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Changing your career
Well, I think WHY people want to change is a really important question. Because a lot of people work at things that they actually don't love. They just sort of ... they live from Friday night until Sunday night, and then they work from Monday morning until Friday night. And one of the things that impresses me about people these days is, firstly, you don't actually have to have a degree in the area you want to work in. You can study what you like, what a passion is, and you can work at something else. Conversely, you can study at something that you think gives you a really good foundation. You might do Economics, but you might want to be in Human Resources or you might want to be in Real Estate Sales, or something totally different. So, these days, I think it's important to try and learn, for a foundation for your work, and realise that the first qualification might only be the basis and you might go on to two or three different qualifications, and the same goes for jobs. So, the people I see, who are best at doing what they do at work, are the people who are passionately and emotionally involved in what they doing. I mean, you're in the IT area, and people who are in IT - they speak a different language. You know, they talk code to each other and no-one else can understand what they're talking about. If they're in the public service, they can talk about a whole range of things by using SD4 and KR1 and no-one else knows what they're talking about, because they're so involved emotionally, they love what they're doing. [And] I think that's the best job you can have, ever, is one you're just busting to get out of bed, because you've been thinking about your job, really excited by it and motivated by it, those people don't get tired by going to work. They get pumped by going to work. So, if I think you are looking to change your career, totally, change to something that you really love. And change to something that you feel you'd be really good at.
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Leveraging off people
Well I suppose in a word these days that's called "networking", and networking's alive and well. From school, people have used "the old boy network", (you've heard that before), which is a sort of an incestuous networking thing. But these days networking's a much broader thing and it's much more respected by both individuals and organisations. So, I think you use your friends to talk about what do they think you're good at. So, use people you know to get an objective view about who you are and what you'd be good at and then, you've got something you can look for. So, who do they know? Does anyone know anyone in the IT industry? Who do know that works at Google? Your auntie, your brother, so ask all your relatives, send out emails to all of your friends. And the other way you can do it, which is something I really like, is if you're talking about an IT organisation, you start going along to functions that IT people go to, and you start looking for people who work in the organisation that you've targeted, that you want to join in and you say very up-front: "How do I get a job in your organisation? I've loved it forever." "Who are people that would hire a person with my skills and attributes in your organisation?" "How do I approach them? Where do they go to?" So try and meet the people out of the work environment. It's not devious, it's not being sneaky, it's just being clever. That's what networking's about: using that leverage, other people's knowledge and other people's contacts to help you get what you want, and it's not a bad thing. I don't mind when people ring me up and say "This is what I'm looking for. Do you know anyone who's can help?" It's not a big deal to help people who are asking, it doesn't take long these days to click on a mouse and forward a CV, or forward a contact or ring someone up and say, you know, "Paul Tyrrell, he's going to call you, can you please look after him?"
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Asking for a payrise
That's one of the most difficult things you can do, is ask for a pay-rise. Another one is resigning, that's a difficult thing, but focusing on asking for a pay rise I think, firstly you've got to have information about: How did you perform in the past twelve months, in your role? Did you have KPI's? (Key Performance Indicators) against which you performed, and how you fared against those; What you're looking for, in the future, with the organisation. So you don't just go in and say "I think I'm worth more money." You actually sit down and think objectively about the work you've done in the past 12 months, how you went, what you're looking for in the next 12 months. And then, if you're clever, you get on the Internet and you'll come onto to something like LinkMe, and you'll compare yourself to other people in similar jobs and you'll have a view, an objective view, to talk to your boss about. About where you compare with your peers, doing similar sorts of jobs, what sort of money they're looking for. You can look in the newspaper, look at job advertisements for the similar role that you're doing now, and see what salaries are being offered. So, if you're with a small company, and they're offering salaries similar to yours in small companies, but they're offering more money in medium or larger companies, you can get a perspective on where you sit in the job market. Another way, before you ask your boss for a job, is to go to a recruiter and talk to a recruiter about what you're doing now and what you might be able to get in the next move you make, or if they moved you in the same role, what sort of salary you would be getting there. So, in other words, plan and think objectively. Show your boss that you've understood what you're doing now, what you want to do in the future, and you understand your value, and so you are confident. I always say, information is knowledge, knowledge is power. So when you talk to your boss about getting more money, be professional about it. Be objective. Give him, or her, information to allow them to make a decision to say yes for you, because most bosses are nervous about "Oh, I know I've got to give you an increase, and we'll make it CPI - just a cost of living increase". But you should say, ok - cost of living is 5 percent, but I think I've performed over and above most people and these are the reasons why, and this is what I think I should be getting. So, make it easy for your boss to give you a salary increase.
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Why a career is important
LinkMe: So, Geoff, why is a career important? Geoff: Because it keeps recruiters in work, every time you change your job, the recruiters... No, sorry, I'll get serious. Now I think, a career, I have always had a view ever since Andrew [Banks] and I worked together that career is a critically important thing in people's lives, so I've always felt as a recruiter that we do things in the community that can help people better their lives. So, I know sounds a bit corny, but, I see our soldiers as equally important as a doctor that looks after someone's health; we look after someone's corporate health and their own personal well being and satisfaction. If someone's got a good career, and they're excited by it, they're motivated by it, they feel like they're growing, they really feel good in life. And in their, what I call a 'life cycle driver', if career is the middle of the circle, it affects your health, it affects where you live, it affects the sort of car you drive, it affects the sort of holidays you go on, it affects how you manage and help your family, it affects everything that you do in life. So, it's a key component. It's 5 days out of 7 that you're at work, so it's a critical part of your life and all the people who are there, are usually, are most of them, your best friends. So, it's a core part of what you do. So you need to make sure that you love what you do, you're motivated everyday when you get out bed and you want go to that place of work, and you feel like keep growing in that environment. Because that's what builds your self esteem and we all want to feel good about ourselves in life, we want to look in that mirror, and look at that person, looking back at you, and think 'I'm proud of you; you're doing a really good job' and if you don't feel like that everyday, you need to be looking to do something else because you deserve to have a job like that.
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This month's top rated article
Is your resume preventing you from getting a new job?

It seems that when people apply for jobs and don't receive job interview requests, they are quick to blame anyone or anything. I've heard job seekers tell me countless times that they applied for over 100 jobs online without receiving one single interview request. They tell me it's because of the current state of the economy or because the demand for jobs is far greater than the supply. While both of these reasons are true to an extent, companies are still interviewing and hiring. If you're someone who has applied to a large number of jobs but you haven't received a single interview request, it's probably time to start asking yourself those tough questions.

Are you qualified enough?

Are your job expectations realistic that you can actually get the jobs you are applying for? Too many times people waste their own time applying for jobs that they are not suitable for. I recently worked with a young professional with 2 years of work experience and no managerial experience. In terms of salary he was earning the market value for a person with his skills and experience. For an entire month he applied for different managerial roles - all paying salaries of double what he was currently earning - and he couldn't understand why he wasn't able to land an interview. While it is important to aim high, it is equally as important to be realistic about your skills and experience.

If you're qualified for the job, is your resume letting you down?

You may have fantastic skills, experience and achievements. You may even be the best person for the job. If this is the case, why are you not getting interview requests?

When a hiring manager first picks up your resume, what they see and what they read will be the first impression they have about you. I recently worked with a candidate who just finished law school and was running into a similar problem. He was at the top of his class and as a recent graduate, he was now looking at beginning his career in one of the top law firms. Every job this candidate applied for was right for him. A recent law graduate seeking the best and brightest. The candidate sent his resume out to every law firm in the city and didn't receive one interview request. Even the smaller firms were not even giving him a chance.

Here's what I saw when I took a brief look at his resume. The candidate had put his education and university roles on page 3 of the resume and had devoted the first 2 pages of the resume to the part-time jobs he had during high school and university. As such, by the time the hiring manager had read through page one of his high school work experience, the resume was being deleted before the most important part of the resume (his education) was even read. In today's society, reports suggest that a job candidate has 15-20 seconds to catch the reader's attention. By putting the most important information on the back page of the resume, the reader's attention was focused on aspects of the resume that were completely irrelevant for the candidate in getting the job.

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Popular questions
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What should I include in my Australian resume?

A well written and properly presented Australian resume can be your ticket to finding an Australian job. The Australian job market is different to job markets around the world and it is important that your resume is presented in the "Australian way"

Responsibilities, achievements and duties need to be written clearly and backed up with supporting evidence. If these are not present, it is assumed you do not have any experience at all

Use British English ONLY in your Australian Resume - words such as "specialise" and "realise" need to be spelled with an "s" not a "z"

Ensure you tailor EVERY application to suit the job for which you are applying. If you are going to stand out from the crowd, you have to make sure that your application is outstanding

No picture is necessary on your Australian Resume

Do not include personal information such as marital status, date of birth, number of children, occupation of spouse, gender, religious affiliation, colour or race on your resume. It is true that in certain countries (South Africa, for example) personal information is included and is required, however it is not necessary or needed on your Australian Resume

Spend as much time as possible ensuring you address EXACTLY what the Australian employer wants. For example, if the job advertisement lists certain duties for the job, make sure you incorporate these duties into your current resume. If the job requires excellent customer service skills, provide examples about how you have provided excellent customer service

Get the edge on other job seekers and save yourself enormous amounts of time and stress by ensuring your resume ticks all the right boxes.

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