binbird

There have been a few posts on here recently about people changing careers etc so I thought I would share our experience with you.

And I apologise in advance – it’s a long one!

We came out here in September 2005. It took us until November to decide where we wanted to settle so by the time the kids were enrolled in school they had a few weeks to start making friends before breaking up for the long holiday. At this stage my hubby decided that he was in no rush to find work so we agreed that he would prolong his “holiday” and start job hunting in the new year as there are not many opportunities in life where you get to spend such a long period with your kids. (We had already spent July – November with them 24/7 and realised that they weren’t actually bad kids! )

Hubby had been with the same financial services company in the UK for 13 years and is a qualified accountant but he really wanted to do something different once he got out to Oz, but without any other experience or skills we didn’t really know what this was likely to be. It’s easy to look at your hobbies, and in his case, these are cars and sport (fairly typical male pass times!) and dream of working in an environment where you would be exposed to these elements. He applied to the Sydney Cricket Ground for a membership and admissions managerial role but missed out on that and there seemed to be very little else about of a sporting nature unless he wanted to retrain as a personal trainer and work in a gym. So, it was to cars that we looked next. All this while he was applying for the “more interesting” (if that is possible!) accountant type roles that he thought might just tide him over until something better came along.

And to cut a long story short, I was married to an accountant but I am now married to a car salesman! Obviously there is quite a big salary differential here as the basic wage is a pittance (compared to his previous salary) but if he can actually sell cars (which is what he has been employed to do after all!) then he has the potential to triple this. So, it may take a couple of months before he is earning at a comparable rate and if it doesn’t happen in a couple of months it will be time to review the situation!

And now on to the coincidences aspect referred to in the thread title.. . .

We have three girls (aged 7, 6 and 4) and our youngest just started school at the beginning of the month so, having settled her, I was beginning to think that I should try and bring some money in again having not worked for 8 years. However, I was keen to still “be there” for my children outside of school. My last job in the UK was for a company that manufactured and distributed medical implants worldwide and I still have a friend who works there. We were chatting via email less than 2 weeks ago and it got me thinking about the company, knowing that they used a third party to distribute their products in Australia. I clicked on the company website and was gobsmacked to find that they have opened their own subsidiary in Australia and it just happens to be less than 20k down the road!!! And yes, they have offered me a job – 20 hours per week.

So, every thing is looking rosy (with or without the tinted specs!!) So, in more ways than one we really do feel that our lives are starting again with this move to Australia.

Binbird (phew!)

Wendy

Aw, that sounds wonderful.

Good luck to you all

binbird

Thanks Wendy and thanks for bothering to read my case of verbal diahorea (or however you spell it!)

mand8002

I think sometimes things are just meant to be. It looks like everything is falling into place for you.

ub40fan

Hey Binbird

Nice to see that things are falling into place for you.

Hope they continue to go from strength to strength.

Shirley x

cheri-pie

Well Done, it nice to hear some happy smiley stories Glad its all working out for you

Out of interest, do you think its possible to keep the kids out of school from leaving here in the summer to the start of the new school year in Australia at end of January? Would they miss much, do you think?

Only asking as I would love to have an extended 'holiday' with the kids when we move. I may be the only one, but I think our kids are great too and love being with them. They are a bit older than your though - around 12 at the time.

Cheers
Cheri x

<")))><

Hey Binbird ! Long time no read. We've been off the board for a while, concentrating on getting life into gear again. We arrived in December. (Mona Vale eh? I know it well by now....on the road to the Northern Beaches where we spend a lot of time. Nice part of the world, mate)

Got a similar story to tell (will bother to write it here one day soon) so it was nice to hear you're alright with the move, and that things are working out.

Good on ya.

Hutch

That's a great coincidence - funny how these things work themselves out

The Johnstons

Glad you've had such a great time with your kids , you sound so happy. You're obviously meant to be there otherwise such good things wouldn't be happening . I hope we're as lucky as you. Hope things continue to get better and better for you. K sent.
TJ

binbird

Thanks everyone for your kind comments. Yes, we're happy! So, it showed!

And another coincidence is that the company I worked for in the UK that now has offices here in NSW only set them up in the last 18 months so it does seem a bit like fate!

cheri-pie - I am sure you could keep your kids out of school (as long as you don't tell anyone! ) but personally I think it has quite a settling effect for everyone to get into the routine that school offers and it really was the first place that the children (and us) started to make friends.

Good luck to everyone else whose move is imminent. I think if you are making the move with a positive attitude then things should all come together for you.

Binbird

cheri-pie

Thanks Binbird

Keep that positivity going

Cheri x

flip

Hi, Sounds lovely but there may be a few things to think about. 1. I'd second binbird's thoughts that it's one of the best ways to meet people and make friends; 2. Academically I'm not sure how the schools compare with English ones but they would probably be learning subjects they've never touched on (like Italian in our case) and the longer they learn them for the better; 3. Do they want to be with you 24/7, especially when some of that time will involve the boring stuff like househunting, car hunting, job hunting, insurance hunting, the list goes on; and you'd probably need to pay babysitters for the times you can't have them with you; 4. Over here the teachers are perfectly happy for you to take them out of school for something special, eg a holiday or visitors so you really can enjoy your kids when you want them.

We gave our daughter a 6 week break (2 1/2 in the UK before we left as we moved to Grandma's 2 hours away, and 3 1/2 over here as we settled in), this was fully negotiated and agreed and she was thrilled how welcome she was made. We then had the time to sort out the little things and everyone was happy.