Free or cheap ways to enjoy the weekend.

After a week of job hunting it is very important to take some time at the weekend to open your mind to other activities, to catch up with the world and what is going on and get back in circulation, job hunting is in itself a job...looking for a job is a job.

To keep an interest and awareness of other things that are going on makes you seem interested and aware and so more attractive as an employee, remember the old saying...All work and no play...It is also good for you, everyone needs a break from stress and job hunting is stressful. Another point to remember is that you may well be desperate to get a job but to look desperate actually won’t help you appeal to people you meet or talk to who may be able to help you .

Check out free art shows or local fairs, local ones are often free or local streets have art shows and other specialist fairs

Parks are always free, if the weather is good go to a nice park and enjoy the open air and take a picnic and ball games etc. for children, or a good book for yourself. Even if there is not a park nearby, take a walk into town and see people and if you can, stop for a coffee.

If you do not have a Kindle it is quite likely that you are unable to afford one as they are not cheap, especially when you are unemployed and buying one is not a priority spend. However, you do not need a Kindle to read the many free kindle books that are available as you can download a reading application for your PC, tablet or even phone.Though since originally writing this article Amazon have produced their new lower priced Fire Tablet .

Instead of spending the money it costs to go to see a film , check out the free films and TV programmes that can be found online, have your friends round and don't send out for Pizzas etc., have a bring and share !!

If you have a PC and internet access at home chill out and enjoy the loads of free music you can listen to online like Spotify

Rather than wishing you could afford a spa day check out your toiletries and smellies and creams and indulge yourself with a pampering day at home...it works for men too !!

Speak to your neighbours. , invite them for a cup of tea and get to know them. Mention that you are job hunting, but don’t be a job hunting bore …. Enjoy the weekend!!

Valerie Hartland

For a reason or a season come to valerie's place: The Birthday of Samuel Pepys

For a reason or a season come to valerie's place: The Birthday of Samuel Pepys: Samuel Pepys (23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) introduction to working life began as the son of a poor London tailor. Today of course, ...

Ways to look for a job

So, you have looked at every job board you knew and many that you did not and posted your CV or resume and a covering letter to every job that looks right for you and quite possibly many that are not but you have to apply for so many each week or the job centre stop your money. You have made calls and networked every one you can possibly think of and used social media to find many more jobs to apply for and contacts to network…and you still have not got a job.

Try this …for the next application, write a good cover letter on why you are so right for the job and refer to the enclosed resume ...it may well make it more likely to be read.

Use old fashioned snail mail. make a list of the companies you are interested in working for, write to your networking contacts and ask if they know anything about these companies and anyone who works there. If you find that a contact knows someone at a company on your list, or knows about any vacancies, send them your resume /CV and ask them to forward it or ask permission to send it yourself.

Then do a similar thing with e-mail, or stick if you prefer, to this method. Make your list of companies you are interested in and send an email to your contacts to see if they know anyone at these companies or know of any jobs there ….in doing this, you are building your email list, which will be very useful in many situations such as starting your own business. Ask your list to forward your details that you are looking for a job to any suitable contacts that they have.

Publish an e-book about your experience and industry and give it away on your website or blog, and send it to your list. This like your CV/resume shows your experience.

Call the companies that you are interested in and ask to be put through to human resources. Ask if they have any vacancies and /or which agencies or job boards they use. Even if they are not advertising at that time, they might like your initiative and invite you for an interview ...you may be saving them the advertising fees!!!

If you are registered at the job centre and claiming benefits, these tactics will look good in your job search record and prove that you are doing all you can to find a job.

Post by Work-At-Home Success.

A Resume Reference Guide

Are you looking for a new job? Hopefully you are not having any problems creating or updating your resume or CV? Writing a resume or CV can certainly feel very daunting but often turn out to not be such an ordeal as it seems, but there are still many mistakes that can be made. One of these concerns references.

On your resume or CV, it is very likely that you will list references. These can be two types, personal references or professional ones, though some applications may ask for both.

Once you know what is likely to be asked for in the way of references on your resume/ CV you may want to list them right away, but do give thought to this before you do so, think carefully about who your references will be. Do not be tempted to rush the job and list no references at all, when only submitting a CV/resume for a job application you may get away with listing no references, but if you are still arranging them and getting their permissions then it is far better to at least state “references available upon request,” putting nothing can make hirers suspicious and result in your application being rejected.

Do not make the mistake of not asking first if you can use a reference, in almost every application for a job , references that are given are checked out and this makes it important that you ask those whose references you would like, before giving their name.

Maybe you were cutting it fine to meet the deadline for submitting a job application and you sent it without asking your named references first? In this case, let them know as soon as possible that you used their names for a reference and that they may be contacted. If they are not prepared and they are contacted for a reference, it may well affect their opinion of you.

In most of my previous job applications, especially later in my career, the application process only requested professional references and made it clear that it was not personal ones that they wanted. However, some companies do request both professional and personal references. In this case, two of each is an ideal combination.

Good references, properly requested much improve your chances of landing an interview and possibly that dream job.

Valerie Hartland