While I never truly believed I’d land the dream job right out of college, I always kind of hoped. Who doesn’t? Well, as with the vast majority of people, that did not happen.

I graduated from The Ohio State University in 2014 as one of five in the inaugural EEDS class and began working at as a Project Administrator at a logistics company in Grove Port, Ohio, which specialized in electronic shipping and receiving while having a significant recycling program of electronic components. During my time there, I learned a lot of valuable things. They called me the ice cream man because “every day was a different flavor.” I worked in auditing, quality assurance, shipping and receiving, logistics, testing, finances, communications, marketing, and a handful of other things. But, the main things I learned during my time there were what I didn’t want in a job. I didn’t like auditing. I didn’t like sitting for long periods of time. I didn’t like a long commute. I didn’t like that nearly all my work was on a computer. I missed working with my hands. I missed working with people. I learned knowing what you don’t want in a job is just as important as knowing what you do want. I was there for two years before the company hit hard times, restructured, and I was laid off.

So there I was: twenty-four years old and filing for unemployment. I’ll admit, my pride took a solid hit.

And so, I began applying to jobs left and right. I had some skills, two years of professional experience, and, as I’ve been told, a personable and easygoing personality with a solid work ethic. I figured it’d only be a few weeks before I’d be back on my feet again. WRONG. I was unemployed for ten months. I spent hours crafting and improving my resume and cover letters, applied for well over a hundred jobs and had a few interviews, but never managed to land a job. It’s tough out there, guys. A lot of jobs had specific requirements that I simply couldn’t offer. Other jobs I was definitely qualified for but didn’t receive an offer because there was another candidate with more experience and better skills. One was an entry-level Event Coordinator job and the guy they chose had 10 YEARS managing an art event space. How could I compete? He was WAY overqualified. Frustrating, yes, but I realized the company was just making the best decision it could for its own needs and I just wasn’t the best candidate.

Sometimes, life is like that. Sometimes you’re just not the best.

As my search continued, I took the time to develop my photography and videography skills. The first couple of gigs I did were for free but eventually, I started making a little bit of money. It wasn’t much, but it helped give me direction, focus, and something to build towards.

I had to be really careful with money because, well, there wasn’t a lot of it. I was eating through savings. I saved money wherever I could. I learned how to cut my own hair. I shopped bargain prices. I sold things of value. The grind is the grind.

I eventually started working for a Financial Planning and investment company in Columbus part-time. To be honest with you, I did it because I had to, not because I wanted to. Brett and finance work don’t mix well. I did end up learning a lot about personal financing, investment, and savings – which is SUPER helpful information for life in general – but the work was tedious and I wasn’t the biggest fan of the people I worked with. My boss was great and helpful and I did enjoy working for her. But some of my coworkers… Anyway. While I worked, I continued to apply for jobs because, after all, the best time to look for a new job is when you already have one.

I was there for a year and a half before I heard word through my professional network about the ENR Scholars job.

I had never wanted a job so badly in my life. I took everything I’d learned during my job hunt and threw it into my application and pursuit of this job. Making connections is key. Esther DeBusk was going to be the one hiring the position and I’d never met her before. I sent a couple of emails but didn’t hear back. It had been weeks since I’d applied and I hadn’t heard anything. On a whim, during a run one day, I stopped by her office and introduced myself and told her about my passion for the job. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend doing this. At least not in this way. I was sweaty, out of breath, and looked like a mess. Not a great first impression. I told myself it would illustrate my determination. It probably would have been better to look more presentable but I took the risk anyway.

I was offered an interview and spent literal hours preparing for it. In the interview, I had to give a 5-15 minute presentation about who I am and why I was the ideal candidate for the job, create a Leadership Development workshop and present it, and then answer questions in front of a panel. When it comes to things like this, play to your strengths. For my personal presentation, I made a video. I let it play in the background while I gave a prepared speech from memory. It took hours to get the timing and wording just right to follow the flow of the video. I didn’t just want to impress them, I wanted to blow them away, erase all doubt that I was THE candidate for the job. I wanted them to realize that if I put this much effort into the interview, I’d put even more into the job. For the workshop, I built a game. I love games and have studied quite a bit of game theory. I considered the audience, learning outcomes, potential strategies, morals, game mechanics, and timeframe in its construction. I made it unique and clever and interactive. For the panel discussion, I wrote down every question I could think they would ask and wrote out my answers for each question, bringing those notes to the discussion.

I remember leaving the interview and my only thought was, “well, I gave it all I could.”

I spent the next two weeks wondering if it had been enough. And then, on a Friday, Esther called and offered the job.

For the ENR job, from the day I first heard about the job to the day I started, it took 8 months. Sometimes, these things move slow.

I’d spent four years in various jobs, some of it unemployed, hoping to find a job I actually enjoyed. Four years. It was four years of hard lessons learned and growth. Tough years. But a lot of great things happened. And, most importantly, I learned that if you really want something, then you need to go above and beyond to get it. The job hunt is a game and only the absolute best candidate gets the offer. To be the absolute best candidate, you need to give it everything you have, nothing less will cut it.