thehappyone wrote:Octavius is one of the lucky ones who got his foot through the door. Once you get your first half decent job, there will be many employers willing to take you on, but most of us arent so lucky, our work history is patchy, full of gaps and unrelated work experience, good references are hard to come by cause we never performed at our shitty jobs, getting our foot through the door becomes harder the older we get. My older brother doesn't even have gcse's, but one time he was lucky to get a job at one of the major companies and he's not struggled finding work since. Just say alhamdulilah and don't patronise us peasants.
Edit, internships/apprenticeships/work experiences go to school leavers/undergraduates not adult jobseekers
Look... I have recruited people myself. This is what you need to do:
- Fill out the application form properly. Devote hours to it. Proof read it. Re-write it. Adapt your application to each job you apply for. Tell them what they want to hear.
- Make up work experience, as long as its believable; no one checks, the recruiting company only checks your references, one of which will need to be your last emploer and maybe your degree. No one has time or the resourcesto check all applicants' work history with all their former employers. Tell them you went to f-king Somalia and ran a company there for 6 months if that is what it takes - how are they going to disprove that? You will find a job much quicker this way. Change your attitude and seize your life by the horns.
- Perform well in your interview. Speak properly, pronounce every letter in every word. Smile. Joke. Do or say or be something memorable. Be confident. Endear yourself to the interviewing panel.
- Every bit of work experience counts. No one checks what you did in your previous jobs, turn a simple job like making tea into the most elaborate and complicated project ever undertaken.
- If your too old to apply for internships or industrial placements, do volunteering (work for free), or 'enhance' your work experience on paper using your words and your wit... remember that voluntary work you did with the Somali Community Association for 6 months
- If you lack reliable referees, you can create them quite easily by using your network. Every person you know is a potential referee. Perhaps one of your family members 'happens' to sometimes use a different surname and 'happens' to be at the other end of the telephone/email of the Somali Community Association where you 'worked' voluntary for 6 months
- If youre really find it a challenge to find a job, attend job fair & small business networking events... they hand out jobs like sweets.
Good luck.