you know when all you lovely people give advice...

Emmzi

you are allowed treats.

missed you while you were away!

why not spend the weekend looking at job sites randomly and see what appeals??

lots of options.. banks like people from retail who can sell , and sometimes pay for professional exams for you...

hotel reception can be interesting...

admin and secretarial usually has good cakes ...

classroom assistant pays bad but can be rewarding...

and hundreds more out there! No rush to choose!

CV advice available when you are ready.

postingalwaysposting

thanks emmzi... i have already seen 2 jobs, one dealling with 999 calls and the other scanning documents i need to sort my cv first though... i have most of next week off (except 2 days) so next week i am really going to push myself thansk for the offer of help with the cv, peb is helping me out too with that but i get stuck on the bits where you have to talk about yourself, i hate this, and mine always ends up negative

Emmzi

pm'd you something to help decide.

RAS

Emmzi wrote: »

you are allowed treats.

missed you while you were away!

Posting

Nearly mailed this earlier, before we all told you how great you are!

Now that you are on an even keel financially, maybe it is time to start budgeting how to spend.

I know it is early days and ideally you need to get three months salary tucked away, but rather than feeling guilty every time you spend money, this month, budget a small amount for "things I would like", downloads, a meal or a day out, clothes, what ever. Thats your allowance and you can do with it what you want.

Next month, when your finances are a bit more secure, you might want to increase that slightly. Bear in mind what tesuhoha said as well. To get a job, you need to invest effort and money in yourself.

These days, I care bu**** all how I dress for work, most of the time, because the dress code is pretty relaxed. If I worked in other environments, I would have to wear suits etc. When I was further down the ladder, I always dressed as if I was one step further up the ladder than I was. When I was job-hunting, I went out (in the sales admittedly) and bought a good suit or jacket, which I teamed up with cheap T-Shirts and blouses. I also made quite a lot, which allowed me to use good fabrics at a low cost.

For the next few months, cost in a couple of good hair cuts (not mega-salon jobs) preferably in a style which you can wash and go. When you see someone who is your size and looks good, tell them and ask where they bought their outfit. They will be flattered and you get free market research.

Work keep piling stuff on you. Make a list of all those extras and put it up here. Because this is what your employer thinks you are particularly good at. Then it can be put into CV words.

re CVs and job hunting. Most employers will ask you to complete an application form. They will also have person and job specifications. You need to learn how to address these (it is not hard). If you send a CV instead, you will not get shortlisted. This is particularly true for any admin job. They want to know that you operate procedures well and if you cannot make the application in the way you have been instructed, forget it. For the last job I advertised, half the applicants did not even get sent to me by personnel, as they had only sent in CVs.

So well done. Treat yourself to another download, or whatever you want.

peb

Right PAP, if need be I (or one of the others here) can help you bulk out your CV. Useful for sending out on spec (which does often work in legal) and as an aide memoire when doing application forms. As RAS says if you do not answer the questions on the forms you will get nowhere; I have to say I have never seen an application form for my type of work although did when I applied to the Local Authority (not enough money!).

I know it is possible to do some typing qualifications (building on from CLAIT) online - can you look into it? Otherwise clothing; Sols can be very boring and traditional. I was recommended not to wear trousers for interviews but as I am uncomfortable in a skirt seem to have got away with it. BUt do invest in a dark trouser suit - as mentioned before ASDA; I got one for £25.00Don't go for a coloured suit as although more progressive firms may be ok smaller ones do not like it navy, black, grey are all fine.. Once you are in a job you can see what everyone else is wearing. Like RAS I usually wear a suit (trouser or very long skirt) with a plain tshirt (ASDA - £3!). I only wear the jacket to see clients; ADMIN staff can get away without the jacket in less formal firms like mine.

taka

PAP don't feel guilty for spending your money! As has been said above you need to make a "me" section of your budget to spend on anything you want! Its like dieting, the more you try to deny yourself things the more likely to binge on crap food (or in this case feeling guilty for spending money on yourself). Even of you only set £10 aside then you would be able to spend it on anything including things like music without the guilt! You are saving for good reasons but you still have to have some enjoyment too and a small treat once in a while does no end of good sometimes! It makes the sometimes stress of keeping to a tight budget more bearable!

On the job front... have you had a look on any websites that help to narrow down your aptitudes and as a result give you options of careers that would suit your strengths and temprament. I can't think of any at the mo but know I have some details at home so I'll look them out for you when I get home.

The most important quality is to have confidence in yourself and your abilities. Easier said than done I know! I've spent a long time recently having some counselling which has helped me no end to start believing in myself and that I am a worthy and worthwhile person.
Good luck with the job hunting!!

taka

sorry the sites that I have details of all seem to be aimed at graduates . There is however something called Pathfinder at the main library for the city i'm in... Its aimed at all ages and experience and qualifications. Maybe there is something like this available to you via your library or Jobcentre? Worth a try

postingalwaysposting

hi all

ras ~ yep i do agree and now i have budgeted £50 into my soa, but i did feel really guilty when i downloaded those songs i will try and use money to better myself but buying new clothes will be the hardest... but it will need to be done when i apply for jobs i will remember to fill in the application form rather than just sending my cv thanks

peb ~ yes i will look online and see if there are courses/online things to build up my computing skills, i am looking at getting a typing disc because i have forgot that i will deffinatly look into a suit hope they do my size then once i get a job i will 'test the water' and if need be i may get some more 'nicer' ones

taka ~ yes i agree i made this thread because i was saving everything so i went mad and got back into debt, i dont want that to happen again so i have budgetted £50 but i must say if i do any overtime that will go into a 'me' budget just incase i will look for a website that maybe does what you say... it would be intresting to know what it come up with... i am getting confidance slowly but its one of those things that take a lot of perseverance and time but i will get there... thanks

postingalwaysposting

hi all... another day :rolleyes: not much happening... all but 2 of my auctions have payed, they have payed but through echeque so i need to wait till it clears, so i made quite a nice sum (in my paypal account) but i have had to shell out £36.09 so far on postage... last lot going next week (but have a postal order for some of those) then the odd two when the payments clear but i made about £150.00

works the same... dont really want to be there but such is life :rolleyes:

postingalwaysposting

great what a dipstick... when i started up my sainsbury card i set up a standing order to sainsbury for £50... guess what... i forgot about it and it has been taken... resulting prob in my getting charged too :mad: i have just sent my letter to close the account so i have prob lost that £50.00 too :mad: so now i had to take £30 out of my savings fund to but my account back into my autorised overdraft :mad: so this now means i am £100 down before pay day and have all of £30 to send the reamining ebay parcels :mad: :mad: :mad: great!