REDUNDANCY does not have to be a negative thing and could be seen as a turning point in an individual’s career, employment advisers have said.

People often end up in wrong jobs through peer or family pressures, or satisfying particular needs, such as money or staying in a particular location, says Steve Parker, of global company Bluesky HR Group.

The career coach, who works from Pocklington, says people who are being made redundant are realising it is an opportunity, but they don’t always know what they want to do or what they can do.

“The key things I’m dealing with are blocks in the way of people realising their dreams. Then there’s this wonderful realisation when they say ‘I get it. I know what I should be doing’.”

He says people downplay their skills or are in a rush to be employed, rather than concentrate on what would make them happy.

“I put the mirrors in the right places so people can see themselves from all around, everything they have to offer, and everything that’s important to them, then work out for themselves a clear direction they’re really happy with.”

But people don’t believe they can have it all. “Work is such an important part of people’s life, if it’s not right how can the rest be right?

“Getting over the risk of change is difficult, but when at a crossroads, people are more open to understanding why it’s important to look at themselves. And once they take the blinkers off they say they wish they had done it ages ago.”

Colette Gray, manager of Future Prospects, which gives free advice on work and skills in York, says it is particularly people who have had a job for a long time, possibly all their life, who find it difficult to change.

“They tend to play down their skills and abilities because they can’t imagine themselves outside that framework. Part of that transition is making them see themselves in a different light,” she said.