| Career Development And Change Advice Blog |
| Career Advice, Job Search, Redundancy and Career Change |
It is that time of year again. “I can’t face going back to work, I really am going to do something about it this time”. You know the feeling, you might actually be one of those whose new year resolution will be to make a career change, to find a career path you really enjoy. Or will the economic climate hold you back? (more…)
It is olive picking season on the North African island where we spent the last few days. An activity in which the entire population of the island takes part, even the children; it is how they spend their their school holidays. The adults are not so lucky, they have to fit olive picking into their normal working routine. And they may already be holding down two or three jobs.
It couldn’t happen could it? The recession deepens, interest rates fall to zero, investors continue to take their money out of sterling and move it into the global currencies, the dollar and the euro which are larger and more stable. This in turn acccelerates the fall of the pound which trades at fifty percent of its current levels, and suddenly all the people who have come to work here from Eastern Europe realise they could be earning more at home.
If any season is volunteering season, this is it. It is when people who just don’t get the opportunity during the rest of the year find the time to work in a local shelter or soup kitchen, or to help out with activities being organised by local groups and clubs. And afterwards, as the winter holiday season is drawing to an end and the prospect of returning to work is looming, the refrain is generally ‘I enjoyed that; I wish I could do it more often’. Well, you can. (more…)
At this time of year the working population divides into two groups. Those who take an extended holiday until new year and those who go to work, at least some of the time. Those who go to work are similarly divided into two camps; those who don’t mind and those who resent it. If you resent it, what can you do?
The debate over whether to bail out Jaguar raises old political questions. Interventionism versus Free Markets, Socialism versus Capitalism. But what seems to have been missed in the discussions is the question of personal choice. Should individuals be content to allow their working lives to be controlled by decisions made by their employers and by government. Or should they expect to be in control their own careers?
Three Carer Energy clients announced yesterday that they had got jobs. And two more lined up interviews. Yet we are are in the middle of an economic downturn and unemployment is rising. What’s going on? How did they do it?
Nearly two million unemployed, and of course the true figure is much higher because so many people do not register themselves. In the last recession there were eternal debates about the real level of unemployment, with the opposition claiming that the government were forever changing the way in which unemployment was counted. But these are numbers, and behind each number is a personal story.
With US interest rates now close to zero and UK rates threatening to head the same way the threat of deflation is becoming more real. The danger of deflation is that prices continually fall and as a result people put off making buying decisions, because they expect the price to be cheaper next week. The effect on the economy can be devastating, because all trade dries up. And there could be a serious impact on your salary too. (more…)
Imagine this. You have worked for a company for, say, fifteen years. You have been a loyal employee and the company has been a good employer. Your salary and bonuses have always been paid on time, the company has invested in your personal development and you have made a positive contribution to their success. Then one day the boss walks in with a long face, puts his hands up and says “Sorry but the whole thing has been a scam, there is no money left, the fraud squad are investigating me and you are out of a job”. There is not much you can do about it now, but could you have done anything better?