Umeployment Or Just A State Of Mind?

You might have heard on various local radio stations and other forms of semi-multi media that the latest unemployment figures are out today, with, according to Mark Carter's Breakfast Show of BBC Surrey, our county (Surrey of course) having only an average of 5 people apply for a job rather than 21 or so in neighbouring Kent. Things looking up? Okay, so why the news that managers won't hire you if you've been unemployed for six months?

Despite these figures, one thing that did tweek the nerve endings this morning was the fact that their roving reporter, at a recent Job Fair in Guildford, decided to ask the opinions of a 21 year old student, (who had incidentally only been out of University for a month,) on the recent unemployment crisis. What, we ask, would he know about what it is to be unemployed? If the reporter had been me, I would have made a B line for the nearest 40 something, middle manager who had obviously been out of work for a year and looking like he was on the brink of desperation. Then I would have got a real scope on what it is like to be unemployed.

It's all in the mind...

There are some key issues we need to tackle here. The first is that when looking for a job, after a long session of unemployment, what you DON'T do is tell the interviewing manager that you are unemployed. Why? Because he will know as well as you do that the word, "unemployment" is a word one uses when really one could say "Actually, I am not working and I feel lousy about it so don't employ me."

Any thoughts?

Okay, so here's what happens...

• When you apply for a position (and interviewing managers can take note here as well) if you need to fill in a substantial gap from the time you left your last employer to now, then think about exactly what it is you've been doing. After all, put yourself in the shoes of the interviewer and think about putting down the U word - would you hire you? Probably not. But, if the answer is yes, then put down the things that you want that interviewer to know about you. If you have been literally sitting in front of the TV for six months, then fool you, however, we can get around that. Be creative, say you've been doing voluntary work. Use your mind.


• Have you been looking after the house? Put down good administration and financial skills, balancing budgets/book-keeping. Do you look after an elderly relative or children? There's the care industry right in front of you. Are you good at something? What did you do in your last job? Have you done any community work? If not, do some! Even if it's a day here and there for the local voluntary service, do it and then add it to your CV - there you are, you've done something!


• The most important piece of information available to you in this blog today is this: A prospective employer does not care one bit if you have been unemployed. If he does, then he is not worth working for. Any good, experienced manager/director knows exactly whats going on in the world and it's economy today. They won't judge you. What they will do is look at the way you view yourself and if you say you have done nothing over the last six/twelve months - that will manager know that you don't value yourself so why should he?

Think about it. Unemployment is a state of mind. We are all busy people and we all have busy lives. We all work - we all do something, whether we get paid for it or not is a different matter. We work at our lives/homes/children/families/neighbourhoods and they are all worthy qualities which should not be cast aside.

So, when you hear today that managers are less likely to hire you if you've been unemployed for six months. Don't listen to it and think again. Six months is not long, and I'll bet you've done a multitude of things in that time to get you back to work. Anyone who is worth employing does not sit around letting the grass grown beneath their feet. Managers know that. You truly know that. Fill in the gaps. Say, yes, you haven't worked for an employer for X amount of months but say you've been designing this and creating that/you've taken time out and research on a subject/you've looked after the house and it's accounts and discovered your desire now to strive for this job, that's why you're applying now.

Getting a job is not tough. It is as tough as you want it to be. At the same time, make it easy for yourself and you'll be swamped with offers. It's that simple.

Good luck.

Michelle Duffy 2009.