Posts Tagged ‘help’

Job Security

Are you worried about keeping hold of your job through the recession?  Are you finding that you are constantly worried about getting fired because the economic downturn is forcing your business to make cut backs?

Well, now you shouldn’t have to worry anymore.  Despite the recession there are some sure fire ways to make sure that you get to keep your job while others get the chop.

Making Or Saving

There are two types of employees that will definitely be in the same job when the recession goes away - those that save money for their business and those that make money for their business.  If you fit into one of these categories then you’re golden!

Even if you aren’t in a position to save big bucks for the business then you should still think about how you can do things on a small scale for the business.  For example if you can save money on printing you will get noticed and when it comes to time to get rid of someone on your level you will be that much safer.

Be Indispensible

Don’t hide away from the office, embrace it!  You need to tackle things head on when it comes to projects and activities.  You need to be the one employee who is indispensible so that when it comes time to getting rid of people, you are immediately made safe.

Think about transferring to a more critical area where you can make a difference.  Try and get involved with serious projects where you can take more responsibility.  Do anything to get stuck in…

Are You In The Best Position

Although it might sound like a good opportunity to go from a production role to a junior management role you should stand back and take a look at the economic climate.

If you decide to take the job as a junior manager you may suddenly find that you are getting all the blame for the company going under due to the recession - that’s hardly classed as a successful promotion.

Education

You should think about getting more education under your belt to increase your profit value - by having many more skills in your cap you may have what it takes to beat off the others when it comes to redundancy time.

If you are lucky your company may even have a policy in place of reimbursing employees when it comes to education so check it out.  You won’t be losing anything, you’ll be gaining an employable skill!

Friends

There is nothing more important than your friends when it comes to trying to stay in a job.  You should find out who you haven’t spoken to in a while and then make it an aim to speak to them again.  This way you are staying fresh in everyone’s mind and when you do need a favour you won’t just be springing on them out of the blue.

Keeping your job?

Are you going to be in a job this time next year?  Are you worried?  Let us know…

Raise Time?

Although you may not see it happening in a recession, you should always be thinking about how to ask for a raise.  You might be hoping to keep your job now, but around the corner, when the recession has left our doorsteps, you should be prepared with a few weapons that will help you get more money.

Start thinking about it now and be prepared to take action as soon as your business starts to look positive again - read on to find out the best way to squeeze more money out of your business and into your monthly pay pack…

Building Up An Argument

If you want more money from your business then you need to provide a valid reason to your boss.  You can’t approach them with the argument that you can’t afford the 25 bottles of champagne you want each month, the reason needs to be valid.

You need to prove that you are deserving of a raise - to do this you need to build up a case that proves that you deserve more money.  Explain all of the responsibilities you have held while in the job and explain how you have managed to aid the business in achieving its goals.

Don’t use vague words and use specific data relevant to your job that shows how you have earned a larger pay packet.  You need your employer to be aware that you are a valuable asset in the business.

Research

You should make sure that you are aware of the average pay packet for people in your position around the country and area with similar qualifications and experience to you.

By doing this you can be sure that you aren’t asking for way below or above what you deserve and you have more of a chance of being taken seriously.

Build A Record

It is a good idea to build a record of your work over time - think about creating a weekly record of your achievements that you can present to your boss proving that you are deserving of a raise.

Nothing will be able to show how well you are performing than a record of your achievements and consistent performance.  Make sure you have as much proof as possible.

Time Is The Key

Don’t just decide to go for a raise and broach the matter with your boss with nothing to back up your request.  You should think about timing and go for it after completing a tricky assignment or important project.

This way you will be asking for a raise with a fresh achievement on your back, which will bolster your chances.  Also, as previously mentioned, don’t think about it in a recession, instead take the time to build up your case!

Gasping For A Raise?

Are you hoping to get a raise as soon as the recession goes away?  Have you found our advice useful?  Leave us a comment and let us know…

Alone Time

You don’t have to deny it…if you like to spend time on your own then there is no need to worry about it.  There are jobs available for everyone out there, and there are even jobs out there for people that just like to be on their own and not chat the day away.

If socialising just isn’t your thing then you need not worry - the following list shows a few of the jobs your can take up where you don’t have to worry about impressing people, chatting or even talking with anyone else;

Mechanic

Mechanics spend most of their time inside the engines of cars - if they didn’t then they wouldn’t be doing a very good job.  Spending most of your day either in a car or under it doesn’t leave much time for chit chat - if you like to fix things then this is the job for you…you can get things fixed without having to chat it up…

Cost Estimator

Cost estimators tend to spend their time alone because they are too busy trying to go through paperwork like blueprints and proposals to decide how much projects will cost from the beginning to the end.  Cost estimators need to be on their own so they can concentrate - they don’t have the time or the need to engage in any conversation!

Librarian

If you have ever been told to “shhhh” in a library then you will understand how this job would suit someone who wants to keep quiet!  You can spend your days organising books that don’t talk back and you will very sparsely asked for advice or help because everything is automated these days.

Survey Researcher

A survey researcher goes about finding out what people think - they don’t interview people, instead they create surveys over the Internet and create questionnaires that can be mailed for example.  This cuts down any conversation time to nothing!  Survey researchers spend their time alone because they don’t actually need to be with anyone else when they are creating and preparing the questionnaires.

Translator

If you like being quiet then you don’t want to do any talking translating - you want to translate content from one language into another, usually from a newspaper or other text format.  You need to spend your time reading, researching, etc…  You can even have the chance to work from home as do nearly a quarter of translators around the globe.

Undertaker

A quieter job couldn’t exist - you are dealing with the departed, and they don’t talk.  You rarely have to deal with families for long and then you’re back with the dead people that don’t want to talk much either.  Be alone in the silence whenever you want to be.

Searching For Silence?

Are you looking for a career where you can work in silence?  Has any of the jobs listed above taken your fancy?  Let us know…

Holiday Hell?

The summer is here and more and more of us are taking the opportunity to leave our offices and our workloads to hit the beaches across not only the country but the world.

Unfortunately the black cloud hanging over all of our heads while on holiday is the workload waiting on our desks for our return - we all love going on holiday but you can never really switch off because you know it’s going to be a nightmare upon your return.

However, don’t let this stress turn you off holidays altogether - there are a few methods you should think about to make the transition from beach to cubicle a lot easier!

Plan

Not enough can be said for planning - if you can manage to plan before and after you leave for your holiday then the whole thing will run so much smoother.  Make sure to get specific work done before you leave for your trip and guestimate what will be waiting for you upon your return so you won’t be shocked when you arrive.

Work with those around you and you might be able to delegate some of the work you will be missing so you aren’t greeted with a mountain of paperwork on your desk when you get back.  You should also try and get ahead with your work before you leave so that it doesn’t seem like you are just starting from scratch when you get back.

From The Plane To The Office

It is much easier to make sure you give yourself at least a day at home before going back to the office - this is a great way to get back into the mindset of home living and break away from tropical ‘you’ that you met on the beach.

Use the time to unpack, feel comfortable at home again, catch up on any jet-lag and missed sleep, catch up on emails and give yourself a good home cooked meal if you’ve been eating out a lot recently.

Refresh Yourself

You may have lost touch with the work that you were doing before you left - a good idea is to spend the first couple of hours back in the office reading through the work to make sure you are back in the know about the work.

If possible have meetings with team mates to make sure you are fully sub-merged into the work and you are in the right mind set.  Once you are clued up once again you can then spend some time prioritising work and focusing on the more important work that requires your attention.  The key is to find your way around the office again slowly but surely.

Not Looking Forward To Coming Back?

Are you going on holiday this summer?  Do you struggle with relaxing because you’re worried about going back to the office?  Leave us a comment and let us know…

The Perfect References

The backbone to any good CV is a strong reference list - your references are there to prove that you are as good as you’re claiming to be on your CV.  If you don’t do it properly you can really come unstuck with your references and that could totally sabotage the rest of the CV.

If you don’t want all the hard work you put into your CV to go to waste then make sure you follow our advice when sorting out your references - after all your references can either make you or break you.

Surprise

Make sure that your references aren’t surprised with a phone call from your potential employer - you don’t want your potential employer to ambush someone expecting to find out more about you and all they end up talking about is how they can’t believe they are your referral.

Before even thinking about handing in a CV with a reference list make sure you tell the referrals that they might be receiving a phone call and tell them what the job is about.  You should also give them a copy of your CV to look over so they can be sure that they can be familiar with your working past and hopefully be enthusiastic.

A Hard Choice

You should think about using different references for different job applications - references work in a similar way to a covering letter.  You shouldn’t hand out the same covering letter for bar work and copywriting work.  The same applies for your references.

Think about each reference carefully and choose the personal based on their qualities and characters in relation to the position.  You aren’t going to want someone who can’t explain themselves properly or who is no good over the phone.

Facebook

You should be careful about your social networking status when applying for a job - although it might not be the first thing you think about, a potential employer might take a step further than normal and seek you out online to see what kind of a person you are.

Employees have been known to be fired on the spot for their social networking activities and so it’s not hard to believe that a potential employee will skip past you if they don’t like the way you act online.

Be Clear

You don’t want your potential employer to have to scour through the Yellow Pages or the Internet looking for contact details for your references - they probably won’t bother and you won’t get the job.

Make sure all contact details are clear and correct - provide the name, telephone number and email address.  You could even note down the best time for contact, either the day or the evening or only after 6pm for example.  Show that you are willing to provide as much information as possible.

Getting Your References Right?

Are you struggling to get your references right?  Do you put much effort into your reference list?  Let us know…

Time On Your Hands

The unemployment rate is at the highest it’s been in a long time - the chances are you know someone who is out of a job.  The opportunities for the unemployed in Britain are not looking too good either and they will probably be out of work for some time.

But fear not - just because you don’t have a job doesn’t mean you have an excuse to laze around the house all day worrying…make the most of the time you’ve got on your hands…

Create Work

There are things that need to be done in your house all the time but because you aren’t in work at the moment you are probably finding it hard to motivate yourself - if you have something to do, like wash your windows, then make a job out of it!  Do this for all your chores and you’ll be giving yourself a useful purpose once again.

Spread Your Wings

If you are finding it difficult to get a job in the industry that you usually work in then don’t be afraid to spread your wings and try new things in new areas.  There may be something that you have always wanted to do but haven’t yet had the opportunity to do it because you’ve been stuck doing something you didn’t want to do - take the opportunity.

Re-evaluate The Way You Live Your Life

Having time off from work can be a great piece of time where you can re-evaluate your work/home balance.  You can take a closer look at the things you put on the backburner because work got in the way for example.

Go to the gym, eat right for a change, sleep right!  Do all the things you were failing to do when you were stuck in your job.

Languages

Now you have the time you should really think about spending around half an hour each day learning a new language - imagine the boost a new language will have for your CV!  It’s not like you don’t have the time anymore, so make the most of the time you have to add an impressive skill to your CV.

Furthermore, when you do get a job and the economy starts to perk up again, you will find that you’ll move up the ranks a lot faster because you will have shown you were willing to add to your skills.

Internship

If you have decided to take the opportunity to move from one career to another then you should take a look at the possibility of internships.  You will be putting yourself in a position to learn from an established company.

Although you’ll probably be in the position at a cut rate, you will still be earning money and making good steps into a new career that will probably suit you better.

Time To Tango?

Have you found yourself with too much time on your hands thanks to the recession?  Has our advice inspired you to do more with your time?  Let us know…

Job Scams

You would hope that job scams would be pretty simple to identify - in reality they can be truly dodgy, after all they were thought up by con artists who are used to getting the most out of any situation.

You need to keep your eyes open and stay aware - the best way to know what you’re dealing with is by looking through our list and knowing what to look for;

Hold Tight

If you are being asked for money then the odds are the job offer is a scam!  What real job will ask you for money?  Some scams will ask you to pay money into an offshore bank account and wait for the money to start rolling in…if money is being asked for then it is probably a scam!

Too Good To Be True

If the job offer sounds too good to be true, then it probably is!  If you are receiving emails claiming that you can make money by doing practically nothing then they probably aren’t true!  Some jobs will say that you don’t need to send in CVs and won’t specify job duties for example.  Don’t trust them.

A real job, paying real money, will be looking for a qualified employee with references, a CV and an education.

Home Working

If a job tells you that you can become rich without leaving your house then it is probably a scam!  Scams like these appear like adverts on sites and are basically out to get your bank details and any other details they can have off you.

The “work from home” line is the hook - once the scam has interested you then they have a much stronger opportunity to get hold of your information.

Email

Email scams are all over the place and they will often crop up in your inbox.  If you are asked if you want to earn lots of money by working at home then the odds are you’re being conned.

Make sure not to click on anything on the email as this will tell the scammer that the email address is in use and you won’t be able to stop getting the mail!

Luxuries

Scammers often know that they can grab your interest by throwing in some luxuries to spark your interest.  This is a strong tool for the scammer to use that sucks you in despite your better judgement.  If you are offered cars, holidays and private jets then you should definitely think twice.

Too Late?

If you have realised that you are being scammed too late then there is very little that you can do but hope that you won’t lose too much.  If you are being scammed you could lose anything from your identity to large amounts of money.

Get in touch with the banks and the authorities and see how you can counteract the scam - keep your fingers crossed that you haven’t lost too much!

Scammed?

Top CV Issues You Can Overcome

Looking for a job can be a tough deal - we’re fighting our way through a recession as we speak and unemployment rates have shot through the sky.  You need an edge above everyone else and you aren’t going to get it with a CV full of issues.

If you have any of the issues listed below then don’t worry because we’re going to tell you how to overcome them and apply for a job without and worries or fretting!

Gaps

Gaps in your employment history can be a nightmare and can bring a world of worrying.  If this is something you have to deal with then try to use a CV format that looks more at your skills.  You can do this by making a strong summary of your skills followed by a brief list of your work.

A Lot Of Jobs

If you’ve been in a lot of positions through a very short time period then you should think about being completely honest.  Although tons of jobs in a short period of time can be a bit of a flag for some employers, it is a good policy to remain honest.

If you have good reasons for the amount of jobs then feel free to explain so in your CV - maybe you were searching for a better pay packet, the businesses you worked for crashed in the recession.

Only One Company

Working in only one company will obviously show off your loyalty to a potential employer, but it will also show that career growth wasn’t a big issue in your life which is not an attractive feature.

Highlight the different positions you’ve held, rather than simply the fact you were at the business for a long time.  A potential employer will pick up on the fact that you have been in a number of positions and gained skills.

Little Experience

You may have just graduated from university and you have little experience on your CV.  If this is the case you should make sure that you are adding any internship work, part-time work and volunteer work to beef up your CV.

Temping

If you have a lot of temporary work listed on your CV then you shouldn’t worry too much.  More than half of executives actually see temporary work in the same way as full-time work.

You should list the temp work in reverse chronological order in the same way you would with full time work - don’t forget to write that the employment was temporary so potential employers can be clear about your history.

CV Issues?

Have you had any CV issues?  Has our advice helped?  Are you feeling a little less worried about your CV thanks to our tips?  Leave us a comment and let us know…

CV Writing - What To Keep In Mind

It’s that time of the year once again when the University year comes to an end and poor old students are thrown out into the real world with the sole task of looking for a job - it’s not an easy time for everyone…

Recessions aren’t exactly the most exciting periods of time to start searching for a job - you’re up against tons of people for a tiny amount of positions.  Do the math…not everyone’s going to be successful.

CVs - They’re important in case you didn’t know…

So you need to work on your CV - your CV will be your way of getting your personality and experience through to the potential employee through a simple piece of paper.  You have to get it right if you want to be called in for an interview…

You have just a few seconds of browsing time to convince the employer that you’re the right person for the job - this is what you should be keeping in mind when writing your CV.

Be Basic

When you write your CV, the first piece of information on the piece of paper should be your details like your name, email address, phone number, etc…

Make sure you use a permanent address - straight out of university you can find that you will be moving around a lot trying to find affordable accommodation in new cities - use a stable address that you will always be able to get access to.

You should also make sure you don’t put ridiculous email address accounts on your CV - spank21@hotmail.com doesn’t really interest potential employers.  Keep it professional.

Objective

You should include a section devoted to your objectives and skills directly following your personal information.  Remember to keep your writing directly to the point and don’t blah your way through…this will just turn potential employers off…

Style

Choose a style and stick to it - there are three main styles: chronological, functional and combination.

Chronological - emphasis on work experience listed from most recent to least recent.
Functional - a more skills based style.
Combination - more useful for first-time job seekers where you can actually list both experiences and skills rather than choosing one or the other.

Experience

Remember that any experience you have gained over the years is important, no matter what it is.  It can be volunteer experience, academic experience or professional experience - it all shows that you are a hard worker looking for a chance…

These opportunities will also be a good way to highlight any skills that you might have in a sly way - this is a great way to show what you can do through real experiences.

First Job?

Are you looking for your first, real job?  Are you worried with regards to the economic climate?  Leave us a comment and let us know what you’re thinking…

Advice For Working Mums - 2 Jobs Rolled Into 1 Body…

Being a working mum can be an absolute nightmare to even think about - especially a single, working mum…you have so much responsibility and you have to get it all done in a successful working/life balance you will be working at for years…

The question is what advice can we provide for working mums that struggle to keep it all together?  How indeed do you get that balance to work successfully?  How do you manage to spend enough time with your kids while still bringing in the pennies?

A more perfect life involves a better balance so how do you manage to get more time out of the office without forfeiting your job.  Follow our advice to get a little closer to a perfect life…

Plan

You need to talk to your boss about getting more time off to spend with your children but this obviously won’t be a simply talk to start - after all we’re in the middle of a recession where people are losing their jobs left, right and centre…

Come up with a plan to show how more time off will actually benefit the business - after all a happier employee works more efficiently.  Try and throw statistics into the argument tastefully and make it appear as though it’s the best possible idea for everyone involved.

If anything you’re showing that you have thought the idea through and you should be taken seriously.

Stages

Don’t create a plan that jumps directly into a new system of working - businesses by far prefer new programs that are taken up over time.  If a new direction is taken immediately then a business is likely to struggle and fail.

Show how the business can accomplish the change in stages over a period of time - this will make the move more of a possibility than an idea.

Prepare

Don’t go into the meeting with your boss without anticipating anything - you should understand your own argument thoroughly but you should also be ready for opposing arguments - try and cover all aspects of a comeback argument.

You should also be prepared to be in a position to negotiate the plan - don’t give up everything by not being flexible.

Still A Struggle?

If you’re still finding that you are spending your time struggling to balance your home life with your work life then there are a few things you should keep in mind to make the whole process a little easier.

For a start you should be working from one single calendar - you need to be aware of everything that is happening in your life from one easy format.  This was you can look for any scheduling clashes between work and home.

Furthermore remember not to take your work home with you because this will just damage your home life and you might as well have stayed in the office - when you go home, be home…