Prior to landing my first job in the hospitality industry (and prior to starting my Bachelor’s degree program at UMass), I decided it probably would be a good idea to get out and get my feet wet in the industry before I started a degree program I might not be interested in.
I took a road trip to Mystic, CT and stopped in unannounced at 22 different hotels, filling out applications at each. Every place I visited, I also asked if I could say hello to one of the managers to introduce myself. In some cases, the manager wasn’t there; in others, they said they wouldn’t meet with me on the spot, and in a few places I did get to meet the manager.
From this trip, I ended up getting 9 interviews and 3 job offers within 2 weeks.
I remembered this experience when one of my soon-to-be grads asked about what to do to find a job right now at a hotel front desk. I told her about this experience, and how even back the I knew the best way to get in the door was literally to walk in the door without responding to an ad.
I’m looking forward to hearing soon that she went to 22 hotels, interviewed at 9, and got 3 job offers just like me.