When I left China in March 2009 and kept hearing how depressing the job market is back in Michigan, I bought a round trip ticket to get back to China for my Plan B. And on August 17, 2009, I used it. The reason for that date is because the last date I could enter the country on my visa was August 20.
Other than looking for jobs in the US, before I left I applied for some jobs in China. One school in Beijing did get back with me but when I said how much money I wanted, they were not interested in me. So I left my suit at home. Once I arrived in China, I applied for some more (mostly IT jobs) and one or two called me but again they all asked me about salary and everyone said “too high.” Each time I’ve lowered it until reaching Michigan Minimum Wage levels. I think that’s the maximum level acceptable in the big cities of China.
Through a friend, I was able to get one job interview in Beijing (my first in 5 years). The first time the company called, I was on a bus in a city 600 miles away. Although I couldn’t really hear, I arranged a “meeting” for a couple weeks later. The interview for part-time luxury men’s clothing store manager lasted 5 or 10 minutes. He interviewed me because they were looking for someone who is an American and someone who is a man. He asked me to send him my photo and my height (only things I forgot to include in my resume). He asked if I’m interested and I forced myself to say “…yeah.” The main problem is the store doesn’t open until December 2009. Due to my visa, I have to leave the country in November 2009. I felt the job is more like a model job to stand in the store to lure in customers to this classy store more than a management job.
Since I was not having too much luck with jobs in China, I spent most of my time traveling and then made plans to visit some other countries. I’ll write about some highlights later. I have updated my map.
