My Journey to Work
by Orla Minogue
Taking advantage of opportunities that present themselves in life can be difficult as it forces you out of your comfort zone. If you have not found your purpose yet or are unsure what your career looks like ahead then use this blog for confidence to be brave when it comes to change and making decisions.
If you are the type of person who knew exactly what they wanted to do while growing up you are very fortunate. The journey ahead for most is unclear on what our career will look like but needs to be embraced. My career path to joining Recruitment has not been straightforward, but it is all about the journey, right?
Throughout school, I had no notion of what I wanted to do when I was older and felt overwhelmed by course options for college. I discovered the Communication Studies course in DCU and knew that I would enjoy the mix of practical modules and traditional lectures while finding the subjects fun and engaging. After years of hard work and achieving my degree, I was still unsure about the next step to take in my career.
The saying goes "It is not what you know, but who you know", and I can’t argue with that. I looked to my network of family and friends for opportunities, I learned very quickly that if someone offers you help or an opportunity, you take it. It is amazing how asking someone out for a coffee can turn into a career opportunity.
Over the next couple of years, I embraced the opportunities that came my way, and they brought me to some unexpected places. I said yes to becoming a Set Decorator in LA, an Accounts Payable Assistant, a Public Relations Consultant and even started my own venture as a Radio/ Podcast Presenter and Editor. I enjoyed all these roles, although I knew none of them was a perfect fit.
In early 2021 I had applied to a small business, Fortis Recruitment who were seeking a marketing professional. Although I was unsure if my experience lined up with what the company was seeking, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to meet the owner, Cormac Loughlin, and discuss the opportunity. It quickly became clear to both of us that I may not be the right fit for this particular role, however, having discussed my experience Cormac believed that a lot of my skills would be transferable to Recruitment. He acknowledged how I had tried my hand in multiple roles and I had still not found my passion. The radio element really appealed to him, as it demonstrated my ability to communicate and relate to others. My time in LA demonstrated my courage to travel and work in a creative role and the other positions proved I was hard-working and comfortable in a corporate environment.
In March of 2021 I took on my new role as Resource Executive at Fortis Recruitment and I realized the skills I had been developing throughout each role were now being put to use and sharpened every single day.
So what does it take and how do you know it is for you
Interpersonal Skills: 
As a recruiter, you spend most of your time managing people and their expectations. You’re balancing relationships with both clients and candidates, and therefore to succeed you must be personable and genuinely enjoy interacting with and helping others. Building trust with candidates and clients is a huge part of this role, and I have found the best way to achieve this is through open communication and transparency.
Goal-orientated: 
Setting targets and working until you achieve them is the number one goal in recruitment. Whether it’s money, a sense of accomplishment, a thrilled candidate, or a very happy client that motivates you, it’s vital that you are driven by success – whatever way you define it.
Resilience: 
There are a lot of knockbacks in this business. They can come from bad luck, people letting you down or just extremely tough challenges. Being able to get over the setbacks and keep your work rate high will determine how successful you can be.
Organisation: 
Whether you’re in a recruitment agency juggling several roles for different clients, or in-house managing hiring processes for your company, organizational skills are key. You could have 15 open roles whilst managing several interview processes at once, so being able to balance your time to get maximum efficiency from the workday is so important.
As I said at the top very few people in this world grow up knowing what they want to do or the direction they’d like to go in. This can create a huge amount of stress, particularly for students coming out of school or college, they can put themselves under tremendous pressure to try and figure it out. The best piece of advice that I can offer is to seize opportunities that come your way. Most people like to be helpful, provide advice and even guidance, so if opportunities are not falling in your lap, use your network of family, friends, colleagues and peers. If I have learned anything, it is that asking someone to meet you for a coffee can change your life, for the better.
I hope by sharing my career journey I will inspire you to go after your career goals, and if you need help figuring what’s next please feel free to reach out to me for a confidential chat.
