Tips on Job Searching

Hello there, 

​I'm writing this today as I have no else to turn to for advice, no one that will listen at any rate.

Despite my best intentions, I have ended up stuck between a rock and a hard place. I work about 12 hours a week in a part time job and am constantly told I am being lazy. The truth is that this is the only job I have ever been good at, but my family tells me constantly to leave and go for anything else... Believe me, I checked, and they haven't, there is nothing else around here job wise.

If the rubbish hours and minimum wage wasn't enough, the place is also going under from lack of customers. Two chefs have already left and everyone else is chasing suit.

If I stick around I may go down with the ship and could just be let off before Christmas. If I leave now I end up being broke and back on JSA, which I promised myself I would never do again.

Is there any advice you can offer? Thanks.

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Hi, King Rusty,
 
Sorry for the slow reply. Can you tell me more about your current job? Are you working in a restaurant? Where in England do you live? What is your educational background? I need more information before I can give you a decent answer.
 
Hugs,
Pbear
 
* * *
Thanks for responding.

I do work in the UK and I do work in a restaurant; it is more of a pub first, though, but the food is the only real reason people have continued to visit this place in the middle of nowhere. Unfortunately, it has gone even more downhill that when I first sent the message to you. The head chef has quit, the sous chef has left after handing in her notice and our best waitresses have left with her as they look for anything better. The place is really struggling now and with the holidays coming up I now worry about how permanent my place here is.

As for my education I would say I did two years at college but harbor no real skills from my time there besides a basic math, English and IT certificates. Nothing astounding anyways.

If you require addition info just let me know.

Thanks!
 
* * *
 
Hi, again,
 
Being that it sounds as if this job is not going to last you, the only reasonable thing for you to do is start looking for other employment (it is always better to interview when you are employed than when you are out of work). I did a little research and see that, for some reason, restaurants and pubs are struggling in the UK and many are closing. However, since that is your work background, I would start looking in food service—at least in the short term.
 
While there might be no openings last time you checked, that can change at any moment, so keep on the lookout for openings and don’t be too picky (pickiness is a luxury you cannot afford right now). Here are some options/advice:
 

1. Network, network, network. Talk to friends, family, and any business people you know and see if they can provide you with leads. Make it known you are looking not because you are unhappy but because you think your current job will disappear.
2. Make yourself more employable: If you like the restaurant business, make yourself more desirable as an employee. If you are a cook, go to cooking school; if you like the business end, you can take classes in restaurant/hotel management. The better combination you have of experience and education, the more desirable you will be to employers.
3. Don’t be too parochial.  If jobs are scarce where you are looking, you might need to broaden your search. Yes, this might mean moving, but if you find a great job 100 miles from where you live that would give you a good income, you should be willing to pack your bags and move.
4. Consider other areas of employment. You said you had some IT certs? Are you good at IT? Then perhaps you should look in this field, which is always in need of good workers.
5. Always keep your ears and eyes open. Job opportunities can come from unexpected places, so don’t be so focused on a specific goal that you become blind and deaf to a spark or whisper that could reveal an open door to a new job you didn’t see coming.

 
Good luck!
 
Papabear