Life Strategies | 06

The "work" of interviews

Continuing on Liz's journey in the Life Strategies series...

Liz had made a few appointments and written a resume that had been tweaked twice ie for her ‘front-of-house’ restaurant and hotel appointments and for her entree into aged care.

She mentioned that both lots of appointments had been difficult to make as she hadn’t had any requisite training. She had to talk fast to get her hospitality interviews and some of them were ‘loose’ regarding timing and actual interest. She had mentioned that she was happy to wait until her interviewers were ready to see her which apparently was the right response. She had dressed appropriately in classic attire so now was the day of reckoning. The aged care interviews were more forthcoming and many were happy to just talk over the phone. I asked her to contact me when she returned home for a debrief.

I could tell when she called that she felt a little deflated. She was told to get a job in hospitality before even thinking of applying for ‘front-of-house’ positions. Liz felt that she was too old for waitressing as it was very hard work and not well paid for the effort you had to put in. I suggested she call TAFE and some colleges who offered hospitality training to get a better picture of what was on offer and her suitability. Her aged care interviews were a little more promising. There were many positions available. Many required a nursing background but some occasionally came up for recreational officers and Liz decided that she would enjoy this type of role. She had originally worked as a teacher’s aide, liked craft and organising activities. I suggested she contact one of the aged care facilities to see if they could put her in touch with somebody who was currently working in that role to examine the pro’s and con’s of such a position.
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Liz thought that was a good idea. As these could be coveted roles for others like herself I suggested that after she had spoken to her recreation contact that she ring me with her thoughts on moving forward. If she liked what she was told then we could plan a strategy for her to secure a position.

Next week: what Liz learned from her contact and the NEXT step!

If you missed the first parts of Liz's journey in my Life Strategy series, you can go back an have a read!
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