UPS was good because it payed weekly, and the drivers are nice. The places that paid the best was Bestbuy,sears and ups.

look for the jobs that say they are flexable.
and that will work with you. I had a lot of fun working seasonal jobs and I always had extra money when I needed it. And its better then going out and getting a payday loan.

When I was working as a manager at a high end department store, vendors hire a lot of freelance people around Christmas time.

Last time I checked they paid around $12 to $15 an hour to gift wrap items, spray perfume on people, make up artists, extra stock and display help and personal shoppers or assistant concierge.

You will get lots of overtime and since you freelance and handle your own taxes you can write off a lot of expenses.

If you are selling products sometimes the vendors will throw in cash bonuses or give away free stuff to the one with the most in sales.

Although I’ve never been a waitress get a job in a more upscale restaurant during November-December. You get tipped really well by shoppers who want to beat traffic and don’t feel like cooking. I know servers who work in mediocre establishments and trendy sports bars and hotel cocktail lounges and make $300 in tips part time on some days. If you don’t mind working Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve or New Years Eve if they are open, that is a good selling point.

If you don’t have something useful to say, why don’t you keep it too yourself? Damn.

My best experiences with holiday seasonal work happened when I applied early September. Many companies hire as early as August. I was well trained by the time the craziness started in November in each case and had a great time.
Be available as much as you can, especially on nights and weekends and you can improve your earning potential. Expect at least a 20% discount and ask about hiring bonuses but in this environment I wouldn’t expect more than minimum wage.
Thanksgiving weekend, especially Friday and the weekend and week before Christmas in retail is generally required. Some hours may be cut if stores don’t make sales goals early in the season.
Special advice from a 10 year Macy’s employee:
I know Macy’s hires right up past Thanksgiving, but I wouldn’t recommend waiting until then because it is so frustrating to have to jump into the fray without much assistance. It’s horrible for you and customers. Also if you wait that late you don’t qualify for bonuses and you miss special double discount days usually held in early December. Introduce yourself to the markdown team if you are looking for special items. THey LOVE college students who come on for a few weeks in December and can stay through inventory. Jobs open up weekly according to a set schedule so jobs that weren’t there in early October may be there now.

Does you job allow you to work overtime for pay? Mine does, as long as there is project work available – so you might go this route. I imagine you are making $25 (or much more) an hour at this job and even straight time overtime pay (what I get) is MUCH better than working for $6-10 an hour retail. You might not have this option, but if you do, its a great way to make some extra money year-round.

Since you’re an EE, have you considering doing freelance work? Perhaps through a site like Elance.com where you can apply your education and knowledge versus manual labor.

Best of luck.

I’ve also done child care over the holiday break from school, which works out rather well, even though it’s not extremely lucrative.

As an educator, I do have extra time off over the holidays which I can use to do some extra freelance writing and blogging as well.

Let me be the first to suggest you are a Supersized American, living a life of extraordinary excess (air conditioning and/or heating – luxuries which only the very wealthiest human beings on the planet enjoy) pissing away precious natural resources of our planet, just so you can be comfortable in your gigantic, Supersized American house.

I worked as a seasonal temp at Omaha Steaks corporate headquarters for 5 years. I was in the customer care department, so there was no selling involved, I just got to make people happy by solving their problems. The pay was great (10 bucks an hour) with incentives for attendance. The first couple of years, they did giveaways and treats during the season also. The discount we got was substantial, and it lasted ALL year, which was a great perk. Another bonus was the rehire bonus, 100 bucks for each year that you came back! I know Omaha Steaks has retail stores all over the country, and they need holiday help at those also. Might be worth checking out.

Another place I might check with is a banquet hall or with a catering company who would be booking lots of holiday gigs.

Good luck.

The ‘professional’ jobs can be hard to find but they’re out there. Of course job websites (monster, career builder, etc) is one place to start. The university you got your BA from may have a listing. Job fairs also have lots of people to talk to, hosted by your university, local government, or the businesses themselves. Where I work doesn’t even bother posting jobs anywhere other than the company website because enough people find us. At that point the responsibility is on you to get creative and just start with companies you can think of. If you are looking for entry level (like secretarial) then everyone needs those people: governments, Intel, Lockheed, you name it.

On the other extreme end of the spectrum are small businesses. A small shop I take all my glass needs to (picture frames, mirrors, etc) has a sign up saying “We are ALWAYS looking for Pleasant, motivated people!” Many businesses are too small to do much in the way of advertizing, so they find people via networking, so ask EVERYONE you know if they know of anyone looking for help. Most jobs are never posted but networked. My husband has had a half dozen jobs and only got one via a cold application, and that was a transfer position within the company he was already working for.

And when every last avenue has been exhausted what is left is: moving, or more training. If your area is in a slump then maybe you have to evaluate what is holding you where you are and consider leaving. That is what I had to do right after I graduated. I was looking at some seriously depressing job choices so I moved 1200 miles and don’t regret it. In fact now is the time of your life to consider it because it’s easier now than when you have a half dozen kids in tow.

While it’s not a holiday job, if you live near a college or university, keep “laboratory guinea pig” on your list. During graduate school I pulled in an extra $40-60 a week going into the MIT hearing lab to respond to random beeps and tones. Sure, it was dull, but I was broke, I could do it in 90-120 minute chunks, and it became a nice break from the frenzy of school. Plus you would not believe how acute my hearing is now!

Now, of course I am biased, but I think my husband does a really good interview. Other interviewers may be more difficult to talk to themselves, thus creating a stupid situation for everyone. But be open and talk about more than your prospective job…for instance, tell them about your family, your hobbies, or any other good things in your life that set you apart and show that you are a decent person outside your job.

I looked into substitute teaching, but getting certified would cost me over $100, with no guarantee that I’d ever find work as a sub. I went to a staffing agency, but they turned me away for not having enough “experience” (i.e., I’ve never gone to work in a suit).

I’m asking about retail in particular since the holidays are coming up and there are supposed to be so many seasonal jobs open, but I’m not seeing anything. I worry that I’m doing something wrong. I mean, 16-year-olds manage to do this, why can’t I? What do they have that I don’t?

Each Walgreens store has a different number of hours they are allowed depending how busy they are, so it may pay to apply to more than one location of the same company if you can.

Unless you are wearing diamonds and a cape, you are not overdressed. I worked as a retail manager for a while and I can confirm that yes, you are more likely to get hired if you dress professionally. You “seem more serious” about the job than someone that shows up in, say, flip-flops, a mini-skirt and a low-cut tank top (I kid you not; happened WAY too often).

Overall, being pleasant, polite and generally friendly will get you very far in the any job interview. Do NOT flirt with your interviewer.

If you haven’t already, try a staffing agency like Robert Half (for tech) or others. They can help match up your abilities to companies in need, and often have better tips on job openings.

Are you married to working in retail? I wouldn’t immediately assume your education would point in that direction. Would you consider hotels and restaurants? With your AAS, you would probably qualify for any number of positions.

You might also want to think outside your “major”. My mom had a BA in Psychology and it qualified her to work for the IRS. Many places are looking to see that you can accomplish a degree and they don’t care what the subject is. My sister worked at Macy’s with a BA in Communications. She was hired as seasonal help and they liked her enough to keep her on.

I had to look for 6 weeks and at the end of the 6th week, I got a job working on campus as a computer tech. The day after I accepted, I got a million calls from everyone I had applied to before.