Difficulty: Looking for a Job > Having a Job

About two months ago I graduated from College. I left with a degree in applied Mathematics from a tiny university on the east coast. I learned a fair amount in Statistics, Calculus, Computer Programming, Numerical Analysis, and a handful of other interesting yet mostly novel subjects. My professors instilled rigor and difficulty into all of their courses and expected nothing less than almost perfect.

I selected my field because it was challenging and it seemed like something that companies may have a use for. That was is 2005. It's 2010 and the industry is different and I probably don't need to tell anyone, finding a job is just about the most difficult thing in the world for a quantitative pawn with all the ambition in the world. Hell, from what I understand it's difficult for someone with several years of experience.

I found this out two weeks after I graduated. I expected two or three of the companies out of the big ten I applied to would give me a quick call back and I would be sitting in a cube in no time.

How did I apply?

Google->Search->"Name of Big Company"->website->careers tab->submit resume

That my friends is all I did. I spammed my resume to only ten companies by submitting it to the huge database of other unexperienced college grads like myself and thought it would be enough.

Hold on. Before I continue take a moment and laugh at me. I deserve it. O.K. that's enough don't make me feel completely awful.

Moving forward. I now understand that the Job hunt is going to be more difficult than the actual job I end up landing. I make an effort to remember that:

"the Job hunt is going to be more difficult than the actual job I end up landing"

If I keep this in mind then I have a quantifiable prize for the end of the race. With this mindset I have learned a few ways to win this race.