After leaving school in 2016, Mizanul, 18, was living with his family in Oldham. He left school in 2016 and drifted into working a kitchen job in a take-away. Mizanul did not like this and really wanted to do something different.
In September 2018 Mizanul took the decision to leave. This was difficult for him as he was under pressure from his family to find work.
Mizanul was receiving careers guidance from Positive Steps - a charitable trust helping young people make well-informed decisions about their career pathways.
Recognising he would need more support not just with his job searching and interview skills, but also with his own self-confidence and self-esteem, Postive Steps referred Mizanul to Upturn Enterprise Limited.
"Mizunal had skills and qualities, he had good communication skills, was reliable and polite and was keen to be working."
Upturn are GM’s Hidden Talent’s delivery partner operating in Oldham and Rochdale.
With the support of Talent Coach, Janet, Mizanul began to build his confidence. Janet encouraged Mizanul to believe in himself more and recongnise that he had a lot of skills to offer.
"Mizunal had skills and qualities, he had good communication skills, was reliable and polite and was keen to be working," said Janet.
"But he didn’t recognise them himself – he felt lots of pressure from his family too which made him unsure."
Mizanul soon attended a warehousing and logistic course at Mantra Learning (a skills learning and training provider for the logistics, automotive and business sector) in Middleton.
After passing, Mizanul, with help from Janet, started to apply for warehousing apprenticeships and jobs. The month after registering onto GM’s Hidden Talent, Mizanul had secured a job at a warehouse in Shaw.
He said: “Janet was very supportive and helpful when looking for jobs. She sent me links on a regular basis and helped me send out my CV. Having a job has made me feel better. I wasn't at home all day - I actually felt like someone just trying to make a living.”
