My Employment. Sarah - Area 41, Barry
It was the worst interview I had ever experienced. Ever! I thought I was prepared, thought I had it all covered down to the cheesy grin I had been practicing and the open body language that every magazines states should be shown in order to show your future employee that you are the man (or women) for the job.
Alright, so the only interviews I had ever attended last roughly two minutes and the job was virtually offered to me straight away, but it was still the experience, right? I thought it was going to be OK, after all wasn’t an interview simply talking to someone? In school I was constantly getting into trouble for talking too much, so didn’t think it would be too hard to sit in a room talking to someone. Plus the job which I was applying for –“Youth Support Worker” was the exact career path I wanted to go down. I was feeling pretty confident.
But when I walked in to the room and saw 4 people staring back at me, any confidence I had, definitely disappeared! My mouth went dry and I couldn’t speak, my hands were shaking and I felt over whelmed with so many people staring at me and taking notes on everything I said! I kept trying to think of something clever and intelligent to say but my mind went blank. It was so scary! After a long twenty minutes of being asked how I would react in certain circumstances or about issues I felt young people face or suffer with, I had convinced myself that there was no way that the job would be mine.
I went home feeling defeated, but lucky for me a few hours later I was told I had been successful! I was going to be a Youth Support Worker! I was so happy and excited, and I couldn’t believe that after what I thought was the worst interview in the world ever, I had managed to get the job! Result! That's when my employment began with the Vale of Glamorgan Youth Service's Area 41 in Barry.
The induction process began straightaway. I was expecting not to know anyone, and had images of my lunch being spent all alone, with no one to talk to. But when I walked in to the room I found that my old 6th form drama buddy Kelly, who I hadn’t seen for a year, was there too! Happy didn’t come close to describe how I was feeling!
The induction process was definitely one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. It was emotional, scary and hard. At one point I did question if I wanted to do this job, I questioned how capable I was. I didn’t feel confident and was pushed out of my comfort zone, I became a lot quieter and felt overwhelmed with all the information that we were learning. I spoke to both my boss and Kelly about my concerns. But after listening to their advice I decided to stick with it, after all this was something I always wanted to do, I couldn’t give up already! This was only to be a temporary 6 month contract. After our induction process we were told where we would be working and I was so happy to learn Kelly and I would be working together!
In my new job, something different would happen every day - form complying a social networking policy, to creating a young person’s friendly politics wall, we covered so many different tasks. My job wasn’t like a “normal” 9-5. I didn’t dread doing the same long boring process. I looked forwarded to completing new challenges and with Kelly alongside me. It was great to have someone I could always bounce ideas off.
Working in the youth club on a Tuesday night was definitely one of the best experiences that I’ve had! It was really good to work with the young people, and hear first hand any changes, view and ideas they felt passionate about. Plus I learnt (not very well) how to play pool! Definitely one of my proudest moments there.
Another thing that my job has offered was being part of the Swoosh website and Swoosh Editorial Group. Being able to write and submit articles that young people can read and comment on is brilliant! I also entered a short story writing competition organised by The Sprout website and local authors Jaque Thay and Lynda Nash. This has been a really positive experience!
My time with Teen Scheme, a summer holiday club, was also something I enjoyed immensely. So what now? My aim was to become a teacher working with primary school children, but after Teen Scheme it made me want to teach in secondary schools instead. The activities we did on Teen Scheme were really fun and I’m sure not many people get paid to go both bowling and rock climbing!
My time at Area 41 is unfortunately up and I am not only leaving with a whole load of memories, but also with a new found confidence and determination. Being a Youth Support Worker is definitely a job for someone that is energetic and outgoing, who enjoys working with young people and is prepared to make changes on their behalf. It has definitely been one of the best jobs I have ever done and I am extremely grateful to both my boss and work colleagues for making my 6 months so memorable!
