Having given up a glamorous highly-paid career in the Caribbean to move to Haywards Heath to be with her partner, Meredith Wood has found it difficult to get work in the UK.
As the winner of our career makeover competition, we got a career coach, a top psychologist and celebrity stylist to meet her and pass on some crucial tips for how to land that great new job. Ruth Addicott asked how it all went
Meredith's story Living in the sunny Caribbean
managing a spa resort and a multimillion
dollar butterfly farm,
Meredith Wood appeared to have it
all - a gorgeous home, a laid-back
lifestyle, a job she loved and friends
and family close by she could rely
on. Recently divorced, the last thing
she was looking for was romance.
However, after falling in love with her
current partner Rob three years ago she
gave it all up last July to come back and
live with him in Haywards Heath, with
her son, 12, and daughter, nine. Since
then, her life has come to a standstill.
"Life was good," recalls Meredith, 45.
"I lived in Saint Martin in the Caribbean,
I was manager of a butterfly farm and
a freelance massage therapist - two jobs
I loved. I maintained a balance between
divorce, work and children. Everything
was going in the right direction and then
the cherry on the top - I fell in love."
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Although she maintained a long distance
relationship with Rob for two
years, Meredith decided to make the
move in 2007.
"I sold my house and my car, waved
goodbye to butterflies, friends and
clients and, clutching my fabulous
references, plonked my family down
in Haywards Heath," she says. "At the
time I was really excited about the move.
I didn't realise how much of a wrench
it would be."
Apart from missing the blue skies,
white sands and laid-back lifestyle, as
much as she enjoys living in Sussex,
Meredith has struggled to settle in. To
make matters worse, Rob has lost his job
and, spending a large amount of time
setting up his own business, the strain is
beginning to show in their relationship.
"I feel completely lost," she says.
"Living in Haywards Heath, everyone
seems to have their own lives and
families and I'm finding it incredibly
hard to get a job."
Meredith isn't short of initiative and
is certainly not one to give up easily as
she has already proved, surviving seven
hurricanes in St Martin.
The first, in 1995, devastated the
island as well as her home - she lost the
roof off her house along with her job.
"My little boy was only eight weeks old,"
she recalls. "There was no water, no
electricity, it was just a mess. But when
you're faced with a situation like that,
you go into survival mode."
While there is little likelihood of
a Force 4 hurricane hitting Haywards
Heath, she is finding life here surprisingly
tougher than she'd ever imagined.
Meredith was managing director of
a luxury spa resort in St Martin for five
years, before becoming part-time
manager of the butterfly farm. But
despite having the skills, experience
and making countless attempts to get
a job in Sussex, all she has had is
rejections. Even a carefully worded ad in
the paper advertising her services as
a massage therapist, only prompted
50 calls from the "dirty mac" brigade.
Meredith says she is flexible and
just wants to feel inspired but the jobhunting
has left her with a growing
sense of alienation, frustration and
self-doubt.
"Agencies tend to ask questions like
Are you prepared to work for minimum
wage?' and suggest, as I haven't worked
for the past six months, I should accept
a low-paid job to show prospective
employers I am using my skills."
She believes her biggest problem is
being a "Jill of all trades" and difficult
for employers to pigeonhole. "It's a case
of trying to find a focus," she says.
"I've found myself really scattered,
frozen with fear, unable to move
forwards or backwards - me, who
cruised through seven hurricanes.
I need help to find my feet so I can
seek interesting opportunites. I need
direction, information and inspiration
- indeed a makeover."
The stylist
Zoe Lem has worked on What Not To Wear and has styled celebrities such as Robbie Williams
"Following
her move
back to the
UK, Meredith
has not
quite got to
grips with
dressing for
the cold.
"Life in the
Caribbean
requires
nothing
more than
a pair of
shorts and flip-flops, so it was important
to teach her the art of layering within
the context of a smart work wardrobe.
Meredith has been wearing looser
clothing in the sun and was actually a
smaller size than she thought so it was
crucial to add some shape and curve."
Colour and style "Colourwise, Meredith needed warm
colours to brighten and soften
her skin and face.
"Gold was a good shade to lift her eyes
and the funky shape of the gold jacket
added a modernity to the look as
well as being flattering. It's a versatile
look that can be worn for work but
with different accessories carried
through for evening.
"The length of the jacket also made
her legs look longer. Red is difficult to
wear for many people but with
Meredith's dark hair it adds vibrancy as
long as the right make-up is worn to
even the skin tone. The trench coat is
also very on trend this season.
"As she has a bust, she must be careful
to keep the neckline open - double
breasted can make you look wider
if buttoned to the top."
Accessories
"The chunky jewellery is again in
proportion with her height and shape.
Very small, delicate jewellery will
make her look bigger, while bolder
pieces add youth."
Shoes "Heels are great for leg shape and give
you confidence going into a meeting as
long as you can walk in them. These are
comfy and great for work as they are
a wedge but still maintain the height.
They are only £39.50, too ,which is great
for building up a work wardrobe
without spending a fortune."
(All clothes from M&S)
MEREDITH'S VERDICT
"Zoe gave me advice on what colours
and styles would be flattering and
professional and how to make
a good first
impression. She
also gave me
two looks within
an hour -
impressive!
"Zoe said most
women are
thinner under
their chest so an
empire line
would help
balance my
boobs. She also
suggested buying trousers which kick
out at the knee because they'd balance
my hips. She really opened my eyes to
different shapes.
"I'd never wear bronze wedges normally
but when I tried them on, they went
really well with the outfit.
"I tend to wear tailored black trousers
and a lot of blue, black and red, but Zoe
steered me into unchartered waters
with chocolate brown, bronze and a red
trench coat.
"I felt a bit of an idiot at first and
nearly backed out, then I thought
Life's too short'. The final outfit was
a much younger, fresher look than
I'd normally go for but I felt it
really upped the ante."
Top style tips
If you have a part of
your body you don't
like, don't add bright
colour or detail to the
area as this will attract
attention to it.
In any work situation,
it's better to lead the
eye to the face and eyes
rather than the cleavage
so stick to block colour.
Wide-leg trousers or
an A-line skirt can add
shape to legs
Avoid a chunky,
heavy coat as this will
add width.
If you have a large
bust, keep the neckline
open. A double-breasted
coat or jacket will
make you look wider
if your wear it buttoned
up to the top.
THE CAREERS COACH
Tony Rous is Learndirect's resident careers advice coach "Meredith felt
that since
moving to the
UK last year she
had achieved
very little
compared with
the previous
12 months.
I told her she
had actually
achieved a great
deal - getting
her family
settled, helping
her partner start his new business,
applying for jobs, making new contacts.
"Meredith had had the results of one
job interview and was awaiting the
results of another. So we agreed she
had made good progress."
Skills and CV
"I asked Meredith about her skills and
interests and she talked about what she
could bring to a job. I also suggested she
has come to the right
area to utilise her
tourist industry skills
and experience.
"We discussed ways of
finding employment
and Meredith said she
was prepared to take
further qualifications
so I emailed her details
of local and self-study
accounting and
computer courses.
"Meredith also asked
me to review her CV
and agreed she needed
to say more about
herself and less
about her previous
employment."
MEREDITH'S VERDICT
"Tony Rous was very practical. He told
me how to tweak my CV so it focuses
more on me and how to transfer'
my skills to the UK.
"He also suggested following up letters
with a phone call. He said there's
nothing wrong with calling up the
employer and asking them what skills
they are looking for."
THE PSYCHOLOGIST
Donna Dawson has appeared on This Morning and Radio 5 Live
"Meredith
struck me as
a woman
with many
talents.
"She had
been brave
enough
to leave
a successful
job and
a settled life
on a West
Indian island
to accompany
her partner
and children back to England. She is now
trying to fit in and find a job that would
recognise both her managerial talents and
her skill as a massage therapist."
Focus exercises
"I asked Meredith to write down a healthy
belief' she wished to strengthen such as
I am capable of finding the job I want'.
"I had her rate her present level of
conviction in that statement as
a percentage and she put down 70 per cent.
I then asked her to attack' her own
statement, by writing down arguments
against it and to respond to this attack
by writing down the counter arguments to
the ones she'd already stated. We continued
until all her attacks had been answered
and countered. I then asked her to rate
her level of conviction in her original
statement again and it had risen to
80 per cent.
"The second written exercise
was titled Where I want to be
a year from now'. On the left
side of the paper she listed all
the things which might hinder
her and down the right, all
the things which could help
her. The bottom of the paper
was reserved for writing
down solutions.
"We then spent half an hour
on a relaxation exercise. I felt
Meredith benefited from having
this time to herself in which
to concentrate and focus on
what she wanted - this gives
her control back over her
own life and puts her in the driver's seat."
MEREDITH'S VERDICT:
"It was really interesting. Donna made
me focus on my strengths and I found it
reassuring to know I am looking in the
right direction. We did some written work
to underscore that and also a meditation
which will hopefully harness my focus
and self confidence."
More information
Learndirect Careers Advice
offers free, confidential advice
for people looking to get back
to work or retrain.
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