Blog Archives
Excelling in your job a s a teacher
Posted on October 31, 2015 at 3:32 pm
Teaching jobs can be very rewarding but they can also be extremely stressful not only having to cope with disruptive lessons but also finding the time to plan and mark work but also to create the material needed to carry out your lessons. On top of this you may also have parent’s evenings and courses / meetings which you need to attend.
So how do you excel in your job with all this pressure? After talking to many teachers they have said that it takes time to work out what works and what does not work and a lot of it is trial and error until you find the best way to do something. It may be that you teach a topic one term and quickly find out that you needed to explain a certain part in more detail or in a different way so adapt your lesson plans for next time. Even experienced teachers struggle with their job from time to time, but knowing how to cope and learning how to improve will make you a better teacher in the long run.
Posted in Jobs
Becoming self employed
Posted on September 30, 2015 at 8:50 pm
If you are thinking about becoming self-employed then there are a number of things that you should consider. Self-employment can work well for many people but it does take a high level of commitment and excellent time management skills. No longer will you have someone telling you that you need to complete a task in a certain time frame, it will be your responsibility to ensure that all work is completed on time and to a high standard. Going self-employed can have implications on your credit rating as many lenders will want to see at least three years’ worth of accounts before they will offer you credit and even then, if you have not made a decent amount of profit you may still get rejected.
If you are considering going down the self-employed route, why not speak to someone that has already done it and get advice from them regarding how they work and keep track of their finances.
Posted in Employment
Finding jobs that match your skill set
Posted on August 31, 2015 at 10:01 pm
With A level and GCSE results just released, many students are now looking for employment. Finding a job that matches your skills and experience can be a challenge as you may not know where to start.
Careers advisors in schools or colleges will be able to talk you through what options you have and discuss the career path you would need to take to get in to a particular job. There may be more than one career path to allow you to get in to the same profession so you may have more than one option available to you.
There are even online sites that you can go on to complete a questionnaire and based on the answers you give, will make recommendations as to what types of jobs you may be suited to and some of them will then even list jobs available in your area that match the job role it suggested to you.
Posted in Jobs
Job agency fees for an employer
Posted on July 31, 2015 at 11:31 am
If you are an employer looking to fill a vacancy that you have you will probably be all too familiar with the usual time consuming process and costly expense of advertising the job and then trawling through a mountain of CV’s the then having to interview a number of candidates before finding the right one.
It is thought that on average it costs a business approximately £4500 to fill a vacancy, this is in advertising and time. Agencies take a lot of the hassle away from you but doing all the advertising of the job, filtering through CV’s and then pre assessing people that you wish to attend an interview.
Agencies charge a fee for their service which is often a percentage of the job roles’ annual salary. This is often why it is a good idea to employ more than one agency to find you candidates as you will only pay the one who supplied the applicant that you employ. Although this is the way most agencies work, be sure to check the terms and conditions of each one.
Posted in recruitment agency
Stuck in a rut at work? Ask for more training
Posted on June 30, 2015 at 9:18 pm
If you feel that you’re bored at work and stuck in a bit of a rut it may be time for a change, not necessarily a change of company but a change of role within your company.
Most good companies will want to retain their staff therefore they will realise that it’s important that their staff have routes available for progression.
The first thing to do if your unhappy in your current role is to have a discussion with your manager, state that you’re happy within the company but would like a more challenging role and would like to know the progression routes for working towards this new role.
Your manager should then help you to come up with a PDP personal development plan where you will discuss any additional training and qualifications that you will need to progress within the company.
Once an agreed PDP is in place then it will be up to you to keep on top of your progression but with a bit of hard work you should be able to move into your ideal role.
Posted in Training
Building a good reputation as a supply teacher
Posted on May 31, 2015 at 7:38 pm
As a supply teacher, it’s really important to build a good reputation in the area you’re seeking work. Word soon gets around about good supply teachers (and bad ones!) and this could affect the amount of work offered. It’s particularly important if you’re after long term placements such as maternity cover. There are a few steps you can take to build a good reputation and an important thing to remember is you’re getting a much higher rate than the class teacher so don’t expect to come in and coast through the day.
Obviously it pays to arrive early and be well presented, it’s definitely better to be over dressed rather than under dressed. If planning has been provided it’s important to stick to it so that the class stays on track. Each school day is important so avoid pointless busy work: make the day count! Make sure the class room is tidy when you finish and that all work is marked properly, too.
Posted in Jobs
How to get a job abroad
Posted on April 28, 2015 at 10:04 am
If you decide that you want to relocate abroad then there are many things to consider such as accommodation and appropriate visas etc. but also there’s the task of finding a job.
Now your search will very much depend on what work you’d like to do, if you want to continue your current career in another country then you’d be best off looking for global companies that offer services similar to what you currently do, it may be that you can find an English speaking company that could be ideal if your language skills aren’t yet up to scratch.
If you’re looking for something part time, more like bar work or working in a hotel then sometimes, as scary as it may seem, your best off getting a flight out there and looking for work once you arrive. To do this you will need to have a small surplus of cash to fall back on in case it takes you a little time to get work but if you are travelling to a tourist area you should be able to get part time work fairly easily.
Posted in Jobs
Don’t give up on a career that you always wanted
Posted on March 29, 2015 at 1:45 pm
You hear it all to often of people spending years and lots of money training to get in to the profession they have always dreamed about for them to leave within 12 months of starting. This may be for many reasons but often it is due to a bad experience at one particular place.
Within every industry there are a number of different locations and often even types of businesses that you can work in and just because one did not work out doesn’t mean that it is the same every where. Try to analyse why you are not happy. Is it the people you work with, maybe its the way the company is managed or even the type of clientele that you are dealing with? All of these can vary drastically from place to place so before you give up on that dream job, why not try going somewhere else doing to make sure that you have given the job a proper chance before making any hasty decisions.
Posted in Jobs
Working as a PA
Posted on February 23, 2015 at 9:21 pm
PA stands for personal assistant and there are many job roles that require a PA to help with administrative tasks and organisation, the most common of these being financial advisers, company directors, chief executives and general upper management type roles.
When individuals are looking for a PA they will most likely be after relevant experience within the selected field along with good IT skills and knowledge of spreadsheets and document writing. They will also require a reference from your previous employer detailing the type of jobs you carried out in your previous role.
As a PA you will be expected to have excellence time keeping and be able to effectively manage a diary of clients/meetings and events to help maximise efficiency.
You may also be require to do audio typing and take calls as well as greet clients and keep on top of the administrative duties in the office.
The pay level varies from role to role so it’s worth asking at the interview about pay scale.
Posted in Jobs
Running Training Courses
Posted on January 25, 2015 at 11:18 pm
If you have been working in a particular industry for a number of years you may have considered running training courses for other people wishing to get in to the industry. Becoming a trainer can not only be a very rewarding job but can also be quite well paid.
If you are interested in going down this route then you need to find out what (if any) qualifications you require. Certain industries require you to have a recognised teaching qualification to allow you to train others, this may require you returning to university or college which may mean that you are out of work for a time. This can have a massive impact on your financial situation and should be considered in detail before going forward.
As mentioned, training can be very rewarding. Knowing that you are responsible for training an individual or group of people to allow them to progress their career will be extremely fore filling.
Posted in Training