🤞 Job hunters lounge 🤞

[CliveNextDoor]

Come and hang out with us here in that horrible space between endless applications, waiting and interviews.

Thanks @Soccermumamir, a break will do you good. Enjoy the stress free time!

Got an interview next week for an assessor for early years in a 6th form college. I'm so shocked. Been a primary school teacher for nearly 30 years and retiring next year at 56 so this would be a great part time job to boost my pension.

I'm mildly terrified as I've not had an interview for 23 years.

I have an interview on Tuesday for the internal role I went for and really want! It would be so amazing to start 2025 in a new role (and away from my terrible current one!) fingers crossed!!

Good luck @BG2015! Mine is on Tuesday. I'm going through all the potential questions they will ask in my head x

Great news, @BG2015 and @ToddlerMumma so good to have interviews to give you hope!

Years ago someone said to me about interviews - see them as an exciting opportunity to get what you want, not a nerve wracking experience you could fail. Basically channel those nerves into excitement!

If it's meant to be it will be. Etc. I find it hard to remember this sometimes!

@ToddlerMumma me too!

Next week I won't sleep 😩

Didn't get the job where I had to do the AI interview on Willo.

Got another interview this Monday.

Bit uncertain whether to comment here because my few posts have been met with nothing but judgement. I'm a young mum trying to start her career path, I have 4 children and I cannot seem to get past the interview stage. My nerves get too much and I mess up what I want to say, every bit of knowledge I have disappears and I'm the equivalent of a potato, just sat waiting for my brain to catch up. Hoping I find my breakthrough and get to start my career path.

Ah @Sae3005 I'm just the same. On paper I can answer questions brilliantly, but in the hot seat my brain and mouth will not work together. Every negative thing I think comes tumbling out and I blather at them.

I know interviewers know people are nervous, but it's so frustrating knowing that some people are naturally brilliant at interviews, often not great at the actual job.

Not sure what the answer is, but it sounds like you're doing great with so much already on your plate.

@Sae3005 it’s nerves at interview stage for me that’s the blocker too. The only way I have been successful at interviews is when there’s a pre written presentation with notes to deliver, or when it’s an interview on teams and I literally have a script for myself on the screen.

I’m interviewing for my own job in a couple of weeks (am at risk of redundancy and there are two of us going for it) and I’m going to memorise some answers beforehand to stop me being a potato.

The recruitment market is mental at the moment, and even worse post budget. Things will hopefully stabilise and get back to normal at some stage.

I am the same when it comes to interviews. Fine with questions about the company, job, what does great customer service mean to you.

its the STAR questions I fluff up on. Even with crib sheets with pointers/phrases - you can get away with this on Teams/Zoom interviews.

Also they ask questions which I don’t have anything written down or practiced an answer on.

Interviews are so scary. I find my mouth feels claggy and dry and I listen to my voice and the words coming out of my mouth just sound stupid.

I'm a teacher and would rather stand in front of 30 5 year olds than 4 adults. 😂

@BG2015 me too especially when they ask you to describe yourself in 3 words or ask when you have made the most impact in a lesson. I have been teaching quite well for 28 years but am awful in interviews. I especially like my skill at talking for ages about stuff but not actually answering the question!

I don't think that's an unreasonable request from an employer although if its not right for your personal circumstances that's fair enough. Presumably they'd pay travel and possibly accommodation. I can get 200 miles away by train in less than 2 hours so not too onerous a request.

I live in Leicester. Can't remember the town where the HQ was, it was about 15 miles from Exeter. Train have to change twice - Brum New Street and then Exeter.

Dropping back in to say hi and wish everyone luck who has an interview coming up.

I’m a bit frustrated. I’m getting interviews for roughly 80% things I apply for and going though to final rounds maybe 60% of the time but not getting the job - and a lot of these are freelance contracts or part time things that are a little below my experience level (there’s a good reason I’m applying for them though - I’m freelance but would like a part time gig for a bit of guaranteed income, and I’ve had a bit of a career change in the last 3ish years so while I have XX years’ experience in my practical skills, I only have 3 years experience in this particular sector).

When I apply for higher level stuff I have a much lower success rate. But the latest knockback from a pretty underpaid junior part time role has pissed me off, I could do it standing on my head, but they didn’t put me through to round 2. Now, I’m sure people applied who’d worked in that sector for longer but it’s depressing to think people with more years of sector experience are going for such roles.

I have picked up a couple of decent freelance projects so work is still coming in, it’s just frustrating to keep losing out on roles I know I could do.

I was in this exact position a couple f months back and could have written your post word for word. Now I am so glad I got turned down by all the roles where I was punching below my weight but, like you, applied because I was out of work and desperate for income. I eventually got a job at the right level and am loving it. I can see now that if any of the more junior jobs had taken me on, I'd have been bored and frustrated after the first 5 minutes. They could see that when I, blinded by the need to get back in work and earning, could not. So maybe something better is around the corner?

Yes I can see that and it’s a valid point. One job actually did reject me for being overqualified and saying they think I’d get bored - but others, more junior part time ones said they’ve gone with people who have “more experience”! I mean, it’s a sad indictment of the industry that people with even more experience are fighting over these type of roles. I would find them a bit repetitive and unchallenging but a boring 2 day a week gig for some guaranteed income would actually be ideal so I could focus on more prestigious, but less reliable, freelance projects the rest of the time. Maybe they’re picking up on that and aren’t ok with it

Where do you all look for jobs? I’m exhausted from scrolling indeed and hearing nothing back. The Facebook group that someone mentioned earlier in this thread is just full of utility warehouse and MLM type opportunities…. I feel like I’ve hit a brick wall! I’m looking for a hybrid/remote role but can’t find anything! Good luck to all in a similar position 🤞🏻

I use LinkedIn for job searches. But apply directly to the company when I find one.

Ive been at the same company for the last 6 years, current role is remote but set up like a call centre so Im handling 40 - 60 calls a day, financial services so hugely compliance focused. Its part time which has suited me well in the past but I would like to try something new. Ive applied for half a dozen jobs so far and not been invited to one interview or had a call. Ive worked all my life, had a senior management role prior to getting married and having kids and not sure why my applications are getting rejected. Really quite demotivating :(

I am finding the same with myself.

22.5 years of customer service experience - face 2 face and call centre. Plus different sectors - finance (2 employers), communications, entertainment, retail.

Some employers think as I have been in retail for almost 17 years I would struggle there. Also retail is so different when I started v when I left.

It's purely down to oversupply of candidates and lack of jobs. Employers get very very fussy in these kinds of markets and it'd difficult to go sideways of get ang job that's not the same as the previous. I was trying to change sectors but after 5 months out of work reluctantly accepted a job in the sector I was previously in. It's working out well though, nice team decent pay and I just realised you can't have exactly what you want sometimes

Yet they recruit 23 year olds who go AWOL, turn up late, don’t last 2 months.

I do use Indeed a lot but always go direct to the company's website and apply that way when possible. So many jobs on Indeed just don't respond to you