Why I don`t get a job?

Hi!

I would like you to share opinions and experience with me.

Since more than 6 months I`m applying online for jobs,in different hotels trough yenibiris.com,but no one ever call me even for an interview.I have Master Degree of Hotel and restaurant management,I speak fluently English,German,Spanish and Bulgarian as mother tongue.I don`t speak Turkish,just a little.Can you please advice me something,how should I proceed in finding a job here in Istanbul in tourism sector.

Thanks in advance!

Good day!

Have you considered checking out and contacting hotels directly and sending in your CV.

Try some of the bigger hotel chains who have hotels all around the world. Pick a country like Thailand or Indonesia and check out hotels there.

Its about luck i guess grab what you can here and bulid your way up if at 1st you can't reach success and job of desire seek out other options :) good luck you

well,I tried directly,yes and trough friends as well, i send directly to the hotels as well,I ve registrations in Marriot,Hilton, I receive also almost every day job offers and apply for them and funny part is that I see,they search exactly people with my education,skills and languages,but no one ever answered to me.It`s may be preferable to hire Turk,instead of foreigner,but then again if I `m more qualified happens what?Nothing again.Well,thanks again,I just needed an opinion and if someone takes some position in a hotel and knows how things work here.For example,in my country, we`ll hire family,friends or friend`s family instead of people who really studied and worked hard to get a job.Regards!

Am in the same situation sister

Because they dont want to recruit someone without work permit and they dont want to issue one for you as it takes long time and headache.

Plus the higher degree you have make them think you may ask for higher Salary :)

Yes,but i can`t get a work permit,without someone hires me,and then this tax for the permit i pay myself.What you think I should do then/

And its like,they don`t hire you,because you don`t have work permit,and you wont get work permit without anyone hires you??

karanova wrote:

And its like,they don`t hire you,because you don`t have work permit,and you wont get work permit without anyone hires you??


That is turkish logic

Well, I'm not in turkey yet, but I will suggest you should work on Elance and by making some clients there you can find the way in..
:)

karanova wrote:

well,I tried directly,yes and trough friends as well, i send directly to the hotels as well,I ve registrations in Marriot,Hilton, I receive also almost every day job offers and apply for them and funny part is that I see,they search exactly people with my education,skills and languages,but no one ever answered to me.It`s may be preferable to hire Turk,instead of foreigner,but then again if I `m more qualified happens what?Nothing again.Well,thanks again,I just needed an opinion and if someone takes some position in a hotel and knows how things work here.For example,in my country, we`ll hire family,friends or friend`s family instead of people who really studied and worked hard to get a job.Regards!


Hello Kara, :)

1). This is a test for you: in the beginning nothing works.
Keep doing what you are doing.

2). It is very, very bad to hire family or friends for jobs for which better candidates exist.
I never heard of anybody who is the right man for the job to be a family member or friend.

Better than hiring family and friends, ask them to buy shares in your company (which is not your case at the present, but I am saying for you to keep in mind in the future).

3). Perhaps it's a good idea to take a little break and relax.
Remember other truths such as that worse than looking for a job is to find one, which happens to be a thread of mine at https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=334639:D

karanova wrote:

Yes,but i can`t get a work permit,without someone hires me,and then this tax for the permit i pay myself.What you think I should do then/


This is the real trap you find yourself in right now.
Something must give, in a week or two.
When the situation is not favorable to you, you must wait and work for the situation to turn around.

Make sure you do not run short or out of cash soon.  :cool:

How nice would be for all of us to get what we want the moment we want it, not later ...  :(

dlyazi wrote:

Am in the same situation sister


You have a web site with a US$100,000 domain name and still are in the same situation?  :o

milli85 wrote:

Its about luck i guess grab what you can here and bulid your way up if at 1st you can't reach success and job of desire seek out other options :) good luck you


Hi Milli, :)

You have good advice and I add to what you said.

I remember back in Canada. I have seen countless Romanians coming with big diploma and long work reference; they all insisted in getting their high engineer job forgetting that time flies by.  When they ran out of their $10,000 they immediately began looking for menial jobs.
Only when they were hurt would they become smart ...  :D

East Indian newcomers, highly qualified, used to immediately take whatever job they got (including washing dishes and taxi cab driver jobs) and build themselves up into great jobs as time went by.  :top:

Rafid80 wrote:
karanova wrote:

And its like,they don`t hire you,because you don`t have work permit,and you wont get work permit without anyone hires you??


That is turkish logic


Hi Rafid, :)

It's not only in Turkey, it's everywhere.
The job seeker must be very good (whatever 'good' means) and very lucky for the doors to open for him / her.  ;)

Something strange happens in life: when you want, you do not get it right away, and, although you are always great all the time, only at a specific time things will work out for you.  :(

It seems the confusion of today will be the clarity of tomorrow.

mristanbul wrote:

Because they dont want to recruit someone without work permit and they dont want to issue one for you as it takes long time and headache.


not long time, just headache.... you are right

so true:)

karanova wrote:

so true:)


Hi Kara, :)
What do you mean?  Which reply are you referring to?  ;)

Hi Kara, :)

Another reason for which you may have problems is that perhaps you are over-qualified.
It happened to me too in Canada: the Interviewer told me that I am over-qualified.  (They wanted somebody they could control and pay low wages ....)  :o
Then a bulb went on in my head and I realized that in fact I really need no job.  I can be on my own like I always was.

Yes, being too smart is not wanted, but at least 3-4 employers should give you a chance to come in for an interview where you can negotiate your salary.

Question: do you know of other expats who applied at the same time with you and they got a job while you didn't?

No,I don`t know,that`s why I posted the topic,so someone could share an opinion or an experience.Well,I`ll keep on trying,now I`ll make a pause,and in 2 months before the tourist season starts I`ll try again. Good day!

karanova wrote:

No,I don`t know,that`s why I posted the topic,so someone could share an opinion or an experience.Well,I`ll keep on trying,now I`ll make a pause,and in 2 months before the tourist season starts I`ll try again. Good day!


Hi Kara, :)
There are times when you have to push yourself, and next, there are times when you have to wait and see what replies you get.

Then, you must judge, and re-think your strategies.

What does your husband say?  :)

Took me 8 months to find work and I got turned down twice because I didn't have a work permit. Companies aren't willing to help you as they can find somebody who can start straight away and they feel foreign people want more money than Turkish people. Also in Turkey it's not always what you know but who you know. If you have any friends or know anybody in working in a similar job, ask them to mention you that's how I found my job.

Don't be afraid to talk yourself up in your CV too, many of my Turkish friends do it to get noticed. I work for a company selling industrial cleaning machines overseas, they sorted my work permit and everything for me. There are good firms out there. 

Don't give up, you'll find something........good luck!

He says,don`t work,enjoy yourself..what a stupid woman I am.. :lol:

djoh270687 wrote:

Took me 8 months to find work and I got turned down twice because I didn't have a work permit. Companies aren't willing to help you as they can find somebody who can start straight away and they feel foreign people want more money than Turkish people. Also in Turkey it's not always what you know but who you know. If you have any friends or know anybody in working in a similar job, ask them to mention you that's how I found my job.

Don't be afraid to talk yourself up in your CV too, many of my Turkish friends do it to get noticed. I work for a company selling industrial cleaning machines overseas, they sorted my work permit and everything for me. There are good firms out there. 

Don't give up, you'll find something........good luck!


Thanks John! Your experience sounds encouraging to me.I`m keeping on trying! Regards!

It never ceases to surprise me the number of people who immigrate to a foreign country that expect to find work in that country despite the fact that they are unable to speak the local language.

As someone who has been teaching English for over 25 years now and teaching Portuguese to English speakers here in Brazil for 12 years, I can tell you that while English may be called "The Universal Language of Business" it is NO SUBSTITUTE for the local language.

Just think about it, how in the world does one expect to communicate with their superiors, co-workers, customers, clients, etc., if they don't speak the local language? Don't you think that prospective employers are going to think about that too? It is unrealistic to simply expect that in a country where English is not the official language that you're going to be able to get by in even day-to-day situations without speaking the local language reasonably well. Actually this is the single largest factor that results in an expat's failure to adapt to their host country and causes most of them to return home earlier than expected.

Yes, speaking English (or any other second language) is a benefit when seeking employment. That said, one MUST be reasonably fluent in the local language of the country or they stand little chance of securing employment over someone who is a native speaker and also speaks English reasonably well.

Rather than wondering why you can't find work or complaining that you have not been sucessful in doing so after several months of attempting, invest your time and money in improving the skills that are obiously lacking and holding you back. LEARN THE LANGUAGE OF THE COUNTRY YOU'RE IN...... this is absolutely essential.

Do not just buy into the propaganda spread by English schools worldwide that if you speak English you'll be able to communicate with people all over the world. What they don't tell you is that is not always true. While you might find someone who speaks enough English in a foreign country so you can basic directions on a vacation; English is not going to help you one bit in day-to-day living or in working in a non-English speaking country and work environment. NOTHING, repeat NOTHING TAKES THE PLACE OF FLUENCY IN THE LOCAL LANGUAGE.

By the way, this propaganda is aimed primarily at non-English speakers who want to move to English speaking nations where fluency in English is essential.... for them the statement is true, it doesn't necessarily work the other way around!

Cheers,
William James Woodward, Expat-blog Experts Team

karanova,

Not to offend you in any way, but just some helpful advice...

It is obvious from your postings that English is not your first language. You still have some problems with very fundamental things like the difference between time expressions like SINCE/FOR, spelling ADVICE (the noun) and ADVISE (the verb). Grammatical structure....

"I don't speak Turkish, just a little" rather than the correct way, "I speak little Turkish."

When writing up your CV or Resume don't ever over-estimate your qualifications, that will only backfire on you later. If you're not completely fluent in English never say that you are, if you're required to take a test of the language failing it can lead to disaster.

Work on your English language skills to build your fluency, or state that your fluency in the language is INTERMEDIATE.

Cheers,
William James Woodward, Expat-blog Experts Team

karanova wrote:

.................  .Can you please advice me something,how should I proceed in finding a job here in Istanbul in tourism sector.

Thanks in advance!

Good day!


Hi Kara, :)

I hope you appreciate the output you received from forummers.
It's not only that employers must give people jobs; it's also that job hunters must elevate themselves up to where they change from supply into demand.
Hey, this is called becoming competitive.

As an employer, if I receive a resume badly written (typos, minced words and poor grammar) I immediately throw it away because I can get other applicants with better resumes.

As a private teacher, which I do as a hobby, if I get a bad resume in the e-mail, I immediately delete it without even reading it completely. Someone who submits a resume with 1-2 mistakes in the beginning has nothing special to say lower down in the resume.

Also, I hope you appreciate the two answers from William James Woodward, Expat-blog, Experts Team.  He is the best poster in this forum.  :)

wjwoodward wrote:

karanova,

Not to offend you in any way, but just some helpful advice...

It is obvious from your postings that English is not your first language. You still have some problems with very fundamental things like the difference between time expressions like SINCE/FOR, spelling ADVICE (the noun) and ADVISE (the verb). Grammatical structure....

"I don't speak Turkish, just a little" rather than the correct way, "I speak little Turkish."

When writing up your CV or Resume don't ever over-estimate your qualifications, that will only backfire on you later. If you're not completely fluent in English never say that you are, if you're required to take a test of the language failing it can lead to disaster.

Work on your English language skills to build your fluency, or state that your fluency in the language is INTERMEDIATE.

Cheers,
William James Woodward, Expat-blog Experts Team


Hi James,
I really appreciate your input trying to help.
Another truth with expats is that many of them are not actually prepared for the international challenge. Only those who will win will understand to grow and change.

Who said: "Winners are not the strongest or the smartest, but only those who adapt"?
I hurry to add: learning to adapt is in fact the smartest thing someone could do ...

After these posts here, I reckon perhaps looking for a job is not the wisest thing to do and, like I already said in a separate thread, for most people worse than looking for a job is to find one:cool:

Hello John,

I couldn't agree more. A poorly written CV shows a lack of attention to detail and can sabotage one's chance of getting considered for a postition before they even get out of the starting gate.

In the technological age we find ourselves living in there is absolutely no excuse for NOT running any text one sends out through spell check. In fact, most word processors even have a grammar check feature to help one eliminate grammatical errors in their writings too.

Another important point to remember too is; don't just assume that a CV written in English is going to get you results if you're applying for a job in a non-English speaking country. Even if you have to pay a premium price to have your impeccably written English language CV translated into the local language, do it! Consider it as an investment in your future. You can send both the English and local language versions it will show your prospective employer both attention to detail and respect for the local culture and language. This is something that will score big points and go a long way to getting you "short listed".

Cheers,
William James Woodward, Expat-blog Experts Team

wjwoodward wrote:

Hello John,

I couldn't agree more. A poorly written CV shows a lack of attention to detail and can sabotage one's chance of getting considered for a postition before they even get out of the starting gate.

In the technological age we find ourselves living in there is absolutely no excuse for NOT running any text one sends out through spell check. In fact, most word processors even have a grammar check feature to help one eliminate grammatical errors in their writings too.

Another important point to remember too is; don't just assume that a CV written in English is going to get you results if you're applying for a job in a non-English speaking country. Even if you have to pay a premium price to have your impeccably written English language CV translated into the local language, do it! Consider it as an investment in your future. You can send both the English and local language versions it will show your prospective employer both attention to detail and respect for the local culture and language. This is something that will score big points and go a long way to getting you "short listed".

Cheers,
William James Woodward, Expat-blog Experts Team


Hi James, :)

1). I too couldn't agree with you more.  :D
You are a giant of English language.  :top:

2). Attention to detail is the secret answer. It is a mistake to give it away for free when you can charge a fee for it.  ;)

3). Another funny thing with resumes I received over the years was the (almost) perfect resume but the actual applicant was nothing more than an embarrassing stutterer.
What happened was he paid a professional to write it for him, but at interview time, the truth - like oil coming on top on water - emerged that he was an idiot.

4). I hope now that Kara - the author of this thread - got a lot to think about.
You have to compete baby ...  :top:
Run baby run ....

:P  Well,thank you both. As you perhaps know,we learn till we die,so this was a free lesson for me and very helpful.

Regards,Anna!

Hello Kara .I dont understand why you want to work in turkey..yes ıt ıs hard sometımes ı know which site you are talking and name's ''YENIBIRIS.COM'' that site only you can regıster and wait .it is not easy ı know what to do just waittttt:))) which hotel you said ı know all and I did applied before even how ı have a high experience on Tourism hotel and hospıtality management also ı can speak 3 dıfferent language but dosent matter they will not hire you and me here ı dont know what they are looking for.)))

what you can do you know..just come ın turkey as a tourıst and look job one by one and face to face ıt wıll help you to much.we are not the one country lıke a AMERICA ENGLAND OR CANADA etc: those country or more when you apply job from internet you can find maybe easy or quıck than turkey.

Yes you are rıght when you search job they are looking everything , degree, language,skills,experince.etc. ıs not work sometimes cause you are not turkısh no work permıt no ıssurance and ıt will take time for that ıf they hıre you..

many many thing:)))))   

THANKS BY THE WAY TURKEY IS MOST BEATIFUL PLACE ALL OVER THE WORLD.LIKE A PARADISE:)))

Very little is done over the internet. You have to visit in-person (live).

karanova wrote:

:P  Well,thank you both. As you perhaps know,we learn till we die,so this was a free lesson for me and very helpful.

Regards,Anna!


Hello Kara,
Let us know when you got the job and tell us how it all worked for you. :)

Ok,sure:) Nice day to you!

Dear Kara,
Turkey is one of the worst countries in the world to look for a job and to work in too. I am saying This as a Turkish who lives in the UK and visited many countries gor holiday and business reason. I cant find any answer to the question "why any foreigner comes to Turkey for work?" I think it s just for an adventure. The cons for you ( in my point of view);
1- not having work permit horriblly negative. I think it is the same in many countries. I experienced the same in the UK. You need a permit to work but the employers prefer candidates with work permit. Hen & Egg situation. You need to study on This for a solution. I have a friend with the same situation.
2. A strong CV scares employers here. Your CV is quite strong I think. Employers dont want to give a lot of money a qualified candidates. They all the time prefer younger generations, new graduates in order not give a High salary.
3.not knowing Turkish is a bit neagative point. Having said that, I am not sure how important it is in your industry.
Recommendations
1)Family & friends network is the most popular way here. Try to work on This way
2)If you want a job in Turkey, you need to be patient and work agresivelly. You Will definetely get it...
3)I have been looking for a job for few months. If you want, send me message to speak more about it and pass some job ads to each other.

First i wish u a very good luck in all ur job seeking  ... its about time don ever lose hopes in searching but my advise 2u is not 2stik only 2ur hoteling job  try 2seek other posts  and am sure u will find a job  in other branches  then u take it from there  i  mean while  working u can  look 4ur hotel post and am pretty sure u will get it .. its about tym me my self am coming 2istanbul nxt week and am planing 2play with some music bands but i don  know any and am not sure  what 2moro will bring  plus am looking 4a  low budget room 2rent  put the good thing am thinking positive about  the whole thing ..lets cross the fingers everything  gonna be all right 4u and  4everybody who is in need 4help ..
stonemy
great 2b here :)

Hello Kara, :)

You got 30 replies (40 – 10 = 30)  (10 are your very posts) which is an earful of advice.

I agree with the previous two posters.

In everything you, as a potential employee, do, you must know your enemy (your employer) well.
You must know against whom you are “fighting” (which means ‘applying for a job').
To overpower the enemy (which means ‘to get a job'), you have to think like him and “destroy” him (which means ‘get the job').

Life is a battle you have to fight to win.  :top:

Life also has mysterious events: perhaps you do not get the job because Destiny wants you to do something bigger and better than being employed.  It is in moments like these you are passing through at the very present that you can choose to stay in the long, waiting lines of unemployeds or to discover that you can become an employer providing jobs to people who are really desperate to get a salary.

Players at the game of life always get messages from above, losers never get such luxury. Winners understand what the chances of success are and proceed to pull themselves out of the misery they are in just to bring joy and opportunity to others, and to soothe their pain.  :top:

You are at a crossroads now and you think you are in charge.  No, you are not: the dice has already been cast for you long time ago.  Do you see the road ahead?   :cool:

Ha! :joking:  John,you`re just great!Great right...