You are not stuck!
Episode 4Breonn Lyons
Breonn Lyons spent a year in a big box retail job after graduating from NYU, then printed 15 resumes, walked around Chelsea and handed them out in person. Four of the 15 came back, two of those became jobs, and one is the engineering role at the podcast studio where this episode was recorded. The advice that came out of it: you are not stuck, your feet move, you are not a tree.
Chapters
From retail burnout to a career breakthrough
Remember that you are not stuck where you’re at. Your feet move, you’re not a tree, you know what I mean? And I think I just felt like I had nowhere else to go, but the thing is, you do. And it feels scary, it definitely does, but you have to push into that. And I know, like, for some people they’re like, I can’t. But just trust it, build that courage. I don’t know, it just takes you finally being like, you know, I would rather just figure it out by myself and sleep at a friend’s house than work here. You decide when enough is enough.
Okay, Breonn Lyons, welcome to the JobQuest podcast. I’m Ryan, and this is a podcast about job seekers and the job search. So JobQuest is a tool that helps job seekers optimize their resumes for various jobs that they want to apply for, but in general we think about the job search as a JobQuest. You’re literally on a hero’s journey where you’re trying to find your next career adventure.
And I’ve been doing this podcast for a couple of months now, and you, Breonn, are the engineer here at the podcast studio where we’re at. And last time that I was here I had a conversation with you and just happened to ask you, hey, how did you get this job? And your story was super inspiring, so I wanted to sit down and ask you if you’d be interested and willing to share your story, and you said yes.
So would you mind taking us back to where you started your story, when you told me you were working in retail, big box store, and just miserable? So you’re like Harry Potter when he’s living under the stairs in his uncle’s house, right? Just like, beginning of the journey, got to find a way out. And you did. So yeah, if you wouldn’t mind telling us that story.
Yeah. So essentially that retail job was just to keep me in New York. So I came to New York for school, so once I graduated I was like, I have to keep working because I have to stay here, I don’t want to be anywhere else, I love New York. So that was my transition into postgrad. Now, once I got a couple more months into postgrad I was like, okay, how much longer is this going to be? Like, I can’t do this for much longer. And I would see my peers, they had jobs in the creative industry, in the entertainment industry, and I was like, oh, why am I not having any success with that yet, or why am I not finding anything that I’m happy with that is my main source of income?
Turning a retail job into a networking opportunity
And that’s what you went to school for.
Yes, I went to NYU for acting. So definitely in the creative. And as I was there, and this is, I truly believe this is God or the universe speaking, but as I was there I would have people come up to me and they’re like, you don’t belong here, like, you are gorgeous, you are talented, you went to NYU. Some of them, they were regular customers, so I got to know them, so they knew that I went to school at NYU. And they were like, Breonn, you got to be in front of the camera, why are you working in retail? And I was like, you’re right.
But what I decided to do was have it work to my benefit, at least while I was there. So I had them put me on the register, and I was like, what I’m going to do is, since the location that I work at has a lot of heavyweight people coming in here that’s in my industry, why not be on the register and try to talk to them and network while I’m here? So while I was on the register I met people, met plenty of people, and one of which was like, Breonn, you should print out your resume and walk around Chelsea and try to get an internship or a part-time job, at least at the Food Network or something like that.
And I was like, you know what, let’s do it. One day at Starbucks I literally Googled top production companies in New York, I printed out 15 of my resumes, and I was like, we’re doing this today, because I cannot go back. I can’t. I gave enough of my life to that job. I spent a year there.
So I walked around, and one of which was here at Gotham. And it’s funny, because when I came in, my boss Briana, she was like, hi Briana, and was offering me her hand. I was like, oh no, my name is Breonn, because I get called Briana a lot. And she was like, what? And I was like, do you already know me? She’s like, no, my name is Briana. I was like, oh, I’m Breonn. She’s like, oh, that’s so funny that we have similar names. And then I didn’t hear anything back for like a couple months. In the meantime I started a different job at a photography studio. Once that came to an end, Briana emailed me for an interview, and I was like, this is perfect timing, you know what I mean? And then did the interview, and then now I have a job here.
Why showing up in person worked
So was the photography studio also one of those 15 resumes that you handed out?
It was, it was as well.
So the success rate was two for 15, or did you get other phone calls out of that as well? Because two for 15, by the way, four for 15. So the other two you just decided were not a good fit for you, or?
Yeah, no. Since starting at Gotham I love it here, I really do feel like I’m appreciated, I’m cherished, and that I can grow here with what I want to do with my life.
Yeah, no, I think, I mean, four interviews out of 15 resumes is really incredible. I mean, you go on LinkedIn and people are like, I sent out 300 resumes in the past three months and didn’t get a single call back. So there’s some real value in actually putting on your shoes, printing out some paper and walking around and actually introducing yourself. I think you sort of cracked the code a little bit by stepping outside of the electronic box and going, not social media, but actually being social, right?
Yeah. I really do believe in energy too, like people can feel my energy and decide from there. Because I feel like also with LinkedIn, or just any online application, you’re beating, if they even look at it, you’re beating the AI or whatever is like the word detection that detects the keywords in your resume, you know what I mean? And I’m just like, you cannot beat energy, you know.
Betting on yourself when you feel stuck
So yeah, well done. So what’s the best question to ask, I guess? Yeah, this, the question to ask, why did it take the push from folks coming up to you? You mentioned that, and I like that part of your story, where you’re like, all these people were just coming up to me and telling me I don’t belong here. Why did you need that push to actually get to the place where you said, you know, I’m going to print out my resume, I’m going to walk around and actually talk to people and let people interact with me face to face? Like, why did you put up with that job for a year when you didn’t belong there, as people were telling you?
Yeah. I think part of me felt like I had to be there, because I didn’t have a plan B, and I’m someone who really likes stability. I like structure, and just knowing that I’m solid and that I have all my grounds, you know, taken care of. So I felt like there was kind of a boot on my neck, in the sense of, like, I have to pay my bills. If you don’t have anything else, you have to stay here until you find something else.
But I think it was just the work environment that made me, like, I had a very bad day my last day, and I was crying on the phone with my mom. I was like, Mom, I can’t, I can’t waste my life here anymore, you know what I mean? Especially when I know that, coming from NYU, I have the credibility to do something better, or at least in the creative industry.
So I think it just took me finally being like, you know what, I’m just going to bet on myself. And it’s funny, because I was crying on the phone with my mom and this man walked past me with a t-shirt, I still have the picture of it, and it says bet on yourself. And I was like, sir, I have to take a picture of your shirt, you don’t understand what it means to me. But yeah, I think it just took me being like, I can’t spend any more of my life here, and I don’t like the work environment, and I know that there’s better for me on the other side of this decision.
So, acting degree, and now you’re working in engineering. How did you make that connection? Did you have a background as an engineer as well?
So I have a background in video editing, and some sound treating as well. I helped my friend’s podcast, he did the radio show at NYU, so I helped him a little bit. But mainly for me it’s like video editing and camera, so those are skills that were easily transferable to this job. But yeah, so I was like, okay, we get to work on some editing, some audio editing specifically, that can apply to like film editing, or sound, things like that, on a movie set.
You’re not stuck: courage, persistence, and what’s next
So I think there are so many takeaways for other job seekers in this story of yours. Any particular advice that you would offer to people who might be in a similar situation? Or maybe they’re in a job that they just feel like there’s something better for them, they feel like, I don’t really know what I want to do but I know it’s not this, and want to make a transition. What words of wisdom could you offer based on the experience that you’ve gone through?
I think I would say, remember that you are not stuck where you’re at. Your feet move, you’re not a tree, you know what I mean? And I think I just felt like I had nowhere else to go, but the thing is, you do. And it feels scary, it definitely does, but you have to push into that. And I know, like, for some people they’re like, I can’t. But just trust it, you know what I mean? Obviously within your means, not everybody can just go out on a whim. But just build that courage. I don’t know, it just takes you finally being like, you know what, I can’t, like, I would rather just figure it out by myself and sleep at a friend’s house than work here, you know what I mean? So you decide when enough is enough. And go ahead.
Yeah, no, I didn’t want to cut you off.
No, you’re good, you’re good.
I was just thinking, when you’re knocking on those doors or ringing the doorbells or whatever, that’s probably scary. Was it scary for you when you were handing out those resumes?
Not really, I don’t know why. I went up to one of these businesses and I was like, I need to get upstairs and talk to so-and-so. I just Googled who that person was and what floor they were on. I had no appointment with them, I just needed to get upstairs, and I was like, my name is Breonn, I have an appointment with such. They’re like, sorry, we can’t. And I just would not allow them to tell me no, you know what I mean? I think when you have that mentality of, like, okay, you might tell me no, but I’m not going to accept that, you know what I mean? And that was my mentality with handing out these resumes, is like, one of these is going to hit, you know what I mean? It might not be all 15, but one of them will. So you’ll get your yes eventually. That’s my advice, I would say, you’ll get your yes eventually.
Great. So looking forward, where’s Breonn’s career path headed after this? Where do you go from here?
Definitely incorporating anything that I’ve learned in terms of sound editing into my film and my film editing. So right now I’m producing my own films, I write films and things like that, so just taking those skills that I further developed here and applying them to my own personal projects, and starring in them. And you guys will see me on the big screen eventually. So yeah.
Awesome. Well, Breonn Lyons, thank you so much for sharing your story with us.
Thanks for having me. Yeah, thank you.