High-Priced Stocks: I’ll take one, please.

For a long time now, I’ve been saying I should buy Google stock. Have you noticed this company is taking over the world—blogging, e-mail, searching, Earth, maps, on and on—and, personally, I use it every day. It’s cool, I think, when you can invest your dollars into a company you believe in and profit from.

The only thing stopping me, of course, is that Google (GOOG) currently runs for $506.72 a share. Ouch.

Jim Cramer, on last night’s special Family MAD Money show, actually recommended going for it with stocks like these. He prefers buying one share of an expensive stock over using options or other complicated systems.

So here’s what I’m thinking: I have $600 coming my way next week, as payment for a magazine article I wrote, and I was already planning to invest it. Maybe I’ll buy one GOOG and see what happens. The way I look at it, whatever it does or doesn’t make is money I earned over my regular income: it’s money from a fun article I actually had to write for a class anyway.

Anyone have experience with this? Opinions on high-priced stock picks? Do tell.

Tips for job-searching writers

Blogger SF Gal and I were discussing writerly job prospects and best ways to land jobs in the writing/editing field. In my opinion, finding a job is part hard work, part determination, part timing and part providential. Nonetheless, I can tell you what job-searching strategies worked for me:

Preliminary
Created an online portfolio: If you can make a blog, you can make a portfolio. I used wordpress and my name as the url. I created pages for my professional bio, writing samples (you can upload them to the site), interests, skills and taken college courses and made them all linkable through the front page. You can adjust these titles to fit your needs, obviously. This url got added (and bolded/enlarged) on my resume, and I mentioned it in every cover letter.
**Side benefit: I put a sitemeter on the portfolio, which allowed me to tell who was viewing it. This was HUGE in follow-up. If I knew Company X looked at it this morning, I knew they were at least a little interested, and I’d contact them.

Updated my resume: I crafted it to the best of my ability and then made an appointment with my school’s career center for more advice. The person I met with gave me practical, tangible ways to improve my info, including a set of examples and an e-mail address to use for follow-up questions. If you’re still in school, take advantage of your school’s free service!

Put the word out: I was always looking to talk about the job hunt—people I met who were in the field, people who worked in HR, friends who’d found jobs, etc. You never know who’s going to be interested.

Day-to-Day
Searched online: I had a list of maybe a dozen or so sites that I bookmarked with writer/editor searches, and I went through them every morning. Anything that looked good, I applied for.

Kept track of applications: In an Excel spreadsheet, I listed the company name, the position, the date applied, the source and what response I got.
**FYI: I applied for 60 jobs. With the spreadsheet, I was able to tell what my success-rate (company call-back) was: 20%.

Cold-called via e-mail/letter/e-mail: This was the brainchild of one Friday night, staying up too late, desperate for more ideas. I’d been rejected for a job I really wanted at a local college, so I got this idea to contact all other schools in the area. I e-mailed HR/Communications departments, telling them to expect a packet. Then I mailed manilla folders with cover letters, resumes, writing samples and a promise to follow-up. I e-mailed them a second time, about a week later. All but one wrote back to me: no positions were available at the time. A few days later, though, one school wrote again, asking me to apply for a position.

For me, getting interviews has always been the hardest part of the job-search. If you can get them to bring you in, it’s much easier to explain your qualifications and get an offer.

I’m by no means an expert at this, and I’ve learned mostly by trial-and-error and some OCD record-keeping. If you do have any other questions though, feel free to ask. If I can help, I will!

Job-search: OVER!!!

I got the job: the one I was hoping for—the one close by, with great opportunity for growth, doing writing and editing, managing freelancers. It’s everything I wanted, and at way more money than I’d expected.

SERIOUSLY!!

My grad degree was worth it, my job-search paid off, and God graciously provided for me. This is very, very big news!

I told the company owner I’d give him a def. yes or no Friday, but just between us: it’s a big YES!!

***UPDATE: I start Monday, at (# removed for the sake of privacy). The money was so much better than I expected, I just couldn’t ask for more. I did try negotiating for more vacation, and we sort of compromised: he said he’ll let me manipulate my schedule to leave early on long weekends because I’ll have assistants I can put in place while I’m gone. He also said he’d work with me, as in: if I needed to go somewhere, I could take unpaid vacation. That’s cool with me.

the Third Interview

I’ll say this for third interviews: by the time you’ve gone to the company three times, with your good clothes and fresh resumes, and have three times found the office, greeted the secretary, signed in; three times walked 1-2 miles; and three times ridden the train round-trip, you get to feel pretty comfortable with the place.

HR apologized for the drawn-out process, which they’d planned to be short, and they gave me a gift and offered to reimburse me for my train/bus rides for this and previous interviews (yes, I’m taking them up on it: $23.50). They also promised this would be the final interview and that next time I hear from them, it will be good news/a job offer.

Right now, the only question remaining is salary. This morning, the third VP I met with asked what kind of pay scale I’m expecting—he wanted to know what other offers I’d be comparing this to.

I could’ve given him a specific number, but, truthfully, I want to know what they think I should be paid. “I’m sure I’d consider any reasonable offer,” I told him. He tried again, but I wouldn’t budge. I said that it’d be too hard to give one range, since I’m applying for such diverse positions: all sorts of factors come into play—city vs. suburbs, big vs. small organization, industry, etc. Thankfully, this reasoning worked.

Also: I took the bus from Union Station and found that was FAR easier than walking—especially on a hot day. I think, if I caught an express train and took the bus, I could shave my one-way commute down to one hour.

Now I just have to wait and see what they offer.

***UPDATE: Just a few hours after I left their office, the company called and made me an offer. An extremely low offer: $31,000 (after promising they “pay really well”). I told HR Guy I’d think about it and respond by Friday. Unfortunately, according to my calculations, this would not at all justify the time and effort involved in the position. This is good, though: at least the decision is easy.

Persistence

I had a great interview this morning (not to be confused with the third interview I’ll have tomorrow). Today’s potential job involved a 20-minute commute; a business-minded, laid-back boss; and here’s the best part: an opportunity to start a new writing department at the company, from the ground up.

As in: I’d hire writers to work for me. I’d manage the company’s entire content. I’d have flexible hours, benefits, autonomy.

The company owner, who interviewed me, posted a listing on Craigslist almost two weeks ago. He said he received more responses than he could read (!). Why did he call me back? I e-mailed him twice. (Thank goodness I did!)

He’s interviewing a total of four people, and he’s still considering what salary to offer. Fingers crossed!

To Tip or Not to Tip?

(LN, this one’s for you!)

A friend of mine carries a tip card, similar to the one at left (image from tipping.org), in her purse when we go out. At the end of the meal, she can pop it out, scan the columns and know how much to leave if she wants to give 10%, 15%, 20%. At restaurants, we always leave 20%, partly because I once was a waitress and partly because we were just raised that way: my parents left 20%; her parents left 20%.

Another person I know used to work at Pizza Hut; he was a manager for several years, actually, and once when we were out, tipping came up. “You’d be surprised at how often people don’t leave a tip,” he told me.

Really?

I’m unconvinced. Those of us who are concerned about money: we wouldn’t stiff a server, would we? Please tell me: do you tip? how often? how much? do you have certain rules you follow?

Is it different for restaurants? hair salons? bellboys?

And I wonder, slightly guilty: do you tip the guys at the car wash? the barista at Starbucks? the counter kids at Coldstone?

If you want to think before you answer, here are some links to chew on:

Jonathan Raleigh: Is Tipping Getting out of Hand or Am I?
CNN: How Much to Tip
Get Rich Slowly: Basic Tips on Tipping
Kiplinger’s:Tipping

Personality-Type Job-Searching

A woman I know was telling me yesterday that her daughter is rethinking her career plans. Daughter had wanted to be a physical therapist and was two years into her BS, with plans to transfer to a more prestigious school (PS) in the fall. Then PS rejected a chunk of her credits, meaning she’d be at least a semester behind. She’s decided, for now, to stay at her current school, but new career options—the police force—are being tossed around.

“She loves her summers at the police station,” the mom was telling me. “And it’s so important to do something you love. I mean, she could finish this degree and then hate her job… I don’t want that for her. Like her dad—he hates his job.”

Her MIT-graduate husband makes upwards of 100K in his IT-related profession. But Wife told me: “He travels all the time, he has to deliver what the Sales department promises… it’s a lot of conflict.”

This recent article, on what makes for the most satisfying career, echoes that point. It cites people-serving professions as the most rewarding and asserts finding a job that fits your personality type is key.

I guess I agree with that. A few days ago, my younger brother (a business major) and I were talking about how hard it would be for us to stick with a job we hated, one that didn’t fit our personalities. Reason? We grew up in a home where our dad loved his career.  He owns his own business: he calls the shots, he sets his hours, he makes the money. I’m sure no job is perfect, but, growing up, I really didn’t hear him complain about his work; he was satisfied and successful.

A lot of my friends have taken jobs they ended up hating: usually cubicle-ones. Please don’t misunderstand me: I’m not knocking office life (I’ve been there; hated it, but been there.) But the difference between me and my friends was this: they thought they had to hate their job; it was just what people do. I, on the other hand, had this picture of my happy, healthy father in my mind: loving his life and still paying all his bills.

I guess I’d just like to think that’s possible for everyone. I’d like to think there’s a right fit for every personality, every skill set. And I’d like to think I’ll find my fit soon.

Carnival of PF

The latest Carnival of Personal Finance is up, at Getting Green. My post “Philosophy of Giving” can be found under the “Economics” header. Go check it out!

My bad money habits and what I’ve done about them

Justice Student over at Justice and Finance recently posted her top-10 non-frugal habits. Great post, I think. To some of her habits, I truly relate.

She got me thinking about certain habits of my own, some of which I’ve changed and others of which I haven’t. Things like these:

1. Going to the Movies
Can you believe theater prices these days? At my local AMC, one ticket costs $9.75! A student discount (which I suppose I’m not even qualified for now–gasp!) would save me $1, but even still: $8.75 for one person to see one movie? Ridiculous.

My solution: I have stopped going to regular theaters altogether. Yes, it’s true. The only theater I will now attend is the budget-friendly $3 one in a local suburb. It plays less-new, family-friendly flicks, but that’s fine with me. Otherwise we rent, or better still: watch a movie we already own or that’s playing on TV.

2. Eating out
This is unquestionably my most non-frugal habit. I love food—as in, I love food. This passion is compounded by the fact that get-togethers with friends are almost always restaurant-centered. “Let’s meet at Panera Sunday night!” Or Chili’s. Or Olive Garden.

Once I’m in the restaurant, all bets are off. I want the mint chocolate-chip shake. The amazing breadsticks. The melt-in-your-mouth soup.

My solution: Part of me hates this, but I eat before I go out now. It’s usually not a huge meal, just something light and protein-heavy. This way, the restaurant’s menu won’t be as appealing. Of course, sometimes planning ahead is impossible, and in those cases, I just let myself enjoy. After all, if I didn’t make some allowances, I’d probably throw all rules out the window.

3. Haircuts
I’ve seen other pf bloggers write about this: like here and here. For years, I went to a fancy salon close to my house: my hairdresser had known me longer than some of my friends. It was such a great experience: she washed my hair (don’t you love that?), talked with me like an old pal, even got me a beverage. The best part of all: she styled my hair, and everytime it looked awesome. I could count on perfect hair for at least the next two days (I usually wash it every morning, but with M’s magic touch, I didn’t need to right away).

Each cut cost $35, and I’d tip $10 since I loved M. Then, the last time I went, about a year ago, she’d raised her price to $45. With the tip, I spent $55 for a relatively simple cut: trimming, thinning, and long layers.

My solution: I stopped going to my fancy salon (and yes, I do miss it a little). I go to Great Clips, which couldn’t be less like M’s chair, but I pay $12, $8 if I have a coupon. The hairdresser—different each time—doesn’t wash, style, or blowdry my hair, but she does a fine job. I get home and fix it up, and I’m usually pretty happy.

For me, a person with thick-thick-thick, wavy hair, I’ll always have to work at my ‘do. Might as well pay less then, I figure.

What about you all? What are your habits? How do you deal with them?

The cost of commuting

As I mentioned in the last post, I have a third interview Wednesday with a company downtown, WA, which contacted me through my school’s e-recruiting site. Though this is the third interview, I have not had the courage to bring up specific salary expectations, and I’m largely only going to this (I hope) last meeting to find out what they offer.

The office is located in Chicago, south of the Loop. I’d have to take a train from the ‘burbs, then take a bus or walk the additional mile to the company. The position’s 40-hour work week then stretches into an easy 60 hours away from home, not counting what-I’m-sure-is-required overtime.

Today I did a rough breakdown of costs, assuming a $40,000/year salary. (I have no idea if it will be more or less.)

Commuting costs:
Monthly Metra pass: $116.10
+ Daily bus fares for an average 22 days/month: $88.00
= Total monthly cost: $204.10
Total yearly cost: $2449.20

Time costs:
Work hours: 40/week (+5 for lunches)
+ Commuting: 15/week
+ Overtime: variable
= Total monthly cost: average: 60 hours
Total yearly hours: more than 3,180/year

If I divide the yearly hours into the yearly salary (less commuting costs), I arrive at my average hourly rate, assuming no extensive overtime: $11.80. Less than I’ve made for temp-ing, and less than I’d make proofreading from my house.

Maybe this would be worth it if the job were something I’d dreamed of having. But it isn’t. It’s an industry I’m not interested in. It’s a company that likes required social activities—Christmas formal, family picnic (all of which I’d be planning). And mostly, it only sometimes involves writing; largely, it’s a HR-marketing-personal assistant role. If it were closer, if it didn’t require so much time… maybe. But as it is? I’m pretty sure it’s not worth it.

I’m still going to the interview Wednesday, just because I’d always wonder. I’m not especially optimistic.