And so, My Journey continues… You may remember from my last post; I had just quit my job after 87 days because “if you don’t love it… change it”. As it stood, I was now “NEET”- one of the thousands of 18-24 year olds “Not in Education, Employment or Training.”

Well, let me tell you how I felt – I felt like Superwoman. I did something I was afraid of. I felt liberated and, oddly enough, I felt a sense of achievement. I had figured out what I didn’t want to do and, a message from 27 year old me to the 22 year old me – That’s when you’re halfway there.  

The University Dream had remained just that – a dream.

Months One and Two: The Good Times Were Short-lived

The first two months were fun. I caught up with friends, had sleepovers and was out on ‘school nights.’ I travelled back and forth to Leicester and faked student life; house parties, and 10% off in Topshop using my friend’s student card … #DontJudge #NoRegrets.

When in London, I applied endlessly to roles that I thought I might enjoy, but again, the lack of direction was evident. I received rejection letters on a daily basis. After two months it all became very real – Leicester stopped because the little I’d saved had ran out and 10% off clothes wasn’t that exciting when you couldn’t actually afford to buy the remaining 90%.  Suddenly, what was fun and somewhat liberating became worrying and extremely restrictive.

Yes … unemployment is hard. You were never meant to be unemployed for more than 3 months. You have a Law degree from  a top university. You are employable. And there it was – the ‘false sense of entitlement’ playing havoc again.

You are plagued with the disillusion that it will somehow to take 3 months, you’ll land your dream job and this would obviously be everything you have been holding out for…

Wrong. Sorry, it doesn’t work like that.

Finding a role; a career – it takes a while. It takes an incredible amount of effort and focus. I wanted to be fulfilled; to contribute. I wasn’t interested in merely living to pay bills or to simply ‘make money’.

“Do not make money your primary consideration, you will almost certainly fail or better yet be unhappy”

I wanted to change the world. Melissa Owusu AKA Superwoman (just in case you missed that the first time).

Months Three and Four: Superwoman Who?

Three months passed. I was waking up for what seemed like nothing; watching one of my brothers leave for school at 8:00 and my mum leave for work at 8:45. I would call my friends for a chat, but it had to be before 9:00 or they too would be at work. I felt purposeless.

It is not in my nature to not be engaged, to not be mentally challenged and to not learn. The 21 years of my life so far had been filled with just that – developing, growing … and yet here I was sitting on my laurels doing nothing. I was broken.

I was still applying and getting very little traction; I was desperate. The roles ranged from events manager to teaching. For the record, anyone that knows me can pay testament to the fact that, as much as I love to develop people professionally – I have zero patience and, therefore, no business in teaching.

However I did learn the lesson below:

The easiest way to lose focus on a dream is to be distracted by another. Don’t lose focus.

Four months passed. I genuinely couldn’t believe I was still unemployed and by this point I had no money. I was fortunate enough to live at home with my family, but little things like phone bill, car insurance, contact lenses prescriptions all become huge expenses. I had to sign on, yes I was on Job Seekers Allowance, a measly £50.00 per week and the stigma society attached to this was even greater.

This place, The Jobcentre,  sucked the soul out of me. Quite frankly, the office stank. The air was stale; a mix of bad BO and urine and the atmosphere was cold. You felt like all eyes were on you; you could just hear the judgmental thoughts as you walked in – “another one skiving off the Government – why can’t she just go and work in MacDonald’s or something”

“Sit down Miss Owusu- Why are you here?”

“Well I’m here because I thought I was Superwoman. I quit my job and didn’t really plan on being unemployed for more than 3 months, I still haven’t discovered my passion and now I have no money”

The above, probably wouldn’t have gone down too well, this woman didn’t really care about my ‘passions’ or my desire ‘to change the world’. This woman had a job to do and her job was to hit employment targets – and therefore my role was to fill this quota for her.

She offered me admin roles, council roles and retail roles. Now there is no shame in any of these professions but they were not for me – they weren’t going to fulfil my purpose.

I left feeling even lower than when I entered and nothing had changed. Every other Thursday I would do it all again.

Yes… unemployment is hard.

To anyone currently in this position know that time really is the best medicine. It does get better. Promise x

Months Five and Six: My ‘Aha’ Moment

Unfortunately I cannot tell you what changed, but I can tell you that the 5^th month sparked something. I had spent the earlier months; languishing- applying, crying, applying, signing on, crying and crying some more. I knew that I was the only one who could change my destiny. I was in charge of my future. Opportunities do arise, but if they don’t – create them. And if they do appear, make sure you’re ready.

Learn about yourself, assess your own skills, read more, be comfortable with who you are and plan where you’re heading.

Question yourself:

• Who do you want to be?
• What are you happiest doing?
• Where do your skills lie?

“What generates passion in you is a clue to your destiny. What you love is often a clue to something you can achieve.

~ Anon

I took various online psychometric tests around careers, skills and finding your passion. I researched roles that encompassed these skills/ attributes. I researched industries and companies alike. I found role models on LinkedIn, studied their journey and  then I began networking.

I joined a specialist recruitment firm who recruited for my desired role and tailored my CV. This time, I stuck to my dream. I constantly applied for these targeted positions until I got traction. There were no distractions this time and no stopping me.

6 months after beginning this journey, in July 2010 I was offered a (dream) role as a Business Development Manager at a small IT and Telecoms Firm.  I loved this company, it provided a firm foundation for who I am today and was my stepping stone into the Corporate world.

So I urge you …

Keep on not settling, it will all be worth it in the end. 

Mel x

Some online tests I took are below:

https://surveys.universumglobal.com/

http://www.16personalities.com/

http://www.career-test.co.uk/test.php