Now that you’ve decided to join the rat race, here’s how else you can gear up for the job hunt – take a journey of self-discovery.

SO IT’S finally come to this – it’s time for you to get a job. Should you find one that makes you happy or one that makes you rich? Should you look for something that’s related to your field of study or something you’ve been dying to try out?

"Now that you’ve decided to join the rat race, here’s how else you can gear up for the job hunt – by discovering yourself."

Obviously, one of the first things you need to do is prepare a winning resume and find out more about the company you’re interested in. But aside from getting the basics right, here are some questions you may want to ask yourself before you proceed.

Analyse this
One of the first things you’ll need to ask yourself is if you’re looking for a job because you want to or because of parental or peer pressure. Obviously, if you’re being forced into it, you might not actually be ready for the working world or you might pick a job you think your family or friends will approve of, instead of one you’re genuinely interested in.

Some other things to consider would be: What are you capable of handling? Do you prefer a desk job or something that’s going to take you places literally? How well do you take rejection? Are you willing to do something else if you can’t find a suitable job?

Once you’re done soul-searching, list down what you’re interested in, what you don’t mind doing and what you’re sure you definitely won’t do. Then whip out the classifieds or check out job recruitment websites and start searching.

Near, far, wherever you are
It would be great to find a job just a stone’s throw away from home but the fact is that most employees have to commute some distance to work. You’ll be lucky to find a job that offers you a transport allowance which, if cleverly managed, may defray some of your daily travelling costs.

But in the highly possible event that you don’t, you need to take into account if the job you’re considering taking up is worth your while to get up, say, at 6.00am in order to make a two-hour journey through congested highways and traffic jams just to reach the office by 8.30am. Such a situation will be exhausting mentally and physically and in the long run, it might contribute to you losing some of your hard-earned money … or your sanity.

Having a job near home has its pros and cons as well. On the upside, you don’t have to make a mad rush for work like many others. The downside is that you may end up working longer hours or get called back to the office outside of the set working time – because you live nearby.

Short-run or long-run?
Is your current aim of finding a job just to chalk up some working experience, to earn some money and acquire new skills while waiting for that dream job to come along, or are you looking for a job that will let you grow as a person and work your way up the corporate ladder?

Maybe this is a step towards running your own business as an entrepreneur.

It’s all a matter of preference but you should have a rough idea what you’re getting into before you go for the interview or sign on the dotted line.

Make sure you know the industry you’re getting into. Will it be one you can grow in or will it stifle you?

Also, don’t go into an interview with the aim of only staying six months to a year if you know the company that called you up is looking for a long-term commitment. You’ll be wasting everyone’s time if you decide to tell them – after the lengthy interview process – that they don’t have to offer you the job because you don’t think you’ll be able to commit. You may upset some people and worse still, end up on a blacklist.

Other commitments
If you have an elderly or sick parent and can’t devote your time to a full-time job, don’t force yourself to take up one – there’s always the option of working part-time. Seriously, you’ll be extremely lucky to find an understanding employer who will let you take time off to attend to family matters but even then, they’ll have to draw a line at some point in time in order to be fair to the other employees.

If you have a demanding boyfriend or girlfriend who’s been used to having you around 24-7, make sure you prepare them for the fact that you won’t be able to spend as much time as you used to with him or her.

Don’t get caught in a situation where you get both your boss and your “squeeze” angry with you, all because you can’t cope with dividing your time between work and play.