When work gets on top of us, it can be totally demoralising. But rather than wallow in self pity, it’s a time to get motivated. Here’s how to get your mojo back in the office…

When Austin Powers lost his mojo in the hit comedy film Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, it was all-consuming. It drained his personality to the extent that the saucy secret agent became a mere shadow of his former self. It’s the same when we lose our mojo in the office. When work gets on top of us, it can affect everything we do, from how it impacts our job to how we relate to our loved ones. When the spark goes, just like Austin Powers, we need to make it our mission to get it back!

There are many reasons why someone might be struggling at work. Being overworked is a number one cause which can lead to stress and feelings of being overwhelmed. Boredom is another factor where an employee is not being challenged enough or doesn’t know how to challenge themselves. There could be some kind of unresolved conflict with colleagues in the office which is pulling your work down, or it could be the fact that you have no clear path of how to get ahead and you’re floundering. The point is that even if you are good at your job, there are times when you might feel your quality of work is not as it should be, but rather than see yourself as failing, it’s the perfect time to question why you’re struggling. Continue reading “Pull your socks up – what to do if you’re struggling at work” »

You’re on the job market, you’ve applied for several permanent jobs, had interviews but you’ve still not secured a position. So what do you do next? The option of temporary work is often overlooked because it is deemed less secure, and not as lucrative as permanent work. But is this really true? Recent employment statistics show a rise in the number of people taking up temporary contracts so maybe we need to look at how this option really can enhance your career.

With increasing skills shortages in many sectors, the need for a flexible workforce and the reality that many businesses are facing budgets restraints, now is a very good time to choose temporary or contract employment.  David Leyshon, Managing Director of technical and engineering recruiter CBSbutler comments “within the engineering and specialist technical markets we have generally seen a robust demand for contractors throughout the economic slowdown and indeed this has picked up momentum strongly over the last 12 months, driven by the significant capital projects in the surging emerging economies.” Continue reading “Temporary employment – don’t ignore it!” »

We’ve watched all 14 episodes, scoffed our burritos and pie & mash, digested the cliches and jokes, and have to say that we thought Sunday’s Apprentice final was one of the best!

The interview round is always one of our favourites and it was particularly good this time as the business plans were under as much scrutiny as the backgrounds and career histories.

This year’s winner, Tom, had been on the losing team 8 times but still managed to come out on top through a mixture of ideas, confidence and likeability…an important lesson to be learned for anyone preparing for interviews, particularly if there is a negative to overcome on your CV or in your past performance.

It also reminded us of our favourite ever interview round, in 2008, when the eventual winner Lee McQueen was put through some very intense exchanges after being caught out for lying on his CV. Once again his undoubted talent shone through and he was able to overcome this to launch a successful business within Lord Sugar’s organisiation.

With these two lessons in mind we’re very pleased to be able to reveal Lee as the next interviewer in our Be My Interviewer series!

Be My Interviewer is our interview practice website, featuring over 350 interview questions and answers from 21 interviewers across key industry sectors, and has helped over 320,000 job hunters to sit virtual job interviews with some of the UK’s top bosses. The interview questions and answers have been played more than 3 million times! Continue reading “Enjoy The Apprentice final? Get top interview advice from a former winner!” »

The summer holidays are looming – and while many of us look forward to a more relaxed office vibe when the sun shines, for others it’s the start of a six-week-long nightmare. If you’re one of the many working parents in the UK, you’ll understand the headache that is the school holidays! Take the pain out of the school holiday childcare conundrum and learn what your options are…

While more care-free colleagues might find organising an after-work picnic in the park their number one concern this August, as a working parent, you’ll be struggling to pull together all the different elements of the conundrum that is summer holiday childcare – figuring out how to drop young Johnny off at sports camp and take little Katie to art club before work, working out who’s going to take them to their afternoon clubs while you’re in the office rushing through your to-do list to make pick-up times at 5.30pm. And that’s not even considering whether you’ve got all the equipment together that a day in the sun and different venues entails – numerous supplies of drinks, sun tan lotions, snacks, hats, towels…

There’s no question that working parents’ lives involve huge amounts of military-style organisation – while this runs smoothly most of the year the long summer break throws this precision planning out of the window. “This is something that comes up every year as a problem for parents and employers,” agrees Catherine Rogan from Working Families. “While employers are becoming more willing to look at flexible solutions for working parents, the cost and availability of childcare is always a problem over the long holidays.” Continue reading “School’s Out For Summer…” »

Do you seem to spend all your days working without ever getting anything done? If the answer is yes, it’s time to take back control of your life with these top tips on how to manage your time…

“I just find it so hard to get out of bed and motivate myself knowing that I’ve got a pile of work to do,” Jess, a researcher from Edinburgh used to complain. “I just feel like I can’t get it all done. I find it hard to leave work on time most days.”
If this sounds familiar, you might like to know that Jess’s problem was actually a lot more simple than she thought: it was all down to poor time management.

After working through her issues with a career coach, Jess realised that her actual workload was manageable but she was lacking structure, focus and motivation. She struggled trying to achieve a work life balance and was constantly told that she needed to improve her time management skills. She had even followed her manager’s advice and gone on a time management course but this only had a short-term effect on her and she’d forgotten everything she’d learnt as soon as work became stressful. The biggest side effect was that she felt out of control of her life and was never able to spend any time on herself.

If you feel like Jess did and are struggling to get control over your workload, try following these top tips from career coach Rebekah Fensome: Continue reading “I Just Can’t Find The Time…” »