May 2014
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self-employed is that I can work
around family-time; the downside
is that you never switch off and you
never stop working.” Kylie’s advice for
anyone looking to make a change: “Do
it! Take the leap! It’s sensational fun.”
Building minds
Tamie Konstas, a mother of three,
faced similar barriers to
continuing her
profession. When
her boyfriend of
five years left
Australia for
a job in Hong
Kong, she
was initially
reluctant to
leave her career
in mechanical
engineering and
follow him. However,
when he popped the question
in 2003, after two years in a long-
distance relationship, Tamie hopped
on a plane for a new life – and new
career – in Asia. “For the two years
between my partner’s relocation and
my own, I looked at engineering
positions in Hong Kong. I was up
against three obstacles. The first was
my relative lack of experience; I was
really in the initial years of my career.
The second and largest obstacle
was that I did not speak the local
language.” The third barrier Tamie
faced was her gender. Engineering is
a male-dominated industry the world
over, but this proved to be a greater
obstacle in Hong Kong than it had
been at home. “I applied for a number
of positions during those two years
– one company misread my name
and clearly thought I was male, but
when they found out I was female, the
correspondence ended abruptly!”
With these three obstacles stacked
up against her, Tamie decided to
investigate different opportunities.
“Although I was initially disappointed
that the qualification I had paid for
and spent years studying for would no
longer be used, I was excited by the
prospect of beginning something new.”
Taking her experience of instructing
Air Force cadets as her inspiration,
Tamie began applying for teaching
positions, and was soon employed
