I was living with a friend and looking for admin work, but I was finding it difficult. Being in my 50s, I felt there was a lot of age discrimination and couldn’t get a job. So I contacted the National Careers Service for help.
I saw my adviser twice in person, and we also spoke on the phone and emailed regularly. He checked over my CV and assured me that it was a good one, but advised that I was underselling my skills.
“He helped me to update it, and suggested we do some interview practice, which I was grateful to accept”.
My adviser gave me a lot of useful advice about social media apps and how to use them for job searching. He also guided me on what companies and sectors I could look at working for. We also looked at which would be best suited to my strengths.
We looked at my strengths and weakness in an interview scenario and I was given constructive feedback about areas I could focus on. With my new found skills and confidence I went on to apply for several jobs; I was looking for admin/PA work and I successfully found work. My new company is a small company that is growing rapidly. I’m finding that my suggestions and ideas are being take on board well.
“I definitely would say my adviser gave me confidence to get back into the workforce”.
He reminded just how much experience I have and how valuable that is. You tend to forget these things as you just think no one wants to employ you. I now intend to work full-time for a few more years before scaling back to semi-retirement.
To speak to a National Careers Service adviser, call 0800 100 900 or use our webchat (8am to 10pm, 7 days a week)
