Tag: career

Maintaining your energy during a long job search – the role of grit

With millions of job-seekers in the UK and tough economic conditions, it would be easily to get disheartened if your job search is taking longer than you’d like. There are more unemployed people than vacancies in the UK, according to the latest UK Labour Market Statistics. 

Constant rejections, being unsuccessful despite getting an interview and, worse, firing applications into an apparent black hole where you hear nothing at all, can all take their toll when you’re looking for a job.  

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Growth mindset myths – how growth mindset can be misinterpreted to hold you back

Many people are familiar with the work of Professor Carole Dweck and her concept of “growth mindset”. (Check out her Ted Talk, The power of believing that you can improve for a 10-minute summary.) 

The idea is that people who believe their talents can be developed through hard work, good strategies and input from others have a growth mindset. Research shows people with this mindset tend to achieve more than people who believe talent is innate and fixed.  

There are a range of misunderstandings and myths around growth mindset which can be misinterpreted, resulting in you holding yourself back.  

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How to retain your talent through career coaching

If you, like many other businesses, you are struggling to retain your talent right now, then career coaching could be the answer. 

Why is it important to retain your people? 

According to news reports, job vacancies have hit a record high as employers continue to struggle to fill roles. In such a fast-changing job market, it’s no wonder organisations are focusing on why employee retention is important.    Continue reading “How to retain your talent through career coaching”

Quiet quitting – shortcut to work-life integration or fast-track to career suicide?

If you’ve been anywhere near the internet, especially LinkedIn, recently, you will have seen plenty of content about quiet quitting – but is it a shortcut to work-life integration or a fast-track to career suicide?  

The answer, as you can imagine, is not straight-forward.   Continue reading “Quiet quitting – shortcut to work-life integration or fast-track to career suicide?”

Why employee retention is important

In a fast-changing job market with roles harder to fill than ever, it’s no wonder organisations are focusing on why employee retention is important.  

With estimates of the cost of recruiting a new person into a role ranging from £7,000 to more than £22,000, being able to hold on to your people, even for a little bit longer, makes financial sense.  

From a cultural point of view, having a stable group of employees gives you more chance of having an embedded and secure culture than if there’s a constantly revolving door. 

And recent research publicised by the World Economic Forum links employee turnover to decreases in product reliability in the manufacturing sector.   Continue reading “Why employee retention is important”

Career gaps – why you shouldn’t be embarrassed and how to explain yours

After the turbulence of the past couple of years, more people than ever now have gaps on their CVs, so this article covers my view about why you shouldn’t be embarrassed about a career gap, and how to explain yours when applying for a new role. Continue reading “Career gaps – why you shouldn’t be embarrassed and how to explain yours”

Returning to work after parental leave

In this third and final blog in the series, Charlotte Speak, founder of Power of the Parent, talks us through her tips about a smooth return to work after parental leave.

Charlotte works to help parents reconnect with their unique strengths, building their confidence and self-worth. She also works with organisations who want to make a positive difference to people by supporting their teams as their families grow. As a parent herself who had a corporate career in recruitment and coaching, she is passionate about the skills and abilities parents bring to the workplace.

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How to stay connected during parental leave

We’re continuing this series of blogs about taking parental leave with this insight into how to stay connected while you’re off.

I personally found this quite challenging when I took my second maternity leave so I was delighted to be able to get the inside track from Charlotte Speak, founder of Power of the Parent.

Charlotte works to help parents reconnect with their unique strengths, building their confidence and self-worth. She also works with organisations who want to make a positive difference to people by supporting their teams as their families grow. As a parent herself who had a corporate career in recruitment and coaching, she is passionate about the skills and abilities parents bring to the workplace. Continue reading “How to stay connected during parental leave”

Preparing to take parental leave – what you need to know

Plenty of people take career breaks to grow, care for, or support their family, but the whole process is fraught with concerns, assumptions and preconceptions.

I talked to Charlotte Speak, founder of Power of the Parent, to discuss some tips and advice about taking parental leave and career breaks for any kind of parenting, including adoption, maternity leave, shared parental, and paternity leave.

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Practising failure – the key to bouncing back

Many people will tell you they don’t like to fail. They might even tell you that they don’t fail. But increasingly research is showing us that practising failure is a critical skill to help us succeed – and that’s as true in our careers as anywhere else. So is practising failure the key to bouncing back?

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What’s a career pivot and do you need to do one?

More people than ever are considering career pivots instead of just looking for the next linear step in their career. I’ve written before about agile career paths, and career pivots are one aspect of creating those.

After such a tumultuous and unpredictable year, many people are seriously reassessing their career options. Whether you’re at risk of redundancy, have discovered a new-found love of working from home that won’t be supported by your current employer in the long-term, or whether a period of furlough has given you chance for reflection, thinking of your career in ways other than it being a straight line is a must.

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Is your job search taking too long?

Once you’ve decided you want a new job it can feel like your enthusiasm for your current one has left the building and all you want to do is get started on a new role. With a job market currently stacked against the candidate, here’s how to stay resilient if your job search is taking too long.

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