What an absolutely gorgeous day - the sun is shining through the window as I job hunt so it is hard to be down. Will be heading out in a bit to buy some food to cook up a storm tonight - can't wait.
Right on with my blog. Last night one of my well meaning friends managed to rile me. It was post conversation where my mind started to whirl with what had actually been said - I'm one of the people who needs time to fester and reflect.
The upshot was that my friend who does not really know what I do in terms of marketing and has not known me for that long was happy to give me advice on work and where I live. One gem was that I should move to a cheaper area - you know one where you can rent a one bed flat for £600 each month! This was coming from someone who has owned his own place for 26 years and never faced the perils that come from renting in London. I live in South West London, not in the most glam place in the world but not the dregs either. He is going to look over the weekend to find suitable areas for me! I guess being self reliant and renting for over 10 years has qualified me for nothing.
The next piece of wisdom was on the job hunt front. OK I have not had paid work since the end of Nov but I have done some volunteering. Admittedly December/early Jan was a slow month. But I have chased jobs etc. The main thing is that I have 10 years experience and I can't really go for a junior role with a substantial salary cut. I don't spend money frivolously but do need to earn above a certain level in order to meet my commitments. I am a B2B marketing specialist so not as many roles as consumer led ones from what I see and so on.
Anyway, my friend was very much like "oh you must go for anything now even taking a £10k pay cut. The job you are after does not exist." I know the market has dropped since its peak but it certainly has picked up in the past year or two as firms are now starting to regroup and rehire those that they culled in 2009. Taking a next step that involves taking my career back at least seven years to me is not the right move even if it does mean that I am in a job. I just need to keep on going and have the confidence and drive to get the job that I know is mine.
I couldn't even get the junior roles when I tried; they said I was "overqualified" and that I'd "get bored". (And my attempts to create a "less qualified" CV ended up full of suspicious holes. "CRB check? Err, no - I've no objection to that." ;-) )
ReplyDeleteI think it's good to be a bit riled, though. Although it shames me to admit it, I'm driven by anger; piss me off, and I can move mountains. So if it were me, I'd use that "anergy" to damn well show this friend that they were wrong. (And FWIW, I think it's your friend's own fears that are speaking through their panic.)
But you're right, it *has* been a gorgeous day. So *Hugs*.
Thanks for the shout out on your blog by the way. Wow I'm famous!
ReplyDeleteYeah harnessing am 'anergy' to try to prove people wrong has been a big factor in my life. Always good to prove people wrong.
Well today was certainly a beautiful day. :)
oh yeah and I have an interview next week too for an interim role.
ReplyDeleteThat's really great news. Good luck. And if you have the time for some "preparation", then I'd love to read a blog spelling out the difference between B2B and consumer marketing. Whenever I've worked as a designer, it's always been consumer facing.
ReplyDelete'anergy' stared out as typo. (Should it have too 'n's - 'annergy'?) But I think it's a really useful portmanteau, and I'm gonna find excuses to use it all the time. But hey, it's looking like another fabulous day, with little fluffy clouds, not a day for anergy - I hope. :)
Dare I ask how the interview went?
ReplyDeleteSee post above - that was the interview that I rearranged and subsequently pulled out of. Certainly not the end of the world plus not the most riveting role either.
ReplyDelete