At Jobcase.com, we pride ourselves in being the social media platform for every aspect of your working life. The members of our community represent a rich diversity of work and life experiences that we all can learn from. Read on to hear the perspective of our featured Jobcaser – Jim Flack (https://www.jobcase.com/p/jim.flack)

Jim is a digital media producer and community member in Seattle, WA. He spoke to us about how Jobcase helped him re-boot his job search engine and how the community reached out to him and encouraged him during his job search.

How did you find out about Jobcase? Jim: I think I found about Jobcase after my contract ended in early december. I had to crank up the job search engine - I kinda go all out. I got on a variety of websites, like indeed, beyond and craigslist.I decided to flesh out my profile online, resume, get my photo up there. The more exposure you have, not just on LinkedIn but on other places, gives you better visibility.

Over the last 10 years of being a contractor, you have to be aware that on any day, your contact could be over. So you always have to be ready to jump start that job search engine and get right back out there interview and applying. I've been doing that for the past 10 years, and I’ve honed it down to a pretty razor sharp procedure. I wanted to share that knowledge.

What keeps you coming back to the community? Jim: I like the stories that are on there. I put myself out there when I got the contract job at the cruise line company in Seattle, which then ended kinda abruptly. All the input people have been giving on my post has been amazing- unlike LinkedIn - there are so many people out there [on Jobcase] who are cheering for you.

On the other side, I see people who are really struggling with things like, “how do I make a cover letter”, “how do I make a resume”, “why am I not getting any calls” - I can tell you, over the course of the past 10 years, I know what to look for, and I think i’m putting out some pretty good advice.

What’s your job background? You’ve given some great advice on our community! Jim: Well, not date myself, I had a really strong career in back in the 90s and 2000s. I worked in broadcasting, both radio and TV broadcasting. After 9/11 of course, all the major market ad revenue shrank - a lot of the biggest ad buyers on radio were airlines and travel companies. A lot of stations cut back on staff, and resources and I was a victim of that. So I had to try to take content generation, producer and make a transition into something else. I took a contract at Microsoft for a producer, with MSN, and I became the webmaster for the MSN kids website.

And that’s how I got into the world of contracting.

Yes, you’re not a full time employee with all the benefits, but you don’t get involved into the politics - you are just there to do your jobs. You enjoy some of the benefits that full time employees have, and when the contract is over, your agency is there to catch you and hopefully find you another position. Since then I have done several contracts with Microsoft, Drugstore.com, some work with Amazon, a company called Hubspan - all which were contracts. From each position that I’ve been in, I’ve gained knowledge of different tools and abilities and it’s served me really well.

What’s some advice you would give to people who are looking for a job today? Jim: It’s tough out there, it really is. Especially when you're dealing with online job searches, when you don’t get to an actual human being until the end of the process. It can be pretty impersonal. One big recommendation for anyone who is looking for a job right now: Get out of the house. Because if you are sitting in the house, you’re just sitting there wondering, like I did, “It must be me. I’m un-hireable”. It’s not. You just need to take a break, drive around, go to the mall, interact with other people - just don’t sit in the house.

What would your advice to the community be? Jim: I think the best advice I can give to people is to give yourself credit. There are a lot of people looking, it’s not just you. Try to take a break. Everyday to do something that expands you. What I mean by that, is something that lowers your stress, whether it's being with your dog, being with your kids, being with your wife, do something that you have great passion for, and just to get your mind off the situation. My friend, says I wear my stress on my sleeve, and that’s true. Give yourself a break, give yourself credit, lower your stress levels, and just do the best you can.

To the people on Jobcase, continue to be engaged - [the community was] very gracious when I announced that my contract suddenly was over. You reached out to me and said “if you need to talk to me, or reach out, I’m here for you, we think you’re great”. That just really means the world.

What’s one takeaway of the community that you hope everyone is able to see? Jim: I would think it is the people like you and members of the community that are taking the time to help the folks that I see that are struggling, and who are at a loss of what to do. They’ve been working for 40 years and they got laid off, or they need to go back to work, and they haven’t looked for a job in gosh knows how long. You’re providing that step and comfort, really, in saying “it’s ok, this is what you need to do”. It can be really daunting out there.

Anything else you’d like to add? Jim: Finding a job, and interviewing, is kinda like dating. When you start out, your nervous - "what does she think of me", "what does he think of me". Then you go out on another, and another, and then you know what to expect - you know what to do and, how to get ready. I would love to see Jobcasers get to the point where they don’t have to be nervous, they are running the interview.

Don’t forget the power of the thank you email, either!

Want to connect with Jim? Follow him on Jobcase!

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