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Student: Let’s say on your initial first job after uni, yeah?
Cem: Yeah.
Student: Did you say you would prefer something that you’re passionate about, but not necessarily pay you a decent wage, if that makes sense, or be a different amount?
Cem: Normally you’re gonna need a good enough pay that you can cover your bills, but I think what you’ve got to think of it as how much can I learn as quick as possible from that company. First few years it doesn’t really matter. People was worried that the first job they get out of uni is the thing that they should do, ’cause you’ve got to tell your parents, you’ve got to tell your friends, “Oh, this is the job I got.” Have that whole wicked, “How much you earn?” You’re like, “Oh, among 17K a year,” or something. But in your head you’re like, “I’m learning right, the roots, ’cause I’m in this small company. But I’m not earning great, but it’s enough to live off. But I’m learning all facets of a business by being this company.”
Cem: I would say, personally, that’s what I do. When I went on my unpaid internship, I was getting like … I didn’t understand what online marketing was, but because it was an unpaid internship, they let me pretty much do whatever the hell I wanted. And so I was picking up so much information and they were giving me ten thousand pound budgets to spend on Facebook ads and I was like, “Wow, oh my God.” And I was just using it to test stuff and learn myself. So I think initially, as long as you can put in the back of your mind what everyone else thinks, but you’re saying, “Well, I know I’m gonna pick up a lot of knowledge in this time,” I would always say go for the thing that’s gonna make you learn the most as quick as possible. Because that’s gonna pay off three, four years down the line.
Wayne: Yeah, I think, you touched on it Cem, but I think the mindset of somebody coming out of uni is, “Right, I wanna land that big job.” And I think whilst that’s admirable, it’s not practical. Really I think what you need to be looking at, and I wish I had had this train of thought when I left uni, if you have the mindset of actually, “Where can I go that’s gonna give me the strongest foundation for going forward?” Don’t think of it as a job that I’m gonna be in ten years’ time, think of it as a job that you’re gonna be in for two years and then move on to something else. I think is the healthier way to look at it, because you take the pressure off yourself, which then actually is beneficial when it comes for actually looking for the work.
Wayne: Something that really what you want is just something that can set you up in the industry you wanna be in, pay you enough to keep you stable, and as Cem says, something that you can learn as quickly as possible. Because when you get out into the job market, you’re in a race. And it’s basically the person that can move the fastest, yeah. And yeah, there will be some good job opportunities, but actually I think the ones that you’re probably thinking of, there’s gonna be far less of them and more people going for them. Because those are gonna be the ones that everybody’s gonna be like, “Ah, yes! Please!” Where actually when you go for the middle rung perhaps where it’s nice pay, huge learning opportunity, but it’s that foundation that’s the most important thing, because you also don’t wanna peak too soon. You don’t wanna end up in a position that you’re actually, probably not as qualified for. Because then you’ve got a reputation to build as well. You’ve got to think longterm.
Cem: And you wanna go into tech as well, so I would just be, “Okay, who are the top companies,” and I would go and try to work for them for cheap to free, whatever you can afford to do. Because normally when you go into this tech stuff, it’s the names you have behind you that people look at. So they’re gonna go, “Okay, where’s the brand,” as well. So, yeah, you can start with the small companies, but I’m pretty sure if you were like, “Oh, can I do a work experience for six weeks at Samsung, I don’t want any pay, I can cover it, ’cause I’ve managed to get a side job that does it,” or three days a week. Samsung, they might be like, “Yeah, why not? You sound enthusiastic.” But then that comes down to how well you network after uni, are you on LinkedIn, are you connecting with head of market in Samsung, or head of technology in O2, and stuff like that. Also, it comes down to how willing you are to network as well.
Wayne: Do you have a placement year on your course?
Cem: No.
Wayne: No, okay. In which case I would be looking round at potential companies that you wanna work for now.
Cem: And be pro-active. If they’re not offering it, go message everybody, attach that company at a certain company you wanna work for and eventually they might be like, “Well, this guy will not go away. Give him an internship for four weeks.” And then they will let you in, so again, you have to create the opportunity sometimes. They’re not always gonna be like, “Oh, I want someone for six weeks to learn whatever.” That you can actually be enthusiastic enough that they actually create a position, ’cause you won’t go away, you keep nagging them for the opportunity. Give that a go.
If you want any questions answered, or if you have any ideas for anythings you’d like us to address, send us an email, Wayne@powerfulnonsense.com or Cem@powerfulnonsense.com, or you can look us up on the Twitterz @PN_Podcast, and we will take it into consideration. And also, please do leave us a nice little review on the old iTunes. It really does help get the word out there for the show. Five stars or more, greatly appreciated.