Will I get the job?

Migrants coming to New Zealand on various visas that authorise them to conditionally or unconditionally work have just one question on their minds.

Will I get the job?

A question, that is responsible for all their apprehensions, fears, insecurities and in many cases sleepless nights. However, I keep telling you the difference between ‘a’ job and ‘the’ job. Migrant job seekers are looking for ‘the’ job. It’s ‘the’ job that fetches them their further visas and helps them ultimately qualify for their NZ Permanent Residencies.

“Will I get ‘the’ job?”, is the question.

There is a lot riding on this question, there’s so much at stake. The answer to this question will decide whether they have succeeded in their pursuit for a better lifestyle for themselves and their families, whether their decision-to-relocate for an overall convenience has paid off and whether the time, emotions and money that they invested towards achieving an exceptional work-life balance was worth or not.

Every job seeker comes with the same question however, they quickly fall into the following three categories depending on their characters, personalities and skills. It’s funny how they add just one word here and there to the main question and end up creating a category for themselves.

How will I get the job?

This is the first category of job seekers. They are less in numbers but I consider them the ones who are aware, switched-on and conscious of what is expected of them. They are willing to go through the grind, they believe firmly in the fact, that every problem has a solution. They are a research-oriented, self-analytical lot who believe in applying their knowledge to get their results. They are open to learning and don’t get bogged down by rejections. They make sure their every move is quicker and better than their previous one. They compete with themselves. They ask for help, they are humble, they are positive. They are always willing to give back to the community, they believe in sharing. They are always asking questions, meeting the right people and constantly working on and evolving their job search strategy.

When/where/through whom will I get the job?

Most of the migrant job seekers fall into this category. They know what they want but they do not have the faintest of ideas how to get there. Most of them are running around like a headless chicken or like a lost puppy on the roadside. They are always in a panic mode, very restless, short-sighted, money minded and dependent. They think about ‘the’ job 36 hours a day. No matter who they speak with or get introduced to, the first thing they ask about is ‘the job’ for themselves. They believe in sharing their unsolicited CVs with anyone and everyone. They need something readymade and they need it right now. I call them ‘the cut-copy-paste people’. For example, if they need a cover letter; they don’t have the patience to read and understand the article, ‘How to make a cover letter’, they straight away go for a sample cover letter, copy word-to-word and get done and over with. For them, learning-to-apply-the-knowledge is a long route and is a time waste. They claim, they can do any job, they just need a chance. They feel NZ is not a good place, recruiters are bad and they have an ample number of stories that prove undue favours offered to many job seekers. They always have proofs that they have been discriminated upon and they can bet their life on the fact that NZ is a racist country. They know many people who have bought their jobs and they too have contemplated that thought. They are always waiting for something nice to happen or an angel who will come down from heaven one day with ‘the’ job that will be served on a silver platter. One day something will happen in their lives. One day!

Will I ever get the job?

They are the ones who have lost the battle. They are either always teary-eyed or tremendously angry. They are mostly in their own shell, frustrated and almost to the level of acute depression, they don’t go out, they don’t talk to others. Deep there somewhere inside they know they will not be able to make it. They often play the victim’s card in a hope that someone will have mercy on them and will give them something to rejoice about. Time and again they do jump to the other categories because of external motivation but they come back here, to their category, where they feel most comfortable.

Here’s the good news!! No matter who you are and which category you belong to, there’s a way for you to get an answer for your question successfully. You just need to figure it out and you can do it without compromising on your values and ethics, of course, it would involve a lot of effort and hard work, planning & strategizing followed by executing the plan of action.

Remember, you can and you will get ‘the’ job.