Announcing Junkee x Vivid Ideas: How To Survive Without A Real Job

The sharing economy. The gig economy. The casualisation of the workforce. The rise of the professional freelancer. The exploitation of the growing ‘precariat’.

It’s likely you’ve read an article or two about how the economy is changing — but it’s more likely you’re actually living it, right now. You might be a freelancer with a radio show, who dabbles in contract work while sub-letting a room out to strangers. Maybe you’re a part-time graphic designer with an idea for a start-up, who teaches part-time at a college. Or perhaps you’re on the verge of making a big decision that might change your entire career path. Again.

Four our 2015 Vivid Ideas Exchange event, we found a whole bunch of people who’ve made it through the new economy their own way: Christiaan Van Vuuren of the Bondi Hipsters; start-up king Tim Fung from Airtasker.com; workforce researcher Sharni Chan (UNSW, USYD); freelance writer, editor and copywriter Kate Hennessy; and columnist/journalist/screenwriter/author — and panel moderator — Benjamin Law.

They’ll be drawing from their varied experiences in the media, tech, corporate, academic and creative sectors, to talk through the job market and how it’s changing — and to offer some vital pro tips on how to get by. How secure are you in your career? Is it okay to juggle a bunch of jobs, or to keep changing your career path? How can you get the most out of changes to the workforce? What should you be wary of? And how can we plan for a future we don’t fully understand?

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CHRISTIAAN VAN VUUREN: Christiaan is a writer, director, and one half of the Bondi Hipsters – but before landing that dream job, he has worked in fast food, retail, as a landscaper, as a credit card salesman, as a steel manufacturing factory manager and, finally, in media advertising sales. A new dad, Christiaan knows all about how hard you have to work without a ‘real’ job – but also how much more rewarding it is to be doing something you love in your own hours.

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TIM FUNG: Tim is co-founder and CEO of Airtasker.com, a community marketplace for people and businesses to outsource tasks, find local services or hire flexible staff in minutes. Tim’s business is this new workplace economy: not only does he facilitate the trading of services with Airtasker, but he himself has a background in start-ups: he was a founder of Tank Stream Labs (a co-working space and entrepreneurial community in Sydney), as well as several web start-ups.

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SHARNI CHAN: Sharni is a sociologist doing PhD research into precarious work among high-skilled workers. In the past decade she has worked primarily as a researcher for the Social Policy Research Centre (UNSW) investigating the NGO labour force: during this time she has also been a researcher at the Workplace Research Centre (USYD), working on the Australia at Work study tracking 8,000 Australian workers over five years. She has campaigned against casualisation in universities (yoga for picket lines, anyone?), taught innumerable undergraduate courses, cleaned Air BnB accommodation and watered people’s gardens in the Blue Mountains.

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KATE HENNESSY: Kate is a freelance writer & editor who’s mastered the ‘feast or famine’ dynamic. She blends lower-paid work in arts journalism, music reviewing, book editing and question-writing for TV game shows with higher-paid jobs in corporate communications, teaching and copywriting. She is well-versed in the personal pros and cons of the ‘precariat’ path and loves to share insights from her decade-long learning curve.

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Moderated by BENJAMIN LAW: Benjamin is a freelance journalist, columnist, TV screenwriter and the author of two books. His work is regularly published in Good Weekend, The Monthly and frankie, and has appeared in over 50 publications in Australia and worldwide. As a full-time freelance writer, Benjamin has never had a proper full-time job with a salary, and splits up his time between writing, public speaking and (occasionally) teaching engagements. He also gets to work from home in his underwear.

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Junkee Presents: How To Survive Without A Real Job

When: Sunday May 31, at 3pm

Where: Vivid Ideas Exchange, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia

Tickets: $15 for students, $20 for everyone else – book here.

For more great events at Vivid Ideas 2014, head to their guide and event planner.

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