Erin Devlin - Get the Job You Really Want

Erin Devlin GAICD MRCSA is the 2017 RCSA Professional Recruiter of the Year. She leads a team of recruiters as the Managing Director of people2people Recruitment Victoria and has supported thousands of job seekers over the past 14 years. AS CEO of Infront Sports Consulting, she has worked with more than 500 professional athletes and coaches on career transition and planning. She is the Chairman of the VIC/TAS Council for The Recruitment, Consulting & Staffing Association (RCSA), where she works with industry peers to raise professional standards and improve conditions for job seekers, employees and on-hire workers.

Erin studied marketing and human resources at undergraduate level and holds a Graduate Certificate of Business (Deans List) from Deakin University. She is also a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD), 2012. Erin is a regular commentator on ABC radio, Channel 7, Nine Network, Foxtel, 2UE and Shortlist on careers and employment. She is an engaging speaker, business mentor and recruitment industry leader, passionate about fostering the next generation of talent. She loves helping job seekers secure engaging, meaningful and satisfying employment and set their future up for success.

Align your career plans with your life plans.

Determine your career direction.

Set S.M.A.R.T. goals to underpin your career success.

As children and young adults, were told we can do anything in life. Our socials are peppered with catchphrases such as Just do it, Believe in yourself, and With hard work you can have, be or do anything. And I love this the positivity, the joy in it. This attitude of ambition will get you very far in life. To be truly kind to ourselves though, and to succeed in our careers, we must bring our vision into focus and break it down into bite-sized chunks that can help form the building blocks of our success.

You can be the owner of your own multimillion-dollar clothing business, the social worker making someones life better, the environmentalist saving the planet, the accountant keeping order or the doctor saving lives. To get there, youll need patience, focus and a plan.

Getting to know many successful people over the years, Ive noticed that not one of them has landed where they are by accident. They often come from humble beginnings, but have set goals along the way, made intelligent career moves and taken risks. They have been deliberate, focussed and strategic. I have observed a number of common strategies and steps that theyve taken, many of which I will share in this book.

Getting a job is one thing. Getting the job you really want is another.

This where we start looking at you and what you want in your life and at work. Your career is only one part of this picture. If you are reading this book to gain employment, looking to advance your career or return to the workforce after a break, its a great time to stop and reflect on what you actually want in your career and life. So lets take a look at the big picture first.

Every great career is built upon a foundation of learning and a series of tiny decisions made right over a lifetime of hard work. When we think about future careers, we often think about them as being separate from our personal lives, but the reality is that the two intersect and influence one another more than we think. By looking at our lives holistically and understanding what it is that we want in the future as a person, not just as an employee, we set ourselves up with a great chance of bringing our work and home lives into harmony.

Reflection

Growing up in Melbourne, Australia, I took a liking to dance as a young girl. I loved the social element and how I could move my body, and I really enjoyed performing with my friends. Little did I know that it would lead me towards a professional career as a ballerina. Going on to dance with the Australian Ballet gave me joys that I cant even describe, but it also took my career in a direction that was different to what I had envisaged for myself.

I loved my family and my friends; I loved food, art, sport, music and getting out into the community. Suddenly, as a professional dancer, I felt out of balance and out of touch with the things that were so important to me in life. And while I had the privilege of going on stage in front of thousands of people and making them smile, I longed for more balance, flexibility and leadership in my career.

Take a step back from your own life. What do you love most about being in the world? Is it your family? Your health? Giving back to the community? Earning money? What is it thats important to you? Remember, you can apply for any job that you like, but if you dont know what it is that you want, you wont love what it is that you do.

What if you dont know yet? What if you arent sure?

Reflection

I had no idea that I would eventually end up running a recruitment business, or that I would absolutely love it. I didnt know that I would travel the world as cabin crew in my twenties and see some of the most spectacular places on earth, but I did, and I loved it.

You dont have to know exactly what it is that you want to be or what you want to do, but one thing is for sure: be clear about what is important to you in life. This will play into your career. It will play into your job search and it will ultimately influence your happiness and success. Success and how you define it depends on who you ask, and when. To one person, success is becoming a waiter in a five-star resort in a beautiful part of the world; to another its working close to home to spend more time with family, and to another its building a name for themselves in business. All are successful in their own way and in their own time.

Lets explore further what career success means to you. You can use the life and career vision board and vision statement exercises over the page to get you started.

LIFE AND CAREER VISION BOARD

Using an art board, the space here, or a platform like Pinterest, you can pull together images that resonate with you relating to your life and career, or write some descriptive text. Examples might include a businessperson winning an award, a mother holding a baby, a traveller on top of a mountain or a social worker reaching out to someone in need. Choose images and words that resonate with you.

VISION STATEMENT

Create a vision statement for yourself which reflects you and what you want your career to look like in five or ten years time; e.g. To be a world-class solar panels expert, furthering the use of renewable energy.

To love what you do, look for jobs that will align closely with your interests. Think about how you spend your time and what you enjoy doing. Do you love working with your hands? Creating order? Socialising? Achieving goals? Whatever it is that really interests you, ensure that it is present in jobs that you are considering. Take some time now to list your key interests below: