Quit..rest ..restart . Diary no.3

another_casualty

Thanks moo. Doubt I'll get anything . Blood and stone spring to mind
I will look into the council tax sooner than anticipated then . Will keep you informed obviously .
Yesterday , I sent off cv to 3 agencies . 1 being Adecco , who are Nationwide. I surprisingly got a callback from one who almost had a position for me . Not being a driver doesn't help .

I uploaded my "full story " cv to universal credit yesterday . When claiming the u c. Online , it wouldn't recognise my last day of employment , so I may have to add my acknowledgement letter of my resignation letter I found . Life is one broken jigsaw puzzle at times ..

I just remembered to put my job searches on the u c website also.
I didn't list everything , as I feel that they may put too much pressure on me and that I'll run out of agencies to list . Whatever..

moo121

Sounds like you're off to a fantastic start then AC!

So, Job Search, how do you make it work for you without spending ages and ages doing it?

Well firstly you need to pick up to half a dozen of the big or relevant job search engines and make an account with them. Then you can specify preferences for your job search such as part time, keywords, postcode plus x miles and set up daily alerts. This will mean that any suitable jobs will be emailed to you promptly.

Some of the search engines will pull up the same jobs, but no matter as at least you won't miss them.

You've already mentioned indeed and the government's universal credit (find a job) sites and both are very good for this. I've used reed and totaljobs and also sector specific sites such as NHS or local authority (WMjobs for midlands). You'll want to look around to suit you.

I've also mentioned Facebook and Linkedin - both are good places to look for jobs. Linkedin is very powerful in suggesting jobs to suit your skills and a lot of employers and recruitment agencies recruit there now, if you get it right they will be contacting you. Facebook is starting to be used for smaller, local businesses and it's easy to use and possibly a better place to find part time jobs.

But in any case, you can use the technology (and if not, here's a learning opportunity) so set it up to make the search easy and to work for you.

Happy hunting!

another_casualty

Thanks moo:)
I've done the totaljobs / reed etc already plus many others. I will not put those on my journal all at once , as I want to have stuff to input for the following weeks and months. I detest Facebook . I have been a member since 2006, where one of the lovely p A's put me on there when I was made redundant . I only go on there about once a year ,if that . Way too many interruptions about who wants to be my friend and who has just baked a cake etc. Plus the format changes often. I still have my old email address on there as log in details . Handy ,as I haven't had multiple emails . As for linked in , I was going to join it, but I doubt if anyone would have anything in my line of work as it's only support stuff that I need . I almost joined , but changed my mind. I pressed the unsubscribe button yet still get random emails asking me if I know Lucy Johnston . No, I do not .
I'll keep pushing forward if I can though

So, today I have condensed the excessive 4 storage crates of "stuff" to just one ..at a push . I will list the other 3 crates on fleabay for 99p to get rid . Still haVe to tidy up the kitchen . What I'm trying to do there , is have the worktop 90% clear at all times . If I can do that , then it's a massive achievement ..

GeorgianaCavendish

AC, I got an email from Ebay that from 3rd March they won't charge listing fees for private sellers ... maybe worth hanging on until then if you can? Although I understand if you've had enough of the clutter and just want to get rid!

enthusiasticsaver

You seem to have been sorting that flat forever AC. Ebay, Facebook selling, gumtree or freecycle are your friends there with getting rid of things you don't use. You have to be ruthless with limited space

another_casualty

Thanks enthusiastic and Georgina
The big mistake I made when settling , was having the wardrobe in the wrong room:o .
When james was assembling it , I had stuff literally everywhere and it was impossible for it to be moved at that time . Having it in the bedroom where it should be , has meant I have finally got my act together . It all seems to be coming together at last . The "stuff" in that crate that I'm keeping , is basically cd digipacks. I have the cds in zip cases, am reluctant to Chuck away the artwork etc.
Also ,photos and some paperwork to dispose of . I am now able to use the whole flat as it should be . I think ..;)

moo121

Great stuff on the job search then and I like your approach to filling in your journal.

I'm conscious other job seekers may read this thread, so take what you want of this advice and leave the rest....

As far as Facebook goes couldn't agree more with you about the amount of drivel and potential to waste time on it but I have an account I check weekly and keep an eye on the jobs and the marketplace. This works for me, perhaps a weekly check would work for you?

For Linkedin I too wondered about the sort of jobs they would cover but it's broader than you think and is especially loved by recruitment agencies. I found that as I had emailed a few recruiters and then I allowed Linkedin to look at my email contacts, I ended up with lots of lovely connections to recruiters who were often posting jobs. Just saying it's another avenue for you. And there will come a point where you need another thing to put in your journal.

Agree that your email will fill up with all sorts of spam and niff naff and trivia as a direct result of you job searching. Gotta be done though

another_casualty

I won't rule Ebay / LinkedIn totally , moo. I know I have to keep my options open . Thanks:)

So, I decided to list the crates on fleabay . I went with their guidance of £9.75 starting price . Plus open to offers . There are three .
We'll see.

I've had a strange / mad idea . As I have credit on my gas and electricity , I was thinking of paying for the year now on one of the bills. Also Wessex water. The only thing that's on my mind there is if universal credit nose into my affairs like an s o a and refuse to pay me
If that's the case, I'll leave it . Any thoughts ?:o

enthusiasticsaver

another_casualty wrote: »

I've had a strange / mad idea . As I have credit on my gas and electricity , I was thinking of paying for the year now on one of the bills. Also Wessex water. The only thing that's on my mind there is if universal credit nose into my affairs like an s o a and refuse to pay me
If that's the case, I'll leave it . Any thoughts ?:o

As you do not know how much you will end up paying for gas/electric/water I am not sure how you can pay for the year now? Of course if you are not on a water meter and your bills are linked to the rateable value the water will be fixed. As far as I know there is no financial advantage to it so I would not do it. I do not know anything about universal credit but I would imagine they look at your income information and not expenditure so I should not imagine they care whether you pay upfront. We have credit on our gas and electric but I am leaving it on there as I am sure the bills will get heavier over the next 2 to 3 months and I would rather be on track or slightly in credit rather than have to catch up.


What is worth paying up front is insurances and telephone land line rental if you have one. These are cheaper when paid annually.

Gigervamp

UC do look at your savings, so if it's higher than a certain point, they expect you to live on them, so I'd leave your credit as it is, and if you need it later, you can ask for a refund.
I'm not sure that the energy company would allow you to pay for a year upfront anyway, due to the fluctuating costs of fuel and usage. It's not like the fixed costs of council tax or tv license.