Enlightening and Just a Little Bit Frightening
Yesterday we (the "SciComm Class of 2013") had our careers talk. I can hardly believe it has nearly been a year since handing my notice in at work. I did this so I could take a step towards becoming a science communicator. I was an Editorial Assistant with experience in proofreading and copy-editing journal papers, congress submissions and educational materials for the pharmaceutical industry. I knew nothing of Narrative Theory, or the PUS vs. PEST debate, or even of building sculptures. Importantly, I knew nothing about editing audio and video, or about writing news stories.
But what next? I need to find someone who will hire me – to take that risk on me. How do they know my skills will meet their requirements? Well, the CV will help, as will providing examples of radio podcasts or writing. But Alok Jha and Chris Riley, freelance documentary film maker (In The Shadow Of The Moon, The Fantastic Mr Feynman) seem to think something else is more important. "The will to succeed".
At face value, this sounds a bit corny - "if you can see it, you can be it!" But something really did click with what the two of these industry top-dogs were saying. I think their point is that, all else being equal (exam grades, work experience), what sets the successful job candidate apart from the others is that they 'want' the job more. I think there's a deeper meaning to this and wanting a job is not the same type of want as, say wanting to go to Alton Towers this weekend. Sure, I'd love to go to Alton Towers tomorrow. To be honest, it's totally possible to organise. I just can't be bothered, right now, asking friends if they're available, buying train tickets, setting my alarm clock, organising a taxi from the station and making sure I'm back in time for the last tube. At the moment, I don't want to put that much effort in to arranging an Alton Towers trip.
The same applies to jobs, I think. In order to find yourself in a role which you love, you must constantly overcome the steps (which will at times be terrifyingly difficult) which will lead you on a trajectory towards the goal. I think this is what Alok and Chris meant when they talked about the successful candidate wanting the job more than the rest. The successful candidate truly wants the job and they are prepared to throw themselves at every obstacle to get there. Perhaps in a year or two, I will be looking back at myself as I am now, trying to trace a trajectory from Editorial Assistant to Science Communicator to the next step on the great career staircase.
But what next? I need to find someone who will hire me – to take that risk on me. How do they know my skills will meet their requirements? Well, the CV will help, as will providing examples of radio podcasts or writing. But Alok Jha and Chris Riley, freelance documentary film maker (In The Shadow Of The Moon, The Fantastic Mr Feynman) seem to think something else is more important. "The will to succeed".
At face value, this sounds a bit corny - "if you can see it, you can be it!" But something really did click with what the two of these industry top-dogs were saying. I think their point is that, all else being equal (exam grades, work experience), what sets the successful job candidate apart from the others is that they 'want' the job more. I think there's a deeper meaning to this and wanting a job is not the same type of want as, say wanting to go to Alton Towers this weekend. Sure, I'd love to go to Alton Towers tomorrow. To be honest, it's totally possible to organise. I just can't be bothered, right now, asking friends if they're available, buying train tickets, setting my alarm clock, organising a taxi from the station and making sure I'm back in time for the last tube. At the moment, I don't want to put that much effort in to arranging an Alton Towers trip.
The same applies to jobs, I think. In order to find yourself in a role which you love, you must constantly overcome the steps (which will at times be terrifyingly difficult) which will lead you on a trajectory towards the goal. I think this is what Alok and Chris meant when they talked about the successful candidate wanting the job more than the rest. The successful candidate truly wants the job and they are prepared to throw themselves at every obstacle to get there. Perhaps in a year or two, I will be looking back at myself as I am now, trying to trace a trajectory from Editorial Assistant to Science Communicator to the next step on the great career staircase.
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