Community Employment Resource Centre
What’s inside?
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10
Tips for the Stay-at-Home Parent … Part II
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And
the Winners are …
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Career Week
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Coping
with Unemployment
10 Tips for the Stay- -at-Home Parent … Part II
By Susan Heathfield
You
CAN overcome an employment gap and the feared gap in your resume
timeline. Use these tips to stay ready for the workforce even during an
extended stay at home.
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Volunteer in
Community, School and Civic Organizations: Challenging volunteer work can help to fill the gaps in your resume
whether you return to your original career or create a career change in the
future. Do invest thinking time in determining what kinds of volunteer work
will be the most strategic for your longer-term goals. Serving as president of
the school board is likely worth more, when you return to work, than sewing
costumes for the school play. Do both if you have the time and energy – they
fulfill different aspects of your spirit. Do think about how the volunteer work
will appear on the resume and stress contributing in volunteerism related to
your future employment.
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Keep Your
Resume File Updated: Keep
track of new skills and activities you have developed and experienced during
your time away from the workforce. Keep
the resume file filled with notes about your volunteer work and other
contributions. When you want to return to work, you’ll be happy you kept good
records of the time you were unemployed.
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Create a
Small Business and Work Even a Few Hours a Week: Think creatively. A mom I know just left the
workforce to spend time with her eleven-year-old daughter. She is launching an
Internet home baked doggie treat business. Active for years in Greyhound
associations, she has identified her initial customer base and plans to expand
from there. Write for newspapers, magazines and businesses; develop marketing materials for
organizations; sell your professional expertise as a consultant; make candles
or other crafts; design and maintain gardens; operate a daycare center or a
home-based school; design and build websites; paint, wallpaper and decorate
homes and businesses; cater special events; and provide virtual office
assistant services over the web.
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Keep Your
Skills Current: Can you
imagine a computer programmer finding a new position after five years outside
of the workforce? Neither can I. Not unless she can demonstrate current skills.
Fields such as banking, employment law, securities and financial planning
change quickly. Attend school, take graduate seminars, participate in online
learning and read to stay current in your field. Your local college may have
classes you can audit if you can't pay tuition. No, a quick refresher class
won’t help you out in most fields when you decide to return to work or change
careers. Keeping abreast of your field every year is the best way to stay
employable at something you’d like to do.
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Use the
Time at Home to Change Careers: Maybe it’s time to try something new. A time away from work is perfect
for pursuing career options and learning more about yourself and your
interests. If
you decide to change careers, you can invest the time to earn a needed degree.
Or, you can spend your volunteer or home-based business time on skills needed
for the new career.
·
Consider
Part-time Work: Work
part-time in your field, your career change field or just to keep your work
record fresh. The money may also come in handy for the family or to fund your
future goals.
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Consider
Job Sharing: Many people
have chosen to leave the workforce for periods of time. According to the Wall
Street Journal, the percentage of mothers with a child under one-year-old who
are working, dropped to 55 percent in 2002 from 59 percent in 1998. This
reverses a thirty-year trend according to the Census Bureau. Employers may have
to consider creative ways to keep valued people working or to fill hard-to-fill
positions. Job sharing, either half days, or splitting the week can work for
both the employees and the employer if lines of communication remain open. And,
the shared work may work best for all concerned when two talented people invest
their energy in the same job.
With
a consistent investment in yourself and retaining your job and career
relevance, you can overcome an employment gap. Choose to be prepared for the
day when the hiring manager asks, "What have you been doing for the past
ten years." You can respond, "A lot. I'd like to tell you about that
time."
And the Winners are…
The winners of our
wellness packages are:
Melissa Davey & Tina Cole
of Cobourg
Brenda
Phillips & Jacqueline Durrant of Port Hope
Congratulations to our winners!
Next Wellness draws:
October
1st, 15th and 29th
Career Week
October
31 – November 6
Visit
CERC during the week of November 1 – 5th and learn all about
interesting career options– Policing, Culinary Arts, Hospitality, Construction,
Education, Transportation and more.
Pick up a free job search package and lots of helpful resources.
Coping with Unemployment
From: www.cmha.ca
When you lose your job, not only is your usual source on income gone,
but also your personal work relationships, daily structure, and an important
sense of self-purpose. Unemployment can
be, and often is, a shock to your whole system. You can experience some of the same feelings and stresses that
you would if you were seriously injured, going through a divorce, or mourning
the loss of a loved one. You can go
through some or all of the stages of grieving just as you would with any other
major loss.
You will probably feel as if you are on an emotional roller
coaster. You may be shocked, angry, or
deny that anything bad has happened to you.
You will probably worry or feel anxious about how you are going to pay
the bills. This can also make you feel
frustrated and depressed. Feelings of
frustration, anger, hope and excitement will all come and go while you are
looking for a new job. The roller-coaster
ride can often keep going until you find a new job. You are not alone in your feelings.
Why you? Your job is a very
important part of your self-esteem.
When you lost your job, your self-esteem may have been diminished. You may even begin to feel worthless; it is
a common response.
Try to be realistic about why you lost you job. Was it something beyond your control, such
as financial problems or political decisions within the company? Or were you somehow responsible?
If you decide that you really were responsible for losing your job, do
something to improve your job skills.
Consider going back to school if you can do it.
Tips about how to cope with unemployment
To help you keep your stress level down, your confidence up, and your
health and relationships strong, you should develop some special strategies
while you are unemployed, such as:
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Establish a
daily schedule including a regular time for job search activities.
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Set daily
goals that you know you can accomplish.
Go for a walk, go to the library, call a friend.
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Use your
networks. Tell everyone you know what
kind of work you are looking for, and ask if they know of any jobs or any
companies that employ people with your skills.
Your friends, relatives and acquaintances may not think of mentioning
contacts to you because they don’t have a clear idea of what kind of work you
are looking for. Remember, many people
get their jobs through “word of mouth”.
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Read some
books or take a workshop on stress management techniques. Everyone is under extra stress when
unemployed, and you could save yourself and your family from additional
emotional strain if you learn some effective stress management skills.
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Volunteer to
help someone else. Both of you will
feel better (and you can add this experience to your resume).
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Keep busy and
stay active outside your home.
Isolating yourself at home will not get you a new job and can lead to
additional mental and emotional stress.
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Before you go
to bed, prepare a written plan for the next day. It will give you a reason to get up in the morning.
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Pursue the
hobby you always wanted but never seemed to have time for.
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Check into new
career opportunities or the possibility of continuing your education.
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Keep regular
hours, and get regular exercise. Limit
your intake of caffeine, cigarettes and alcohol. When you do get a job, you want to be in good shape for it.
