Roxanne Calder - Employable: 7 attributes to assure your working future

Roxanne Calder is not your average recruiter. Her approach to work and life is to go deep and approach each challenge head on, and with heart. In managing and recruiting, she loves to see the potential in people. Uncovering their hidden qualities is her skill.

As the world picked up the pieces from the 2007-08 global financial crisis, Roxanne realised her long-held dream of launching her own business: EST10 was born in 2010. Roxannes ability to stay the course - to learn, adjust, upskill and reinvent - is what made her business strong. When COVID-19 struck, she had those attributes to fall back on. Roxanne and her business came out stronger on the other side.

Roxanne holds a Bachelor of Arts from Monash University and a Master of Business Administration from the Australian Graduate School of Management at the University of Sydney. She feels privileged to have worked with and been mentored by some of the best in the industry, including Julia Ross, Geoff Morgan, Andrew Banks and Greg Savage.

In her global career, Roxanne has worked across Australia, the UK and the Asia-Pacific. Born in Scotland, she has lived in Africa, regional Australia and Japan. It was in Japan, at the very beginning of her working life, that she discovered her skill for seeing people -looking for the clues to understand who they are and what they are really saying. Its a talent that has served and inspired her ever since.

Roxanne loves animals, music and books - in that order. She has an ambition to live on a farm and, in preparation, has a list of animals at the ready: Highland cows x 2, Clydesdale, Powerful Owl, Tennessee fainting goats x 2, donkeys x 2, Pallass cat, swans x 2, bison x 2 and chickens, to name a few. On the weekends, youll find Roxanne exploring Sydneys parks with her husband, Rick, and dog, Daisy (who is incredibly smart and part-human). She exercises religiously and has attended several Muay Thai training camps in Thailand (describing herself as likely the least talented participant).

Roxanne believes employability is insurance for your future. Her motivation in writing this book is to help others discover the freedom and confidence to be gained by developing the 7 attributes.

So many people contribute to a book and the sanity of its writer. I never knew that before. For that reason, I really hope I do justice in thanking and acknowledging everyone who has helped me!

Ive enjoyed writing this book so much, despite my trepidation, nerves and lack of faith in myself at the beginning - in fact, most of the way through! It has been one of the most challenging yet rewarding experiences I have had, and for that, I am very grateful.

Firstly, the very patient, smart, kind and compassionate Lesley. Thank you for suggesting the book to me, and for your encouragement. Thanks for not taking on my idea of a green cover, nor my question of whether we really needed to include my name on the cover when we were looking for extra space.

Brooke - oh my goodness, lifesaver. Thank you for your editing; for politely pointing out things that werent right, always in the nicest possible way, and for getting rid of the fluff. You have a talent for communication and for understanding the psyche, personality and style of the person writing.

My whole team at EST10, who contributed patience, encouragement and occasional inappropriate jokes to keep me going. Thank you for giving me the time, freedom and peace to be able to write.

My dearest friend Lily. If not for you, this book would not have happened. You told me three years ago to write a book, and I said you were ridiculous. Who would read it? Im so pleased I have done it now. Its been the very best challenge and a great feeling to be well and truly out of my comfort zone. My goodness, I needed that! Thank you for your belief in me, and for working with me and providing encouragement and input. All those nights and weekends - I owe you a million lost wine nights!

Mr Savage - thank you for the introduction to Lesley, and for suggesting the book and believing in me and the opportunity.

Many, many clients and candidates have provided inspiration and their valuable expertise and insights. There are, however, three I would like to say a huge thank you to for their time, input and ideas: Guy Farrow, Helen Calladine and Corinne Alter.

Finally, my very patient Rick. Thank you for your unwavering support, belief and love - always.

A thirst for knowledge

We keep moving forward, opening new doors,
and trying new things, because we are curious,
and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.

WALT DISNEY

Learning is the first and most important of the 7 attributes of employability. Being employable requires you to be continually learning and updating your skill set.

I refer to the thirst for knowledge attribute as forever learning.

Forever learning is:

being curious

listening

being open to new ideas

being willing to adopt and adapt to new ways

finding ways to improve yourself and increase your experience and knowledge.

In this chapter well examine all the facets of this high-level life skill, including:

personal and professional growth

your ability and willingness to learn

being curious

keeping your technical skills current

planning and upskilling.

Having a thirst for knowledge is important - not just to your job and vocation, but as a life skill. Most people think of professional growth when it comes to employability, yet working on your personal growth can be the key to excelling. Personal development gives you the power to be who you dream to become, both personally and professionally.

You cannot grow professionally without personal growth and development. The further developed you are personally, the more rapidly you can excel professionally.

lists some ways in which you can grow, professionally and personally.

Table 1.1: Personal and professional growth

You may think its easier to achieve personal growth than professional growth. I thought that once too. But fasten your seatbelt! Personal growth goes deep to who you are and can be like a rabbit hole, with more and more to discover. If you work on your personal growth areas with due respect and diligence, the process can be significantly harder than the professional-growth journey. Whether personal or professional, growth requires effort, practice and work. The payoff is that it is rewarding and enlightening.

Lets address the elephant in the room: many adults are concerned about their ability to learn. Did you know that believing you can become smarter actually makes you smarter? According to research from the American Psychological Association, realising that your intelligence may be improved can actually improve your intelligence. Also, understanding intelligence as something that is changeable and malleable, rather than stable and fixed, results in greater academic achievement.