I need a hug.

Coffee Break

Submitted Mon, Oct 19, 2009 at 9:14am GMT
jakecastle 63 posts - Philippines - Joined May 10 2009

I need a hug.

I woke up today and dragged myself to check on my candidacies. I'm so desperately lonely right now cause I just lost two bids. I'm holding on to hope that I get a project, any project but no one is hiring me. I told myself I'd cut my losses last Friday, but I can't give up. I've already sacrificed so much and I don't know how long I can hold on. I'm typing on my keyboard right now with tears wanting a hug to ease the pain but I have no one but my pillow and my blog.

http://odeskpinoynewbie.blogspot.com

Vote Result

Score: 7.0, Votes: 3

Needing a hug Submitted Mon, Oct 19, 2009 at 10:12am GMT
vjustice 64 posts - United States - Joined Oct 14 2009

Heres your hug(Hug) Now you need a slap in the back of the head lol. Seriously Jake cheer up lifes not easy and odesk is no diffrent. My advice and don't take this wrong. Stop whineing and start smileing no matter how bad it is. Theres a lot of people who read your posts and some are buyers they are looking for people with that CAN DO Attitude!!!
first get rid of anything that implies any kind of negative attitude starting with your portfolio item Project Title: Life and Times of my so called life.We also need to improve your english grammar on your blogs if your going to use them for references.
then lets examine your actual qualifications vs jobs your applieing for vs your rate vs the buyers interview rates and lets see if we can't get you a job. Half of getting hired is being a good salesman you have to sell your self to the buyer.
I say all this not to hurt you but to help. I gather you have a job there at home.
What exactly is it you do for the company you work for and is it something you like to do now. If so is it something that is being done on odesk? My other thought is you set your self goals for odesk its time to sit back and evaluate them and see if your goals are realistic? Believe me I know how fustrating all this is. I admit that I myself don't have all the answers but I do know you have to have a positive attitude at all times.

I needed that Submitted Mon, Oct 19, 2009 at 10:24am GMT
jakecastle 63 posts - Philippines - Joined May 10 2009

Thanks man. I really needed that. I'm tearing that down right now! Got lots to do.

A lot to do Submitted Mon, Oct 19, 2009 at 11:43am GMT
vjustice 64 posts - United States - Joined Oct 14 2009

Glad to see your still with us. Heres food for thought. I read a quote that said:

If your not failing at least 90% of the time you have'nt set your goals high enough.
I also belive that if you havn't failed then you've never tried!
The fact is that while I may fail on odesk I will never fail in life. I am to stubborn to ever quit or give up lol

Vitale

Hey jakecastle I started a company Submitted Tue, Oct 20, 2009 at 2:39am GMT
arnaldog 1 post - Philippines - Joined Jun 27 2008

Hey Jake

I started a company on oDesk last week and I was swamped with job offers. You might want to join my company (eRockstar Solutions) so I can share a few of those offers when they come again (they are tasks mostly on xsite pro /wordpress development, backlink creation and review articles). Message me if you are able to do those things.

Cheers,

Arnold

eRockstar Solutions Submitted Tue, Oct 20, 2009 at 12:11pm GMT
jakecastle 63 posts - Philippines - Joined May 10 2009

Thanks for the offer Arnold. Count me in. I can get into Blog development on WordPress in a couple of days. It shouldn't be that different from my current platform (Blogger). Salamat

Baby, don't cry. Submitted Tue, Oct 20, 2009 at 4:52am GMT
moksc 50 posts

Hi jakecastle,

I'm from Singapore. Every Singapore man has to go thru National Service, in Army. I had field camp, thrown in the jungle, eating dog biscuits, caught in the rain, shouted at like a dog by whoever 1 rank higher...

In my career thru the years, I had countless fiascos. The reasons were complicated. I tell you my stories. I think I'll see you faint on the floor. It's fate. God has been against me. But I won't die that easily.

"lost two bids"? What's the big deal about fiasco? Go back train yourself. Pick up a book or CD. Pick up a programming language. Start memorizing the damn stupid commands. Hands on. Shout at yourself. Go thru Hell... A skill is an AR-15 (Rifle gun). Have a gun in your hand and you're God.

"...typing with tears ...no one but my pillow" Shame on you, a big man. Fight like a soldier. "...how long I can hold on ...wanting a hug" I'll open the door and kick you out.

jakecastle, I see you in battle field. Come stronger. We fight like comrades.

Mok

cry baby Submitted Tue, Oct 20, 2009 at 12:00pm GMT
jakecastle 63 posts - Philippines - Joined May 10 2009

moksc,

it's not just 2 lost bids.
It's 2 weeks
and 2 days looking to get hired
I am so damn tired

How much rejection can you take
before you hurt then break?
I'm fighting,
wounded,
exhausted
surrounded
low on ammo
starving

I brave the battlefield
alone,
Hoping againts hope
with you on my side
I march on

JFMC

http://odeskpinoynewbie.blogspot.com/

This is cruel. Submitted Wed, Oct 21, 2009 at 3:54am GMT
moksc 50 posts

Hi All,

I'm a Chinese. There was a first emperor of China. You know what he did to his population?

- If 1 person offended 1 small law, 5 families were punished.
- If 1 person offended 1 big law, 10 families were punished.

The punishment: each person had his (2) palms and (2) feet chopped off. He/she would not die but would crawl on the floor thru his/her life time.

How many persons were punished each day? Newly chopped off palms and feet loaded in carts were burnt off each day.

Actually it was 1 of his officials who did this. The emperor himself was worse.

Every morning I woke up, I had to check whether my palms and feet were still there?

China is a rising power. Thanks to 1 thing. It's called democracy.

Mok

(This is tidbit to lighten the atmosphere. Irrelevant.)

thank god i'm not in china Submitted Wed, Oct 21, 2009 at 1:09pm GMT
jakecastle 63 posts - Philippines - Joined May 10 2009

In the philippines the tribals had the code of Kalantsiao. One of the punishments was being tied to an ant hill to be eaten alive by ants.

anyways always welcome sharing your insight comrade. we stand and fight together. Did you know that the philippines was considered a part of the chinese empire long before the spanish coloniztion? seriously, i know it's not academically acceptable to qoute wikipedia, but it's there

Oh come on?! This is really Submitted Wed, Oct 21, 2009 at 5:56am GMT
cpedrosa 90 posts - Philippines - Joined Jun 07 2008

Oh come on?! This is really nothing to be worried about Most newbies experience weeks until few months of no work. You just need to ask around the forums on advice on how to get jobs, set your rate and write good cover letters to impress potential buyers.

If I'm a buyer right now reading this post I would immediately lose interest in hiring you. ALWAYS BE CONFIDENT. Always stay in touch with your higher self.

I also checked your blog. It looks like you made an analysis on the number of candidacies you have and not getting jobs for the past 2 weeks. Heres what I do. For me, I dont have to count how many job openings I applied for. It will just make me worry. I just apply to every job opening I know I can handle. I do that every single day and I lose count, until I land a few jobs. I still apply to more jobs even if I already have an assignment, so I have back up.

I also see that you cancel bids after a week of applying because the buyer is unresponsive. If I were you I let my bid stay there until it expires after 30 days. Some buyers have a lot of provider profiles to go through until they choose the right candidate. You never know, you might have missed the chance of letting the buyer choose you instead.

One last thing... here is your big fat hug:..... H U G..... Dont lose hope. I'm sure you'll land jobs before you know it. Sipag and tyaga lang po!

Suck it up Submitted Wed, Oct 21, 2009 at 2:19am GMT
nixx 11 posts - Philippines - Joined Jul 23 2009

I have no idea why you're whining here about not getting a job and how hard it is. Have you seen how many providers are competing for the job? And I havent read anything about Odesk handing you a job quick and easy when I signed up.

When you join Odesk, have zero expectations and be prepared to work for less than you would normally prefer. That's one way of proving you're worth it. I started out at $1/hour in order to get jobs, build up reputation and gradually increased my rate little by little. 2 weeks and no job? Heck, it was almost 2 months since I joined Odesk that I got my first gig.

I'm no expert but I sucked it up, stopped thinking about not getting the job and wallowing in defeat. Instead I applied and bid like crazy to jobs that I can do well. I stalked the Jobs page and F5-ed like there was no tomorrow and bid for newly posted jobs. I learned to write my cover letters in the professional tone but was short enough for the attention span of a 3 year old.

Just hang in there. And if your tactics arent working, adapt and change them. Going all emo and waxing poetic about how Odesk is hard and you're depressed wont help.

Agree with nixx Submitted Wed, Oct 21, 2009 at 1:17pm GMT
margaretphillips 221 posts - United States - Joined Feb 18 2007

It took me 8 months to land my first job here.

me waxing poetic? Submitted Wed, Oct 21, 2009 at 4:59pm GMT
jakecastle 63 posts - Philippines - Joined May 10 2009

Thanks. I'll take that as a compliment.

wax-poetic - To speak in a very eccletic and influential manner. The term probably comes from the usage of the term wax, which is another name for vinyl records meaning that it is recorded and musical, and poetic, which obviously refers to the stylized nature of the speech.

Your right nix

as Ol' blue eyes once sang:

To dream the impossible dream
To fight the unbeatable foe
To bear with unbearable sorrow
To run where the brave dare not go

appreciate your comments:
TO ARMS MY BROTHER TO ARMS!

awwww....I remember feeling like that, too! Submitted Thu, Oct 22, 2009 at 6:27am GMT
kim_johnson 1 post - United States - Joined Jul 21 2009

You'll ride it out, buddy. Looks like you already have. But I sooooo remember feeling exactly like that, maybe.....as recently as a few weeks ago?! Sometimes, I think, it can be motivating in the long run to just let yourself feel bad for a little bit. Sorry, but sometimes a pep talk or a "smile-it's-not-so-bad" only ticks me off when I'm feeling like you were! lol

I know, I know, I'm not a "team player" sometimes...so sue me.

Inspiration comes differently to everyone, I think. In fact, I wouldn't be posting for the first-time-ever if I hadn't been inspired here tonight. Times are bad literally everywhere right now, and scanning these boards I saw your "I Need A Hug" post...had to check it out. I DO know how you feel. I kept reading the replies, and holy cow. I am in a state of awe.

I popped in to a *hug* topic (which I NEVER do) and learned more about the world in that next 5 minutes than I have in years. I mean, how incredible is it that in this little virtual space, people from no fewer than 4 different countries came together to seek or offer comfort??? I'm sure there are other sites where you can participate as a user in a global community, but for me, this is the only one I've frequented, and now...I WORK HERE!!! Really, how cool is that? I come in and read posts like yours (also your blog...love it.)and moksc and I am amazed that I actually am a part of something with such exceptional people (even if it is ODesk! lol)

Ultimately, this is not meant to be another pep talk at all. I wanted to say that overwhelming feelings of despair are surely normal here and if you DON'T have them at some point, then the other shoe is probably about to drop on something. I know this for sure: If you can manage to ride it out, it WILL be worth it. Nothing is as empowering as the internet, so you're definitely hanging out in the right neighborhood. And in those inevitable "dark" times? you (we) have this huge global family at ODesk where apparently you'll find everything from a head-thumping pep talk to a cry-on-my-shoulder! (and if that doesn't do it for you, you can find me on Facebook and I'll "friend" you right away! Just send me a note!)

Yep, I know it sounds like a Shirley Temple movie, but I can't help it.......I love this place.

"See that far distant swell?
That is the next great wave of youth rebellion
Coming to sweep away the castles of fear."

overwhelming feelings of despair are surely normal here Submitted Thu, Oct 22, 2009 at 9:30pm GMT
jakecastle 63 posts - Philippines - Joined May 10 2009

kim_johnson,

First of all thank you for your comment, the only source of comfort and strength are people like you who know what it's like to go through this. Second thank you for visiting my blog. Third lemme add you on facebook, you can never have enough friends. Right now I'm planning to launch a PodCast on the subject. Right now though I'm still trying to find a job to at least pay my internet bill, sigh. But really thanks you all for your H U G S . You made me feel a lot better.

Glad to see your Still here Submitted Tue, Nov 03, 2009 at 8:14am GMT
vjustice 64 posts - United States - Joined Oct 14 2009

I landed my first job on odesk yesterday it was a fixed price job a 750 word article 50.00 paid 50% up front. But Hey its a start I wrote two articles instead of one I am just waiting to hear back on them now. So theres hope lol

Hang in there Guy

Vitale

a fixed price job Submitted Thu, Nov 05, 2009 at 12:49am GMT
jakecastle 63 posts - Philippines - Joined May 10 2009

congratulations butch! way to go!

You need more than a hug Submitted Sat, Oct 31, 2009 at 12:20pm GMT
robric 3 posts - South Africa - Joined Sep 09 2009

You must be a guy because you don't know the first thing about foreplay. Think things from the client's perspective when wading through a stack of mail. Why do you feel passionate about the subject? Why will you do an ace job? Tell the client why. If you're a newbie writer offer a free 200 word demo. That's worth more than a zillion claims to being an english native. Review your bid with the following question in mind:

Would I hire me?

Take care

Richard