# 🦮 How to Find Work This is the hard part in today's economy. However the advice for first (or second) time job hunting hasn't changed much in a long time. [Here is a good place to start with job hunting advice](http://www.quintcareers.com/teen_first_job.html). Online applications are often keyword based. After you spend a half-hour filling it out, you may not get a response because you lack the correct keywords in your application. Try to figure out the various multiple keywords that indicate your skills and abilities, and include those words in your online application responses. No first job is permanent. And they are rarely perfect. Don't try to find the "right job" and instead get a good-enough-for-now job as a stepping stone. ## Career Development This checklist is designed for people who are trying to get out of a bad situation quickly. As such, the only career development paths listed so far are national service, religious service, and college. However, there may be another path. Lots of employers are willing to invest in their workers. While interviewing, find out if your potential employer has job training, or pays for college. This is always something to keep your eye open for. ### Free Training There's a ton of free training online, from project management to programming. And many of them offer a certification. The certification itself isn't free, requires a test, and may have other requirements, but they are also often self-paced. Search for "Free Online Training" to start. ### What Can You Offer? If you have no skills, no training, no experience, and mediocre grades, then your worth to an employer will be what they train you to do. Demonstrate your learning capacity and do something that makes you stand out. Take an online course. For example, if you are applying in retail, you might improve your chances by downloading and studying the [Point of Sale Cashier Certification course](http://www.amazon.com/Cashier-Certification-Home-Study-Course-ebook/dp/B004OR1U86/). There is a certification that goes with this course. ### Job Corps As Wikipedia says, "[Job Corps is a program administered by the United States Department of Labor that offers free-of-charge education and vocational training to young men and women ages 16 to 24](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Job_Corps)." Check out the [Job Corps website](http://www.jobcorps.gov/home.aspx). They have [lots of possible trades listed](https://recruiting.jobcorps.gov/SiteInfo/Careers). ### The United States Military The range of jobs available in the military is much more than just infantry. Of course the [US Military has a slick website that will try to answer your questions](http://www.military.com/join-armed-forces). But if you're considering this sort of career field, you might want to check out the various military subreddits. [The Navy subreddit has a good list of other military subreddits in its sidebar.](https://www.reddit.com/r/Navy) ### Non-military national service There are several different service organizations that assist young people in serving America. This allows them to receive a paycheck while learning a skill and helping others. There are several that you can find at the [National Service website](http://www.nationalservice.gov/). Also, the [Peace Corps](http://www.peacecorps.gov/) and [United We Serve](http://www.serve.gov/) might be options. ### Religious service Large churches sometimes hire people who are in need. You can't find the job on a website, but you might be able to network for a job.