Getting Experience

If you are just entering the job market or are trying to change careers, getting experience is essential.  I ran into an article with a great list of resources to help job seekers get experience.

It can be a challenge to find a company to give a chance to get started.  There are a lot of experienced job seekers on the market.  Most companies will choose to hire someone with experience over someone without.  This doesn't mean your job search is hopeless.

If you are working and want to change careers, getting experience in the new career can be difficult.  There are options.  Find a volunteer position where you can work on the skills required in the new field.  You can also try doing some freelance work.  In either case, you would offer free work in exchange for the chance to get experience.

If you are out of work or are just entering the workforce, you have more options.  You can volunteer to work for a company without pay to get experience.  If you do this, make sure you approach the unpaid work as if you were getting paid.  In addition to experience, you want the company to give a good reference.

There are wide range of ways you can get experience. The article 10 Ways for New College Graduates to Gain Job Experience lists a wide range of website you can use to find opportunities for gaining experience.