Jouvah - Determination and hard work pays off
Jouvah was keen to find a paid job when he started at St Marys NOVA Transition. Although he was very quiet – he describes himself as shy, and used to sweat when interacting with others – he dreamed of working in retail.
Jouvah faced a big hurdle: he struggled with time management and was routinely late to Transition and work experience placements. Being on time is essential in retail work. So, together with his job coach, Jouvah started setting goals about managing his time.
This wasn’t successful straight away: even during work experience at Coles, Jouvah kept arriving late. Eventually Jouvah and his job coach concluded that he would not be allowed to participate in work experience unless he was on time. From then on, he was always on time.
By the end of his first year, Jouvah had progressed a lot: he was confident in interviews, was always on time and was motivated to earn money and become independent as soon as possible. During a work experience placement at ToyMate, Jouvah was punctual and his fellow workers were very impressed with his determination and reliability. He was subsequently offered a part-time traineeship in retail.
Of his time at Transition, Jouvah says, ‘They helped me to know the safety rules and just be more confident in how to handle customers. I still am a shy person, but I’m a lot more confident around people, especially people I don’t really know; I can chat to them or go up to them to help them out without too much trouble.
‘I would recommend NOVA. Even though for me it was a bit of a difficult road, I would still enjoy Transition and, at the end, I feel like NOVA helped me to get the job I wanted.’ And he has some advice for new trainees: ‘Be determined – just don’t be lazy – you’ve really got to do it, put in the effort. Just keep trying to get that dream job that you want.’
Would you like to clear your hurdles and find your dream job?
To discuss your options, call NOVA Transition on 1300 Ability (1300 224 548).
NOVA Transition accepts NDIS School Leaver Employment Supports.
