SYDNEY CHALLENGES, REJECTIONS, AND SUCCESSES:

It’s my third week in Sydney and I’ve come across some challenges, many rejections and success.

Prior to my move, I’ve booked an Air BNB at Wolli Creek to stay for the first 2 weeks in Sydney and decided that during my timeframe there, I’d look for a more permanent place to settle. The hosts were exceptional friendly and very welcoming when my partner and I arrived.

During the first couple of weeks, we looked for potential places to lease in Sydney and soon came to quickly realize that it was difficult to land an approved lease. Properties are extremely competitive and scarce with an average of 10 groups inspecting a unit when viewing for a place to rent. (It is by-law that each individual must view the unit prior to submitting an application to rent a unit) With no prior local rental references, jobs, or rental history, it was near impossible to land a lease. Given our 2 week timeframe, we were definitely in a time crunch. However, we didn’t give up after several rejections. We visited several suburbs of interest and physically walked into Real Estate offices and talked to the property managers for available listings. Although many of them told us to check online at realestate.com.au for availability, we insisted in meeting property managers in person. And you know what – it paid off! We met an incredible helpful property manager named Andrew in Wolli Creek and told him we recently moved here from Canada. Although he didn’t have any properties at the moment to rent, he told us he had one coming up in a week and told us to check it out. He was extremely helpful and went out of his way to let us know how to strengthen our application. We applied for the unit after we met Andrew for the second time and inspected the property along with a few other groups who were also interested. Luckily, Andrew vouched for us when our application was presented to the owner and we landed the lease! In conclusion, it’s very important to form in-person connections because a simple conversation and body language can tell a lot about a person. By meeting people in person, these interactions formulate trust and a genuine connection between one another.  

After overcoming this challenge, I’m currently in the middle of another challenge: finding a design job in Sydney. It’s much harder than I’ve anticipated because of my visa having work restrictions. My working holiday visa allows me to work up to 6 months per employer full time with no sponsorship needed but many employers are just not interested once I say I’m on a 417 visa (even though I have the experience and design portfolio to prove I can be successful in the position). Also, just my luck that sponsoring an employee is now x-amount more difficult with the recent changes to the 457 visa. Unlike other working holiday visa candidates whose goal is to gain some money to supplement their travels, I’m actually looking to settle in Sydney, gain local design experience, and genuinely want to be part of the design community. Although I’ve received many rejections and silent responses, I’m not going to give up. When life gives you lemons, squeeze all the juice out of it, hydrate yourself, and keep moving forward. That’s my moto! For every rejection I receive, I’m closer to a success. Not all rejections are bad because I’ve also met some amazing people along the way and they’ve helped point me in the direction for prospective opportunities.

 

I recently finished watching the movie “The Founder,” and learned how Ray Kroc transformed McDonald into a real estate franchise empire. I definitely recommend watching this movie because he goes through many challenges and failures before reaching a huge success. Also, persistence is a key attribute to success and he never lets any challenge / failure get in his way. I find this movie very motivating and I’m definitely going to be persistent in my job hunt.

Fun fact – I realize why Canadian people call McDonalds – McDicks! Mac and Dick were the brothers who founded the burger joint McDonalds! Coincident? I think not!
Thanks for reading and following me along with my adventures!