Boban and Career Transition Assistance transcript
Monique: Hi, my name is Monique and I work for APM and I work at the Elizabeth City location. When Boban first started, he wasn’t in a very nice headspace and he suffered with a low confidence and low self-esteem and low motivation. And I remember distinctively him telling me that he didn’t want to go out during the days, and he was trying his hardest at home because he was very embarrassed of the fact that he wasn’t employed. So the CTA program helped him go through and helped him to regain some of his confidence.
Boban: I liked coming here because we all got on like a family, basically – everyone got along. Everyone talked a lot. When I was younger I had a lot of patience but through my working life I lost a lot of patience and she regained it for me, she being Monique, helped me a lot with my confidence, with my resume, with my cover letter. She just showed me better ways of writing stuff instead of waffling. I suppose it gave me a sense of purpose, like I said, it made me want to go somewhere and not always be home, sitting in front of a TV, and just watching TV and feeling down about myself, feeling sorry for myself, instead of actually going to help myself and find a job.
Jamie: CTA helps prepare our participants into employment by giving them skills. So for instance, helping with resumes, cover letters, being able to apply for jobs online, as some of our clients don’t know how to apply for jobs online. Boban wanted to get more social skills and get a bit more confidence as well, which was a big thing for him. But at the end of the day, he really just wanted to get sustainable employment. We’ve helped put him in a few courses. For instance, he did a food safety course which allows him to work in kitchens and prepare food. We’ve also helped him with his license, so doing some driving lessons, help him get towards his P’s, which is a big step in getting employment.
Monique: So when he started, he was very closed-off and he didn’t know what he was going to learn from this program because he’d actually been through quite a few programs similar to this one. But during the program, he realised it was a lot more that what it was on the outside, and it had a lot to do with self-growth.
Jamie: When you have a job, you feel much better about yourself, you have a purpose, and that’s what we really want to everyone to have and that’s what Boban is working towards.
Boban: You got the ability. You just have to look inside yourself and don’t be afraid to actually go ask for help.