Searching for a job can be incredibly stressful and that\u2019s not made any easier by the ready abundance of misinformation. There are countless career myths floating around out there about what you should and shouldn\u2019t do to get the attention of a hiring manager.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today we\u2019re taking the time to tackle three of the biggest career myths. We\u2019ll be talking about where these misconceptions come from as well as what they mean for you and your experience searching for a job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here\u2019s the secret most universities won\u2019t tell you: unless you\u2019re planning to perform surgeries or build rockets, your degree probably means a lot less than you think it does.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now, let\u2019s be clear about this. We\u2019re NOT saying that degrees aren\u2019t important or that a degree won\u2019t open doors to many fields that would otherwise be completely inaccessible. There are many jobs where a degree is pretty much necessary to even step through the door.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the other hand, there are also many jobs where this simply isn\u2019t the case, especially in creative disciplines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The major distinction is a legal one. If the law says you can\u2019t practise a certain job without being qualified for it, then it\u2019s as simple as that. If it doesn\u2019t, however, then your options are wide open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To explain this, let\u2019s take a look at an example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nancy has just finished her three year course in graphic design. Her portfolio lists some impressive student pieces but she has no experience with real world applications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meanwhile, Susan didn\u2019t go to university. Instead she decided to spend those years marketing herself as a private graphic design firm. During that time she\u2019s been moderately successful with a list of completed, real world projects under her belt demonstrating her skills, along with happy clients who\u2019ll be more than willing to give her a reference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Out of those two options, who do you think an employer is going to hire?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, this isn’t universal and you should always research your own industry before making any major life decisions but nine times out of ten an employer will care far more about your real world experience than what you studied at university.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Okay, this one is only a half-myth, but it\u2019s a complicated topic that many people get wrong which is why it made its way onto this list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Search any job site and you\u2019ll probably have an experience that goes something like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After browsing for a while you find a job that\u2019s in your field. The pay is appropriate and it\u2019s a good match for your existing skills. Then you scroll down to the requirements and your heart sinks as you read some variation of the words: five years experience (minimum). Rinse and repeat this about ten times and you\u2019ll be just about ready to start pulling your hair out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So what\u2019s going on here? How can you possibly even get into an industry if nobody will hire without several years of experience? Who even are all these experienced people and how did they get their start?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The truth is a little more frustrating. In reality, most job listings are written for an ideal candidate in the knowledge that the people who apply may be anything but. Yes, they say that five years is required but when that ideal candidate doesn\u2019t show, they\u2019ll start digging through the other applications. When they find you with your otherwise perfect CV, the chances are they\u2019ll be willing to waive that five year requirement (along with about \u00a310K off the promised salary).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It might not be an ideal system, but the important lesson to learn is that, even if you don\u2019t meet all the requirements, it\u2019s often worth applying anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s no secret that employers don\u2019t love employment gaps but one of the biggest career myths you\u2019ll ever hear is that this is an insurmountable hurdle. In reality, very few things are insurmountable for an otherwise perfect candidate and, more often than not, an employment gap can be explained away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That\u2019s not to say it won\u2019t come up in the interview, only that it likely won\u2019t be a problem so long as you have a reasonable answer to hand. For example, if you decide to take a year off in order to reskill into a new career path, very few employers are going to blame you for that so long as it\u2019s not a consistent pattern. The same goes for taking time off to look after a loved one or become a parent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In fact, most of the time the best answer to that question is the truth. When all\u2019s said and done, you\u2019re not breaking any secret rules by having an employment gap. Employers are people and most hiring managers will happily recognise that life can present all sorts of valid reasons to take time away from work without letting that become a red flag.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Searching for a job can be incredibly stressful and that\u2019s not made any easier by the ready abundance of misinformation. There are countless career myths floating around out there about what you…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":1409,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2076","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mentoring-101"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n