On The Spot - January 2008
Welcome to this month’s edition of “On the Spot”
SPOTlight on: January
There are two ways to look at it: festivities over, plates finally picked clean, bedraggled decorations returned to the attic and only the dark dawns and drear days of January in prospect. Or, alternatively, a time to review the past year, take a fresh glance at your plans and move into 2009 with, as the old song says, “hope in your heart”.
Let’s face it, we can all feel a little jaded after the indulgences of December - after you with the Alka Seltzer, please. But if your career is in the doldrums, a remedy isn’t quite so easy to come by. You might feel that you’re in the wrong niche – square peg, round hole - or you could still be searching for that elusive first foothold on the professional ladder. If the former, it may be tempting to use the New Year as an excuse to throw in the towel, but, to be honest, that old cliché “with a single bound he was free” rarely works outside schoolboy fiction. (Ladies, this is equally true for the fairer sex). Switching careers takes planning, research and a certain amount of waiting for both the correct moment and the right opportunity. Use the darker evenings productively. Investigate the possibilities that are out there and don’t neglect a spot of self analysis too. What are your skills, what do you enjoy, what’s worked or gone awry in your current role? Sometimes you need to look back in order to move forward.
The above also holds good if you are still searching for your first graduate post, except that the final part of your quest might be to examine your job hunting tactics. If applications and CVs aren’t getting you noticed, is it time to give these a little bit more of an X Factor? Or if there is a distinct lack of jobs on the horizon, what strategies can you come up with for tapping in to the “hidden” job market? A high percentage of jobs are never openly advertised. Speculative approaches or getting in under the wire via placements and casual work may have more mileage than standard techniques.
Off with the old and on with the new: take 2009 by the scruff of the neck and give it a good shake. A happy and prosperous new year to you all and remember, you are not alone: Domino will be delighted to help with any of the above.
Tempting Temping?
Some doom and gloom merchants are saying that temporary workers may be under threat in the current recession. Call us contrary, but Domino begs to differ. We actually think that they might be in more demand – lower overheads and no lengthy commitments may make them more attractive to employers. Temp and part-time work is a great way of “tasting” a particular career, building up experience - even if it is at a lower level than you would like - and, often, getting a foot in the door. Don’t ignore vacancies because they aren’t permanent or full time – they are a proven way of finding something more long term.
This Month’s Nugget Of Information
Prophetic or what? Only weeks after Domino noted that it was likely that more and more graduates were looking to the public sector, lo, this has indeed come to pass. Figures reveal that applications to the Civil Service have shown a marked rise. Ditto just months after we pondered whether traditional vacancies would slump, university careers services are reporting that, while the usual suspects are still recruiting, they are asking for fewer candidates than in recent years. Now further reports suggest that droves of ex City workers are queueing up for teacher training places. Is this a cause for concern? Obviously in these straitened times, your career journey may be longer and the ride may be bumpier than you expected. But fasten your seat belts and go for the burn. More applicants for fewer jobs does not mean that you will be squeezed out: we’re talking quality not quantity here. Employers will pick the people best suited to their vacancies, not those looking for any port in a storm. If you target areas to which you are best suited, you have as much chance of finding a safe haven as anyone else.
Dear Aggie: our agony aunt has the answers.
Zodiac Sign of the month - Capricorn
The little mountain goat is nothing if not sure footed, patient and determined. Great attributes on the mountainside, not to mention the rocky terrain of job seeking – particularly if you are aiming for the verdant pastures of the creative industries.
Q-I left uni in June with the intention of becoming an advertising copywriter, but all my applications got nowhere. Now I’ve got a 2 week work placement with a small agency but I’m not sure if or how it’s going to help me. I keep thinking it might be my only opportunity to make an impact and I’m nervous about messing it up.
A-You’ve done well to get a placement – no agency would offer you this unless they thought you had some potential, so why anticipate stormy weather rather than calm waters? With any kind of work experience the thing to do is to take everything that’s thrown at you and give it all you’ve got – 110% is the minimum recommended amount. Be willing to work hard, stay late and do any routine tasks with a smile on your lips and a song in your heart (how are your biscuit distribution skills by the way?). Even in the most humble of roles you can learn, observe, ask questions. File all this away for use on your CV later. And of course, if you’re given an actual creative assignment, grab it and savage it to death.
The media world is no place for shrinking violets, so make yourself “visible” and don’t be frightened of putting forward ideas and suggestions. Better to be thought of as over eager than half hearted.
Good luck and bear in mind that this is a golden opportunity, not the last chance saloon.