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Learn new skills - Retraining
Learn new skills – that sounds easy enough even interesting well easy it won’t be but interesting it most certainly can and will be.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years time?
If you are looking to change your career or to retrain it might be time to:-
Ask yourself some questions:-
- Is my work and what I do important?
- Do I know what my job description is?
- Do I have everything I need to do my job well?
- Am I using my skills in my job on a daily basis?
- Do I get feedback that I’m doing a good job?
- Does the team care about me as a person?
- Does anyone listen to me or my ideas?
- Am I going anywhere?
If you answer no to most of these questions, you probably need to start looking for a new/or alternative career path
To do this, you need to start some serious soul-searching, and start thinking about what you like and dislike. Ask your partner, siblings, parents and friends what they think about you. Ask them what they think your skills are. Seek out good role models Look at people who love what they doing who have a flare. Look at people whose jobs make you envy them. Talk to these people, ask them what makes them tick, how they started out what inspired them. Ask them to help you to find your passion. Try to visualise a life where you feel enthusiastic every morning because you can't wait to get started on this new career.
What would you really want to do if all the practical things weren't obstacles?
There are three main parts to a career plan:
- Working out where you are now
- What you want
- How you're going to get there.
A career action plan is an essential tool for your professional development. It will enable you to set yourself short- and long-term goals, decide what action to take and what resources you require, measure your progress, and evaluate your success. The most important thing is to take charge of your own career and not to wait for something to happen to you.
Work out what you want from your job:
- freedom and flexibility
- a certain level of income
- power and status
- to achieve something
- to make a difference
Just as importantly work out what you don’t want and why - that is often easier:-
- Do you work in an office and want to work outside?
- Are you in a rural area and want to work in the city?
- Are you a people person?
- What are your personal weaknesses?
- What are the parts about our present job you really don’t want to bring to your next?
Are you changing careers because you are fed up or are you taking positive steps forward?
Take a moment to sit and think:-
Write down 15-20 things you like to do i.e. singing, fly fishing
Then 15-20 things you are good at/strengths i.e. I manage budgets/people, work to deadlines etc.
You will now have two lists take the first five from each and this will produce a cross over list of things you like doing and which you’re also good at doing.
This combined list is your bouncing board from which you can start blending your abilities. Pinpoint occupations that use the qualities you possess and you can start looking at careers which combine those. Often you will be surprised that there is a career that springs immediately to mind that has been fermenting there just waiting for you to give yourself that long overdue career review. Be inspired
Do be realistic- do not set yourself an unachievable career.
Once you are at that stage you can move on to where you need to get further resources to achieve your objectives
- Formulate your set of career criteria-
- what it must or must not have
- Do your research
- Find out about the profession/industry/job is their a shortage?
- Are your new skills going to be required?
- Do I need to retrain?
- Apprentice
- University
- NVQ
- What time frame am I looking at?
- College –evening classes
- University degree
- Apprentice for “x” years
- Financial backing - Training fees vary hugely
- For certain professions, financial help is available in the form of grants and bursaries. To train to become a teacher, for example, the government will cover your course fees and you might qualify for a variety of different financial incentives.
- For others, depending on the course you follow, you may be able to apply for a career development loan
- It could be that your new career path takes you away from the confines of employment. You might decide to set up your own company and be your own boss. The government's Small Business Service website.
Business Link helpline: 0845 600 9 006
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Education and Courses
 www.lifelonglearning.co.uk –-This site promotes adult learning. It details government initiatives and latest courses available
www.basic-skills.co.uk - This site promotes literacy and numeric skills .”Our aim is to help people of all ages who struggle with words and numbers in their everyday lives”.
www.ngfl.gov.uk
- The National Grid for Learning (NGfL) portal is the gateway to educational resources on the internet. It provides a network of selected links to websites that offer high quality content and information. Whether you are learning, supporting, teaching or managing, there are resources on the NGfL for you.
www.qca.org.uk/8.html - QCA develops the national qualification framework for England, Wales and Northern Ireland in partnership with ACCAC (Wales) and CCEA (Northern Ireland). We fund occupational standards, support learning at work and keep the availability of qualifications under review.
www.worktrain.gov.uk - A jobs and careers information site allowing you access to any jobs and training in any area of the country
Are you looking for a change in direction in your career- new qualifications needed?
www.ucas.co.uk - For a comprehensive list of all the universities available
www.hotcourses.com - Looking for a course, school, college or financial award? Use hot courses to search the UK's largest and most accurate database of educational opportunities.
www.open.ac.uk - The Open University offers an expansive range of course to suit all levels of learning with advice and information on funding and taking the first steps.
www.floodlight.co.uk -Floodlight is the official guide to courses in London. That's all the part-time and full-time courses run by government-funded colleges, universities and adult education centres in all the London boroughs
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