Summer 2003

The Workology Greatest Hits CD 
Workology is made by:
Jane Farrow: Host
Producer: Nic ‘Mad-Dog’ Purdon
CBC AUDIO
ISBN: 0-662-33313-6
Copyright 2003

To Order: CBC Boutique – 1-800-955-7711
boutique@toronto.cbc.ca

Review by Sheila Mulhern

Workology CD, a CBC radio program “digs deeply into the secret world of work.” The age-old fantasy of finding happiness at work is explored in 13 stories from employees and employers with varied experiences. Host Jane Farrow, uses her quick wit and tongue in cheek humour to interview and commentate on the sometimes outrageous and sad stories. It proves that there is a job out there for everyone when introduced to the “happy telemarketer” which sounds like an oxymoron to most. The great appeal of the Workology CD is the opportunity to listen to grand tales and occasionally relate to the voices that connect to your own experience. We are not alone. There are people that are miserable in their jobs, take advantage of their workplace, some that find the right “fit” and others that never will. What never seems to fail is humour. Even when we, as Canadians, find ourselves in the worst predicament in the work world we find ourselves making a joke about it just to survive. Workology is a result of what the CBC does best – tell stories.

Sheila Mulhern is an Employment Counsellor at the AlderCentre (Adult Learning dis-Abilities Employment Resource Centre). She holds an Honour’s B.A in Drama and Women’s Studies and an Honour’s diploma in Career and Work Counselling. She can be contacted at sheila@aldercentre.org.

By Sandra Lim, CPRW, CCM, CECC

This is a continuation of my article that appeared in the Spring issue of the Contact Point Bulletin, which described e-résumés and explained their role in an electronic job search. Step-by-step instructions on creating an e-résumé can be found through a chat transcript on coaching a client to convert a Word résumé to an e-résumé (www.abetterimpression.com), from my Web Portfolio.

Contact Point Staff Amber Taverner interviewed Barbara Moses, career expert, author and speaker.
May 28, 2003 

CP:  “What Next? The Complete Guide to Taking Control of Your Working Life” is an international best seller and by a Canadian author. That is quite an accomplishment, congratulations.

By Carole Simpson

From age 16 to 60 we are engaged in making career related decisions from planning an education path that will get us to the career we want, to preparing for retirement. Career decisions are most often made based on experience – whether that is limited to observing our parents in their careers or on-the-job experience. Still, young people have the most difficulty with career planning because of their limited exposure to the world of work.

By Deborah MacNamara

The Chinese character for chaos is also the same for opportunity, similar to the double bind often experienced in Super’s exploration stage. This is apparent in the Career Explorations Seminars that I teach at a university in British Columbia. Participants have a variety of cultural and socio-economic backgrounds, as well as differences in age. They provide many reasons for exploring career options at this point in their life, such as maturity issues, unemployment, burnout, divorce, and downsizing; nonetheless, they are all united in their purpose to try and figure out “what they will do with the rest of their life.” The emotional tenor of these classes is always one of anxiety and excitement, hope and hopelessness, as well as an expectation that at last they will find a career direction. Many believe testing will ultimately point to their ‘true’ career direction and in fear and confusion they latch onto it as a means of decision-making.

By Anne-Viviane Maus

The roots of Donald Super’s extensive writings on vocational development are in the Self Theory of Carl Rogers. According to Super, when an individual is making vocational choices, they act in relation to their understanding of themselves. Psychologically, career choices are “driven” by Self-Concepts. What would follow is that making satisfying vocational choices requires a good understanding of Self. Understanding self is then the key to making a successful vocational choice. But it is also necessary, however, to understand the requirements and work activities of different occupations. If knowledge of any occupation or its demand is wrong, that occupation is not going to be well evaluated in relation to one’s Self-Concept.

By Pat Adams

Electronic Tools and Techniques: A New Course

The Electronics Tools and Techniques course is a partnership between Conestoga College and Contact Point. Pat Adams, a recent graduate, has contributed a summary.

This course is on the cutting edge and a must for anyone looking for professional development in the field of career counselling/development. Using all of today’s technology to its fullest extent and being able to find information quickly is a must in providing high quality cost efficient service. After taking this intensive interactive course practitioners will know about all about cybercounselling, and standards and ethics of online counselling. Topics covered include: online résumé posting, e-networking, researching occupational and industry information as well as ethical and marketing strategies for e-career counselling. Students are asked to complete weekly assignments which include: a combination of reading assignments, exploring and reviewing Internet sites and then replying on the bulletin board where we are encouraged to engage in an interactive discussion about our findings.