All posts by diana Stone

About diana Stone

Diana Stone is a performing composer and musician playing Piano Violin & Guitar. She currently plays with Orchard and The Sonic Boomers. Previously with Rock/Roots band Elephant Shelf and also the Delta Ladies who mixed roots acoustic music and electronica until the death of Vicky Martin who formed the band which was active for 17 years. Diana composes in a variety of styles from pop to rock to Jazz and and classical music. Diana is also expert in multi-media recording and music production.

Beware the gatekeepers

Gatekeepers, well you know who you are and the game is now afoot as Sherlock Holmes might have said though to be honest as I have not read the books I can’t  really be sure.  Gatekeepers are related to jobsworths, but the difference is that jobsworths are more easily circumvented. Gatekeepers often have great confidence and will fix you with a steely eye and calmly repeat that black is white until you  start to believe it yourself.  There influence is often far reaching and there egos are immense. You will find them in every walk of life waiting somewhere down the road to stop you getting your fair share whilst waving there cronies on with a welcoming flick of the wrist. Yes you have just realized it you are an outsider an dup to now you didn’t have a clue, but your really do have the mark of Cain on you. What was it you did to deserve this sorry fate, well actually you need not have done anything, your not on the list your and your not coming in.  Perhaps your idea was just to original, perhaps you executed it a little too well, but some one sees you as s threat and the way is barred.  Its no good arguing with them or engaging in any form of logical debate either as the whole ethos is designed to maintain the status quo.  You will not pass and as it says on the Monopoly board do not pass go,  go directly to jail.  Better  to stand outside the glass looking in and bemoaning fate.

Not always….

To be continued.

More job search news

Well let me see, I have now applied for about 50 jobs in the last month. Ocasionally I get a call back on the phone which is nice, though no interviews of course. I am somewhat concerned that references are not being given at my old work place.

I hope this is not the case, but I can think of  no other reason for going from the of top of  a list of CV’s straight to the bottom.

Perhaps I ought to try the mystery shopper approach and see what the response is when my name is mentioned?

The Decade so far

Get my first decent job & have some spare cash
Join my first decent band after not playing live for about 20 years
Resign from job, due to a variety of reasons including some health issues and toxic boss.
Sign on dole
Discover that I am virtually unemployable (I have a fairly extensive set of ITC skills)
Try to make a living with band & other music stuff instead.
Get radio play & all sorts but basically no money.
Try to get work to fill in the gaps. Nothing….
Stay in apart from gigs & the odd drink, get £10 pounds of diesel a week to stay mobile.
Work on music practice around 3 hours a day. Do a bit of developing (php, Json, sql Cms web & db & so forth) stuff to keep my hand in.
get occasional call re my CV, which is with various employment agencies.

Conversation always go’s sort of like this:

Agency: “I have a fantastic match for you” , “I would really like to put your CV forward, whats you availability” , “Can you do an interview tomorrow or the next day”

“Have you 5 years experience of ($blabla; Answer “yes I did $blabla & also $blabla++ : ” reply “Fantastic I will put your CV forward now and give you a call back in the next few minutes”….

Ring Ring Ring “hello” , “Sorry forgot to ask can you also give the boss a blow job during coffee breaks & do you have 3 years experience” “yes no problem”

No more phone calls….

Back to Piano practice….. ..

Riing, Ring, Ring there go’s the phone…

BTW I am doing a show with Greta Garbitch “Dutch Drag Comic” at the Cellar Door at
Zero Aldwych , just by the Lyceum Theater in Covent Garden at 21:00 tonight 14 DEC, if your bored do pop in in….