What's wrong with me? Am I lazy?

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I have a confession to make. I've been unemployed for a little more than a year now. And I think it might be my fault.

I'm not quite sure how to describe it. Ever since I got out of university (Master of Information Studies, library path), I've been trying nonstop to get a library-related job. Nothing has come out of that, so now I'm just trying to find a regular job to get me by.

The problem there is...I don't know what it is, I just can't bring myself to write any cover letters! Partly, I can't even begin to think of how I would describe myself favourably, given the huge employment gaps in my resume; and second...I simply don't know what it is. Am I too accustomed to living at home? Have I grown lazy? Or...what is it?

Sorry, I just needed to vent. Partly, I'm frustrated by lack of ANY responses to job applications, and partly I'm frustrated with myself.

Oh, I hear you. Whenever I even try to write a cover letter for something like, say, human resource management or IT specialization or something else, I have a really hard time selling myself. It doesn't help that this is NOT what I studied and specialized in, and NOT what I aimed for.

The problem is, I'm at something of a crossroads right now. I'm debating going to get a certificate course in something else to broaden my options (exactly what that something else would be, I have no idea....I'm indecisive at the best of times, when life-affecting decisions AREN'T involved). A lot of my former fellow students have been finding the job market just as bad, so I've figured that at least I need a part-time job to help bring me up financially in the meantime. But...I don't know, for some reason the motivation isn't there, no matter how much I kick myself to get something done about it.

That's partly why I am afraid I've grown lazy. Then again, it could some sort of paralyzing fear of change.

i HATE having to "sell" myself!

I will follow up on the suggestion that you have someone else write the cover letter for you. About six months after I graduated I was still in contact with one of my instructors and asked her to write my cover letter for me. It did fairly well. I tweaked it a couple of times before getting a job, but tweaking it was my easier than actually writing it.

Then, when my AS son needed a cover letter and couldn't think of what to write, I asked him a couple questions and wrote his cover letter, much easier that writing for myself. He tweaked it, used it, and found a job that he is okay with.

I will admit that we are still both underachievers, with very high IQs and fairly menial jobs, but we are also both happy with our jobs, so it all balances out.

Also, a suggestion I'd received - which did NOT work for me but may work for you. Pretend you are writing the cover letter for a friend rather than yourself and see what you come up with. I was never able to attain that third person perspective of myself.

If you live in a country that has some type of government-run job center, go there and ask for help writing cover letters and tailoring your resumé. The employees are trained in this sort of thing, and they can help you make your documents look professional. On your own time, you need to think very carefully about the skills you have developed in school, previous jobs, volunteerships, etc. Make a list. It takes some skill, but there are ways to make it sound like your skills are applicable to jobs that you were not trained for. Take the list of skills to the job center and they will help you figure it out.