I would have said directness, not arrogance.

Fair enough but no need to act like a prick when it is clear the OP has issues.

Because she supposedly wants help, but only gives partial information and doesn't answer questions that may indeed be helpful for users here to then contribute ideas and alternatives about her job search.

But of course we can all go ahead, pat OPs head and not say anything useful other than how bad everything is and how everyone is wrong but her. That will solve her issues, I'm sure. Other than that, you may want to contribute something useful every now and then instead of just picking out random comments of users you don't seem to like, but not really have anything else to say.

Maybe you should apply for a job at the RAV.

Even if that made sense and was not a complete non sequitur, it still wouldn't be funny.

It'll turn around for you. Just keep shaking the bushes, trying to connect with the right person.

Think about trying to publish an article in your field that can highlight on your CV and then bang-on about when you interview.

OP, if some of your info is too private to have it on display for the world to see, consider sending a private message to the people asking more in-depth questions, with the request to keep it private (Samaire). They might be of more help if they knew a bit more.

So you became a mother at 42, so you had lots of time before that to learn German.

You are a director managing 10 people, but can't learn German in 6 years? Even Koko the Gorilla learnt sign language in less time!

Yes, I think people have flogged the point that she doesn't speak German until it resembles the proverbial dead horse.

If you are being "tongue in cheek" you need some kind of smiley in there.

Can't you see she/he is a troll? Just check her profile page. You are too easy people.

I don't see her as a troll. Pissed off and a bit jaded by the situation she has found herself in, yes maybe, but I don't (yet) see the posts as troll-like.

It is difficult to learn a language when your field of work is in English. When we were in Barcelona, I had all the time to enjoy life, drink vermouth, visit places, the beach and learn Spanish & Catalan while my husband was working all day long with spanish and Catalan people, his level is far from mine.

OP,

I came from the fashion industry. Not in Switzerland but few other cities of Fashion. It is hard in the industry, no matter where you live but in Switzerland? It is much harder. It is so tiny, so limited. I have 2 of my former students here in Switzerland. They both did their university in Istanbul, worked there (won prices, got big fat brand names under their belts) and decided to move back home (Swiss girls of Turkish origins). Finding a job here despite all the working experiences they had was extremely difficult. Both of them went into creating their own business.

They are young, have the languages, they have the connections and they know how things are done in their country. I'll say this is a big part of their successes.

I have kids and no intentions to work in the industry ever again. Crazy hours, travels, deadlines, expectations, etc etc etc. Hell no!

I wish you luck, I hope you can find something you like, that will not throw out your hard learned skills.

Nil

If you've been looking for a year and not had results then chances are you are, in fact, going round and round in circles.

Don't get me wrong, no bashing here, but the lack of results does mean that whatever it is that you are doing is not working.

There isn't some job out there for which you are perfectly fit, which someone will "give" do you. (This sentence points out two misunderstandings about the job market)

If the circle you are going around in is anything even remotely similar to

1)Monday: Scan the internet job search portals, make a list of the matches and phone them to establish an initial contact.
2)Tuesday: Tune your CV to the Mondays prospects, write the cover letters.
3)Wednesday: Stuff envelopes, go to the post, call last weeks mass mail candidates and ask if my mail arrived.
4)Thursday: Check if anything new has arrived, spend the day clicking from one website to the next.
5)Friday: Stare at the phone, surely someone will want you. Rewrite your base CV
6)Saturday: Day off
7)Sunday: Pray that something will happen next week, or that Monday won't come.

Then you have a problem. You need to make some changes.

Exactly what you need to change I cannot tell you. Don't waste any time on considering if the Swiss are against you and it would be better at home. If you want to stay here, figure out how the job market works and act accordingly, if you want to go home, apply for a job there, then go home. The point being that the Swiss aren't against you personally, the farther you go down the road of convincing yourself that this is the case, and hold this against them, personally, the less likely you are to be happy and/or find a job.

__________________
If everyone you know agrees with you consistently, they are either not listening, or not capable of critical thought.

Wannagohome has said that she has, in fact, taken the time of her year's unemployment to learn some German. Those who have learnt German more quickly, or earlier in their stay in Switzerland, may think she should have started earlier or ought to have achieved more by now. But now she IS working towards fluency. That is something.

@Wannagohome, please, don't lose heart. Just keep on practicing, practicing, practicing.

That is an assumption, but I do blame the Swiss for the way they handle the Hague Convention which limits the location where I can live to Zurich only, the place where I have the least job options. I am an unmarried mother who needs permission from my ex to relocate more than 30km away from where my child was born. Other countries recognise the need to earn a living, in CH they cannot deal with any circumstance that is not text book because the new rule is only 2 years old so is as strict as it can get.

Marketing Director (was Head of for 5 years)
Many fashion, jewellery, cosmetic, lingerie, travel retail companies in ZH, Basel, Geneva, Ticino
I have had one in fashion jewellery last year and one this year in Medical Devices

This could be possible in the future I hope, once our dispute has been settled. At the moment communication is strained and we need mediation, but it may not be forever.

Yes Im a woman scorned, it makes me feel good to big myself up in the face of a challenge. I do appreciate the feedback and apologise for not replying to questions I was down the supermarket.

Hopefully i have caught up a bit now.

My German was still pretty bad after 4 years, as I mainly spoke French at work (Zurich).

It improved a lot when I moved to Lugano.

Then, my Italian was pretty crap for the next 10 years as I mainly spoke French at work.

Tom

The RAV is an excellent job, they don't seem to worry about budget cuts and its OK to lose paperwork.


I was a marketing director and a mother so I was pretty short on personal time. Shall i refer to the millions of articles about 80s teenagers who were told they could have the career and the baby but then one day realised something had to give? In truth, I was offered a very nice position 80% returning to work in 2013 but I still wanted that last promotion. I have no one to blame.

You're a good mother, despite what life has thrown at you. You're not alone.

All things considered, I think you are holding up pretty well!!! I think the best advice came from Meloncollie, I'd focus on working out something with your ex and not limit your options to Switzerland - e.g. consider a "work here/live there" scenario. You live right next door to two of the fashion capitals of the world, Milan and Paris, after all.

Chin up, good luck!

One thing, if you've not done so already, is to network. You can check MeetUp to find some useful groups -- both business and personal support. If you've had a successful marketing career in fashion, I'm sure you must have some attractive creative/extrovert qualities that will help you.

My experience (late 50s) is that while we make our own luck, it's usually when we're looking the other way that something collides with us and gives us the opportunity we're seeking.

As someone said, if you've fallen into a standard job-hunting routine that hasn't produced anything, you may need to shift your thinking into a new direction.

I can't offer much else except to wish you good luck. You sound as if you deserve a lucky break, and as long as you keep alert and enthused, I'm certain it will come your way.