YOU CAN

EASILY START A
JOB SUPPORT GROUP
IN YOUR COMMUNITY
Bullion Grey’s Quixotic Publishing Project
bulliongrey@live.com
 “Research shows that people who attend Job Support
Groups have a 90% greater likelihood of finding gainful
employment in less than 3 months,
than those who do not.”
---- Richard Bolles

A Nationwide Gallup Poll revealed that as many as 75%

of adults have little knowledge of what training they
need and where to find it. Also, this Poll revealed that
people who don’t receive guidance in their job
acquisition face daunting odds (as high as 90%) that
they will NOT be employed in less than 90 days.
---Source: NPR Radio

These above news items might make you wonder why there aren’t
Job Support Groups in your community, and it should. But there is
good news; you can start a Job Support Group in your community.

The following is a plan that has been used by many other people who
have started their own Job Support Group in their community. They
made a tough situation easier and found that working together was
better than going it alone.
Determine that you want to start a Job Support Group in your area.
Even IF there are other job seeking resources, they will not be like
what this report will show you.

It is a fact that many job support resources are for individuals looking
for work, but on their own.

It is proven that meeting together with other job seekers is far faster,
easier and more effective. What we struggle at as an individual, we
thrive at in a supportive group setting. No one has to go it alone
without outside motivation, uplifting help and proper support.

Establish that when you start these efforts to start a Job Support
Group that you will give it at lease 3 months before you stop.
One known fact is that anything worth time takes some time to get
traction, to get the word out. So make this one commitment that you
will keep at it for at least 90 days.
Remember a job support group affects many lives for years to come.
It makes good sense to give it a good effort and establish a needed
service in your community. Also there is plenty information online, if
you Google job support services to help you understand your
communities employment needs.

If you determine that you want to start your own job support group in
your community do not let anyone deter you from making it happen.
Often times, people are of good will and spirit but they are ignorant
about the power of working together to make something happen. Also
include the fact that the Job support group you create will also help
you in finding your next job or position. Everybody wins - the
individual, you, and your surrounding community. I have spoken to
many people who have attended job support groups and almost
every single one of them had positive results in a short period of time.
Let's get started…..

Because I respect your time I will keep this report to a minimum. Of

course we know that the book store shelves are overflowing with job
and employment books. And I could write a book on this one subject
alone. But I respect your time, so I will try and put as much
information as possible in the shortest time.
Print out this report and write notes in the margins of things that it
makes you think about - ideas you get while reading it. Remember it
is not only what you read that makes a difference; the biggest
impact is what you read that makes you think something new.

Hopefully this report will be an idea stimulator for many ideas you will
have and will be able to use in development and operation of your
Job Support Group in your community.
 Steps for Starting a Job Support Group
The first step is to have a notebook.
Go to any $.99 store and purchase a notebook with at least 50 to 100
pages. Use this notebook as your job support group notebook. It
should be about 8.5 x 11 or little smaller. Don't attempt to start your
job support group with a pocket-size notebook. You will need the
room to write down all things that will be important to you in this
endeavor. Right on the inside cover of your new notebook job support
group, your name, your phone number and/or e-mail. This way if you
leave it somewhere or misplaced it has a chance of making it back to
you. You will use your notebook to develop your meeting structure,
operation details, names and numbers, keep important dates, and
any other relevant information. Your notebook will make it easy to
operate your job support group.

It is a good idea to try and find another person who will help you run
this job support group. Choose someone who you know will facilitate
or has the ability to facilitate the job support group meetings.

Ideally you will want to choose someone who can follow instructions
and make sure that all participants are included in each meeting. It
could be your neighbor, a former coworker, or even someone you
advertise in your community for with a flyer.
If you do choose someone who answers your flyer, make sure you
get a copy of their drivers license and pertinent information about
them. It just makes good sense. Make sure they understand it is a
volunteer position and their compensation will be seeing people
returning to work. Perhaps you want to make copies of this report for
them once they decide they are committed to facilitating job support
group meetings on a weekly basis. Or you may want to write out your
own information for them.
 GETTING IT GOING
You will want to advertise your job support group throughout your
community. To do this take an 8/2 by 11 sheet of paper and divide it
into four equal squares. That is 4 flyers on one sheet of paper. This
will save you money making copies. In your flyer be direct and
explain simply something like this:

Job support group forming now

If you are unemployed and wish to be employed, call this
number or e-mail us at this e-mail address. Meetings are weekly
and everyone who attends will receive personal assistance and
support to help them find work. All interested parties please call
or e-mail to attend your first Job Support Group meeting.

Your flyer needs to be simple, direct and easy to understand.

You'll need to leave your phone number or e-mail address so that
potential participants can contact you and attend meetings.

Once you have created your flyer, you want to distribute it.
There are many places as you know, where you can place flyers.
Grocery stores often have a community bulletin board, laundry mats
as well as, you can post them on telephone poles around your
community, you can leave small stacks of flyers with stores and
retailers in your community, you can contact the unemployment office
and ask if you could leave some flyers there. In fact you can leave a
flyer anywhere you see flyers for other offers. It will only take a few
flyers to get a few calls, and with each new distribution of flyers you
will get a new amount of calls and inquiries. Use craigslist also use
online resources such as free classifieds, or make a few forum
comments about Job Support Group ‘you heard of’ in your area.

Remember to have a pen and your notebook by your phone, when

you receive calls. Write down the name of the person, their phone
number, their e-mail, their mailing address and a short note when you
will contact them for the next meeting. It is preferable that you write in
the back of your notebook starting with the last page this information.
Save the front pages of your notebook for meeting notes and details
of schedules, times, places etc.
 Each meeting has the same exact format
Use this simple outline to run your meeting. After you have facilitated
several job support group meetings you can customize it to your
preferences. But please start out with this simple outline.

This plan is formatted in 4 stages

that will help every participant who
attends your Job Support Group Meetings
The four stages of your job support meeting of are:

1. Introduction: Each person in the meeting will have a few minutes

to introduce themselves and the type of work they are seeking.

2. Sharing: Begins with the first person who is asked to share a brief
explanation of their situation and job search. They may talk a detail
about the work they're seeking or the different work options they are
considering. During this time the rest of the participants and yourself
should remain silent and take notes and listen to what they are
saying. (so everyone can give feedback)

3. Feedback: After the first participant has shared, it is appropriate to

ask the participant if they would like feedback. Feedback is a time
when the participant remains silent and the others in the group, in
orderly fashion, start to talk about ideas, possibilities, opportunities or
anything that relates to help in this participant reach their job or
employment goal. Each participant of the group will get an
opportunity to first share with the group and what they have tried to
find employment. It is after each sharing, that feedback is offered.
4. Final comments and close: After each participant has shared
and received feedback, it is time to end the meeting for the week.
There will be participants who have questions at the end of the
meeting and/or comments. It's okay at this time to open discussions
helping people get the answers they need before they go. They will
mingle, network and small talk. This is natural occurrence for most
meetings when they end.
 Here are a few more details about
the Job Support Group meeting

You will want to start the meeting with the introduction of yourself and
the job support group. You will want to explain the format of how the
group will operate, as well as explain that all participants are
expected to be creative and think in new ways for themselves and
other participants. Also it is good to have each participant introduce
themselves by name and job they are seeking.

After introductions and information on how the group runs, and every
participant has introduce themselves it is time for the second stage of
the job support group meeting.

The sharing part is participant by participant and often starting

clockwise as each person is asked to share about their situation
and/or the employment they seek. After the first participant has
shared their employment goals and/or job need’s, they are asked if
they want Feedback. If they answer yes, then the entire group makes
suggestions based on the participant’s stated need’s. Remember
after each participant is offered feedback. Remember that means that
that participant that just shared is to remain silent with a pen & paper
and writes down all of the feedback ideas they get from the group.
Feedback is like brainstorming for the person who just shared.
Brainstorming is a way of sharing ideas, suggestions, resources, and
data that helps a person find new avenues to locate employment.

Remember while a participant receives feedback from the group

they are to write down every ideas suggested. They are not to
speak at all except for clarification of any idea.

Important note: No ideas suggested in the meeting are to be judged

at this time. There should be no negative talk such as “that won't
work” “that's a stupid idea” or any similar negative talk. This way all
ideas have a chance to be listed and looked at, at a later time by
each participant. Two stupid ideas sometimes listed together equals
one smart resource. And we never know which stupid ideas when
seen together on a list will help us think of something even better. So
the rule is no judging of ideas suggestions or feedback during the
meeting.

Each participant must have a chance to share and receive feedback.

It is more productive to offer feedback right after the participant has
shared their employment goal or situation. In other words let’s say
five participants show up. Participant one shares and receives
feedback. Then it is time for participant two. Then the third participant
and so on.
REVIEW:
1. Introduction by the meeting facilitator of the meeting, how it runs,
and the facilitator’s name.

2. Introduction of each person at the meeting, with name, what they

are looking for in a job or employment and maybe a comment on
what they have tried.

3. Then sharing starting with one person. They share for about 5
minutes what they are looking for as far as employment is concerned.
After that person has share, they are asked if they want Feedback. If
yes, then they remain silent with paper/pen and the other participants
suggest ideas, resources, strategies, anything that might help.

4. Then the sharing time is moved clockwise to the next participant in

the Job Support Group. And step 3 (above), is started for that
participant.

5. Only until ALL participants have Shared and received Feedback is

the meeting concluded.
Scheduling meetings: Research shows having weekly job support
group meetings produces the best results. Although once a month will
produce positive results, meeting weekly will produce faster results.

This meeting format is one of the simplest to conduct.

Yet these quality’s of simplicity of structure allow for human foibles,
shortcomings any circumstances. The rule is keep it simple.

This concludes this report on

how to start a Job Support Group
in your community.

Note that studies show that greater participation in your Job Support
Group the more positive results occur, more people find work. As long
as your Job Support Group meetings are held there is no end to the
positive results that can be produced.
After Thought:
You also have an option aside from creating a Job Support Group.
This is creating a job support group bulletin board. You can create
this online as a webpage, or at a local unemployment office, church,
school, public center, or a community room. A job opportunity board is
set up for people looking for work and people looking for employees.

“Studies indicate the concept of group

self help is a highly successful approach
for many problems faced by individuals.”
--- Self Help & Recovery Exchange – SHARE!
ATTENTION READERS

The author’s intent of this free how to create a Job Support Group
report is to help individuals to improve life quality, to assist others to
locate employment.

This is not a solicitation of any service or product. This is a free guide

to assist others to create Job Support Groups in their community.
Through collaboration and coordination opportunities are created.

This information is not legal advice nor an offer to sell, buy or trade
any service or product. This is not a solicitation to hire for any
services. The ideas in this report are merely experience & opinions
and should be taken as such.

This publication is part of a community service provided by

Bullion Grey’s Quixotic Publishing Project.

You make Xerox this report at will and make copies to distribute.
Thank you, and hopefully it will help you start your own job support
group in your community and help you and others toward finding
employment.

There is no copyright on this report