Self-help guide library

Browse and download self-help resources from our huge range in the below A-Z library.

To find resources suitable for specific stages of your career planning, see the Explore, Decide, Prepare, Apply, Develop, or Reflection and Resilience pages.

A Fresh Start

How to kick start a life change by using a natural point in the calendar to make a new start.

Application Tracker

A simple way to track your job applications so you stay in control.

Best Possible Future Selves

A widely researched writing exercise which asks you to imagine one or more possible lives for yourself in the future.

Bridge of Reasons

Identifying the benefits that you will gain from making a change is a powerful way to boost motivation. If this appeals, use the Bridge of Reasons.

Butterfly Effect

Explore the role that chance plays in career success.

Camper Van Career Choice

A way to make a tentative / temporary careers decision as a basis for action.

Cantril Ladder

A guide to reflecting upon how happy you are with your life.

Career Genealogy

A guide to reflecting upon the ideas about careers you’ve gained from your family.

Careers Without Fears

This self-help tool explains how you can take an unhelpful way of thinking and reframe it into a more useful way of looking at the world. 

Cartesian Logic

A reflective tool for considering the consequences of researching versus not researching your career options.

Confidence Builder

Use the Confidence Builder to build up an affirming picture of your capabilities.

Confidence Clarifier

Try using our Confidence Clarifier tool to tease out where your lack of confidence lies, and how large an issue it actually is. 

Curious About Careers

As you do your research you may find it helpful to use our Curious About Careers tool which will help you keep track of initial observations. 

Day Dream Journal

A way of gathering random thoughts that occur to you that may give clues about the careers you’re interested in.

Expectations Under the Microscope

Use this guide if you lack motivation about a course of action because yous ense that you are being pushed in different directions.

Eye of the Storm

Use this if you feel you’re being pulled in different directions by other’s expectations.

Eyes on the Prize

How to focus your efforts to make things happen.

Feed Your Imagination

Using stories and videos to widen your career horizons.

Find the Fit

Comparing the weight of pros and cons between different choices.

Go With the Flow

A strategy for job seeking when you really can’t decide between two or three options.

Hands Over Heart

Finding the compassionate words we need to hear when things are tough.

Head and Heart

A way to test if you’re held back by a conflict between your thinking and feeling sides of yourself.

Helpful Habits

How to use routines and habits to make it easier to achieve your goals.

Hope Based Planning

A guide to finding more than one solution to overcoming a challenge.

Imposter Issues

 A self-help guide to positively managing feelings about being a fraud / not fitting in.

Informational Interviewing

A guide to contacting people for inside advice on careers.

Level Playing Field

Identifying resources to help you overcome social injustice.

LinkedIn Guide

See our LinkedIn Guide to having a well-crafted and up to date LinkedIn profile.

Listen to the Learning

Using Gibb’s reflective learning cycle so you can be aware of the career related insights from the different things you are doing.

Make Your Own Luck

How to make your own luck by getting involved and going for it.

Managing Mistakes

How to move on constructively when things haven’t gone to plan.

Must Have Decision Making

A way of using your non-negotiables to clarify your career choice.

Past, Present and Future

A self-guide for reflective writing to consider where you are now and where you might go next.

Personal Construct Theory

A guide to comparing and contrasting a basket of career ideas to work out what matters for you.

Plan B

How to find an alternative way to get what you want from a different career.

Power Ups

A guide to simple steps to feel more positive about each day.

Powerful Goals

A way to reflect upon your goals and check if they are likely to work for you.

Reflection and Action

Our Reflection and Action tool will help you think through what you want to achieve and what your options are.

Researching Organisational Structure

How to research an organization to see what it’s really like and if it’s a good match for you.

Rule of Three

A simple but effective approach to making progress towards a goal that is very flexible and adaptive.

Scaled-Up Plans

A practical approach that’s like SMART action plans, but better!

The BIG Questions

A self-help guide to thinking about what life and work mean to you.

The Sea of Unknowing

You can use this self-help tool if you want to see how much of life is based upon not knowing things.

Three Doors

Most careers have more than one way in. Have you tried all the routes yet?

Three-Minute Decision-Making

A self-help guide to how to make a really quick intuitive decision when all else fails.

Thumbs Up

When you feel ready to start comparing your career options you may wish to use the Thumbs Up tool.

Unique Me

A tool to be used to identify the values, interests and characteristics that form your authentic self.

Values Based Self Affirmation

A self-help guide showing you a way to raise your spirits up and boost your morale by writing about the good stuff in your life.

Wanted: A Job for Me!

A way of crowd-sourcing career ideas from friends and family.

Wheel of Life

A tool for reflecting upon which parts of your life you would like to change.