Looking for internships, graduate jobs, and entry level positons? Take a risk.

At New Force we are about trying different things, going out of your comfort zone, and excelling.  With New Force, you don’t need to rely solely on your CV for employers to notice you on your job search, simply create a profile and match with jobs based on your skills and aptitude. The Oxford dictionary defines the word habit, as being a “settled or regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up:” Habit fights risk. Habit is a tool humans use for survival; we stick to the things we know. By walking the well beaten path we minimise risk. Humans are wired to survive. However risk should not automatically be ? (It’s also something that a nun wears). Humans process and remember information; they make decisions tackle issues, and approach the unknown with negativity, yet the known with positively – often regardless if it beneficial or counterproductive to that person.  However as human beings we also have the well-developed psychological ability to realise that we are in fact bound by cognitive biases that don’t always achieve optimal results. This is what makes us intelligent beings, able to critically think, and understand the rudimentary flaws that prevent us from change and innovation. The people who are able to move from Point A: Habitual risk minimisation to Point B: Risk takers are in essence the leaders in society. These are people who on a range of scales have done things that no people have done before. This is all well and good for the people who lack the inhibitions to take unmeasured risks, but what does it mean to you right now, what does this mean when you are sitting at your desk drinking coffee looking at your computer tomorrow morning. It means do something different. Break the mould, do something that is completely out of your habit. At New Force we are disrupting the way graduates, students and entry level workers find jobs. Rather than apply on a job board you can find work or your first job by matching with employers via your profile.

www.newforce.co.nz 

Balancing your finances on a grad wage.

Unless you’re leaving uni with a Doctorate in Medicine or you’re lucky enough to have super wealthy folks, going into your first job as a student or graduate will mean that you are unlikely to have a huge disposable income. Many of us will feel fortunate enough to nab that grad role in the first place. But once you find it (hopefully on newforce.co.nz), it’s a good idea to go in knowing you’re balancing your money. Here’s some key tips: 1. Herne Bay is probably going to be off the cards for many off us for a little bit, but there are still loads of options. You may know people looking to flat where you are, in which case it’s a good idea to get a good number of people together to keep costs down. Otherwise, there are plenty of great websites such as http://www.trademe.co.nz/flatmates-wanted/auckland and NZ Flatmates. Also check out Facebook flatmate groups that are popping up all the time. It’s a great way to be across everything and places you may have never considered. 2. Your travel cost will vary depending on where you live and where you work. But there are heaps of options and it’s only getting better. If you live more than walking distance to work like most people one of the better options is now public transport, particularly in Auckland. With your AT Hop card https://at.govt.nz/register-for-at-hop/ you can hop straight onto any bus, train or ferry. The cool thing is they’ve also made the zoning cheaper than before, so if you go across the city it’ll probably cost you much less than you expect. Otherwise if you live and work  in Central Auckland or other main centres like Hamilton and Christchurch, cycling is a great option. New cycle ways are opening up all the time in Auckland and Christchurch and it’s becoming ever more popular. Check it out: https://at.govt.nz/cycling-walking/auckland-cycle-run-walkway-maps/  http://www.tfc.govt.nz/travel-by/bike/cycle-map/ 3.Saving. Yes it sucks, but the earlier you start this habit the better. At the very least you should look at the state of your Kiwisaver and the contributions you are making. You might not know this,  but you can change how much you are contributing each week, plus you can change the kind of investment fund your money goes into, i.e. Conservative low return vs. High Risk.  Get started early by making your student job work for you.  It’s a great idea to discuss your options with your Kiwisaver provider (usually the people you bank with). http://www.kiwisaver.govt.nz/

While you’re getting everything in order, make sure you’ve completed a  profile at www.newforce.co.nz to help in your job search.  It’s the best way to match with employers who are looking for students, graduates and career starters in government jobs, administration, call centre, IT and more.  

Plus, it’s free so no need to worry about your finances!

www.newforce.co.nz 

Graduate Jobs? Tips to stand out from the rest.

If you’re new to the workforce or a recent graduate, you have reason to celebrate. This group is experiencing a wave of the best job prospects in decades. Though the future is looking bright and jobs are booming, the question arises; how can you make the most of this sunny period and take advantage of these career opportunities? Here at New Force, we are the experts in the graduate employment sphere.  We hope the following tips will help you bring out the in your job search and applications. 1. New Force Profile New Force is a platform developed to work for entry level and graduate job seekers. Rather than be assessed simply based on your CV and experience, you can present employers a much more 3 dimensional view of yourself as a candidate. Your New Force profile allows you to fill out your details and bio, and upload a video introduction so employers can see you right away. Plus adding unlimited skills tests to your profile lets employers see that you can hit the ground running, and actually do the task at hand. 2. Social Media presence. There is a big difference between having social media profiles that simply exist and social media profiles that act as a promotional tool  to aid your job search. It is a ritual for many employers now to conduct an informal audit of a potential employee’s social media presence. A Google search, Facebook search, Twitter LinkedIn….. etc Be creative, brand yourself, and keep your personality consistent over all your social platforms. Giving the impression that you are one thing on your Twitter feed can send mixed signals if you are something completely different on your LinkedIn profile. Though they are completely different social networking tools that serve different purposes, it will act to serve your personal brand better if you can maintain a sense of connection between them all. 3. Don’t Hide This is something we don’t believe that entry level job seekers hear enough: Give potential employers as much opportunity to see you from as many angles as possible. If it’s your CV, add a photo, if it is your social media profiles let employers see information that portrays you in a positive light. We know that entering the job market after uni can be tough. Landing your first job is not just about the qualification or degree you have, it’s about your knowledge, skills and attitude you’ve developed.  Personality counts for a lot!

Match with employers who are looking for graduates and entry level workers. 
Register on www.newforce.co.nz

Do you have a broader degree but you don’t know what path to take?

Often when those of us who choose to continue tertiary study, many opt to take on degrees such as a Bachelor of Arts or communication studies. Though these programmes teach valuable skills such as critical thinking, analysis, research and effective communication, they often lead down a rather wide path in terms of career direction. Often many people finish their studies they have gained a new set of skills, however are unsure of where to apply them. Finishing a under graduate degree shouldn’t mean that you need to take on postgraduate studies to make use of it. Nor should it mean that you should be landed in a position where you scroll through every job ad on every job board, casting your net wide for any employer who may be interested. What you really need to be looking for are jobs that match the skills and knowledge you have picked up over your time studying. New Force matches you with the jobs that are suited to your personality and your skill set. When you create a profile on New Force you can take as many skills tests as you like, add them to your personal profile so employers are able to search for people like you based on their criteria. If you fit the brief, they can send you an expression of interest and you can choose to take up the offer or decline. By creating a platform where graduate and entry level job seekers can match with jobs, it removes the need to apply for hundreds of jobs on job boards, and hope that employers notice you out of a massive pool of CVs. If you’re interested to see which employers are currently looking for people with your skills, create a FREE profile today on www.newforce.co.nz. Who knows, you could find the job you’ve always been looking for.

What makes finding a job in 2016 different from finding one in 2006?

High School Musical was the best-selling album that year, Helen Clark was the Prime Minister, and to really put this into perspective; the iPhone didn’t even exist in 2006. (The first generation iPhone would go on to be released a year later in June 2007.) One of the biggest things that has changed in the last 10 years is the way people find jobs. Let’s look at 2016 versus 2006 with a focus on job seeking and recruitment.  Mobile It’s no exaggeration to say that the iPhone and Android have changed the world in a major way. Many of us couldn’t fathom the idea of going a day without our smart phone. Mobile has also completely revolutionised the way people are interacting with their job hunt. Statistics indicate that the majority of online content consumed by people is via mobile. For employer this has huge implications about advertising to their potential candidate pool. All businesses need to have an online mobile presence otherwise it is extremely limiting the way it can do business. Employers need  to be where their audience is and where they are consuming content. Those places are social websites, websites of interest and apps! Uberization The term uberization takes its name from the company Uber which has completely disrupted the global taxi industry by creating a business model allowing private drivers to be paid for providing what is essentially the same service as a taxi. Technology is replacing the ‘middle man’. With the advent of internet and smartphone apps, people and businesses now have the opportunity to instantly connect in way they never could before. An example of a business creating this kind of disruption in the employment sector is New Force. Rather than posting an ad on a job board or in paper you can now search a community of profiles then match with job seekers who fit your exact criteria. These include skills, and location then review their profiles and send an expression of interest. For job seekers in 2006 the job hunt might have involved trawling through hundreds of ads on a job board, or looking at Saturday employments ads in local papers. In 2016, all you need to do is enter your details such as skills and location into a database like newforce.co.nz, then be matched to specific jobs that are suitable for you. Social Networking In 2006 Facebook had 12 million users and looked like this. Today, Facebook has over 1.65 billion profiles of active monthly users who consume content via the website, communicate via messenger and upload and share images via subsidiary Instagram.That is a huge pool of people with endless granular targeting opportunites. For job advertising this means  you can specifically target potential candidates based on the industry they work in, their interest and hobbies, and their location.  Technology is replacing the ‘middle man’. Choice With the advent of technology solutions people now have the ability to more easily find work that matches their skills rather than simply their experience. Emerging players in the jobs sector such as New Force provide a platform for graduates and entry level job seekers to find and match with jobs via a profile that includes their skills and relevant details. Allowing employers and job seekers to match directly based on specified criteria removes the time needed to decipher whether the candidate had the skills and aptitude neccesary to do the job.  Show employers you have the skills to do the job –  Find out how; www.newforce.co.nz

Communication is crucial to any situation, no less for job seeking. But you might be doing it wrong.

"Take a step or two forward, lads. It will be easier that way." These were the last words said by Irish Nationalist Robert Erskine Childers. He was being executed by firing squad. Despite the grim nature of the situation it was a genius example of meaningful communication. What Childers displayed so brilliantly in his final moment is that effective communication is about being interested in others rather than just saying things that are interesting. This is a distinction people generally fail draw when they are trying to communicate. A good comparison is on the profiles of thousands of people using social networking sites. The internet is full of vacuous contributions of continuous nonsense.  People tweeting what they had for breakfast, or posting a video captioned “OMG look at this video of my 18 month old draw a circle”. This kind of communication is limiting. The only way you can respond is with a seemingly redundant “like” or perhaps a comment saying “that is so cute!”. Though it’s easy and you might get a moment of self-gratification following your circle drawing 18-month-old getting 3 likes, it doesn’t achieve much. This kind of communication can only elicit a limited response.  Real and effective communication is two-way. Now think about how this affects you as a job seeker. As someone with a goal you need to understand how what you are communicating is going to prompt the person looking at it to do something. As a job seeker the response you want to prompt from an employer is a positive one. You want an employer to position you in their mind as a potential employee. To do this you need to be effectively engaged with the job you are applying for. You need to be able to give potential employers the ability to see how you will add value to their business. The language you use on your New Force profile should reflect how you add value to the prospective employer’s business. Reflect on your skills tests and how you well you did, where are your strengths and where do you excel?   Then, apply this to your video intro and written bio. Consider how you are communicating this.  Rather than say something limiting such as  ‘I have 3 years accounting experience and am familiar with MYOB’ Consider saying it like this: “As someone who is proficient in Microsoft Excel and has experience using accounting software, I could add real value to your business” The main point is that if you want to be considered seriously you need to go beyond simply trying to be interesting, and actually communicate how your interest in the position relates to your skills and experience. To be an effective communicator you don’t need to write Shakespeare or have the superbly humorous vernacular of a 20th Century Irish Nationalist. We’re all guilty of taking the easy road and just stating what we know, the real value is creating a path for prospective employers to come back to you and stand out from the rest. To learn more or to get more tips and advice, check out www.newforce.co.nz/advice

New Force Quick tip: Social media and job hunting.

95% of graduate job seekers in New Zealand are on sites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram every single day. The advice we usually hear is make it private! Don’t let employers get a chance to see what you get up to outside of work. We’ve all been guilty of a few late nights sadly documented on our Facebook and Insta feeds. Our number one piece of advice is be smart. Social media is all about how you use it. You should share content that highlights your accomplishments and qualifications in a positive way. Highlight things such as travel, graduation, family, and achievements. If you choose to share content publicly on social media, make sure it’s working to your advantage. Facebook and other social media generally allow you to hide individual posts or photos, so anything that could potentially be viewed by an employer as unprofessional should be hidden. If you do want to keep your Facebook personal, then you can develop your New Force profile. New Force allows you to upload a picture, record a video introduction and write a bio so employers can see a 3-Dimensional view of you that they can’t through a CV or job board. For more tips and advice head to New Force.co.nz/advice – to find how we can help you find your first job. www.newforce.co.nz