Phone Books are Still Useful for Your Job Search

(Oklahoma)

A few years after high school I moved to a small town in Texas. Since my boyfriend made pretty good money, I really didn’t need to work, but I was going crazy stuck in the house, and I really did not know anyone. And without a driver’s license, my employment options were limited.

One Thursday, on a whim, I broke out the local phone book. I opened it up to the white pages and decided to call the first business I came across. Not worried if I sounded ridiculous, I asked them if they had any positions open and I couldn’t believe it when they actually had a position open. Talk about pure luck!

I interviewed the next day and was hired to work in their warehouse. I ended up working part-time there (the town’s local newspaper) for almost four years before they were bought out. Best of all, the office was around the corner from the street I lived on; no driver’s license needed!

Although that was almost eight years ago, it did teach me that sometimes the first step in job hunting is just taking an actual step and following it through. I have suggested that idea to several friends and even a few family members in "desperate times". A couple of them were hired by the companies they found in the good old phone book.