Talk Up Radio — Boosting your Employability

Like…. fam…. how did you miss our amazing discussion on Nationwide 90 FM this morning about how young people can move from unemployment to gainful employment? We got the top ten tips right here for you!

Talk Up Radio is a youth radio show — led by youth for youth, guided by it’s parent organization’s leader — Emprezz Golding of Talk Up Yout. Each Saturday, a panel of young people sit down together to tackle a youth-relevant topic — from the fun and light-hearted to the serious and globally significant. It’s always a great experience having young people actually sit down to talk through issues together and collaborate to find solutions and a neat by-product of that is the development of a youth community of positive, forward-thinking young people who collaborate in solving problems in their lives and the lives of others. Talk Up Yout is a phenomenal example of the potential young people have to be vital problem-solvers and innovators.
This Saturday the team — led by recurring host of Talk Up Radio Dainalyn Swaby, called in Julian Morrison, a financial adviser, writer and all-round amazing guy, Kristofferson Nunez — entrepreneur extraordinaire and Romar Swaby — one of Kristofferson’s exemplary employees to talk about how young people can boost their employability. And the conversation was so amazing that right throughout the show people called in to say they were taking notes and requested that we rebroadcast the episode.

Here's the Situation:

So here’s some of the *HIGHLIGHTS* from the conversation:

1. If you’re unemployed use that time to build skills through reading, volunteering, internships, networking etc. Use the time to your advantage. Everyone else is busy with their tasks, you have time. Julian:I knew my interest was in Economics so I read everything.
2. Your voice can’t penetrate floors of a corporate building. Represent yourself well. In the market you’re a commodity, you’re not going to go into the market and take up the tomato that looks bad, the same applies to job-seekers. You have to represent yourself well. — Romar
3. So many of us waste time on social media and don’t pursue the area we’re interested in outside of class to become well-versed in the fields we’re interested in. — Dainalyn
4. It starts from being humble and willing to learn and taking feedback. When I did my internship I always asked questions. If you’re doing a bad job don’t take it to heart and say “I’m tired of the job and I want to leave”. — Kristofferson
5. You can’t just put your CSEC subjects on your resume and move on. What does that say about you? It says you can pass a test. — Romar
6. You’re going to reach a place when all of you have good grades. How will you set yourself apart? — Dainalyn
7. Yuh haffi get nuff. Get involved. — Kristofferson
8. When you’re in college, you interacting with the future leaders. Networking with them is important but it must be symbiotic. — Romar

10. So many things happen on campus. Go there. Show up. That’s how you become nuff. — Dainalyn
11. Every professional opportunity I’ve received has been as a result of someone I know. — Julian
12. Links are not a bad thing. If you are creating a business and you know someone who can help you along the way you’re going to choose that person. It’s not about just choosing your family. It’s about choosing the person you know and trust. — Romar
13. The mind is like a battery. If you don’t charge a battery it has no use. — Julian
14. If there’s a speaking engagement and I know the speaker is Julian, I look up Julian online, find their twitter handle, let them know I’m looking forward to their event, and then after the event I walk up to them and connect. — Kristofferson
15. READ. READ. READ. READ. READ. READ. READ. — Julian
16. Practice your craft everyday. It will become muscle memory, second nature. Aim for mastery. And read Mastery by Robert Greene. — Romar
17. And How to Make Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. — Kristofferson
18. When you have a valuable skill and you align your interests, quirks, personality — yuh gawn a road. — Julian
19. The man who does not read is no different from the man who is not able to read — Dainalyn
20. You can do projects. Projects are a major way of setting yourself apart. Projects, skills, theoretical knowledge — when you integrate those three you set yourself apart. It’s the best way to prove working knowledge. Don’t just walk into the interview and say “Mi have a marketing degree like 8000 other people, buss me nuh please?” — Julian


So you know the episode was straight fire. It was epic. Every minute of the episode was filled with solid advice. Make sure you take the time to listen to the full episode:

1. Catch it on our Instagram right now: @talkupyout.
2. Catch it on our website on MONDAY: talkupyout.com
3. Catch it on our podcast on Soundcloud next week: https://soundcloud.com/talkupradioshowpodcast

What advice do you want to give to young people to help them boost their employability? And what topics should our talented team do next?

Written by: Kristeena Monteith, Producer of Talk Up Radio.