Ageless

Today is my father's 83rd birthday, and when I called he was working on a Photoshop project.  He is taking a class (he says the rest of the students are a third of his age) and enjoying learning new techniques.  Last year he sent me a DVD of a series of documentaries he made on the Bluenose II.  He had to sleep on the floor while shooting as he sailed with her on several long journeys.

He is always involved with something, always learning, always creating something.  When I do my MBTI and Personality Dimensions, he is in my mind while describing NT and Inquiring Green qualities.

He says that he still has most of his hair, but it is turning grey now.  I asked for a photo of him as he is on the other side of the country.  If it arrives, I will post it here.

"Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter."
~Mark Twain

Enjoy!
Keltie Creed

On Remembrance Day

"History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again."
~Maya Angelou

With Respect
Keltie Creed

Reframing problems

Hard to remember when you are caught in the moment, but still a favourite of mine.

"Problems are nothing but wake-up calls for creativity."
~Gerhard Gschwandtner

Enjoy!
Keltie Creed

Starting today

Many of the clients I work with these days have a preference for Sensing and Perception (ESTP, ESFP, ISTP, ISFP) or Orange temperament.  It can be challenging to keep them engaged, and but they often also have an innate optimism that can help them through their unemployment.  They are especially likely to take to heart the following:

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”
~Maria Robinson

Enjoy!
Keltie Creed

Change

A lot of my clients are very resistant to change. But the ones who seem happiest, who have the most success in their job search usually are the ones who either welcome it as a new opportunity, or at least accept it as a part of life and look for the best direction. Change is movement, and if we aren't moving we aren't really living.

"When patterns are broken, new worlds emerge."
~Tuli Kupferberg

Enjoy!
Keltie Creed

Finding Yourself

Every week I hear at least one adult job seeker say, "I don't know what they want to be when I grow up." Often they are hoping that I will provide them with an answer, which of course I can't. I can interpret assessments for them, offer observations on their skills and abilities, offer occupational information and listen to them while they work it out for themselves.

Some people need longer for self exploration, perhaps because they never had the opportunity in earlier life. Others know themselves pretty well already and still others are looking for excuses or avoiding taking a close look at themselves.

I love working with the people who see this period of challenge and change as an opportunity to be a different person. Perhaps the one they dreamed about being in the past, or perhaps discovering a whole new and exciting direction.


"Life isn't about finding yourself.
Life is about creating yourself."
~George Bernard Shaw

Enjoy!
Keltie Creed

Reflections on a Job Fair

This week we hosted a career and job fair. About 700 people came, and we had close to 40 employers and educators.

Some job seekers went to every table, and talked to as many people as possible. They took the chance to learn more about the companies in the area, and to meet the people who will be involved in hiring decisions for those companies.

It is my hope that some of them will feel less nervous in future interviews, and perhaps will be able to see the people on the other side of the table as just that - people. People who have to find the right person to help them make their business survive. Hiring decisions can sometimes make or break a business, can have just as much impact on an employer's life as on the employee's life. Not every hire of course, but yes, there are some times when it is critical.

Some job seekers were only looking for one type of work, and if there wasn't an employer in their field, they left early in frustration, saying it was a waste of time. Yet all those employers took time from their regular work day to be there to meet the public. There were more than a dozen employment counsellors in the lobby and work tables available to help with resumes, interview practice etc., or back in the resource room to help in the computer lab. So much opportunity to get help or talk to people who might know someone who needed their skills.

So for today:

"No matter how much time you've wasted in the past, you still have all of tomorrow. Success depends upon using it wisely by planning and setting priorities. The fact is, time is worth more than money, and by killing time we are killing our own chances for success."
~Denis Waitley

Enjoy!
Keltie Creed