Author Archives: Simon

Interview Help – Beating the Nerves

  By Simon | March 27, 2015 - 1:06 am |
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job-interview-437026_1280When going for an interview it is normal to be nervous and a certain level of nerves will help to keep your mind focused and help with your performance. However, for some their nerves in an interview situation can easily get the better of them and can mean that they fall apart under pressure.

By following the below top tips you can beat those nerves and land your dream job after all:-

Arrive in plenty of time for your interview – there is nothing worse than arriving to an interview late and rushing in all flustered and panicked so ensure you allow plenty of time to get to your interview, ideally looking for a coffee shop nearby where you can sit and have a drink whilst you get your head together before you go to the interview.

Ensure that you wear something smart AND comfortable – the last thing you want is to be fidgeting around in an outfit that you are uncomfortable in, an interview is not a fashion parade and you should look smart and professional at all times.

First impressions count – always make sure that you greet people with a smile and make eye contact with them, know who you are going to meet and when you arrive shake their hand, this shows professionalism and confidence and is a great way to start an interview.

Local Services Helping Young People Get Work Experience

  By Simon | February 24, 2015 - 12:16 pm |
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local-servicesYoung people straight out of school or college can sometimes find it extremely difficult to find work. Most companies are looking to employ people who have some experience of for and therefore can provide references.
This poses a cyclical problem in that without job opportunities how are young people supposed to get the experience that they need?

There are however government backed schemes to help address this problem, and one large on is based in the town of Scunthorpe.
The business is set up with funding, in this case a café and events venue, and then young people are employed on a volunteer basis to work at the venue to learn the valuable skills that they will require for the world of work as well as gaining the experience that many potential employers would be looking for.

With more services available like this one we could really change the attitudes of people living in poor areas of the UK that have high levels of unemployment and open their eyes to the potential of what they can do with a little experience and a good chance to make a go of things.

Employee or Self Employed?

  By Simon | January 28, 2015 - 1:53 pm |
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face-63980_1280That’s the question you should ask yourself if you have applied for/taken a job described as a self employed position or have been asked by your employer to go from employee to self employed while continuing the same duties.

Some employers may call positions “self employed” in order to avoid meeting workers rights if they where employee’s. In reality, it’s the nature of the job, not its title which determines whether it’s a self employed position or not.

Are paid regularly by an employer, not per job completed? Are you instructed in the schedule and how to proceed with tasks by a supervisor rather than organising your work yourself? Does your employer provide tools and materials or must you source your own? If you cannot complete a task, who organises cover/ contractors?

All these things effect whether you are considered employed or self employed under employment legislation, and therefore affect your rights should you have any issues.

Starting Your First Job After Education

  By Simon | December 16, 2014 - 9:38 pm |
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job-search-276893_640People start their first job at a variety of ages. Some people chose to start work straight after their GCSE’s, as soon as they are legally old enough to do so, whilst others may not actually start looking for work until they are in their mid 20’s due to a university course.

Choosing which career path to take has to be decided based on your own personal circumstances and career that you wish to go in to. There is no set right or wrong time, everyone is different and many will follow different routes (sometimes even in to the same job).

When you come to look for your first job, it can be extremely daunting and you may feel a little overwhelmed on how to go about it. Depending on what industry and job role you wish to go for, can determine where you need to look. For example, if you are looking for teaching jobs then these are normally advertised in local papers, government / local authority websites and specialist sites such as TES.

Is Typing Speed Important to Give You a Better Chance of Being Recruited?

  By Simon | November 27, 2014 - 8:28 pm |
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Typing speed is something that a lot of companies are interested in when looking to recruit staff, particularly if you are going through a recruitment agency, but how important is it for the role that you want?

There are many websites available online that offer typing speed tests, this is a good place to begin as you will then know where your starting point is and how much you’ll need to improve by for your ideal role.

hands-545394_640For secretarial work most companies would require you to type between 55 and 80 words per minute, if you work in legal administration that amount is usually higher and can be around 100 words per minute. However it is not just typing speed that’s important as for many role accuracy is just as, if not more, important. Jobs such as a medical cleric or working with data entry must be accurate so therefore a lower typing speed is usually expected.

The highest typing speed role is by far a court reporter, they have to type around 225 WPM however to do this they have a specially laid out keyboard and they are given specific training for this role to ensure they are able to catch every word accurately and quickly.

Whichever role you’re going for the real key is practise practise practise as this is the most effective way of improving speed and accuracy in a short space of time.

Supply Teaching Agencies Charges

  By Simon | October 28, 2014 - 8:32 pm |
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There has been outrage recently amongst supply teachers regarding the amount of money agencies charge to find them work. Some schools have said that they are paying an additional £1000 a week to agencies for the supply staff.

I think we need to take each agency and look at it as an individual, as not all agencies charge the same fees and offer the same advantages to their registered members.

There are, like any industry, some supply teaching agencies that do charge over and above and in return do not help and assist their registered teachers as much as they should. But saying that, there are many agencies out there that are not like that. They of course need to charge a fee for the work they do and if they are offering tips, resources, mentoring etc as part of the package then it is very hard to put a fixed price on that.