Let’s talk about Grad Recruitment. Covid changed the way people work, and it probably will never go back to what it was. If you’re now considering your career, you should also consider what has changed. 💭  

Not all businesses went backwards due to Covid  

Demand for new talent will be industry-specific, but if your aspirations were toward airlines or hospitality – then perhaps in the short term think again. Industries like tech and healthcare are continuing to expand so if you want to increase your chances of landing a job quicker research accordingly.  

Industries not requiring storefronts, that can operate nearly entirely online, and whose workforce can work from home have advantages.  Think Fintech, E-commerce, Customer Service or even accounting, legal, publishing or media. 

Stay humble and hungry, learn each industry’s vernacular, do your research be eager and network hard and crystalise your soft and hard skills into digestible nuggets relevant to the roles appropriately. 🤩 

Offices are more “virtual”  

It’s unlikely that the number of people who work in an office will ever return to pre-2020 levels. More and more companies are looking for a hybrid or flexible models to focus more on deliverables and less on location. The new norm is enabling collaboration without dictating that people sit side by side.  

The implication for applicants is that they can broaden their search beyond geographic confines. Companies gain access to a greater deeper talent pool but the downside for recruits is that competition increases. If more people are applying for any given job posting, it makes it harder to stand out as an applicant. It also probably means that salaries will stagnate or even drop in real terms compared to previous years just from the basic rules of supply and demand. We also highly recommend taking our quiz. to learn about your personality traits – some are better suited to working from home than others, so take into account your preferences as you apply.   

Getting a job takes considerable time and effort. Unfortunately, it’s not good enough to just broadcast your CV out into the ether and hope for the best. Candidates need to generate bespoke CVs and covering letters for each and every application. It’s important to make sure the right keywords are included and salient to each job description.  

Brace yourself for a long-distance race, and certainly not a sprint. Save all your work, research and CVs. Having multiple base CVs to work from makes the job easier with time. One should also make sure you are in the right mindset.  Knowing it’s going to take time, make sure it is a sustainable process– in well-being and financially. It’s taxing. It may feel like a distraction but certainly, take on a temporary job or a freelance gig to help finance you till the right opportunity arises and make time for breaks or calls with family and friends.  

The Gig Economy Will Continue to Flourish   

Continual change leads to companies managing their risk over a shorter time frame. They have no wish to plan for 5 years out when the next 2 years are very uncertain. This is quickly reflected in recruiting. Budgets are not put in place for full-time employees – however, projects still happen and have to be delivered. As such, there is increased attention given to project-focused professionals.   

While grad recruitment is tiring, don’t stray away from temp work. Similar to most opportunities, temp work has its pros and cons. Focus on the positives – career collateral, experience, contacts, variety and some freedom. Note that freelancers or contractors who do a great job are nearly always retained if work can be found so don’t approach it haphazard – every gig has an opportunity.  

Further Automation of Recruitment 

Hiring teams are increasingly turning to automated systems to help them manage the influx of applications. That means more applicant tracking systems and chatbots to answer application FAQs, or ask basic screening questions, and schedule interviews. 

Technology is used to scan covering letters and CVs to extrapolate salient metadata – tone, keywords, Big5 traits – to assess or filter candidates against pre-determined wants. Which, as we flagged above, means candidates have to offer bespoke responses for every application. 

Same is true in the interview process, where there is increasing use of. pre-recorded interviews so everyone faces the same queries. Then comparisons can be made not only to the answers but also using AI responders’ “sentiment”, facial expressions, keyword usage and stress indicators.   

It is easy to see why this is occurring – lower costs, removal of many of the biases, audit trail and true comparisons versus gut-feel decisions. However, the lack of feedback and real human interaction makes for a less than stellar user experience.  

For applicants, it means more time in preparation. Do your research, practise your responses, integrate chosen keywords, feel confident in your due diligence and preparation and let it shine through on paper and video.  

The past year was unprecedented and there will be no return to “normal”.  Navigating grad recruitment will require you to look at things from a different angle. New expectations that will continue to persist. For those that can understand why change is happening and why businesses will operate differently are well placed to take advantage. Overall, Grad recruitment is constantly changing and can definitely be difficult to navigate.  Hopefully, we have given you some insights that will help make your job search a little bit easier. As always, if you have any questions, feel free to get in touch. 🤩 

Many think that increasing pay will produces improved output.  However, it turns out the link between motivation, compensation, and performance is far more complex 🤔 Most research shows that there is a minimal relationship between salary and job satisfaction. After all, money can’t buy happiness and, people’s satisfaction with their salary is mostly independent of their actual salary.  

Research shows us that most people are more likely to like their job if they focus on the work itself, and less likely to enjoy it if focused on money irrelevant of the relative levels of salary. The more people focus on their salaries, the less they will focus on satisfying their intellectual curiosity, learning new skills, or having fun, and those are the very things that make people perform better ⚖️ 

Money is highly personal. What money means to different people is very subjective, as we all have different outlooks, reasons or associations with money (e.g., as a means to power, freedom, security, or love). For example, what may feel like millions to one person may just as easily feel like penny scraps to another. 

If companies want to motivate their workforce, they need to understand what their employees really value — and the answer is different for each employee.  For instance, income goals based on the pursuit of power, narcissism, or overcoming self-doubt are less rewarding and effective than income goals based on the pursuit of security, family support, and leisure time. People should be compensated not only for what they do but also for what they want.  

Research shows that someone’s personality is a far better predictor of engagement than salary. The more emotionally stable, extraverted, agreeable or conscientious people are, the more they tend to like their jobs (irrespective of their salaries). That being said, it’s crucial to remember that the personality of recruits or employees’ is not the most important factor.  The most important determinant of employee engagement is the competency of leadership. The existing manager’s personality has the most significant impact on whether employees are engaged at work, or not. 

Overall, while money definitely contributes to an employees’ willingness to succeed, it isn’t the end-all and be all. In order to build a workforce of highly motivated individuals, companies need to delve deeper into what truly drives each employee.  

Questions? Don’t hesitate to get in touch 💭 

Don’t worry most people don’t, but then again, most people don’t achieve their full potential.  

“A goal without a plan is just a wish” 

When we say a plan, we aren’t talking about a huge hefty project. It may sound ominous but it’s not and it won’t take a huge amount of time. Is just stepping stones from where you are now to where you want to be in the future. 📅  

It’s probably worth considering 3 or 5 years from now – somewhere beyond the event horizon.  Now you are out of University things are far less prescriptive, you have options and choices in your life that only really you can decide.  

However, once you put a stake in the ground such as “I want X by the time I’m Y” it becomes tangible.  Let’s just say you want your own flat by the time you are 28 – from that one statement, we can work backwards till today with things that need to get done before that can happen.   The stepping stones required are largely financial and will require you to address how much you save and how much you earn, it will need you to consider where the flat will be, what size is possible and what sacrifices you are willing to make to reach your goals.  

It also requires you to think about other goals, responsibilities and the bigger picture and how they all interact. 🤔 

The good thing is it’s your plan – and changes are allowed.  Your priorities will falter but the plan needs to reflect the changes.  

Let’s back up a little.  We need a plan for this plan 😎 First we will look at today, then dream of tomorrow, and then see what course we need to set in order to get from today to the dream of tomorrow. Therefore, allowing you to set markers along the way to know that you are on the right path.  

Where to start? 

As highlighted above, end goals are good, but you also need to take stock of where you are today.  Then the plan is just about creating a dotted line between today and tomorrow.  

A good starting point is to rate where you are at right now.  Are you satisfied with who, what, where you are in life? Somewhat satisfied? Not at all satisfied? The answers to these questions are for your eyes only so be honest. It also helps considerably to write your answers down. Writing things down makes you commit to doing it, gives it structure and allows you to have a broader perspective and the ability in future to look back and calibrate if you want to make changes. Since (took comma way)you might find some of this stuff sensitive, it’s relatively easy to put a password on word documents so other people will never have access.  

It is also worth summarizing where you are at right now. Be pretty broad in your thinking, consider your health, career, relationships, finances, spirituality, and emotional well-being. This really isn’t meant to be a huge piece of homework – some find it fun and go into lots of depths others don’t spend too much time on it – but it’s good to get a baseline down about where you believe your life is like right now. 

Everyone’s input and answers will be different so it’s difficult to be too prescriptive.  

Other good things to make notes on are: 

What makes you happy? Think about what you enjoy. Think about things that are going well in your life. Include activities, people, and situations that bring you joy, satisfaction, or just make you laugh. Maybe even have two lists – one for work and home life.   

Then do the reverse – what drains you of energy and happiness.  Think about what people, behaviours, situations etc that create stress and anxiety and impact your moods. Again, consider for both work and home.  

The factors you have just described will provide key pointers on what to address in order to achieve a happy life.  No doubt for many it will also entail health, weight, structure, career traction, relationships and the overall balance.  

Some people find these first few steps easy, others less so.  Funnily enough, the next step equally splits people as rather than writing down perceptions of reality in the now the next objective is to dream or project what life in the future looks like. Some find it easy others less so.  

Step 2 

Describe in as much detail as you can what life in 5 years looks like that would make you happy.  Include relationships, career, feelings, material things and spirituality – whatever you deem to be important.   

The greater the detail the clearer the steps can be to achieve these goals.  Prioritise them, and note what you are willing to sacrifice in order to achieve your highest priorities.  

Step 3 

You have done the hard bit of this plan. Now all you need to do is write down what is required to take you from today to where you want to be.   

Key is breaking down the steps into bite-size chunks that need to happen for you to succeed.  Where the steps are not obvious or unknown – then either plan a way to find the answer or find a different route between the stones.  

Overall, it doesn’t have to be a detailed action plan, however, the more specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely (S.M.A.R.T) you make the steps, the easier it is to track your progress.  Detail for later steps can obviously be added over time, but roughly sketching out the steps and what is realistic within a given time frame can give you confidence in your first and subsequent steps.  

Very few things in life go to plan 🤷 – however, knowing your target and the course you are on allows you to correct or replan as time progresses.  

Whatever you want to succeed in doing, you have to start working on it. Nothing will happen if you do nothing at all. Those who have a plan are far more likely to succeed.  

“For tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today” 

Good luck.

As always, if you have any questions, feel free to get in touch. 

Here at UpLink, we are focused on improving recruitment, because it is broken.  🤷 Data reveals:

• 30% of job seekers say they have left a job within the first 90 days of starting
• 85% of people in work say they are unhappy with their job
• 84% of candidates say the recruiting procedures are ineffective.
  • It takes too long
  • It is not transparent

Getting it wrong is frustrating, time-consuming and costly not only to employees but also potential recruits.  It impacts productivity both in the short term and long term for all concerned.  There must be better ways. 💭 Improving recruitment won’t happen over night, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t posssible.

The current process relies on filtering out candidates on hard and soft skills. However, most graduates have very limited hard skills due to lack of experience.   Recruiters therefore focus on exam grades, university or subjects taken as the best approximation for hard skills. This process is understandable, but flawed as grades are heavily influenced by teaching and school and the university of subject have very little correlation with whether someone will be successful in HR or marketing….

Employers are not measuring a candidate’s aptitude, attitude, cultural fit or future potential. They are obviously very important and such assessments are left for interviews. This is a major issue as only a very small percentage of people will be chosen for interview. However, humans find it really difficult to measure such soft skills – they guess, use intuition, and have no metrics for comparison.  In fact, tossing a coin would prove just as effective more of the time. Additionally, the untrained interviewer is prone to massive bias.

The top biases beings:

• Similar to me bias – Favouring someone who you see something of you in e.g. background, humour, affiliations, ethnicity, religion, school, etc.
• Non-verbal bias – Only 7% of what people say accounts for our opinion, the rest is assumed from body language and the sound and tone of voice.
• First Impression bias – First impressions take seconds. Nerves often lead to false projections.
• Halo or Horns bias – Downgrading or upgrading candidates on irrelevant preferences e.g. height, haircut, weight, beauty, age.
• Contrast bias – Judgements are made relative to those assessed either side of assessment not against hiring criteria. E.g. we look favourably on a CV if the previous resume was poor.
• Conformation Bias – We make early hypothesis, then to confirm and favour information that confirms our pre-existing views. Questions to candidates based on pre-existing beliefs, means interviews gain little new information and are difficult to compare across candidates.

Scary, but its natural, and although most are subconscious the impact is dramatic, unfair and ultimately bad for business.  In this digital age innovation, creativity and flexibility are key areas that allow companies to survive and succeed, yet lack of diversity hinders all of these needs and therefore threatens the very viability of many companies moving forward.

Fortunately, there are better solutions.  🤗 Not the mumbo jumbo science of Myers Briggs but modern data backed tools that can assess cultural and purpose alignment, assess character – aptitude and attitude and predict whether a candidate is a good fit for a given role, team and boss.  These pre-hire assessments deliver:

• Improved Results – Results are fairer, faster, more effective, more productive
• Relevant Attributes – Correct testing selects candidates on relevant attributes needed to succeed in the role
• Contextual – Work best when specific to a boss, team & organisation culture
• Consistent Output – Information is repeatable and comparable between candidates in real time and over years.
• Reliable – Far harder to game than the Psych Tests, keyword or sentiment filters

The sooner these solutions are embraced the quicker candidates and companies will gain the moral and financial benefits associated. Better, non-biased, more productive hiring platforms can measure the effect of change, drives commitment and improve corporate culture. 

Have you got any ideas to aid in improving recruitment? 

Let us know, why not give us a call? We’d love to hear from you. 📞

Social distancing now means assessment days and face to face interviews are things of the past. Covid now means on line aptitude tests, psych tests, and first stage video interviews are now the norm.  They are cheaper, quicker, easier and compliant with government guidelines.  However, how someone comes across in person as supposed to in a video is not the same, similarly, how can an applicant assess the working style of a company or its culture when the backdrop is unfocused or their interviewer is wfh?

Love it or hate it – for now it’s reality.  

Luckily for graduates, they have not experienced much else.  They grew up with multiple screens and unified communications.  That said, it’s still key to familiarise yourself with the processes companies are now employing to give yourself the best shot at success.

Online assessments – Testing online is initiated as soon as you apply.  Companies are using software and AI to assess CVs and associated social media accounts (sometimes more than just LinkedIn). Filtering against key words, grades, spelling errors, subjects taken, universities attended, syntax, sentiment, etc just to whittle down the huge number of applicants applying for the limited number of graduate roles being made available this year.

If you made the cut, the next step is often an online test. These test typically will be designed to assess character traits, measure IQ, numerical and verbal skills or job-specific competencies. 

These tests are automated with nominal time being spent by any human to assess the quality of the filtering – the intent is to further reduce the number of applicants to actually be interviewed as cost effectively as possible.  Most know it’s not perfect but it’s fast and relatively cheap.

For those applying its really difficult to prepare as the number and type of tests being used is bewildering.  We would recommend a) taking the UpLink quiz to gain insights into some of the common elements and understand how you will be presenting yourself b) secondly, its always worthwhile to research the company, how it presents itself and dig deeper to get a sense of its purpose and culture as their values are often key in defining direction or something to align your input to.  

Virtual interviews –For those who failed to reach this point, contact the company and ask for feedback – there is no point accepting the faceless corporate black hole that has mined you for data to then receive a meaningless thanks but no thanks email with no feedback.  Even if they reel off platitudes dig deeper and ask for a profile of those who made it through to interview by sex, university, race, subject taken and their rules for data retention of your data!

Congratulations, if you have managed to navigate through a maze with no map.  It would be silly to stumble over something basic at this point.  We suggest you familiarise yourself with the video platform to be used; Zoom, Skype, Microsoft teams, WhatsApp etc. Login in way before the call and check the basics.

• What you look like (lighting, backdrop, formal dress with no zig zag or stripes that will hinder the video compressor, also don’t hold your mobile if that is your device of choice, fix it to something so they don’t see a continually moving image or viewpoint change as you swap hands or rest it on the desk.
• Audio is clear (microphone sensitivity is good, no background noises)
• Network connectivity is good
• Remove all other distractions (pets, mobile phone, your mum screaming “Lunch” etc)

Remember it’s a two-way conversation they know a lot about you, but all you have to go on is their marketing spin they present on their social channels and website.  Don’t hesitate to dig deeper into the culture, management style, rest of the team. the boss and other key elements that will define whether you can and want to succeed in their environment.

Review all of your notes, the job spec and your research on the company.  Take one last look at your UpLink profile for ideas and insights about what is important to you. Have your questions at the ready and relax. 

Last tip, Smile – people warm to people who smile.

Good luck.

Questions? Feel free to get in touch.

Let’s talk about getting a Graduate job…Exhausted from re-writing your CV with relevant content specific for every role and then creating heartfelt covering letters to potential employers?  

To then hear nothing back. It’s not right, not fair, and so soul destroying. We feel your pain.  

Hopefully, we can help you get your career off to a great start. 

The graduate job market is never easy, however, care of Covid and the resulting economic impacts, it has got a lot worse. So how do you stand out from the crowd, reduce your stress, and land a job that is right for you?  🤷 

The following are tips, tricks, and insights to help you land a job– so if companies aren’t beating your door down through UpLink try the following in the meantime.  

1. Use Jobsites 

Recruitment is big business – let others do some work for you. Job sites are not just for people looking for a job. Employers and recruiters use them too to find potential candidates – so upload away. It won’t take more than 20 to 30 minutes. The probability of success is low but infinitely more than if you don’t post.  

Similarly, make yourself a LinkedIn profile for all the same reasons. 

2. Use graduate recruitment agencies 

Another place to try to increase your odds of landing a job are recruitment agencies – especially those that specialise in graduate jobs. This will give you access to some vacancies that are not advertised elsewhere as some companies chose to use only agencies as their means of sourcing new employees.  

Agencies get paid for filtering and filling vacancies, not by you but by the recruiting company – so again – let them work for you and increase your chances still further. We should flag that there are some agencies that try and charge you for them to find you a job – we don’t suggest you do this.  

3. Tailor every application for the role 

You may be doing this already but we highly recommend that you modify and create unique CVs and covering letters for every role you apply directly to. Yes, it’s really easy to drag and drop the same documents to everyone – however, however, this only compromises your chances.  

Yes, it’s a pain, yes it requires research, yes it hoovers time – but you are up against people who are doing just that. So, if you want to compete, guess what?  

Tell potential employers all about yourself AND tell them why you are perfect for the specific role, in their company. Study the job spec, their social presence, their annual report, look up Glassdoor reviews etc – do your research and then modify your base CV and CL to match.  

We also highly recommend that your CV focus’ on achievement – i.e. how you made a difference. Nobody wants just to read where you went to school and what results you got. So definitely include a personal statement and by all means steal from your UpLink profile.  

4. Ask connections about job opportunities 

All too often it’s not what you know, but who you know that makes a difference as lots of vacancies are filled each year through connections. Funnily enough, it comes down to money again. Companies typically give a small bonus to staff if they can recommend someone they know for a role. The bonus is typically less than they would have paid a recruiter and it means the potential recruit comes with a recommendation before they even walk in the door.  

Do we agree with this process – does it increase the chances of a good fit – no. However, it goes on a lot. So, go for it. Don’t feel shy about asking people – if they get paid, they should be thanking you! 

If you know someone who works for a company you’re interested in, ask them to recommend you. But don’t stop there, use LinkedIn to find out if people know have connections also so you can spread your connections further – friends and family are happy to help and their connections, if they put you forward, will probably earn a bonus – still everyone wins.  

5. Want the job  

In this present climate there are fewer graduate jobs than normal, and many seem tempted to apply for every opportunity that says ‘graduate’. However, two thirds of your waking hours, Monday to Friday, will be in work so make sure you won’t be miserable it will impact your productivity, attitude, and long-term opportunities.  

It is one thing is to be out of your comfort zone and another to be a zombie, so do your research. Those who know what to expect and are enthusiastic stand a far better chance of getting the role.  

6. Consider your options  

As highlighted above some seem to apply for everything – however, the reverse is true – some just apply to an extremely limited number of roles as they “know” what they want. This strategy has its downsides too. 

Filtering your search by job title, location, salary, or specific vertical is going to severely limit your chances of landing a job. We advocate, especially at the start of your career building career collateral – assets, knowledge, skills, contacts, brands – that will serve you well into the future. So, think again, cast your net wider and consider dipping your toe into affiliated or associated sectors.  

7. Think about start–ups  

Start-ups often don’t have the budget to sponsor graduate schemes or advertise widely about open positions and therefore are often overlooked. If you can find such opportunities it also means the competition for such roles is going to be less than well-advertised positions. That said, for those who can cope with change and embrace hands on experience they can offer some remarkably diverse, interesting opportunities, and increased early responsibility. The only downside is you will wear multiple hats, and small companies will typically lack the formal structured trainee programs many corporate graduate schemes have.  

8. What would make you more employable 

Standing out is not easy – especially when many of your competitors might have higher grades.  

Firstly – we at UpLink are all about this. IQ and grades are only a small fraction of the picture. So, pull out your UpLink profile and sell your strengths!  

We would also recommend doing some relevant work experience or getting a free or low cost online qualification in an area related to your chosen path. 

9. If it needs it – clean up your social media 

Scary fact but nearly 1/3 of employers reject candidates based on something they found on them online. Nobody is saying you must look professional in all your online content; however, we are suggesting you look twice at it.  Anything that could be misconstrued, or appear disrespectful should be removed.  Post more of you being kind, compassionate, helpful, trustworthy and all those qualities that make you – you.  

10. Taking time out 

The market is really bad, make no mistake. In the UK unemployment is at its highest for more than a decade.  

However, taking time out and getting away has some value too.  

• Getting away from home and college builds independence, shows character and broadens your horizons 

1. When limited money is coming in and you are fending for yourself it drives you to be more responsible and self-aware and certainly improves your budgeting skills 

1. Going further afield post Covid gives the opportunity to learn a new language and improves your interpersonal skills.  

Overall, take the positives as they come, getting away allows you to illustrate what a positive adaptable employee you will be. 

11. Keep motivated  

Easily said, but keep at it.  

Getting your dream immediately isn’t realistic – it takes time, hard work, some luck. In the meantime find some other gigs to earn some cash, volunteer and take some online classes to add depth to your CV.  

If nothing is happening, talk to others and take input on your CV and covering letters and make changes accordingly.  

12. Hopefully, interviews will follow 

Don’t stop now. Having put all this work in to get to the next round you need to focus on the next steps.  

Many employees will put you through a psych test. Take a look at UpLink’s personal feedback. If there are any issues go read about what these tests are, what they look for and how they work. We don’t believe they do a good job, but to fail on this filter would be annoying.  

Many employees will also ask for a video interview. Do the prep work well before – don’t rush to set up your phone or laptop. It’s key you consider your backdrop, the lighting, the audio quality, and network performance. Don’t leave it to chance. Same with how you look – don’t wear your PJs – well certainly not above the waist.  

Unlike an in person interview you also have the opportunity to prepare loads of notes and reminders of things to bring up – they can all be stuck behind the camera and easily read 😊  Take a look at your UpLink profile to think about what is important to you and prepare your questions accordingly.  

Remember to smile.  

Hopefully, we have helped. Good luck. We know getting a Graduate job is difficult. If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch. 

This is a question you’re asked from the moment you start forming sentences. 🤔  Young children might say they want to be a firefighter, an astronaut, a footballer, an influencer, a YouTuber, or a teacher. Few express an interest in being a cloud computing administrator, a market research analyst, a compliance officer, or a quality assurance manager. Not surprising really. Even though there are millions of jobs, kids only know of the ones they encounter in their everyday lives. Interestingly, most job titles that were commonplace 20 years ago don’t even exist today! 

So, even though you may be just starting out on your career, it’s not surprising that most new graduates have no idea what they want to be. Contrary to media influence, that’s perfectly fine. New Graduates often feel pressured to know exactly what industry and job role they want to go into before they have even graduated.They have had so little exposure to the possibilities. At best they might be familiar with the jobs their parents and relatives do, or those portrayed in movies or television.  🤷

In the not too distant future, you need to find a job to support yourself. One that not only pays to cover your costs but is sustainable. When we say sustainable, we aren’t even talking about the planet, we mean one that you can continue to do that has a degree of job satisfaction to inspire you to continue. Another fallacy we’re often told growing up is that all you need is money. When realistically, money is only a small part of job satisfaction and overall happiness. A role that makes you unhappy, will reflect heavily on your future and those around you. For more information about monetary motivation in the work place, check out our recent blog on the very subject. 

Yes, times are hard, but your possibilities are endless and include options you have never even heard of. The opportunities of the future will depend in part on the planning put in today with tomorrow in mind. 

So, what is this planning work? 

1. Talk  🗣️

Strike up conversations with anyone and everyone: teachers, tutors, parents, relatives, friends, and their parents. Explain your predicament, frustrations and concerns and ask how they got where they are, what they do and what strengths help them succeed.  It is vital you create and expand your own network.

2. Question your own talents 🙋

As with the subjects you enjoyed and excelled in at in school, you need to delve deeper. Was it the topic, the teacher, your classmates, the work style, or all them or other things that brought these subjects to mind? 

To be fulfilled and happy many things need to align. The diagram depicts what makes for an ideal job – x marks the spot. 

As highlighted above, don’t limit your explorations to careers that exist today. Consider many of the underlying trends occurring as the world, companies and markets digitize. Even the jobs of yesterday such as lawyers. solders and doctors won’t be the same during your career – all will morph into something completely different with drones, AI, and the advancements in technology.  

As you think about your options, explore what skills and education you will need to be successful in the careers that interest you. 

3. Put your foot in the water.  🌊

 Find out more. Use your contacts, and extended network to find out if your assumptions are correct. Take on temporary work, voluntary work, internships to find out more. After graduating people give you license to test different scenarios, options, verticals, and roles. You are not expected to have your career figured out right away. Even those that knew what they wanted to be often pivot and change directions.  

Every journey starts with a single step.  

4. Assess the Competition 🤔 

It’s too easy to follow everyone else. So many graduates apply for graduate schemes or “trendy” companies that the number of people applying for every opportunity is in the hundreds. You may get lucky but we suggest you spread your bets.  

Also, many believe themselves to be creative and think themselves ideal candidates for graphic design – unfortunately those that make a decent living in this area are not necessarily those who are the most creative, they typically are those with the highest turnover, those that hustle and are naturally good a selling their capabilities – put like that, does graphic design have the same appeal? 

 5. Multi Stage Life  ✅

Those graduating today probably won’t retire at 65. Medicine is so good today that many will live way beyond what their parents and grandparents did – so the 3-stage life of school, work, retire, is not sustainable in Western society. As such many graduates moving forward should expect more than one career. Retraining later in life for new opportunities. So long as you continue to learn not only about yourself but also new skills and stay salient to what is required your career may have many more sides than you expected.  

All in all, the reality is you will most likely change career paths a few times before you find something that truly makes you happy. Despite what social media makes it look like, remember, the majority of people are in the exact same position.