After selling his business and wondering what was next for him, New Hampshire resident Jay McCluskey found his answer with WorkReadyNH.
McCluskey enrolled in the tuition-free professional development and workforce training program through 麻豆淫院 Community College in Portsmouth, and before the two-week intensive ended, he had already interviewed for his next career opportunity.
WorkReadyNH is designed to boost the career skills and confidence of New Hampshire residents. Offered through the Community College System of New Hampshire and partnered with NH Employment Security, it targets unemployed, underemployed, and career-transitioning individuals to help them stand out to local employers.
The curriculum uses a blend of live, interactive group classes and independent online work focusing on professional soft skills, essential workplace skills, and career preparation.
After owning and operating his own business for several years, McCluskey realized he needed to refresh his soft skills in order to rejoin the workforce. Specifically, he needed to learn how to be a better listener.
鈥淚 thought I was a good communicator and listener, because that is the role I played for more than 20 years,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut I realized I had some things I need to work on, and this program gave me the opportunity to do it.鈥�
McCluskey participated in a cohort of about 18 students. Over the course of their two weeks together, they engaged in a variety of group activities and role-playing, based on common work scenarios. One of those involved preparing for a job interview and perfecting the art of the 60-second opening pitch.
鈥淚 had conducted thousands of interviews as a business owner, but I had only been interviewed maybe four times,鈥� McCluskey said. 鈥淚 had never even really thought about a pitch speech or worked on any exercise like that.鈥�
His efforts paid off. On the day he was scheduled to make his pitch before his classmates, he got to practice it for an actual job interview. The interview went well, and McCluskey came away from it confident he had found his next work opportunity.
鈥淒oing that exercise made me so much calmer. I knew my story, and I knew how I wanted to tell it. It brought structure to the process, and it gave me confidence,鈥� he said.