Keeping positive in a world of flux

As the news bombards us with the depressing realities of the global recession and the new developments of being furloughed and the possibility that your job may not be as secure as you once thought, landing your dream job seems almost impossible.

Employers are under pressure, trying to keep their businesses afloat, managing the wellbeing of their staff and striving to keep productivity at a high whilst their teams work remotely. Whilst for job seekers, days are spent scrolling through the internet for potential roles, watching jobs disappear after 3 days and observing that dreaded warning sign of ‘over 200 applicants’ on roles they find on Linkedin.

The levels of uncertainty are enough to worry even the most confident and self-assured job seeker. There are no guarantees that the industries we work in will return to a normal phase of ‘rehiring’ and the realities of the heightened levels of competition are now embedded around us. Will we ever find a good job again?

So how do we respond? How do we stand out? How do we approach businesses and potential employers? How do we not give up?

What I have learned over the last few weeks and months, is it keep going, keep fighting and plough my energies into creating opportunities for myself. Use this time to experiment, take on projects, apply for roles in inventive and original ways, and reach out to people you admire. Remain patient and empathetic to HR teams, recruiters and businesses- knowing they too, are under huge amounts of pressure and feel a complete loss of control.

Staying positive is of course important, and knowing this too shall pass. So for now, all we can do is keep busy, stay connected, find structure and hold onto the belief that it will all work out and be okay. Please see some highlights of free things to do this week, which I hope will help you find your way.

1. Keep connecting:

   https://generalassemb.ly/browse/career-development-courses-and-classes

   https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-how-i-hustle-series-identifying-and-communicating-your-value-tickets-104019190198

2. Keep hunting:

   https://www.hidden.io/

   https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/jobs/

3. Keep curious:

   https://www.thefemalelead.com/the-campaign

   https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/problem-work-martyr-melody-wilding-lmsw/?trackingId=Qm7zb4QXQnCTMsEMbMLbEA%3D%3D

   https://www.ted.com/talks/emilie_wapnick_why_some_of_us_don_t_have_one_true_calling?language=en

   https://www.ted.com/talks/barry_schwartz_the_way_we_think_about_work_is_broken

   https://thriveglobal.com/stories/arianna-huffington-coronavirus-pandemic-opportunity-better-compassionate-world/?utm_content=buffer08254&utm_medium=Arianna&utm_source=LinkedIn&utm_campaign=Buffer

4. Keep learning:

   https://www.strengthsprofile.com/blog/post/85/strengths-together

   https://the-dots.com/events/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-global-consumer-behaviour-part-2-commerce-1616

   https://brainstation.io/event/online-socialmedia-content-marketing-may2020?utm_source=followup&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=April23_FutureofRetailFollowUp

5. Keep creative:

   https://www.artangel.org.uk/

   https://the-dots.com/events/livelunch-mastering-italian-cooking-with-francesco-mazzei-1618

   https://the-dots.com/events/how-to-make-your-plants-healthy-happy-1615

6. Keep doing good:

   https://fareshare.org.uk/volunteer/

   https://www.redcross.org.uk/about-us/what-we-do/uk-emergency-response/coronavirus

7. Keep moving:

https://www.sohohouse.com/projects/digital-events

8. Keep Calm

https://www.sohohouse.com/projects/digital-events/keeping-calm- bobbi-brown-michael-acton-smith

https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/play/tMItden7rm83G9TBtwSDU_F9W9S8eP-sg3cX8vRbzR7nUHcEO1fzY7RBZrN9tAHoLyghjznZepOvSDy2?continueMode=true&_x_zm_rtaid=iJZ4aC-KQYyeMVerh2H9VQ.1588698199213.f66fa5e87ba788988b2951230b426d31&_x_zm_rhtaid=765