Going back to work : a practical guide to re-entering the job market

289 Pages·2007·14.133 MB·English

by  Longson, Sally

GOING BACK
TO WORK
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REVISED AND UPDATED FOURTH EDITION
GOING BACK
TO WORK
A practical guide to
re-entering the
job market
"An absolute must for anyone
who is beginning this new
Phase of life."
INSTITUTE Of MANAGEMENT
S A L LY L O NG S ON
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All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or stored in an information
retrieval system (other than for purposes of review) without the express permission of
the publisher in writing.

The right of Sally Longson to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted
by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

© Copyright 2006 Sally Longson

First published in paperback 2006
First published in electronic form 2007

ISBN: 978 1 84803 131 9

Produced for How To Books by Deer Park Productions, Tavistock
Typeset by PDQ Typesetting, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffs.
Cover design by Baseline Arts Ltd, Oxford

NOTE: The material contained in this book is set out in good faith for general guidance
and no liability can be accepted for loss or expense incurred as a result of relying in
particular circumstances on statements made in the book. The laws and regulations
are complex and liable to change, and readers should check the current position with
the relevant authorities before making personal arrangements.
Contents
Preface xi
Illustrations xii
1 What's Your Motive? 1
Joining the club 1
Making choices 2
What's motivating your comeback? 3
Do you want a job or a career? 5
Do you plan to live to work 7
Acknowledging your essentials 8
You're in control 10
Summary 12
2 News From the World of Work 13
Picturing the workplace 13
More careers, new careers 15
Changing career paths 16
Employability - what does it mean? 17
It's never too late 18
Acknowledging different ways of working 19
Summary 22
3 So What's Your Game Plan? 23
Setting goals 23
Achieving your goal 27
Exterminating your gremlins! 27
Boosting your confidence 32
Assessing your assets 33
Enlisting a careers expert 35
Summary 37
vi Going Back to Work
4 So What Next? 38
Assessing yourself is a must! 38
Going back or moving on? 39
Returning to what you know 40
Shifting career 44
Re-inventing your career 45
What are your values? 48
Summary 50
5 What's Your Dream Job? 51
And why aren't you doing it? 51
Taking action on passions 52
When you were 5... 54
Working with your interests 55
Who or what do you want to work with? 58
Who do you want to serve? 58
Knowing your values and needs 60
Summary 64
6 What Do You Want to DO? 65
Defining work 65
Boosting your basic skills 67
Transferring your skills 68
Using job-specific skills 74
Being an entrepreneur 77
Managing and making things happen 78
Providing the hands-on 79
Considering results 80
Deciding what you want 81
Summary 82
7 Tried and Tested ... You Plc, Them Plc 83
Knowing yourself 83
Key questions to ask 85
Assembling your essential toolkit: resources 88
Finding reliable resources 93
Attending careers fairs 95
Tapping into professional organisations 96
Summary 98
Contents vii
8 It's Your Business 99
Where do you start? 99
Knowing why businesses fail 100
Accessing support to start up 103
Considering how to work 106
Sorting out practicalities 108
Summary 110
9 Training, Learning and Boosting Your Skills Base 111
What will adult education really be like? 112
Training for a job 113
Learning, learning, learning 116
Do I really n 8
Adding up past learning 120
Financing study 120
Juggling life and study 123
Taking a refresher course 125
Summary 127
10 Confidence and Skills Boosters 128
Getting work experience 129
Making the most of voluntary work 129
Accessing government help 133
Enlisting support 135
Trying and testing first 137
Knowing what makes an organisation tick 137
Going back to your old company 138
Summary 140
11 Your Job Hunting Tool Kit 141
Contact me! 141
Updating your image 142
Pulling your resources together 143
Making the most of opportunities to prepare 146
Highlighting your assets 148
Turning negatives into positives 149
Summary 150
viii Going Back to Work
12 Marketing and Promotion 151
What do CVs include? 151
Writing a winning CV 152
Analysing a CV 153
Examining different styles of CV 161
Getting feedback 164
Summary 165
13 Hunting for That Right Role 166
Networking for success 167
Unsolicited applications 169
Going through the Internet 171
Using recruitment agencies 173
Responding to advertisements 176
Creating new strategies 179
Summary 181
14 Writing to Apply 183
Evaluating the job 183
Reminding yourself of your assets 185
Some golden rules 186
Completing application forms 187
Composing a covering letter 189
Summary 190
15 Interviewing ... You and Them 192
Right interview, wrong day 192
Dressing the part 193
Understanding the process 195
Preparing questions and answers 196
Handling interviewers 199
Following up 201
Summary 203
16 Blasting Barriers 204
Resistance from friends and family 204
Tackling sweeping statements 207
Looking at your partner's point of view 208
No experience? 210
Contents ix
You're never too old! 211
Just out, now about 212
Using new stratesies 214
Summary 216
17 Managing the Return 217
Landing the role, securing the deal 217
Starting out on day one 219
Dealing with your colleagues 220
Contributing to the organisation 221
Continuing to learn 224
Summary 226
18 Managing Life, Work and Fun 227
Buying yourself time 227
Looking after yourself 229
Changing relationships 230
What are you tolerating? 232
Getting support 235
Summary 239
19 Creating Change 240
A changing world 240
Creating and responding ... your organisation 241
Changing roles 242
Constantly employed 244
The sky's the limit 245
Remembering the benefits of change 247
Celebrating ... life's too short not to! 247
Summary 249
Further reading 251
Useful addresses 255
Index 265