"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars"

In my last full post I talked about getting out of the 9 to 5, run of the mill, chained-to-a-desk type work. There are however a lot of people, who are not necessarily in an office, who work long hours for low pay and who may feel trapped in their work situation. Yet their work is essential to the smooth running of everybody's day to day life. The pay is low and they get little thanks. They are frequently looked down upon by some. Yet imagine what life would be like without the binmen, checkout servers, hospital porters, cleaners, mechanics, farm workers, plumbers or factory workers. It may not be 9 to 5 but it can be very hard work. Thankfully there are people who are still happy to do those jobs.

How have I never heard the term "dreadmill" before?
— Gretchen Rubin (@gretchenrubin) March 8, 2013

For those who are keen to stay in their chosen trade or who are eager to work in roles that society relies on there is lots of help from state sponsored agencies and organisations, ready and able to help them find work where it exists. The services in place designed to help these people are, it seems, not able to help those who wish to get out of that sector, the people who want to take flight, do something radically different, live the dream or go it alone. There seems to be a huge gap in the available advice and assistance for the people in between, the ones who want to get out of the essential services or ordinary office jobs and who want to be like the highflyers. Social mobility? Where is the roadmap for it?

In that recent post I mentioned a few people who have escaped the rat race and gone on to live life on their own terms. They are inspirational and their insights are invaluable. They ooze confidence and give the impression of having had lots of support, great opportunities and to have been given the sense that anything is possible.

For someone who has only lived in the '9 to 5' world, in a company that doesn't use up to date tech, whose family are from the same world, whose friends are in the same sorts of jobs, it can seem like a fairy tale. The photos of a freedom-from-work guru on a beach, in the desert or up a mountain can seem just as far away as the banker in his Maserati living in a penthouse apartment on the Thames.  It doesn't seem real if it is too far way.

I know because that is how I feel. I hope that one day it might be me telling people how easy it is to live life the way you want. But not yet. At the moment I am still at the bottom of that hill looking for the right path to get me a bit higher up. As I search for a way to make my life my own I will continue to post links to advice and guidance, inspirational and aspirational sites and to anything that relates to the world of work in all its forms, in the hope that some of it helps me and helps you to get to the point where we can take flight.


I have two challenges for you today.

1. Next time you see anyone in an essential job, such as those listed above, smile at them, thank them if you can. Just don't ignore them or look down on them.
2. Ask yourself what skills you have to offer the world. Are you good with your hands, good at planning, good at communicating, good at problem solving, good at making people feel good? Think hard about what your basic skills boil down to and how they might translate into your life's work. Go.

*"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars" Oscar Wilde from Lady Windermere's Fan.

March 4 - 8 2013

It's National Careers week.
That means lots of additional information on the internet.
If you are looking for guidance try starting here.

Good luck

Preparing - the last part

You've done all your lists, you now have a lot of words related to your passions and skills.

Now you need to settle down with a beverage of your choosing and go over those lists and give scores to each word.

It can be whatever scoring system works for you; black marks and gold stars, graded from A - F, 0 to 10 or colours.

Focus on each word and think about all the possible connotations or ideas it represents. Think about how you feel about every possible meaning of each word and give it a score. Do you feel all warm and glowing when you consider accounts payable? Do you feel anxious and panicky thinking about sales? Are you indifferent to managing staff? Find a suitable way to score a range of reactions from very negative right up to very positive for the things you love to do most. Even if those things don't seem immediately to be work related.

Now everytime you do a job search refer to your lists. Use them as keywords to search by or for cross checking adverts to see how they match up to your responses.

Keep expanding your lists, keeping thinking about, and feeling your reactions, to each word and any that you add as time goes by.

Make sure you keep your lists handy as you go through your job searches and keep your ears and eyes open for new words, new ideas, new phrases, new skills or new things you love doing.

I wish you all the luck in the world with your job hunt or career move.

Check back here for more in the coming weeks and don't forget to look at the links posted on our Twitter feed - see left!

New year and your big lists

We have just a couple of steps left in the preparation stages.

Take your lists and for every word on them look up some alternatives.

This Thesaurus site is a good place to start.

Look up 

Write down all the synonyms you can find for the words on your lists and in a different colour write down some antonyms as well.

This will be your last list and probably the biggest as you will hopefully find a couple of words for every one you wrote on the previous lists.

For example if you wrote Writing  you will get these synonyms:

autograph, calligraphy, chirography, cuneiform,  hand, handwriting, hieroglyphics, longhand,  manuscript, print, scrawl, scribble, script,shorthand Some of them link to further words you could add. The next step is the last one in the preparation plan.

50th post

A minor milestone.
The first few posts were built from sections of the old website that was lost when the providers changed everything.
Since then there has been a lot of research, reporting news stories and some searching questions about the nature of work.
We joined Twitter and have picked up some interesting tips as well as finding quite a few followers.
So what next? Well as the title of the blog suggests, as well as trying to provide ideas and inspiration for job hunters, we want to find out about how to get into work that is not based around the traditional 9 to 5, job for life, stuck in an office career plan. That works for some people - a lot of people - and the web is FULL of advice for them. But those of us seeking something different need slightly different advice. All the advice we've found and offered so far is pretty generic and will help anyone looking to get into work, we hope, but we need more specifically tailored help.
Some of our posts have been about finding a different path - Setting Up On Your Own, Starting Your Own Business and how to learn Traditional Skills - and some about how other people got into a Dream Job. We have also looked at making some extra income on the side or ways to make your income go a little further.

Skipper

Now we want to focus on those jobs and how to find them and others that are more esoteric. 
We'll still post career and job hunting advice when we find something useful but general advice will be less of a focus for us.
So please tell us what sort of jobs you consider to be dream jobs, what unusual jobs you want to hear about and what kind of work you do.

Very unusual jobs

There are a remarkable number of unusual jobs out there, from flying choppers to guiding rafters. Just try a web search for 'strange jobs' and see what bizarre things some people make their living at. Have a look at Dream Jobs in our tag cloud (on left of our blog).

The BBC got lots of comments from people with weird and wonderful jobs a few years ago, some of which would probably qualify for Mike Rowe's Dirty Jobs.

What's the weirdest job you've ever heard of? What would you like to do that is out of the ordinary? Think outside the box, what unusual service could you offer to a paying customer?

Networking for job hunt success

Who do you know

Networking is often called the most successful technique used in job hunting, above the use of websites to find openings. Networking can mean many things though, from mentioning to a relative stranger that you are looking for a particular type of work through to becoming a well known expert in your field. If you've never use this skill in your job hunt now is the time to learn how, if you have tried it before you can brush up your knowledge a bit. If you are an excellent networker maybe you would like to leave some tips for us in the comments section below.


There is a lot of advice on the web about using social networking sites, and professional networks. If you are seeking work employers may well look for you on receipt of your application so it does well to be in control of what they will find.


One of the biggest and most popular professional networking sites is LinkedIn and, despite some recent bad press, a lot of advice sites still recommend using it to build your personal profile, assess your own expertise and to show off your knowledge and achievements. You might start your LinkedIn journey by uploading a CV. Then build your network by finding people you already know. Don't forget, other people are there to increase their networks too so don't be afraid to approach anyone. Don't discount anyone, for all you know they may have a brother in law looking for someone just like you! Here are more tips about using the site. 

Link up

The biggest social network site is Facebook, it has over 500million users. It is however, most commonly use for social things, and therefore can include photos and information about nights out that might not tally with your professional image. When you start a job search it makes good sense to go over your Facebook profile and make sure there is nothing incriminating, embarrassing or negative about you, including tags on other people's pictures and comments. Log out and search for yourself to see what comes up. There have been some high profile cases of staff being caught out making inappropriate comments about work and losing their jobs over it. In the USA some companies have demanded access to employees' Facebook accounts in order to check for unsuitable posts. I would venture that if you are asked for this you really need to consider whether the company is a good fit to your aspirations, and whether you can work under such scrutiny. On the positive side though, you can use it to show your extracurricular activities such as volunteering, creative projects and enthusiasm for your field. You could even express your excitement and positive response to job interviews (just be discreet about it - e.g. don't mention the company name, you never know who might be after the same job).


Google+, a fairly recent addition to the social network sphere, is also becoming a useful site to use in your job search. With this you create circles of friends and acquaintances, so you can keep work more separated from friends.


Twitter is also a good place to network. It is used by a lot of specialist recruiters, employment agencies and career advisers (including us - @not9to5). Companies from all areas also have presences on there so you should be able to learn a bit about their culture and news, they may even advertise jobs. Again you can use Twitter to express your creativity, ask questions, demonstrate your knowledge and skills and reach out to people you might not otherwise be able to connect with. Just be sure to know the line between demonstration and flat out self promotion. Remember the need for discretion and to build  a positive personal identity. Use hashtags to find information and to make your news findable.


Employers might not directly advertise on a social network site, but you may find connections to people who can point you towards suitable openings.It is also worth doing some web searches to find out if your field has a dedicated networking site. Another good idea is to produce a business card with your email and your Twitter, LinkedIn or other profile information so you can network in the real world as well.

Here is a free ebook that includes advice for shy people as well as some interesting statistics - for example they claim that 80% of successful job hunts result from networking. It reframes the concept of networking in a way that will help introverts to get out there and find their own networks, as well as to understand what they can offer to an existing network.


But if you're not ready to take the plunge into organised networks online, try using your email instead.

The Future

Technology moves on apace and the future could take any number of different shapes, make sure you keep your presence up to date, even if you are in full time work, it's worth it, you never know when you or your employer might decide it's time for a change.


As with so much on the web, the majority of advice is aimed at people looking for regular, commonplace jobs. For those looking for something out of the ordinary, you may have to be a bit more creative. A lot of it is also American so make sure you don't just blindly follow advice: consider its appropriateness to your own culture, whether that be the world of banking or a more bohemian, artistic realm.


N.B. As always, we offer this as advice and recommend you do your homework before you take any single piece of information as gospel and certainly before paying for any services. Don't forget, no link is an island, when you get to another site have a click about to see what else is there.

The Dream and The Toil

We recently featured this speech by Bill Gates which was quite a contrast to these words we featured from Steve Jobs.


But contrasting doesn't make them incompatible. You just need to know that in order to do the work you love, you need to put in the time and effort.

We have previously discussed the need for people to go into the jobs that make the world go round, and in the USA the International Baccalaureate qualification is now offering an alternative that focuses on real life everyday jobs. This article offers a round up of training available in the UK.


We have previously mentioned that a successful job hunt can be thought of as a full time job but it is important not to let the whole process overwhelm you.

Reality Check, by Bill Gates.

Have you seen this recent meme about a speech by Bill Gates?

I think this chimes with our post What Is A Good Job?


Do you think your expectations have been too high? How has life in the real world turned out for you?

CVs and cover letters

There are literally hundreds of sites across the web offering advice on how to present your CV or cover letter.Here are some that we have found that offer some key insights.


Your cover letter should be the place you lay out your personal brand.

The basics that your CV (called a resume in the USA) should include are fairly straightforward. But there are essential items that are important to include, particularly anything the job advert or specification mentions, and there are key mistakes to avoid.

Modern CVs though, need to be creative and stand out from hundreds of others so how can you ensure the HR staff or manager chooses your CV for the INTERVIEW pile?

If you want to start afresh, think about how you can rewrite

Whether you include your online links in your resume or not, employers may look for you on various social websites so be sure your profiles won't embarrass you. If your brand has a great online presence perhaps recruiters will come to you.

Your CV has to stand out.

Does your CV and cover letter stand out? If they were separated in someone's file would they be able to find the different pages and easily identify them? It's not usually advisable to make your CV look outlandish, but consider something that will tie all the pages together. If you have a well defined online presence, is there a theme you can apply to your stationary that will help tie it all together? It could be as simply a a plain blue line along the bottom of every page, or having your Twitter handle at the top. Think of something personal to you, but you might a want to avoid rainbows and kittens unless you are planning to work in a field they relate to.

Happy at work

I just had to share this article from The Guardian about Zappo Shoes in the USA.


http://www.guardian.co.uk/sustainable-business/zappos-shoes-profits-happiness-business?newsfeed=true

And don't forget these words from Steve Jobs.....






How important is it to you to be happy at work?

Interview skills

There are lots of tips on how to conduct yourself in a job interview. Here are just some of the ones we found online.

• First up do your homework.
• Be properly prepared.
• Make sure you take all you need with you.
• Here recruiters offer some advice.
• What to say when asked 'tell me about yourself?'
• What questions will you ask? Prepare a list of things you need to know at interview and in any calls before or after.
• After the interview consider following up with your interviewer.

The key thing is to do what makes you feel confident about yourself and your ability and suitability for the position you are being interviewed for. If that means wearing your lucky socks or favourite lipstick then go ahead and make yourself more confident with whatever tricks you have. 




What tips would you share for job seekers going to an interview?


Finally - a joke about interviews.

___________________________________

Please note we supply these links for information and hope that as you look at websites you will come to be able to assess which are good sites and which are more dubious. Don't forget there is a lot of free information out there so you should make sure you do plenty of research before you think about paying for anything.

Behind the curtain

Take a peek at what the other side, the employers and recruiters, know and read.


The Human Resources Guide  publishes articles for and about human resource management (HRM).


What Jobsite tells recruiters about the relative merits of the job boards you might be using to find jobs and promote your CV. While this article discusses how recruiters view LinkedIn.


Recruiters have their own awards ceremony, details of the 2012 nominees are here.

What job do you want?

I came across this American post recently that includes a table of the numbers of people in the USA employed in different jobs. Have a look through and you'll notice that the highest figure at over 3 million is General Office Clerks, there are 2 and half million nurses, 2.06 accounts clerks and 2.02 million admin assistants. (In August 2010, the American labor force comprised 154.1 million people - see footnote 1) Are any of those positions the sort of dream job you had in mind for yourself?
There are some holes in the figures, I can't see any musicians or actors listed (they may count as self employed so not in a list of employees, unless they are included in Artists).


We've already discussed what counts as a good job, and how the perceived value of some of the jobs with the most employees is lower than it should be. Indeed no company can run smoothly without Admin and Clerks doing the foundation work that supports the sales, accounts and creative teams. In certain organisations the culture is such that everyone gets to enjoy work, whatever their rank or role. 


But this blog is for people who want something out of the ordinary, something that perhaps all those admin clerks aren't doing.

The web is full of sites that are, perhaps naturally, aimed more towards those millions of people in the jobs that are common, frequently up for grabs and easy to research. We have covered some of the basics of job hunting, the kinds of things that apply to all job hunters, and have offered links to some of the websites that offer job ads, advice and tips to the general population. 


For those people looking for something more individual, more esoteric, more unconventional, finding the advice that fits is much harder. Start by looking at the tag cloud on the left of this blog and click Dream Jobs, there are number of posts there that describe less conventional jobs and employment, from musicians to monks. 


Have a look at the posts on Up To Date Jobhunting and the Changing World Of Work  for more about alternatives ways of working and of finding the for you. 


 Make sure your Google search skills are polished, get to know all the other search engines, make sure you use the .co.uk versions and learn to use the web to its fullest. Try searching using related terms to your main search, the bar tending job you want might be listed as amixologist. But don't forget your offline skills. Networking is increasingly vital as a skill in job searching, tell everyone you know about your job hunt and what your aims and ambitions are. Tell your friends, tell your dentist and tell the milkman; you never know who might have just the link you need to make your career jump. 


Is there a professional body for the job you have in mind? You might be surprised. There are organisations for Travel Writers, for Musicians, for Actors and for Clowns. Do they have a regular publication or website that might include job ads? 


Keep updating your skills and make sure your CV and online presence reflect your abilities.


Are you changing career to improve you work life balance? Downshifting gained popularity in the 90s, you might want to try supplementing you paid work with self sufficiency, even if you don't have and land. Or perhaps you are more comfortable keeping several careers on the go. Again, see the tag cloud at left for more on work life balance from this blog.


Where have you found great job advice?






NB - links are provided for information. NotThe9to5 is not responsible for content of other websites.
There is a lot of free information on the web and from other sources like libraries. Make sure you do your homework before you choose to pay anyone for help.
1 - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_of_America#Economy

The up to date job hunt

Things change rapidly with ever growing use and simplicity of technology. It's easy to think that your job hunt can be conducted in the same way as it was when you first hit the job market. But the pace of change means employers have new ways of finding staff.


There is a lot of advice on the web to help prevent you blundering through the process or making faux pas. From the basics of job hunting through to special advice for mature job hunters, to how being a mum is a valuable set of skills and experience. Just type what you are looking for into Google or one of the other search engines out there.


One technique you might find useful is to make the job hunt your job in which you schedule tasks just as you would at work. Look into finding a mentor, someone you know and respect could be just as good as a remote but mega successful star.


Try putting your CV on Pinterest, and Tweeting about your job search.


Most companies have jobs on their website but you may have to hunt them down; look at the top or bottom of the page for "About Us", you may find a link on the "About" page. Have a look at all the big sites and get a feel of how they work and learn to identify less effective sites. Read articles and learn how to use any tools they have. Make notes!     
Keep track of all the applications you've made, whether by automatic processes on these sites or by sending a CV, and note all the phone calls you make or receive and time and date of any interviews.


Despite the great technology, perhaps one of the best thing you can do is pick up the phone (don't forget to keep it charged up). There are also offline places to go to advice, from your local library and job centre to specialist advice for people returning from a long illness.




A lot of the advice online is from the USA, but many of the basic principles will apply in the UK as well.
Don't forget that there is a lot of free advice out there, so before you commit to paying for anything make sure you have done your homework and are going to get value for money.

Job boards

There are a great variety of job boards across the web. These range from a basic listings site which simply enables you to make a search of jobs fitting your criteria to huge sites that offer advice, networking and CV hosting.




Here are some of the main job boards and an idea of what they offer.

• Monster is one of the biggest worldwide job boards. As well as a search function they offer Career Tool and Advice. You can upload your CV for employers to search or join their networking group BeKnown. There is also a facility to sign up for Job Alerts; if you fill out your criteria for a job they will email you with matching jobs as and when they come up. They also have iPhone and Android apps and Advice Forums. You can connect to them via Twitter and Facebook as well. Monster is also an international company so try their Site Selection page to choose a new location abroad for your job hunt.
• Jobsite is a British site that started simply as a Jobs By Email (Job Alerts) site. It has grown to include Searchable Jobs, Career Advice, and CV hosting. They are also on Twitter and Facebook. Jobsite advertise on UK TV, currently featuring Max Beesley.
• JobServe, also British, make sure every job and CV is checked by a person to ensure nothing on the site is out of date.
• Total Jobs is another British board offering all the usual services but in their Careers Advice they also offer advice on Life At Work.
• CV Library offer the main services but also promote CVs through a network of other sites, the list of which proves just how many job sites there are out there.

A number of news publications offer a job board with many of the same features as the above boards.

• The Guardian aims at "an audience comprising high quality jobseekers just like you, we only list the highest calibre vacancies"
• The New Statesman  "focuses on attracting the unique and diverse jobseekers reading the New Statesman." 
• Jobsearch is provided by Trinity Mirror Group who publish The Mirror a host of local newspapers around the country and also provide Fish 4 Jobs.
• Jobs 24 comes from Archant who publish a lot of local newspapers.

Then there are the recruitment agencies, many of which have High Street branches, that offer similar services again.

• Reed
• Adecco
• Office Angels
• Blue Arrow
• Hays
• Or try Agency Central to find more specialised or local agencies

Most of these boards and recruiters are generalists, aiming to reach the broadest possible audience. This of course means that the esoteric and unusual jobs you might be hunting for are not listed there, or might be hard to find if they are. It is worth searching these boards though, or setting up email alerts, as that special job might be listed and you don't want to miss it.


You could also try other listings sites that have a jobs section, like Gumtree, FreeAds or Friday Ad.

When filling in your job criteria it is important to get the right balance between specific and general. If your search is too vague then you may find yourself inundated with results that are not close enough to your requirements. If you are too specific you may not get very many jobs. You can widen or narrow your search using criteria such as salary and location very easily, choosing the words to describe the sort of job you want is a trickier proposition and you may need to trial and error some phrases; for example the search term theatre may result in jobs in a surgical theatre, while the word stage may bring up Key Stage teaching jobs,

Please note, all the advice and services here should be free. If you are asked to make a payment for anything please do check the authenticity of the service, even if they claim to guarantee you a job.

Preparing for career change

If you are currently in work or a volunteer role or any other position, but not yet in your dream job, treat it as a stepping stone to your goal.

That is not to say you should spend your hours at work using the internet to find a new job. Look around your offices or workspaces and see what you can learn from it. Even if your aim is to do something completely different, don't forget that a lot of the skills and traits in any job are transferable. Are there opportunities to build relationships appropriate to your dream job? Are there training schemes available, through work or through training providers that will provide extra or essential skills. Can you watch the different arms of your organisation to see how they work and what is or isn't effective, can you learn from managers or directors above and around you? Perhaps some colleagues might even be happy to offer you insight in the field.

Build relationships

It's worthwhile bearing in mind how you are perceived in your job, it may influence references in the future or your working relationships with people who may one become clients or suppliers. Do you have a messy desk,/craftroom/vehicle? Does your personal presentation project the kind of person you want to be? Does your Facebook profile match that image?

Whatever your current position, try to make the most of any opportunities available rather than simply waiting for a better offer.

Where to go when job hunting

The obvious places to look for a job are the big employment websites.

The Guardian Newspaper's Careers section serves a variety of functions for the job hunter, from a search facility and email news on jobs to articles and advice. A high proportion of its content is aimed at graduates and professionals but a lot of the advice is just as applicable to less conventional career paths.

Monster is one of the largest such sites in the world and as such is geared to the most common types of job hunt. It was one of the first such sites, set up in America, but its UK branch is just as extensive. As well as offering job searches and lists of employers, it has a Career Advice section and Career Snapshots giving insight into jobs that are out there. They also publish the Monster Employment Index which is an analysis of what trends in online recruiting have done each month. It also hosts BeKnown a networking app on Facebook.

Similar networks are offered by BranchOut, again on Facebook, and LinkedIn is probably one of the best known networking sites. It is advisable to exercise some caution when sending your CV to any website. Make sure you don't include any personal data, like address or NI number. Never pay for job introductions and try to verify that job offers are authentic via other websites. Be aware of the types of scam you might encounter.

(See also; our post on Online Resumes for more on networking and promoting yourself)

Men at Work

More esoteric jobs though, particularly artisanal or freelance positions will not be suitable for massive job search websites. People looking for such individual employees may well be overwhelmed by large numbers of applicants and so feel that they need to advertise their position to a much smaller audience. This means though that they are harder to find, especially for people looking to move into the sector. Often these adverts will be advertised with professional societies or in trade magazines so it is worth trying to find out what resources are offered in your chosen niche.

Local newspapers are also more likely to have local adverts for jobs in smaller organisations.

Odd jobs

All over the internet there are lists of weird and wonderful jobs, some of them are the sort of thing you could probably find easily, others are a little more esoteric. A lot are american though they are a useful starting point for research on other countries.


The rise of unusual jobs, an article by Hiscox describing how their business in professional insurance has started to see a lot of jobs that are new and unconventional.




Here are some more lists.






Quintessential Careers has found links to a number of specialist job sites for seasonal jobs ranging from theme park work to ski jobs. 


Student jobs with a difference by Mookychick



Fun jobs from Yahoo


Unusual jobs at Employment Spot


Unusual Jobs has a range of articles on different careers, though there are a lot of adverts on the page. Their affiliate Dream Jobs has more articles and links to more affiliated pages at the bottom.


This list of strange jobs by an American blogger is a good place to look for ideas.


Job Monkey lists a lot of odd jobs and also offer some tips on finding the job of your dreams.


If you're flush, or have some pull at a library you could purchase some of the books in this series.

The Basics

Plenty of sites across the web offer tips on searching for a new job. Here are some that should give you a good grounding in the basic skills such as writing a CV, interview techniques and networking. Don't forget to click around each site to see what else they offer.

• Start with checking your cover letter is well written
• Honesty is always the best policy
• eHow publishes advice from professionals on everything from what to wear at an interview to descriptions of particular careers.
• Which shows you the questions you need to know the answers to.
• Monster UK offers advice on  everything you need, click the links in their Expert Careers Advice box
• Practice psychometric tests on the Prospects site, these tests are sometimes used by big corporations.
• Advice from The Guardian on getting feedback on your applicattion
• A really useful article on not appearing desperate.
• Interview advice in video clips from VideoJug, and look at the other clips available
• Advice from Jobsite on interviews
• What to wear for an interview (men) (women) (and don't forget to get your underpinnings fitting well)          NB These videos may begin with an advert.
• And look out for the weird questions some interviewers might throw you.
• Do no overreact to rejections