Why you should never give up...

From 11^th March 2013, my life came crashing behind my ears.

Before then, I had everything I had ever dreamed of. I was living happily with my girlfriend of the time, we had a beautiful cat, my job prospects were looking good, my confidence was higher than it had ever been. On top of this, I was doing what I love (singing and playing poker) on a regular basis and enjoying some success.

On 10^th March, I was playing a poker tournament in Birmingham. It was the regional final of a league that I had qualified for. I came third of about 200, and I was over the moon. I couldn’t wait to get back and treat my girlfriend, as I had wanted to do for a while but had a lack of money.

The next day, she ended the relationship and kicked me out of our flat. This was swiftly followed by multiple job rejections, being unable to live at my mum’s place, or my sister’s.

I ended up at the Chace Centre in Coventry, which, if you didn’t know, is worse than prison. I was sinking deeper and deeper into depression. I was then viciously attacked and was hospitalised with fractured ribs and a punctured lung.

A few weeks later, I was diagnosed with a tumour in my stomach. I admit, I was close to giving up at this point. I sat in my small, dingy room feeling sorry for myself, torturing myself with thoughts about what I wanted life to be like.

I started an intense course of treatment for the tumour, which made me feel constantly fatigued and ill, and also had a severe impact on my already fragile mental health. I was referred to the Coventry Foyer, another supported housing establishment, where I was offered fantastic support.

Why am I telling you this?

Well, because almost a year ago, I was drained of my positivity. There was no light at the end of the tunnel for me, and I didn’t believe that anything would get better.

The Prince’s Trust Team Programme was the turning point for me. For those who don’t know, Team is a 12 week course aimed at developing the employment and personal skills of young people. It was the best thing that has ever happened to me, and it had a real impact on my life. It offered motivation that I had been lacking for months, and gave me hope that I could get back to happiness.

On 6^th September 2013, I was given the news that my tumour had cleared. This was incredible news – it was remarkably quick, I had been expecting a much longer struggle than the one I faced. This was a catalyst for me, and I became determined to live life to the maximum. However, issues with my long-gone ex girlfriend still held me back, and I let her keep me down, much to the frustration of my new friends.

If I fast forward to where I am today – I’ve started a fantastic and exciting Apprenticeship with the Juice Academy, I’m due to move into my new place, I’m finally happy to be single, and I’ve rediscovered the happy, lively me that was brought out during the Team Programme.

The reason for this is my stubborn refusal to give in on life. I was tempted, many times to do so. But it is ingrained upon my mind to keep on going. What else could I do? I knew I had abilities, strengths that not everyone necessarily had. I was wasting them, and I knew it. I have fought, and struggled throughout all this adversity, without really knowing why I was bothering.

Now I know why I kept going. I simply had to. I was placed on this earth, to have a story and share it. I have been through more in the last year than a lot of people will go through in 10 years. I came through it, and now I’m in a better position than ever.

I have learned so many lessons from it. I won’t go for the cliché “every cloud has a silver lining.” But I will tell you that throughout any hard time you may go through, you can come through it. If problems are clouds, then remember that clouds dissipate.

My plea to you is never to give up. Whether this be on your dreams, or even on the crossword in the paper – keep going and you’ll get there. My sheer determination got me through an uncountable amount of pain and suffering. Be determined. If you want to get through it, you will.

Forget what anyone tells you, even if they’re trying to be positive and tell you “everything will be ok.” Focus on yourself, on breeding your own positive attitude and on facing your problems face on. Most importantly of all: know that you are amazing. You were built to survive, and you can survive if you believe it.

I overcame a messy break up, homelessness, being attacked, life threatening illness, unemployment and depression. Now I'm smiling a broader smile than I ever have. I'm a stronger person, and for that reason, I feel no bitterness and everything I've been subjected to.

What inspires you to keep going during your hardest times? Let me know in the comments section below.

The Social Media Explosion

Social media has seen a meteoric rise in the last few years. It seems a long, long time ago that Facebook, MySpace and Bebo uttered mere whispers in the murky corners of the internet.

Today, social media is everywhere. Literally, you can’t go anywhere without seeing evidence of it. Even if you stop scowling at the people glued to their phones and their Twitter timeline as they walk blindly down the street, when you move your eyes elsewhere you will see hashtags, pleas for “Follows” and “Likes.”  Social media has taken over the world.

Of course, the problem for businesses is that it has evolved so quickly and become such an important tool for marketing and building relationships with customers/clients, that they haven’t had a chance to react to it. This is why there is a huge skill gap in the digital industry.

This is where people like myself come in. I have grown up around social media, and therefore without studying for a single second, I know more about it than some of the older generation.

You can still see it evolving, every month. It used to be a mainly text based sharing model. Now, you can share photos, videos, music, webpages, anything you like. With sites such as Snapchat, you even have the option of creating what is called “disappearing media.”

The simple fact is that we have become a society built around it. For better or worse, whenever something happens, we instantly think about social media. Can we post this on Facebook or Twitter? How can we make it so we can get more “likes” or “retweets?”  In essence, we have all become marketing agencies for ourselves. We all want the world to love what we share, and more as many people to see it as possible.  Does it not seem crazy then, that 30% businesses don’t have social media in their marketing strategy?

I wish I knew the logic behind not having it in your strategy. It is more cost effective, can reach a global audience and allows you to build relationships with both your customer and your competitior. (For an example of competitor relationships, check out the @ThreeUK and @tescomobile Twitter interaction).

What, then, is the reason for neglecting it? My opinion is that it is a lack of understanding of the huge benefits and, in fact, the sheer importance of the new marketing trends. It is such a new concept that there just isn't a widespread ability to be able to comprehend the potential.

I'll give you an example. On the train home from a session at The Juice Academy yesterday (19th February), I was speaking to a guy who was looking to set up a new business. We had exchanged pleasantries etc about what we do for a job, the usual for us polite Brits, and he wanted to know how he could incorporate social media into his advertising and marketing.

He saw sites such as Facebook and Twitter purely as sites to communicate with family and friends.

This, I think, is the ingrained view among entrepreneurs, or at least the 30% who don't intend to use it. This is something, that as a Social Media Apprentice, I will in the future need to try and change. I offered him some advice as to the channels he should probably look into using, but impressed upon him the importance of having a purpose. 

There can be no comparison of social media now, to even just five years ago. Where will it be in another five years? What will be the latest craze then? Wherever it is headed on the congested motorway that is the internet, it is clear that social media will be around for a long, long time.

What are your views on the future of social media? I would love to hear what others think is going to happen in the near and distant future. Leave your comments below.

No Rain, No Gain: The Highs and Snows of Commuting to Work

Well, hasn’t this weather just made everything delightful. Being a very strong minded person when it comes to punctuality, I usually find the morning and evening commutes to and from work stressful as it is, as one of my biggest hates is to miss a train I promised myself I would catch.

Couple that with the worst rainfall this country has seen in years, and it makes for a very grouchy young Social Media Apprentice indeed. Imagine my panic when we had that rather intense snow flurry.

The job is going fantastically well so far, and I am enjoying every second. I am busy all the time, my employers are allowing me to flex my mind and come up with my own solutions to problems, and I get on with everyone extremely well.

The thought of commuting to work was something I was actually looking forward to – it makes me feel very adult-like and mature, something my sense of humour lacks the ability to do, so getting on the train in my shirt and trousers everyday made me feel like part of a well-knit (or well-suited) community.

I say community – but the morning commute is very much a free-for-all every man for himself situation. There’s me, using my manners as I always do, allowing the professional looking guy in the seat opposite to disembark before myself, and all I get in return is a non-committal grunt of acknowledgement. This was then swiftly followed by a blow to the back of the head (accidental I hope) as someone else decided to barge past, in a rush to get to the already packed escalator that would halt their morning sprint anyway.

I find it quite sad that the pressure of getting to work on time, and the emotional trauma of being on the way to work before dawn, has led to a startling decrease in the impeccable manners us Brits stereotypically have. I am a pretty old fashioned person when it comes to manners and etiquette, so I generally tend to feel a pang of frustration when people forget the simple “excuse me please, I’m in a rush to catch another train,” that I so optimistically expect.

That said, this is something worth tolerating, purely because everyday, I look forward to getting to work. In my previous work placement, I wasn’t challenged in the slightest, and in fact, I barely did anything the whole month I was there. So to be tasked with a few things everyday is something I’m making the most of, much like one savours the taste of Ben and Jerry’s as it slides nonchalantly down your throat.

I honestly expected a slow start to this job. I thought we would be observing more than anything. I was proved wrong immediately. After the initial induction, we were straight away asked to start brainstorming ideas for various upcoming projects, and by Day 3, we had been given events that we would be sent to cover, representing West Midlands Fire Service.

It feels like the Corporate Communications department we are in WANTS us here. In fact, the Strategic Communications Manager has been asking us questions, and been wanting to learn about social media from us, which is a very uplifting feeling, as quite clearly they view us as having something rather valuable to offer their organisation.

This is what makes me proud to be here. I am here for a reason, not to fill up numbers. I’m here because I, and my fellow apprentice Jess, have skills that this company both needs and desires. We can be the future of their social media drive, and this makes being concussed on a regular basis something I can look forward to if the reward is the enriching experience we are already having.

Apprenticeships Over Uni: Why I Chose This Path.

Growing up, I was obsessed with the idea of going to university and getting a degree. I wanted to be the first in my family to go, I wanted the pride of saying I have a degree, but more than anything, I wanted success.

I have always been hungry for it – I have always desired to be the best at whatever I do. This fierce determination has always been what drives me and it is something that I use to my advantage every day.

In August 2011, I received the news: I had been accepted into my first choice of university! Naturally, I was over the moon. It felt like all my hard work had paid dividends. At this point, I must confess that I was guilty of naivety and complacency. In my mind, I had made it – university was my goal and I was going.

However, by the turn of the year, I knew that I would not complete my degree. It didn’t feel right. Something just didn't connect and I knew, although I was reluctant to accept it, that I had to leave.

This was a tough period for me. University was what I had dreamed about for years and for it not to be the path I was supposed to follow demoralised me. I didn't even consider an apprenticeship at this point – I had a very narrow minded and ignorant view of them and believed them to be for school drop-outs and people who left with school with few qualifications.

I could not be happier to be wrong. Their exponential growth in the last 5 years or so, particularly since the rise in tuition fees, speaks for itself. One cannot help but sit up and take notice of what is going on. Increasingly often, young people with university-standard A Level grades are choosing to instead undertake an apprenticeship.

Why is this? Because it is on the job training, and you’re earning money while getting a qualification? Of course, but these savvy young minds are realising that academic qualifications just aren’t as valuable as they used to be. The key to success in today’s climate is to find an edge over the other candidates. Life and work experience is that edge, meaning the apprenticeship is an ideal way to find a route into a career.

3pm on Wednesday 15^th January 2014 – three hours before the deadline for university applications. My finger is on the mouse, the cursor hovered over the “submit” button on my application. I've chosen to apply for a Creative and Professional Writing with English Language degree, with a view to starting a career in social media and marketing. The longing for progression in my career had once again overcome me.

Before I clicked the button, I remembered that social media apprenticeships had been mentioned to me, so I checked online for vacancies and more information about apprenticeships in general to see if it could be the right choice for me.

I came across a vacancy with The Juice Academy at West Midlands Fire Service. Immediately a smile came across my face. I was excited from the first line of reading the advertisement. I applied, and happily I was accepted after being selected from a group of candidates at a “boot camp.”

I have just started my training at The Juice Academy, based in Manchester, and I could not be happier that I made the last minute decision not to apply to university. It is a fantastically well run organisation with genuine intentions to get young people like myself into an industry where there is a frighteningly large skill gap.

As someone who hopes to be an employer myself in the future, I would encourage young people to consider an apprenticeship. The simple fact is, times are changing, and employers are looking for something more from potential employees. They want to build for the future now, which is why they are employing younger people and training them from the very basics. This is why I personally champion the apprenticeship as possibly the best way for young people to get into their chosen career.