Recapping 2011

The year 2011 served as a significant milestone on the scale of my life. Like 2006, with my graduation from high school and starting university; 2009 with my graduation from university and getting a job; 2011 marked another, more personal turning point, marriage.

What an emotional rollercoaster! It was perhaps the most hectic year, but the happiest none the less. It marked a huge change, yet stability, it was painstaking, yet worth it, and it was fun, yet costly.

In plain and simple terms, 2011 is the future. All along it has been “when I grow up” or “when I graduate” or “when I get married” …I’m there!

Last year, and like so many years before it, I made a new year’s resolution list. Similar to everyone’s my list included “being more religious”, “being healthier”, “taking more charge”…and “starting a Blog” (which was mainly due to the encouragement I got from Seth Godin’s book “Linchpin”.)

This time something worked.

I’m happy to report that until today I have posted 65 blogs (including this one), had 3,833 page views, had audience from all over the world including 1,340 from Lebanon, 434 from the United States, and 235 from the United Kingdom, in addition to 8 followers.

Yayy!

I don’t know about my Pisces horoscope reading for 2012 but my hopes are high.

Happy New Year!

Winter gets me in the London Mood

For those of you who have been reading my blog from the beginning, you are familiar with the post “They still haven’t found it yet!  L”

http://byserene.blogspot.com/2011/01/they-still-havent-found-it-yet.html

If not, here’s a brief.

On my way back from my last trip to London last January, MEA airlines or “someone” lost my luggage. After letters, phone calls, searches, and a whole lot of trips to the airport, I was compensated US$ 600 and an airline ticket voucher worth US$700.

This year, and in January, I’m going back to London for a family visit, and a little shopping and sightseeing. I just can’t help it; London is a winter city, especially with all the rain and clouds, so when it rains in Lebanon everything around me seems to turn into sterling pounds, red double-decker busses, and checkered jackets.

The seat is reserved, the ticket is bought, the Dollars are converted, and the lists are completed, all I have to do now is wait till the 31^st of December. The only thing that’s hindering my excitement and bothering me is that my husband can’t join me!

The Employee Search

Lately, my department has been looking to recruit a couple of new employees for two vacant positions we have. Considering that we rely greatly on team work, each one of the current employees in the department is required to pitch in when it comes to screening CV’s, making calls, and organizing interview outlines and guideline, in order to help our heads make an educated decision.

You can’t imagine how good it felt being on the other side of the desk. Being the one making the calls instead of receiving them and assisting in the decision process instead of being under judgment.

After contacting the HR department for some CV’s we were sent a file that had over a hundred printed out CV’s and a link to the Bank’s “Career” email for some million more.

The disaster!

How on earth do these graduates plan on getting hired if:

1.       They send CV’s from emails such as: 50centtt@..., mumususu@..., angeleyes12@..., and so many weird, childish emails its hilarious!

2.       They send emails with no content or no subject.  What kind of reputable company will hire someone who doesn’t even write “Kindly find my CV attached for a job vacancy at your esteemed company” in the email.  Is it that hard!

3.       They send emails with content that is so rubbish, that it gets the employer to close it and delete it with out even reaching the middle or opening the attached CV.

4.       They put the “career” email on their mailing list and start forwarding jokes, images, and those “if you don’t send this in 10 minutes, you’ll be cursed for life” emails.

5.       Their CV’s are too long, or two short, or don’t convey the key information an employer is looking for.

6.       They put the phrase “meet people and have a social life” in their Career Objective.

Or (excuse my bias for AUB and LAU)

7.       They are a graduate from a mini-market university, that opened yesterday, and isn’t accredited or reputable!