Recently I have had to make a difficult decision in going forward with my life, which has resulted in me starting a brand new adventure in a brand new country. The downside however is that I will have to say goodbye to a number of wonderful people within a company that has trained me, developed my skills, and provided me with a grounding that will stay with me for the rest of my working career. I’ve learned so much from Optimum, and have been so happy to share that knowledge with a variety of candidates as they’ve gone through the recruitment process however, I’ve seen people struggle with difficult decisions regarding their career choices every day. I thought as my parting advice with the job seekers of Australia, I would share my opinion on ‘making difficult decisions’.

Even though the majority of us will have the same goal for you (land the job!), every recruiter you meet will have a different style of consulting. Optimum places its focus on attracting, engaging, retaining and developing our candidates, clients and relationships through our personable approach, industry knowledge and wide network contacts. In every interview I have, I aim to find out several key factors which I believe are the core of who you are workwise and using that information, assist candidates in making those right choices in going forwards. If you do ever find yourself questioning where you are in life, ask yourself these questions:

  1. Why did you decide to go down this pathway? – As an accounting specialist, a lot of people I interview answer this question with “I love numbers”, which I believe is a fantastic reason to consider Accounting as your next professional step. If your answer is “because my friends were doing it/because my parents wanted me to etc.”, you may want to reconsider if the choice is right in terms of what is important to you.
  2. What do you enjoy most about your work? – Again, this helps both of us to understand what keeps you in your job day after day, month after month, year after year. If you are looking for a new challenge, something that includes these points will probably be a good choice to consider.
  3. What are your behavioural/technical strengths? – Same principle as above. If you apply for a job where the requirements are something that you are highly confident in, it is likely your performance will be exceptional. Know your strengths, and never undervalue yourself. If you have exceptional skills in one area, however the business wants you to focus somewhere else to go forward, it may not be the right role for you.
  4. What’s important to you? – This question will unlock all the answers. You may have commitments outside of work where you need to consider location above salary, or if you are ambitious you may want a training and development scheme over a large, listed company. Consider your priorities when making your decision, if you take a risk you may end up regretting your hasty decision.

So no matter what your career dilemma, take into consideration the above and see where it gets you. If you are still undecided, call up Optimum and book in a consultation with a career professional – we are here to help!

Elouisa Baan – Consultant

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