In this blog I will show you how to deal with this common question that is currently being asked by interviewers.
3 ways you can successfully respond to this question.Unfortunately, you cannot say that you have been taking time out to do a gap year as you have not been able to go anywhere. You cannot even say you have been having a great time with friends because that has been impossible most of the time too!
Make sure you have a good answer and show you have been productive during this time. Show them that whilst others may have sat back and waited to ride it out you have used your time wisely to develop skills, knowledge and invest in your own self-development to help you succeed in your work and career. You need to set yourself apart from the other candidates to gain a job, the best job or progress into your chosen career.
What can you do to demonstrate you have used your time wisely in lockdown?
- Find suitable courses to develop the skills you need. Online courses are great, they are far more effective when you have some personable interaction with a trainer, coach, and support network. Even if this is with an online community, Zoom or lives it will really help you stay focused and motivated to complete the course. Get answers to your burning questions which are not covered in the course content.
- Gain some work experience, any work experience helps if you are leaving education and you are looking for your first job. It can be working for a friend, family member or someone you know. Just get your name out there and offer your services. It may not be great pay but if you can gain a reference from it then that is a good result
- Network with people, learn from them and gain knowledge. Demonstrate to the interviewer what you have gained from being part of a like-minded community of success hungry people and how this has helped you prepare for the commercial world or change in career. You can learn from others.
If you can prove your membership to organisations, courses you have completed and any work experience you have gained then make sure you take this with you or send it to the interviewer. Even if it is a screen shot of your learning area to show what courses you have completed or your membership subscription it all counts as evidence. If you choose professional organisations or trainers for your training that will WOW, the interviewer. It is more about who has trained you, their credibility and experience so make sure you talk about the trainer’s experience if they ask about the courses you have undertaken. Trust me, they will always check out the website and the trainer on LinkedIn if they want to ensure you have been trained correctly. It is impressive when you can back up what you say, and it shows you are professional too.
How can we help you?
Genzy Talent Academy is here to provide you with the support, training and mentoring that you crave. We are with you every step of the way from getting career ready to setting up your own gig or business.
We are here to help young talent gain support and provide a network so that you can connect with like-minded success hungry members through our community, with guidance from industry experts.
Consider joining our membership community. Here you will gain support and guidance from Debbie and the community so you get support whilst you are applying for positions. Sell yourself at interview and get career ready courses are coming soon. In the meantime check out our social media for tips.
Our memberships constantly aims to provide you with inspiration to succeed by actively congratulating your successes and giving you guidance so you maintain focus whilst having fun at the same time.
For less than a price of chocolate per day you can start to learn so you earn whilst working towards the life you want in the future. Your £1 per day investment will reap rewards.
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