This episode is a compilation of three interviews I did with friends of mine from University.
Cooper Harrod is an Associate at Macquarie Group.
Oscar Harper is a Software Engineer at Atlassian.
Alex Von Der Borch is a Graduate Analyst at Deloitte and former president of 180 Degrees Consulting in Adelaide.
During each part of this episode, we speak about different parts of their career journeys.
Skip below to the Important Timestamps to find the parts that most interest you.
Important Timestamps#
03:28 Cooper Harrod on Moving Interstate for work
09:41 Oscar Harper on the SWE Interview
27:14 Alexander Von Der Borch on what makes a good consultant
🤝 Connect With The Guests#
Cooper Harrod - https://www.linkedin.com/in/cooper-harrod/
Oscar Harper - https://www.linkedin.com/in/oscar-harper-adelaide/
Alex Von Der Borch - https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexander-von-der-borch/
👇 Episode Takeaways#
Risk and Reward#
Cooper’s experience is much like my own. Moving interstate, starting a new job and moving out of home all at the same time can be very challenging. However, with challenges comes growth and we both agreed that we have learnt so much through the process.
I really liked his analogy of shooting shots. Moving interstate is an opportunity that you don’t get very often. While you’re young is the best time to take these kinds of risks. For Cooper and myself, it’s certainly been very rewarding.
Failure as Fuel#
Oscar gave great insight into his software engineering interview experience. These interviews are notoriously difficult, Oscar explained his process for studying and how he managed to get into his dream company.
What I liked about this part was how Oscar reacted to failure. He was turned away when applying for an internship and instead of being down on himself, he used his near miss as fuel for getting a graduate job.
It’s an inspiration for us all that even though we may face setbacks, we can use these as momentum to get up and try again rather than giving up.
Take Your Time#
That was Alex’s advice for new graduates. He is a great example of someone that has taken things slow.
Sometimes we can get caught in trying to be as successful as possible as early as possible. What is important is to realise that we are all on our own path and that comparing ourselves to others is a fool’s game.
📝 Show Notes#
00:00 On Moving Interstate, SWE Interviews and Traits of Great Consultants
03:28 Cooper Harrod
03:52 Cooper On Moving Interstate
08:12 Cooper’s Favourite Quote
09:41 Oscar Harper
11:06 Oscar Harper
12:33 Oscar on the SWE Interview
27:14 Alexander Von Der Borch
28:26 Alex on 180 DC
29:35 Alex on Being a Great Consultant
34:24 Alex’s Career Advice
35:58 Outro