After a period of unemployment Sharon recently completed a Level 1 Customer Service course, and is now looking forward to her future.
Discover the support she received from her tutor Dean Moore, how her confidence has been boosted and her plans to keep on learning!
“I wasn’t aware there was training for people my age, I thought it was only for youngsters. So it really has inspired me. It was a bit scary, but it’s really boosted my confidence. If I have got an opportunity to learn now I’m a bit older I want to grab that with both hands, why wouldn’t I? It is life changing for me.”
I previously completed the digital skills short course and the tutor Dean mentioned that he also runs a customer service course. As we were addressing my CV and I have retail experience, it seemed like a good idea to gain more skills. Particularly for someone like me as I did not really learn at school, I was quite disruptive and came away without any real qualifications.
I learnt a lot from it and doing it online was really beneficial. It meant I could move around the house when I needed to and, because Dean recorded the sessions as well, while doing homework there is the extra support. It’s really the student’s choice how hard you go. If I commit to something, I like to go the long way so I put a lot in, did my own investigation online and tried to get a bit more involved. It is a really good course and I’ve learnt a lot, it gives me a good package of skills and experience going forward.
Because I have always had trouble learning and I’ve been happiest when moving, I’ve worked in manual labour for around 20 years. I went self-employed as a cleaner, partly because of my health problems as trying to meet commitments of employers was difficult. If I was having trouble, it was easier to have time off work. However, I ended up on universal credit and I had to come to terms with not being able to do manual work.
I am 51 now, I have got more health issues and I was thinking I had nothing to offer anyone, but the people with Shaw Trust helped to boost me and introduce me to courses. They taught me that you should not write yourself off because of age, and that wisdom is often something employers are looking for.
Doing the customer service course has given me new lease of life, having to commit to something. I could do the two hour sessions and then have a break before going back to do the homework. To me, I felt alive and like I had a purpose. I had to get my homework done and I made it pleasurable by doing research. It made my brain ache, but in a good way! It is amazing when you do not have to think a lot your brain goes to sleep. It is great as I can add that to my CV along with retail experience.
The first session I found quite challenging as there was quite a lot of homework! But the most challenging was the last bit as we had to write a CV and cover letter which I’ve never done before so I didn’t know where to start!
My original CV was very outdated. Dean talked us through a lot of it but we had to think for ourselves so I found it difficult. But Dean did give us good examples so we could use those. I can’t usually sell myself, but it forced me to think about my qualities and I was quite proud of what I did. That gave me the most reward.
It has armed me with more knowledge. I plan on doing some voluntary work in charity shops to see how my body copes, then all being well I will try and get a job in retail as it’s something I have enjoyed in the past.
Also, in terms of interviews, they’ve changed a lot since I last attended one. By doing the course I am armed with more experience and examples to give for answers. I have the work I completed on the course here with me and I can look back on it and go through it before an interview to refresh my memory.
It cheered me up! It is a sense of achievement that I actually did it. I was out of work for while, so my confidence took a few blows and you start to feel a bit worthless and beat yourself up.
But it gave me a lot of fulfilment in different ways, and I felt like I was part of something. As it was online it was more comfortable for me. It built my confidence and I felt jollier! It’s left me with a massive sense of achievement.
Dean was brilliant. He is around the same age as me and same generation. He’s very light hearted which made me feel more comfortable and put me at ease. Because he is very thorough he gets back to you really quickly and he called before the course to check I was ok and any problems which was a nice ice breaker.
I certainly felt at ease to contact him at any point. I emailed him regarding a personal problem, and he was lovely and said it was fine to take longer with homework. I did feel supported and he was there for everyone.
Yes definitely. I am wanting to do some more. I think I need to brush up my English and maths with a tutor next, so it has got me on a learning bug!
I wasn’t aware there was training for people my age, I thought it was only for youngsters. So it really has inspired me. It was a bit scary, but it’s really boosted my confidence. If I have got an opportunity to learn now I’m a bit older I want to grab that with both hands, why wouldn’t I? It is life changing for me.
Confidence-boosting, inspired me to learn, life changing.
A happy hippo!
If you live in Cambridgeshire, Peterborough or surrounding areas and are unemployed or jobseeking, join one of fully-funded short courses today.