It’s that time again. The realities of living in Vancouver indicate that I trade some of my personal time with willing partners for $$$ or perhaps just $ in some form of mutually beneficial arrangement. In simple terms, I need to find a job.
Re-entering the work force after a longer than expected period of time off is an eye-opener, to be sure. Coded job speak: “passionate”, “team player”, “attention to detail”, “strong interpersonal skills”, “strong oral and written communication skills and good listening skills”, “ability to work in a multi-functional team environment” thrown out on top of “diploma in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, or a related field," “up to 5 years experience in both an industrial and product development setting,” "good knowledge of structural design, thermodynamics, heat transfer, fluid flow design, and selection of mechanical components is an asset.”
I mean, there’s no mention anywhere of “looking for nice people who are polite with good personal hygiene.”
Having perused a number of adds recently, I thought I’d write my own to see what kind of people would respond.
“You! Yes You! We want you!”
OK, let’s get the important stuff out of the way. I am nice, polite, and have good personal hygiene. I am a team player with experience in various languages, platforms, and OSs. At this point in my life, I value stability over excitement. I am happy with maintenance, fixing things, and debugging why stuff has stopped working. The kind of things that some folks may find boring, I find interesting. :-)
To that question, “So tell us about yourself.” I’ll leave you with my elevator pitch.
Hi My name is Mark.
I am a software developer with past hardware development experience. I have worked in web application development for various companies, such as BC Hydro and Telus. I am currently looking for opportunities in the hardware development space involving IOT or robotics using embedded microcontrollers.
I have a Bachelor of Computer Science degree and an Electronics Engineering Technologist diploma.
I am a keyholder member at the Vancouver Hack Space, where I am always learning new skills such as hardware development, embedded systems, 3D modelling, 3D printing, and CNC machining.
I am curious, patient, and like to debug difficult problems. I pay attention to details. My writing is clear.
On a personal note, I am also an artist. I have been in two separate juried group art shows as well as being a participating artist at the Eastside Culture Crawl for three years.
