Sital Ruparelia

QUESTION

“Sital, what’s the best way to secure part-time work for back to work mums? There seems to be nothing around and I keep getting rejected. What do you suggest?” 

MY ANSWER

Before I answer the question, let me make you aware of some quick points worth bearing in mind about finding part-time work.

Some quick points about part-time employment

• Part-Time vacancies are often not advertised

A large proportion of part-time roles are not advertised – they’re simply filled by contacts and referrals. In some segments of the market,  75% of part-time roles are filled via employee referrals

• Part-Time vacancies are often created for a particular person

A significant number of part-time roles are created after an employer or business leaders comes across someone. E.g. The business have a need, but not a vacancy. We then come across an old contact or referral with the skills and experience we need – so we create a part-time role for them.

• You need to be work harder to find part-time employment

If you’re after part time work, you need be more proactive than most job seekers.

Whilst there are some exceptions in certain industries (e.g. retail, catering and hospitality sectors), on the whole, there is a huge demand for part-time work but simply not the supply of opportunities. So you’ll have to work harder and be much smarter in your approach than others (i.e. spending a couple of hours a day applying for jobs online is not enough).

The 7 Strategies

So bearing these points in mind – here are some suggestions for mums looking for part time work:

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Having spent the last 3 weeks in sunny Hong Kong and a very humid Singapore, I thought the UK weather would give me a shock to the system when I arrived back home.

But the weather has been very mild in the UK.

What has been a shock though is the general doom and gloom about the new year. Having spent 3 weeks in Asia, I’ve found the papers, the media and the general mood in the UK pretty depressing to say the least.

But despite the depressing predictions it’s worth pointing out that what happens to you this year is not wholly dependent on the economy.

It very much depends on YOU do. It can be the worst year yet – or the best. It all depends on how you think and act.

So as we begin a new year,  here are some questions for you to think about:

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DO

- Do personalise your interactions where possible
- Do provide value to your network by sharing information, contacts and recommendations
- Do have a well written profile with the reader in mind
- Do ensure your headline title reflects what you do, not simply your job title
- Do use key words in your profile to maximise the chances of coming up on searches by recruiters
- Do use LinkedIn to find people, reconnect with professional contacts and undertake research
- Do follow these 10 LinkedIn tips if you’re looking for a new job
DON’T

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“We don’t have a choice on whether we DO use social media; the question is how well we DO it” - Erik Qualman

FICTION: “Facebook is for kids”

FACT 1:  Actually, the 40 – 55 years age group is the fastest growing demographic on Facebook.

And, of course, this demographic also has the highest disposable income, lowest debt levels and strongest professional network. Which is why businesses and recruiters are flocking to set up Facebook pages to engage with this group.

FACT 2: Over 50% of the world’s population are under 30

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1. Stop focussing on the numbers

Networking is not a numbers game, but a relationships game.

It’s not about ‘how many’ LinkedIn connections you have. But instead, the quality of the relationships and the level of interaction you have with people in your LinkedIn network that counts.

Plus, of course, the size and relevance of the network that those people are in turn connected to. Which means that someone with 50 highly relevant contacts (who they interact with frequently), will often be much more successful whilst using LinkedIn than someone with 500+ connections to people they hardly know or ever interact with.

2. Remember the 5 second rule

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Struggling to find a job?

Here are 10 questions to ask yourself right now:

1.  Have you reached out to your 50 warmest contacts to update them on what you’re currently doing ?

If not, send an email to update them (and NOT simply to ask for job leads).

So that’s your 50 closest friends, family members, old clients and ex-colleagues;  the people who know, like and trust you –  regardless of where they live and what they do for a living.

If they do know, how often do you stay in contact with them?

2.  If I glanced at your LinkedIn profile, would I know that you’re in the market for job opportunities? Would I know what you’re looking to do?

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Within the last 24 hours, we’ve seen the UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown step down from office. After losing last week’s general election, he will be replaced by the first coalition government in the UK for over 30 years.

Just 18 months ago Brown was playing an impressive role in leading global efforts to manage the financial crisis. Yet when it came to the election, he failed to impress the public.

While there were many policy and political factors that led to his downfall, a key part of his defeat and his exit from politics was due to Gordon Brown himself – his style and approach.

Here are 6 career lessons you can learn from Brown’s election campaign and subsequent downfall:

1. You need both style AND substance

Throughout the election campaign, Brown kept reiterating: “if this campaign is about style over substance – then count me out. I’m a man of substance, not a PR or marketing man.” Tough luck Gordon – like it or not, you’re in the marketing business. We all are. Brown, like many people, failed to actively manage his personal brand.

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During last week, I published 7 daily posts to answer 7 common questions I’m asked about using the professional networking site LinkedIn.com

In case you missed any of the posts, below is a quick summary. Just click through to read the post.

1.  The Number One Rule For LinkedIn Users

2.  Increasing The Number of Connections On LinkedIn

3.  How Well Must You Know Someone Before Connecting?

4.  Three Rules For Connecting With People You Don’t Know

5.  How To Get High Quality Recommendations On LinkedIn

6. Tips On What To Write In Your Status Updates

7.  What To Write In Your LinkedIn Profile When Job Searching

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Questions: If I’m job searching, what should I put in my LinkedIn profile?

Answer: Here are 10 tips:

1. If you’ve been made redundant, don’t write “looking for a job.” Factually it may be true, but it smacks of desperation and isn’t the first impression you want to give to recruiters and contacts coming to your page.

Focus instead on telling the reader what you can do, what you can offer and who you can help by following the 9 tips below:

2. Don’t define yourself simply by your previous job titles (it limits the potential opportunities)

3. Define the target sectors, the kind of problems you can solve and the value and benefits you’ve a track record of delivering (it will open you up to different possibilities)

4. Make sure you state job titles (recruiters search using titles and so to come up on searches quote the type of key words and titles you think they’d put into search)

5. Notice how this list is full of contradictions (there’s no hard and fast rules. I’m simply sharing my experience and opinions – so make up your own rules and test them)

6. Test, try, edit, evaluate (now rinse and repeat)

7. Make the profile more than two lines please

8. But don’t tell me your life story

9. Make it slightly different or quirky from what everyone else writes on their profile (take a look at my own LinkedIn profile)

10. Be yourself. Don’t try and be different or clever by copying what everyone else writes.

Do you agree or have I got it all wrong? Feel free to share ideas or suggestions in the comments section below.

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