AS Confucius said, “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life”.
But finding the right career can be fraught. Young workers are tipped to have nine jobs in a lifetime and work longer as the age of retirement is raised.
Conversely, it’s becoming more common for middle-aged workers to undertake a complete career change, often leaving the industry in which they had been employed most of their adult lives.
Also, technology has made redundant hundreds of lower-paid, lower-skilled jobs, while creating new roles across the nation.
It’s a revolutionary landscape to find work, much less a job that is satisfying, well paid and fulfilling.
Here are some tips that will help job seekers starting out as well as mature-aged workers seeking a career change.
Choose wisely
Making the best career choices involves knowing yourself; what you like (your interests), what you are good at (your skills and abilities) and what is important to you (values).
Pick an industry in which you have an interest and don’t be swayed by negative people. Success is often about figuring out what you like and are good at and doing more of it.
It’s common for employers to advertise prospective jobs online, so use your internet search engine to access job listings online and any other websites that may prove useful in your search for work.
Writing a resume
Once you have decided on your career and found a position that you believe may be the right fit, you need to write a resume to your prospective employer.
Resumes are your best marketing tool and should be succinct and readable. This is the document that shows you have the right qualifications and appropriate experience to meet the requirement for the job and the employer’s expectations.
You can be as creative as you like with respect to your resume, however, ensure the document provides
- contact details
- opening statement
- list of key skills, technical-software skills
- personal attributes
- career overview
- educational qualifications
- employment history-volunteering-work placements
- references-referees
Interview tips
It’s often said employers make up their minds about a prospective employee within three seconds of their meeting. So it’s important to allay any nerves and feel confident about yourself and abilities at interview.
If you are called for interview, practice your communication skills before the interview. Develop a compelling story about yourself and tailor your story to the job.
