Design Your Life Tips: How To Get A Job You Love

Getting a job you love is a journey

When I decided I wanted to quit teaching, I didn’t have a job lined up. I had no idea how people even went about getting a job you love. I really wasn’t sure how to get a job that aligned with the lifestyle I wanted, but I saw people doing things that I could only dream of. How did they make all the right decisions and I ended up in a career that seemed like a nightmare?

I wish I had some kind of guide that wasn’t just generic tips like “network and write a cover letter”. So, I put together the guide I wish I would have had when I started this journey. That way you don’t just apply blindly to every job posting you come across and are grateful for whoever wants you.

No. They should be grateful that you bless them with your time and skills. A job that you love will acknowledge your expertise and skills. A job you love will push you to be your best self. We aren’t just going to focus on roles that align with your skills and interests…  we are going to go deep. You are only going to get exactly what you want when you know what that is. 

What you will find here

This post will explores the process of finding the perfect career that you will love. Are you a teacher looking to leave the sector and move into a new career? I have a whole guide for that: Want To Leave Teaching? Everything You Need To Know. Otherwise, continue reading to start your journey toward a fulfilling job that fits the life you want.

Research jobs in your area 

You’ve probably heard the saying “choose a job you love and you will never work a day in your life”. Which is fine if you love numbers because there are a billion accountancy jobs out there. But I just couldn’t find anyone that would pay me for sitting around and doing nothing (my favourite pastime). So the first step that you need to take when attempting the impossible mission of getting a job you love is to see what there is a market for. You may love painting pictures of your mom but if no one wants a picture of your mom (sry, mom), then you’re out of luck. 

The first thing I did was start a list titled: My Ideal Career. Check the most popular job board in your country (I’m in Australia so I used Seek). I searched for the most recent jobs within my area and made a list of any job that came up that sounded cool to me, regardless of if I thought I could actually do it (that’s the next step). Have a look at any of your role models or icons whose shoes you wish you could be in. Write their job down on your list.

Open your mind for a second and be honest with yourself. Imagine that you could just pick anything you wanted to do. What would it be? Who would you help? It is honestly kind of exciting. This is the start of your new life, you’re going to reinvent yourself Bowie-style. If you need some inspiration I have a list of Amazing Jobs for Travel Lovers to get you started.

Consider what matters to you

Not every job in the industry you want to work in is going to be a dream job. You are either going to be working for someone else – where you have less control over your working conditions, or you are going to be working for yourself – where you have the weight of all the responsibilities on your shoulders. You can choose the lesser of evils (I’ll let you decide which is which because I don’t know everything). Everyone’s idea of success is different so you are going to put together another list: Success Criteria. This is going to be a list of things that you want from your job.

This list is going to basically be your checklist when interviewing (spoiler alert: if the job offer doesn’t meet all of the Success Criteria it is to be repudiated). 

The best way to make a great list of must-haves is to ask yourself “what do I want my day-to-day life to look like?”. Are you going to be sitting in a cabana in Bali living your best nomad-life? Or are you going to be working from a cosy office space in your home? Do you want to work in an office that will allow you to wear your best Selling Sunset attire? Only you know what is going to bring you the most happiness. I can’t tell you the answers and no one else can, either.

For instance, I stare in wonderment at my friends living their best lives as digital nomads but I know that life would not bring me joy. I am a major homebody. I love exploring in stints but I prefer to have a place to call home. That is why a work-from-home job works well for me. You might be an extrovert who loves hustle culture and you’d thrive in an office in the city. It’s all about knowing yourself. The confidence to ask for it will come with knowing what job you would love to have.

Upskill (if needed)

So now you know what your ideal job and life would look like you will need to prepare yourself to get it. Have a look at 5 or more job descriptions for the job you want and check what skills are required. This will give you an idea of what certifications and skills are required.

Sure, you could go back to university but you don’t have to. Theory definitely will help you get through the door but experience is what really matters. The quicker you get in that door and start working the better. This is especially true if you’ve got financial responsibilities or if you’ve had to take a pay-cut to enter your ideal industry.

My recommendation is that you utilise online courses to add to your CV to get you that interview. Most online courses have free 7-day trials so you can sign up and complete a short course and add it to your CV before the trial ends. This is what I did for the Google Project Management course on Coursera. There is also Udemy and others out there so you’re bound to find something that will help you get the job you want. You will get a code so you can add it to your Linkedin as well.

I did spend about $150USD to take a test in order to gain a certification too. It required at least one week of studying in my free-time after school. But this meant that I spent a very minimal amount of money and time to change careers. Self-study looks better on your CV. It shows that you are motivated to learn a new skill.

Apply in style

This might sound really obvious but do a quick Google Image search to see examples of CVs for the industry that you are interested in as different sectors may require a different approach. This is especially true with teaching where you are required most of the time to attach a separate page outlining examples of how you meet the teaching standards. You will need a passport-style photo to be attached on Japanese applications whereas in Australia that would be seen as super weird. So if you are applying for remote jobs that are not based in your country make sure you know what they are expecting.

What skills does the role require?

You will want to make your CV sound like it meets the role’s responsibilities. Firstly, when you are listing your work experience you will want to make your previous roles sound like they had similar responsibilities to the role you now want. For example, if you are looking for a project management role you can look at the role description and find things like “Forecasting, planning and tracking to ensure delivery outcomes align with project goals” or “Facilitate events at the project level such as Backlog Refinements, Showcases, Sprint Retrospectives, etc.”.

Use these same verbs when listing your experience so that you have examples of how you could use that experience in your new role.

Maybe your previous role had you facilitating weekly reflection meetings with your department or you were expected to track student performance to ensure they completed their tasks. Companies all do things differently so if you understand the skill you need and can prove you have it you can always learn how to apply it in their context.

Secondly, you will want to identify the skills and certifications that you have that align with the job. Soft skills are a great one to have listed because those are transferrable skills that apply to all jobs. For instance, you might be applying for a job that requires the ability to communicate effectively with a range of stakeholders. Communication is probably a skill you have experience applying in your current role so you can use that as an example.

Ask the right questions

You’ll probably get a call from a recruiter or from the human resources department if they liked your application. Don’t get too excited yet. Tell them you’ll call them back in 15 minutes and go and find your list of Success Criteria and prepare yourself for a quick phone interview. Never agree to go in for an in-person interview without checking off your Success Criteria or you’re wasting your time and your time is money! Make sure you confirm the working conditions (wfh, remote, hybrid etc) and the pay.

If they haven’t listed the salary on the job advertisement you can always ask “What is the salary range for this position?”. Human resources will always have an approved salary range that they are allowed to offer. If the salary range they quote is too low tell them you are looking for a higher number. They will advise you they will need to get it approved or tell you that isn’t possible. It is always good to confirm these things before going into an interview.

If they wrote that the job is remote and it turns out it isn’t, or they’re being defensive when you ask about salary, or get weird about any of your questions, they’re probably not a great company to work for and you just saved yourself a lot of time and effort. 

Succeed in interviews

Now that you know this is actually a job you want you can start freaking out! Agree to an interview and go and ace it. Be the person that you think they want (disclaimer: not if it means selling out your values and beliefs because that = a bad time). Make sure you have checked the company’s website and you know their values so you can think of some examples of how you align with them.

You are changing careers so they will ask why you are making the big step into their industry. This isn’t the time to get all negative and tell them how horrible your previous job was. This question is really an opportunity to suck up to them. Tell them how you’re looking for a bigger challenge and you think their company offers that opportunity. Remember, interviews are mostly about ensuring that you would be a good fit in the company. These are the people that you’re going to be working with.

They want someone who is going to be open, flexible, and dedicated. After all, isn’t that who you like working with?

At the end of the interview they will ask if you have any questions. I always ask if they can show me around if they don’t offer it. I also ask what a day-in-the-life of the role looks like. That way I can visualise how my day would look there. Make sure you confirm, again, the conditions of the job to ensure it meets your Success Criteria. If there is any doubt in your mind that the job is not going to meet your criteria then personally I would continue looking. Remember the whole point of this was to get a job you love.

Obviously, it depends on your situation and how much you are willing to compromise… but never compromise on happiness.