My Life 2 years post graduation

aurelie-dupont:

A mediocre dancer and choreographer that creates forgettable dance with little knowledge of classical ballet and even less management experience will be the new Director of dance of the oldest ballet company in the world?

I guess you can now change your name to Paris Opera Modern Dance and Ballet (Classical, if we feel like it)

Life has been crazy busy, and I completely forgot all about my noble intentions of blogging…..I apologize to my 23 followers, you must have all been lost without me. 

A brief recap….

GOT MY GREAT NEW JOB WITH DAVID LIEBERMAN ARTIST REPRESENTATIVES!!!!!!!!

to say Im excited about this is an understatement. I love my new job, and I am still trying to fathom how I was so lucky.  For those of you who haven’t heard of us, we( I get to say “we” because I work there ;) ) represent an international roster of performing artists in coordinating their global tours. We manage internationally renowned and awarded dance, theater and music clients. 

Please check out our website for more information

www.dlartists.com

I work at DLAR as the assistant to the Director of Sales for now, as I train to become a full agent by the end of the year. To elaborate a little, this means I will be speaking and negotiating with presenters ( theaters/performing arts centers/universities) to book our clients. :O !!!!!!

I work in Costa Mesa, right next to the LAB and South Coast Plaza. Its a small office with a full staff of 6 people. When I got hired our President moved out of his larger corner office to give it my boss and i to split. So I have a huge desk and a window with a view. I sometimes have to pinch myself because I just can’t believe I do this for a job. 

Of course there a few negative aspects to my job, that Im working on learning how to deal with. 

1. I sit in a chair all day- my hip flexors are so tight, and It’s begun to show in ballet. :(

2. Working 8:30am-6pm Mon-Fri, with traffic I don’t get home till about 7pm, which makes it really hard to get my hair cut, go to the doctor/dentist/chiropractor etc….

3. My job means Im working with a variety of clients, all on different projects, each potentially being a variety of theaters, and all possibly in different seasons. Meaning I am constantly having to keep a working knowledge of what our artists are doing from 2011-2014…..and believe me, they do a lot. 

Not a lot of “negative” things, but Im getting acclimated more and more to each of them, and working on “solutions” to each.

Besides work…I have had a lot more time to hang with friends which has been so wonderful. I felt like in college, what with rehearsal, studying, commuting and work, I didn’t have a lot of time for my relationships. Having weekends and evenings free means I have a lot more time to spend with my favorite people. It has been especially great for my love life, and I couldn’t be happier with my boyfriend currently :D

Ok well I promise to post more and keep the internet updated!!

Today is my first day working for Southland Ballet as their marketing coordinator. Still not exactly sure what is expected of me here, the job description was somewhat vague…hopefully that will clear up soon. Fingers crossed

So I have been a pretty bad blogger and haven’t posted in weeks. Not sure if anyone cares, it isn’t like there is a shortage of information to consume on the internet. The reason I haven’t written is fear and depression. Turns out the real world is a little scarier than you think.

In college you “know” it will be hard, but there is still this idealism forged of your firm belief in your college education and the constant litany of extra-curriculars kept up since high school. I firmly believed that after all the work I had done, money I had paid, internships completed and books studied that the job hunt would be hard, but that I would come out on top. I know I’m making it sound like I have been searching for months and I haven’t, but a part of this, I guess you could call it mania, is a personal issue with the need for control and security.

Everyone has something they need in life. I have friends who could live in a box, pay check to pay check, eating only top ramen for months; but would be perfectly happy because they were living in NYC and getting a few promising dance jobs. I am not one of those people. I thrive on schedules, order and lists. I NEED to know that I am secure financially and I like to know exactly what I will be doing in a week’s time. This is probably the main reason I have chosen not to pursue a performance career. I don’t have the stomach for it. 

My last semester of college I had been in contact with a number of possible job opportunities, and this made me confident that I would have something come graduation or my return from New York. Unfortunately the economy is hard to beat, and none of companies I had been in contact with had the resources to take on a new employee. So it was full of hopeful confidence that I embarked on my job hunt. ( I prefer to think of it as a job safari, as I scouted, hunted and tracked any possible jobs) I applied to hundreds of jobs.  I have so many cover letters and resumes I could make a novel.  What happened next was awful. Silence. I was not hearing back from any of the jobs I had applied for and that was far worse than rejection for some reason. I did get three interviews, all for jobs that I didn’t want and applied to because of circumstance. Two of the interviews were jobs friends of mine had, and they got me the interview. The third was business to business, who basically gives everyone an interview who applies, and that I had applied to by accident thinking they were a marketing firm. 

After 2 months of this silence I took matters into my hands and held a personal rebranding day. I reviewed my resume and linkedIn profiles, then worked to update and edit each. My goal was to make both more precise and direct. It has been a few days since I started sending out my new and improved resume, so fingers crossed this rut is done. :D

I wish it was not a job hunt, but instead a job trap…and I could simply leave my resume in a few choice places. Wait near my phone. The scent of my experience, hard working personality and dashing good looks reaching out to the best employers, luring them to me. Until finally the employer comes into my line of sight and I pounce!

…if only it was that simple.

Submitted four resumes and cover letters today. I have an average of about 1-3 job applications a day. I have been reaching out to all of my connections, and of course will continue to do so. The issue with connections is of course timing. If during the moments you are close enough with them to boldly ask about references and employment, and their company is not hiring, well then it was all to no avail. Then you are put in the awkward predicament of later, seeing a job posting with their company, having to re-establish a relationship with them quickly, without seeming like you are being rude and just using them for their name.

Currently I am a big fan of these job search sites:

1. Arts for LA website-they have a job board with every fine arts and performing arts management job in LA. Wonderful, it just sucks when you have applied to all of the jobs posted and new is coming up.

2. Craigslist- Tedious, but there are great postings for entry level jobs

3. Indeed.com

4. 4entertainmentjobs.com- had to pay $10 for a week membership, so Im submitting as many resumes as possible in this week!

5. Showbizjobs.com

6. Backstagejobs.com- mostly crew and tech work but still there is always the odd job that fits my description.

Im also a big fan, even though it has not produced any results, of sending in my resume to companies if they do not have any career information posted, inquiring if they have any open positions. It at least shows a definite interest in wanting to work with that specific company?

Fingers crossed :D

It has been a week since New York, and I am still trying to wrap my mind around being back in Orange County. I still need to sit down and write out every wonderful and awful thing about to New York, but suffice to say, I loved it there.

Coming back home was bittersweet. I missed my friends and family, but leaving New York meant coming back to reality. Back to the job hunt, and leaving behind dancing everyday and exploring this fascinating city. So I did the only thing I could, I dove back in. I have been searching for job postings and writing cover letters with every second I can find.  I am finding there are jobs out there, people are lying when they say nothing is out there. The issue I am coming across is that the open jobs are looking for technical skills (mainly graphic design),  or are “entry” level jobs in the company, but still looking for 1-3 years of experience?!

I decided to say screw qualifications, and to trust in my ability to learn and grow. So Im sending my resume everywhere. :D