/lit/ - Literature

>>4615617
Also, did you guys know they require a cover letter and resume just for the position of "server" and "bookseller." Damn son, caught me off guard.

There's no B&N in my country but all the chain book stores around here only hire really attractive individuals. I suppose they get a lot of applications (better than Burger King to work at) so they can afford to be choosy.

But probably just pretend to be into whatever they seem to sell the most of. Just look at what sort of stuff they're promoting on tables and displays by the doors, and say you like that.

Also say you're into social media, and you're favourite website is goodreads. Make sure you mention goodreads, especially if this specific B&N is like my local chain book store in that they sell almost exclusively young adult fiction.

>>4615629
Thanks man, I appreciate it. I feel like I'm decently attractive (not a neckbeard, clean shaven, short hair, been told I'm pretty /fa/ and shit) and I know a fair bit about books (or at least I can pretend to). What's the best thing to know about for popular youth books? I'm guessing John Green and TFIOS?

>>4615618
>Also, did you guys know they require a cover letter and resume just for the position of "server" and "bookseller."

that weeds out 90% of the mouthbreathers

>>4615793
>>4615618
More like it weeds out the people who don't really want the job to begin with.

I know for a fact that B&N pays not much more than minimum wage, regardless of whether or not you've got a college degree. (If you do have a college degree, shame on you for applying to B&N.)

Requiring a résumé and cover letter for such an undesirable job does nothing except cull the people who (correctly) assess that such things aren't worth the effort just to get a part-time job at one of the last remaining bookstore chains.

(Also, you should already have a résumé made up. I'm speaking more of a cover letter. What the fuck would one even right in a B&N cover letter? "I relish the idea of making less than $20,000 a year and only getting 20 hours or less a week. Being at the poverty level suits me so very well, and I'm looking to remain in a state of chronic need.")

>>4615806
>right

Oh dear.

>>4615806
>(If you do have a college degree, shame on you for applying to B&N.)
Haha, well not sure if you read my OP post, but I'm a freshman in college, and I'm looking for a part time job.

>What the fuck would one even right in a B&N cover letter?
I'm assuming you meant "write," but I just wrote about how I had prior experience in customer service and that I loved books and shit (yfw). And I had a resume ready, I was just surprised to have to use it. All of the other minimum wage (and those paying slightly above it) jobs I've applied to have just had a simple application and did not ask for a resume. The only reason I have a resume ready is for summer internships...

I worked at 2
>one in California
>one in a hyper conservative, small town in Indiana
>California was chill as fuck, everyone was cool.
>Indiana sucks dicks, had to tuck in my shirt

it's a job you pleb, call them back after two days.

>>4615924
>it's a job you pleb, call them back after two days.
Yea...no shit it's a job, I'm not saying it's anything more. What are you getting at here, m8? Since when is it odd for people to ask for tips when applying for a job?

retail is retail. just like lames think working at a record store will be "cool", the novelty wears off quickly and you find yourself in a slightly above min. wage shithole.

>>4615935
I'm very concern about the way Pooh Bear's body spins all around while his head stays in place.

>>4615935
Fine, basically, just be enthusiastic and knowledgeable in the interview, and if all else fails, just talk about James Joyce and David Foster Wallace like you're trying to apply for /lit/ or something.

>>4615958
>if all else fails, just talk about James Joyce and David Foster Wallace

This is horrible advice. The people who do the interviewing know their shit and will automatically write you off as a liar and pseudointellectual if you start namedropping Joyce.

>>4615960
Is Hemingway too much, or is it just pleb enough to sound normal?

>>4615968
Hemingway is much more believable. Tao Lin would get you on salary w/ benefits right on the spot.

>>4615806
How can you live on $20k a year?

>>4615979
in general, people don't
they live with parents, roommates, boyfriends, etc.

>>4615979
here is how I did it
>roommates 4 of them splitting rent $200 a month
>ramen noodles
>cheap little honda
>and if you are short on cash for the month then throw a kegger and charge $2 a cup

>>4616017
'merica

>>4616014
What country?

>>4615979
OP here, and I'm just getting this job as part time while I'm a full time student. The money is literally going towards

>saving up
>some food? (not much, because I'm still on a meal plan and live on campus)
>my snowboarding, fly fishing, and other hobbies
When you think about it, $20k/year far exceeds what I need to live comfortably. I guess I'll put some away to start paying off student loan debt after school, but even that will only be less than half a year's salary for all 4 years of loans. Should I get a different car? That's it, I guess I'm also saving up for a new(er) used car.

>>4615618
What is a cover letter?

>>4615617
My advice is to keep bothering them about the resume. Go to the story in three or four days after first applying and ask about how it's going. Make sure they got it etc. Shows you are interested and sets you apart from the other faceless applicants.

As for the interview its standard fair. How would you handle situation X, what would you do if a customer is upset. HEADS UP! They fucking push the Nook! They are going to ask you what you think, do you have one and if you are anything but sucking ebook cock instant trashcan. You don't have to want one but you have to like the idea and be willing to sell/advertise it to others. Also they ask if you are a B&N member, don't lie but if they ask if you would be interested tell them you would be.

>>4616252
Exactly what it sounds like. piece of paper on top of the resume that sums everything up.

>>4616260
That's ridiculous. Sum up a resume? If anybody's resume is more than a page long (two, if you are a superman), you are doing it wrong.

>>4616268
Cover letter is supposed to give the basics. What the interviewer cares about. The pages after is where you can fluff it. List awards, references, and so on.

>>4616268
If your experience is lengthy enough, a cover letter with a quick summery is supposed to be by HR departments.
I'm not saying B&N jobs need a cover letter though. Entry level jobs don't usually need them

>>4616271
>>4616278


The rule I know and follow says that you must adapt your resume to the job you're applying to. If you follow that, your resume is always objective, short and contains only relevant information to the people who will read it.
It works very well for me.

>>4616278
>supposed to be APPRECIATED by HR departments.
How that word went fuxored I'll never know.

>>4616280
Right

>>4615617
I've worked in one. It's boring as nails. You replace books, help people find them, or ring people up. It's basically alphabetizing for x$/hour. If you want a good writerly job, get an overnight clerk job at a small hotel and read/write all night.

So their website doesn't list open jobs at the one near me, should I just go in and ask for the hiring manager and hand him a printed out resume? Do I reapply ever, or just wait?

>>4616673
Ask, in person, if they're hiring or accepting applications. Try to get the manager/HR person.
Fill one out in store and hand it with your resume back in a fairly timely manner.

If there's no call backs, there was no openings. I'm not sure how long they'll hold onto the thing, but after a month or two you could inquire again to remind them you're still available.

Rekindling all those old anxieties right now. Good luck man.

>>4616260
>>4616268
>>4616271
This is simply not true. A cover letter isn't supposed to reiterate your résumé. A cover letter is supposed to present yourself as a plausible candidate who really wants the specific job at the specific company/organization.

I've interviewed and hired countless people, and a boring "reiteration letter" (as I called them) went straight to the trash. These kinds of "cover letters" are doubly insulting: 1. because the résumé says it better and in a more concise way, rendering the cover letter a waste of my time, and 2. it's always got this copy-and-paste feel that you just KNOW this letter's been sent to dozens of other people with little change or edit.

A good cover letter will show that you've researched the employer, that you know exactly what the job entails (you'd be surprised how many people apply to jobs they have no idea what it even is or what they'd be doing, if hired), that you're a good fit into the position, and--most of all--that you WANT the job.

How you choose to exhibit all of that is up to your own creativity and judgment, but stating your résumé over in paragraph form is a very good way not to get hired.

>>4615617
I worked at B&N for about 8 months in Houston two years ago while I was a freshman in college. When I applied, I made sure I handed my application to the manager since he has a lot to do with the hiring.
I went back twice to browse around and remind them of my face. They called back within about two weeks and asked me to start the next day. They started me off at the cash wrap (checkout) and I just stood there all day ringing up people's items and asking each and every customer if they wanted a membership. If it gets slow, you can usually read magazines or manga. Good luck reading books while on the job.
If I wasn't at cash wrap, I was at customer service where I answered calls regarding books being in stalk, as well as directing customers to the exact location of the book they're looking for. That part was fun. They always seemed so amazed that I found the book they've been searching for so quickly.
You also put the scragglers back on the shelf during customer service.
I wasn't really that happy with the job, overall. Too much standing, they were pretty strict, minimum wage pay, customers could be real dicks if you didn't have their book or the lines were too long (which is frequent during the holidays).
I found a new job actually teaching dislexic kids how to read and I find that much more fun that B&N.
You do get a 30 percent discount though!

Oh, and as for the interview, have your favorite book and movie in mind. They asked me my favorite classic movie and the first thing that popped into my head was John Wayne.
Judged as a western fan from then on.

I worked there for a few months, mostly cashiering.

It's retail, basically. You work a register, find books for people, answer the phone to take orders, but things in their place, deal with the occasional jerk. It's nothing special.

ITT advice on how to apply to a company that is destined to go out of business in the near future.

>>4618156
I mean I only need the job for the next 3 years maximum. Their long term success is not all that important to me.

>>4618161
just saying, a company in a dying market might suck to work for. im thinking cutbacks, only part time, stressed bosses yelling at you because they are getting yelled. a dying corporation is not a fun ship to sink with. apply to some indie bookstores too.

>>4618172
yeah but if youre there at the end then you get to take all those extra books home