The Hunt!/Eric's new dump.

[ericjon262]

Well, as many of you know, my time in the Navy expires soon, and I'm in the process of hunting new employment. Next week, I have 3 interviews for technician positions, and not having interviewed for a "normal" job in about 15 years, I thought I would reach out and see if anyone had any interview tips. All three interviews will be via webcam, which is a totally new thing for me, but I also see that as an opportunity, as I can stage some of my engineering projects and if asked, show that I'm interested in taking on challenges and developing solutions beyond just doing it for a paycheck.

I figure the normal stuff still applies, dress nice, be courteous, don't interrupt, ect. Any significant change of tactics in the past 15 years?

Thanks guys!

[pmbrunelle]

Well as usual, talk is easy and anyone can make bullshit claims.

I prefer to show what I have done in my CV (claims are more believable this way), so I include links to projects in the CV:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/4jt7choftjp46 ... 1.pdf?dl=0

Folks sometimes take the time to review the projects prior to the interview. Zoom is similar to real life, though in real life I will bring in physical parts / drawings to show.

In general, the projects I show will tend to be personal projects, because work projects may have confidentiality requirements and can't be shared with Tom, Dick, and Harry.

[ericjon262]

yeah, there's no way I could bring drawing/materials from work into an interview, it would have to be personal stuff, I don't want to end up in the brig! LOL!

Thanks for the link! That's a great way of showcasing yourself, and giving employers a way to see you through a different set of eyes! I may need to set something similar up!

Thanks for the insights! they give me some new ideas to work with!

[ericjon262]

well, had my first interview yesterday, they seem very interested in hiring me, and asked when I would be available to come to South Carolina and tour their plant. it's a bit further away from where I wanted to end up, but the work schedule seems to be able to make it work. I still have two more interviews this week for jobs in FL, and possibly another next week for a job in TX! things are heating up a bit!

[allWorkNoPlay]

One of my friends from work wrote this book: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/14002 ... UTF8&psc=1

I'd be very happy to buy you a copy if you PM me your shipping details. He needs to sell all the inventory before the publisher will do his next book.

Thank you for serving.

[The Dark Side of Will]

I @$$ume you've had the former TAP class. While their advice isn't bad, it's generally more like a political campaign than most peoples' job searches. That's not to say it wouldn't work, but it has their particular slant on it.

From Messenger conversation, it sounds like you're doing great and are getting the kind of offers you're looking for. I still think you should pursue something in nuclear power, as that would most likely be the most lucrative for you at this point in your career, with your background.

A lot of "life" advice tells you to pursue your passion, find your ikigai, and all that other happy horseshit. In theory, finding the job you love means you never work a day in your life, but that's just a theory.

My own experience and the experiences I've observed friends have is that (almost) any job is enjoyable when your coworkers are a competent team of good people and your boss is at least not an asshole. Almost any job is abject misery with a terrible team of toxic people and a shitty boss. IOW, working with good people is much more impactful to your job stress level and fulfilment than what your job is.

That being said, higher paying more selective career fields are more likely to have competent employees you wouldn't mind sharing a fox hole with. That's been my experience in aerospace. A coworker early in my aerospace career, having come to the industry as a technician with a more typical blue collar background was impressed by the paucity of "loosely wrapped" people at the company. My experience in machinery alignment prior to aerospace was that toxicity was much more prevalent in that blue collar field than in aerospace.

And of course if you're making more money, and managing it well(!), a lot of the *other* stressors in your life can become way less stressful.

[ericjon262]

One of my friends from work wrote this book: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/14002 ... UTF8&psc=1

I'd be very happy to buy you a copy if you PM me your shipping details. He needs to sell all the inventory before the publisher will do his next book.

Thank you for serving.

I appreciate the offer, but I'm currently at a point where I know I won't have time to sit and read it, I have a mountain of work to get done before June, Finishing a kitchen remodel, getting all of my house packed, doing a "quick"(let's hope this one actually is) vanity install in the bathroom ect.

I @$$ume you've had the former TAP class. While their advice isn't bad, it's generally more like a political campaign than most peoples' job searches. That's not to say it wouldn't work, but it has their particular slant on it.

From Messenger conversation, it sounds like you're doing great and are getting the kind of offers you're looking for. I still think you should pursue something in nuclear power, as that would most likely be the most lucrative for you at this point in your career, with your background.

A lot of "life" advice tells you to pursue your passion, find your ikigai, and all that other happy horseshit. In theory, finding the job you love means you never work a day in your life, but that's just a theory.

My own experience and the experiences I've observed friends have is that (almost) any job is enjoyable when your coworkers are a competent team of good people and your boss is at least not an asshole. Almost any job is abject misery with a terrible team of toxic people and a shitty boss. IOW, working with good people is much more impactful to your job stress level and fulfilment than what your job is.

That being said, higher paying more selective career fields are more likely to have competent employees you wouldn't mind sharing a fox hole with. That's been my experience in aerospace. A coworker early in my aerospace career, having come to the industry as a technician with a more typical blue collar background was impressed by the paucity of "loosely wrapped" people at the company. My experience in machinery alignment prior to aerospace was that toxicity was much more prevalent in that blue collar field than in aerospace.

And of course if you're making more money, and managing it well(!), a lot of the *other* stressors in your life can become way less stressful.

I have been to the TAP classes, some useful info, but lots of stuff devoted to the kids who joined fresh out of high school who don't really know what it means to be a civilian adult.

I'm not opposed to continued work in nuclear power, but I also don't exactly desire it. my current involvement in military nuclear energy has left a bad taste in my mouth.

I totally agree that the "never work a day in your life" talk is nonsense. but it also doesn't mean you have to be miserable. I like to think there's a nice balance. That being said, I also don't want to do something I love for money, or at least, as a career. I feel like it would take the joy out of it after a while. From the discussions I've had with a former nuclear colleague working for one of the plants I've applied to, it sounds like they're good at knowing who to keep, and who to politely ask to leave. He also seems to think the quality of life is off the charts, that being said, he was also a Nuke Submariner, so I have to take that for what it is... lol!

I honestly think the most important thing for me, is finding a career with something that resembles a work-life balance, the navy doesn't have that.

[The Dark Side of Will]

I'm not opposed to continued work in nuclear power, but I also don't exactly desire it. my current involvement in military nuclear energy has left a bad taste in my mouth.

From the discussions I've had with a former nuclear colleague working for one of the plants I've applied to, it sounds like they're good at knowing who to keep, and who to politely ask to leave. He also seems to think the quality of life is off the charts, that being said, he was also a Nuke Submariner, so I have to take that for what it is... lol!

I honestly think the most important thing for me, is finding a career with something that resembles a work-life balance, the navy doesn't have that.

Great to hear that you have a contact in the industry with first hand experience.

I *COMPLETELY* understand Navy burnout. When the Navy is on one of its paperwork rampages, I get almost ambivalent about whether I stay in or get out. There's the quip that "There's the right way, the wrong way, the Captain's way and... The Navy way." I could go on at length about The Navy Way, but just think back to 2017 when we were crashing ships into things left and right... Heck a college classmate of mine was the CO of a minesweeper... and got relieved for running her aground so bad the Navy gave her up for salvage.

Bad feelings you have about nuclear power are "burnout by association". I felt the same way when I got off active duty out of flight school. If someone had offered me civilian flight school right then, I would have had a strong inclination to turn it down.

Like you mentioned above, the civilian nuclear power industry knows whom to keep and to whom the door should be shown... but that also means they need to keep people who have options, which means that the quality of life is WAY better than what you saw in the Navy. Imagine showing up for work, working 8 hours... and then leaving!

You have a rare skill set now. In five years, you'll still have that experience, but it will be getting stale. Capitalize on it now and look at what the salary differences can compound to five to ten years down the road. You can always leave the nuclear industry if you don't like it, but getting back in could be harder.

[allWorkNoPlay]

OK. If you change your mind or get some more time, just let me know. Happy to send.

Good luck on your search!

I appreciate the offer, but I'm currently at a point where I know I won't have time to sit and read it, I have a mountain of work to get done before June, Finishing a kitchen remodel, getting all of my house packed, doing a "quick"(let's hope this one actually is) vanity install in the bathroom ect.

[pmbrunelle]

In my department my boss wants to hire a mechanical tech / draftsman.

The mech tech's job is essentially to be the slave to make CAD/drawings and other work the engineers don't want to do. Usually it's a 3-year vocational school program after high school.

I told my boss that I knew a guy who could do this kind of work, and since remote working has become a thing (and likely to stick after Covid), I asked my boss if this person could be located in the USA. Most of the time I'm not in the office anyway (1 day a month max), so...

Well, the boss said that the mech tech will have some prototype assembly duties / manual work, so unless the employee was willing to drop in once in a while to perform this work, it wouldn't work out.

Well, I asked...

[The Dark Side of Will]

LOL... with a security clearance and military experience you could find a lucrative job as a beltway bandit as well, but I sense you do NOT want to move to DC...

[ericjon262]

Great to hear that you have a contact in the industry with first hand experience.

I *COMPLETELY* understand Navy burnout. When the Navy is on one of its paperwork rampages, I get almost ambivalent about whether I stay in or get out. There's the quip that "There's the right way, the wrong way, the Captain's way and... The Navy way." I could go on at length about The Navy Way, but just think back to 2017 when we were crashing ships into things left and right... Heck a college classmate of mine was the CO of a minesweeper... and got relieved for running her aground so bad the Navy gave her up for salvage.

Bad feelings you have about nuclear power are "burnout by association". I felt the same way when I got off active duty out of flight school. If someone had offered me civilian flight school right then, I would have had a strong inclination to turn it down.

Like you mentioned above, the civilian nuclear power industry knows whom to keep and to whom the door should be shown... but that also means they need to keep people who have options, which means that the quality of life is WAY better than what you saw in the Navy. Imagine showing up for work, working 8 hours... and then leaving!

You have a rare skill set now. In five years, you'll still have that experience, but it will be getting stale. Capitalize on it now and look at what the salary differences can compound to five to ten years down the road. You can always leave the nuclear industry if you don't like it, but getting back in could be harder.

Don't forget "chief's way", and the "I saw this in bootcamp" way...
I remember hearing about that minesweeper, they were worried about damage to the hull, and that if they pulled it off the reef, the wood(minesweepers are typically wood, or composite) might fail and cause the boat to be a more significant environmental disaster.

8 hour days... paid overtime... ... ... I need to go change my pants...

OK. If you change your mind or get some more time, just let me know. Happy to send.

Good luck on your search!

Thanks!

In my department my boss wants to hire a mechanical tech / draftsman.

The mech tech's job is essentially to be the slave to make CAD/drawings and other work the engineers don't want to do. Usually it's a 3-year vocational school program after high school.

I told my boss that I knew a guy who could do this kind of work, and since remote working has become a thing (and likely to stick after Covid), I asked my boss if this person could be located in the USA. Most of the time I'm not in the office anyway (1 day a month max), so...

Well, the boss said that the mech tech will have some prototype assembly duties / manual work, so unless the employee was willing to drop in once in a while to perform this work, it wouldn't work out.

Well, I asked...

Never hurts! I appreciate it!

LOL... with a security clearance and military experience you could find a lucrative job as a beltway bandit as well, but I sense you do NOT want to move to DC...

I've heard some wonky stories about people getting out of submarines and being extremely well compensated security guards, that being said, no thank you, I've made enough bad decisions in my life! lol!
________________

I have another interview tomorrow, this one for a natural gas production company, they're a little outside of where I want to be, both professionally, and geographically though, so I don't know where it will go.

[Honest Don]

My cousin worked at the local nuclear plant before it shut down for.....reasons. After that he got recruited for a plant build in Dubai and from fb it looks like he’s making out pretty alright.

Oil & gas is feast or famine it seems, when prices take a dump they clean house fast.

Aerospace is recovering maybe? When the 737 got grounded it really screwed up everything down the supply side.

Automotive is whatever -It’ll be interesting to see what happens with this chip shortage in the near term.

[pmbrunelle]

Automotive is whatever -It’ll be interesting to see what happens with this chip shortage in the near term.

Our factory shut down for like two days back when there was a snowstorm in Texas; shipments were interrupted, and we ran out of electronic parts.

********************************************************************************

Managers like to whine when we try to design stuff with jellybean components rather than use the latest whizbang ASIC from a vendor's powerpoint presentation.

Funny thing, there was no whining when we ran out of a particular 0805 capacitor. An alternate part was identified, and the show continued.

[ericjon262]

well, had my first interview yesterday, they seem very interested in hiring me, and asked when I would be available to come to South Carolina and tour their plant. it's a bit further away from where I wanted to end up, but the work schedule seems to be able to make it work. I still have two more interviews this week for jobs in FL, and possibly another next week for a job in TX! things are heating up a bit!

It looks as though this hunt was a one and done deal. I still have a few end to clear up, but I should be starting at Bridgestone Tire in Aiken, SC in mid May! I have a mountain of work to do until then, so any progress that may have occurred on the car will likely come to a screeching halt until after I move.

[ericjon262]

Well, week one is in the books! Bridgestone seems much more laid back than the Navy was, so far, I enjoy it. Now the hunt shifts to finding a proper piece of land that I can build a proper workshop on. Tomorrow, I'm going to look at a place on some nice acreage, the I can hopefully snap up for a song compared to house prices in WA. the place I'm looking at has about 100x the land, a larger house, and half the price!

[ericjon262]

Well, week one is in the books! Bridgestone seems much more laid back than the Navy was, so far, I enjoy it. Now the hunt shifts to finding a proper piece of land that I can build a proper workshop on. Tomorrow, I'm going to look at a place on some nice acreage, the I can hopefully snap up for a song compared to house prices in WA. the place I'm looking at has about 100x the land, a larger house, and half the price!

well, last week was a bust. I made an offer, and was outbid by a cash offer. Oh well. that place would have been a ton of work, putting it nicely. tomorrow, I'm going to look at two places, we'll see.

[The Dark Side of Will]

I made an offer, and was outbid by a cash offer.

Bid to win, but cash is king. The housing market is fucking insane everywhere right now.

[ericjon262]

I made an offer, and was outbid by a cash offer.

Bid to win, but cash is king. The housing market is fucking insane everywhere right now.

For sure. I'm going to check back after it closes to see if my offer was even close...

[The Dark Side of Will]

I made an offer, and was outbid by a cash offer.

Bid to win, but cash is king. The housing market is fucking insane everywhere right now.

For sure. I'm going to check back after it closes to see if my offer was even close...

Also, I @$$ume you're working with a VA loan. That places some constraints for basic livability on the seller; even an "as-is" property might not be "as-is" depending on what the inspection turns up, requiring the seller to fix something. Even for the same number, a cash offer on an as-is property is more favorable to the seller.