[CupCake]

I don't even know where to start. I'll just lay it all out.

I'm 27 years old. In a couple months I'll be 6 years out of college. I graduated with a philosophy degree, which many like to call a "bullshit degree". What can I say? I was an idealistic kid and the field attracted me. After graduating college I had no idea what to do with myself. At first I applied to jobs that sounded interesting to me but I had no qualifications. Eventually I had to settle on basic labor jobs just to pay the bills. I considered law school, but decided against it. It didn't feel right. Instead, I found myself wandering from menial job to menial job, barely making ends meet and unable to pay my hefty student loans.

I lived alone in a shitty apartment in a shitty town. I had no opportunities to meet women and the people I was hanging out with didn't seem all that interested in me. I was living a miserable life. Eventually I fell into the darkest episode of depression I've ever had and later had a complete breakdown.

After 4 years of this I could take no more. I decided I just had to do something. So I packed my bags, quit my job, and drove across the country alone to start a new life. I knew no one. I had no job and no money. I was flirting with homelessness when I suddenly got lucky. I found a job working overnight in a 24-hour grocery store.

After the years of financial struggle and emotional turmoil I had finally been able to break out. I had traveled thousands of miles, faced enormous doubts and fears, and was now living in a nicer town near a college with a job that brought in enough money to live. Later, I moved into an even nicer apartment and made some cool friends. And after living sexless since college, I even managed to bag a good-looking girl after only 2 months! After that, I began making it a point to approach chicks constantly.

I was so proud of myself. I was excited to see what this new life had to offer. The feeling didn't last long however.

It's been a year and a half since I arrived here and I've fallen into a terrible rut. Things are sure a lot better than they used to be but I feel stranded. I still work overnight in the store and it's ruining my mind and hurting my self-esteem. My ability to approach women and hold their interest is hurting because of it. I've managed to overcome approach anxiety but my scorecard with women is just getting weaker. In fact, after a recent nasty episode with a chick I was pretty interested in forming a relationship with, my desire to approach women has never been lower. Financially, I'm barely making it on my retail wages, which are now being garnished because of my defaulted student loans.

I've been battling with some depression on and off for several months and my motivation is piss-poor. I'm stuck. I have no idea where to go from here.

Every year on my college graduation anniversary I ask myself: "What that hell are you doing with your life?" And I never have an answer. I look around at all the sad people who have been doing this retail gig for years (some decades!) and I am terrified of becoming one of them. In fact, I've seen those people in every crap job that I've been in: miserable people bitching about the boss, alcoholics, gamblers, the socially and sexually inept. I feel so bad for them all and at the same time I fear becoming one of them. I know the path I am on will only lead me to where they are now.

I also look back at some of the people I left at home, the successful 20-somethings that either knew their path early on or decided to "pay their dues" in a shit job and eventually come to make decent money after climbing the ladder. I wouldn't trade my life for theirs, but I envy the physical and financial comforts their lives have afforded them.

And people from every job have always been telling me: "Get out while you still can." I don't hesitate to agree with them that I should. But the question remains: where do I go? I struggled with this for years until finally I realized the source of the problem: I have no strategy. I am in what many call "analysis paralysis". I can't decide where to begin.

Some people tell me to do what I love. Some people tell me to do what makes the most money. Some people tell me to follow the market and find something secure. I have no idea who to believe. These days the world is changing so fast and I think most people don't realize what that means. It seems to me that the traditional ways of career, family, and lifestyle are all over. As much as I envy people who are following the traditional paths I don't feel comfortable following them.

I wake up every day wondering what I'm doing with myself, asking myself how I'm going to survive and do well in a world in flux without having to sacrifice my soul to menial jobs or corporate ass-kissing. I want to live. I'm sick of wasting my youth. I want my work to be a by-product of my life. I don't want my life to be my job. I want to be successful with women. I refuse to work for peanuts and hope for a good retirement. I want to live my life now and I want to enjoy it. I want something to look back on with pride.

This is how I think and feel right now. I just want to see what some of you have to say about all of this. Right now I'm just stuck.

[Dash Global]

First thing you need to do is to figure out what you want out of life. Secondly figure out the things that you love or make you happy.

For basic shit and a decent life all you need to make is 40k a year. (in a non expensive city/town) Obviously if you desire the beach house, nice cars, big house ect than you will need a job earning significantly more.

Once you figure out what you want in life and the things that make you happy you research all the options for obtaining that life/level of income.

There are TONS of options out there. You could go to school for 2 yrs and be a radiologist making 40k. You can do 2 yrs and become a teacher. You could get a technical degree in computers and work in that field, or you could join the military. Or if you wanted more income you could go back to school and become a PA, lawyer, pharmacist, ect. Or learn a craft / skill and work in the labor/construction market. You could learn real estate.

The hard part is figuring out what YOU WANT. The rest is easy....

[Tommy]

I agree with Dash Global. You need to find out what you want, where you want to live, what type of work you want to do, etc... By reading your post I think you are very unsecure, that's a problem.

Some people are happy with enough and some want more without knowing how to get it, if the last part is you then I suggest you to be happy with what you can get and don't worry to much untill you know how to get more.

Maybe you should get into sales. I'm sure there are companies in the USA who will train you and will assist you.

[truedat]

Move again. This will give you a challenge and get you out of the funk. Use this energy you will get from the move to make the next step in your life. GL.

[Vacancier Permanent]

Cupcake,
First of all, welcome to the forum man. Wow, after reading your post, seems that you're in a big time need of environment and lifestyle change and ASAP. Have you ever considered going overseas teaching English? If you want relatively easy money, go to Korea, you could save in a year, some nice amount. In Korea, , schools would refund your airfare at the end of your contract, plus you get almost free accommodations. Plus tax rates are quite low, so all you'd make would be just for you. I hear China is the same. You could do that for a couple of years and then, you'd have enough money to allow you to travel a bit, or just chill without working and starting a business on the side, preferably online. To teach English in Asia, (as that's where you'd make the most $), all you need is to have a degree which you do. You may want to head over davescafe.com and read it all there about teaching English in Asia. Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, China, even Vietnam are places where you could easily save $1k+/month and after doing that for say 2-3 years, you'd have enough saved up to have a nice cushion. This move (teaching English in Asia) would allow you to not only make some decent money, but also to experience a new lifestyle, a different culture, meet tons of interesting people, make some contacts for better jobs/biz contacts while have an all around good time. This is just my modest suggestion man. And once you've been outside of North America, nothing will be the same ever again as you'll get a taste of a life and lifestyle that you can not have in North America. Asia is a place where women are still women and know what it means to be a sexy, feminine woman; where people are still people and where laws and lawyers have not taken away all our basic liberties and where things like feminism, politically correctness have not fucked up the society. At least not yet. Plus, the cost of living is quite cheap there.

All the best man. Don't despair, we've all been through that phase where we're asking ourselves what the hell do we want to do with our life. I've been through that and I know how tough that is.

[CupCake]

Thanks for the feedback, everyone.

I don't think moving again is going to solve my problem. I moved the first time and things got better but pretty quickly regressed. I don't think it's as much of a problem with my location as it is with my perspective on life generally.

Going abroad is something I've been thinking about for a while, but I want to hold off on that for a bit until I've really gotten to know the place I'm in now. I'm sure the economy will force me abroad in due time anyway.

Thanks again.

[Dash Global]

Like i said, first thing you gotta do is figure out the life you desire! No real way for anyone to help you out without having those parameters set.

[OSL]

(04-07-2011 10:48 AM)CupCake Wrote:  

Thanks for the feedback, everyone.

I don't think moving again is going to solve my problem. I moved the first time and things got better but pretty quickly regressed. I don't think it's as much of a problem with my location as it is with my perspective on life generally.

Going abroad is something I've been thinking about for a while, but I want to hold off on that for a bit until I've really gotten to know the place I'm in now. I'm sure the economy will force me abroad in due time anyway.

Thanks again.

You would be surprised about how much your perspective of life changes depending on your location. If you've truly hit rock bottom as you've suggested, which many people our age have, then abroad might not be a bad decision.

It sounds like you are facing the double-whammy of bad job market and lack of "real job skills".

I am very biased towards China specifically, so the abroad solution I am proposing is specific to China. However, it can pretty much be replicated where ever. This solution, which worked for me and many of my friends with "useless majors" has allowed us to completely bypass the "paying your dues" part of any entry level job where you have to do grunt bullshit work for a while. You'll realize if you do this that simply being a foreigner with the right contacts will land you a job with great responsibility.

It sounds like you also don't have much dough at the moment, which I will take into account.

CAREER LEAPFROGGING BY YMG:

1. DESTINATION - Choose your city/destination abroad - preferably where you speak the local language and/or have some friends, but if not that is fine too

2. VISAS/LOGISTICS - Depending on your budget, sign up for the cheapest long term language classes you can OR find a gig teaching English (not as easy as it sounds). This will provide you a long term visa so that you don't have to worry about going in and out of the country.

GOALS OF THIS STAGE:
-Secure long term visa
-Either improve language skills or make income from teaching

3. INTERNSHIP PHASE -

Over the course of 3-6 months while you are in this city, simultaneously study/teach while interning part time for free at a company you are interested in. The fact that you are an English speaking foreigner with a BA will often be enough to get you that position, although probably not a full time job (yet).

This is important - while interning there, propose to carry out an independent project for them. The problem with many internships is that you do bullshit grunt work and dont get to update your CV in a way that will provide you with relevant job experience to market to your next employer. Thus, if the next position you want to get into is marketing and sales, propose that you will design and carry out a marketing and sales presentation independently. This way, you have control over the specific "bullet points" you will update your CV with. Since they aren't paying you anything they really have nothing to lose.

While I was in Seoul, I independently carried out two feasibility analyses for an energy consultancy and did a range of stuff - business development, budgeting, planning, research, sales, presentations....by the end of my six months I had a wide range of "real job experiences" that have enabled me to get six interview offers from Shanghai and Hong Kong.

When you update your CV by the end of this internship, you will be able to engineer the exact work experiences that you carried out during your independent project. In addition to this, you can call yourself an "Intern Project Manager" instead of just "Intern", which demonstrates the ability to work independently and management experience.

GOALS OF THIS STAGE:

BUILD WORK EXPERIENCE IN DESTINATION COUNTRY
BUILD PRECISE RESUME BUILDERS THAT EMPLOYERS WILL SEEK
IMPROVE LANGUAGE SKILLS
GROW PROFESSIONAL NETWORK

4. NETWORKING WHILE INTERNING -

This stage occurs DURING the internship phase of your career leapfrogging plan.

You should assume that the company you are interning for will not give you a full time job offer. If they do, that's great. But don't rely on it - make a list of important events happening in your city, compiled from resources such as internations.org, craigslist.org, the US embassy website, the US chamber of commerce website, and other business association events. Your alumni network is a good resource too.

Develop your "elevator pitch", which you will be implementing over and over again. This is a 20-30 second summary of who you are, what you are doing in that city, and what you hope to do in the near future. Make business cards for yourself - unless the company you are working for are jackasses they will likely give you a biz card with your name on it, with the title "project intern" or something. This is important for a couple of reasons.

-It gives you a face and larger organization to associate yourself with
-People will subconsciously take you more seriously for some reason when you are associated with a company and have a card - sad but true
-People with hiring power that you meet generally prefer to "steal" someone from a different company rather than taking some fresh unemployed kid off the street

Network like crazy at all these functions and follow up on your contacts. Make plans to meet at later dates, whether for other functions or to even go out and have cocktails or coffee. ALWAYS ADD VALUE TO INTERACTIONS. Don't set up a rendezvous with someone "just to chat" - send them an article or PDF that you know they would find interesting, then tell them you're interested in an "informational interview" about their company. They'll understand what you want and will likely agree to set it up.

GOALS OF THIS STAGE

Rapidly and strategically expand professional network
Secure job interviews

5. INTERVIEW PHASE

From all the contacts you've made, you should be able to set up 3-5 interviews MINIMUM. Don't stop until you've achieved that. Update your CV and cover letter with your new internship experience. They probably won't give a shit about the grunt work that you were assigned. The entire purpose of the "independent project" that I spoke about earlier is so that you can engineer a CV that is tailored to the exact work experiences they are looking for in a candidate.

During your interview make sure you know your shit about the company. Backwards and forwards. Tell them how working there will fit into your larger career plans and describe the independent project you did for your previous employer.

It is highly likely that you will need fluency in the local language. However, in my case, I was able to demonstrate to my employers that I had gained work experience that was valuable enough to offset my lack of fluency. This is your goal in your independent internship - to carry out a range of work experiences that prove that your skills will offset any language deficiencies.

Once you get an offer, your company will take care of other shit like work visas and salary.

I've used this method on three different occasions throughout undergrad and right now. I've been able to hack my way through internships and into full time job offers in the US, South Korea, and China with this exact blueprint.

If you're a jobless and disillusioned twenty-something, you should consider this. If you need help with it, don't hesitate to ask me. I take active pleasure in helping people entirely bypass human resources jackasses and find back doors into the jobs of their dreams.

This method has enabled my friends to get into the following postions:

-Project Manager and Head of Business Development at Natural Gas Consultancy, Shanghai

-Head of China Marketing, Well-Known Social Media Company

-Junior Project Manager of Marketing, PepsiCo

-Senior Analyst, Beijing US Chamber of Commerce

-Brand Specialist, Prominent Branding and Advertising Company in Shanghai

All of the people with these positions came to China with nothing to their name and hustled their way to these project manager level positions within 2-3 years. Most people who have these titles in the US are in their mid thirties.

Don't sit around and hope that someone hands you success - you are not entitled to success in life. At the same time, if you've experienced nothing but failure in life up to this point, you are also not entitled to failure in life.

Decision is yours. This is certainly not a riskless move. But pretty much every twenty-something friend I have in China has followed a path like this and have job positions and responsibilities that make thirty-somethings in NYC green with envy.

[zanetti]

sounds to me like you need to work on yourself first before trying to change the circumstances of your life

any of these may be of help to you:

http://www.eckharttolle.com/

http://www.sedona.com/

http://www.springforestqigong.com/index.htm

[solo]

+1 to youngmobileglobal for that excellent suggestion and plan.
I'm in a similar situation to CupCake and although I feel I have carved a good plan to take me out of the hole I'm in (including moving abroad) I wasn't really sure how to make myself attractive to the private sector as a back-up if I don't immediately get a good job in the public one which is more of my métier. Didn't really occur to me that one could apply for internships at private companies abroad, or that as a foreigner one has potentially a good chance of landing one. I might chose Latin America instead of Asia or elsewhere due to my Spanish though, but it's good to ponder options. Really inspiring to read about other people who have gotten such good jobs by leapfrogging.

YMG, I think you could start charging for solid advice like that man.

[Duke Castile]

"Sometimes you lose more when you do nothing than when you make the wrong decision" - Tony Soprano

[Dash Global]

great advice YMG! i wonder how applicable that is to SA....

[OSL]

(04-07-2011 02:42 PM)solo Wrote:  

+1 to youngmobileglobal for that excellent suggestion and plan.
I'm in a similar situation to CupCake and although I feel I have carved a good plan to take me out of the hole I'm in (including moving abroad) I wasn't really sure how to make myself attractive to the private sector as a back-up if I don't immediately get a good job in the public one which is more of my métier. Didn't really occur to me that one could apply for internships at private companies abroad, or that as a foreigner one has potentially a good chance of landing one. I might chose Latin America instead of Asia or elsewhere due to my Spanish though, but it's good to ponder options. Really inspiring to read about other people who have gotten such good jobs by leapfrogging.

YMG, I think you could start charging for solid advice like that man.

I am currently in the process of creating an e-course/membership site about this precise topic. It will be complete guidance from assessing your personal situation to landing the internship, networking abroad, hacking your ideal internship experience, and schmoozing your way into a legitimate white collar job through the social/professional network you build.

I've hacked my way through human resources departments on three continents and have figured out basically what makes them tick. The short answer is, in all scenarios always try to completely avoid them with strategic networking. If it's impossible to avoid them, I've learned the tricks and hacks to make sure your application doesnt get filtered out.

I'm going to create videos, audios, templates, and other resources to help the members of this site propel themselves forward in their careers.

I see my target market as 20 and 30 somethings who are sick of their jobs in the US or can't find meaningful work in the west. As far as I know the formula works anywhere.

I know dozens of people my age who have done exactly this. Since I've done it myself so many times (systematically) and know so many others who are doing it, I want to create a movement of people who don't have to "pay their dues" in entry level grunt jobs and completely skip 1-2 years.

Anyone else who is interested in this idea, post either here or PM me and we can talk further. I am actively looking for additional "Guinea Pigs" or "Prototype" candidates upon whom I can apply my model. Although I'm very confident it works, I want to directly apply the blueprint to people who are unfamiliar with the concept and generally are starting from scratch.

Part of my drive to do this is years of despising headhunters, recruiters, and HR people. I have a personal vendetta against them and want to make their jobs completely obsolete.

[OSL]

I almost went to Sao Paulo to do this exact thing at the US Green Building council.

I cold called Sao Paulo from Philadelphia and expressed my exact interest - a 6 month unpaid internship in which I independently carry out a market resaerch project for them. The lady on the other line was totally silent for about six seconds, then told me to hold on. She put a senior woman on the phone and I repeated it. I was able to secure the position but decided to go with an energy consultancy in Korea instead because they paid really well and the company had a stronger brand name, thus helping me with my current job search.

The concept of going abroad for six months and hacking 1-2 years of work experiences and projects into 6 months......I coin this term "Renaissance Year." Renaissance implying a period of rapid growth and development, as opposed to the "Dark Ages" one would have to endure in a 2 year grunt role where you'd fetch coffee and crunch numbers.

If they are not paying you for the independent work you do, then you have control of the specific work experiences you can build for yourself. You can control exactly what you put on your CV. Since half of what we do at the office is wasting time and bullshitting, why not cram 1-2 years worth of work experience into a very short period of time?

I'm pretty confident this would work in Latin America since I almost went to Brazil to do this.

If you are interested in trying this, in Asia or SA or whereever, let me know. I am actively looking for volunteers to test this on.

You would get access to 6 years of lots of frustration, trial and error, rejections by human resources in a dozen countries, hundreds of hours reading materials about hacking human resources departments, coverletters, resumes, and lots of concepts and strategies I've developed myself.

In return, if it worked for you, I'd want to interview you about your experience as part of my product and also get a testimonial.

[truedat]

YMG great advice for those looking for some solid direction in life, which most in the west seem to be doing these days, I wish you luck. To add my 2 cents, I did the same thing but a little differently. Quick back story, I didnt even graduate from high school and I am making 6 figures now consulting for numerous multi-million dollar corporations. If I groveled at the feet of their snooty, fat, over privileged, Desperate Housewives watching HR personnel I couldn't even get a custodial position, I am 100% positive of this.

To hack the system, I mimicked the system. I started a company, built a professional web presence, and offered a better service than my competitors at a better price. I dont even have 1 employee, but have almost 35 working for me now. I did all of this because I was forced to do it, not because of some great eureka moment. Company's that are looking for services from other companies dont ask what type of degree they have or if they graduated from high school, it would just never occur to them. Bottom line is that you dont have to waste your life doing what everyone else says you have to do to become successful, there are other ways if you are smart and determined.

[Caramel Communist]

(04-07-2011 12:10 AM)CupCake Wrote:  

I don't even know where to start. I'll just lay it all out.

I'm 27 years old. In a couple months I'll be 6 years out of college. I graduated with a philosophy degree, which many like to call a "bullshit degree". What can I say? I was an idealistic kid and the field attracted me. After graduating college I had no idea what to do with myself. At first I applied to jobs that sounded interesting to me but I had no qualifications. Eventually I had to settle on basic labor jobs just to pay the bills. I considered law school, but decided against it. It didn't feel right. Instead, I found myself wandering from menial job to menial job, barely making ends meet and unable to pay my hefty student loans.

I lived alone in a shitty apartment in a shitty town. I had no opportunities to meet women and the people I was hanging out with didn't seem all that interested in me. I was living a miserable life. Eventually I fell into the darkest episode of depression I've ever had and later had a complete breakdown.

After 4 years of this I could take no more. I decided I just had to do something. So I packed my bags, quit my job, and drove across the country alone to start a new life. I knew no one. I had no job and no money. I was flirting with homelessness when I suddenly got lucky. I found a job working overnight in a 24-hour grocery store.

After the years of financial struggle and emotional turmoil I had finally been able to break out. I had traveled thousands of miles, faced enormous doubts and fears, and was now living in a nicer town near a college with a job that brought in enough money to live. Later, I moved into an even nicer apartment and made some cool friends. And after living sexless since college, I even managed to bag a good-looking girl after only 2 months! After that, I began making it a point to approach chicks constantly.

I was so proud of myself. I was excited to see what this new life had to offer. The feeling didn't last long however.

It's been a year and a half since I arrived here and I've fallen into a terrible rut. Things are sure a lot better than they used to be but I feel stranded. I still work overnight in the store and it's ruining my mind and hurting my self-esteem. My ability to approach women and hold their interest is hurting because of it. I've managed to overcome approach anxiety but my scorecard with women is just getting weaker. In fact, after a recent nasty episode with a chick I was pretty interested in forming a relationship with, my desire to approach women has never been lower. Financially, I'm barely making it on my retail wages, which are now being garnished because of my defaulted student loans.

I've been battling with some depression on and off for several months and my motivation is piss-poor. I'm stuck. I have no idea where to go from here.

Every year on my college graduation anniversary I ask myself: "What that hell are you doing with your life?" And I never have an answer. I look around at all the sad people who have been doing this retail gig for years (some decades!) and I am terrified of becoming one of them. In fact, I've seen those people in every crap job that I've been in: miserable people bitching about the boss, alcoholics, gamblers, the socially and sexually inept. I feel so bad for them all and at the same time I fear becoming one of them. I know the path I am on will only lead me to where they are now.

I also look back at some of the people I left at home, the successful 20-somethings that either knew their path early on or decided to "pay their dues" in a shit job and eventually come to make decent money after climbing the ladder. I wouldn't trade my life for theirs, but I envy the physical and financial comforts their lives have afforded them.

And people from every job have always been telling me: "Get out while you still can." I don't hesitate to agree with them that I should. But the question remains: where do I go? I struggled with this for years until finally I realized the source of the problem: I have no strategy. I am in what many call "analysis paralysis". I can't decide where to begin.

Some people tell me to do what I love. Some people tell me to do what makes the most money. Some people tell me to follow the market and find something secure. I have no idea who to believe. These days the world is changing so fast and I think most people don't realize what that means. It seems to me that the traditional ways of career, family, and lifestyle are all over. As much as I envy people who are following the traditional paths I don't feel comfortable following them.

I wake up every day wondering what I'm doing with myself, asking myself how I'm going to survive and do well in a world in flux without having to sacrifice my soul to menial jobs or corporate ass-kissing. I want to live. I'm sick of wasting my youth. I want my work to be a by-product of my life. I don't want my life to be my job. I want to be successful with women. I refuse to work for peanuts and hope for a good retirement. I want to live my life now and I want to enjoy it. I want something to look back on with pride.

This is how I think and feel right now. I just want to see what some of you have to say about all of this. Right now I'm just stuck.

OWNERSHIP IS SALVATION.....YOU WANT CONTROL OVER YOUR "DAYS". It's the only way out of the corporate whore lifestyle.

[solo]

[/quote]
Anyone else who is interested in this idea, post either here or PM me and we can talk further. I am actively looking for additional "Guinea Pigs" or "Prototype" candidates upon whom I can apply my model. Although I'm very confident it works, I want to directly apply the blueprint to people who are unfamiliar with the concept and generally are starting from scratch.

Part of my drive to do this is years of despising headhunters, recruiters, and HR people. I have a personal vendetta against them and want to make their jobs completely obsolete.
[/quote]

If I could land an internship at a multinational company somewhere in Latin America or elsewhere I think it could be crazy good for my career. As of now I'm applying for internships at international organisations in Africa, LA and Asia and for which I have a scholarship - so I might as well, even if they aren't guaranteed to lead directly to a job afterwards. If it doesn't I could then start your blueprint plan afterwards as I'm definately interested and will let you know if I still am when the time comes, either as a prototype or as a regular customer.

(04-07-2011 04:30 PM)truedat Wrote:  

YMG great advice for those looking for some solid direction in life, which most in the west seem to be doing these days, I wish you luck. To add my 2 cents, I did the same thing but a little differently. Quick back story, I didnt even graduate from high school and I am making 6 figures now consulting for numerous multi-million dollar corporations. If I groveled at the feet of their snooty, fat, over privileged, Desperate Housewives watching HR personnel I couldn't even get a custodial position, I am 100% positive of this.

Lmao and second that.

(04-07-2011 03:43 PM)Dash Global Wrote:  

great advice YMG! i wonder how applicable that is to SA....

When I was living in Latin America people kept telling me it was really easy for a foreigner to get a job. Maybe they exaggerated a bit but in any case I think it's doable. If you do the internship unpaid the company has hardly anything to lose.

[solo]

Also, CupCake, if I could add my 2 cents even though we're more or less in the same position and I shouldn't be giving advice. When and if you go abroad, try to have everything (apartment, job/studies/occupation/finances) sorted out before you go so you'll know what you'll be doing and don't end up without a plan. Your first year abroad might be tough but the potential gains are big. Not saying you can't sort it out and get a decent job at home but personally I think the rat race will put some restraints on you, unless you start your own company and is successful it takes more time to move ahead. I want to get a job with an american/european salary but be living in a cheap country or at least cheaper. Maximising income and minimising expenses is a way to be saving money.

Also, my first order of business would maybe be to try to find a job in another grocery store where I don't have to work overnight.

[OSL]

Articles:

http://www.transitionsabroad.com/listing...ndex.shtml

International Internships with US Government:

(I was going to copy paste all the links in here but it would have taken me waaaay too long.....so if any of these sound interesting to you then google the term)

* African Development Foundation: Internships

* American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS): Science and Technology Policy Fellowships

* American Political Science Association: Congressional Fellowship Program

* Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH): Allan Rosenfeld Global Health Fellowship and US Fellowship & Internships

* Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG): Internships

* Central Intelligence Agency (CIA): Student Opportunities

* Council of American Ambassadors: Walter and Leonore Annenberg Fellowships

* Department of Agriculture (USDA): Internships, Fellowships and Scholarships

* Department of Commerce: Post Secondary Internship Grants & Student Opportunities

* Department of Defense: Internship & Scholarship Programs

* Department of Energy (DOE): Summer, Part-Time & Career Internships

* Department of Health and Human Services (HHS): Student Programs
Student programs

* Department of Health and Human Services (HHS): Internships
Internships

* Department of Homeland Security (DHS): Internships, Summer Employment and College Programs

* Department of Homeland Security (DHS): US Coast Guard Student Hiring

* Department of Labor (DOL): Internship Program

* Department of State: Various Opportunities

* Department of State: Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship

* Department of State: Critical Language Scholarships Program

* Department of State: Cooperative Education Program (SCEP)

* Department of State: Student Internships (Spring, Summer, Fall)

* Department of State: Summer Clerical Program

* Executive Office of the President (EOP): White House Fellows

* Executive Office of the President (EOP): White House Interns

* FBI: Internships and Volunteer Internships

* Federal Career Intern Program (FCIP)

* Federal Communications Commission (FCC): Internships

* Government Accountability Office (GAO): Student Internships for Graduates and Undergraduates

* Inter-American Foundation (IAF): Fellowships

* Japan-United States Friendship Commission: Fellowship

* Library of Congress: Internship, fellowship and volunteer programs

* Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC): Internships for graduates and undergraduates

* National Security Agency (NSA): Internships, scholarships, summer employment and co-op programs

* National Security Education Program (NSEP): Boren Scholarships and Fellowships

* Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC): Internships

* Presidential Management Fellows Program (PMF)

* Student Career Experience Program (SCEP)

* Student Temporary Employment Program (STEP)

* US Commission on International Religious Freedom: Internships

* US Secret Service (USSS): Student Volunteer Program

* US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA): Internships

* US Trade Representative (USTR): Internships

* USAID: Emerging Markets Development Advisors Program (EMDAP)

* USAID: Volunteer Student Internships and Fellowships

Internships with International Organizations

* Abroad China
INTERNATIONAL VOLUNTEER & INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITY

* AIPT (Association for International Practical Training)
INTERNSHIPS AND JOB SHADOWING ABROAD

* Cultural Services of the French Embassy
EMBASSY, EN

* Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA)
INTERNSHIPS

* The European Union Internship Program
INTERNSHIPS, EN

* FACE (French American Cultural Exchange)
CULTURAL EXCHANGE

* France in the US - Embassy of France in Washington
EMBASSY

* German Bundestag
International Parliamentary Scholarship (IPS)
INTERNATIONAL INTERNSHIP GERMANY, EN FR GE

* Humanity In Action
INTERNATIONAL FELLOWSHIP AND INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITY

* IES Abroad
INTERN & STUDY ABROAD

* Inter-American Development Bank (IADB)
INTERNSHIPS, FR po SP

* International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
INTERNSHIPS

* International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
INTERNSHIPS

* International Internships LLC
INTERNATIONAL INTERNSHIP ORGANIZATION, EN

* International Monetary Fund (IMF)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* International Telecommunications Satellite Organization (Intelsat)
INTERNSHIPS

* International Trade Centre (ITC)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS)
INTERNSHIPS, EN FR

* Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)
INTERNSHIPS, EN FR SP

* LEAPNow: Lifelong Education Alternatives & Programs
EXPERIENTIAL PROGRAMS ABROAD

* Mountbatten Institute
BUSINESS INTERNSHIP INSTITUTE

* Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
INTERNSHIPS, EN FR SP

* Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization
INTERNSHIPS

* Union of French Chambers of Commerce and Industry Overseas (UCCIFE)
INTERNATIONAL INTERNSHIPS FRANCE

* United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM)
INTERNSHIPS

* United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
INTERNSHIPS

* United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE)
INTERNSHIPS

* United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)
INTERNSHIPS, SP

* United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
INTERNSHIPS, FR

* United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* United Nations Headquarters Internship Programme
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT)
INTERNSHIPS

* United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)
INTERNSHIPS, FR

* United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR)
INTERNSHIPS, FR

* United Nations International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* United Nations Office at Vienna (UNOV)
INTERNSHIPS

* United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* United Nations System Staff College (UNSSC)
INTERNSHIPS

* United Nations University (UNU)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* VolunteerAbroad.com
INTERNATIONAL VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

* The World Bank
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

* World Food Programme (WFP)
INTERNSHIPS

* World Health Organization (WHO)
INTERNSHIPS, FR SP

(MORE IN NEXT POST)

[OSL]

RESOURCES: VOLUNTEER AND INTERNSHIP LISTINGS

* 700 Places to Volunteer Before You Die: A Traveler's Guide

* AboutJobs.com

* Africa Centre

* AIESEC

* Association for Experential Education (AEE)

* BaseCamp International Centers

* BUNAC [Editor's Choice]

* Cadrexport: International Mode D'Emploi

* CANADEM

* Canadian Executive Service Organization (CESO)

* Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA): International Internships

* Care Canada

* Careers United

* Centre d'Information sur le Volontariat International

* CharityJOB

* Council on International Education Exchange (CIEE)

* Cultural Survival

* Dublin Internships

* Ecoteer [Editor's Choice]

* Ecovolunteer

* ELI (Experiential Learning International)

* Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW)

* Engineers Without Borders (EWB)

* Foreign Policy Association (FPA) [Editor's Choice]

* Freedom House

* Geekcorps

* German Development Service

* Global Citizens Network

* Global Experiences

* Global Vision International (GVI)

* Global Volunteer Network (GVN)

* GLOBALPLACEMENT.COM [Editor's Choice]

* Goinglobal

* Green Jobs International

* Green Volunteers

* How to Live Your Dream of Volunteering Overseas

* Human Rights Internet

* Humana People to People

* iAgora.com

* Idealist.org [Editor's Choice]

* IFE (Internships in Francophone Europe)

* iHipo International Careers

* Institute for International Cooperation and Development (IICD)

* Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)

* International Centre, Queen’s University

* The International Directory of Voluntary Work

* International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies [Editor's Choice]

* International Institute of Education (IIE) [Editor's Choice]

* International Jobs Center

* International Mountain Explorers Connection (IMEC)

* International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ)

* International Volunteer Programs Association (IVPA)

* International Youth and Young Workers Exchange Programs

* InternJobs.com

* internships.com [Editor's Choice]

* Invest Yourself: The Catalogue of Volunteer Opportunities

* ITC: International TEFL Certificate

* Job & Career Sites at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI)

* Karuna International

* Kibbutz Volunteer

* Lonely Planet Volunteer: A Traveller's Guide to Making a Difference Around

* MakingTheDifference.org

* Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders (MSF)

* MonsterCollege

* mygapyear.ca

* NACEL International

* OneWorld.net

* Outpost Magazine

* Peace Corps

* Peace Corps Connect

* PlanetEdu [Editor's Choice]

* Planning Your Gap Year

* Project Concern International

* Projects Abroad [Editor's Choice]

* ProjectsAbroad

* Real Gap Experience

* RedR Canada (Registered Engineers for Disaster Relief)

* Restless Development

* Servenet

* Students.Gov

* Summer Jobs Abroad 2010

* SummerJobs.com

* SWAP Working Holidays [Editor's Choice]

* Taking A Gap Year

* Taking a Year Out

* The 100 Best Volunteer Vacations to Enrich Your Life

* The Complete Guide to the Gap Year: The Best Things to Do Between High School and College

* The Gap Year for Grown Ups: The Most Comprehensive, Practical Guide from the Leading Gap Year Specialist

* The Give-Back Solution: Create a Better World with Your Time, Talents and Travel (Whether You Have $10 or $10,000)

* The Idealist.org Handbook to Building a Better World: How to Turn Your Good Intentions into Actions that Make a Difference

* Think Impact

* topinternships.com

* Transitions Abroad Volunteer Resources [Editor's Choice]

* TravelTree.co.uk [Editor's Choice]

* UCI - Internship Listings

* UCI - Volunteer Listings

* UN Volunteers: Online Volunteering Service

* United Nations Volunteers (UNV)

* Vale

* Vault

* Verge Magazine

* Visions In Action

* Vivre à l’étranger

* Volunteer Vacations: Short-Term Adventures That Will Benefit You and Others

* Volunteering England

* Volunteers for Peace (VFP)

* Volunteers In Asia (VIA)

* Wasserman Center for Career Development (NYU)

* Water for People

* Work Abroad: The Complete Guide to Finding a Job Overseas

* Work Your Way Around the World, 14th Edition: A Fresh and Fully Up-to-Date Guide for the Modern Working Traveller [Editor's Choice]

* workaway.info [Editor's Choice]

* World Trade Organization

* World Volunteer Web

* World Volunteers

* World Volunteers: The World Guide to Humanitarian and Development Volunteering

* World Wildlife Fund Canada

* Worldwide Volunteering (How To)

* WWOOF - World-Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms [Editor's Choice]

* Your Gap Year: Everything You Need To Know to Make Your Year Out The Adventure of a Lifetime

[OSL]

(04-08-2011 02:04 AM)solo Wrote:  

Also, CupCake, if I could add my 2 cents even though we're more or less in the same position and I shouldn't be giving advice. When and if you go abroad, try to have everything (apartment, job/studies/occupation/finances) sorted out before you go so you'll know what you'll be doing and don't end up without a plan. Your first year abroad might be tough but the potential gains are big. Not saying you can't sort it out and get a decent job at home but personally I think the rat race will put some restraints on you, unless you start your own company and is successful it takes more time to move ahead. I want to get a job with an american/european salary but be living in a cheap country or at least cheaper. Maximising income and minimising expenses is a way to be saving money.

Also, my first order of business would maybe be to try to find a job in another grocery store where I don't have to work overnight.

Instead of looking for job offers while abroad and interviewing when the career leapfrogger hits the ground, so to speak, I suggest that he always take at least a month to study language and get settled in his new environment. This will allow him to stay in the country on a visa, create a small social network, and give him an idea of what it is like to live there. In general, the better offers that a guy can get will not come through an internet search from overseas unless he is uniquely qualified or connected for the positions for which he is applying.

There are definitely better jobs than manual labor at a grocery store that a guy can get abroad if he is a White American with a BA. You definitely don't have to settle for working at a grocery store - although I can really only speak for Asia. If you ended up going to the UK or France they might not be scrambling to hire you.

The better offers that have more pay/prestige/connections will come with a bit of time spent on the ground, strategically networking with some of the local players.

[solo]

YMG, thanks a lot for the very extensive internship list, it's a goldmine. I'll defo gonna be applying to some of those. Btw if I may ask, do you think taking a university course in Business administration would increase one's chances of getting an internship at a company like to one you called in Brazil? I studied Political Science and Spanish and am pondering whether to take some courses online.

[Dash Global]

just taking a course or 2 will not help. now getting a degree will.....

[solo]

(04-08-2011 01:13 PM)Dash Global Wrote:  

just taking a course or 2 will not help. now getting a degree will.....

Dash, I could get a degree in 3 semesters, so I suppose it's doable, we'll see. Do you have a degree? I read about your plans to teach English abroad on another thread. I might do that some day as well if I want to live in Asia for an extended period of time, maybe even SA to pay my bills on my way to a better job as YMG suggests, even though the pay is less there. English isn't my native language but I suppose it's possible anyway.

[Dash Global]

(04-08-2011 02:14 PM)solo Wrote:  

(04-08-2011 01:13 PM)Dash Global Wrote:  

just taking a course or 2 will not help. now getting a degree will.....

Dash, I could get a degree in 3 semesters, so I suppose it's doable, we'll see. Do you have a degree? I read about your plans to teach English abroad on another thread. I might do that some day as well if I want to live in Asia for an extended period of time, maybe even SA to pay my bills on my way to a better job as YMG suggests, even though the pay is less there. English isn't my native language but I suppose it's possible anyway.

Yes I have a 4 yr degree in Business Administration.