Growing talent scheme- my experience

I was recently given the opportunity to be put forward for the Growing talent scheme created by PwC in partnership with JobCentre plus.

The scheme has been set up to provide young people like myself the opportunity to be nurtured through a step by step process of various training upon work experience in various job placements which advances into a full time job hence the term 'growing talent'.

How it works

On the 22nd of September I attended the  Devere Hotel in Holborn for the induction stage considered as round 1. I was joined by a number of around 14 young people where we were seated in a meeting room. Within the meeting room contained four round tables each headed with different categories. We were asked to distribute ourselves evenly and joined by a company representative once settled. Before getting familiar with our table members a short introduction was given by the leader of the scheme Jane James. She kindly greeted us before giving a short summary of what the days activities would consist of: A short film and group activities which would be rotated around each table. 

Once the short film had finished I was a little more educated on some facts not quite grasped before. The film revealed that there would be 2 stages, round one and round two. This consisted of the group activities which I was getting ready to embark on. If fortunate to get through these phases, stage three would offer a 2 night stay in a luxury house complete with spa and swimming facilities. This sounded great to me, training would be offered during the day and the evening would then be yours to leisure to your hearts content!

Next came the team stages, introducing and familiarising yourself with your table and company representative. Various companies were present as part of joining the growing talent scheme including: Portico and recruitment companies. It was interesting to learn of the different interests/background forming my table members and to share similar difficulties which had been faced during our job search. Many people had completed and gained their university degree but still found that experience was a huge factor blocking their job success. I took comfort in knowing that I was not alone and the worry of not actually going to university myself slowly deteriorated. Our company representative assured us that we all contained great qualities to make good employees and helped us brush up on how to really sell ourselves with the group activity. The activity was set out as though you were producing a google advert and needed to pitch appealing aspects to produce a great campaign. Factors such as audience, colours and wording came about during our group discussion. The aim of this task was to relate back in terms of how we were promoting ourselves to potential employers. I immediately stated that I would often list creative as one of my traits and was instantly given points for improvement. When learning of my hobbies the representative suggested that it would be more effective to hit employers with the opening, 'I am a fashion and lifestyle blogger, culture enthusiast and hunger for the next controversial topic.' The simplicity yet powerful effect of this one line really opened my eyes, it is so easy to get lost in the frequent pitches of being 'hardworking', 'committed', 'determined' that we forgot to really individualise our skills to stand out from the crowd.

After completing this activity I went on to be apart of various group discussions and got to talking with other company representatives. Upon talking to a managing director from Portico I feel that my interests had been appealed to. She gave me an accurate description of the role of a welcome host as Portico specialise in placing welcome hosts in various companies such as PwC Welcome hosts are the first point of contact for employees so it is essential to contain friendly attributes as well as being organised and passionate in designated tasks. I felt this type of role really matched my character and I would be able to thrive in a position like this.

Overall I feel my experience at Growibg talent was a success. Unfortunately I did not get through to the third stage but I was able to take away the information and knowledge provided to me from the company representatives. It was great to speak directly with them and grasp exactly what employers are looking for. I feel that young people really do benefit from schemes like this as it allows us to showcase and work on our strengths in the job field and keep proactive.

Perception is reality

When you hear the term 'perception is reality' what does this mean to you?

Are you immediately drawn to think of your self image? Or perhaps how you might be seen by others?

Lately, I have been taking the time to really focus on self reflection. It's come to my attention that part of the reason some fail to reach their full potential is because not enough time is dedicated to truly examine our qualities. 

When we look at ourselves it always seems that we immediately think of things that we can be doing better. Dreams, things we'd like to achieve maybe even a change in our appearance. Time is never truly set aside to recognise the strengths and good qualities that we already have...in this present moment. 

Perception can be based on a number of factors such as: your actions, words, dress sense, attitude, morals, religion to name but a few. Sometimes the perception of others may not exactly match the type of character you are as judgements can be made based on the qualities you portray. 

To stand as someone strong and very confident is exactly how you will be taken . This becomes the perceivers reality as it influences their actions and thoughts towards you. Your name will be signified as someone who is in control of their life and knows their own self worth which builds a positive perception. 

However in some circumstances, a negative image can be built towards you based on someone else's pre conception. For example, if you were to provide poorly structured answers during an interview you are more than likely to be perceived as the wrong material fir the company. This in fact may not be the case as you may have been well prepared but simply nervous which as a result effected your answers delivery. Your reality however now becomes based on the interviewers perception of you, determining whether or not you get the job.

Although how others judge you is not everything, how you are perceived is a big deal. It can widen opportunities and attract certain people towards you. It is very important to think about how you choose to promote yourself in this world. Take the time to self reflect and think about all the good qualities you pocess...once we nourish our abilities we can continue to grow.

It's time to move onward and upwards to better things and flourish into being the best version of ourselves! Perception is reality.