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My dad told me when I went on my first job interview, after college, that I was the asset, and the interview was more about my interest in working for the company, than their interest in me. He told me to never take a job where I wasn't happy to be working there, or a place who didn't value me. It has served me very well over the last 40 years.
Yep. You are literally selling hours of your life for money. When put like that, it becomes very hard to waste time on jobs that don't value your time. Sometimes you have to take crap jobs to pay the bills, but shed those as fast as you can.
A job interview is 100% a 2-way exchange of information and it’s your duty to yourself to make sure that you interview them every bit as thoroughly as they interview you if not more so. This is such a valuable approach and often leaves a solid gold first impression on your potential employer whether you land/accept the role or not.
Here's an adjacent warning. If the job is considered cool or prestigious, and lots of people want it, they'll pay you squat and you'll only get raises if you've completely devoted your life to them for years. I've known so many people who stayed poor forever because they wanted so badly to be video game developers, Sea World trainers, CGI artists, or because they thought they wanted to work for Michael Moore, Deepak Chopra, Tony Robinson, etc, or because they wanted to work in the cannabis industry or academia. Always be aware that if lots of people want the job, the boss knows he doesn't have to pay much and expects to filter a lot of people out.
Worse than that too. Care fields, especially, in all apoplectic irony, psychology. They'll do the exact same to people who are expected to maintain the health and safety of those they care for while neither protecting nor supporting you, let alone doing much to improve conditions above defining success as "no one died on my (management's) watch."
This seems lacking in a critique of any economic system that would allow such treatment of dedicated and passionate workers. How could their wages be bolstered? What sort of protections can be had against such treatment? What actions, individually or collectively, would need to be taken in order to assure that hard-working, passionate people are not treated this way?
@@jamesengland7461the original comment was saying the opposite. There is a lot of supply to the employer because everyone wants the job. But the demand remains the same which would decrease their pay. Basic economics.
Being easy to work with includes a) being flexible when things change, and it doesn't cause a rapid emotional shift in you, b) taking feedback smoothly, not taking it personally, c) when the environment gets stressful, you become ore calm. Your energy counters the stress, not adding to it. And finally d) you ask questions when you don't understand.
I’ve been scolded for asking questions, then scolded for doing it wrong. When this happens, I jump ship. If your boss isn’t easy to work with, then nothing you do will make them any easier to work with. Two way street is what I’m getting at.
Persistent teamwork attitude, being considerate of others' struggles, and not assuming the worst mark someone as easy to work with IMHO. Though i've witnessed that it only takes one selfish bad apple to ruin this type of work environment even if everyone else wants to prevent the loss. I'm sure that Adam can smell issues that a potential employee will cause from a mile away.
You just described my day at work everyday for the last 20 years in the military. Priorities change daily, received feedback daily, and have asked tons of questions in my time. This is fantastic advice, thanks for commenting.
I was in almost the same situation when I was younger. I wanted to work at a automotive performance shop. The best thing was having my own car I worked on and being able to showcase my work. I never had to ask for a job, just went in talking to the workers and owner, and once they saw my work and personality, they offered me a job. This worked for several shops I worked at, but its a bit unique to how the car community is. Adam brings up some awesome points as always.
Hi Adam! As a Career Coach at a Canadian University, and a massive fan of yours for many, many years ... I was thrilled to have the two worlds collide with this incredible response you gave to a viewer. I tell all my students that coffee chats (networking) should not be viewed as job-search, but re-search. Hearing your similar sentiments on the subject made my day and will be sharing this video far and wide to students and job seekers of all ages, and at any stage of their career journey. Thanks again ... loved your book ... the shop looks great ... stay awesome!
Understand that the type of place you want to work at may not match the way you want to work. For example if you want a creative place, dont expect it to be a 9 to 5 job.
Could you explain more on the 9 to 5 job? does that mean that it'll be more than 9 to 5? I know it differs according to the company's job description or the position you're applying (which one should acknowledge) but I'm curious of what you mean.
@@krenstx2502 It means passion projects usually involve unpaid overtime. Boss has the mindset of "If you won't do it there's 10 others that will." You have to make yourself irreplacible or desired to have a chance at changing that or change employer.
Thanks for answering my question Adam! I have done a couple of informational interviews since watching this livestream. I went into those conversations with a somewhat agnostic mindset, purely with the aim of learning about the work they do, how they fit into the industry, and what they look for in young people entering into the business. Applying your advice has led to some very fruitful conversations with people that led to them putting me in touch with other contacts of theirs in the industry. I’m still in the early stages of networking, but I feel that I am gathering a solid array of people with whom I could have much longer relationships - relationships in which they may also be willing to help me achieve my goals. I truly appreciate your advice.
@@KayleeKerinYou want to be the guy he calls collect from jail, and visa-versa. The guy that will keep money on your books (seriously. Not many people will).
@@KayleeKerin I would second that. Bosses suck, you don't want to work for a boss. They're lazy, they take your credit, and everything is about them. Someone that leads from the front is the kind of person you want to work with, notice I didn't say for, I said work with. A lot of people still don't get why being a "boss" is not okay.
@@corndog6700 Sometimes it's worth it to take the loss and move on. The hit to your rep to do otherwise just isn't worth what you can gain on the ledger board most of the time. If we're talking a good amount of money, that's what a lawyer is for, let a judge sort them out. Sometimes just the notice of intent is enough to get them to move. That's really up to you. A thing to remember is that if they are a bad boss to you then they are being a bad boss to other people, too. They aren't fooling anyone. But you have to manage your own reputation, you don't always have control over that. Character is how you define yourself. Reputation is how others define you. There is only so much you can do about that. Sometimes you just have to move on and accept that it was a bad situation, you learned from it. When others try to hold you back remind them of what you learned from it, and show them that you've grown. People respect that. It's called owning a mistake and that shows maturity. It also cements the bad boss's rep.
Speaking as an older member of the workforce (nearing retirement), and having worked in several different fields, as divergent as corporate, law, and healthcare, I think your advice for young people is really spot-on. Things I wish had been told to ME (by someone I trusted) when I was 23 years old!
Adam, THANK YOU for bringing up to keep in mind how a job feels. I’m currently orientating for new jobs, because my teaching job has started to feel less and less rewarding. I don’t feel any gratitude or reward coming my way from grading papers and when I do something I care about deeply (educational research), my school isn’t really interested. So I’ve decided to try and see what other job opportunities there might be for an inquisitive person. I started to notice that it’s of utmost importance to understand what I feel when working on something, as that will be my greatest compass and best predictor of job satisfaction for the coming years. So yeah, I wholeheartedly agree with you on this. Thanks again!
At work, I like to say, “I don’t care what I’m doing as long as I’m doing exactly what I am supposed to be doing.” You want me to do the thing differently today than what I was doing yesterday? Fine. As long as the instructions (or at least expectations) are clearly communicated… I’ll do whatever. Except scrubbing toilets. That is definitely something that is NOT in my job description.
As I get older and my career advances, I increasingly find myself on the other end of conversations like you are describing. And yes, I think we can see a lot of what younger people ae thinking because we probably thought much the same things when we were that age.
"Don't kill yourself to go work for a shop that does beautiful output but is a horrible place to work! That won't be satisfying to you." Uh... Adam. I'm not sure how to tell you this, but... I'm a game designer. 😕
It still applies. Ask Thor (PIrateSoftware). He will even tell you he stayed at blizzard wayyy longer than he wanted to once it became toxic to work, but he recognized it and found a way out. There are good studios and bad, and a lot of opportunity for your skilset to shine if you allow.
Ah, you must not be a game designer. (Yes theoretically you could just go find a studio that actually treats you well but the completion is so high from the sheer amounts of people wanting to make games that there’s no real incentive for employers to offer those jobs. Once a designer quits, there’s 10 more on the other side already lined up.)
@@pheldsparr The game design industry is infamously abusive (doubly so if you're a woman) at all levels. The vast majority of studios/publishers you've heard of treat their non-leadership workforce as expendable, and the worst offenders treat them like chattel. It's not uncommon for salaries to be half that of similar positions in other fields, with mandated crunch (50 - 80+ hour weeks with no days off, often for months and sometimes years on end) being an expected and normal, even intentional phase of the development cycle as a cost cutting measure. Leadership is functionally a boys club, and harassment (sexual and otherwise) is rampant. And of course there's the general tech stuff like regular mass layoffs every few years because it makes shareholders feel like executives are doing work. Not all teams at all studios have these problems, and some studios are MUCH worse than others, but pay is below average across the board and having one or more of the other issues is more common than not. The bigger a studio/publisher is, the more likely it is to have more problems, but even the bigger "indie" studios (such as Annapurna Interactive and Moon Studios) have had reports of abuse and excessive crunch coming out of them in recent years. Your choices for workplaces in the gaming industry are essentially "Low pay with an employer that might not even exist in a year or two if they run out of money or their game bombs, assuming you can even get it because 20 other people are vying for the same job BUT maybe you'll get to work on something cute and fun if you don't end up on cash grab gambling addiction bait shovelware" and "Low pay AND abuse with an employer that might fire you in a a year or two for no discernible reason, assuming you can even get it because 200 other people are vying for the same job BUT maybe you'll get to work on your literal favourite franchise of all time if you don't end up on cash grab gambling addiction bait shovelware (assuming the former hasn't been turned into the later!)"
Most of the companies nowadays are overly corporate and DEI. Basically you need to either found/find a startup or small company. Unless you want to be stuck in a go nowhere corporate treadmill.
I’m in the leadership team of an education program for enterprise technology, and I shared this with our students for our upcoming cohort. Very good stuff here for any person about to take the “next step” in their career-arc, whether that be graduating college and going to work, getting the big promotion, making a career change, etc..this is great great stuff.
Thank you for the inspiration to put 'Easy to work with' on my resume. That's the #1 point of feedback I've gotten in my career but it never occurred to me as a tangible soft-skill I find that this also helps a lot outside of work, my friends always tell me that I have a 'chill aura' that helps them not freak out under stress, especially at cons
Go to a potential employer with the notion that they are looking for a person who is going to make their life easier. That's it. They want someone who is going to make their daily routine and general process smoother, more efficient, less full of drama and full of more more predictability. The person who is hiring is looking for a solution to a problem or set of problems.
Just checking in to confirm I am trusting the process. Thank you for your wise words. Edit: and not to hijack the comments but what you said about believing in the company and its leadership that you are working for makes all the difference. I love where I’m at. And I’m so fortunate to have been guided and supported to where I am today.
Learn to listen. Stop trying to compete and aim to help everyone shine, that's the containing of ego. If you're in a team, ego is repulsive. Ego isn't a good display of passion, but your work, energy and genuine interest is. Love the creative process, because the final product isn't as important as you might think, but it's important that you can finish what you started. But more than anything, make friends by genuinely paying attention and listening to those you're speaking to, and put yourself aside. There will be plenty of chances for the other party to fins out about you, and if they don't, then you either aren't meshing, or they're people you don't really want to work with anyway.
Oh yes. I once got hired at a new place after my previous job disappeared due to changes by upper management. I was doing pretty much the same kind of work, but after a few months I realized I just didn't like working there. I've never been able to put my finger on why, but I just didn't like it. It's the only job I've ever quit. All the others quit me in some way.
Friend of mine always told me when it comes to work, and if you're corrected on something, leave emotions at the door. Just take the criticism, good or bad and go from there. There does not need to be emotions brought into it.
Yep. Sometimes it will be constructive, and many times it will the dumbest, out-of-touch criticism that creates no value. If it's constructive, say thank you, and even ask a follow-up question if you don't understand something. If it's dumb and out-of-touch, say "Understood" and excuse yourself to get back to work, and start looking for your next job.
"Easy to work with" is code to be emotionless to doing work that could summon emotion. How can I be passionate about the work I want to do and am doing and separate myself from my own emotions driving the work? It's not going to work for me, an artist that derives art from emotion. Art creates EVERYTHING and anything any office could be tasked to sell. What are you really making sitting at a desk punching in numerals? ARTS and ENTERTAINMENT is just about looking and experiencing at "it", in action, it's giving energy to thoughts, lending context to time, and all of that is worthy of every modicum of value society can assign it. The widgets we use to track such value? IT'S ART TOO. (The f-n dollar its printed on)
Oh wow, this was actually really awesome to listen to. I completely agree and feel really empowered by the insight. I’m currently going out for a promotion at my job right now and that just solidified my confidence in approaching the process properly. 🤘🤘
I always love to hear authority figures, or at least senior members of an industry, championing "being easy to work with". I'm not saying high talent screaming genius dramallamas don't have their place, they're like the striker on a football team. But you need someone who's dependable to work late to lock up the office. You need someone to mediate arguments. You need people who will tell you when they've messed up instead of trying to hide it. You need people who make everyone else happy. And for what it's worth, genius doesn't preclude any of that.
Can I add, don't take the first offer you get without hearing others. I made this mistake nine years ago, after moving to a new area, and spent several months working for an employer who said after the interview, "Be here Friday morning, don't interview anywhere else." Thankfully he laid me off several months later, and I found another job in the same field that I absolutely loved.
I would add that when dealing with small companies them saying we are not hiring now isn't a hard no. Ask if there are any skills they think they might need in the future and work on those so if in a year or two things align you are ready to jump into the job. I know it's tough to see long timelines when you are in your early twenties, but in the grand scheme taking a year or two to get into the right job will be well worth it.
Adam ends up giving the advice one needs at the right time. Literally just graduated and these points hit, as its hard to start fresh without firstly putting the steps in
This video lines up with the kind of advice I give to people too! Especially creative types early in their lives. One additional item I like to add in regards to resumes: Your resume should speak to the KIND of company you would want to work for. If it's being a stodgy cog, it should look like a cog. If it's creative, fun, different, etc - it should say that.
This has worked for me. It's such a surprise that it can be extremely effective. Hand written letter (short!) in a real envelope with a stamp. Hand addressed! Short and sweet. It packs a punch. It's easy to do and it cannot hurt. Of course I have only done this as followup from meetings that I enjoyed.
It is my opinion that in some jobs, probably good ones, that the interviewee should probably not have to worry near as much as the interviewer. And there are lots of ways employers can make there lives easier when it comes to knowing who to hire, but for employees knowing what employer you want is more difficult with the less experience you have with employers.
Totally agree. I always learned that being interviewed for a job is just as much about you gauging them as a potential employer as it is about them gauging you as a potential employee.
It'd be interesting to hear your elaborate more on being easy to work with. I feel like I have a good handle on some of the traits that you mentioned, but I need to work on some others. Have you discussed that in a past video or written about it by chance?
I recently graduated from university and have had a terrible time finding employment. Looking back, I probably should’ve just gotten a trade after high school, but now I feel like I owe it to my parents to use my degree and help out with student loans. Any help or tips are greatly appreciated. B.S. in Business Communications with a Minor in Marketing (I know it’s useless but it’s what I have). Everyone have a great day!
This came at the PERFECT time since I'm on the job hunt and in the middle of switching careers Mr Savage I just want to say thank you. I've followed you carrer since I was a kid and I got your book the day it released. Thank you for all the advice and insight. A fan and lifelong student from DC
Come up with 3-5 stories. Job stories. Short stories. There's 3 parts to these short stories. 1. Describe a problem or issue that was happening where you worked. This does not have to be a huge, earth-shaking problem, just problems. 2. Describe how you did something or worked with a team of others to do certain things that addressed the problem. Again: does not have to be "we saved the company from bankruptcy!" level. 3. The positive result(s) that came out of the actions you took, alone or with a team of others. Often describing how you worked on a team is even better. Once you have 3-5 of these you can comfortably just tell, you are pretty set for any interview or meeting. You can just tell these stories. You do not have to wait for question, answer question, wait... just tell the stories. Any awkward points in the interview, just start telling the stories. Keep them short though!! It fucking works. I've walked out of interviews where the person interviewing really only asked me a couple of basic, boilerplate things... my stories filled in the time and kept the person doing the interview informed and engaged.
I recently watched a Mythbusters video involving a clay car with golf dimples. After proving it gave you an extra 3 MPG, What would been the next step in proving it confirmed if the budget had no limit?
The problem with cold calling these days is (at least in engineering) that I get told, go have a look at the job portal. All further attempts to still keep them engaged are seen as annoyance.
I am no creative, but if I were, I think all I would want from you is an honest critique of something I had made. But, then again, I'm not particularly ambitious.
Whenever I have thought about interviewing at a company, l always ask myself two questions: 1) Based on my research of the company, am I a good fit for their work environment, and 2) Will I be able to solve whatever problems they throw at me.
It's crazy how much we focus on our resume but how little my favorite bosses have cared about them. The vibe is where it's at. Skills and expertise can be developed, but being able to mesh with people seems like that's how we get longevity. Guess we gotta make friends and develop personalities, huh? lol Good luck out there everyone!
I tend to get jobs that are more "quantity over quality" and that annoys my integrity for said output. Interviews are easier than doing the jobs. I only have to sell someone on myself to get my foot in the door. Then comes the selling of myself on the actual tasks associated. I'm a harsher critic as I see the chaos that was hidden from me during the interviews. I'm a sucker for a flashy facade, I guess.
It just occurred to me that Adam would be one of the role models that us early 30s will ask career advice from. I was wondering why this sort of question came up for a minute lol
Dating. What you are describing is dating. The job market should never be so desperate as to require people to try that hard to get a job. It's not Adam's problem to solve, but that is the real problem. Employers should be the desperate ones.
The trick is to maintain the initiative as an employee. That is, don't wait to be fired but start looking for another job when you get the impression that your contribution isn't valued. That way you'll have less pressure to take any job and more time to select the best next job. Also makes you appear less desperate. A great job isn't available at all times so you may have to wait some time for it to become vacant.
Kinda goes along with Sakurai's recent video about working as a team where he says you should never argue with your coworkers, because the industry is a lot smaller than you might think
His name is Ryan. He inherited this ship from the previous Dread Pirate Roberts, just as you will inherit it from him. The man he inherited it from was not the real Dread Pirate Roberts, either. His name was Cummerbund. The real Roberts has been retired fifteen years and living like a king in Patagonia."
That's the right mind set. Vet your future employers carefully. The purpose of the job interview is for you to find out whether the employer and the job and it's surrounding is good enough.
Adam Savage can’t fix my business model? If Adam can’t who can fix my model of the Shanghai World Financial Center?? So many business models need Adam, please help us!! Just kidding. No one has a model of a business office tower… do they???
Mr. Savage, how in the halibut did you know I have been prepping/dreading my first big networking gig flooded with studios and people with so much experience under their belts that could be my ticket to my first industry gig? From one maker to another: you are a lifesaver, thanks a MILLION 💛
HOLE UP dread pirate roberts is back from jail ? If you don´t get the reference the guy running silk road (internet drug empire)was called dread pirate roberts
It is interesting that Adam says he "can smell" people's intentions in certain respects. That is exactly how I describe many similar intuitions I have. I can practically smell it on them. I can't really quantify the vibe, much less articulate it, but it's proven reliable over the decades and if I choose to relate that to others, I use people's reaction to that confession as another metric in getting to know them as well.
Rule number 1 of interviews - don't embelish or exaggerate your skills or experience. If you end up landing a job that you're not qualified for, there's a very good chance your employer will catch on and let you go. Sucks if you moved across the country for that job
@@enb3810 Just because a lot of people do it doesn't mean it's advisable. At one point a lot of people drank mercury as a medicine. Didn't work out for them last I checked.
Sure. I'll just ignore the number of jobs I got after embellishments and depressingly few after honesty. They don't care if you're qualified and competent. They care about confidence.
There are shades of gray in this and every situation is different. But on average, this is terrible advice. For almost all jobs, you learn how to do the job on the job. If you have confidence that you can do learn the job and have some knowledge about the things that you putting in your resume you should absolute put it in your resume in the best possible light. Obviously don’t lie and say you went to Harvard when you didn’t.
Still a thing I've found. I've done them all my life. It's been incredibly helpful in transitioning careers. I have never worked at a place I did one at, but it also gave me plenty of info to set goals to step towards where I wanted to go. We had to do them when I went back to school. We interviewed people doing the jobs we wanted to do, and then put a plan together on what we were going to do with our projects to build the skillsets required to head in that direction. I've also given them. Assuming the person is not unpleasant, I love doing them. It's always nice when someone shows interest in what you do (especially if its niche), and you get to talk about your work and self. You also don't have the pressure of ranking interviewees for a potential hire. I want to see them succeed, even if they end up working at a competitor.
What's YOUR "informational interview" advice?
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My dad told me when I went on my first job interview, after college, that I was the asset, and the interview was more about my interest in working for the company, than their interest in me. He told me to never take a job where I wasn't happy to be working there, or a place who didn't value me. It has served me very well over the last 40 years.
Yep. You are literally selling hours of your life for money. When put like that, it becomes very hard to waste time on jobs that don't value your time.
Sometimes you have to take crap jobs to pay the bills, but shed those as fast as you can.
A job interview is 100% a 2-way exchange of information and it’s your duty to yourself to make sure that you interview them every bit as thoroughly as they interview you if not more so. This is such a valuable approach and often leaves a solid gold first impression on your potential employer whether you land/accept the role or not.
That was 40 years ago.
Yeah, that was 40 years ago...
That is a luxury.
Here's an adjacent warning. If the job is considered cool or prestigious, and lots of people want it, they'll pay you squat and you'll only get raises if you've completely devoted your life to them for years. I've known so many people who stayed poor forever because they wanted so badly to be video game developers, Sea World trainers, CGI artists, or because they thought they wanted to work for Michael Moore, Deepak Chopra, Tony Robinson, etc, or because they wanted to work in the cannabis industry or academia. Always be aware that if lots of people want the job, the boss knows he doesn't have to pay much and expects to filter a lot of people out.
Worse than that too. Care fields, especially, in all apoplectic irony, psychology. They'll do the exact same to people who are expected to maintain the health and safety of those they care for while neither protecting nor supporting you, let alone doing much to improve conditions above defining success as "no one died on my (management's) watch."
If you know that a job is in high demand, then demand a lot of pay for the job.
@@jamesengland7461They were talking about jobs that are high in supply
This seems lacking in a critique of any economic system that would allow such treatment of dedicated and passionate workers.
How could their wages be bolstered? What sort of protections can be had against such treatment? What actions, individually or collectively, would need to be taken in order to assure that hard-working, passionate people are not treated this way?
@@jamesengland7461the original comment was saying the opposite. There is a lot of supply to the employer because everyone wants the job. But the demand remains the same which would decrease their pay. Basic economics.
Being easy to work with includes a) being flexible when things change, and it doesn't cause a rapid emotional shift in you, b) taking feedback smoothly, not taking it personally, c) when the environment gets stressful, you become ore calm. Your energy counters the stress, not adding to it. And finally d) you ask questions when you don't understand.
I’ve been scolded for asking questions, then scolded for doing it wrong.
When this happens, I jump ship. If your boss isn’t easy to work with, then nothing you do will make them any easier to work with.
Two way street is what I’m getting at.
Persistent teamwork attitude, being considerate of others' struggles, and not assuming the worst mark someone as easy to work with IMHO. Though i've witnessed that it only takes one selfish bad apple to ruin this type of work environment even if everyone else wants to prevent the loss.
I'm sure that Adam can smell issues that a potential employee will cause from a mile away.
You just described my day at work everyday for the last 20 years in the military. Priorities change daily, received feedback daily, and have asked tons of questions in my time. This is fantastic advice, thanks for commenting.
I think you just defined the closest to perfection that a human can be as a person...
I was in almost the same situation when I was younger. I wanted to work at a automotive performance shop. The best thing was having my own car I worked on and being able to showcase my work. I never had to ask for a job, just went in talking to the workers and owner, and once they saw my work and personality, they offered me a job. This worked for several shops I worked at, but its a bit unique to how the car community is. Adam brings up some awesome points as always.
Hi Adam! As a Career Coach at a Canadian University, and a massive fan of yours for many, many years ... I was thrilled to have the two worlds collide with this incredible response you gave to a viewer. I tell all my students that coffee chats (networking) should not be viewed as job-search, but re-search. Hearing your similar sentiments on the subject made my day and will be sharing this video far and wide to students and job seekers of all ages, and at any stage of their career journey. Thanks again ... loved your book ... the shop looks great ... stay awesome!
Understand that the type of place you want to work at may not match the way you want to work. For example if you want a creative place, dont expect it to be a 9 to 5 job.
Could you explain more on the 9 to 5 job? does that mean that it'll be more than 9 to 5?
I know it differs according to the company's job description or the position you're applying (which one should acknowledge) but I'm curious of what you mean.
idk why people keep saying 9 to 5 like time ever goes backwards
@@turolretar9 to 5 is colloquially known as regular hours. A lot of creative jobs are just a stack of gigs.
@@krenstx2502 It means passion projects usually involve unpaid overtime. Boss has the mindset of "If you won't do it there's 10 others that will." You have to make yourself irreplacible or desired to have a chance at changing that or change employer.
Thanks for answering my question Adam! I have done a couple of informational interviews since watching this livestream. I went into those conversations with a somewhat agnostic mindset, purely with the aim of learning about the work they do, how they fit into the industry, and what they look for in young people entering into the business. Applying your advice has led to some very fruitful conversations with people that led to them putting me in touch with other contacts of theirs in the industry. I’m still in the early stages of networking, but I feel that I am gathering a solid array of people with whom I could have much longer relationships - relationships in which they may also be willing to help me achieve my goals. I truly appreciate your advice.
Good luck man! Rooting for you.
I don't wanna work or Adam,
I wanna hang out w/ him.
I think he'd be a tuff boss.
but a great co-conspirator.
Some of the best "bosses" are just co-conspirators ;)
@@KayleeKerinYou want to be the guy he calls collect from jail, and visa-versa. The guy that will keep money on your books (seriously. Not many people will).
@@KayleeKerin I would second that. Bosses suck, you don't want to work for a boss. They're lazy, they take your credit, and everything is about them. Someone that leads from the front is the kind of person you want to work with, notice I didn't say for, I said work with.
A lot of people still don't get why being a "boss" is not okay.
@@PetrolJunkie My old boss kept money on my books
@@corndog6700 Sometimes it's worth it to take the loss and move on. The hit to your rep to do otherwise just isn't worth what you can gain on the ledger board most of the time.
If we're talking a good amount of money, that's what a lawyer is for, let a judge sort them out. Sometimes just the notice of intent is enough to get them to move.
That's really up to you.
A thing to remember is that if they are a bad boss to you then they are being a bad boss to other people, too. They aren't fooling anyone. But you have to manage your own reputation, you don't always have control over that. Character is how you define yourself. Reputation is how others define you. There is only so much you can do about that.
Sometimes you just have to move on and accept that it was a bad situation, you learned from it. When others try to hold you back remind them of what you learned from it, and show them that you've grown. People respect that. It's called owning a mistake and that shows maturity. It also cements the bad boss's rep.
Every time you said "Dread Pirate Roberts" it made me smile
As you wish
@@dreadpirate.roberts WESLEY??
@@shaeisgae8952 💕
Speaking as an older member of the workforce (nearing retirement), and having worked in several different fields, as divergent as corporate, law, and healthcare, I think your advice for young people is really spot-on. Things I wish had been told to ME (by someone I trusted) when I was 23 years old!
Adam, THANK YOU for bringing up to keep in mind how a job feels.
I’m currently orientating for new jobs, because my teaching job has started to feel less and less rewarding. I don’t feel any gratitude or reward coming my way from grading papers and when I do something I care about deeply (educational research), my school isn’t really interested. So I’ve decided to try and see what other job opportunities there might be for an inquisitive person. I started to notice that it’s of utmost importance to understand what I feel when working on something, as that will be my greatest compass and best predictor of job satisfaction for the coming years. So yeah, I wholeheartedly agree with you on this. Thanks again!
At work, I like to say, “I don’t care what I’m doing as long as I’m doing exactly what I am supposed to be doing.”
You want me to do the thing differently today than what I was doing yesterday? Fine. As long as the instructions (or at least expectations) are clearly communicated… I’ll do whatever.
Except scrubbing toilets. That is definitely something that is NOT in my job description.
As I get older and my career advances, I increasingly find myself on the other end of conversations like you are describing. And yes, I think we can see a lot of what younger people ae thinking because we probably thought much the same things when we were that age.
"Don't kill yourself to go work for a shop that does beautiful output but is a horrible place to work! That won't be satisfying to you." Uh... Adam. I'm not sure how to tell you this, but... I'm a game designer. 😕
It still applies. Ask Thor (PIrateSoftware). He will even tell you he stayed at blizzard wayyy longer than he wanted to once it became toxic to work, but he recognized it and found a way out. There are good studios and bad, and a lot of opportunity for your skilset to shine if you allow.
I must say I'm not sure what your point is.
Ah, you must not be a game designer.
(Yes theoretically you could just go find a studio that actually treats you well but the completion is so high from the sheer amounts of people wanting to make games that there’s no real incentive for employers to offer those jobs. Once a designer quits, there’s 10 more on the other side already lined up.)
@@pheldsparr The game design industry is infamously abusive (doubly so if you're a woman) at all levels. The vast majority of studios/publishers you've heard of treat their non-leadership workforce as expendable, and the worst offenders treat them like chattel. It's not uncommon for salaries to be half that of similar positions in other fields, with mandated crunch (50 - 80+ hour weeks with no days off, often for months and sometimes years on end) being an expected and normal, even intentional phase of the development cycle as a cost cutting measure. Leadership is functionally a boys club, and harassment (sexual and otherwise) is rampant. And of course there's the general tech stuff like regular mass layoffs every few years because it makes shareholders feel like executives are doing work.
Not all teams at all studios have these problems, and some studios are MUCH worse than others, but pay is below average across the board and having one or more of the other issues is more common than not. The bigger a studio/publisher is, the more likely it is to have more problems, but even the bigger "indie" studios (such as Annapurna Interactive and Moon Studios) have had reports of abuse and excessive crunch coming out of them in recent years.
Your choices for workplaces in the gaming industry are essentially "Low pay with an employer that might not even exist in a year or two if they run out of money or their game bombs, assuming you can even get it because 20 other people are vying for the same job BUT maybe you'll get to work on something cute and fun if you don't end up on cash grab gambling addiction bait shovelware" and "Low pay AND abuse with an employer that might fire you in a a year or two for no discernible reason, assuming you can even get it because 200 other people are vying for the same job BUT maybe you'll get to work on your literal favourite franchise of all time if you don't end up on cash grab gambling addiction bait shovelware (assuming the former hasn't been turned into the later!)"
Most of the companies nowadays are overly corporate and DEI. Basically you need to either found/find a startup or small company. Unless you want to be stuck in a go nowhere corporate treadmill.
Crazy that you put this out i am 24 years old and i quit my job at the dealership a week ago this has slightly shifted my perspective
I’m in the leadership team of an education program for enterprise technology, and I shared this with our students for our upcoming cohort. Very good stuff here for any person about to take the “next step” in their career-arc, whether that be graduating college and going to work, getting the big promotion, making a career change, etc..this is great great stuff.
Thank you for the inspiration to put 'Easy to work with' on my resume. That's the #1 point of feedback I've gotten in my career but it never occurred to me as a tangible soft-skill
I find that this also helps a lot outside of work, my friends always tell me that I have a 'chill aura' that helps them not freak out under stress, especially at cons
Go to a potential employer with the notion that they are looking for a person who is going to make their life easier. That's it. They want someone who is going to make their daily routine and general process smoother, more efficient, less full of drama and full of more more predictability. The person who is hiring is looking for a solution to a problem or set of problems.
I would LOVE a whole thing about being easy to work with, whether that be a talk or a book or another video.
Just checking in to confirm I am trusting the process. Thank you for your wise words.
Edit: and not to hijack the comments but what you said about believing in the company and its leadership that you are working for makes all the difference. I love where I’m at. And I’m so fortunate to have been guided and supported to where I am today.
Learn to listen. Stop trying to compete and aim to help everyone shine, that's the containing of ego. If you're in a team, ego is repulsive. Ego isn't a good display of passion, but your work, energy and genuine interest is. Love the creative process, because the final product isn't as important as you might think, but it's important that you can finish what you started.
But more than anything, make friends by genuinely paying attention and listening to those you're speaking to, and put yourself aside. There will be plenty of chances for the other party to fins out about you, and if they don't, then you either aren't meshing, or they're people you don't really want to work with anyway.
Timely advice Adam.
Thank you.
Oh yes. I once got hired at a new place after my previous job disappeared due to changes by upper management. I was doing pretty much the same kind of work, but after a few months I realized I just didn't like working there. I've never been able to put my finger on why, but I just didn't like it. It's the only job I've ever quit. All the others quit me in some way.
Friend of mine always told me when it comes to work, and if you're corrected on something, leave emotions at the door. Just take the criticism, good or bad and go from there. There does not need to be emotions brought into it.
Yep. Sometimes it will be constructive, and many times it will the dumbest, out-of-touch criticism that creates no value. If it's constructive, say thank you, and even ask a follow-up question if you don't understand something. If it's dumb and out-of-touch, say "Understood" and excuse yourself to get back to work, and start looking for your next job.
"Easy to work with" is code to be emotionless to doing work that could summon emotion. How can I be passionate about the work I want to do and am doing and separate myself from my own emotions driving the work? It's not going to work for me, an artist that derives art from emotion. Art creates EVERYTHING and anything any office could be tasked to sell. What are you really making sitting at a desk punching in numerals? ARTS and ENTERTAINMENT is just about looking and experiencing at "it", in action, it's giving energy to thoughts, lending context to time, and all of that is worthy of every modicum of value society can assign it. The widgets we use to track such value? IT'S ART TOO. (The f-n dollar its printed on)
Oh wow, this was actually really awesome to listen to. I completely agree and feel really empowered by the insight. I’m currently going out for a promotion at my job right now and that just solidified my confidence in approaching the process properly. 🤘🤘
I always love to hear authority figures, or at least senior members of an industry, championing "being easy to work with". I'm not saying high talent screaming genius dramallamas don't have their place, they're like the striker on a football team. But you need someone who's dependable to work late to lock up the office. You need someone to mediate arguments. You need people who will tell you when they've messed up instead of trying to hide it. You need people who make everyone else happy. And for what it's worth, genius doesn't preclude any of that.
There’s so much talent these days. We can leave screaming “geniuses” behind.
Can I add, don't take the first offer you get without hearing others.
I made this mistake nine years ago, after moving to a new area, and spent several months working for an employer who said after the interview, "Be here Friday morning, don't interview anywhere else."
Thankfully he laid me off several months later, and I found another job in the same field that I absolutely loved.
I would add that when dealing with small companies them saying we are not hiring now isn't a hard no. Ask if there are any skills they think they might need in the future and work on those so if in a year or two things align you are ready to jump into the job. I know it's tough to see long timelines when you are in your early twenties, but in the grand scheme taking a year or two to get into the right job will be well worth it.
50% your ability
50% your COMPATability
love the disco ball going at 90 mph.
Lol! I had to search for it
Really excellent advice.Thank you. Never stop learning.
Adam ends up giving the advice one needs at the right time. Literally just graduated and these points hit, as its hard to start fresh without firstly putting the steps in
Same
This video lines up with the kind of advice I give to people too! Especially creative types early in their lives.
One additional item I like to add in regards to resumes: Your resume should speak to the KIND of company you would want to work for. If it's being a stodgy cog, it should look like a cog. If it's creative, fun, different, etc - it should say that.
Interviews work both ways. I have ended an interview because it was obvious that the employer was uninterested in the working environment and morale.
The pleasure of working at a place is 90% of how good a job is.
Just plain good advice for life in general is what I hear...❤❤❤
Thank you for your wisdom :))
I find myself in a similar situation and I think with this I'll get to better enjoy it and learn more from it :))
Don’t ask for work, ask where think would be a good place to look for work… and why
Physically writing people letters is EXTREMELY effective. Most people will give you at least a response just based on that from personal experience.
This has worked for me. It's such a surprise that it can be extremely effective. Hand written letter (short!) in a real envelope with a stamp. Hand addressed! Short and sweet. It packs a punch. It's easy to do and it cannot hurt. Of course I have only done this as followup from meetings that I enjoyed.
And don’t forget to lace it kids!
It is my opinion that in some jobs, probably good ones, that the interviewee should probably not have to worry near as much as the interviewer. And there are lots of ways employers can make there lives easier when it comes to knowing who to hire, but for employees knowing what employer you want is more difficult with the less experience you have with employers.
Totally agree. I always learned that being interviewed for a job is just as much about you gauging them as a potential employer as it is about them gauging you as a potential employee.
Adam has become the old mentor character. Hopefully the author doesn't kill him off after someone's training arc.
Thanks for the insight
Good advice
It'd be interesting to hear your elaborate more on being easy to work with. I feel like I have a good handle on some of the traits that you mentioned, but I need to work on some others. Have you discussed that in a past video or written about it by chance?
I recently graduated from university and have had a terrible time finding employment. Looking back, I probably should’ve just gotten a trade after high school, but now I feel like I owe it to my parents to use my degree and help out with student loans. Any help or tips are greatly appreciated. B.S. in Business Communications with a Minor in Marketing (I know it’s useless but it’s what I have). Everyone have a great day!
Great advice
Great advice Adam, what I was taught "you got to love what you do" ! Or anxiety and stress will take over your life.
"Do what you love" is the worst advice ever and the easiest way to ruin what you're passionate about
“That’s why I loved your mother”
This came at the PERFECT time since I'm on the job hunt and in the middle of switching careers
Mr Savage I just want to say thank you. I've followed you carrer since I was a kid and I got your book the day it released. Thank you for all the advice and insight. A fan and lifelong student from DC
Job hunting is the worst, and switching careers is super hard. Takes courage. Best of luck to you!
Come up with 3-5 stories. Job stories. Short stories. There's 3 parts to these short stories. 1. Describe a problem or issue that was happening where you worked. This does not have to be a huge, earth-shaking problem, just problems. 2. Describe how you did something or worked with a team of others to do certain things that addressed the problem. Again: does not have to be "we saved the company from bankruptcy!" level. 3. The positive result(s) that came out of the actions you took, alone or with a team of others. Often describing how you worked on a team is even better.
Once you have 3-5 of these you can comfortably just tell, you are pretty set for any interview or meeting. You can just tell these stories. You do not have to wait for question, answer question, wait... just tell the stories. Any awkward points in the interview, just start telling the stories. Keep them short though!! It fucking works. I've walked out of interviews where the person interviewing really only asked me a couple of basic, boilerplate things... my stories filled in the time and kept the person doing the interview informed and engaged.
I recently watched a Mythbusters video involving a clay car with golf dimples. After proving it gave you an extra 3 MPG, What would been the next step in proving it confirmed if the budget had no limit?
This is gold.
Great video sir
Think about building your value.
I want to know about the film camera in the background shot.
Love you and your Chanel. But you’d drive me crazy to work with. Wish I could get a sneak peak into all potential shops I’d like to work in.
The problem with cold calling these days is (at least in engineering) that I get told, go have a look at the job portal. All further attempts to still keep them engaged are seen as annoyance.
I am no creative, but if I were, I think all I would want from you is an honest critique of something I had made. But, then again, I'm not particularly ambitious.
What do you want the job to feel like? What a great question and so important!
Whenever I have thought about interviewing at a company, l always ask myself two questions: 1) Based on my research of the company, am I a good fit for their work environment, and 2) Will I be able to solve whatever problems they throw at me.
Thanks for that
You should enjoy your job if not your output and life will go down not good for yourselves or the job
First, you need to actually secure a meeting or interview... Almost impossible to get one anymore from my experience.
OK, now we see two carbonite figures on the wall plus what looks like an old 35mm film movie camera. The background always fascinates me 🙂
As someone who is easy to work with ; I have had it be the comment most brought up about me.
That all sounded like great advice. Can confirm having experienced the last part.
"mushroom shaped people" sounds quite analogous to the "T-shaped engineer" that's all the rage in software hiring these days
i feel like "tree shaped" also works lol
@@spark_matter I like "broccoli shaped"
It's crazy how much we focus on our resume but how little my favorite bosses have cared about them. The vibe is where it's at. Skills and expertise can be developed, but being able to mesh with people seems like that's how we get longevity. Guess we gotta make friends and develop personalities, huh? lol Good luck out there everyone!
The "mushroom shaped person" concept is where having ADHD and relentless curiosity can really be an asset.
Weirdly spiritual and cerebral explanation for this. Wasn't expecting it from him, very cool.
This is legit the hardest part I deal with in the industry. I feel like everyone is fake because of it.
Are we gonna see more of the arri finally?
6:28 what about the opposite scenario where the potential employer is trying to milk the applicant. Knowing full well that there is no job opening?
I tend to get jobs that are more "quantity over quality" and that annoys my integrity for said output. Interviews are easier than doing the jobs. I only have to sell someone on myself to get my foot in the door. Then comes the selling of myself on the actual tasks associated. I'm a harsher critic as I see the chaos that was hidden from me during the interviews. I'm a sucker for a flashy facade, I guess.
I'm not working in the field that you are in.. but was really inspiring to listen to you in that clip. thank you.
It just occurred to me that Adam would be one of the role models that us early 30s will ask career advice from. I was wondering why this sort of question came up for a minute lol
Dating. What you are describing is dating. The job market should never be so desperate as to require people to try that hard to get a job. It's not Adam's problem to solve, but that is the real problem. Employers should be the desperate ones.
The trick is to maintain the initiative as an employee. That is, don't wait to be fired but start looking for another job when you get the impression that your contribution isn't valued. That way you'll have less pressure to take any job and more time to select the best next job. Also makes you appear less desperate. A great job isn't available at all times so you may have to wait some time for it to become vacant.
OT...is that an Arriflex back there?
"Mushroom shaped people" sounds odd haha.
Kinda goes along with Sakurai's recent video about working as a team where he says you should never argue with your coworkers, because the industry is a lot smaller than you might think
Me asking for a job and Adam thinking "it`s not the vibe" XD
Didn’t think dreadpirateroberts would be looking for a job…
Dread Pirate Roberts huh, I got that reference
Everyone got that reference.
His name is Ryan. He inherited this ship from the previous Dread Pirate Roberts, just as you will inherit it from him. The man he inherited it from was not the real Dread Pirate Roberts, either. His name was Cummerbund. The real Roberts has been retired fifteen years and living like a king in Patagonia."
It’s all true
i would be more direct and just ask, what would adam want me to do as shop assistant.
"I'm taking applications for employers. If you think your company has what it takes, send me your CV."
That's the right mind set. Vet your future employers carefully. The purpose of the job interview is for you to find out whether the employer and the job and it's surrounding is good enough.
Adam Savage can’t fix my business model? If Adam can’t who can fix my model of the Shanghai World Financial Center?? So many business models need Adam, please help us!! Just kidding. No one has a model of a business office tower… do they???
😂
Adam, engineer here, i need a job 🤣
most of the time the amount that a ob is paying isn't worth dealing with the " office drama " so no don't deal with it
Mr. Savage, how in the halibut did you know I have been prepping/dreading my first big networking gig flooded with studios and people with so much experience under their belts that could be my ticket to my first industry gig? From one maker to another: you are a lifesaver, thanks a MILLION 💛
Just chill with it bro
Education Communication
HOLE UP dread pirate roberts is back from jail ? If you don´t get the reference the guy running silk road (internet drug empire)was called dread pirate roberts
People who are easy to work with are only 10% over or under confident. Anything above or below that is super annoying.
It is interesting that Adam says he "can smell" people's intentions in certain respects. That is exactly how I describe many similar intuitions I have. I can practically smell it on them. I can't really quantify the vibe, much less articulate it, but it's proven reliable over the decades and if I choose to relate that to others, I use people's reaction to that confession as another metric in getting to know them as well.
YES. It's the "I'm being sold to, what are they leaving out" smell for me.
BE JAIMIE HYNEMANN.
Yes, you need the moustache. Think Schnauzer or Scottish Terrier. Get the look, get the job.
Rule number 1 of interviews - don't embelish or exaggerate your skills or experience. If you end up landing a job that you're not qualified for, there's a very good chance your employer will catch on and let you go. Sucks if you moved across the country for that job
Uhhh idk, I've been told that 90% of people lie on their resume etc. I don't but that's what I've heard and seen
@@enb3810 Just because a lot of people do it doesn't mean it's advisable.
At one point a lot of people drank mercury as a medicine. Didn't work out for them last I checked.
Sure. I'll just ignore the number of jobs I got after embellishments and depressingly few after honesty. They don't care if you're qualified and competent. They care about confidence.
There are shades of gray in this and every situation is different. But on average, this is terrible advice. For almost all jobs, you learn how to do the job on the job. If you have confidence that you can do learn the job and have some knowledge about the things that you putting in your resume you should absolute put it in your resume in the best possible light. Obviously don’t lie and say you went to Harvard when you didn’t.
@@hastyscorpion tell that to the many people I've laid off. I should clarify that I'm hiring for non entry level engineering jobs.
Are informational interviews still a thing in the creative/maker spaces? That feels very much like a "just call and get a job" type of bygone advice
It's still a thing.
Still a thing I've found. I've done them all my life. It's been incredibly helpful in transitioning careers. I have never worked at a place I did one at, but it also gave me plenty of info to set goals to step towards where I wanted to go. We had to do them when I went back to school. We interviewed people doing the jobs we wanted to do, and then put a plan together on what we were going to do with our projects to build the skillsets required to head in that direction.
I've also given them. Assuming the person is not unpleasant, I love doing them. It's always nice when someone shows interest in what you do (especially if its niche), and you get to talk about your work and self. You also don't have the pressure of ranking interviewees for a potential hire. I want to see them succeed, even if they end up working at a competitor.
Can you make a video of how to build a battle virtual PET base off of a child bond drawlings
I don't want to work for Adam Savage.
I just want to borrow his tools.
I want to be his annoying neighbor.
Chris Roberts is scared of getting promoted in his own company? LOL
He's active on r/anti-work? Lol cool