there is a huge company by the name of Borders Books & Music which I have happily worked for one year. I was originally hired as a cafe barista in the Seattle's Best Cafe located inside Borders and within 5 months, I was promoted to a key holder (basically an assistant manager) position. The upper management in my store saw potential in me and made sure I knew how much they appreciated my hard work....I had never experienced such support from a management team like this, and I must say....I planned on staying long term with Borders....work my way as high as I could....I felt like anything was possible with my new position and the new found sense of pride I felt as a manager.
Then came the news that my Borders was on the list of 200 other stores to close as a result of Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Filing....I can't even express the empty pit I felt in my stomach the day we found out. It's been such a snowball of an effect...
Imagine being used to making $6,000-$12,000 a day as a business....then a liquidator comes in as a result of the bankruptcy and everything you're used to doing, flips your work days upside down....everything in the store is 20-40% off, and next thing you know, there are lines in our store with people buying everything they can think of, throwing what they don't want on the floor or on any table other than where they grabbed their items. then they wait in a line that wraps around our store, for OVER TWO HOURS! All for a measly 20%? Now we're averaging $40,000 to $60,000 in sales a day!!! With the same small staff we had before!
We have been given a tentative Final Close date of 8 weeks...we're in week 2. My GM says I need to find work before it's all over so I'm not jobless....but honestly, I WANT to be one of the last people working on the day we close and lock those doors for good. This job did SO much for me... personally, professionally, financially....it restored a sense of self I had lost....so I plan to ride this ride till the end.
SoIn approximately.3-4 weeks, I will be jobless....but I will be okay...and I will evolve into whatever profession I find in the next chapter of my life...
"So, where's your site review, you ask?"

Well, in my efforts to being prepared and staying connected to future opportunities, I have been directed to my new favorite Professional Networking Site called LinkedIn 
It's basically like Facebook for professionals who want to keep in contact, make new contacts, look for work, post jobs and network network network....with a little personal info thrown in. Post your resume directly on your profile page and go from there....I did, and I'm feeling positive about this whole experience. Hopefully you can get something from it as well....

Okay "Site Junkees," I know it's been a while, but I plan to dust off the cobwebs and dig deeper into the core of new sites I find and want to share with you all.

Got any suggestions? Send me a message....I'll check it out.
Cheers!

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