You’ve found yourself in-between jobs and someone has suggested you should try your hand at temping, but you’re not so sure. You really want a permanent role and you’ve heard that it looks bad on your resume to have lots of temp roles.

If you start temping will you ever get another long-term role?

Will it look bad on your resume?

Short answer, no!

There are so many positives to temping and, if approached correctly, temping can actually enhance your career and provide you with opportunities you may not have had otherwise.

Here are 5 great reasons why you should consider temp work:

Temping is a great way to expand your skill set and experience different work environments. This is particularly beneficial for people who have a long career within the one industry, or in similar roles and are keen to broaden their experience. Temping is also a great way to improve and demonstrate important soft skills such as adaptability and a willingness to learn.

Want flexibility? Temping is ideal! The length of temp contracts vary greatly so it’s very possible to work when you want to work and then take a short break if you want to travel, study – or if you just want to have some work/life balance.

So often, an employer will advise us that whilst they can only offer a position on a temporary basis for the time being, there’s every chance that should the temp be a good fit for the role and the team, they may offer them the position on a permanent basis.

It is also worth noting that sometimes, the permanent position being offered isn’t the role they’re covering on a temp basis. It may be a more senior position that’s more aligned with your skill set and previous experience. So keep this in mind when you’re being offered a temp contract at a lower level. You never know what it might lead to!

You might have always wanted to work for the government, but after completing a few temp assignments in the public sector you now realise that it’s actually not for you!

Temping exposes you to different environments and industries so it’s a great way to experience this without the commitment that comes with accepting a permanent role.

  Temping takes some of the stress out of job hunting

Let’s be real, job hunting can be a pretty stressful exercise. The pressure of securing a role that’s aligned with you career goals in a short space of time is high. Plus, you have school fees to pay, food shopping and bills coming in every day. It can be a very tense time.

The solution – temping! Whilst you won’t always be paid at the same level you were in your permanent role (although sometimes you will – particularly if you have a skill-set that’s in demand), it does give you a regular income and as Jo often says “it keeps the wolves at bay!”.

Another bonus is that temping allows you to build a relationship with your recruiter, so if you’ve done all the right things as a temp, you can bet they’ll be singing your praises to their other clients and will do their best to help you secure your next permanent role.

So, if you find yourself in-between jobs, consider temping! You never know who you might meet, what you might experience or what it could lead to.

5 Reasons why you should consider temping

Mansfield & Co Recruitment