"Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle."  Steve Jobs

Whilst simply walking out of our jobs is not an option many of us can afford to take, few of us are exploring all of the options that are available.

Even fewer are actually investing in ourselves to gain a better chance of getting a job that is more suited to our skills.

Though many are happy to splash out on the latest smartphone or tablet to make both our personal and professional lives easier, there aren’t many of us that will actually invest in the most important thing of all: ourselves and our careers.

Whether you lack confidence, are unsure if you’re in the right position or want to take the next step-up in your career, it makes sense for you to seek the support you need to ensure that you’re fulfilling your potential.

And it makes sense to seek it now.

Many people who have had a change of career forced on them by redundancy often say that being made redundant was turned into a positive, because it meant they were able to switch to something that they enjoyed whilst using their skills more appropriately.

But why not seek training while you have the security – and finance – to do so?

Here at Recrion, we facilitate the Peak Performance Mentoring Programme (PPMP), which addresses all of the concerns you may have with your current working life.

Want to build your confidence, develop a positive mindset and, perhaps most importantly, find  the career that is best suited to your skills?

It’s all covered.

By taking the PPMP, you are not only taking the first step to progressing your career to the next level, you are also giving yourself the best possible chance of being happy at the prospect of going to work.

Wouldn't that be nice?

Find out more about the Peak Performance Mentoring Programme and see what it can do for your career.

Recrion is a specialist in career and people management helping you to move away from uncertainty towards clarity in your career - www.recrion.co.uk; +44 (0)1780 484910

Does the prospect of a Job Interview give you sleepless nights?

It doesn't matter how successful we get, or if we are used to being on the interviewers side of the table – many of us find it hard to conquer our nerves and truly excel in a job interview because so much is riding on it.

Even with extensive preparation and research, nerves can often reduce our confidence and with it, the dream job.

Don’t let fear ruin your job prospects.

Recrion is hosting an all-day workshop that will take away all the accompanied stress and panic that goes with interviews and leave you feeling wholly prepared and full of confidence, no matter how ‘big’ or desirable that job may be.

Our ‘Interview with Confidence’ Masterclass is being held in Cambridge on Friday 23 September and will give you:

• Genuine practice of interview situations
• Tips and advice on the body language that will impress interviewers
• Advice on what’s been holding you back in interview situations – and what you can do about it
• The skills to ensure you’re in the right frame of mind for your next interview situation
• The key to building a rapport with an interviewer
• Tips on making an impact and building rapport with the interviewer
• And so much more!

"Today has been a really useful session which went beyond your basic interview skills training!  I now feel that I have the skills to showcase my abilities in an interview much better than before."  Laura Halstead

This session is being co-presented by TWO career experts, Recrion Founder and former Mercury Business Personality of the Year Katherine Wiid and Master NLP Practitioner and Confidence Coach, Lindsey Reed, who has over 20 years’ experience in the field.

And the best thing is, under the Redundancy Support scheme, you could be entitled to attend this career-changing session for FREE!

The session kicks-off at 9.30 on Friday 23 September 2011 and is being held at Wolfson Court, one of Cambridge’s university colleges. The cost of the workshop – unless you qualify for the R2R scheme – is £149. The seminar will finish at approximately 16:30 – refreshments and lunch will be provided.

By the end of this workshop, you will be left feeling revitalised, confident and, most importantly, be able to put redundancies and interview nerves behind you.

Can you afford to not to do something that could dramatically boost your career prospects?  Sound interesting?  Why not find out more and take action – today!

Recrion is a specialist in talent and career management, which means we are able to work with you in order to ensure you are on the right career path. For more information contact us on 01780 484910 or www.recrion.co.uk.

Waiting for the axe to fall?

There can be few worse feelings in life than the one you experience when you know it’s a question of when – not if - you are going to lose your job.

Being made redundant can be a horrible experience, but the wait for the axe to fall can be equally excruciating.

The wait. Whether the wait is for weeks, months, or years you know. You know that, through no fault of your own, you are soon going to be unemployed.

Recent findings suggest that more than one in five people believe it is likely that they will soon lose their job, suggesting that we, as a nation, are far from out of the woods  in terms of economic recovery.

But the one thing that wait does you give you, is time. Time to plan your next move.

It goes without saying that it gives you time to look elsewhere, but what it also does is give you time to think. Time to think about what you’re good at, what motivates you and, after having the morale zapped out of you, time to rebuild your confidence.

Here at Recrion, we able to give you all of these things at absolutely no cost.

We actively facilitate the Response to Redundancy (R2R) scheme by providing up to £1000’s worth of careers advice and training for FREE for people living or working in the East of England.

This scheme is funded by the European Social Fund and, since being launched in 2008, has helped turn around the lives of 12,500 people from all levels who were facing redundancy.

Sound interesting? You can read more about the R2R scheme and what it can do for you.

Recrion is a specialist in talent and career management, which means we are able to work with you in order to ensure you are on the right career path. For more information contact us on 01780 484910 or www.recrion.co.uk.

Sometimes just learning how to write a CV and practice some interview skills isn't enough.

If you have been made redundant or are facing redundancy uncertainty can creep in.  You may not know what you want to do next.  Your skills might not transfer easily to another market.  Self employment might be the only – yet daunting – option.

We understand what you are going through and have thought carefully about what you would find most useful in an all day workshop.

Need support through redundancy?

Our Promote Yourself with Confidence workshop in Cambridge on 22 March, is specifically-tailored to give you practical advice so that -

• you become clear about what you want to do in your career
• you know what you can offer
• you develop techniques to stand out from the crowd.

And the best thing is, under the R2R scheme, you could be entitled to attend this session for FREE! For more details on the Scheme, that is sponsored by the European Social Fund, click here.

By the end of the workshop, you will be left feeling revitalised, prepared to take action and, most importantly, confident about presenting yourself in all-manner of situations.

Here’s what some attendees of previous workshops had to say:

“I felt so confident after the workshop that I applied to be a fashion model and to do TV commercials – I have been accepted and now have a one year contract.  I have started to feel much more on top of things and decided to be bold and try something new and adventurous! I really can’t thank you enough for everything you have done for me.  I will carry on recommending you to other people I meet”. Sarah Freeburn

“Thanks to your encouragement and introduction to 21st century job searching techniques, I have embarked on a new career journey and I am now well on my way to achieving my goals of securing employment again. The workshop certainly gave me a renewed sense of direction".  Malcolm Davies

Another former attendee, who was previously made redundant, has recently been able to start their own business, after implementing some of the techniques taught by our career advisors at the session.

The session kicks-off at 9.30 on Tuesday 22nd March and is being held at one of Cambridge’s university colleges, Wolfson Court. It will finish at approximately 16:30 - refreshments and lunch will be provided.

The workshop is being hosted by Recrion’s team of career coaches, who have experience of coaching more than 600 people facing redundancy by delivering practical advice through individually-tailored mentoring and training.

Places are extremely limited as we only accept 15 delegates – to avoid disappointment, BOOK YOUR PLACE NOW.

Contact event co-ordinator Katherine Wiid on 01780 484910 or email  her for further details.

Katherine Wiid, Director of Recrion, is pleased to announce that an additional £2.8 million has been allocated to the project which has already supported over 10,000 people to learn new skills, find employment or become self employed.

“We have helped hundreds of employees in a wide variety of businesses to identify their transferable skills and adapt their job search in the current economy.  The R2R fund gives everyone the opportunity to have 1:1 careers advice and training resulting in over 67 per cent finding new employment within 13 weeks”.

For more information on how to access the support and funding, visit www.recrion.co.uk/free or telephone 01780 484910.

Encouraging individuals who have been made redundant and have a great business idea to take the plunge, is often difficult to do given the banks reluctance to lend to them.

I was heartened to discover that The Funding Circle lent £1m to small businesses in the UK in its first ten weeks.

The Funding Circle is the UK's first ever online marketplace – great to see innovation in times of economic uncertainty.

Co-founder of the social lending platform, James Meekings, said:

“The response to Funding Circle has been phenomenal. For consumers to lend £1 million to businesses via the site in just 10 weeks highlights the public’s appetite to support our small business community whilst also earning themselves a fantastic return".

So if you need a business loan at a cheaper rate than the banks are offering (average interest rate 8.2 per cent, substantially below the 12 per cent that banks typically charge businesses), visit www.fundingcircle.com.

Recrion is a specialist in career and talent management and is actively facilitating a Response to Redundancy scheme across the East of England and sign posting funding in the region. Click here to find out more about the R2R scheme or call an R2R Adviser on 01780 484910.

Take this redundancy help iPhone app for just £2.39.

I’ve Been Fired, developed by Robert Joy, offers users a list of questions to check whether they have been treated legally and what redundancy payments they could claim.

While it may not have all the answers, it will certainly help with some of the questions people face when they first hear the news.

There is other good, affordable redundancy support available.  If you are thinking "I need help and guidance with my next career step" or "I haven't got the money to retrain", take a look at www.recrion.co.uk/free.

Recrion is firm of career and talent management specialists who are proactively assisting those facing redundancy in the UK.  Contact 01780 484910 or visit www.recrion.co.uk for more information.

Known as R2R, it provides up to £700 per employee to cover career guidance, skills assessment, explore career options, training funding, vocational qualifications and workshops to help candidates match and market themselves to new and hidden opportunities.

“As with all government funding, not everyone will be eligible but many will be. The key to the funding is that we need to move quickly to help those affected by redundancy as soon as it is announced,” said Recrion director Katherine Wiid.

Since 2008, more than 500 people benefitted from funding and advice from Katherine Wiid, Director of Recrion and facilitator of the R2R scheme:

I would recommend R2R to any individual who found themselves at risk of redundancy. This is not just a process about putting an individual on course for added training; it is about you as a person, to talk to someone independent about what you are going through.  Anthony Burgess

If you’re at risk of redundancy now or you know someone who is, or if you’re an employer considering redundancies and would like to know how to help your employees, call Katherine Wiid on 01780 494910 for free advice, or visit www.recrion.co.uk/free to find out if you are eligible for the scheme.

Response to Redundancy is a real, well-timed and practical solution that allows sensitive employers to help staff resettle and retrain in new vocations and directions.

Perhaps you are one of many who have been lured in to accepting a sugar coated job offer only to suffer digestive problems for months to come.

Here is a great visual of the pitfalls of making job changes without taking a long term view or thinking strategically about your career.

Redundancy is often a great time to re-assess and think about what you really want.  Talking to a career coach about your options and investing in your professional development are 2 ways to ensure you take control.

The Responding to Redundancies (R2R) scheme in the East of England offers free career coaching and a training fund of £700 to get you started.  Contact Katherine Wiid on 01780 484910 or visit www.recrion.co.uk/free to find out more.

In the same space of time, I have given skills advice and redundancy counselling to several people who have not embraced technology and realise they are being left behind.  Soon everyday tasks from shopping to paying bills will all be online (some already are), hence the many government and other learning initiatives to get everyone up to speed with the digital revolution.

Casting my mind back several years to when I learnt my IT skills, I took it for granted that I knew where to find the right  keys on the keyboard as I had learnt to type.   There is something to be said for newbies first getting to grips with the keyboard – consider doing a Pitman type keyboard course - and then tackling computers.

I would recommend taking a look at the Skills for Life initiative that is widely available across the UK.

If you are facing redundancy and would like to sharpen up on your skills, there is a practical Response to Redundancy initiative available in the East of England to help fund your training.  Take a look at www.recrion.co.uk/free for more information or call Katherine Wiid on 01780 484910.