Money runs out
Time to claim benefits
In May 1996, six and a quarter years after taking a break from work, I reluctantly signed on for jobseeker's allowance, housing benefit and council tax benefit. I had survived on savings until 1993 and subsequently on the proceeds of the house sale and those of its contents before that money also ran out. I could have signed on sooner, but I did not want the aggravation of which there was plenty then, albeit miniscule compared to 2008 levels of aggravation with the expectation of worse to come.
In those days, the government largely left us to our own devices although help was available. I realised that much of that help wasn't really suitable for me (nothing's changed on that front since then) but I made use of some of it to attend subsidised training courses. One was a C computer programming course while another related to job hunting, including ideas for formatting a CV.
Betting shop vacancies
Soon after signing on, I spotted vacancies for trainee betting shop managers. With my mathematical ability and my knowledge of sport, particularly Horse racing, I decided to try. I filled in the application form and attended the open evening. I didn't get the job as I explain in Career options in call centres and retail outlets, but this first serious experience of applying for a job outside my traditional area was useful. Above all, it made me realise that I needed to completely overhaul my CV.
Many more interviews
From November 1996 onwards, I became much more successful at securing interviews, all of them for computer programming jobs. I am not sure why, because I wasn't trying any harder. The end of the recession, the C programming course, the improved CV, the impending Y2K (even though it was still three years away at the time), telephone number changes, European monetary union and greater fragmentation of the IT industry may all have been factors. For whatever reason, some agencies showed renewed interest, having previously kept my details on file but ignored me.
No comments:
Post a Comment