I am a certified Project manager.
I have over a decade of IT experience.
I like to gain experience in project management, in any industry, preferably in technology projects like Engineering (i have a engineering diploma) or events organizing.

I am willing to start with small projects and accept lower pay.

My contact is project.seeker.2009@gmail.com.

best regards
ps2009

Volunteer.

You can get some new skills.
You’ll (hopefully) be able to feel better by helping other people.
You may even end up with a modest stipend in the long run.
It also helps fill in the gap in a resume.

Sometimes by listening it is more helpful than giving them too many well intentional advice.

Most don’t really need our assistance but more to show empathy and support.

At best, a gift of few hundred dollars will help them more than two hours of talking. This is my opinion and not meant to suggest you have to do it.

Joblessness means no income with escalating piling up of unpaid bills.

Some can go unemployed for many years, some even can’t last a month or two without any income. Many need money but won’t have the guts and dignity to ask from you. By giving them a few hundred bucks without them asking, it will help them alot and they will return you the money over time. You can count on them to help you back in future if you face similar problem.

Cheers all. Let us help one another here.

Thanks for yr posts here.

I am in contact with this gentleman and we chatted almost daily on yahoo chat.

A brother here also recommended a job to him (telemarketing) and hopefully there is positive news here.

Will keep all of you updated anyway.

Treasure your youth and your place in the corporate summer of your lives. Once you hit 40, you’ll suddenly realise that autumn has arrived and there’s no more fun in the sun.

I’ve come across some who’ve been unemployed but have never quite known how to help apart from listening to their woes

The very practical, unemotional, proactive steps appears helpful to me, and I hope they appear so to the 48-year old as well

Hope I am not being too forward or insenstive here; but how is it possible to be jobless for 5 years?

I’ve cut directly to the chase; bc I dont want to waste your time; I think there is a missing jig-saw here somewhere.

I dont want to speculate. I dont want to pry either. But I think, if you want rubber meets the road advice that’s good to go, then the least you should do is supply the missing jig-saw; that way some of us here can get a complete picture and we may or may not be able to help you better otherwise this is just going to be a crying game here.

As it is, I am sorry. I cant do anything with incomplete material. Even Michelangelo would be nothing more than a potter, if all he is given is clay to work with. I am so sorry, for what that may be worth.

SD (Internet Liaison officer of the brotherhood)

Hi thanks for your posted comments. I find it very practical and encouraging.

Jobseekers often failed to spice up their resume when they look for jobs. In fact, a HR manager told me that we should update our resume at least once a year as there are new skills that we learned on the job. This is so true as being Asians, we are always too humble for our own good.

A HR friend managed to revamp my resume and it looks so different from my original one:

1. Always start from the latest job experience first. I used to do it the other way round and I must have worked in at least 7-8 jobs. Employers preferred to see job experience lasting not more than ten eyars ago if possible. Anything more than ten to fifteen years ago may be irrelevant.

2. List special skills and talents. This is often missing from many jobseekers’ resume listing as we think that it is not important. Employers will always prefer someone who has the extra edge in intangible skills all things being equal. If you have a talent for mixing with people and is sociable list it in your resume as this may be an important element if you look out for marketing or HR position.

3. If you have some missing gaps of unemployment try to be honest and transparent here. Of course, if you have 5 yrs of unemployment it will be abit tough to convince an employer why you are jobless for so long a period. Nevertheless, if you undertake some part-time position, do list it now in between the period of unemployment. Most employers are sympathetic and generally many people have pockets of unemployment period due to retrenchment or taking a short break in life.

As more people get retrenched in the coming months, we need to be very nimble and flexible. Do anything that can bring in the bacon even if it is part time work or doing something that is not within our comfort zone.

As our employers often discriminate against those who are above 40s, I find that the aged unemployed will continue to find it difficult to find employment in the mid to long term period. Do think out of the box when it comes to making enough to tide things over. For example, I know of a friend who was an ex- AIA insurance agent. She went to Hong Kong and realised that many people there bought second hand branded handbags.

She caught on the idea and introduced her first second hand designer hand bags shop in Raffles Place. Her shop name Madam Milan opened in 2001 and a second shop opened two years ago. Her turnover though modest provides her a condonimium and 4 kids. Her husband is in the PR business. She only worked twice a week nowadays and left the running of the two shops to shop assistants.

http://www.monster.com (keyword job search)
http://www.linkedin.com (professional networking)
http://www.realmatch.com (matches jobs based on skills)

I think the media is trying to scare the US workforce.

Pardon for being too direct.